Tastes

I need to figure out if I need more of this before it's gone. Nose - There is just something about Amrut. It's dusty, it's oakey, it's sweet, but there's something so complex and different. Sherry notes are here but they're just up front. The mid and finish are all about this oak that's been roasted, spice I can't figure out, and malt that makes no sense. I get some vanilla, some oak spice, a hint of cherry with sherry notes, Taste - super oakey and spicey with vanilla, charred black oak notes, toasted barrel, some chocolate, and you know I don't normally spell this out but there's a huge amount of European oak. I need another bottle of this badly. So badly.

Nose - dark fruits, dark cherry, vanilla, some baked goods, and oddly almost no spice notes. There's a note of some kind of jelly or jelly doughnut or pie going on here at the finish. Really loving that note. Taste - With most sherry bombs I get more oak and dark notes at the end but with this younger sherry bomb the ending is much more sweet vanilla without half the finish. Huge vanilla and caramel..it's bringing in a lot of bourbon notes, but while bourbon when they add sherry it feels like a secondary note, the sherry here integrates amazingly. There is a bit of an oak and just finish note here that's coming up young but while that normally can be either off putting or just leaves me wanting more. I'm digging it with the bourbon notes. I think I'm a fan boy on this one so maybe my score will seem extreme, but of the Macallan's I've had I think this is my hands down favorite. It's oddly enough nearly the cheapest (12 sherry and 10 fine oak were less). No shocker that they watered down the 2018 and increased the price, they must have realized they let this one out at a really good and fair price.

Feels odd to review this a day after their 21 year fine oak (or triple whatever) and it is even odder that going in my expectation is going to award this a significantly higher score. Still, for science lets dig in. Nose - Sweet, bold, sherry, chocolate, caramel, ginger, and there is a fruit candy that is somewhere between a peach and an orange. At the finish you can get some younger oak notes and that doesn't surprise me given that this is likely mostly 6-12 year old whisky. It's however pretty far back and not off putting. Taste - The flavors here are very and I still can't place the fruit. It is a bit of orange but without that citrus bite. There's vanilla. There are some baking christmas spices. Finish - citrus comes out more in the finish and it's long and lingering from the intense alcohol bite. Now with all Macallans we run into more silly...despite the name this isn't actually cask strength. The 2018 being lower abv even comes off more so than the 2017 and you don't get the creamy mouth feel that it could have had. I feel like their random looking abv was intended to fool whisky drinkers and frankly it's just more of their odd marketing. OK, their awful marketing aside how is it overall? This is a very good whisky. I'm going to do the 2017 next and we'll see but I'm finding that they found a way to hide the youth in a very nice way but with even a bit of experience you can tell the difference in well aged whisky and this. Still it's a unique flavor profile and a really good one for me. It's dangerously drinkable and might be one of the best day drinking (on a weekend of course) whiskies around. The complexity is there for a top tier dram but the finish and transitions are much more in line with a far cheaper whisky. 100 bucks - I'd say get it if you like sherry whisky. It's a huge upgrade from the Glendronach batch 7 (tested and proven in a blind taste test), but falls well short of the less expensive Tamduh batch 3 I had in the tasting. 3.0, if this is your wheel house you better go ahead and get it. If not...you need to be someone who spends 200+ on whisky often to make this a gamble.

The game of thrones bottles have gotten insanely popular but this one for some reason is going for well in excess of even some of the good ones. I have no idea what's driving this. So first comment all of these bottles are comically overly colored and this one is no exception despite having an all black bottle. I don't really get it. And of course 43% because I guess it's cheaper? Nose - lemon grass, salt, a touch of peat, and a bit of malt. Taste - A mix of citrus, bitter, and sweet. This is actually pretty darn complex bringing in a nice bit of sea, oak, and sweet. You get a note of younger oak. The mouth feel starts decently when it starts but once you get used to the strong citrus notes it starts tasting more watery. I intended to be pretty critical of this one, but it's been opening up since I bought it and frankly it's a pretty good dram. Should you seek it out? God no...it's just ok whisky and any markup would be absurd. That said if you have some locally for a fair price, pick it up, it's a great bottom shelf scotch that you can drink straight.

2018 edition. Nose - Dusty corn, big caramel sweetness, strong oak notes (think fresher oak, not charred), a hint of cherry fruit. This has a very classic buffalo trace nose where you almost feel like you're in their rick houses when you get those oak notes. Taste - Fruity, vanilla, creamy velvety oak, and a huge caramel background. I get a lot of citrus, cherry, and just a waxy fruit note. This is one of the most fruity buffalo trace bourbons I've had, don't get me wrong, this is a classic bourbon with vanilla, caramel and oak dominating. last note, just got it but there's a bit of a nutty character just before the citrus fruits come into play. Nose - 2.75 Taste - 4.0 Mouth Feel - 3.5 Finish - 3.5 So for me that's a 3.5. Doesn't really justify the price on the secondary market.

HP 18 - 43% so chill filtered and well more or less a mixed drink with gallons of unneeded water poured over it. But I guess some people like scotch and water so more or less this is a premade mixed drink. Nose - baked pie crust, sherry fruits, butter, a touch of nutty notes. The nose is extremely neutrally balanced sweet without being overly sweet, a bit of that bready character bringing down the sweet, some sherry fruits but the malts are middling. There's a touch of savory elements as well. Balanced is the word here. Taste - More of the same with the nose. Vanilla and dough open, then some sherry notes come through, followed by some spices and oak. The finish brings out some very light peat and some salt, but extremely subtle. I'm not sure where some of these insane scores are coming on this one. This is very likely a few years old as I bought it a year ago and the store kept these in the back. It's a perfectly balanced whisky. It's complex, well made, and if they'd just up the ABV to 46 we might have a real winner. Still, I think this is just short of one to chase down. It's a great way for someone to start with scotch and to see what they like or don't like as there's a little of everything here.

Nose - huge fruity notes, a touch of islay salt/brine, spices (perhaps cinnamon among some others). There's a bit of fudge and a very subtle bit of nut in the background. Taste - Fudge, touch of salt, fruity sherry notes, and oak tannin. It's a bit bitter which keeps it interesting but I'm a bit more of a sweets sucker so I'm not loving that aspect. Another long lasting, super complex wine cask influenced whisky bringing everything that scotch dreams of. I think I'm going 4.5 here but I should add that HP25 is a stronger 4.5. I actually think the two are really similar and comparable options.

Cheating - this is a 10 year single barrel from a local store. Nose - vanilla, powerful, red fruits and oak. Caramel. Taste - Oh man sweet vanilla and caramel, and lightly toasted oak. Such an easier drinker, so much caramel and nice easy to drink flavors. Alcohol is well in the background. Powerful flavor, good kick, and super drinker. I find myself reviewing a lot of stuff at 3.0 and this is another one. Keep in mind, why would I own it if it weren't a 3?

Not sure about this 2016 part but ok. Nose - powdered sugar, smoke, touch of banana, a touch of fruit, and a bit of baked dough. Taste - Iodine and smoke mixed with white sugars, I'm looking for more sherry cask, I've had some store pick bay's with more sherry. Caramel notes in the sweetness. I'm getting some sherry perhaps but I'm only getting it because I'm looking for it. There's a good bit of complexity but not what I was expecting. Good peated whisky, I'll buy it again, but nothing that special. Sold solid 3.0 but oddly enough I'd take their cheaper expression over this one.

2019 edition Another classic example of someone in the kentucky area needing to get whisky shipped back to the kentucky area. Nose - Christmas spice, wheat toast, vanilla and mint together, some under cooked yeasty bread, Taste - spice, mint, rye bread, oak, caramel, and some tobacco. Really complex, could use some age to mellow out a few rough notes (see the 10 year rye which I can't get but tried last night for what age can do). Very nice and a must get for a rye fan. I don't any of those off putting dill notes, the oak is there and not that overly young stuff. This will be a super high end cocktail mixer that is worth the premium and because of that, I'm going 3.25 as this has some special notes.