Tastes

“Moch” Meaning “Dawn” in Gaelic fits this dram perfectly. Super light and fresh compared to the standard range. Salty bacon, fresh stone fruits with a black pepper back note on the nose. On the palate the fresh notes continue with the stone fruits coming forward with milk chocolate and the classic Caol Ila Peat smile. #BreakfeastWhisky 🥃 •

There are many things that come to mind when I think of Dalmore for example, its rich backstory of how Colin of Kintail of the Mackenzie clan was awarded the right to bear the Royal Crest, the 12-pointed stag, which would later become the iconic logo of Dalmore. Or the myth, the legend (the Nose) Richard Paterson, an icon in the whisky industry (google – “how to drink whisky with Richard Paterson”). Not forgetting Dalmore's forward-thinking ageing, finishing and blending technics. Overall Dalmore is pretty god damn interesting, any way to the whisky! This particular Dalmore has been aged for 9 years in ex-bourbon then split in half, leaving half in the bourbon cask and moving the rest of the liquid into Oloroso sherry casks, where the whisky remains for the last 3 years of ageing before being married back together. Nose Distinctive Oloroso notes at the forefront followed by sweet honey, malted barley and fresh lemon oils with cinnamon and sawdust spice lingering in the background. Palate Creamy caramel and dark chocolate coat the mouth, with a hint of bitter orange marmalade followed by the spice notes and light vanilla Finish Dry cinnamon and clove spice really take the lead here with sweet plumb jammy notes that are distinctively Dalmore, leaving you with lingering raisin notes and an almost mint-like freshness. Overall, a pretty decent dram and for the price fantastic value for money. From what I can see this dram has a bit of a marmite following. Personally, I found the palate was a bit one dimensional, but the nose and the long lingering finish help make up for that. It just makes me want to see what the liquid would be like at cask strength before the chill filtration (nudge nudge wink wink if anyone from Dalmore is reading) it makes a fantastic whisky for beginners and always has a place on my shelf.

Ardbeg An Oa (Pronounced An-oh the advert is hilarious look it up) is the newest addition to the Core range from the distillery, alongside the 10yr, Corryvreckan and the Uigeadail, this range is also known as the Ultimate Range (oooh fancy). An Oa is a marriage of several different types of casks, PX Sherry (a personal favourite of mine), Virgin oak and first fill Bourbon, the whisky is then put into Ardbeg’s new “French oak gathering vat where they familiarise themselves with each other” (also fancy) to the Tasting! Nose: It’s the familiar Ardbeg coastal, salty peat on the nose, less medicinal than the standard 10yr with more of a meaty bbq smoke, then peppery dark chocolate and a hint of fresh spearmint (the tiniest bit). Palate Very chocolate forward with sticky dried fruit coming through from the PX casks, then followed by a boom of salty peat, burnt coffee grounds (in a good way) and a chocolate mintiness (it’s a word) reminiscent of After Eights. Finish Spicy black pepper, dry salted meat, and more pepper then fresh mint with more pepper (it’s pretty spicy on the finish) Overview This is an awesome addition to the “Ultimate Range” from Ardbeg, well rounded with plenty going on, less on the medicinal side of peat than the rest of the range but still distinctively Ardbeg. The “several casks” rather than telling us the actual casks is a bit annoying as it would be nice to know the actual ratios, my guess is heavy on the ex-bourbon then just filling in the gaps with the rest. Overall great dram!

"Phenomenology: The Philosophical study of the Structures of experience and consciousness" Epic Name. This is by far one of my favourite whiskies of 2017 maybe one of the best I've ever had. I was lucky enough to try this at the Whisky show earlier this year, I was blown away. As expected from Compass Box it has a hell of a lot going on, you will pick up new flavours every time you go back to it. This dram has all of my favourite things in one bottle, tropical notes backed up by peat and a rich creamy texture. Nose Light citrus and sweetened pineapple backed up by a hint of shortbread and a hint of salty peat. Palate Beautifully rich mouthfeel, almost like creamy custard with juicy citrus and a hind of red berries Finish Lemon merging, chewy Marshmallows with a lingering salted peat and a late medicinal hit, it's like a "peaty pudding"

This is Compass Box's "Peatiest Dram Yet" (Damn Right) this Whisky is an absolute beast, 75.5% of this liquid is from Ardbeg (one of my personal favourites) and it really comes through. The medicinal notes are toned down by the rest of the whisky in the blend making it extremely rich feels like you can chew on it! The great thing about this dram is how it develops over time in the glass so kick back and relax. It's a bit punchy on the ABV at 48.9%, but for me personally, it warms perfectly for this time of year. Nose Big salted chocolate, with big meaty peat and a hint of fresh dill hiding in the background Palate One of the best mouth feels I have ever had, extremely rich, salted chocolate coming back with dehydrated lemon and chewy peat Finish Long, I mean super long medicinal peat and white pepper spice, but lingering with a spicy chocolate sweetness, it's delightful. 

Monkey Shoulder is a blend of three Speyside distilleries, that are not 100% confirmed *Cough* Balvenie, Glenfiddich and Kininvie *Cough*. A great dram on its own, but as a bartender I use it as a base in a shed load of whisky based cocktails, so I’m hoping Smokey Monkey will have the same attributes. As well as adding an extra smokey layer to well know classics such as Rob Roy, Blood and Sand, Whisky Mac etc. As for the whiskies in the blend, they haven’t been 100% Confirmed *Cough* Balvenie, Glenfiddich and Ailsa Bay *Cough* from what I can gather anyway. I first tried this dram in March before its official release in August, at the time I wasn’t in any state to be writing tasting notes. But today I have got my hand on some more and I was not disappointed! Nose An initial light dusty medicinal peat, backed up by rich butterscotch, smokey brine with a hint of dried stone fruit. Palate Coating mouthfeel, with initial citrus notes followed by butterscotch, toffee and then follows up with light smokey peat towards the end. Finish A building finish, with the creamy butterscotch first then building into spicy citrus notes, the end dry and smokey. Verdict Well, I’m not disappointed, easy drinking, very accessible while still having a lot going on. The citrus notes complement the light coastal smoke perfectly. I think it will be perfect for first-time smokey whisky drinkers and as for cocktails I’m looking forward to trying it out, I’m pretty sure it is going to work perfectly.

Springbank 12yr Cask Strength (a mere 56.5%), Springbank is the oldest independent distillery in Scotland dating back to 1828. Also, Springbank are the only Distillery to malt 100% of their own barley for the entire range (hence why it’s so bloody hard to keep it on the shelf) in short, they like to keep things traditional. This release is a combination of 70% Sherry Cask and 30% Ex Bourbon cask, it’s pretty damn tasty. For me I get a huge amount rich chocolate on the nose with hints of hazel nuts and a tiny bit of bramble fruit, then on the palate big on the sherry straight off the bat then mellows down releasing notes of dates, sticky maraschino cherries with a lingering black pepper and a hint citrus. On the finish, mellow then the peat pipes up, lingering with a slight salty aniseed background. After adding a drop of water to bring down the abv, the citrus notes become more prominent but you do loose a bit of the viscosity but defiantly worth a try. All in all, a fantastic dram not for the faint hearted as its extremely complex, every time I go back to it I pick up I get different flavours (if I wrote them all id be here all night). If you manage to get hold of a bottle or even just a dram let it breath for 10-15 minuets, I’ll be drinking this again!