Tastes

Nose: Rum is definitely present, with more dried fruit notes than the standard 12 yr. Slightly smoky aroma on the back end. Palate: disappointingly muted. Pears and a light vanilla mix with sweet rum in the background. A little bit of sea salt comes out with the addition of water Mouthfeel: medium body, oily Finish: moderate and slightly spicy Was hoping for a lot more after the nose of this one.

Nose: honey, apples, and toasted malt Palate: vanilla and berries, more honey. After water, pears and vanilla Mouth feel: light Finish: short and semi sweet Much like the 12, maybe a bit more complex

Nose is honey and cherries, with a hint of oak Palate had vanilla, opened up with more fresh fruit with a little water Mouth feel is light, thin, and a tad oily Finish is moderately.long and sweet Not bad, but felt a little flat

Nose: very sweet, with medicinal, camphor-like scents underlying a sickly caramel top note. There is vanilla and a very light rye spice in the background. Palate: light rye in the front, but again, medicinal sharp and bitter.flavors overtake before anything else can develop Didn't want to taste anymore. Yuck.

Nose: moderate rye with heavy oak and a slight brineyness (at 75% strength, more vanilla coming through with a low leather note, not as briney). Palate: Vanilla, leather, rye spice and a hint of dark fruit (unchanged) Mouth feel: light, slightly oily (unchanged) Finish: moderate to long, spicy and slightly dry. (Unchanged)

1st taste at 100 proof, (second at 50) Nose: Rye and oak primarily (Dried fruits come out a lot more at lower proof, along with the vanilla I got on the first taste. Rye spice is still there but muted) Palate: A bit of heat, lots of tobacco, I get cherries later with vanilla. (Cherries lead, with rye spice in the background. Vanilla and tobacco absent, nothing new present) Mouth feel: oily, lingers and coats the inside of the mouth (still slightly oily, even at half strength) Finish: fairly short and a tad sweet. (Unchanged)

Nose - honey, candied orange, toffee balanced with a touch of iodine and peat Palate - peat is much more expressive and briney. There are cherries and a hint of caramel under the peat, but they are far under Mouth feel - light, thin, and a bit oily. Finish - long, lingering, and slick. Overall, a decent budget blended. Not my bag. I'll see how it does with some water on the next tasting.

Nose- vanilla and tart berries, with baking spices coming out later Palate - a lot of malty cereal sweetness, with only a small hint of barrel character. Finish - very short and a bit flat. Overall, not bad as a sipper, but probably better in a cocktail. It's young and would probably benefit from a couple more years in the barrel. Update: didn't really enjoy this is a cocktail either, it's just too sweet and one note. I did have some oak cubes for "barrel-aging" beer laying around, so I tossed a dozen into the bottle. After a week, a huge difference. The extra wood exposure tamed the sweetness and let some really great vanilla and cinnamon notes come out. A big improvement, and I happily finished the bottle.

17 Dec 2020 Nose: Iodine, salt, and fresh apples. Briny and a bit peaty. Palate: Peat is definitely present, but so is vanilla, malt, honey and something pickled. Finish: Smooth, moderate, and slightly smokey. This is real good stuff.

Nose: Toffee, Vanilla, Candied Ginger with a hint of dark fruit, maybe raisins or dates. Palate: Brown sugar and vanilla in the foreground, slightly oily mouthfeel; berries, warm spices, and a bit of oak harshness in the short finish.