My vision for my Lighthouse Series project was a flavour bomb of a coffee liqueur, using a spirit base of rum distilled with spices and botanicals specifically chosen to enhance and complement the coffee flavour.

Crafting an experimental whisky mash bill is where tradition meets imagination. Before the barrel, before the still, before even the fermenter starts to bubble, there is a question: What story do I want this whisky to tell?

This got me thinking: there’s a plethora of content on the internet around what “Scotch Whisky” is, but not so much of a peek behind the curtain to show what a typical distillery needs to provide in order to be allowed to use that protected term.

Scotch Whisky can only be matured in casks and barrels made from oak. Lucky for us, this isn’t as limiting as you might think.

Very notably a rum, it has that telltale butterscotch sweetness, but is married harmoniously with those buttery croissant notes from its time in whisky casks – and at 40% ABV, it’s not intimidating or overpowering.

I have to admit that Peated versions of Scotch Whisky have never been to my liking and I quickly assumed the role of devil’s advocate against the premise; however, through many compelling points and frankly, some sampling, I found myself convinced that we could make it work.

It became very clear to us that talking about how to drink our spirits was all well and good, but what we really needed to do was show our customers how to drink our spirits. Enter our Cocktail Events...