Tastes

COLOUR: Deep copper gold. LEGS: Thick clothesline; big drops formed quickly; and dropped at medium speed; looks thick and oily on the glass. NOSE: Delicate (1/5); gentle and easy on the nose; lemon citrus cleaner; sherried red berry fruits; caramel sweetness; chocolate; herbal; black pepper at the end. WITH WATER (5 drops into 15mL): almost vanishes; digging deep uncovers the caramel and sherry. Score 6/10 TASTE: Moderate (3/5); very smooth; tangy & zippy; citrus; green grapes; malty & rich; creamy caramel sweetness; sherried dark berries; cinnamon; some drying oak. WITH WATER: smoother and gentler; the tangy zip is gone; the citrus rises up. Score 7/10 FINISH: Medium-short; slightly drying; sweetness and sherry lingers. WITH WATER: longer and richer, with an emphasis on the sweetness.Score 6/10 OVERALL: A pleasant, but unchallenging dram; certainly on the soft and gentle side; reminds me a bit of a blended scotch like Teacher's Highland Cream or Dewar's White Label; not my cup of tea. Best without water. Weighted Score 6.6/10 IMAGERY: Hanging out with a group of old and docile Irishmen -- certainly not the soccer hooligan crowd.

COLOUR: Deep red-brown. LEGS: Razor thin clothesline; thick blobs formed and hung out there a long time; finally falling extremely slowly (like a bunch of snails "racing" down the glass); many of the snails were left in the gate and just never fell. NOSE: Moderate intensity (3/5); rich dusty powdered candy sweetness; sweet dusty grain and malt; cocoa powder; flowers, herbal, hay; sea spray in the background; really nice and satisfying. WITH WATER (3 drops into 5mL): a bit more subtle; sweetness is dominant; dustiness diminishes. Score 9/10 TASTE: Super dry tannins; rich sherry fruit; stale tobacco and ashtray; rich, sharp, and burning; rich sharp fruity port influence; salty end; strong and flavourful due to the high ABV. WITH WATER: wonderful, but pretty similar. Score 9/10 FINISH: Medium length; drying; sweet; dark fruits. WITH WATER: longer and sweeter. Score 8/10 OVERALL: So very unique and interesting; a burst of dusty dark fruits; very moorish. Better without water. Weighted Score 8.9/10 IMAGERY: Sitting on the dusty dunnage warehouse floor, behind some barrels, sneaking a sip out of one of the maturing port barrels and hoping not to be discovered.

COLOUR: Really light yellow-gold, like watered-down pear juice. LEGS: Small and thick drops that clung to the glass for a very long time; they dropped in thin tears. NOSE: Delicate (2/5); sour floral heather peat; creamy; butterscotch & honey; subtle fresh red apples; slight citrus and lime; earthiness; light to no smoke. WITH WATER (5 drops into 10mL): more peat and some puffs of smoke; sweetness diminishes. Score 7/10 TASTE: Powerful (4/5); sweet honey; drying creamy peat; lots of smoldering smoke; hints of citrus, black pepper; drying oak; slight earthiness. WITH WATER: nicer; more sweet; more peat; much more smoke. Score 7.5/10 FINISH: Warming and long; lingering highland honey and peat smoke. WITH WATER: longer and more biting and drying. My tongue is burned and numb. Score 7.5/10 OVERALL: Quite a nice and subtly peated Highlander; better with water. Weighted Score 7.4/10 IMAGERY: The apiary is on fire!

COLOUR: Bronze LEGS: Thin clothesline with many tiny dots; every 3 dots coalesces into a bigger drop that very slowly drops down the glass; it looks very thick and coating. NOSE: Rich and malty; moderately powerful (4/5); sweetness of caramel, toffee, and maple syrup; orange chocolate; very slight black pepper at the end; slightly salty too. Very nice. WITH WATER (5 drops into 10mL): a bit subdued, but the sweetness rises, and some smoldering tobacco arrives. Score 8/10 TASTE: Thick and rich; sweet liquid caramel toffee; brine. WITH WATER: much more subdued and diluted; sweetness diminishes; saltiness rises significantly at the end. Score: 8.5/10 FINISH: Medium; sweetness lingers; slightly drying. WITH WATER: sweeter and longer. Score 7/10 OVERALL: Very nice and lovely dram. Heavily sweet and lightly balanced; sweet, thick, mouth-coating with no burn; delicious; better without water. Weighted Score 8.2/10 IMAGERY: Back at the B&B after touring the coast of Jura -- there is a remembrance of the sea, but it is mostly a warm and cozy room.

COLOUR: Pink rosé with reddish-orange highlights. LEGS: Razor thin clothesline; fairly thick tears developed; then were quite quick to drop down the glass [wet glass]. NOSE: Very sharp and bright fruit; smoking apples; rich sherry and port; candy dust; oranges, sherry, wet ripe berries; flowers; hint of saltiness. WITH WATER: more subdued, fruit diminishes. SCORE 8.5/10 TASTE: Medium viscosity; silky smooth; very rich, sweet, and fruity; loaded with rich fruit juice; liquid candy. WITH WATER: thinner, but a bit sweeter. SCORE 8/10 FINISH: Long, lingering sweet fruit. WITH WATER: all fruit and no remembrance of alcohol. SCORE 7.5/10 OVERALL: A real fruity bomb; very sweet full ripe berries; quite nice and delicious. WEIGHTED SCORE 8.1/10

COLOUR: Reddish copper. LEGS: Razor thin clothesline; fairly thin tears developed; then were quite slow to drop down the glass [wet glass]. NOSE: Somewhat mild; bright fruit; sweet honey and toffee; dried fruits and sherry; spicy; flowery meadow; a little earthy. WITH WATER: dustier and creamier. SCORE 6.5/10 TASTE: Rather thin; bright rich fruit; tangy and zippy; cocoa; sherry tannins drying the sides of the tongue. WITH WATER: creamier and fruitier. SCORE 7.5/10 FINISH: Fairly short; sweet and fruity. WITH WATER: sweeter and longer. SCORE 6/10 OVERALL: Quite nice and very fruity; a bit thin and simple; not bad for a gentle sherried whisky; better with water. IMAGERY: Sipping a fruit punch in the highlands. WEIGHTED SCORE 7.1

OVERALL: Very unusual and a refreshing change; the high ABV saves this one from being sour apple fruit juice. Weighted score 6.8/10 COLOUR: Very light yellow; Ardbeg -1. LEGS: Very thick clothesline; medium-slow to develop; a few big drops are slow to fall; then the rest fall very very slowly; this portends a viscous mouth-feel. NOSE: Delicate; very citrus and sour apple; like your juice mackintosh apple slices are soaking in lemon juice; a bit of dry grassy meadow; predominantly sour. Score 6/10 TASTE: Oily; dry; very sugary sweet; moderate alcohol kick; candy apples; sweet and tart at the same time; a little saltiness near the end. Score 7/10 FINISH: Long and lingering alcohol bite; warming and drying. Score 8/10 IMAGERY: Laying in the field beside the apple orchard on a hot late summer day; rotting apples on the ground; birds and bees flying by overhead.

COLOUR: Orange-bronze. LEGS: Very thick on the clothesline, like a cold front on a weather map; very slow and oily as they dropped. NOSE: Very delicate and subtle; gentle caramel and acetone; almost nothing there initially, but after a couple of sips, the rich caramel sweetness rises up. SCORE 3/10 TASTE: Oily, mouth-coating; sharp rye spice bites the tongue and throat; very sweet and delicious creamy caramel; pepper; cinnamon; drying oak tannins; very bold and flavourful; creamy, mouth-filling richness. SCORE 7/10 FINISH: Long finish; the spice clings to your tongue for a long time, leaving it quite tingly; sweet liquid caramel lingers. SCORE 7/10 OVERALL: Starts out rather disappointingly -- the nose suggests that nothing will happen; but the taste makes up for it, as there is an explosion of sweet spice in my mouth; the finish is long and spicy; this is a very nice rye -- subtle when you first meet, but rich and delicious after a few dates. WEIGHTED SCORE 5.8/10