Tastes

Nose: Rich, orange, vanilla, cherry bakewell tart Palate: Orange, ginger, pepper, allspice, black pepper, stewed and dried fruits. Oak, vanilla, toffee and slightly chocolate. Finish: Long finish. Orange and pear sweetness. Black and white pepper, ginger syrup. Oak and vanilla on the aftertaste, but retaining much of the orange sprightliness of the spirit. This is a gentle and very pleasing dram. There's the orange and vanilla house style you'd expect, with a load of oak and vanilla and a little ginger spice. It's not an adventurous dram at all, but silky gentle and very easy drinking. Lovely.

Nose: Ammonia, cat pee, floral, grassy, lemon urinal cake Palate: Floral, heather honey, apple, cocoa nibs, pear, dark chocolate, barley Finish: Medium short finish. Sweet, chocolate, poached pear, floral and peppery The smell is a little off putting - ammonia and citrus - but this dram comes into its own on the palate and finish. Doesn't blow you away, but it is a decent dram. I'd consider this a session dram, it improves as it sits in the glass for a while dampening the pretty awful nose.

Nose: Green fruit, hay, floral, sherbet, hairspray and wood polish Palate: Alcohol heavy, grain, grist, fruity (peach & plum), wood and oak Finish: Short finish. Alcohol and oak/wood heavy on the finish. Leather, earth floor, damp and musty The nose and palate don't have much happening - not unpleasant, but certainly not memorable. Fruity and gristy. The finish is spirit heavy but with loads of wood/oak which is the star of the show. Decent enough as a woody, spirit driven dram.

Nose: Alcohol, sweet, barley/corn, gristy, butter Palate: Alcohol heavy, buttered popcorn, black pepper, spices. This tastes like a spiced vodka. Finish: Very short. Sweet, black pepper, spice. 84% corn, 8% rye, 8% malted barley For an unaged white spirit, this has a creamy mouthfeel. Spicy and buttery, some sweet popcorn hints. Very hot vodka notes, but smoothed out by the creaminess. There are some interesting tequila/mezcal hints, too. Overall, this is sweeter and creamier than many new makes I've tried. Somewhat interesting as far as these white spirits go - more vodka than whisky, but that's to be expected.

(Good Spirits Co. Glasgow – Virtual Whisky Tasting, 23 April 2022). Nose: Honey, BBQ smoke, diesel oil, TCP/Germolene, salt, seaweed. Hints of funky/damp/dirty notes and tobacco Palate: Damp peat, funky, oily, sweet, grassy, nutty, black pepper. There's almost a tropical note - melon/mango underneath the obvious darker flavours. Finish: Long finish. Funky, damp peat, grass, caramel, cured meats, salt. Sweetens on the aftertaste. I have to say, despite it's dark/funky/dankness, I like this a lot! It's not as nuanced or layered as some of the other peaty drams over on Islay, it nods more to the dirty/funkiness you'd expect in Campbeltown - but it really is it's own whisky. A lovely dirty and funky dram. Came joint first out of the six drams, with 21% of the final vote for favourite of the night. 71% of those present said they enjoyed the whisky. This got my vote for favourite of the tasting.

(Good Spirits Co. Glasgow – Virtual Whisky Tasting, 23 April 2022). Nose: Walnut, very light peat, toffee, burnt caramel, vanilla. Hints of sweet berries. Palate: Banana sweets, berry sweetness, strawberry kids sweets, fake strawberry flavouring (like cheap strawberry ice cream). There are hints of char and a very light dry peat. Finish: Medium long finish. Darker notes on the finish than the palate, there's more oak, leather, black tea and dried dates. The aftertaste is dried fruit (dates/figs), oak and leather. Sweet and sour, burnt caramel and treacle. Oloroso sherry hogsheads Croftengea spirit from Loch Lomond 500ml bottle I normally don't much go for any of the Loch Lomond whiskies, but it can work well in the hands of an IB - this is again the case here. NSS have done a decent job on this whisky. Came joint second out of the six drams, with 14% of the final vote for favourite of the night. 71% of those present said they enjoyed the whisky.

(Good Spirits Co. Glasgow – Virtual Whisky Tasting, 23 April 2022). Nose: Nutty, orange, mocha coffee, dry fruits Palate: Fruit cake, Christmassy, chocolate cherries, orange zest, chocolate raisins, crystallised ginger. Strongly sherried. Finish: Medium finish. Stone fruits, dates, leather, chocolate/cocoa, coffee. Sherry-sherry-sherry!!! Sours on the aftertaste. PX & Oloroso sherry casks This is a heavy, mouthcoating sherry-bomb! Lots of cocoa, chocolate and dried fruit notes. You really notice the cask strength, it has a slightly harsher feel on the palate for it. Very tasty, chewy and unctuous. Good dram. Came joint second out of the six drams, with 14% of the final vote for favourite of the night. 50% of those present said they enjoyed the whisky. There was a lot of negative talk in the chat rooms about the how the ownership of Glendronach now distribute the bottles, which could have negatively impacted the score.

(Good Spirits Co. Glasgow – Virtual Whisky Tasting, 23 April 2022). Nose: Emulsion paint, hairspray, floor polish, vanilla, ginger, hay, gorse. Slightly floral. Palate: Woody, nutty, treacle, golden syrup, toffee, burnt sugar syrup, butterscotch, light berry notes in the background. The main taste on the palate is the barley - it's very dominant and almost overpowering. Finish: Long finish. Leather, oak, charred, sweet fruit and berries, cocoa powder. Slightly dirty/dank aftertaste. The strongest taste is still the barley. First fill 100 litre ex-bourbon Distilled: 26 Jan 2018 Bottled: March 2022 1 of 178 bottles Cask No: 54 Bottle No: 36 Plumage Archer barley Brewer's C yeast This is all about the barley. An uncompromising, chewy mouthfeel. Oily, funky, grumpy, dark and full-bodied. This is not a beginner's whisky. It has a challenging profile, but I have to say it has a lot going on. Not one you could sit and quaff - one to ponder over a dram or two (max!) Came joint first out of the six drams, with 21% of the final vote for favourite of the night. 79% of those present said they enjoyed the whisky.

(Good Spirits Co. Glasgow – Virtual Whisky Tasting, 23 April 2022). Nose: Honey, light citrus, orchard fruit (green apples), dry oak Palate: Dusty initial mouthfeel. Rich spices, green apple, lemon/lime, cocoa powder, toffee Finish: Medium long finish. Rich chocolate, mocha coffee, leather. Loads of fruit and citrus on the aftertaste. Hints of dry peat. 1 of 1,320 casks This is a nice, easy drinking toffee/mocha whisky. There's a nicely layered character, moving through toffee, spice, orchard fruit and coffee - moving and changing with each sip. A decent wee dram. Came joint second out of the six drams, with 14% of the final vote for favourite of the night. 93% of those present said they enjoyed the whisky.

(Good Spirits Co. Glasgow – Virtual Whisky Tasting, 23 April 2022). Nose: Lemon, vanilla, stone fruit, hay, green/grass, aniseed Palate: Sweet, fruity, quite hot, zesty lemon/citrus, green apples, nutty, gristy Finish: Medium finish. Spicy and sweet, black pepper, ginger, lemon, lightly toasted nuts. Sours on the aftertaste. Slightly numbing. Fruity, zingy and nutty. The overall impression is young and hot, with lots of citrus and spice. It's OK, not a bad dram, but a little fresh and youthful for my palate. This whisky has been designed to drink as a youthful dram, with a different profile being used for their whisky currently aging. Came joint second out of the six drams, with 14% of the final vote for favourite of the night. 64% of those present said they enjoyed the whisky.