Tastes

This is my second Mannochmore, and i was super interested in trying another expression from this distillery, specially since the one i already had, the "Ghost of Clanyard Bay", was really a wonderful whisky. The Flora & Fauna collection is very famous in the world of whisky, but i never thought of it as a group of single malts that surprised me. Actually, none of the expressions from Flora & Fauna was memorable. Le'ts see if this one makes the difference. On the nose it is absolutely incredible. Melon, watermelon juice, it has a note that took me to the fruit aisle of a supermarket. A really amazing malted barley aroma. Peach peel. Very clean aroma; floral. On the palate, the fruitiness was there. Peaches, Ferrero Rocher chocolate; hazelnut. It is like a red fruit water, blueberries. Aftertaste is a complete waste. Dry, muted finish. There is nothing here. It feels like you did not drink anything. Disaster. Overall, the word to describe it, is "unbalanced". Incredible nose, average palate, non-existing finish. A complete dissapointment, specially after a very good nose; my score for this chaos is 62 over 100.

The Maclean family is a synonym of Oban Single Malt whisky. Old Teddy Maclean was the distillery manager since 1953 till 1985, when his son, "Young Teddy" took the reins till 2017, where he then passed the torch to Derek Maclean. To honour this family tradition, Oban released in 2019 a special limited bottle called "Old Teddy", only sold at the distillery; when that one was gone, they then released this "Young Teddy", which is finished in Oloroso and Palo Cortado sherry casks; and is bottled at 50.8% ABV. Only 4542 were ever made. On the nose, an instant haystack. Honey, peach and pineapple. There is a definitive predominance of the white sherry used here. White chocolate, malted barley and a lot of sugary notes. After a couple of sips, the oloroso sherry influence appeared. Peaches everywhere, like the Bowser song. On the palate, it felt watery, but it managed to pass the test. Sugar notes, hay; a rather grassy honey. Salty. Palo Cortado sherry. Aftertaste was very interesting since it has this ultra rare palo cortado finish. Crazy white sherry. It feels so weird and at the same time super bold. Great ending. Overall, this is one of the finest expressions i have ever tasted out of this not very surprising distillery. This was actually very good and enjoyable. The Palo Cortado cask maturation has given it a lot of crazy notes that i appreciated. My score for it is a solid 88 over 100.

Oban as a part Diageo's greatest malts, is always chosen to be a participant in their yearly Special Releases. It shows a mystical jumping Rabbit in the label, which is part of Oban's myths. Bottled at 57.1%abv, this one has been matured in American oak casks, and then finished in amontillado Sherry butts. On the nose, it starts with a very grapy - berries aroma. Smokey. Cotton candy, malted barley. It feels very sugary on the nose. More berries, hazelnut, chocolate. Super appealing. On the palate, it starts with grapes and vanilla. Blackberries, it is wild. An atomic explosion of salt has appeared out of nowhere, it is very powerful. Aftertaste has "Oban" written all over it. Salt, ginger, grapes. There is a ghostly second aftertaste of hazelnut. It appears 10 seconds later of the first finish. Overall, i really liked this dram. Diageo's special releases are not always memorable, but this one i might remember for a long time. Nothing too complex, this is just an enjoyable whisky. My score for it is 88 over 100.

When visiting Oban distillery, i felt compeled to try the Distillery Exclusive, and i really did not have a chance, since it was part of my whisky tour there. Oban is often a very enjoyable whisky that i found it to be a "safe" dram. It will never blow my mind, but i haven't had an under average single malt from this distillery. On the nose, it starts very cowboy-ish. Honey; a very "farmy" vanilla. A fresh lemon zest has appeared after 2 minutes. Sugar and a hint of smoke. Amazingly, after 5 minutes, blackberries appeared out if nowhere. Haystack. On the palate, this was not the best. A too watery, very sugary though. It is like a very sugary glass of milk. Aftertaste was good. A super hay finish; salty. The salt goes straight to your lips. A ghostly hint of peat. Overall, this is my least favorite Oban, and it manages to pass my average score just barely. It is not an off-putting dram or anything like that, it is just a little boring and nothing special. My score for it is 80 over 100.

I had the opportunity to visit the Oban town in my latest trip to Scotland, and it was absolutely incredible, since it is a really beautiful place. In the heart of the town, in a very unconventional way, since most Scottish distilleries are located in the middle of nowhere, the Oban Distillery stands in front of the local river. It is as beautiful as you can imagine. And inside of it, my group made a tasting tour, where i was given this Oban Distiller's edition vintage 2008, bottled in 2022 at 43%abv. On the nose, it starts with a beatiful red fruit syrup; maraschino cherries. Very sherried, lemon peel has risen after a couple of seconds. Plums. After a couple of sips, you get the salty beach aroma that is typical from Oban. Hay, grass. There is a little nuttiness to it. On the palate, it is a little dry. Hay, envelope glue. You can find some saltiness after bitting it. Slight ginger, it is like a salty water. There is a cotton candy note,;not too powerful. Aftertaste is super salty.  Its like an overload of salt with an elegant puff of hay smoke. After a couple of sips i can definitively tell you this is smokey in a very aromatic and elegant way. Overall, the nose was good, the palate was a little average and the finish was great. The saltiness here is the most powerful thatbi have found in any Obans, and i think that it is not a bad feature. My score for this single malt is 88 over 100.

Recently Talisker made a partnership with Parley,  a company that is dedicated to preserve the ocean's Kelp and other environmental sea causes. To celebrate that partnership, and to raise funds for the ocean, a new, beautiful looking expression has arrived to my home bar, the Talisker Parley "Wilder Seas". Even the bottle is made of 100% recycled glass  from biofuel, and it is matured in ex Cognac cask. To make it even better, it comes at 48.6%abv. On the nose, this is incredible. Salted Chocolate, salted caramel, everuthing salted.  Aromatic smoke. After a couple if sips the aroma changed into coffee with milk. Honey. On the palate it is marvelous. Coffee, toffee. Salt has risen only to become a pepper bomb. Aftertaste is smokey, peppery. Ginger and toffee. Very straightforward but amazing. Overall, at this price point, you just can get any better whiskies. The Cognac Casks have given this dram the bitter chocolate / coffee / cocoa profile which i find very interesting since those are not usual notes you can find on a Talisker. A wonderful single malt, my score is 95 over 100. I love Talisker.

Brace yourselves, this is one of those crazy whisky reviews. Where was i 27 years ago, when the youngest drop of this entered an oak barrel? What has happened in my life and in tge world in the last 27 years, for me to find this single malt today? Those are questions any whisky lover should ask themselves when drinking a dram that has been aged for at least two decades. Talisker 27 year old, called "elements", is a triple matured, cask strength expression that just can' be defeated. On the nose, it gave me this Amontillado sherry note; vanilla cream with oranges. Everything is so lovely on the nose here. Pavlova dessert; white chocolate and hazelnut. Rock salt and burnt grass. Orange peel. It is spectacular. After a few sips, the aroma changed into red fruits, cotton candy and hay. Aroma changes everytime you get near it. Cherries. A salty meringue. On the palate, you will be amazed. Orange caramel, followed by a salt bomb. Red fruits syrup. It is perfect. Orange marmalade. Aftertaste is just the epitome of magnificence. Smoke, rock salt, ginger and orange peel. Everything so well delivered and very powerful. Overall, and this is a proper conclusion to this review: this is the perfect whisky. It goes for a hefty price and i cannot pay it, but at least i had a glass at the distillery, just incredible enough to write this review. Only 2000 bottles were ever made, and if you can buy it, trust me, you should. My score is a million points. Slàinte!!!

I kinda like Talisker new look. The rugged label looks very maritime, which is of course, this distillery most recognizable profile. One of their new, good looking bottles is the traditional yearly "Distiller's Edition" which is known for its amoroso sherry maturation. I have loved this expressions as i have loved most Taliskers i have had. Let's see if their latest 2023 release is any good: On the nose i get tge expected Red fruitiness, salty notes and a very interesting note that i can only describe as a 1970s -80s red, home furry, dusty rug. After a few sips the aroma also gave me a pair of new cotton socks. On the palate, it feels a little watery. Acid prunes, red fruits, red chilli and maraschino cherries. Not too impressive. A little dim. Aftertaste is different, from the nose and palate. Smoke, red chilli and thick salt. Overall, this might be the Talisker i have least liked. It is dim, light, straightforward, not flavorful or fun. A softened version of a single malt that i usually praise. I guess not every year can be excelent. My score for this dram is 83 over 100.

I'm sure everyone that knows my whisky preferences, are fully aware by now that i can not be fully imparcial about any Talisker expressions since this distillery, along with Glendronach is my all time favorite. The maritime profile of the great Talisker is always on my whisky desires, and there was one bottle that i have been trying to taste for a long time, and that was the Distillery Exclusive, Batch 01, bottled at 48%abv. Only 7500 bottles were ever made. And finally, i entered a temple of whisky, the distillery itself, on the Island of Skye, (which is the most insanely beautiful place i have ever been in my life), where i took a tasting tour and of course, one dram of my whisky bucket list was crossed. On the nose, it is not the best expression from this distillery. Coconut, maize, saltiness, lemon and hints of smoke. Lemonspice and a rancid vanilla. After a first sip i got vanilla ice cream, fondant and marzipan. On the palate, it is better. Vanilla ice cream, lemon, salt; Pepper and ginger to complete the classic Talisker style.  Hay/sawdust very dim. After a second sip i also got some citric farm flavors. Aftertaste is pure peefection.  A Smokey Monster. Cigarrettes, ashes. Just wonderful. Overall, the aftertaste made this whisky a memorable one. Before the finish, i was a little skeptic because it was good, but not superb as most Talisker are. Having that incredible rewarding experience at the end, made this single malt to achieve a higher score. My rate for this legendary whisky is 90 over 100.

As i been telling you lately, Ardbeg's latest special releases are a hit or miss. They have produced some great, breathtaking whiskies, as well as other boring, underwhelming expressions. This have gained a strong critic against excessively marketed bottlings that did not reach their potential. This year, Ardbeg released two very different whiskies: one was the amazing "BizarreBQ" which almost everyone i know seemed to love; and also this, the more expensive one, the official committee of 2023, called "Heavy Vapours". The story behind it, is that Dr. Lumdsen took out one of the purifiers from one of stills, changing the whole density of the vapours that will condensate to turn into Ardbeg's iconic spirit. Of course, the label says that this will make this dram the most "full blown" Ardbeg ever.... Bottled at 50.2%abv. On the nose, it starts with Ardbeg's herbal peat. Moss and grapefruit juice. A fresh can of new tennis balls, dim ashes. It feels "hairy" on the nose. Mold in a wall. On the palate i get vainilla ice cream, herbal notes, ashes. It is very gentle and a little yeasty; nothing heavy or full blown here. Aftertaste is the best part. A pair of cotton socks, very herbal. Elegant, nice, friendly on the palate (i don't know if that is what i am looking for in an Ardbeg). Dry. It actually feels like licking the top of a cooking pot, the condensation feeling here is real. Cotton shirts, tennis balls. Overall, i don't think this is the worst Ardbeg ever, and i don't think this is the best one either. A very fair, unenthusiastic whisky that many will enjoy without too many problems. It is a nice whisky that doesn't live to a committee release expectation, and that is a problem here. My score for it is a super honest 88 over 100 which makes it an enjoyable dram that i will soon forget.