Tastes

There is an antique shaolin kung fu technique called "Drunken Fist", which seems to be a nice way for me to start learning martial arts. I start like this because my latest whisky review is a Caol Ila Drunken Master. This is a super limited bottling, there were only 108 decanters ever made. A 9yo, cask strength expression of Caol Ila with a beautiful label. 53.2%abv, drawn from a single hogshead. On the nose, crazy peaty notes. Gooseberries, Smoke, Povydone, and burnt pineapple. It smells exactly as the programed cricket fumigation goverment do near my house. Herbal, meaty as a Pancetta. Guava, pineapple marmalade. Sweet & Peat. After a sip, i got smokey and swampy notes; sown land and humidity. It became very maritime. On the palate, it is absolutely beautiful. Its vanilla mix with pineapple and peat. It is marvelous spicy. It starts sweet, like an "Alfajor", and then the spiciness hits, like chilli with fire. Incredible. Aftertaste is perfect but also incredibly powerful. It starts with a "camareta" explosion (camareta is like the strongest explosive firework out there), it feels like hell was set loose on your mouth, but in a good way, lol. Ashtray, strong mint. It blows up your soul. Overall, this is by far one of the best Caol Ila i have ever tasted. Intense, complex and full of flavor. I need to find another one to have it in my collection but this can be an impossible task since only 108 were ever made. My score for this great single malt is 96 over 100.

I've come to realize that Sassicaia wine cask maturatioms are my favorite type of wood finishes in whisky. The only problem i have with that, is that there are less than a handful of single malt expressions that were made like this. Having said that, in 2007, Bruichladdich released "the Italian collection", a group of whiskies matured in different italian wine casks, and i got my hands on a few of them; the Barolo ond was great, but now the time has come to try the Sassicaia. Bottled at 46%abv. On the nose, heavenly perfection. Super complex. Orange and lemon peel. Orange juice; kiwi and pineapple. White chocolate and crushed almonds. Hazelnut, marzipan and orange candy. After letting it breath for a little while, it gave me perfumed notes. It is fantastic. The palate was almost perfect as well. It has this lactic body to it; i can describe it as oranges with salt over a white chocolate bar. It is DELICIOUS. Aftertaste was so rewarding! A very elegant white chocolate and tobacco notes. Sulphur, acid oranges and salt. Orange juice. Overall, this is one more proof that this type of casks are incredible drivers of flavors and aromas to a good single malt spirit. Absolitely lovely, this is one whisky i wish i can have for the rest of my life. It is super elegant, even for a 14yo dram, this is superb stuff. The complexity here is uncanny, delivering layers and layers of different notes. My score for it is 97 over 100. Slàinte!

The Enlightment was the era of intellectual freedom. One can argue that nowadays, with the incredible flow of information accessible we should be even more free intellectually, but it feels that it is the complete opposite. Having said that, to be free is Compass Box ultimate goal in whisky. Enlightment is their attempt to honour wisdom of whisky, and of course they have revealed everything in this blend as they always do. Bottled at 46%abv, this is made of Clynelish, Glentauchers, Balblair & Mortlach. On the nose, super fruity. Green grapes, green apples. Honey, pears and peaches. Impalpable sugar and a Sharpie marker. After a couple of sips, it gave me red apples with toffee. Cocoa and Fanta cola. On the palate, it is still very fruity. Grapefruit, gooseberries, a little spicy. It is a rich and elegant sugary water. Easy to enjoy. Aftertaste is clearly the best part. Metallic, sulphuric, red chilli. A beautiful spiciness. It is a long but somehow muted or ghostly finish. Overall, this is one fancy whisky, with a lovely label and the creamy profile that most Compass Box have makes this blend a truly joyful dram. I would have loved for it to have a slight peatiness to make this even better. A honest 88 over 100 is a proper score for this dram.

Lagg is one of Scotland's newest distilleries. It is the "twisted (peated) sister" of one of my all time favorites, The Arran Malt. Located on Arran Island, they released a three part inaugural collection, and i already told you my critic on the third release, this time its the Number 1. The very first Lagg release ever, is a 36 months whisky, matured in first filled ex Bourbon Barrels. Bottled at 50%abv, lets see if this is the promise of what will become a legendary distillery someday. On the nose it is quite peaty. It starts with an aroma of new soccer shoes. A pair of sandals for the beach. Chilli and wet towels. There is this spicy vanilla, but also swampy water. It is like motor oil. After some sips, the aroma gave me lemoncello, grappa and rum & raisins ice cream. Very interesting. On the palate, it is great. It is the best part of this dram. Fancy vanilla and coconut. It is exactly as Ferrero's coconut sweets called "Rafaello" (if you have never had them, my friend let me tell you, they will change yoir life). Chilli & meaty. It is the most powerful spice bomb ever. Beautiful. Aftertaste is still very good. Chilli, ashes, leather and full of spices. Long. Overall, i am excited from this; i truly believe that if Lagg has started like this, in 10 years they will be making one of Scotland's finest peaty single malts. There is no mystery in saying that i am an Arran fan, bit now i am also a fan of Lagg. My score for it is 90 over 100.

Tamdhu nowadays is considered a high-end single malt whisky, a Macallan Killer if you must; but back a couple decades ago, it was mostly used in blends and it was quite unknown. Having said all that, they have always been proud of the sherry maturation of their whiskies, and i wanted to try a piece of the past, an 18yo Tamdhu from the 1990s and early 2000s. Lets see if it was any good back then. Bottled at 43%abv, chesnut color. On the nose, it is sweet and complex. Red apples with caramel. Honey and cinnamon. It is an apple pie, but also a fruitcake. Candiee fruits. Aroma changes after breathing, it releases notes of oranges, chocolate, figs and blackberry marmalade. Almonds and hay. Simply astonishing aroma. On the palate, it is dry and a little cowboy-ish. Dry paper sheets, ginger, tobacco and hay. Grapefruit and chilli. Nice stuff. Aftertaste is amazing. It has a nice "bite". Tobacco and metallic notes; clove and acid oranges. Very mineral. Overall, this is one fancy, super complex, dreamy single malt. The Tamdhu spirit is present and the sherry maturation here is top notch. An impressive single malt that now i am sad to have emptied the bottle. I need to find another one, and after that, maybe i look for more till this vintage release is gone forever. My score for it ia 95 over 100.

There is a rather new Macallan collection. It is the number 126 released this month, lol. No, really, Macallan has been releasing lots of new expressions in the past five years, i can bet they have made more whiskies than any other distillery out there. The Harmony Collection is actually an environmental-friendly group of bottlings, with boxes and labels made from recycled cocoa & coffee husks. This is my third review from this releases, the Macallan Rich Cacao. This has been made with a collaboration of Jordi Roca, a famous pastry chef who have won a Michelin Star. Bottled at 44%abv. On the nose, lots of sherry influence. Cherries, red fruits, hazelnut and milk chocolate formula. Strawberries, red berries, chocolate. After some sips, the aroma gave me cinnamon and clove. On the palate, it is good, but nothing too special. Red fruits, hazelnuts and almonds. Dim dark chocolate. After the first sip it changed into maraschino cherries and tiramisú dessert. Aftertaste is spicy and slightly better. Salt, ginger, bitter dark chocolate and macerated fruit liquor. Overall, this is an above average whisky, but as most Macallans, it is better for you to buy it and not drinking it, since it gains value like crazy for a "juice" that is a little mediocre. It is even crazier that this statement is not so controversial nowadays. Most people know that lately Macallan has been releasing "sub-par" single malts that are easy to drink and that might please a group of fans of the brand but it has become increasingly difficult to impress other whisky enthusiasts. My score for this one is 88 over 100, which is not bad, but also gives you the impression that you can have better single malts for less price.

I can't deny a free dram, specially when it is a special limited release. A friend of mine gave me this Oban 2006 Distiller's Edition, one of Diageo's yearly releases. I recently went to Oban distillery and it was gorgeous. Their whiskies have never blown my mind, but i have to say i do like them a lot. This is a 43%abv bottling. On the nose, it doesn't give me an "Oban" profile at all. Mashed apples, stewed apples, super fresh. After some minutes it released this latex aroma, like a water balloon. On the palate, it is a little straightforward but rather nice. Apples in every way possible: mashed, stewed, peeled, etc. Aftertaste is where i finally found the famous Oban Salt. Salty, apples and sider. Overall, this is the most average dram ever. It is safe, it is enjoyable, it is a bit boring and it won't change anyone's lives. Having said that, this is balanced but very simple. I know that most whisky drinkers might find this Oban to be "smooth", but that is a term that we, whisky enthusiasts, don't like too much. My score for it is a fair 84 over 100.

I have previously reviewed some whiskies from the incredible story of the Ghost Piper of Clanyard Bay, made by the independent bottler "Fable", but i never had this Caol Ila expression before. An 8yo Caol Ila, bottled at 59.8%abv, might scare a few people, but then again, this is a scary story. The Ghost Piper still lives in that cave where he got lost forever. Lets see if this whisky can be reminded for generations as well. On the nose, it smells beatiful. Vanilla custard, fondant, smoke, pepper, ashes and chilli. On the palate it is quite violent due to the peatiness and the high abv. Sugar notes, chilli. Aftertaste is a raw peat bomb, mixed with red chilli. Feels potent, young, but not bad at all. Overall, a very simple and straightforward whisky that is potent but rather enjoyable. The bottle didn't last too long, which is always a good sign. Above average, for an 8yo dram, this can be considered "good". My score for it is 85 over 100.

It is always nice to try whiskies from non traditional whisky countries. Even if Germany has been making whisky for a while, you don't tend to think of them when talking about whisky makers. St. Killian is a distillery established in 2012, and the beautiful bottle has the shape of a copper still. This review is for their peated expression, that comes at 46%abv. On the nose, it is a bit simple, but the aroma notes are quite interesting. Starburst fruit chew sweets; pineapple juice, pineapple pie and impalpable sugar. After a sip, the aroma transformed into lotion for burnt skin and tropical punch. On the palate, it is a bit richer, with notes of smoke, ginger and pepper. Aftertaste is smoky, a bit straightforward, but you can tell that this has been well crafted. Pineapple and ashes. Overall, this wasn't the most peated nor the most impressive whisky ever; nevertheless, it is a solid everyday dram. I don't believe this is too expensive and might be worth trying just to check your buckelist of whiskies from different countries. Nice looking bottle, and above average dram, my score for it is 83 over 100.

Feis ile is that special moment where Islay's distilleries rmake a festival, and some really rare expressions are released. Lagavulin bottlings are very sought by collectors and whisky enthusiasts, due to their great experiments during the festival. This 2023 special edition, was a 14yo Armagnac cask finish, at cask strength. With a beautiful 58.4%abv, this is one bottle i wasn't going to miss. On the nose, it was amazing. Lime, lemon pie and Meringue. It is a lemoncello with smoke. Very citric and fruity. Grapefruit, mango and medicinal notes. After a first sip, the aroma fell a little, but it managed to deliver some tropical punch notes. Apricots. On the palate it has three notes, but it feels absolutely perfect. A Havanna Pastry Sweet "Alfajor". Lemon and pineapple. Super nice. Aftertaste is where the peat lived. Smokey, ashes and ginger. Long finish. Lovely. Overall; this is is not an overly complex "Laga" but it is one that was very near to perfection. It really lost two points on the aroma that fell dramatically after a sip; if this did not happen, it would have been a perfect score. My rate for this amazing single malt is 98 over 100.