Introduced as some of the mist striking-looking bottles in Scotch whisky, last year we were please to discover that Rest & Be Thankful also had some of the most alluring whisky inside as well.

RBT is the single cask bottling arm of Fox Fitzgerald, one of the most respected sourcing and marketing companies in Scotch whisky. The brainchild of Eamon Jones and Aidan Smith, they worked with Bruichladdich on their famous rebrand and the early RBT casks were from that distillery’s stable – often with casks of Port Charlotte and Octomore who very few else could get their hands on.

Since then the label has evolved into a fully-fledged indie bottler, sourcing casks from brokers and distilleries at maturity that they deem worthy of the label.

Rest & be Thankful was the inscription on a stone place by soldiers at the top of Glen Croe in 1753; the climb through the valley is so long and steep that it as traditional for travellers to rest at this point for having completed the climb.

In their own words, “Rest & Be Thankful whisky company do not just bottle the finest rare single malt whiskies from the best distilleries; they bottle a state of mind that allows the drinker to experience the same feeling of bliss and contentment felt by those weary travellers all those years ago.”

The Oak Barrel will be hosting a tasting dedicated to these single casks for the first time this coming August, in the lead up to Sydney Whisky Fair. A tasting hosting by The Oak Barrel and importers Baranows, we’ve hand-chosen some of our favourite 2018 releases and mixed them in with a few from the archive.

In the list is one of the best Tomintoul’s we’ve ever experienced, a 22-year-old Tormore (pictured above), a rare appearance from the Allt-a-Bhainne distillery and a scorching wine cask Octomore.

In the lead up to the sold-out Sydney Whisky Fair 2018 The Oak Barrel will be hosting a number of ‘Fair Masterclasses’. These will provide an opportunity to get up close and personal with brands and distilleries, with plenty of time to mull over drams and ask plenty of questions. We run them as satellite events so you’re not drawn away from the tables during the main event and so you have plenty of time with each whisky without the allure of other shiny things!

What we’ll be drinking:

Tomintoul 1995 22-Year-Old
Tormore 1995 22-Year-Old
Arran 1996 18-Year-Old
Allt-a-Bhainne 1995 21-Year-Old
Ledaig 1997 19-Year-Old
Octomore 2009 6-Year-Old (Pauillac Cask)

Plus another surprise from a previous outturn…

WHAT: Rest & Be Thankful Whisky Tasting
WHERE: The Oak Barrel, 152 Elizabeth St, Sydney 2000
WHEN: Tuesday 14 August, 6.15pm for a 6.30pm start
PRICE: Members $45 / Non-Members $55
TICKETS: SOLD OUT

The latest in our ‘An Evening With’ series of local Australian distillers is something close to our heart and literally close to The Oak Barrel. Based in Mudgee, in our state’s gorgeous Central West Nathan Williams of the Baker Williams Distillery will be presenting whisky, gin, wildcards and more in an extensive, exhaustive tasting evening.

After successful appearances at our Sydney Craft Spirits Fair in the previous two year, the release of their very first whisky this year – The Lachlan – has prompted this masterclass dedicated to the distillery. Mudgee is renowned as a small-but-awarded wine region, with over 40 family-owned cellar door set ups. Hidden away behind one of them is a very special cellar door, home to the region’s only distillery.

In their formative years Baker Williams – owned by wife-and-husband duo Helen Baker and Nathan Williams – took a scattergun approach to their products. Not allowing themselves to be boxed into a category, they’ve distilled whisky, gin, brandy, rum and vodka from the outset. From that they’ve also created a released a number of liqueurs which have gone from cellar door favourites to staples on our shelves here.

Welcoming Nathan into our tasting room here at The Oak Barrel, which he’s quite familiar with now, we’ll be going through the story behind the distillery, the successes and struggles of opening a small distillery in Australia and where they’re heading from here (hopefully there’ll be some barrel samples to explore that last idea).

Tickets are strictly limited and this will be one night only.

In the lead up to Sydney Whisky Fair 2018 The Oak Barrel will be hosting a number of ‘Fair Masterclasses’. These will provide an opportunity to get up close and personal with brands and distilleries, with plenty of time to mull over drams and ask plenty of questions. We run them as satellite events so you’re not drawn away from the tables during the main event and so you have plenty of time with each whisky without the allure of other shiny things!

What We’ll Be Drinking:

Baker Williams Lachlan Whisky Cask Strength
Baker Williams Lachlan Whisky 50%
Baker Williams Wildcard 50%
Baker Williams XLCR Gin
A selection of other Baker Williams products and cask samples

WHAT: An Evening With Baker Williams Distillery
WHERE: The Oak Barrel, 152 Elizabeth St, Sydney 2000
WHEN: Wednesday 1 August, 6.15pm for a 6.30pm start
PRICE: Members $25 / Non-Members $35
TICKETS: SOLD OUT!

It’s a brand new Sydney Whisky Fair season so it seems fitting to launch our first lead-in masterclass with an independent bottler brand new to the Australian masterclass.

Just touched down on our shores, in very limited quantities, we’ve secured a range of drams from the Creative Whisky Company which we’ll be cracking and sharing with you at The Oak Barrel Wednesday 11 July. As part of the night we’ll be sampling single casks from Laphroaig, Ardmore, Glen Keith, Dailuaine (pictured above) and an undisclosed Orkney distillery (we’ll let you guess). On top of that, we might (read: will) throw in some surprises along the way.

Although new to Australia, the Creative Whisky Company has been around since 2005. The project of David Stirk, he founded the business as the global brand ambassador for Highland Park job seemed out of reach. In the proceeding decade-and-a-bit Stirk has established himself as a renowned whisky expert, advisor and author.

We’ll be opening the range of whiskies here in Australia, which will be launched for The Oak Barrel on the night (we’ll only have a handful of each to sell).

In the lead up to Sydney Whisky Fair 2018 The Oak Barrel will be hosting a number of ‘Fair Masterclasses’. These will provide an opportunity to get up close and personal with brands and distilleries, with plenty of time to mull over drams and ask plenty of questions. We run them as satellite events so you’re not drawn away from the tables during the main event and so you have plenty of time with each whisky without the allure of other shiny things!

This Creative Whisky Company tasting will be hosted by importer Wonderland Drinks’ Scott Farrow and The Oak Barrel’s Dailuaine enthusiast Scott Fitzsimons.

 

Above image a guide, different expressions have landed in Australia

On pour:

Ardmore 18-Year-Old ex-rum cask, 56.4%
Laphroaig 12-Year-Old refill hogshead, 56.2%
Dailuaine 10-Year-Old sherry cask, 55.6%
Glen Keith 23-Year-Old ex-bourbon cask, 52.8%
Orkney 15-Year-Old refill sherry hogshead, 56.7%

Plus one or two more surprises from the Creative Whisky stable on the night.

WHAT: Creative Whisky Company Launch Tasting
WHERE: The Oak Barrel, 152 Elizabeth St, Sydney 2000
WHEN: Wednesday 11 July, 6.15pm for a 6.30pm start
PRICE: Members $45 / Non-Members $55
TICKETS: SOLD OUT

It’s time to announce the first big piece of exciting news for the 2018 Sydney Whisky Fair: we’re coming home.

Run by leading independent bottle shop The Oak Barrel, the Fair’s spiritual home is our extensive tasting room and warehouse space at the rear of the CBD store.

As announced in January, we remain on our traditional date, the last weekend in August, as we have for a number of years.

Our 2018 Venue: Locked In

We’re back to where it all began this year, utilising the many tasting room and warehouse spaces of The Oak Barrel, on Elizabeth St in Sydney’s CBD and near both train and bus stops. It’s our spiritual home and the location of some of our best memories.

Last year we expanded back up to Australia Hall, a theatre located above the store. It is unavailable this year undergoing renovations and repairs. Investigating all possibilities and horizons for this year’s event, we spoke to a number of nearby venues in recent months about relocating the show.

It became clear that to move to an external location Whisky Fair would have to change.

The logistical and financial implications would force us to either raise prices considerably or increase our capacity significantly. While we have no issue with letting more people in, Sydney Whisky Fair has always been about the rare, the exclusive, the new and the small. We would risk losing what makes Whisky Fair special if distillers and bottlers were suddenly forced to pour beyond their means of these small, something incredibly so, releases.

Instead, we’ve decided to invest in our own space – more space, more air conditioning, more lighting and more atmosphere. We hope to reveal some special features in the lead up to Fair.

What Does It Really Mean?

In real terms, it means that the 2018 Sydney Whisky Fair will be more exclusive than ever. A reduced capacity from 2017 to ensure by necessity and to ensure the event is the best it’s ever been. We ‘re dedicated to keeping Fair as Australia’s favourite whisky event.

We’ll be upgrading our intimate tasting space are and dedicating more of The Oak Barrel’s floor space to the 2018 event. You’ll stand shoulder-to-shoulder with distillers, importers, bottlers and whisky fans from all over the country.

The Oak Barrel’s loyal member base will again be given priority for tickets, ensuring that those who have long supported local, independent bottle stores receive another thank you from us. Specifics on the ticket release date and members pre-sale will be announced next week.

Some pictures below from the 2016 and 2015 events downstairs by Jonathan Walczak.

The dates for the 2018 Sydney Whisky Fair have been confirmed, with Australia’s favourite whisky event remaining in its traditional last weekend of August.

Full details of the event will be revealed in the coming months, with tickets likely to go on sale June-July.

Sydney Whisky Fair will take place Friday 24 and Saturday 25 August.

It will be the eighth year of the event, see the photos from 2017 here.