Tastes

As soon as i arrived to Scotland, the first thing i looked for, was a whisky that i have been craving, and somehow it has been dodging my glass. I was successful in trapping a very valuable single malt, the now very popular Springbank Cask Strength 12yo. It has recently become more difficult to obtain, specially if we are talking "price-wise". With a lovely red copper color, this has been bottled at 56.1%abv. On the nose, it is fantastic. Red fruits, bbq sauce, pork grease, glazed ham and a cocoa dark chocolate. Coffee beans. After a first sip, the aroma changed into a red fruit syrup,  feels thick on the nose. Sulphuric minerals, cotton candy and a thick burnt toffee. It is super complex, with various layers. On the palate, it is freaking delicious. Red fruit marmalade with chilli, raw rice. Not overly complex, but great. Aftertaste is incredibly rewarding and delicious. Fireworks, pepper, chilli, red fruitiness. Overall, this is worth every penny to this date. If you let this bottle unopened for a little while, the price might go way to up and that might make it not worthy considering price vs quality; but to this date, May 2023, this is still a steal for the price it goes nowadays. A fully enjoyable whisky, with enough power, aromas and flavors; i love this single malt. My score for it is 93 over 100.

On my way to Scotland, for the third whisky trip of my life, i started my journey of single malts as soon as i boarded the plane, since the flight attendant gave me one that i've never tasted before, a Benriach Quarter Cask, doble matured, bottled at 46%abv. On the nose, it starts with apples, honey, pear and cough syrup. Clean, well delivered notes. On the palate, this one is pretty honeyed. After a sip, it gave me tobacco leaf, ashes and a bitter burnt grass. Aftertaste was very nice. Sulphuric beautiful finish;  burnt grass, tobacco and hay. Overall, i believe this is not an expensive single malt, and it is really good. Super enjoyable dram, with a decent abv. A true speysider, my score for it is 85 over 100.

Isn't it beautiful when a friend has a bottle you have never seen and he says to you "i know you like whisky, so go ahead and try that unopened bottle?". That is like the greatest friendship treat you can ever have whiskywise. Well, my former boss shared me a couple of drams of this quite rare (at least i have never seen it before) Maker's Mark limited edition bottle, which is 45%abv and it says "S-IV" and i don' have any ideas of what that means. On the nose, it starts with a beautiful cotton candy note, a typical bourbon prune aroma; brown sugar; burnt caramel and red fruit syrup. On the palate, it starts with a beautiful caramel, red fruits, cherry syrup and sour prunes. Dim chilli. Aftertaste was dry, with raw rice notes and a lovely ghostly sugar syrup. Overall, i truly believe this is one very good bourbon. I love the old label marketing and the slightly higher abv on this one. I would definitively buy it and drink it in just a couple of days. My score for it is 88 over 100.

What in the world have i just tasted? This is, by far, the whiskey with the highest abv i have ever had. "LIGHT WHISKEY" by Copper Sky distillery is one powerful dram, and of course, i am a purist so i took it neat. Bottled at 70.1%abv (yes, you read that right), this is a 16yo american whiskey. On the nose, it starts with a rye whiskey note, white chocolate, maize and a fresh field. Fresh berries and strawberries. On the palate, this is plutonium, the fuel of the DeLorean from back to the future. Red fruits, cotton candy. Too powerful, not bad. Aftertaste has only two notes: Red fruitiness and red peppers. Overall, this was not the worst whiskey in the world, but i expected tons of flavor layers due to the high strength but it was really simple, straightforward and boring. It is not "undrinkable" despite the high abv, but it is not worth your time. My score here is 70 over 100.

Listen to me, i will spoil the conclusion of this whisky review. Go now and buy this single malt. It will change your whisky life; it is a terrific whisky as most Glendronachs, and it will certainly be in my top 5 whiskies tasted in 2023. Having said all that, Glendronach Batch 11, is a natural cask strength single malt bottled at 59.8%abv for extra flavor :) It was matured in Oloroso sherry casks and Pedro Ximenez Sherry casks, which has provided a lovely chesnut color to this baby. Nose is perfect. Palate is perfect. Aftertaste is perfect. Balance is perfect. Well, that is it, this whisky has been reviewed. Kidding aside, on the nose this is the most velevety sweet thing ever. Hazelnut, orange jam, figs, quince and something that i can only describe as a whisky chocolate. Almonds, school glue, coffee and cocoa. Marvelous. After a first sip, the aroma changed into red fruits, cranberries, Rum and raisins and the wonderful marmalade with chilli. Smores. It is incredible. On the palate, the show continues. Hazelnut, chocolate, wasabi, raisins. It has thisn winey profile; dates and impalpable sugar. Blackberry marmalade and red fruits. Caramel custard; Stroofwaffles. All of that, super clean flavors, powerful, beautiful. Aftertaste has a spicy profile that suits amazingly here. Chilli peppers, fruitspice, raisins. A dim saltiness and ginger. Invincible. Overall, this is a whisky from other planet. Glendronach is my favorite distillery, and they have given me some outstanding jewels like this one. You should find this, buy a couple of bottles and just enjoy it. I cant even score this because 100 points wouldn't even make justice for it. Slàinte Mhath my friends!!!

After suffering a little dissapointment with the Talisker Diageo Special Release 2022, i had my faith on the Lagavulin from the same collection, with a lovely phoenix in the label. This natural cask strength bottling is 57.3%abv, and it is said that the master distiller picked the smokiest casks of the warehouse to put together this single malt. Well, as soon as i uncorked it i said "Woooohoooo!" The aroma was absolutely incredible. Coffee, a marvelous cocoa note that is filled with peat. Earthy and smokey; bacon notes. Medicinal profile as well. It is so powerful on the nose, but in a very good way. Plastic and gooseberries. After the first sip it released chocolate notes. A fish market. Hazelnuts. SPECTACULAR. On the palate it is perfect. Chocolate, hazelnut, Nutella, salt. It is wonderful, awesome, amazing and every other adjective you can imagine. Aftertaste is simply out of this world. Ashes, chocolate, smoke, meat with salt. You can feel that lovely layer of grease from a properly piece of meat perfectly done in a BBQ. In conclusion, this is one of the greatest Lagavulins i have had, and believe me, that is quite the statement. It is better than most whiskies i have had in 2022 and i will definitively have this one on my top ten tasted whiskies from this year. I wish i could give it a thousand points, but i will stick to some serious review score of 100 over 100. It can't be any better. Trust me. Sláinte.

Talisker is one of the finest distilleries of all the world. It is my favorite alongside with Glendronach, and i fetch all the expressions i can that they release. Well, in 2022, Diageo gave us their "Special Releases" and the Talisker one featured a Jellyfish, who is an animal that lives in the depths of the sea, which is the main theme of Talisker expressions nowadays. This natural cask strength whisky was bottled at 55.1%abv On the nose, it is a little dim, not the best Talisker has ever done. Apple, salt. Beach feeling; a Plavova dessert, unexpectedly sweet. On the palate, it is delicious; it got back on track. Acid gooseberries, prunes with salt, a lovely red pepper note and milk powder formula. After a first sip, it became a sweet vanilla ice cream. Aftertaste is by far the best part of it. A heavy salt note; kelp, maritime feeling overall. Wow, really amazing. Star aniseed. Overall, this is very enjoyable, it doesn't feel as a natural cask strength dram, you can't feel the 55.1%abv anywhere. It lacks complexity and the nose is too dim that is the worst part. In conclusion, this is a very good single malt, but this is not the best Talisker you will ever have. It still manages to score highly, but for a Talisker i would say that they can definitively do a better job. My score for it is 89 over 100.

Valinch & Mallet is an independent bottler that i just recently found. And it was impossible for me to let this beautiful bottle go away withoit buying it, because it is so crazy. On one side, you will find a super elegant, expensive looking engraving that can be only described as "super fancy". But the other side of the bottle, there is this painting, called "The Peat(y)ful madness", a cartoonish work of art showing a big duck with a spirit still, a unicorn; a wound on the duck's belly where US dollars are falling, and other irrational drawings. This was made by Laurina Paperina, an italian painter, that has the tendency to make exaggerated cartoons of their 80s and 90s idols, and always a Duck, which represents the author. Incredible thing. Bottled at 52.7%abv, this is a "South Islay Shore" whisky, matured from a single Caroni Rum Cask. Only 292 bottles where ever made. (By the way, Caroni Rum is like the "Port Ellen" of rums). Pretty neat stuff. On the nose, it is bipolar as the bottle itself. Cigarrettes, brown sugar, burn grass, ashes, gunpowder and raisins. The rum profile is all over the place. After a first sip it gave me fireworks, vanilla, impalpable sugar. The third aroma gave me a "Laphroaig" feeling: povydone and medicinal notes. Lotion for burnt skin. On the palate is pure perfection. The most beautiful raisin note, it is like a raisin juice. Rum, figs, molasses and red pepper. The second sip, gave me strawberries and red fruits juice; cane. Peaty as well. Aftertaste is awesome, a perfect ending for an outstanding dram. Red peppers, meat, salt. It is a BBQ. A third sip showed me a hint that this has to be Laphroaig, because it resembles a fresh can of tennis balls and a pair of new socks. Overall, this was a fantastic whisky. Everyone on my tasting event loved it. I now need anotyer bottle, and it is very hard to find. It is a part of a collection of 4 expressions, and believe me when i say that i will not leave any stone unturned till i find them. My score for this marvel is 97 over 100.

It is always a nice day when you get the chance to drink a whisky from a distillery you haven't previously tasted, and it gets even more special when it is a single malt from a place that has been mothballed, because that means that the "juice" you are having is part of a final batch. This is the case of Caperdonich, a distillery that definitively closed their doors in 2002 if i am not mistaken, and it might seem not too long ago, but that was 21 years ago. Actually, this bottle #1598 also has a 21yo age statement, and was matured in first fill american oak barrels. It is a 48%abv dram from speyside. On the nose, this is very fruity! Apples, sawdust, pears, fruit salad and a peach Pavlova dessert. Old furniture. On the palate, this is one fine, creamy dram. A full vainilla note. Gooseberries. The second sip can only be described as Bowser's song from Mario Bros movie, because it is all about Peaches. Aftertaste provides a whole different experience, a very nice one. Hay, tobacco leaf, gunpowder. A Salty, long finish. A little metallic in a good way. Overall, i had no expectations for this single malt before having it, and i got to say i was pleasantly surprised. Every fruit note was amazingly clean and well delivered and you will truly enjoy the peaty finish. Perfectly balanced, not overly complex this is a good whisky. My score for it is 90 over 100.

Finally!!! I am glad to tell you that i have had the Chivas Extra 13yo Tequila cask that has been so elusive to me in the past months. This is a very special moment, and quite an unpredictable one, for me since i am a Chivas Brand Ambassador for Ecuador, and i have been wondering if this was a good scotch, specially after trying Buchanan's "Two Souls", another tequila cask finished blend (which i did not like). Bottled at 40%abv, this has been finished in Tequila casks. This one has a 13yo age statement. On the nose, it starts quite like a Tequila. Agave, acetone, mint and lemon peel. After a first sip i got gooseberries and grapefruit. There is a nice Brown sugar note here. On the palate, it surprised me, it was very sweet. Caramel, toffee; Coffee with dulce de leche and ginger. On the second sip i got a super creamy vanilla note. It is so creamy and thick that it resembles the body of a pecorino cheese. Aftertaste was the most "tequila-ish" part. Ginger, salt, agave, pepper and very herbal. Nice. Overall this was far better than the Buchanan's tequila finished one. This one truly feels like you are having a whisky and not other spirit drink, which was my main complaint of the "Two Souls". Super creamy, very enjoyable as an everyday dram, my score for it is 89 over 100. Good job.