Tastes

Low budget bourbon. Decent for the price, nothing to offend. Not much there, a little dusty corn, a hint of caramel, a hint of spice on the finish.

Batch 1 bottled 11/9/17. I get caramel, leather and orange notes from the bourbon mixed with mint, dill and eucalyptus from the rye. Throw in a little chocolate and wine from the port barrels. It was a definite conversation piece in a zoom tasting. I don’t quite know what to make of it. It’s good, but it seems like all the flavors are not fully integrated.

Nose is sweet and fruity with baking spices, caramel, orange marmalade and cherry notes. Palate is viscous with the same notes, a little hot. Finish is long and warming. A splash of water brought it into perfect harmony for me. This is a fantastic whiskey. Only had a 50 ml sample and will have to seek out a bottle.

Sweet and mild with vanilla and orange notes on the nose, same on the palate plus a little salt, agave and pepper. Short, sweet yet peppery finish.

Vanilla lemon cake, sweet peat and a hint of smoke on the nose. Palate is juicy with some sweet and savory notes, a hint of orange, chocolate and peat. The finish is long and peppery, sweet and savory.

Mellow and fruity with a little peat and smoke. Not terrible, not great.

Nose has bacon bits, strawberry jam, mocha, sweet peat and ocean breeze. The palate is sweet and a little creamy on entry with caramel, mocha, peat and wine notes, but more like a good Argentinian Malbec than a Pinot Noir. Finish is medium length and warming with a spicy mocha note. Delicious!

Generous sample of the 1971 - 1993 150th anniversary release from a buddy. Likely similar to the juice in the bottle shown here, only not aged as long. Didn’t want to start a new listing, so I’ll post it here. Nose is subtle with figs, raisins, honey dew melon, light cinnamon and oak. Palate is velvety and supple with honeyed graham cracker and melon. Short finish left me wanting more. Alas, it’s all gone.

Back in February of this year I stopped into a local liquor store on the way home from work. Like most of the local shops everything is overpriced. I check out the clearance aisle and what do I see? Two bottle of the Kelpie with no price listed. On a whim I decide to ask what the price is, fully expecting a huge markup. The clerk can’t find it in the system, so he calls the owner, $69.99 says the owner. I can hardly contain my excitement as I say, “Well, I’ll take both bottles”. I’ve been saving this bottle for a special occasion. I guess watching my Seahawks on MNF and review no. 400 will have to do. Not exactly what I have come to expect from an Ardbeg. Vanilla, ocean breeze, salty earth, and muted peat on the nose. The palate is sweet and oily with vanilla, umami, pepper and chai tea. The finish is long and I really like the interplay of the peppery notes with the sweet chai tea notes. Worth the wait? Definite yes. Not my favorite Ardbeg, but very good.

Nose is fruity with orange and cherry plus there’s a little corn, caramel, rye and baking spices. Palate is sweet and oily with pretty much all the notes from the nose. Finish is medium length with a little rye spice.