Tastes

Nose: so sherried on the nose, agree with the PX note. Mint, rubber, treacle. Some orange/clove? Palate: Classic, full sherry body. Dates, dark, syrupy fruits. Prunes in syrup, nuts, orange. So juicy and rich! Sweet, but can feel the fresh grass under it. Christmas cake for sure. Grassiness and herbal notes start to come through after a bit. Finish: Sherry nuttiness through to the end, mellowing and losing some of the edge, really nice. Incredibly good value, tastes like a much more expensive sherry bomb. Deep, round, rich flavour that’s balanced by a sharper edge.

Nose: Honey, must, dried grass, maybe a bit of wood. Peach maybe or peach candy. Some vanilla. So much banana candy on the nose in comparison with the 12. Palate: honey, dried grass, vanilla, maybe light nuttiness. Light and a little spicy, some fruit maybe too. Nice and becomes a little juicier as it opens, a bit of salt there too. Finish: Dry wood and honey, some soft caramel. Really really solid for the price, a light, honey and fruit dram that isn’t too round - still has a spicy woody edge to it.

New shoe smell is still there - rubbery for sure but with something like vanilla backing it up. Toastier towards the back of the nose. Some apples with cinnamon/stewed fruit thing playing against the rubber. Some maltiness, some pastry. Rich rye flavour is there on the first sip for sure, winter spice thing that finds its way all over the palate. Bready and seedy again. Not super full-bodied, quite thin and light in that respect but not necessarily in a bad way - the seedy brown bread flavour keeps it interesting. Some caramel there, but it’s a more jagged whisky than a rounded one. Feels young and fresh, savory. Tons of brown bread on the finish, lingers for a bit.

Instant pruney, port nose. Intense, plummy, dark fruit. Cloves in citrus. Maple. Plaster. Light wafty wood smoke. Sweet, meaty nose. Turpentine. Hoisin, slightly savory edge. Maybe some bitter chocolate. Palate has a savory edge. Pruney sherry flavour is there, but it’s undercut by this mellow, caramely wood note that’s so deep. Not like anything I’ve tasted before. So rich, fatty but not mouth coating. Spiced fruits/mulling spices. Maybe some spiced citrus. Thick cough syrup. Licorice. Aniseed. Syrupy as it develops over the palate. Finish is slightly savory. Prunes in syrup, lightest bit of smoke. Maybe a little herbal and tangy.

Round 2: Fresh, lemony - almost like lemon pine sol. Little bit of damp maltiness below the surface. Sharp leather note, green apple, cut grass. Lemon zest or orange zest. Slightly solvent, but quickly gives way to riper apple. Maybe a bit of fennel at the back, too! A little savory wood not on the tail end of the nose. Light, malty and grainy on the first sip. Becomes a prickly raw honey note through the mid palate. Some of the citrus is still there, and it feels fresh. Some white pepper, maybe a tiny bit of licorice too. Malt comes and goes, as does clove. Starts to taste like Carr’s crackers after a while. Finish isn’t too long, has some of that rock candy barley sugar to it and some juicy apple thing going on too. Piney throughout, as well, with a bit of the aniseed happening toward the end. This one has gotten better and better as the bottle’s been open longer, bumping the score up.

(First pour) Nose is rubbery and spicey at first. Dried apricots as it opens, maybe those brandy-soaked dates. Salted toffee, some solvent notes too. Cut grass, some rounded citrus. Bit of dog biscuit. Savoury, toasted seed smell becomes more pronounced. First taste is more grainy than I expected. Has a hollow mid-palate, but could just be because it’s cleaner than I’m used to. definitely spicy and has toffee, some toasty notes and a bit of that dry rye spice. Plenty of caramel flavour up front, becoming more chocolatey/creamy after a second or two. Some orange zest. Feels like there’s some real black pepper that sticks around, but also something seedy like that baltik break from Paris. Toasted seeds for sure on the finish, and some thicker yeasty/breadiness. Date, fennel olive oil combo like that cake. Quite nice and clean/satisfying. 3.75 because it’s unusual.

Fruity, nutty nose. Grapey wine nose. Gluhwein. Bit of toasty, marmalade nose. Super full bodied, malty and fruity on the palate. Summer rain shower and honey super accurate. Natural taste.

Sherry walnut, toasty, musty, overripe apple, dried apricot. dry walnut, spicy palate, smoky and woody. Dark chocolate and brine. Got a burst of fruit roll up at one point!