Side by side: Hunter Laing's Journeys

On a recent visit to @HLaingWhisky's Ardnahoe Distillery on Islay I picked up a little tasting box.

It featured samples from their Journey series - lets see what they are like.

Formed in 1949 Douglas Laing was a whisky blending and bottling firm. Using just handshakes Fred Douglas Laing set up preferred filling programmes with distilleries throughout Scotland - many of these deals remain in place today. When Fred died in 1982 his sons, Fred Jr. and Stewart, ran it jointly until 2013 when, saying they wanted to build a secure future for the next generation of their families, decided to split it up dividing the assets and existing brands between two new companies: Hunter Laing & Co. (Stewart) and Douglas Laing & Co. (Fred).

Both men have children taking on active roles as the third generation of leadership within the family businesses. Stewart's sons Andrew and Scott and Fred’s daughter Cara started taking a more active role in the two companies.

After buying a green field site on Islay in 2016 Stewart build Ardnahoe Distillery which began producing spirit in 2018. Whilst they wait for their own spirit to mature they blend and bottle a range of whiskies including Old & Rare, Old Malt Cask, Hepburn’s Choice and their latest the Journey Series.

The four bottles each tells a story of a journey and feature illustrations by Sarah McMenemy conveying the atmosphere of each location through distinct colour palettes:

Campbeltown: Sunrise on the awe-inspiring coastline of the Kintyre peninsula brings with it a sense of unparalleled optimism. Like this whisky, this is a place which radiates warmth and connotes the sweetness of new life. Light dances on the water and the chilled salt sea breeze coats lips, carrying the promise of something as yet unspoken which lies just ahead. As the sun sets, this isn’t an end but an invitation to embrace a new beginning – a new adventure.

Highland: It is often said that belonging is a state of mind. But there are some places in the world that naturally evoke a sense of belonging more distinctly than others. In the majestic Highlands of Scotland, purple heather covers rugged hills and ice-cold burns cut smoothly through gentle glens. Like this whisky, the Highlands offer an undeniable sense of true tranquillity. In this land of infinite winding paths, each one leads to a place that feels like home.

Hebridean: Setting foot for the first time on the enchanted isles of the Hebrides, there is an unmistakable sense of ethereal greatness. Whether it’s in the tales of ancient civilisations, the staggering monuments that mark the land or the entrancing coastal landscape, the invisible power is as humbling as it is inspiring. The is a whisky dedicated to ancestral wisdom, modern-day secrets and the knowledge that some mysteries will remain forever unsolved.

Islay: The Journey to Islay is not an easy one. Getting there takes time but the island, like its whisky, is worth the effort. We have made this trip for generations and will continue to do so, bringing back some of the best malt whiskies Islay has to offer. To create this outstanding blend of fine Scotch malt whisky we have selected whiskies from the very finest distilleries to be found on the iconic Isle of Islay. The balance of smoothness and complexity of flavour and aroma comes from blending whiskies some of which have been matured in Bourbon hogsheads.

There's no age statement, no named distillery and they are all blends, whisky snobs turn away now, the rest of us who like good whisky - let's explore a little further...

Dram	Campbeltown	Highland	Hebridean	Islay
Characteristics	46% ABV, NCF, Natural Colour	46% ABV, NCF, Natural Colour	46% ABV, NCF, Natural Colour	46% ABV, NCF, Natural Colour
Distillery notes	Fresh, lively and fruity on the nose with pineapple, orange, honeysuckle and vanilla pods. Very clean and sweet on the palate with a touch of lemon meringue pie and honey. The sweetest of oak lingers softly on the finish.	A golden coloured whisky with a robust, full bodied nose of rich, sweet aromas such as vanilla custard, fudge, toffee apples and puff candy. Creamy and buttery on the palate it is initially sweet before developing with vanilla custard powder, apricots, peaches and pears like a fruit salad. A relatively short finish – sweet with hints of oak and nuts.	On the nose we are immediately transported to the rugged Hebridean isles off Scotland’s west coast, with a wonderfully zesty, coastal brininess. A gentle peat smoke on the palate, ripe apples, malted barley and a touch of seaweed. A long, satisfyingly warming finish calls us back for another sip.	The aroma of this Blended Malt Whisky is redolent with notes of smoke, ash, and tar, whilst in the mouth there are pungent notes of peat, brine and seaweed.
My thoughts:
Appearance
	Light gold in the glass, swirls cling, form beads and fall as slow thick legs.	Light gold in the glass, swirls cling, form beads and fall as slow oily thick legs.	Light gold in the glass, swirls cling, form large beads and fall as slow thick legs.	Light gold in the glass, swirls cling, form beads and fall as slow thick legs.
Nose	Salinity to start followed by tropical fruit: pineapple, mango, a little banana; and some citrus hints. Vanilla and toffee follow along. I think we're on the Scotia side of town!	Gentle smoke to start, a little orchard fruit: pear, apple, peach; caramel, vanilla and a hint of dried fruit - some sherry cask in here maybe?	Huge peat smoke notes to start, a little salinity, some tropical fruit with hints of citrus and vanilla. Burnt rubber and marzipan point me towards a young Ledaig.	Again peat smoke, a little more salinity but much drier and spicier: BBQ fish, cinnamon, cloves and pepper. There is a little citrus zest and some vanilla here too.
Palate	Sweet arrival: honey, brown sugar and toffee; then the spice and salinity kicks in assaulting the tongue. There's some huge lemon notes here too - dry bonbons with icing sugar. A little marzipan and malt as the liquid disappears - nice!	Another sweet arrival, no salinity and only a hint of spice - this one is all about orchard fruit: apples, pears, peaches; there's some dried fruit, a little citrus too. Vanilla custard coats the mouth and before a little nip of peppery spice as the liquid disappears.	Again a sweet arrival, tropical fruit, honey and salted caramel mix before a blanket of peat smoke featuring engine oil, rubber and coal dust. There's a little salinity, some peppery spice and a hint of sour citrus as the liquid disappears. Yummy!	Dry apricot to start, a little salinity, gentle peat smoke and liquorice. The citrus zest from the nose is here along with a drying icing sugar note. Honey and a gentle cinnamon spice linger on the tongue as the liquid disappears.
Finish	Long, dry and fruits with a little salinity, citrus zest and spice.	Medium length buttery toffee, citrus and peppery spice.	Lingering spice, citrus, smoke  and vanilla toffee.	Short, sweet and spicy with lemon zest and smoke.
Overall	These are all blended malts, but how much of a blend we don't know - maybe only a teaspoon of something else? Take the Campbeltown Journey for example - there are only 3 distilleries - I think this is probably made up of a lot of Glen Scotia and a teaspoon of Springbank or Kilkerran? As a whisky geek I really need to know the exact percentages, ages, cask types etc but that isn't really what these drams are all about - they are NAS blends, very reasonably priced and easy to drink. We can make guesses at where they are from and how they were matured but I doubt we'll find out - so why not just enjoy them! Each of these is a good introduction to some of the Scottish whisky 'regions' and at around £35 a bottle well worth a try. I'd put them in order of Hebridean, Campbeltown, Islay and Highlands. Enjoy the Journey!