Tastes
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Glenmorangie The Original 10 Year
Single Malt — Highlands, Scotland
Reviewed October 20, 2019 (edited October 28, 2019)Color is pale straw, clear, likely chill-filtered. Low to medium viscosity. Nose is weak, with hints of black pepper and some vanilla on the back. For some reason I get a fresh cucumber smell as well. Palate is reasonably smooth for a 10-year, sweet, with balanced citrus, raisins, almonds, vanilla, butterscotch, and oak. Finish is medium and pleasant, with more sweetness and fruitiness. A few drops of water in this 43% ABV dram mellow its character but don’t seem to add much in terms of additional flavors. I’d skip water on this one. Overall, very pleasant dram for a 10-year old. Not too complex, but very much enjoyable. Considering the price (was bought as part of the $99 Costco package) well worth the money. -
Glenmorangie Lasanta Sherry Cask Finish 12 Year
Single Malt — Highlands, Scotland
Reviewed October 20, 2019Color is gold, but it’s likely artificial. Medium to high viscosity, clear, likely chill-filtered. Nose is moderate to low intensity, with black pepper, vanilla, and some caramel. Palate is rich and sweet, with raisins, sherry, vanilla, and oak. Finish is medium but sweet and fruity. You can definitely tell the sherry cask influence. Some water in this 43% ABV dram somewhat dulls it. It tames it quite a bit and presents less of everything. Finish shortens quite a bit as well. I wouldn’t add water to this one next time. Overall, this is a rich and sweet dram for sherry lovers. It’s not too complex, but it presents well and is quite enjoyable. Was a part of the 3 bottle package at Costco for $99. Well worth the price. -
Glenmorangie Quinta Ruban Port Cask Finish 14 Year
Single Malt — Highlands, Scotland
Reviewed October 20, 2019 (edited October 22, 2019)Reddish color, viscous, clear, likely chill-filtered. Nose is moderate, with hints of rose, raisins, vanilla and a bit of tobacco. Palate is smooth and rich, sweet, with hints of chocolate, vanilla, oak, sherry, and a bit of lemon zest. Finish is medium-length, with a touch of bitterness and floral in character. A touch of water in this 46% ABV dram opens additional sweetness and fruitiness. Aftertaste gains more citrus notes and becomes longer. Water definitely makes this one more round and well-balanced. Overall, it’s a pleasant dram, reasonably rich yet not too difficult, with a definitive port influence. Part of a 3-bottle collection bought at Costco for $99. Definitely worth the money. -
Straw color, a bit hazy, medium to low viscosity - something you would expect from a relatively young non-chill-filtered and non-colored dram. Nose is rich with charcoal peat (hey, it’s Ardbeg after all), briny notes, and a bit of a sweet floral character way on the back. Palate is rich with intense smoke, vanilla, oak, and sherry-like sweetness. After that initial sip your nose gets more used to smoke, and more fruit notes start to appear with some apple, caramel, and vanilla rounding the dram. Aftertaste is long and dominated by smoke. This time is gains more medicinal and iodine character. A few drops of water in this 46% ABV whisky dampens the smoke and opens more floral sweetness. Hints of lemon zest also start appearing. The finish becomes less intense and a bit more balanced. Overall, this is a pleasant dram for peat lovers. It has all the character of a classic 10-year Ardbeg with a bit more sweetness that compliments it quite well.50.0 USD per Bottle
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Dewar's Double Double 32 Year
Blended — Scotland
Reviewed September 30, 2019 (edited August 22, 2020)Beautiful natural amber to copper color, non-chill filtered, very viscous, and oily. Nose is mature and complex, starting with a hint of smoked sprats in oil, mature oak, a hint of vanilla, and raisins on the back. Notes of dried grass and an old wooden house somewhere deep in the forest in the middle of fall keep coming to mind. The palate is complex, mostly sweet yet with a slight bitter oaky note, and aromas of figs, apple, raisins, vanilla, butter scotch, and lemon zest all playing well together in a beautiful symphony. You can definitely sense the influence of the sherry here. Finish is medium length, mostly vanilla and raisins, but the very last note is still that smoked oily fish that occurred on the initial nose. A few drops of water in this 46% ABV dram opened even more fruity character, but the oiliness and richness remain. Finish also gained more citrus character along with some apricot notes. Overall, this is a very complex and super smooth dram, well worth the money to try. Bought this one at Costco for $139 (375ml).139.0 USD per Bottle -
Johnnie Walker Green Label 15 Year
Blended Malt — Scotland
Reviewed September 21, 2019 (edited April 21, 2020)Artificial gold color and clearness of the chill filtration can both be found in this dram. Nose is delicate, not very strong like you would expect from a 15-year-old whisky, with notes of black pepper, vanilla, a bit of oak, and smoke on the back. Palate is smooth, with sweet and sour notes in perfect harmony, taste of raising, figs, caramel, butter scotch, oak, vanilla, honey, sherry are all intertwined with a bit of smoke. This is for sure not dominated by Talisker and Caol Ila but you definitely feel their presence and they do add a nice layer of complexity. Sweetness of the speyside malts is the base of this complex dram. Finish is smooth and sweet, with raisins, apricots, and caramel, and a hint of lingering smoke on the back. A few drops of water in this 43% ABV dram opens more fruit and sherry character, although in my opinion this whisky is already very well balanced. Overall, it’s a very nice and complex dram that nevertheless has a distinct Johnnie’s character. It’s a blended malt that is not overpowered by its more smoky components and strikes a perfect balance between sweetness and complexity. I wish they would have left artificial coloring and chill filtration aside in this one, it definitely deserves to be honestly presented. -
Pale straw color, barely yellow. Clear, chill-filtered, with light viscosity. Nose is weak, with hints of vanilla, oak, and some fruit on the back. Palate is very smooth and light, with fresh apple, pear, touch of caramel, honey, and a hint of meadow flowers. Finish is short dominated by sweetness. A few drops of water do very little for this 43% ABV whisky but maybe somewhat intensify sweetness. Overall, this is a very easy dram that does not really impress in any particular way and lacks complexity. It may be OK for $30, but I’d rather get the Monkey Shoulder if on a budget.30.0 USD per Bottle
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Bunnahabhain 12 Year
Single Malt — Islay, Scotland
Reviewed September 10, 2019 (edited November 28, 2019)Natural golden color, viscous, not chill filtered. Nose of this whisky is not powerful, but I would not call it delicate either. It’s somewhat sulfury, with aromas of bread, cabbage, eggs, with some black pepper on the back. After a few minutes, notes of oak and vanilla, but not very powerful. Palate is surprisingly fruity, with a sweet character, some raisins and butterscotch, and a more powerful vanilla and oak. Finish is medium, with more fruit and oak notes, finishing with a slight bitterness and a hint of figs. A few drops of water in this 46.3% ABV whisky make it a bit more fruity and round, with a sweeter finish. Overall, not a bad dram, but in my opinion lacks complexity, especially on the nose. -
Glenlivet 14 Year Cognac Cask Selection
Single Malt — Speyside, Scotland
Reviewed September 8, 2019 (edited March 15, 2021)Color dark gold (artificial coloring?), viscous, and clear (chill-filtered?). Nose is somewhat weak, sour, malty, with cereal, black pepper, and toffee notes. Palate is quite different, dominated by sweet character, with raisins, toffee, vanilla, pear, citrus, and oak notes. Finish is quite long, pleasant, with chocolate and more fruit character. A few drops of water don’t do much for this 40% ABV whisky. Character is weakened, but suddenly a hint of nuts appears on the finish. Overall, this is a nice and quite complex dram that is very much enjoyable. For $46 at Costco this is a definite keeper.46.0 USD per Bottle -
Gold color, viscous, and looks like chill filtered. Nose is delicate, somewhat weak, with hints of fruit, sherry, honey, and vanilla. Palate is on the sweet side, but not overwhelming, nicely balanced, and has nits of raisins, vanilla, figs, caramel, honey, and oak. Finish is rather short, but interesting, with lemon zest, vanilla, and an oaky-nutty, a bit bitter aftertaste. A few drops of water open even more fruit on the palate, but don’t seem to do too much for this 40% ABV whisky. Overall, this is a very round, smooth, and complex dram that can be greatly enjoyed.
Results 31-40 of 68 Reviews