Mystery Shopper Awards 2017

I entered the branch and went through a glass door, to an area where fresh cigars were being made. I was greeted by the female member of staff who smiled warmly, said hello and asked how she could help me. I said a friend's sixtieth birthday was coming up and I wanted to buy him something special. I said he liked whisky, but I was not too familiar with the drink, and wanted some advice on the best product to buy him. She asked if I knew what type of whisky he liked, and I said I was not sure, but I had been offered some whisky from the Isle of Skye once, so perhaps that was his favourite. She said that he must prefer a peaty type of whisky, and I said it had been quite peaty, and was not to my taste, but he said he enjoyed it. She said that was fine, and she would ask a member of staff to help me. She made a phone call, and explained about my request, and she said that one of their whisky advisers would be coming to see me. I thanked her, and the male member of staff approached, smiling warmly and said he understood I would like some advice on a whisky for a present. I said that was right, and he invited me to accompany him. He unlocked a room with shelves of various bottles of spirits and asked me if I had any preferences of whisky. I explained that I would like a nice whisky, but I did not know much about it.He said that I had mentioned the isle of Skye whisky, and asked if I had a price in mind. I said I had not and would like to see what was available. He asked what flavours my friend liked, and if he liked smooth, sweet or peaty flavour. I said I was not sure, although I had had a peaty whisky once when visiting me, but would like some advice on what to choose.

He said that was fine, and showed me a bottle of Kilherran and said my friend may know of it. I said I was not sure, but he said it used to be known as Glengyle. He said it was known as the newest, oldest distillery, as it dated back to 1872, was closed down in 1925 and re-opened in 2004. He said it had oak notes, followed by citrus and orange peel flavours and then almost a Christmas pudding taste of cherries and marzipan. I said I thought it may be something he would like and he said, at £56.99, it was excellent. I said I thought the bottle looked a little plain for the price and it did not look very special. He advised me that to a whisky enthusiast it would be, as there were only 9,000 bottles available worldwide. He also offered a Lady of the Glen Bunnahabbain26 year old whisky, priced at £169. I said I liked the look of it, but thought it was very expensive, and he said it was one of only 205 bottles. I said it would almost be too rare to drink, and he said that a lot of collectors only bought the whisky as an investment, and he had invested himself in two rare bottles which although he would have loved to drink, he was not going to, as he was keeping it for his nephews to help their future, maybe going on to university.He said it had oak notes and salted caramel, ripe bananas, honey, dark chocolate and leather notes, and lingering notes of coffee and cigar. I said it would be worth thinking of for a special gift.

He said there was also the Chapter 7, which again was a limited edition, which was a great investment at just £107.99, and they had bottle number 42. He explained that they did not keep the same recipe, and each bottle was completely different, and as an investment and also a lovely drink, it would be worth considering. I said I was amazed by the choices and thought that the collection was incredible. He said they were very proud of their service and range, and was pleased I liked it. I asked if they ever held whisky tasting events, and he said they did. He said they could hold them here in the room, depending on the numbers. He told me that he held informal tastings as well as events. I asked him what the informal tastings were, and he said it was just one or two people. He said I could look on their facebook page for the events, or I could contact him for an informal tasting.

I said it would be lovely to sit and enjoy the whisky in the room, and he said it was, but if people wanted to smoke and enjoy a cigar with their whisky, then they could, as they had a room where people could smoke. He said it would not allow cigars in this room, as it was too small, and if people wanted a tasting but without the cigars, then that was also available. I asked him the prices, and he said the informal tasting was £15, and the events were £20. He said he really enjoyed holding tastings, and that he never sampled the same whisky twice, as people would not learn about the whisky. He said he always included a selected whisky of his own choice that people would have not tried before, I said it sounded lovely, and he said he thoroughly enjoyed the tastings, as he also learnt from the comments other people shared about their experiences.He advised that contrary to popular belief, whisky should never be drunk in a wide tumbler, as the alcohol and flavours evaporated, and in fact it should be drunk in a special glass. He showed me one and said it was wider at the bottom for the flavours, but narrower at the top to retain the taste. He said they never washed them in a dish washer, as a dirty glass destroyed the quality of the whisky, but instead hand washed them, and finished them with a polish from newspaper to create the sparkle. I said that was really interesting and I would never have known it. He also explained about the other various drinks they had, including Skin Gin, which I said I had never heard of, and he explained it could be drunk neat or with a premium tonic water, and had a lovely passion fruit and citrus flavour. He said they had the lovely Diplomatico Venuezuelan Rum, which he liked to enjoy neat, or with one of their Columbian coffees, the Dictador coffee. I said I liked rum and he gave me a sample to try. He said it had a sweet treacle flavour, followed by cherries, shortbread, and the sweet milk chocolate flavour reminded him of the original Cadbury's Roses strawberry cream, and I agreed and said it was lovely.

He asked if I would like to buy one of the whiskies, and I said I would, and would just have a think about which one I was going to choose. He said if I ever needed any more information, then to just call in. I thanked him for all his time and great knowledge, and he said it had been a pleasure, and he hoped to see me again, maybe at a tasting. I said I would certainly be considering it now as part of my friend's present. He thanked me for calling and wished me a good afternoon. I thanked him, asked him the town centre questions, said goodbye and left.

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