Tastes

Impressions @ 1/3 bottle: 2018 batch, 56.9% abv Exploring this bottle has highlighted how my palate has changed over the years. I purchased and opened this bottle when I first began exploring whiskey in 2018, and my notes simply read: 'grape kool aid' and 'sharp'. Fast forward to today, and I find a lot more complexity and enjoyment. The nose still presents a lot of grape, but it's a drier variety that you might find in a Cognac or Armagnac. I also get a lot more caramel and maple syrup which I didn't find earlier, likely because it's somewhat buried under the higher proof. The palate starts off with a really heavy clay note that I found really off-putting when I was new to whisky. Even after oxidation, it's still very much there, but it's calmed down some and now feels better integrated with the fruit and spice notes that follow. The mid-palate finds lovely notes of dark cherries, golden raisins, and maple syrup before a very assertive toasted rye note carries you through the finish. The finish has always been outstanding on this whiskey, in that it's very long and gently warming in a way that very much compliments the rye flavors that emerge. I was initially put off by this rye, but I've come to really appreciate and enjoy it. It's interesting, available, well-presented, and affordable. I would encourage new rye drinkers to try it and perhaps come back to it over time.

I'm in the minority in that I've generally been underwhelmed by Compass Box. Although I agree with the company's principles, I've generally found their whiskies to be less interesting and more expensive than traditional single malts. However, the name "Orchard House" brought back memories of some wonderful fruit-forward Balblairs, so I was compelled to try this one. Impressions @ new bottle: The nose seems a bit tight, offering more grass, lavender, and acetone than fruit. This will likely open up with time and/or water, but it's a touch astringent, as is. The palate is surprisingly dry, and offers a lot of wood and spice up front. The palate begins to really shine at mid-palate, as some really lovely Balblair-esque fruit notes arrive and stay through the finish. Dried apricot, canned peaches, brandied cherries, and pear cider mix with notes of black tea and cloves. The finish is pleasantly warm and reasonably long. I am very pleasantly surprised by this. At first blush, the quality and value are outstanding. This is an approachable but interesting blend that drinks more like a single malt.

14 year single barrel from Ace Spirits, bottled in 2016 or 2017. Amazing single barrels are a curse. I've spent an embarrassing amount of money trying to coax lightening to strike twice. This will likely be my next white whale. At $36, this may simultaneously be one of the cheapest and most expensive bourbons that I will ever purchase. Rich aromas of cherry cola, maple syrup, and peanut brittle that settle into brown sugar and coffee cake, with rest. The palate mirrors the nose, with a bias towards cherry cola and brown sugar. The mouthfeel is thick and molasses-like, and lingers on brown sugar and salted caramel. The salted caramel effect seems to emerge from the assertive oak notes that emerge seamlessly in the mid-palate. The finish is long and deeply flavorful, and bests every one of the ECBPs and GTSs that I've tried.

Barrel 15-1616, 4 year old, bottled Spring 2019, 55.45% abv. Impressions @ half-bottle: Judging by my notes on the first pours out of this bottle, I can tell that I wasn't a fan. The nose was muted, the palate was soapy and sickly sweet, and the finish was harsh and unbalanced. I stuck this in a closet, and forgot about it for over a year. I rediscovered this recently and found that it had really blossomed with time. The nose remains muted and the finish feels a bit short for the proof, but the palate has become exceptional. Tasted blind, I might have confused this for a low-proof ECBP. It's a wonderful balance of cherry cola, spiced rum, fresh-cut wood, and leather. I'm increasingly finding that rye whiskey and high-rye bourbons seem to benefit from a little extra air.

Impressions @ new bottle: @Richard-ModernDrinking cutting to the chase, this feels like an older version of Quarter Cask, with a short finishing stint in a sherry cask. Here are my notes: Starting with the appearance, this is certainly the brownest whisky I've had with the liquid almost resembling a kind of watered down cola or root beer. While I've learned not to judge a dram by its looks, I can't help but think of the disappointing 2020 Cairdeas, and the pinkish hue that foreshadowed the jarring imbalance of flavor contained therein. The initial aromas were heavy with old leather, but a nice sherry note emerged and it began to resemble a better integrated, slightly muted version of the 2020 Cairdeas. The iconic Laphroaig nose, often described as 'beach bonfire', offered greater maturity and development than the 10 year age statement might suggest, and it generally mingled nicely with the sherry. However, some sharp burned tire notes emerged when the surface was disturbed by my sipping. The burned tire notes were initially prominent on the palate, and at first, this tasted a touch sharp and out of balance. However, things transitioned quickly to the standard panoply of classic Laphroaig flavors (smoke, bandaids, iodine, etc.), with much emphasis on the iodine and bandaids, and thankfully, the sherry didn't try to out-shout the smoke and brine notes the way the red wine and port did in the 2020 Cairdeas. This allowed for a far more satisfying finish than the aforementioned, and it was almost indistinguishable from some batches of CS with perhaps added bias to the sherry (though, that could simply be the power of suggestion). Occasionally, a metallic off-note note appeared on the finish, but I get the sense that this will be one of many aspects that improves with oxidation. I love Laphroaig, but I can't quite see the value in this at $90. The CS has always set such a high mark for me, and it's generally about 18% cheaper in my area.

This was actually aged in ex-cognac barrels.

Having lived in Portland for a number of years, I had the chance to watch this distillery (House Spirits) grow from a table at our local farmer's market to a large tasting room on the Willamette, and its merger with Diageo. This is a really unique single malt that doesn't always fit my palate, but the quality is steadfast and the profile is distinctly of the PNW, so there will always be a place in both my bar and heart for this. This is the 2019 single barrel from K&L Wines, B-236-11, 65.5% ABV. Impressions @ neck level: The initial aromas betray the Master Distiller's background in craft beer, and it smells strongly of a hoppy, yeast-forward sour ale. This opens up substantially with time; the nose becomes doughy and sweet as aromas of sugar donut and wood polish emerge. On the palate, the yeast and wood dominate, and they're not always in balance as the flavors oscillate sharply between pine sap and beer. The initial profile is fresh but bitter, full of fruit, pinewood, and yeast. It's challenging to parse out, but it seems to present notes of underripe grapefruit, freshly cut pine, hops, brewer's yeast, and malt extract. The finish is long and cooling, and lingers on a slightly bitter herbal note. Overall, there is a resinous and herbal quality to this malt and it reminds me of some of the rum cask expressions that I've tried (namely the 2019 Glen Scotia special release) . If provenance is a thing, this is very much the PNW in a bottle.

Impressions @ 1/3 bottle: Like other young sherried whiskies, the nose is cloyingly sweet. Aromas of golden raisins and dates dominate, but a nice wood spice emerges with time. The palate generally remains balanced as the initial burst of dried fruit is followed with the bitterness of black tea, the woodiness of cinnamon bark, and a very slight earthiness, similar to damp compost. The mouthfeel is on the lighter side and the finish is medium-long. If memory serves me, this improved substantially over the 8-9 months that this was open. I enjoyed this, but Glendronach 12 is similar but better, and also better value, in my opinion.

Impressions @ neck level: The nose carries the wonderful Balblair aroma of ripe peaches in syrup, but overlaid with the white smoke of a newly lit bonfire at the beach. The youth shows itself on the palate with a pleasant zippiness, but the flavors are surprisingly muted. It begins with iodine and smoke before transitioning to a mild tannic note of black tea with lemon, and then a more vegetal eucalyptus-like note . The finish is medium in length, but shorter than the proof would suggest, lingering on the aforementioned herbal and vegetal notes. Thought it's not as close to the 12 year as I had hoped, this is great value at $50, and it compares favorably to Ardbeg 10 and Talisker 10 for me. Laphroaig 10, though, remains my entry-level go-to for this style and price range.

Impressions @ 1/3 remaining: All things considered, this is a charming blended malt. The silly artwork that adorns the sleeve is perhaps a reminder not to take ourselves too seriously. The nose is a bit restrained, presenting aromas of preserved lemon, coastal air, and wood polish. For a peat monster, the palate begins bright and citrusy, adopting a slight mineral-like quality on the finish. At times, the bright citrus notes evoke the flavors of a Sprite soda, and it finishes on the slightest of tannic tea notes. The mouthfeel is pleasantly dry and greatly compliments the taste. For some reason, this didn't always agree with me, and there were times when this didn't feel at all balanced or palatable. Also, at $60, it's not great VFM, and it compared unfavorably to other entry-levels from Islay. However, this seemed to open up nicely, and, more often than not, I really enjoyed this. I would happily re-purchase if I could find a fair price on it (perhaps around $50 or less).