Tastes

I had my first whisky tasting party yesterday to celebrate World Whisky Day, and i had some fine drams, one of those was this beauty, The Dalmore Valour. As the other Dalmore i had, (12yo), this one is Fantastic. Bottled at 40%abv, with a marvelous Mahogany Color. On the nose is so perfect, with the Dalmore traditional profile aroma, full of blackberry marmalade, cherries, christmas cake, vanilla, plum, toasted bread, tobacco and hazelnut notes. On the Palate is also great, offering those Dalmore trademark flavors: Oak, cough syrup, maple honey, bread and vanilla cake. Full bodied, the finish is medium with sweet notes. Wonderful Whisky, 89 out of 100, very recommended, suitable for a Family party or special occasion.

There is an spanish song that says: "there is a guy who is dissapointed at the Godfather part 2" well, i am kind of dissapointed about this dram. I love The Dalmore, i love everything about it. I have had the 12yo, the Valour, The regalis, all incredible drinks. This one is an excelent elegant dram, but doesn't quite live to my expectations for it. Bottled at 40%abv, with a reddish amber color. On the nose is very beautiful, promising lots of good things on the palate. Liquorice, toasted caramel, creme brulee, oranges and brown sugar notes are the main aroma. On the palate is too elegant and fancy, and that is not necessarily a good thing. Ultra smooth, with a solid sherry note, caramel, brown sugar and the dissapointing short tobacco finish. Expected a lot more. Fancy and elegant but not exciting. Overall i give this one an 84 over 100, the lowest score for my dalmores. Still a great dram, but dalmore can do a lot better.

A fine fancy Whisky. Almost a 5.0, with a nose very different than the palate, you can easily determine that it has been beautifully crafted. Bottled at 43%abv, with an auburn polished mahogany. On the nose is very special. Fresh cherry syrup (that's a first), recently baked vanilla cake, slight sweet liquorice note, jelly beans, nutmeg, sugar. Lovely aroma but a little dim. On the palate, is fine but i believe it could be better. Starts with old citric notes, Oranges and Old raisins. Woody very woody. Bonfire finish, Ashy finish. Fancy and a little dry, has a slight peppery note. Finish is very long, that being the best perk of this dram. Overall this elegant dram is a 94 over 100, nice score suitable for one of my favorite brands. Cheers!

A very interesting dram, nice aroma notes and a powerful palate. Not the best whisky there is but not bad at all. Bottled at 40% On the nose, citric is the name of the game. Cream vanilla, Prunes, LEMON: lemon peel, Lemon pie. On the palate a little less appealing, but still good. Caramel, Pepper explosion, Salt, Feels like talisker. Slight peat. Short finish with Bitter tobacco and ginger finish. Overall a very nice whisky that won't change anyone's life but definitively worth a couple of drams every now and then. 81/100

I am not fond of speyside malts, but this one i recommend. Nothing to die for, but definitively one of the greatest expressions i have had from that scottish region. As expected very light aroma, but a surprising taste and finish makes this one worth your money. Bottled at 46%abv (this is why it is better than other speyside malts) burnished gold color. On the nose is typical speyside and very simple: Pear juice, Apple juice Cinammon spice very gentle, Vanilla cream. On the palate it is full and delicious: Oaky, Spicy, Orange. Actually a Spice bomb; Caramelized apple and Honey. There is a puff of smoke somewhere. Call me crazy but it is there. Finish is long, another spice bomb made by pepper with some smoke. Overall i give to this fine dram a well deserved 89/100, and i am looking forward to taste older expressions.

My first Compass Box ever. To describe it in one word: interesting. Specially on the nose. Bottled at 43%abv, with a pale staw-pale gold color. On the nose is the most fruity dram i have ever had, easy to detect, great for starters in this tasting business. Caramel and hay was my first impression, then pear, apple juice, fresh lemons and finally some cream. On the palate is a little normal (boring), with oranges and spices, a mild hotness and a medium spicy finish. Overall i give this dram an 87 over 100. It is a blended Malt, important fact. Cheers!

This is a great dram. And i would definitively buy it. Those were my two first impressions, but after a couple of drams i understood that some points should be deducted because of its "straightforwardness", and that is why i changed the score from 5.0 to 4.5; still qualifying as a great whisky. Bottled at 46%abv, it has the most transparent color ever, white wine color. A blend of Laphroaig, ledaig, caol ila, ardmore and another highland malt, this is a very intense whisky. On the nose is beautiful. It is the best part: Tennis Balls, Nerf Toys (those sticky tennis balls half pink half green), almond M&Ms, Peat that reminds me of Highland Park whiskies, salt, pepper, morning coffee (same aroma as old ballantruan 10yo), Bailey's liquor (almond oil). Spectacular and very interesting aroma. On the palate is nice. But after 3 sips gets a little boring. Full mouth ashy, peppery sensation. All spice notes. Even though it is very spicy it is pleasant. Aftertaste is spicy, bonfire and sulfur notes are there. Very long. Is like your tongue were scorched. Very balanced. Overall i give this whisky a 94 over 100, and it is a dram to enjoy with food with strong flavors. Not for everyone and not for everyday, still an incredible dram. Cheers!

I really liked this one. A much more mellowed bourbon, with very sweet toffee notes, vanilla and flan caramel (creme caramel). Delicious. Same sweet notes with some red fruits too. It is like any other bourbon but a little bit refined, with more bite. Sorry for the simple review. 80 over 100. Slainte!

A new Travel Exclusive from the Giants of Chivas Regal. This time a 18yo Japanese oak Finish in first fill mizunara oak cask. This is the standard 18yo finished in this "water oak" (as the translation for mizunara says) casks. Bottled at 48%abv, it has a orange amber color. Nice. On the nose, this is not similar as the standard 18yo. The normal one is much more perfumed and orange citric. This one has a strong thick caramel note right away. Coffee. Very clean lemon peel. Dulce de leche, chocolate. On the palate, it is very smooth. Vanilla custard. Caramel. Sawdust. Very straightforward and smooth. No alcohol at all. Aftertaste is the best part. A beautiful tobacco note. Burnt oak. Wasabi and herbal spices. Very pleasant. Overall, this is one fancy whisky. A little straightforward though. It is very different from the standard and can be enjoyed by anyone. 88 over 100.

This beautiful bottle of a special Royal Salute edition has an age statement: 32 years old! That is big. The amazing bottle has a Crown attached to the cork. Why? Because this expression of Chivas Regal commemorates the union of the scottish, english and ireland Crowns in 1603. This is one rare and old bottle to find. Bottled at 40%abv, tawny color. As most fancy bottles, this is a very delicate, light, straightforward, easy drinkable whisky. On the nose: banana, burnt caramel, some herbal notes and rubber. On the palate: old oranges, brown sugar, banana, copper, dim cherry notes, prunes. Aftertaste is delicate and spicy, with ginger, salt and clove. A lovely, easy dram. I give it an 87 over 100.