Tastes

Had an opportunity to try this at a Glenmo/Ardbeg event with brand ambassador Bryan Simpson. This was a mystery dram on the table that had me puzzled all evening. I have a lot of Ardbeg's in my own collection, but something about this one was different, and not something I had experienced before. Nose: Extremely creamy - strong notes of real vanilla - not the sharp fake vanilla note that Canadian whisky has. My best description is a lemon curd cheesecake. You could smell all the different parts, including the graham cracker crust. Palate: The palate was quite different than the nose. There was this incredible aged-cheese funk to it. It was almost like a sports equipment room in terms of sweaty, sour, rubbery, funky. I've never tasted anything like it in whisky before, and it wasn't a bad thing! Notes of fresh fruit and herbs came through as well. The smoke seemed to have completely dissolved. Finish: Loooooong-lasting finish. Sweet, buttery, great mouth feel. Overall, a really great bottle, and very unique. I would love to have it in my collection, but at $450CAD after taxes, I don't know that it blew my mind enough to pay that much. Would absolutely pick this up if it was closer to $250.

Dark chocolate and sweet peat flood the palatte. Swedish berries with a hint of caramel-apple sucker. The finish is long-lasting smoke and chocolate with a dryness reminding of freshly tanned leather.

Just as an FYI I had a glass of Ardbeg 10 beside this one to compare to, and to help my nose/palate find some differences. I picked Ardbeg 10 because it is not one of the distilleries used in the blend and a lot of people are familiar with Ardbeg 10 as a standard Islay. Caol Ila and Laphroaig are the two main distilleries in this blend. Colour: Very light. Maybe 1 shade darker than Ardbeg 10 Nose: Lots going on here. Peat smoke is front and centre but also a very nice briny sea salt note. Reminds me of the smell of your hands when trying to crack lobsters. There is also a fruity sour green apple note in there with a bit of petroleum sweetness. If you splash it on your hands and rub them together there is a fantastic note of peanut brittle that comes out! I really enjoy the nose here. Taste: This had a great oily mouth feel to it. Again that petroleum sweetness comes out, but it is not as sweet as an Ardbeg 10. There is also a nice candied ginger note that comes out alongside a bit of the brine. Notes of burnt sugar too. I really like that this has a nice clean smoke flavour to it that is not too meaty. It's delicate like the thin blue smoke you might get while smoking meat, not heavy campfire smoke. Finish: This has a surprisingly long finish! A little bit of sweetness from that burnt sugar lingers and that sour green apple too if you're really looking. Final thoughts: Wow - for the price, this is a great peated scotch! I would feel very comfortable introducing someone to peated scotch with this one. I like that the smoke is not as intense or heavy as Laphroaig, and not as meaty as Ardbeg. It's surprisingly delicate! What would make me give it a higher rating? I really enjoy a more pronounced sea salted note more similar to what's found in Talisker.

This was my first foray into blends. Did lots of reading about Compass Box and decided to give this one a try as my local liquor store just got this in stock. Nose: First things that comes to mind is those little cherry coke bottles! There is even a bit of effervescence. Sandalwood, and a variety of dark dried fruit and stone fruit show up. A bit of a prune note in there as well. Taste: Very pleasant! It has an extremely nice balanced sherry taste to it. Dark fruits like blackberry syrup and cherry show up. More in a way sweetened with honey, than with a sugar or artificial sweetener. This follows into a light vanilla and baking spice note. Finish: Surprisingly long. The sandalwood sticks around here followed by a light note of freshly tanned leather. Like a brand new leather jacket. The honey sweetness lingers as well. Overall a delightful surprise for my first blend purchase. Not as sweet as something like Glenmorangie LaSanta, and not as rich as something like Glenfarclas 15, but a nice light balance of those two with a bit more of a Highland influence. Out of the three, I would likely still pick Glenfarclas 15, but given the price point, this is a great value.

Feels like I’m drinking the smell of a good coffee shop. The palate is chocolate and dark fruit. The finish lasts forever and is reminiscent of a chocolate mint candy

Nose: sweet honey and lemon zest. A very slight hint of those dark sherried fruits. The nose is extremely pleasant. Palate: Warm honey coated lemon drops. There is a bit of a citric zip to it. This blends into a vanilla and brioche bread. Buttery. There is also a floral element to the palate. Like being amongst a field of wildflowers. Finish: Only on the finish do I find the smoke and a hint of that sea salt that I love from Hp. It has a great mouth feel. This scotch has a lot going on. Complex. I can’t wait to dive into it again and see what else I can pick out next time.

Extremely light. No nose but great flavour