Tastes

I thought I would give this $30 USD bottle a go. It's definitely a good value. In the glass, it's a goldenrod hue, maybe a little too deep to be natural. Not much in the way of legs on the glass when swirled. Nose: Quite fruity, with notes of apple juice and peaches. The faintest hint of dried/candied fruits makes its way in. Palate: Sweet with a little peppery heat throughout. There's a dash of vanilla, much as you'd smell in vanilla infused pipe tobacco, and it comes in with a tiny splash of citrus. Finishes with a pleasant tannin bitterness. The dry glass smells like trail mix and pipe tobacco. This would be a good transition Scotch for bourbon drinkers, and a good introductory single malt in general. I agree with others that it isn't particularly challenging, but given it's price, it's age, and that it is non-peated, I wouldn't expect it to be. In all, it's a solid single malt and a good value at $30. I give it 83 points and 4 stars.

Another sample dram from my Christmas gift collection. Smells like Speyside. Malty sweetness, vanilla, light brown sugar, some hay. Palate brings honey sweetness, dried trail mix fruit flavors, some nuttiness, and more brown sugar. The finish is medium length and peppery, with a slight hint of bitterness. Dry glass smells of dried fruits. Nice, and a solid dram despite its youth. 85 points and a solid 4 stars.

Another sample from my Christmas gift set. Interesting nose. Malty, with dried cherries, cherry syrup, and some smoke. Slightly sweet palate at the beginning, leading to a rapid, hot, smoky finish. Surprisingly hot given the low ABV. I would compare this to decaffeinated coffee: missing a certain roundness in the middle. The flavor does not match the nose. I give it a C-, 70 points, a scant 3 stars.

Gift set sample. Nose: Apple juice, pear, vanilla, malt Palate: Orchard fruit, sweet, vegetal note of thick end of a thick carrot. Finish: Short, dry. A bit of a Johnny one note. Not much depth or complexity. I'm guessing this NAS whisky is fairly young. Drinkable. 72 points, 3 stars.

I bought a bottle of this and was eager to try it but faced some disappointment when the cork broke off upon opening, and couldn’t be removed without losing it in the bottle. Oh well. Occasionally that happens. With just a nub of cork left on the underside of the lid, I knew that this bottle would have to be consumed quickly to ensure it is gone before too much air exposure oxidizes the flavor. I’d better do some sharing. I’ve tasted this a couple of times in an attempt to work out the aromas and flavors. Upon removal of the nub cork, I notice the pent-up aroma from the bottle is a lot like olive brine, or perhaps a tapenade made from manzanilla and oil-cured Greek olives. There’s also a bit of smoke in the bottle, making think: hmm. Olive tapenade, smoked gouda – we have some classy canapé action going on here. In the glass, the nose opens to reveal some sliced fresh fruits, light peat smoke, and maybe a bit of orange pekoe, along with some difficult to pin down vegetal notes. Maybe the faintest hint of spice, likely from the bourbon casks. The palate is slightly sweet and slightly smoky, with a bit of cucumber sneaking in. Exhaling through my nose, I pick up a hint of ham and some more cucumber and a soupçon of spice. The finish isn’t quite as lengthy as I expected from the expert review, but isn’t too short, either. It’s a bit peppery, and has some lingering smoke. So, with the canapés on the nose (in the bottle), and the ensuing fruit, tea, vegetables, ham, and spices, we pretty much have dinner covered, except for dessert, which I didn’t quite find in there anywhere. This is more savory than sweet and at its modest price could easily be a nightly sipper for me if I had time for such a thing. There are simply too many spirits to try to be committed to a particular one. When this bottle is gone, I’ll move on to something else. I think this is certainly worth a mid-to-upper 80’s score, so I give it a good solid 4+ stars.

Another installment in my gift collection of samples. As the description states, this whisky is sourced from Islay malts to showcase their character. Seeing that this has an ABV approaching 60, I added about 1/2 tsp of water to the 30 mL dram and gave it 15 minutes to open up. Nose: Iodine, sea spray, smoke, citrus zest Palate: Honey, smoked ham (very prominent), cigar ash, campfire, and ethanol burn Finish: medium long and hot with lingering smoked ham. 3.5 stars. Not bad for something I've never heard anything about.

This is another installment in the sample set I received as a Christmas gift. As a fan of Talisker 10 (the first peated Scotch that really blew me away) I was happy to see what this NAS expression had to offer. I won't go into great detail, as I believe I need more than a 30 mL sample of this one to really nail the nuances, but it is sweeter from nose to finish than the 10 and seems to be missing some of that "X" factor that makes the 10 something I will reach for again and again. It shares some similarities with the 10 (peat, smoke, salt, iodine, fruit), but the smoke is a bit less pronounced and there is a slight added ash quality in the finish. The finish is shorter and lacks the lasting warming quality of the 10. This was nice to try, but I don't think I will try too hard to seek this one out for a more detailed tasting. I would give it 3.5 stars if I could, but 3 will have to suffice.

A favorite of mine to have at restaurants when nothing more interesting is available. It's a good, solid bourbon that works well on the rocks. I had it last night at a dinner with some colleagues and spouses. The spicy nose was discernible from feet away, with cinnamon, cloves, vanilla and oak the predominant notes. The palate is full and continues with vanilla, spice, and woody oak flavors, and adds a dash of caramel. The short to medium finish is oaky with dry tannins cutting short the slight cherry cough syrup note that seems to pervade Brown Forman's bourbon offerings. Thankfully, the cough syrup note isn't as pronounced or as lasting as it is with Old Forester or Cooper's Craft. A reliable bourbon to have on the rocks with dinner, but not one I would sip neat at home. 84/100, 4 stars.

Yet another sample dram from my gift set. An intriguing NAS juice from a mystery distiller on Islay...but who? Admittedly, I haven't enjoyed enough Islays in my so far brief malt tasting journey to hazard a guess. With no expert tasting notes from Distiller staff and scant user reviews, I was completely without any expectations, except that I figured it would be peaty, as an Islay, and expected it would be potent, given the 57.1% ABV. I don't even know what sort of cask finishing this whisky underwent. But, I went ahead and added about a 1/4 teaspoon of water to the 1 oz dram and let it rest for 15 minutes to open up. Pale in the glass with not much in the way of legs on swirling. On the nose, it is malty, with a sweet tart note akin to perhaps a Riesling. Also, a healthy dash of cigar ash asserts itself with an intensity equal to the other notes combined and then some. No sea spray, ships ropes, boat house, kelp, brine, or other nautical/maritime themes seemed to be present. On the palate, it is surprisingly sweet. Plenty of honey to offset some of the harsher qualities. Make no mistake, this stuff gets your attention. The cigar ash, although not as prominent on the palate as on the nose, is integrated throughout, from first introduction on the tip of the tongue to the fairly long finish. The heat of the high ABV coupled with the ash gives the impression of smoking a very peppery cigar. There is very little of the salt and iodine expected from an Islay, and none of the rubber or bandaid notes that often accompany Islay malts. However, after the finish subsided, I noticed upon exhaling through my nose that there was the distinct essence of Cephacol sore throat spray, giving it a medicinal quality at the very end. Overall impressions? Oddly enough, I rather liked it, although I doubt I would go through the pains of seeking it out. I don't think I could get it locally. I would give it 3.5 stars for being good at what it does, which is giving the impression of drinking a strong single malt while smoking a peppery cigar. It doesn't offer waves of morphing and changing layers of complexity like a good peaty Highland (think Talisker or Highland Park) or lots of maritime and medicinal notes of some of its Islay brethren. Very nice to sample, though.

Another installment from the sample collection I received as a Christmas gift. In the glass, there a some legs on swirling, but they don't linger for long. I like the subtle nose. It brings malt, honey, brown sugar, and candies nuts flavored with vanilla, and a bit of toffee. Just a faint hint of peat. The palate brings more of what the nose offers, with the honey first, followed by subtle peat. The toffee and vanilla are less pronounced on the palate, and a bit of citrus zest sneaks in. The finish is medium length and the dry glass smells of brown sugar. This was a pleasant dram to drink, and at the modest price, I think it represents a pretty good value.