Tastes

The nose is mild smoke, second wave is medicinal/Band-Aid stuff. There is a spicy/habanero heat in the nose that I wasn't expecting. It really stings the nostrils, in a good way. The first taste is a surprising burn; it's a heat that delivers on the habanero promise in the nose. Smoked meat. It truly burns the roof of the mouth a bit, which is incredibly interesting. This one definitely benefits from a drop of water to turn down the heat. The heat still slaps but is less harsh. The peat manifests this way in a muddy, boggy sense with just a touch of burn in the way down. The finish is matchbox and smoldering fire. If you're not a fan of spicy/heat, you may not take a shine to this one. I, on the other hand, am fully on board.

I'm going to level with you, this thing is straight cinnamon, albeit a good, dry cinnamon. Yes, there are notes of black pepper, spicy fruit peel, and even a little char. But to call this anything other than a straight up cinnamon bomb would be underselling exactly how Cinnamon-y this thing really is. It's too cinnamon forward for me personally, but I'll bet it would make a hell of a mixer, and it's a considerable upgrade from Fireball. I did pour this into a glass of Coke Zero with ice, and as much as the cinnamon is tempered by the cola, it still is overpowering everything in its path. If you like cinnamon this is a very good budget rye that I would recommend, just understand that it is going to be the dominant factor in any mix you put it in.

For whatever it's worth, this is a terrific Scotch to put in your coffee.

This is batch 20A40, fwiw. I prefer this bourbon with a large ice cube because it tempers the burn and lets you focus on the spice in the barrel. The nose, like most Bourbons to me, is Elmer's glue. This is followed by a spicy black pepper and some mild char. The burn in the initial sip is surprising and a little harsh for my own personal preference. The charred oak and sawdust follow flow behind. The spices and pepper take a back seat but you can see them waving. The spiciness of the wood is what busts through. The heat lingers, with a prickly, peppery finish. There are metallic and aluminum notes in the afterglow, as well as a dry, tannic lip smack at the end. I can't say this is a favorite of mine, although it's not without its charms.

The nose is a mix of salt and butterscotch hard candy. The wave of vanilla creme is like 1/4 of a Skybar. There is not a moment if harshness; it's all confection. The first taste is salt, with a mellowed out Werther's Original, followed by salt and vanilla. A perfect rhyme between the aroma and the flavor. The finish is pure candy: molasses, syrup, butterscotch. This is a confection in a dram. Not complex but if you have a sweet tooth you could do a hell of a lot worse.

Right off the bat the nose is molasses with a hint of butterscotch. The smoke is really just a puff but it does come through. Some black pepper that mingles with the inside of a sherry cask. Vanilla bean. There is a surprising chocolate and coffee base that comes at the tail end that I wasn't expecting. The nose is a lot more complex than I gave a credit for initially. The first taste that I'm getting is those oloroso sherry casks: it's a sweet and rounded flavor but with just a hint of bitterness at the tail end.that flavor morphs into plums and stone fruits on the sides of the tongue. There is a tannic puckery flavor that comes through on the bottom of the tongue.The flavors are a combination of sweet and prickly spice. It is really a beautiful taste and one that I think you need to really sit with and ponder before you can truly appreciate it. The finish is sweet cherry and sour sherry. The barrel aging comes through at just the right strength: It is not too overpowering but it is not weak either. Just a touch of tobacco and smoke at the very end. I am incredibly impressed with this scotch and I feel like I gave it short shrift on my first taste of it.

Straw yellow color with some sticky legs. The nose is red Apple skins and pear. Just a hint of tobacco. It's mostly fruit rinds and vanilla. The nose is firmly in the Scotch tradition. With a droplet some boiled vegetable sulphurics pop out. The Apple skins and pear continue into the front of the palate. Has a very sweet, puckery second moment, like the syrup from an apple pie. Touch of leather. The burn is there but really dovetails nicely with some cigar tobacco. There is a fruity pucker that keeps coming back. The finish is more tobacco, with a touch of smoke that tastes like a match that just went out. All those fruity parts evaporate and leave some smoke behind. This is a deceptively complex Scotch clone, I'll be back to it.

The nose is first apple skins, with a fruit-like tartness. Some sulphuric vegetals: cabbage and broccoli. The tartness is immediately apparently here. Hints of vanilla and sugary caramel. The taste is sherried oak, with a second wave or more apples skins, with a spicy rind. There is a collection of tree fruits: apple, pear, with a real tannic tartness/bitterness combo. The finish is metallic and charcoal. The tartness is still there but shares the stage. Some salt at the tail end. Not exactly in my wheelhouse, but I'm digging it just fine.

The nose is sherry, and a touch of sulphury vegetable stuff, broccoli. Mild ribbon candy. Briny salt. More heat than I would have expected since it's only 40% on the nose. The cask Sherry cask comes through in the first taste. The burn is palpable, even with a droplet. Apple skins. Buttery. Cherry juice. The finish is strong alcohol. No smoke but plenty of heat. Dark, bitter Stone fruits: plum, prune. The heat of the alcohol never relents.

The nose is a muddy, boggy peat. Gas station fumes from diesel. And a dry smoky coal. The taste is lots of smoke. Bonfire, firecracker plumes and car exhaust. (I mean all of these in a good way.) Cigar ashes and pipe tobacco. A definite chalky, dry quality to the entire operation, as expected. The finish is chimney soot, charred meat, a shiny leather couch. You can really just let this one luxuriate on your palate for a while. It mellows out beautifully into smoldering embers. I'm surprised that this one isn't as complex as I had expected -- it's a peat bomb -- but that doesn't make it any less enjoyable. It is a superior Islay Scotch.