Glen Moray single malt Scotch whisky has announced a partnership with the award-winning chef and food writer Ben Tish, to celebrate the origins of some of its most popular cask finishes.
The new ‘Cask Stories’ campaign will dive into the world of wood to explore the importance of cask flavour and character in creating Glen Moray’s Port, Sherry, Madeira and Fired Oak expressions.
Ben, who is the Culinary Director of London’s Norma Restaurant and Stafford Hotel, has a long held passion for the food and flavours of Mediterranean and Moorish regions.
He has created a delicious selection of easy to make tapas dishes and cocktails – inspired by each Glen Moray whisky, the cask it is finished in and his extensive travels exploring the culinary traditions of Porto, Jerez and Madeira. And as a barbecue expert, Ben has also created an option to match the smoky, charred flavours of Glen Moray’s Fired Oak expression.
Food and drink fans will be taken on a journey through Glen Moray’s ‘cask hotspots’, as Ben shares stories of his favourite bars, restaurants and dining memories, and the creative spark behind each tapas dish and drink.
Ben’s long standing head sommelier Julien Hennebelle has collaborated with him to create four long, refreshing Glen Moray cocktails – perfect for summer drinking and packed with flavour to pair perfectly with each tapas dish.
Ben and the Glen Moray team will be sharing stories, recipes, cocktails ideas and a series of films over the summer, with Instagram live events planned for August. Ben commented: ‘I’m really excited to be working with Glen Moray and developing Mediterranean inspired recipes to match these brilliant whiskies. I’ve loved Mediterranean food for years and my latest book Moorish focuses on the regions that are covered in the Elgin cask series. The flavours of the whisky are clear and fresh – perfect for my style and a pleasure to work with. Some great summery cocktails too, from our bar man and sommelier Julien.’
Glen Moray’s UK Sales Director Claire Baigrie added: ‘Glen Moray is one of the most adventurous malt whiskies available and we have always pushed the boundaries when it comes to the casks we use for maturation. Our new partnership with Ben is a way to really explore and celebrate these flavours, and the wonderful results of our new make spirit meeting seasoned casks from different parts of the world. Ben is an absolute expert in the places where our casks originate and we are thrilled to have him tell our cask stories to food and drink lovers. This is an invitation to come with us on a journey to learn more about flavour and to enjoy whisky in a way that really breaks down the barriers of how and when single malt whisky should be enjoyed. At a time when summer holidays to these regions are limited, we hope Glen Moray fans will enjoy the ride!’
Port Cask Finish
Mussels with cinnamon, lemon, marjoram, bay and migas. Lightly steamed mussels with fresh, spicy and citrusy flavours to complement the Port Cask whisky’s notes – topped with crispy ‘migas’ breadcrumbs which are a Portuguese staple.
The Lossimonatta: a light, refreshing blend of Port Cask Finish, the juice of red berries, cherry liqueur and lemonade, served over ice and inspired by the River Lossie running next to the Glen Moray Distillery.
Fired Oak
Cumin rubbed grilled pork pinchos with almond alioli
A sweet, smokey barbecued street food that works with the deep charred flavours of Fired Oak whisky
The Elgin Fizz: a refreshing summer combination of smoky Glen Moray Fired Oak, spicy ginger liqueur and sweet sparkling apple juice, served over ice.
Madeira Cask
Roasted peaches with orange flower honey, mascarpone, pistachios
Madeira has the most wonderful peach varieties, and the sweet caramelised peach juices and aromatic honey are a great match for the Madeira cask’s flavours.
The Whisky Rose Julep: an exotic, full-flavoured combination of Madeira matured whisky, rose syrup and fresh mint, served over ice.
Fried courgette flowers, goats cheese and honey
The combination of rich, salty cheese and sweet honey works perfectly with the Sherry Cask’s notes. Reminiscent of the fried flowers served in every Spanish tapas bar over the summer months.
The Oloroso Breeze. A long, delicious Mediterranean style drink, mixing Glen Moray Sherry Cask Finish, sherry vermouth and sparkling San Pellegrino Bitter – served with a slice of orange.
BEN TISH
Ben Tish is the Culinary Director of London’s Norma Restaurant and the Stafford Hotel, and is established as cooking at the forefront of the modern tapas scene. At the Stafford Ben oversees the hotel’s food offering including the Game Bird restaurant, the American bar and private dining. In September 2019 he opened the critically-acclaimed Norma – a Sicilian-Moorish influenced restaurant on London’s Charlotte Street featuring a bespoke raw bar serving Sicilian style crudos,
Classically trained with over 20 years’ experience, Ben spent his formative career working with Michelin starred chefs such as Jason Atherton and Stephen Terry at various ground breaking London restaurants. He went on to head up his own operations at the Italian restaurant Al Duca in St James, London, and the Crinan Hotel in the West Highlands. More recently he was Chef Director and Partner of the Salt Yard Group – a group of 5 highly-acclaimed modern Spanish / Italian restaurants in Central London.
Ben is also an accomplished and award winning food writer with three published cook books. Moorish, his last book, was published in April 2019 and was named cook book of the year in the Times Magazine. Ben will publish his fourth book SICILA in Summer 2021. He appears regularly on TV including Saturday Kitchen, Sunday Brunch, and Masterchef and writes for Delicious, The Guardian, The Telegraph, The Times, Noble Rot, Restaurant Magazine, Chef Magazine, and other publications.
