Tastes

Nose: Sweet apples, grapes, a little soft citrus. Fruit salad? Candied ginger, a little floral. Peanut butter - agree with the MoM pb&j note. Cut grass. Palate: fruity, quite a lot of malt too. Slightest bit of smoke maybe. Herbal and a little minty, with honey too. Almost get the rosemary/thyme/sage herb combo, but that might be a stretch. Certainly thyme if any of the three. Creamy. Butterscotch. Almost reminds me of something like a lighter Clynelish at times, or like the guava side of a Springbank. Finish: More of the fruity, herbal stuff. Overall: Nose was so fruity, the little hint of cut grass really came through on the palate. Herbal notes are really nice and ride along with the fruit in a great way. Could see this being a great one for spring - light and refreshing, but interesting and well balanced. Might enjoy it at a slightly higher ABV, but 43 is okay.

Nose: A lot of dried fruit, a bit pruney with a solvent edge. A little nutty, some sulphury firework notes that I quite like. A little bit of that slightly burnt out scalextric smell. Toasted coconut and pina colada as it opens, becomes very tropical. Palate: Nice full, oaky, malty flavours. Vanilla, caramel, custard. Clementine, dried apricot and a little peach. Some sherried notes too - hazelnuts. Grain comes through now and again. Wafts of very light smoke? Finish: sherry notes linger for me, as does a little bit of that custardy vanilla. Overall: One that I’d call quite round that doesn’t go too far and become flabby. Just enough tang/bite to balance it out. Very forward with the creme caramel vanilla stuff and I liked the tropical notes on the nose a lot. Pretty rich! Could see it being really good in September, but might be a bit too one-note for year round drinking. Could be a 4.

Nose: Battenberg cake, strawberry pencils, something herbal and savoury I can’t really figure out that sits right below the surface and hits right at the back of the nose, almost like those plastic-y paper tablecloths at Imperial Palace or the smell of the grocery store below it. A bit of jasmine to it, fennel, paint. Palate: smokier than expected, like lapsang. Definitely savoury on the first few sips, a little bit of smoked meat but more of an ashy spent bonfire smoke. Tastes very earthy and organic, mossy. Bit of a butterscotch roundness in the background, but more about the savoury notes for me. Slight bit of coffee maybe? Milk bottle candies. Drying. Finish: dark to milk chocolate with that wafting earthy smoke, maybe a bit of cooked apple. Overall: really interesting and unusual one for me, loved those earthy smoky notes on the palate that I wasn’t expecting. The weird, slightly sickly nose threw me for a loop - had elements of Springbank funk to it at times, and that’s the closest comparison I can think of. Slightly sweet pukey note you get on a springbank, like someone’s eaten Battenberg cake and tossed it back up.

Nose: dried apricot, lemongrass or lemon verbena, ginger, tangerine. A bit of malt. Palate: nice and full, malty sweetness that reminds me a bit of arran with a zestier edge. A bit drying, oaky, a little winey even. Richer and more chocolatey as it opens - super nice. Finish: dark salted chocolate, sherry nuttiness, hazelnuts, oak. Overall: really nice delicate amount of sherry notes in this that’s leveled out with the lighter, zestier moments. Richer than I expected. Really reminds me of something Arran might do at times. Very, very well balanced for my taste, not in your face incredible but subtly lovely.

Nose: Raincoat plastic, linen, a little rubbery, some leafy/grassy notes, unripe pear, maybe a tiny bit of that laphroaig band-aid smell. Some soft green grapey notes. Palate: sweeter than expected, quite round. Agree with banana bread note from MoM, pretty creamy as well. Slightest bit of pepper. Finish: Have to hand it to MoM, they nailed it with the ‘creamy oak spice and floral elderflower’ description of the finish. Overall: why are people shitting on this online? I think it’s pretty alright! I don’t mind the rubbery nose at all, and think the palate’s nice if you’re in the mood for something on its way to being sweet without being cloying. Another nice surprise, would be cool to taste this at a higher ABV. It might be a little thin, but I’d drink it again! Had this after the Hatozaki Pure Malt and it was a nice sweet antidote to the pepper.

Nose: pine, juniper, liquorice, some of the sweaty notes from the Hatozaki blended that have now sharpened up a bit. Pepper, resin, pencil shavings. Bitter lemon. Some toffee? Glazed meat? Palate: Really fills out compared to the Hatozaki blended. Much more full, but still zesty and peppery. Slightly herbal and grassy, with lime and tart fruits. A little bit of dry oakiness to it, some salted nuts. Burnt toast, a little bonfire smoke. Any sweetness is vanilla, I’d say. Finish: Smokey, a little woody. Overall: I really like that it’s zesty and spicy and refreshing, but a little more sweetness could have balanced it out a bit better. Love the resinous notes on the nose though, and as it opens it does become a little less sharp.

Nose: custard, matchbox, light bit of yeast. Has a sweet sweaty kind of smell that’s also a bit like butterscotch. Very heavy on the grain notes - porridge, malted milk, etc. Fruit notes are like that chalky banana candy, very soft but very sweet. Palate: Smooth, very grainy but not necessarily in a bad way. Big sake note, lightest bit of peppery spice, some round fruity notes but mostly barley sugar type thing. Bit of the charred stuff starts to come through as it opens. Finish: agree with MoM that it becomes nutty on the finish. Overall: like the Nikka days, not as bad as expected. Maybe I’ve got some issues with blends I need to work through in therapy. I actually quite like the sweet grainy notes and don’t mind the sweatier ones on the nose. Looking forward to trying their pure malt.

Nose: pear, sweet apple, vanilla, citrus zest. Bit of rich wood varnish as it opens (in a good way). Biscuit part of a cheesecake, whatever that’s made out of. Palate: malty/grainy, salted nuts, bit of smoke, some suntan lotion sweetness. Quite thin becoming fuller as it opens, but has some interesting burnt leaf notes, burnt vanilla. Creme brûlée I guess. Not too fruity to me, more barley sugar. Finish: doesn’t stick around for too long, but has some maltiness to it. More of the charred notes linger as time goes on. Overall: not nearly as underwhelming as I expected it to be! I actually quite like this! Nice wisps of smoke and salty notes that I wasn’t expecting.

Nose: sharp, lemon/lime zest citrus nose. Orange pith, spruce, citronella. Slight burnt or charred smell and a little leathery as it opens. Black vinegar note surprised me at the very back. Palate: coffee bitterness, dark chocolate orange, a bit salty/briney. Some of the damp herbal notes you get in something like a Ben Nevis 10. Burnt caramel, Bourbon biscuits and vanilla cream. Finish: malt starts to come through on the finish alongside the spice and heat. Overall: definitely prefer this to the 43% version. Like the bitterness a lot, especially as it balances out with some of the vanilla/malt notes when it has the chance to open up. Quite a dry whisky that’s still rich enough.

Nose: Light with a little honey, reminds me of the Ancnoc 12. Soft fresh fruit with some floral notes and a slightly savory/smoked edge. Palate: very round, agree with the green apple and grape notes I’ve seen. Tiniest bit of honey and a bit of pepper as it opens. Rice grain note as time goes on, more of the heavier honey on the back of the palate too. Let it sit for a while and revisited it - far more flavour, more of the almost stewed apple and pear and slightly savoury malt. Bit butterscotchy. Finish: Lightly malty, vanilla. Becomes thicker and darker kind of sweetness. Overall: nice enough, but might be a bit too light for me. Would be nice to taste it at a higher ABV to see if the honey and savory notes come through more. After letting it open, bumped from 2.75 to 3. Nice one to have for daily use.