Uploaded April 2022 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
"In single malt whisky, consistency is a fickle bedfellow"
Me. Ad nauseum.
We are no longer in the wild and unpredictable days of mid-nineteenth century malts when Usher et al chose to blend them locally for their own take on a consistent profile. These days, things are a lot tighter and generally a lot more consistent. Unless they're not.
As enthusiasts, we don't really care quite so much these days about batch variation. In fact, it's part of the enjoyment; to contrast and compare malt-by-malt, profile-by-profile, batch-by-batch. Unless we can't.
Because for every release that displays the batch (I'm not talking about difficult-to-read-or-decipher etched-on, or dot matrix inked-on bottle codes here - rather proper on-the-label indicators) there are a dozen or so more that simply don't make any mention, confident that they've been successful in their task of keeping things pretty spot on and near identical. Unless they didn't.
Even if they think "this is the closest we can get this time" that, currently, doesn't warrant mention on the bottle.
So, rather than line up those who do and those who don't, why it's good and why it's not so good, I should just talk about the challenges therein; scale, brand priority and attitude, target market and expectation, technicalities of labelling and management of inventories as well as all the shifting variables such as barley, season, cask quality and undulating depths of stock and much, much more. Unless I can't.
Because it's just me. I'm an enthusiast and I don't work in whisky production.
But, in Dingle's Graham Coull we have a man who is perfectly placed to do just that. Sure, at Dingle there have been clear and dedicated batches, almost like chapters of a work-in-progress. More recently they've also released their larger-scale Single Malt - so a nice comparison. But with Graham's pedigree of working in two previous distilleries in the powerhouse of large-scale production in Speyside, he has the perfect background to consider all the challenges and considerations faced.
So, if he'll let us, I'd like to do just that. Yet also take a little time to talk to him about the contrasts of working in Scotch vs Irish and his experiences in whisky thus far. A fascinating night awaits and I hope I'm joined by many of you who celebrate getting their geek on too. Unless you don't.
Still, I'd love to welcome you there.
0:00 - Opening
2:30 - Welcoming in the Whisky Folk & Barflies
7:39 - Limburg Festival recap
13:35 - Intro to Topic of Batch Variation
14:15 - Examples of 'opaque' batches
18:00 - Somewhat decipherable batches
21:53 - Releases that promote their batch status
29:20 - Welcoming in Graham Coull
35:59 - Who is Graham Coull? & Wm. Grants career.
49:40 - Moving to Glen Moray
53:48 - What's in the glass? Beer & malt!
58:55 - Glen Moray's growth & that Chardonnay cask
1:03:55 - Moving to Dingle in Ireland
1:08:15 - Exploring the reasons for batch variation and the challenges to manage them
1:45:00 - The bin fire starts as the Aqvavitae internet connection explodes
1:46:00 - Graham does a great job of sharing useful chat while I'm trying to douse the fire
1:46:39 - The tin can and string solution lasts only a few minutes
1:53:30 - The second explosion takes out Aqvavitae completely.
2:01:48 - Graham shares his collection (Roy still out cold)
2:04:45 - From hereon in it's the Graham and Fay show! Brilliant!
2:09:47 - Roy returns on oxygen, sticking plasters and sellotpae.
For the first time since November 2017, there's no Quiz at the End. In the end, there was only a vPub thanks to the humility, good humour and class of Graham & Fay!
Link to whiskycorner interview : whiskycorner.co.uk/2021/06/11/interview-graham-coull
"In single malt whisky, consistency is a fickle bedfellow"
Me. Ad nauseum.
We are no longer in the wild and unpredictable days of mid-nineteenth century malts when Usher et al chose to blend them locally for their own take on a consistent profile. These days, things are a lot tighter and generally a lot more consistent. Unless they're not.
As enthusiasts, we don't really care quite so much these days about batch variation. In fact, it's part of the enjoyment; to contrast and compare malt-by-malt, profile-by-profile, batch-by-batch. Unless we can't.
Because for every release that displays the batch (I'm not talking about difficult-to-read-or-decipher etched-on, or dot matrix inked-on bottle codes here - rather proper on-the-label indicators) there are a dozen or so more that simply don't make any mention, confident that they've been successful in their task of keeping things pretty spot on and near identical. Unless they didn't.
Even if they think "this is the closest we can get this time" that, currently, doesn't warrant mention on the bottle.
So, rather than line up those who do and those who don't, why it's good and why it's not so good, I should just talk about the challenges therein; scale, brand priority and attitude, target market and expectation, technicalities of labelling and management of inventories as well as all the shifting variables such as barley, season, cask quality and undulating depths of stock and much, much more. Unless I can't.
Because it's just me. I'm an enthusiast and I don't work in whisky production.
But, in Dingle's Graham Coull we have a man who is perfectly placed to do just that. Sure, at Dingle there have been clear and dedicated batches, almost like chapters of a work-in-progress. More recently they've also released their larger-scale Single Malt - so a nice comparison. But with Graham's pedigree of working in two previous distilleries in the powerhouse of large-scale production in Speyside, he has the perfect background to consider all the challenges and considerations faced.
So, if he'll let us, I'd like to do just that. Yet also take a little time to talk to him about the contrasts of working in Scotch vs Irish and his experiences in whisky thus far. A fascinating night awaits and I hope I'm joined by many of you who celebrate getting their geek on too. Unless you don't.
Still, I'd love to welcome you there.
0:00 - Opening
2:30 - Welcoming in the Whisky Folk & Barflies
7:39 - Limburg Festival recap
13:35 - Intro to Topic of Batch Variation
14:15 - Examples of 'opaque' batches
18:00 - Somewhat decipherable batches
21:53 - Releases that promote their batch status
29:20 - Welcoming in Graham Coull
35:59 - Who is Graham Coull? & Wm. Grants career.
49:40 - Moving to Glen Moray
53:48 - What's in the glass? Beer & malt!
58:55 - Glen Moray's growth & that Chardonnay cask
1:03:55 - Moving to Dingle in Ireland
1:08:15 - Exploring the reasons for batch variation and the challenges to manage them
1:45:00 - The bin fire starts as the Aqvavitae internet connection explodes
1:46:00 - Graham does a great job of sharing useful chat while I'm trying to douse the fire
1:46:39 - The tin can and string solution lasts only a few minutes
1:53:30 - The second explosion takes out Aqvavitae completely.
2:01:48 - Graham shares his collection (Roy still out cold)
2:04:45 - From hereon in it's the Graham and Fay show! Brilliant!
2:09:47 - Roy returns on oxygen, sticking plasters and sellotpae.
For the first time since November 2017, there's no Quiz at the End. In the end, there was only a vPub thanks to the humility, good humour and class of Graham & Fay!
Link to whiskycorner interview : whiskycorner.co.uk/2021/06/11/interview-graham-coull
