Bowmore: Islay's First Licensed Distillery

In 1779 a local merchant, John Simpson established the Bowmore distillery although local knowledge suggests distilling actually started almost 10 years prior. In 1837 the Mutter family led by twins William and James purchased the distillery from the Simpson family. After 50 years of owning the B...

Tuesday 15 September, 2020

Why is Gin Suddenly so Popular?

Gin is the drink everyone is enjoying these days but why? Walking down the alcohol aisle of supermarkets there is all kinds of gin on the shelves with all kinds of flavours, it seems to be the new trend at the moment. People can’t get enough of the stuff! So what happened to make Gin the cool ...

Thursday 07 May, 2020

Why Buying Miniatures Could Be Worth It

A lot of people (myself included) have always wanted to get into whisky drinking but can't bear to spend that kind of money on a drink that you may not like. I’ve always had sips of other people’s whisky and found out that i didn't like it but i never let it put me off, after all...

Tuesday 07 April, 2020

Cask Strength Whisky

I’d say this is a great time to be thinking about cask strength whisky. If you are not familiar with them, that’s ok, we’re always here to help.  For the most part it is self explanatory. Whether it be a single cask bottling or a vatting of many casks, the alcohol percentag...

Monday 06 April, 2020

Dunnet Bay Distillers

One of our favourite gin distilleries is all the way at the top of Scotland. Dunnet Bay Distillers, who creates the absolutely delicious Rock Rose Gin, is located in the village of Dunnet and is only three miles from the most northerly point in mainland Britain. This is a beautiful and wild landscap...

Monday 06 April, 2020

Paul John - a Proper Indian Whisky

John distilleries was established in India in 1996 by Paul P John, his personal passion for single malts led him to create his own and within ten years he had already started shipping overseas. After intense research he was able to create premium single malts using native ingredients, Goa became his...

Saturday 21 March, 2020

High Coast Whisky

An interesting distillery to say the least! One of just under 20 distilleries making whisky in Sweden, but only 1 of 2 large enough to have whisky on the market. High Coast and Macmyra. Bringing all that northern Sweden has to offer into a fantastic whisky offering! Started distilling in 2010 as ...

Thursday 19 March, 2020

The Orcadian

Usually when people think of Orkney whisky, it’s almost always Highland Park that comes to mind. Now that isn’t a bad thing, we just want to change that and put the wonderful Scapa in the forefront of people’s minds. The other Orkney distillery is not near as big, nor do they put o...

Monday 16 March, 2020

Top 5 Rums to Recommend

Here at C.Gars we have a brilliant range of rum available, but here is my top 5 rums I recommend you should try... Diplomatico Reserva A fabulous smart looking Venezuelan rum, distilled from molasses in a copper pot still before 12 years of ageing. Diplomatico Reserva Exclusiva is one of the m...

Saturday 07 March, 2020

What is Peated Whisky?

Peated whisky is given a smoky flavour by compounds which are released by the peat fires used to dry malted barley. That is the short answer but there is a lot more to it than that. Peat is created by the accumulation of water in boggy areas which slows down the decomposition of plant materia...

Friday 06 March, 2020

Springbank Distillery

Founded in Campbeltown, Springbank Disillery is one of the most traditional distilleries still operating today, they have seen many others come and go whilst they retain their continued success to this day. Springbank Distillery has been operating since 1828 by Archibald Mitchell becoming the 14th l...

Wednesday 26 February, 2020

Who is Johnnie Walker?

When I was growing up sitting round the TV watching Formula one was regular sunday, one thing I had always noticed was at every race there was advertising boards but one in particular always caught my eye, Johnnie Walker. I always asked my Dad who Johnnie Walker was but he never gave me an answer, h...

Monday 24 February, 2020

An American Whiskey Cheat Sheet

Some people aren’t fully aware of the differences in American whiskey, so we thought we’d put together a little cheat sheet of info. It’s one of those things where a lot of people still refer to all whiskey to come from across the pond as, Bourbon. Where as all bourbon is whiskey b...

Thursday 13 February, 2020

What Difference Can A Whisky Cask Make?

By law the only ingredients allowed in scotch are malted barley, water and yeast, caramel colouring can be added for colour. Due to this a lot of whisky can taste the same so the cask and the length of time it is held in the cask is what can make each whisky distinctive from the competitors. Matu...

Tuesday 11 February, 2020

Perfect Cocktail Pairings for Cigars

Pairing a cigar with a beverage of choice is a fine art, one which is not always easy to get right. It can be a case of trial and error to find what tickles your taste buds as not all palates are alike. It is often common to pair a cigar with your favourite dram of whisky or a strong coffee, but hav...

Monday 10 February, 2020

Barton 1792 Distillery

Barton 1792 Distillery This distillery has been producing some of the best whiskey out there. Sitting right in the middle of bourbon country, you will be getting a true taste of what bourbon should be. Established in 1879, continues today as the oldest fully operating distillery in Bardstown, Ken...

Friday 07 February, 2020

The Different Whisky Regions

The single malt whiskies of scotland are separated by different regions in scotland, just like fine wines of the world. However just because they are in different regions does not necessarily mean it has a completely different flavour, It is more to do with the old taxation system more than anything...

Thursday 06 February, 2020

What is Bourbon Whisky

Growing up I've always wondered ‘what is bourbon and why is Jack Daniels proud not to be a bourbon whisky?’    For a whisky to be Bourbon there are certain laws in place, this stops any distillery from claiming their whisky is bourbon.  To begin with bourbon must...

Thursday 06 February, 2020

5 Great Scottish Single Malts for Beginners

If you have anybody in your life that wants to get into the world of single malt scotch or like me who has a friend that is stuck on the bog-standard blends, this is a list for them. These may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it is a good place to start. Too many people are not aware of these...

Wednesday 05 February, 2020

Suntory whisky - The history

The history In 1923 founder Shinjiro Tori had a vision,to create a subtle yet complex Japanese whisky that would enhance the Japanese dining experience.  Shinjiro was inspired by Scottish highland whisky however decided that Japenese approach would work, this included changing the terrain...

Friday 31 January, 2020

The Difference Between Whisky and Whiskey

  The spelling of this well-loved spirit has been debated over the course of history between different countries. In short, the spelling Whisky is associated with Scottish distillers and the Irish added the ‘e’ to make it Whiskey. ‘Whisky’ is usually used for whi...

Monday 27 January, 2020

The Perfect Burns Night Gift Ideas

Burns Night is a Celebration of the life of the Famous Scottish Poet, Robert Burns who was born on 25th January 1759. Burns was the creator of many well-known Scottish poems, including by far his most famous; Auld Lang Syne, which we still sing in celebration of the New Year today! Burns ...

Friday 17 January, 2020

Buffalo Trace – An Affordable Award-Winning Bourbon

Buffalo Trace is a beautiful bourbon which is aged, distilled and bottled at the most award-winning distillery in the world, located in Franklin County, Kentucky, USA. Their distillery has won the ‘Distillery of the Year’ award an amazing seven times! This whisky is made from the fine...

Thursday 28 November, 2019

Hine Cigar Reserve Cognac makes a welcome return!

CIGAR RESERVE XO COGNAC Although  you may notice that there has been several changes to the design and packaging, you may rest assured that the liquid within remains true to the original blend created by Bernard Hine and Nicholas Freeman, late Chairman of Hunters & Frankau. Between t...

Wednesday 29 May, 2019