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December 9, 2016December 5, 2016

24 drams till Christmas 2016 #9: Glen Keith 1992 21 years by Archives

Dram data:
Distillery: Glen Keith
Bottler: Archives
Distilled: 10.1992
Bottled: 03.2014
Age: 21 years
Limitation: 218 bottles
Casks: Bourbon Barrel 120599
Alcohol: 51,5%
unchillfiltered and uncoloured
Whiskybase link

Another “first” for the blog – I can hardly believe I’ve never officially tasted a Glen Keith before?

Tasting notes:
Colour: light gold
The nose opens on the sweet and fruity side, but with a lightness to it at the same time! Sweet oranges, a hint of wax, sweet fruits (grapes, apricots, mangos) and light vanilla dominate the initial impression. We’ve got an ex-bourbon fruit bomb here! As time passes, the aromas get more complex and richer, the fruits get darker, with an almost jammy/syrupy aspect to them. Let’s see what the palate has in store! Continue reading “24 drams till Christmas 2016 #9: Glen Keith 1992 21 years by Archives”

December 8, 2016December 5, 2016

24 drams till Christmas 2016 #8: Yellow Spot 12 yo Single Potstill Irish Whiskey

Dram data:
Distillery: Midleton
Bottler: Mitchell & Son
Distilled: –
Bottled: ca. 2015
Age: 12 years
Limitation: –
Casks: Bourbon Barrels, Sherry Butts & Malaga Casks
Alcohol: 46%
unchillfiltered and uncoloured
Whiskybase link

We’ve had a few Scottish and a German Whisky so far – how about an Irish whiskey next?

Tasting notes:
Colour: orange
The nose opens with notes of ethanol, cookies and citrus fruits – freshly cut lemons, limes and green clementines. Some essential lemon oil too? Green apples, pears and pineapples provide an additional fruity-acidic note. After a while the citrus notes transform into oranges, the apples turn red, a dash of honey appears along with a trace of cinnamon and there’s a hint of vanilla and a faint trace of fragrant oak. On to the palate! Continue reading “24 drams till Christmas 2016 #8: Yellow Spot 12 yo Single Potstill Irish Whiskey”

December 7, 2016December 4, 2016

24 drams till christmas 2016 #7: Bruichladdich Octomore 10yo 2nd edition

Dram data:
Distillery: Bruichladdich
Bottler: original bottling
Distilled: 21.12.2005
Bottled: 31.10.2016
Age: 10 years
Limitation: –
Casks: Ex-bourbon, Grenache Blanc
Alcohol: 57,3%
unchillfiltered and uncoloured
Whiskybase link

We’ve taken a look at the new 10yo Bruichladdich and the new Port Charlotte – now it’s time to taste the new 10 yo heavily peated Octomore!

Tasting notes:
Colour: dark reddish gold
The nose starts off with… smoke, smoke, smoke, smoke and more smoke. Just as with the new 10 yo Port Charlotte it is a campfire-type, fragrant smoke, not the “usual” phenolic, iodine south-coast Islay smoke. Did I mention smoke? And soot! And wet smoke from a fire being extinguished with water. Give it a few minutes and – ah – oh, there’s more than just smoke now! A dense, layered sweetness – smoky marmalade and mixed fruits jam (including strawberry) – paired with fresh ginger, black pepper, cinnamon, cloves, a slice of lemon and a pinch of nutmeg. An almost perfect marriage of smoke, smoke and smoke with fruits, sweetness and spices. Very good indeed. Let’s see what the palate has to offer! Continue reading “24 drams till christmas 2016 #7: Bruichladdich Octomore 10yo 2nd edition”

December 6, 2016December 4, 2016

24 drams till christmas 2016 #6: Old Pulteney 12 yo

Dram data:
Distillery: Pulteney
Bottler: official bottling
Distilled: –
Bottled: 2014 (L14 338)
Age: 12 years
Limitation: –
Cask: –
Alcohol: 40%
chill filtered and coloured
Whiskybase link

After thoroughly enjoying a (blind) dram of Old Pulteney 12 yo during a dinner in Speyside earlier this year, I just had to get a bottle and taste it again in my usual, controlled setting. Let’s find out of it lives up the earlier pleasant experience!

Tasting notes:
Colour: gold
The nose is surprisingly aromatic and rich, starting out with blood oranges, dried pineapple and light vanilla. Building upon those, there is a fruity sweetness (peach and apricot juice mixed with ice wine?), tinned tangerines and lychees, white chocolate, a very delicate spicy note (fresh fennel and pickled ginger?) and a faint trace of salt spray. A mix of sherry and ex-bourbon casks, I presume, but active and good wood. This is very good, much better than expected of an entry-level whisky at 40% ABV! Loads going on, yet not overwhelming for beginners. I really hope the palate can keep up with that! Continue reading “24 drams till christmas 2016 #6: Old Pulteney 12 yo”

December 5, 2016November 30, 2016

24 drams till christmas 2016 #5: Bruichladdich Port Charlotte 10yo 2nd edition

Dram data:
Distillery: Bruichladdich
Bottler: original bottling
Distilled: 30.08.2006
Bottled: 27.10.2016
Age: 10 years
Limitation: –
Casks: Ex-bourbon, sherry, Tempranillo, French wine
Alcohol: 50%
unchillfiltered and uncoloured
Whiskybase link

After kicking off the “24 drams till christmas” series with the new and improved Laddie Ten, it’s about time to take a look at the new 10-year-old heavily peated Port Charlotte as well!

Tasting notes:
Colour: reddish gold
The nose is… ah so familiar! The gentle side of the Islay peat monsters – if those peat monsters can be gentle, that is. A huge hit of peat smoke on first nosing, but more on the peat campfire side, rather than the phenolic south-coast Islay drams. But there’s much more than just peat and I like how this is not slaughtered by overly active casks. Lurking behind the peat we’ve got sweet dark fruits (the odd fig and plum come to mind), light vanilla, toffee, dry red wine, grape seeds, aniseed, cloves, one single mint leaf, caramel candy, a mineral note and a pinch of salt (wet stones on the shore, perhaps?). Lots and lots going on, a very tight mixture of very subtle notes. I’ve never tried the old PC 10, so no comparison to that, but it noses slightly different and more multi-faceted than some other editions I’ve tried. Less in-your-face, more lighter, subtle characteristics. Continue reading “24 drams till christmas 2016 #5: Bruichladdich Port Charlotte 10yo 2nd edition”

December 4, 2016December 4, 2016

24 drams till christmas 2016 #4: Arran 1996-2013 17 yo Bourbon cask #547

Dram data:
Distillery: Arran
Bottler: official bottling
Distilled: 17.06.1996
Bottled: 10.09.2013
Age: 17 years
Limitation: 202 bottles
Cask: Ex-Bourbon (barrel?)
Alcohol: 52.4%
unchillfiltered and uncoloured
Whiskybase link

One thing I like about the Arran distillery is their twice-yearly release of official single cask bottlings at very affordable prices. This is one of them – from a few years back. What intrigued me to buy it back then was the extremely dark colour for an ex-bourbon whisky…

Tasting notes:
Colour: amber
The nose is perhaps not the most typical Arran profile, thanks to the “freak cask”, but it’s certainly a good one! Right off the start we’ve got a light citrus on caramel and almost smoky toasted chocolate-covered toffee with creme brulee (now that’s a first for me, don’t beat me up about the spelling, please!). There are also tropical fruits – dried mango and papaya with lychees but also apricots and physalis. A hint of oak and slight cask spices in the background. Light-ish, as is the Arran style, but sophisticated and fruity, very nice! On to the palate! Continue reading “24 drams till christmas 2016 #4: Arran 1996-2013 17 yo Bourbon cask #547”

December 3, 2016November 30, 2016

24 drams till christmas 2016 #3: Slyrs 12 yo

Dram data:
Distillery: Slyrs
Bottler: official bottling
Distilled: 2003*
Bottled: 2015*
Age: 12 years
Limitation: 2000 bottles
Casks: fresh american oak
Alcohol: 43%
unchillfiltered(?) and uncoloured
Whiskybase link
*no info on the sample bottle, it could either be the first or second batch

After tasting a less than stellar 3 yo whisky from the Bavarian distillery, I’m putting high hopes in this very expensive and collectable 12-year-old dram. Let’s check it out!

Tasting notes:
Colour: amber
The nose starts out extremely rich! Different league than the aforementioned 3 yo bottling! Not your usual whisky, though, a distinctive style you could not mistake for a Scottish whisky (which is good, because why should you make whisky that tastes like Scotch in Bavaria?). Rich oak! I couldn’t find any official info on it, but I’d be surprised if it was anything but virgin american white oak casks. This could almost be a well-aged high-malt mash bill, potstill bourbon! Charred oak, vanilla, tannins, ginger, cinnamon and cloves up front, with caramel and toffee sweetness, Werther’s Original, Ricola cough lozenges and a whiff of a new Bavarian cowboy boot (Oh come on, you’ve made that one up!). Very oak-driven, but not too oaky. At the same time there’s also a lightness and freshness on top – you can tell this is not old whisky, but a younger distillate from fresh casks. Let’s check the palate! Continue reading “24 drams till christmas 2016 #3: Slyrs 12 yo”

December 2, 2016November 29, 2016

24 drams till christmas 2016 #2: Strathisla 2005-2015 by Gordon & MacPhail

Dram data:
Distillery: Strathisla
Bottler: Gordon & Macphail
Distilled: 2005
Bottled: 16.12.2015
Age: ca. 10 years
Limitation: –
Casks: first fill sherry hogsheads
Alcohol: 43%
chill filtered(?) and uncoloured
Whiskybase link

That’s only the second Strathisla I’ve reviewed for the blog – let’s see if this independently bottled 10 yo from Gordon & MacPhail’s “distillery labels” series has an edge over the official 12 yo!

Tasting notes:
Colour: dark straw (exactly what it says on the leaflet.. I didn’t cheat, I swear!)
The nose starts off a wee bit shy and on the sweet side. First fill sherry hoggies? I wouldn’t have guessed that from the first nose. Well, all right, dry, light sherry, perhaps, because that’s what the nose says after a while. American oak, too. Vanilla, custard, faint traces of dry sherry, green apples and pears, apple peel, rhubarb and donut glazing with a splash of citrus in it. Faint traces of oak. Well… light and nice enough but not the “usual” heavily sherried style of Strathisla. On to the palate! now! Continue reading “24 drams till christmas 2016 #2: Strathisla 2005-2015 by Gordon & MacPhail”

December 1, 2016November 28, 2016

24 drams till christmas 2016 #1: Bruichladdich Laddie Ten 2nd edition

Dram data:
Distillery: Bruichladdich
Bottler: original bottling
Distilled: 26.07.2006
Bottled: 27.10.2016
Age: 10 years
Limitation: –
Casks: Ex-bourbon, sherry, French wine
Alcohol: 50%
unchillfiltered and uncoloured
Whiskybase link

The “24 drams till Christmas” blog series is back – and so is Bruichladdich’s “Laddie 10”, after a two-year absence on the shelves due to a lack of stock. Is there any dram more fitting to kick off this year’s Christmas countdown?

Tasting notes:
Colour: honey gold
The nose is undeniably that of a laddie dram. Light in style yet sophisticated with immediate notes of citrus fruits, tinned tangerines, lychees and pomegranate. A light perfume note, too. Or is that chewing gum? Hubba bubba, perhaps. In the background we get grapes with skins, dry French red wine (I know it says so on the label, but it’s apparent), red berries (brambles, elderberries) with cream and a mixture of different oak spices. I don’t have an old bottle of laddie 10 open at the moment, but while it is recognizably a laddie dram, the French oak and wine cask influence are apparent, more apparent than my memory of previous batches before the temporary discontinuation. Continue reading “24 drams till christmas 2016 #1: Bruichladdich Laddie Ten 2nd edition”

November 23, 2016November 23, 2016

Tasting: Chivas Regal 18 yo blend

Dram data:
Distillery: – (Blend)
Bottler: Chivas Brothers Ltd.
Distilled: –
Bottled: 2015
Age: 18
Limitation: –
Casks: –
Alcohol: 40%
chillfiltered and coloured
Whiskybase link

The bog standard Chivas Regal 12 yo blended Scotch is being quaffed in unbelievably huge quantities all around the world, but then there’s also the older, and more expensive, yet still affordable sipling (about 50€ at the time of writing), the 18 yo. I’ve never tried it – about time I did so, I guess…

Tasting notes:
Colour: E150a-caused dark red-orange hue
The nose starts off light enough with an unexpected dominance of light alcoholic notes, but there’s more lurking in the background. Lots more, a very dense, interwoven nasal experience and malt-dominated, as is to be expected from a blended whisky in that price range. Honey, vanilla, sweet fruits (mango, apricots, peaches, sweet grapes, honey melon, lychees and many more) paired with palm honey, old spicy grain whisky, a light grassy note and a pinch of mulled wine spices. Background notes are provided by a layer of fragrant, but not overwhelming oak. Very well put together, complex yet light enough to be mass-compatible. Nonetheless, it’s able to speak for itself, not just a base for a mixer! On to the palate now! Continue reading “Tasting: Chivas Regal 18 yo blend”