Tastes

(Good Spirits Company, Glasgow. Virtual Whisky Tasting Saturday 25th July 2020). Nose: Smoky bacon, campfire. A very light hint of berries and cream, although you have to search for this on the nose. It's more of a glance after you've sniffed the glass. Palate: Frazzles crisps (?), burnt toast, caramelised apples and kids sweeties (the cheap penny tray kind!) Finish: Port really comes out in the finish, still peaty and a little salty. This is a bit of a mongrel, as you taste it you keep picking out more layers and different tastes - all of which are nicely layered. It has the peat and salt all through and this adds to the character of the whisky to keep it interesting. Water kills the taste completely. It dulls almost all of the layers and just leaves the peat and campfire notes. Out of the 6 drams on the tasting, this achieved 25% of the vote for favourite which made it joint first place, but the common consensus was that all 6 were really too close to call.

(Good Spirits Company, Glasgow. Virtual Whisky Tasting Saturday 25th July 2020). Parcel Number 3. Made from a batch of just 4 hogsheads. Nose: Acetone, sherbet lemons, pear drops, strawberry bonbons. Palate: MIlky smooth, lemon sherbet and strawberry. Finish: Slightly numbing on the finish and leaving a lovely sweet pear drop aftertaste. This has a lovely, almost waxy mouthfeel. It feels somewhat old fashioned and has a load of childhood tastes like lemon drops, sherbet and strawberry sweets. This is a lovely dram. Out of the 6 drams on the tasting, this achieved 25% of the vote for favourite which made it joint first place, but the common consensus was that all 6 were really too close to call. I placed this as first place. I enjoyed it enough to buy a bottle during the tasting!

(Good Spirits Company, Glasgow. Virtual Whisky Tasting Saturday 25th July 2020). Nose: Coffee, sultanas, toffee, salt Palate: Green apples, raisins, salt, caramel, mineral oil Finish: Medium long finish, more of the fruit and raisins with some added salt and pepper. Smooth and chocolatey aftertaste. This is a very nice whisky. It is more of a sipper than a session whisky, but it sits somewhere in between for me. It has a lovely creamy mouthfeel and a nice body to it that is missing in the 12y/o. I still miss the 17y/o which was retired from the range a few years ago, but I think this is the standout of their standard range (although the NAS Huddart is also very good). I had tasted this at an Old Pultney tasting back in 4th June 2019 at DRAM! Glasgow. I liked it enough to buy a bottle then, and I recently bought another to replace the one I'd finished. Out of the 6 drams on the tasting, this achieved 0% of the vote for favourite which made it dead last, but the common consensus was that all 6 were really too close to call. I put this a very close second.

(Good Spirits Company, Glasgow. Virtual Whisky Tasting Saturday 25th July 2020). Nose: Boiled sweets, butterscotch. Very sweet nose. Palate: Golden syrup, toffee, nutmeg, buttered popcorn. There's a slight 'funk' in the layers that jars a little with the sweetness. Finish: Long finish which is heavy on the grain and syrup. Some light sourness right at the end. Water softens this up and removes the slight funk and some of the citrus. I don't tend to like grain whiskies, but this is a decent dram that I'd be happy to have again. Out of the 6 drams on the tasting, this achieved 17% of the vote for favourite which made it joint second, but the common consensus was that all 6 were really too close to call.

(Good Spirits Company, Glasgow. Virtual Whisky Tasting Saturday 25th July 2020). Nose: Tangerine, citrus fruits, cream Palate: Oaky, slightly numbing, herbal, sweet rye Finish: Long finish, apricot, vanilla, slightly bitter at the very end This has a lovely oily, buttery mouthfeel, very fruity all the way through to the finish. A lovely dram. Easy to drink and very different from most Scottish blends. There is around 40% grain in this blend, but it still has plenty of the malt notes to keep it interesting. Out of the 6 drams on the tasting, this achieved 17% of the vote for favourite which made it joint second, but the common consensus was that all 6 were really too close to call.

Nose: Light, sweet peat. Malt, barley, Horlicks, barley sugar. Palate: Light peat and sweet smoke. There’s a citrus sweetness. A kind of Christmas cake spicy fruitiness. Finish: Medium finish, there’s a nice smoky, peppery sweet aftertaste. It doesn’t linger long enough! I really like this dram. It’s very gentle, slightly smoky and nicely layered. They have really thought about this one, while it’s essentially a peated Tobermory, it has a very different character and feel. I would consider this a ‘session’ whisky, it’s not an easy sipper - it just goes down too smoothly. Very nice. Gentle.

Aged 10 years in bourbon barrels and Spanish oak sherry quarter casks ‘Aerolite Lyndsay’ is in an anagram of ‘ten year old Islay’. Oh dear... Nose: Barley sugar, TCP, citrus (although, more disinfectant/ washing up citrus scent than the actual fruit), light peat Palate: Way more peat than the nose would suggest! Brine, seaweed, lime, pepper and chillies Finish: Liquorice, Germoline, salt and pepper. A little sour, umami and slightly boggy! Overall, this is a decidedly ‘OK’ whisky. It’s peaty and salty, so it ticks the main Islay checklist points. It’s not as refined as the classic Islays and doesn’t have the layers of flavour you’d expect. I think my main disappointment is that it has none of the complexity you’d normally demand from an Islay. This isn’t a bad dram, but I’m not sure why you’d buy it over the other (better!) whiskies the island produces at around the same price point. Generally OK.

Nose: Buttered popcorn, honey Palate: More butter and honey, with a slightly pine nut hint. Slightly numbing. Finish: Oily, quite long and buttery (again) Overall, it’s fairly smooth dram. It’s what I’d describe as inoffensive at best. It works well in a cocktail, but as a dram on its own it’s a bit lacklustre. OK, but nothing more.

Nose: Chilli, herbal, grassy Palate: Sweet, cherries, pepper sauce, saline Finish: Medium / short finish, dried apricot, Overall, I enjoyed this dram. This is a smooth, uncomplicated and easy to drink dram.

This is a really interesting idea for a Japanese blend. Spirits blended from the Japanese distillery Shinshu and from undisclosed Scottish distilleries. Nose: Saccharine sweet, cherries. Has a strange artificial smell. Palate: Chocolate Hob-Nob biscuits, oak and a hint of vanilla. Finish: Dark fruit and more chocolate biscuits. Overall, initially I wasn’t sure about this whisky, but it very quickly grew on me. It’s an easy to drink and very interesting dram. I was challenged in a blind tasting to work out where it was from and this completely stumped me! The combination of Scottish and Japanese styles go surprisingly well together.