· Blended Whisky
The blending of whiskies was a necessity of the times as the fiery whiskies of the highlands were at best unpredictable and inconsistent. A young general provisions merchant by the name of John Walker was one of the pioneers in the art of blending whisky. He started blending whiskies in the early 1800's and soon found that it took more than a few different single malts to achieve a smooth tasting blend. It wasn't long before his blends were sold throughout the town of Kilmarnock and the surrounding area. From the beginning John Walker's blends achieved a great reputation, which quickly spread throughout Scotland and eventually to England. Johnny Walker Red & Black are blended with nearly 40 different single malts and the Gold is made from 15 single malts.
|
Red Label |
|
|
Black Label 12 year old |
|
|
Gold Label 18 year old |
|
|
Blue Label 25 year old |
|
|
Johnnie Walker Swing |
|
In 1841 James Chivas took over the merchant store in which he was working and took on a partner Charles Stewart. The two partners started blending whiskies until the partnership dissolved in 1857. James and his brother John then formed Chivas Brothers, their new blends; Royal Strathythan 10 year old, Magna Carta and Loch Nevis 20 year old were introduced and soon orders flooded in from all over the British Empire. James' son Alexander took over the business until his tragic death at the age of 37. The business was then taken over by his former clerk Alexander Smith and his partner Charles Stewart Howard. They promptly set about to make the worlds most famous blend; Chivas Regal.
|
Chivas Regal 12 year old |
|
|
Chivas Imperial 18 year old |
|
|
Chivas Royal Salute 21 year old |
|
|
Chivas Century a blend of 100 single malts |
|
|
Chivas Revolve a rare bottling |
|
| 
