Tastes

Nose - grilled peach, apricot, fig, toffee, vanilla, orange, sultana, milk chocolate, hazelnut, mint, strawberry, sweet floral notes, straw, cinnamon, nutmeg, moderate ethanol burn. Taste - apricot, fig, peach, mint, cherry, butterscotch, sultana, sweet floral notes, cinnamon, ginger, orange, lemon oil, chocolate, ash, chili pepper, spicy oak, pineapple, mango, moderate alcohol bite, finishing medium length with sweet stone fruit, baking spice, strong citrus, and spicy chili pepper flavors. I’ve been interested in trying Dingle for a long time now. It’s a very small distillery, producing only about four casks a day. Some of their past releases were hyped and became close to unattainable. This fourth batch is the first I’ve seen in the stores near here. Unfortunately, it hasn’t gotten the same love some of the older releases did. The nose is very fruit-forward and juicy. Stone fruit, strawberry, sultana, and fig dominate, no doubt due to the sherry and port cask influences. The palate is rather sour and spicy. The fruits are still very much in the mix, but more citrus, pepper, and an interesting ashy note present. This is giving me strong American Single Malt vibes. Specifically, this drinks like a spicier, more sour Balcones Lineage. And I like the Lineage slightly more. The dominant citrus and background ash produce an almost metallic note that dampens an otherwise positive experience. I opened the bottle a few days ago, so maybe some of this will work itself out in the next couple months. I’ll check back in later, but for now this is good but not great. And at $90 a bottle, that’s pretty disappointing.

Nose - underripe banana, sour apple, pineapple, sweet floral notes, honey, mint, tangerine, caramel, vanilla, lemon, cinnamon, cocoa, clove, dry oak, apricot, fig, grape, mild to moderate ethanol burn. Taste - tangerine, lemon, sour apple, sweet floral notes, caramel, vanilla, honey, allspice, clove, mint, ginger, chili pepper, pineapple, underripe banana, leather, cocoa, peach, apricot, moderate alcohol bite, finishing medium length with tangerine, baking spice, chili pepper, and underripe banana flavors. The second and final Tyrconnell I’m tasting is this 16 Year expression finished in Oloroso and Moscatel casks. The nose is sweet, sour, and decadent. It’s not quite as syrupy as the 15 Year I tried yesterday, but there’s tangerine, dried fruit, a strong floral quality, and some nice underripe banana aromas a la Green Spot. The palate is very sour, but not in a totally unpleasant way. More tangerine, pineapple, juicy peach, and some leathery tannins. This is really good, but I find some of the same issues I did with the 15 Year. It’s extremely sweet and probably too sour as well. If I had to choose, I’d pick this one over its counterpart, because it’s less syrupy and cloying, and there’s a bit more oomph here with the leather and green banana notes. And another huge thank you to @ContemplativeFox for the generous sample! I enjoyed my Tyrconnell experiences and will keep them on my radar in the future. These aren’t your average, boring Irish whiskies.

Nose - honey, fig, apricot, sultana, peach, grape, white pepper, apple, ginger, butterscotch, vanilla, pecan, cocoa, cereal grain, cinnamon, bitter herbal notes, orange, mild to moderate ethanol burn. Taste - peach, honey, apricot, vanilla, caramel, fig, pecan, lemon, chili pepper, cinnamon, allspice, ginger, sweet floral notes, sour apple, mint, cereal grain, mild to moderate alcohol bite, finishing medium length with honey, sweet stone fruit, and ginger flavors. I have to admit that Tyrconnell is a distillery about which I know close to nothing. When I stuck my nose in the glass, I was expecting another highly grain-forward Irish whisky, but that’s not what you get here. It’s sweet, syrupy stone fruits, floral citrus, and decadent caramelized nuts. The palate is equally desert-like with boozy nuts and fruits, creamy vanilla, and a spicy, gingery zing. In a blind tasting, I’m sure I would have pegged this for a heavily finished Highland single malt. Specifically, this is very reminiscent of my experience with Glenmorangie Nectar D’Or. I think this is slightly better actually, but it’s pretty close in quality for me. Overall this is not my favorite profile, and it veers slightly into sour territory. However, it’s a quality dram and has satisfied my food coma sweet tooth this evening. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! And a big thank you to @ContemplativeFox for providing the sample!

Nose - cereal grain, dusty corn, fig, cashew, bitter herbal notes, caramel, orange zest, vanilla, ethanol, oat, cinnamon, honey, apple, mild to moderate ethanol burn. Taste - cereal grain, honey, vanilla cream, caramel, cinnamon, fig, bitter herbal notes, ethanol, white pepper, corn bread, ginger, apple, cherry, cashew, mild to moderate alcohol bite, finishing medium short with cereal grain, light caramel, and drying herbal flavors. I’m generally not a fan of young Irish whiskies or single grain whiskies, so I don’t have high hopes for this. The nose is very grainy and corny, with some light baking spices, caramel, and a hint of sherried fruit. The palate is equally grainy, with some nice vanilla cream and nutty notes before turning dry and bitter on the finish. This isn’t great, but it’s not terrible either. It’s better than the Proper Twelve I tried yesterday, and it’s probably closer in quality to Jameson and Bushmills Original for me. There are nice, honeyed fruity and nutty aromas and flavors, but the overwhelming, youthful grainy and drying qualities hold this back from receiving anything higher than an average score. Another big thank you to @ContemplativeFox for providing the generous sample!

Nose - cereal grain, ethanol, lemon, shortbread, green apple, peach, bitter herbal and floral notes, cinnamon, vanilla, mild to moderate ethanol burn. Taste - light caramel, vanilla, cereal grain, cinnamon, ethanol, lemon, apple skin, orange zest, shortbread, bitter herbal notes, dusty corn, mild to moderate alcohol bite, finishing short with shortbread, bitter citrus, and light baking ethanol flavors. Coming off the heels of Blue Spot, I’m ready for a disappointment with this one. And I got one. Well, maybe it’s not a disappointment if I was expecting it, but I digress. The nose is quintessential cheap, young Irish whisky. It’s mild, grainy, slightly citrusy, moderately bitter, and blandly sweet. There’s really not much to say about this one. It’s a worse version of Bushmills Original and Jameson, and probably closer in quality to the Total Wine Busker miniature I tried a while back. It’s not undrinkable, but I wouldn’t actively choose to drink this again. Thank you to @ContemplativeFox for providing the sample!

Nose - cereal grain, shortbread cookie, light toffee, vanilla cream, green apple, orange, yogurt covered raisins, mango, lemon meringue, fig, sweet dough, powdered sugar, caramel corn, cinnamon, dry herbal notes, moderate ethanol burn. Taste - shortbread cookie, caramel, vanilla, lemon oil, grapefruit, ginger, chili pepper, cinnamon, allspice, orange zest, milk chocolate, pineapple skin, green apple, mint, bitter herbal notes, moderate alcohol bite, finishing medium length with shortbread cookie, lemon, and sour tropical fruit flavors. During a recent virtual tasting with @PBMichiganWolverine @pkingmartin and @Richard-ModernDrinking , I had the rare opportunity to taste this elusive Irish whisky. The nose is classic Irish, but cranked to eleven. Buttery shortbread cookie, sherried fruits, lemon, and some sweet tropical fruits. Juicy, effervescent, and sparkling come to mind with the palate. It’s richly citrusy, tropical, buttery, and fruity. This is great Irish whisky. Some of the best I’ve tried. The closest comparison I have is Redbreast 12 Year Cask Strength. I like this slightly more, but it’s in the same category of tastiness for me. It’s absolutely worth the ~$100 retail price, as was the Redbreast, but good luck finding this unicorn. Don’t pay the secondary markup for this. It’s a great example of the category, but it’s not mind-blowingly good. A massive shout-out to @PBMichiganWolverine for sharing this. It’s inspired me to dedicate my next few reviews to knocking out the small backlog of Irish whiskies I’ve accumulated.