Tastes

Nose is darker than the standard 12 year with dried figs, clove, and black pepper. The palate punches you in the teeth with unexpected spicy pepper flavors, but the spiciness quickly fades to the sweetness of orange marmalade and caramel apple. The sweet flavors flow into a long finish with molasses and brown sugar, similar to a spiced rum.

Sweet coconut, cream, and orange peel on the nose. Palate is oily and sweet with vanilla, baking spices, and malt. A pleasant finish which lingers with more cream. This is a solid 12 year old whiskey, but it’s priced above better options like Green Spot, in my opinion.

Nose has honey, similar to a highlands malt, along with raisins and florals notes. Palate is oily and sweet with spices, green apple, and dark chocolate. Black pepper and a little bit of smoke on the finish. An enjoyable dram for sure, but not too dissimilar from Chivas 18, which is about 1/3rd the cost.

I’ve always been intrigued by American single malts and I wish they were as popular as their corn based cousins. So, I always try to take the opportunity to taste a new one. The nose is light with beeswax, vanilla, and lemon. The palate is very sweet with vanilla wafer cookies, honey, and cream. There are some darker flavors like toffee and chocolate before the finish, which turns spicy, leaving you with a long, slightly tart, black pepper flavor. This dram is very reminiscent of a highlands scotch, and every bit as complex. If you enjoy Dalwhinnie or Deanston I can confidently recommend this.

I like the royal blue label with gold lettering. It looks great in front of the dark caramel brown liquid. In the glass, the liquid looks more like coffee than whisky and is thinner than I expected. The nose is spicy on the first pour, but becomes calmer as the bottle aerates. The nose is floral and fruity, with raisins, figs, and brown sugar. You can also find spearmint and dried cherries. The palate also has some floral and fruity notes, but is lead by darker notes of coffee grounds, leather, dark chocolate, and black pepper. The finish is very smooth and long with a rich chocolate malt flavor. This is a good value for the age, and I can recommend the 23 and 24 year old as well.

The nose is smokey with honey in the background. On the palate you get sweet peaty smoke, green apples with cinnamon, and brine. The finish is long and creamy with tobacco and caramelized bacon. This is a delicious whisky that has a good balance of sweet a savory.

The nose is heavy with iodine, brine, and campfire. On first impression this is easily identifiable a peated Islay malt. Palate is initially sweet with salted caramel and toffee before being overwhelmed by ash and brine. The finish is long with lots of salt and some leather. A very impressive malt given the price point. There are some flavors reminiscent of Ardbeg and Caol Ila, but I would say this is most similar to Laphroaig. If you enjoy peated scotch this is a great bottle to pick up.

This lowland malt feels thick in the glass and looks natural with its light yellow color. The nose is dominated by an earthy aroma with some dried fruit, butterscotch, honey, and lemon zest. More earthy flavors on the palate along with honey, pear, vanilla, and oak. Finish is oily with malt and some spice that stays on your tongue. If a peated Islay is the perfect malt for the dark of winter, this earthy scotch is more suited for a spring day.

The nose is dark with black licorice, root beer, cinnamon, sweet pears, and orange peel. The palate is lighter and slightly medicinal with toasted oak, more cinnamon, and black pepper. The black pepper carries into the long finish where it is joined by some peat smoke. This is one of Oban’s great malts with unique flavors you don’t find anywhere else. I do think I prefer the Little Bay over this, but they share many characteristics.

The nose is clean and bright with sweet fruit, peaches and cream, dried cherries, vanilla, honey, flowers, and sweet oak. As enjoyable as the nose is, the palate is even stronger. At first the palate bursts with strong sweet flavors of candied apples, star fruit, and salted caramel before brine, sea water, char, and a little dark chocolate begin to overpower the lighter flavors. As the sweetness fades, the sea salt and brine become stronger and control most of the finish. But the sweetness returns again at the end of the long finish with more peaches and cream giving this malt some great contrasting flavors and complexity. Really a beautiful scotch, just another gem from Islay.