Tastes

I don't know if the "Queen's Award for Export Achievement" still exist, but Chivas Regal won this prize quite a few times back in the day. Actually i know for a fact that Chivas have won it at least 4 times, in 1973, 1976, 1990 and 1995; and i know this, because i have the commemorative bottle of 1990 & 1995. This is the review of "Chivas Regal Jubilee Reserve" which is the 1990's special bottling to celebrate the award i previously explained. Of course the decanter and the label doesn't look at all as a traditional Chivas Regal, let's see if the "juice" inside is any good. Bottled at 40%abv. On the nose, this is very good. Caramelized oranges, marmalades and impalpable sugar. Acid fruits; Moka mixed with orange peels. It also has notes of recently baked brownies. After a couple of sips, i got lemon meringue, and a magnificent note of cremee brulee. On the palate, it flows on the same rythm: Vanilla, lemon meringue, almonds. Very nutty. Aftertaste is also nice. Lemon zest, salt and ginger. Acid fruits. Overall, this felt elegant on the nose, palate and it was very rewarding in the finish. This is clearly a fancier Chivas Regal, intended to be a celebration dram, a truly limited edition of only 2000 bottles. I think this is very well crafted, and that is why my score for it is a solid 91 over 100.

My friends, let me tell you about a wonderful Bourbon i had. A beauty that came from Woodford Reserve, this one is called double XO Blend. It actually states that it is a blend of Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskies, finished in heavily toasted & in XO Cognac Casks. "XO" is actually a term to say "Extra Old", so this should have a nice amount of flavor to it. Bottled at 45.2%abv, this one has the most appealing red copper color ever. On the nose, it starts with the most impressive maraschino cherries note i have ever had in a whiskey. Lemon; a strong herbal note like oregano. Sawdust. After the first sip, it gave me strawberry marmalade. Moka with caramel. Brigadeiro sweets. This is incredible. On the palate, the cherry note just went crazy. Super sweet red fruits, beautiful. Fruitspice and a slight note of an orange peel. Aftertaste follows the same rythm. Cherry syrup, macerated fruit liquor. Amazing. This is very well crafted. Overall, this is one memorable, sweet dram. If you are a fond fan of cherries, you are just going to have your senses blown by this dram. Absolutely enjoyable, my score for it is a well deserved 95 over 100.

You don't often find a single grain whisky. Specially not in an Ecuadorian restaurant. Well, i had the chance to taste one that i haven't seen before, this Tweeddale, a peated single grain from the scottish highlands. With a pale straw color, this one has been bottled at 50%abv, and it is made 50% out of peated malted barley and 50% out of wheat. On the nose, this is peaty!! A fresh can of new tennis balls and Converse shoes. Lemon. It is very yeasty, it has nice bread notes. Smells pretty nice. After a couple of sips the aroma changed into a fish market and a taxi's lemon air freshener. On the palate you find this thick vanilla and lemongrass notes. Spicy. It feels a little young. On the second sip i got black thick pepper and ashes. It is very complex for grain whisky. Aftertaste gave me a very refined thick vanilla. Wonderful really. The creaminess from the grain is actually very well delivered. Overall, this might be the best grain whisky ever. I actually enjoyed it, despite my prejudice to this types of whiskies. The higher abv and the peatiness made a miracle. Also, the usage of wheat made it a lot more refined. Super recommended, mi score for it is 89 over 100.

So, i was in Cuenca, a very beautiful city in the ecuadorian highlands, in a quite nice restaurant, when suddenly the manager recognized me (because of my instagram page) and he offered me some whiskies that i have never seen before. Indeed he showed me an irish whiskey, called "Barr un Uisce", a single malt actually, 16yo, bottled no.0502 of only 1803 ever made. Pretty neat stuff. Bottled at 46%. On the nose this is the greenest apple of all the green apples ever made. Pears. Super fruity. If i would taste this on a blind tasting i would have guessed it to be a Glenfiddich 12yo. On the palate, again this green apple profile. Clove, recently cut grass. Hay. Aftertaste gave me a very interesting little puff of smoke; burnt hay and apple pie. Overall, if this one was a scottish dram, it would feel as the most standard whisky ever. Since it is an Irish single malt, this one feela completely well crafted and very different from your standard whiskies from that great country. I believe Ireland is making a comeback and this type of releases are a living proof of that statement. My score for it is a solid 84 over 100.

Its been a long time since i last reviewed an american whiskey. And i guess the best way to get this reviews back is having a very hard to find one, specially in my country Ecuador. Whistlepig is a synonym for great american whiskies, and this one called "Old World Rye" is a 12yo offering; and the great part is that the spirit was divided into three barrels –Madeira (63%), Sauternes (30%) and Port (7%) for its maturation. Bottled at 46%abv On the nose, this smells good!. Cherries, glazed pork; port wine & herbal spiciness. Gooseberries. After a couple if sips the aroma gave me notes of a greasy BBQ, red chilli and maraschino cherries. On the palate, you can actually tell this is a fancy rye whiskey. Red fruits & herbal spiciness. The red fruits are imcredible here because it has a full spicy profile mix to them. Aftertaste was amazing as well. Balsamic oil; red fruits maramalade and pepper. Red chilli. Overall, this was truly a lovely dram. I had the chance to taste it in a very fancy restaurant in Cuenca, Ecuador; which made things even greater, since you wouldn't normally expect to find such a rarity in the ecuadorian highlands. My score for this beauty is a solid 92 over 100.

The Spey distillery is one that is not very known despite the fact that they use the name of the most famous whisky river in Scotland. They actually have beautiful bottles of whisky for their single malts, which are mostly well crafted qith very mainstream flavors. This review is for the Spey Golden Choice, bottled at 40.8%abv. On the nose, thisnis a breakfast. Honey, hot stroofwaffles, yellow apples. On the palate, i get more of the same. Honey, apples and pears. Aftertaste is just a balanced ending for the same honey notes. Honey cereal. Overall, this is a very safe, enjoyable whisky; it won't change anyone's life, but it can be considered an everyday dram. Simple, yet tasty. My score for it is 84 over 100.

My last review of the amazing "Masters of Magic" collection, is one pompous name: Tobermory. This island distillery also produce a wonderful single malt called Ledaig. This time; the label shows again the great Master of all magicians, the inspiration behind nowadays big names like Copperfield or Chris Angel; it is no other than the Great Kellar. Kellar of course, founded an university for magicians, where they could learn some impressive tricks like the flying princess of Karnak. Well, this label shows us Kellar learning his tricks from a group of small devils, the alleged source for his magic knowledge. This is an 11yo Tobermory, bottled at 46%abv. On the nose, some crazy peat notes. Rubber car tires, socks and something i can describe as a swampy rainforest. After a first sip, i got yeast, plastic and water balloons. Wet paint is an accurate aroma note for this one. On the palate, just three well delivered notes. Coal, smoke and cigarrettes. Peaty stuff Aftertaste follows the peat trail. Earthy, ashes, bonfire. Not to long and slightly salty. Overall, this was the peatiest of the four expressions i had, but also, the less complex one. I like peaty whiskies and i am a fan of tobermory, but this one fell short in comparison with the rest of the releases i had the pleasure to taste. My score for this one was a honest 87 over 100.

By now, you know that i have bought some single malts from the independent bottler "High Spirits", from a very limited and unusual collection called "Masters of Magic". Well, on this third review, i got to tell you about Thurston the Great Magician. Howard Thurston was one of the mlst famous magicians from the early 1900s. His magic show was so big, he needed 8 train wagons to carry everything from venue to venue. Of course he exploited the infamous popular belief, that magicians from that era, had a pact with the devil. That is why, one of his shows was dedicated to answer the question: "Do the Spirits come back?" This bottle is actually a 12yo Linkwood, bottled at 46%abv. On the nose, it is way too interesting. It starts with vinegar and red chilli. Pepper and humid notes. Grapefruit and something i can only describe as the aroma of mud. After a couple of sips, the aroma became very cowboy-ish. Lots of hay notes; this is the scarecrow of whiskies. Vanilla and again this earthiness that feels like mud. Wild aroma. On the palate this was completely unexpected after the aroma it had. Red fruits; Acid notes. On the second sip, i got red fruits again but in a much more "syrupy" way. Apricots. It tastes exactly as a creamy italian Gelatto. Aftertaste was the perfect mixture between the nose and palate. Spicy Marmalade, tobacco and recently cut grass. It feels very cowboy-ish again. Overall, i honestly believe that the crazy notes here made me feel this was a much more interesting dram than the ones i had before from the same collection. It is bold, crazy and strange, everything in a very good way. The muddy notes on the aroma took me to my childhood when i visited some animal farms as a kid. A superb experience, this whisky deserves at least a 92 over 100.

My second review from the "Masters of Magic" collection comes from a distillery that i have never tasted before, and one that has a little bit of a good name in some places. I am talking about Macduff, a rather "new" distillery that was founded in 1960. It is located in the scottish highlands, next to the sea. This second expression from the Masters of Magic, shows a beautiful and crazy label of Blackstone the great, a very famous magician, famous for his show about spirits materializing. This is a 11yo Macduff, bottled at 46%abv On the nose, it starts with hazelnut, waffer, and chocolate notes. Sawdust, camphor, almonds. Buttery. After a couple of sips, it gave me an aroma note of an spicy marmalade. On the palate, it is incredibly creamy. Chocolate notes, red chilli. It feels like a creamy thick cheese. Aftertaste is great. Chocolate, red chilli, tabasco sauce. It is deliciously spicy. Lulo fruit acid finish. Overall, this one was quite the ride. Lots of unexpected flavors and aromas happened here. Many of those notes were very bold. The sweetness mixes with the spiciness in a lovely, interesting way. I don't know if all other Macduff whiskies are like this, but now this distillery has my attention. I will definitively look for more expressions from them. My score for this truly enjoyable and fun single malt, is 91 over 100.