It's the most diverse, unusual, variable, interesting, delicious beverage on the planet. One could drink two drams a day for the next 50 years and never discover all there is to taste, smell and savour.
Quite salty and tart, loose and light. I think this whisky would have been better bottled at a higher strength. It's got a nice bitter sour grapefruity note that is quite refreshing. Excellent on ice, but you have to drink it quick - it doesn't dilute well.
Balblair 10 yo Distillery Labels, Gordon & Macphail Single malt - North Highlands Pale green 43% ABV Sampler
Nose: Salt, leather, brown paper, raisins, cloves, plums. Mouthfeel:Medium body, thickens, slippery, oily. Tasting: Sweet salty. Vanilla, brown paper, leather, raisins, dates, prunes, plums, hints of pineapples. Finish: Long. Brown paper, dates, prunes, vanilla.
Comments:
Young, but tastes old! Lots of dried fruit, not as fresh and as tangy as the official Balblairs are, although there is still a nice tart hint of pineapple. Instead, this whisky is sweet, vanilla-laden, and slightly briney. Verdict:I like this.
SMWS 29.83 (Laphroaig 20 yo 1989/2010) 2010, SMWS Single malt - Islay Brown 52.3% ABV Dram
Nose: Smoke, cream, vanilla, oranges, honey, grilled pork, hints of raisins, hints of oatmeal. Mouthfeel:Medium body, syrupy, smooth, tingly. Tasting: Bitter. Vanilla, oranges, smoke, honey, raisins, black pepper, cloves, hints of grilled pork. Finish: Long. Black pepper, smoke, honey, walnuts. Comments:
Not as sweet as I thought it would be. Instead, there's a nice spicy, tingly peppery bite, with a meaty, tasty feel on the tongue. Laphroaig is one of those whiskies that takes sherry finishing really well, and it's hard to go wrong when I find one.
Very tart and citric, turning spicy on the tongue. It's not like other Rosebanks, much less sweeet, with the lemons really coming through. There's an overtone of limes as well, which isn't something I've encountered before in this type of whisky.
Glencadam 25 yo 1982/2007 Authentic Collection, WM Cadenhead Single malt - East Highlands Golden 51.2% ABV Sampler
Nose: Leather, iodine, lemons, malty beer, sea salt, molasses, hints of raisins. With water, sweeter, less leathery and salty, pears, magic marker appear. Mouthfeel:Medium body, tingly, warm, thickens. Tasting: Sour salty. Honey, leather, iodine, vanilla, cream, oats, raisins, hints of molasses. With water, sweeter, more cereally and oaty, raisins really come to the fore. Finish: Medium. Hot, lemons, iodine, leather, sea salt. Comments:
Throat-tickling, and salty cereally when neat, but takes water pretty well. I added more than a splash, way beyond my usual two dribbles, and it opened up a lot - much sweeter, a little more like Juicy Pear jelly beans, and more fruity too.
Quite a chemical bitter nose, but this gives way in the mouth to bitter sweet sour flavours reminiscent of Coke. With water the nose unfortunately doesn't improve, turning a bit cardboardy, but in the mouth the whisky gains fragrance and spice. A strange one.
Kilchoman Autumn 2009 Release Official bottling Single malt - Islay Bronze 46% ABV Sampler
Nose: Peanuts, peat, dates, honey, smoke, butterscotch, hints of soy sauce, hints of mint. Mouthfeel:Medium body, slippery, turns watery. Tasting: Bitter sweet. Peat, dates, honey, butterscotch, peanuts, mint, hints of fish sauce. Finish: Short. Oats, dates, cream, peat. Comments:
3 years old, finished for 3 months in a sherry butt. Sweet, like the new make spirit, this time with hints of savoury notes. The date and butterscotch comes through very strongly, cutting through all that peat.
Connoisseur's Choice, Gordon & Macphail Single malt - East Highlands Yellow gold 40% ABV Dram
Nose: Peanuts, mushrooms, lemon zest, lemon sweets, orange juice, hints of chillies. Mouthfeel:Light body, watery, loose. Tasting: Sweet sour. Mushrooms, lemon zest, limes, orange juice, chillies, red peppers, hints of oranges. Finish: Short. Peanuts, mushrooms, limes, red peppers. Comments:
Quite musty and fungal at the beginning, although this is soon joined by spicy, sweet, citrusy notes. A very brisk whisky, hurries the drinker along, and pretty soon, is all gone...
Connoisseur's Choice, Gordon & Macphail Single malt - East Highlands Amber 40% ABV Dram
Nose: Raisins, caramel, plums, prunes, green apples, roses, hints of leather. Mouthfeel:Medium body, loosens, slippery, slightly watery around the edges. Tasting: Sweet. Raisins, caramel, plums, prunes, green apples, roses, honey, hints of leather. Finish: Medium. Chillies, honey, plums, prunes. Comments:
Something like Chinese sour plums, reminds me very much of Oban 14 yo, except that Oban whisky is saltier. This is more fragrant, and more caramelly sweet. Quite tasty.
Rare Malts, official bottling Single malt - Speyside Golden 59.4% ABV Dram
Nose: Vanilla, white grapes, molasses, pineapples, coconut cream, apple juice, hints of limes. With water, sweeter, notes of honey, orange peel appear. Mouthfeel:Medium body, thickens, syrupy, smooth. Tasting: Sweet sour. Apple juice, pineapples, coconut cream, white grapes, walnuts, black tea. With water, sweeter, notes of honey, molasses, orange peel appear. Finish: Long. Walnuts, black tea, apple juice. Comments:
Coleburn single malt is as rare as hen's teeth, but I was lucky enough to find two in a single session! This one is thick and fruity, like a pina colada, except that it fades to bitterness, slightly tannic, at the end. Great indeed.
A drink fit for the gods! Tastes very much like mead, perhaps a little less heavy on the honey, and loads more fruit. Extremely good whisky, delicious as an aperitif.
Authentic Collection, WM Cadenhead Single malt - Speyside Pale amber 59.8% ABV Sampler
Nose: Malty beer, leather, brine, peanuts, black pepper, hints of iodine. With water, more fragrant, honey, marmalade, hints of molasses. Mouthfeel:Medium body, slippery, loosens, smooth. Tasting: Sweet salty. Peanuts, black pepper, cardboard, vanilla, salt caramel, leather, brine. With water, sweeter, more vanilla, custard, marmalade. Finish: Long. Iodine, salt caramel, peanuts, vanilla. Comments:
I don't often drown my whisky in water. Even the 70%+ (!) whiskies that I've had needed a touch, or two touches, from my water jug. This one, however, improved a lot with a large slug of water. It was a better dram at around 40%, or just under, than at nearly 60%. Maybe they took it out of the cask too early...
Light and floral, with a nice herbal, vegetal something that reminds me of gooseberries laced with ginger wine. Refreshing, something to sip while relaxing at the bar, waiting for someone to show up.
In my book, any distilled spirit made using malted grain mash, where you can still taste the grain. That means malt whisky, grain whisky, bourbon and new make spirit, single, blended or vatted.