Tastes
-
the GlenAllachie 2006 Single Port Cask, 13yo, Exclusively for Ralfy.com
Single Malt — Scotland
Reviewed December 16, 2022 (edited January 2, 2023)In my early years as a whisky enthusiast i always watched a youtube channel of a great critic, his name is Ralfy. If you haven't met Ralfy, he is quite the whisky superstar, just like Horst Luening or the guys from Scotch 4 Dummies. Well, Ralfy is so worlwide known, that after one time where he named GlenAllachie his favorite single malt of the year; the "Valley of The Rocks" distillery decided to release a special expression for his website, called Ralfy.com That incredible expression, was a 59.9%abv, single Port Cask Matured GlenAllachie, 13yo, vintage 2006. Only 890 bottles were ever made... and i had one of them. It has the craziest reddish color ever, non-chill filthered and no colouring added. On the nose, it is crazy amazing. Red fruits, Crème Brulee, maraschino Cherries, glazed ham, school glue and some floral notes. After a first sip, the aroma changed into acid prunes, red chilli, molasses and quince. More sips made the aroma change into strawberry marmalade and dried coffee. The palate is powerful and gorgeous. There is this Maraschino Cherry madness, powerful red chilli and strawberries. After some sips, it has become a cherry juice. Cinnamon, quince and christmas cake. Aftertaste is where the 59.9%abv hits, but in a lovely way. Sulphur, copper, red fruits, strawberries, cinnamon and aniseed. Prunes. Overall, this was an out of this world single malt, that doesn't feel nearly as powerful as it is, and that is because the whisky has been crafted in a remarkable way. Anything GlenAllachie does is great, and a super high abv expression was not going to be the exception to that rule. Flawless, my score is 100/100. -
Listen to me. If you ever find whiskies finished in Sassicaia Casks, buy them. Buy them immidiately. Let me tell you my story. I often buy whisky samples (3cl and 5cl) to try new things and rate some hard to find drams. One time, i had bought an Arran called Sassicaia Wine Finish. It was absolutely amazing, one the best whiskies i have ever had. When i started looking for a whole bottle online, i wasn't able to find it. Nowadays, i have obtained one bottle of that incredible scarce Arran, and i have tasted some other Sassicaia wine finished whiskies, like Benromach. Well... in 2003, Gordon & Macphail released this peaty private edition Caol ila, finished in a finest Tuscany Sassicaia wine casks. Bolgheri Sassicaia wine can only be made by Tenuta San Guido, the only Italian Bodega that has the permission to make it. Bottled at 46%abv, it has a lovely tawny color. On the nose, smokey and sweet. Orange caramel with ashes. It smells like a pond; merthiolate. Carrot cake, farm fruits and lulo. More sips made the arome change into a cotton candy. On the palate it is almost perfect. Orange, acid fruits, lovely caramel. The sweetness is incredible. Lulo fruit, vanilla. Aftertaste starts with grapefruit, pepper and sea salt. It is marvelous spicy. Absolutely amazing finish, very rewarding. Overall, this continues to be my favorite type of wine finish for whisky. It is very elegant, full of sweet flavors, that have mixed in an incredible way with Caol Ila's signature peatiness. A flavorful and aromatic dram, my score for this beauty is 95 over 100.
-
Imagine a 27 year old whisky from Islay. Now imagine various 27yo whiskies from Islay. Good. Now blend them. Ben Bracken is a brand from Wallace & Young Distillers, an independent bottler. In 2017, they bottled this twenty seven year old blended malt, made out entirely of Islay's whiskies. This is like music to my ears. Bottled at 46%abv, this is not too much expensive for its age. Golden color. On the nose, i like the first aroma of crazy things, like a pair of socks, ashes, a hospital, old cheese and talcum powder. Gooseberries, hospital gauze and tape, cotton. After a couple of sips it gave me an aroma of a pond, naphthalene, leather and fireworks.... oh, that's the good stuff. On the palate it starts sweet. Lemon, meringue, vanilla and pepper. Gooseberries and a beautiful puff of smoke. Salty water. There is a chocolate note somewhere. Aftertaste is just amazing. Smoke from a hot cocoa cup, plastic and star anise. Wasabi and a wonderful sawdust. Overall, this was a peaty marvel. The tasting notes definitively seemed like some Caol Ila and Bruichladdich. That would be my guess. Having a 27yo dram is always a nice experience and for the price, this is quite a bargain. My score for this beauty is 96 over 100.
-
GlenDronach 14 Year Virgin Oak Finish
Single Malt — Highlands, Scotland
Reviewed December 10, 2022 (edited December 28, 2022)Another special edition from my favorite distillery in the world, Glendronach. Back in 2015, some special cask finishes were released, with some lovely white labels and some other "pastry" colors. This Glendronach 14yo virgin oak finish is one of those rare expressions, that i have luckily grabbed from an auction. Bottled at 46%abv, a deep golden color. On the nose, really nice. Starts with a meringue / lemon pie aroma. Glazed donuts, vanilla cake. After first sip, the aroma changed into a dulce de leche and herbal profile. Mountainside aromas, grated coconut and animal crackers. On the palate it is super elegant. Vanilla ice cream and a super creamy burrata cheese. It is wonderfully creamy. Lemon and lime. After some seconds it released a super pleasant pepper bomb!; more sips gave me some saltiness. It is sweet, salty and peppery at the same time. Aftertaste is a great ending for an oustanding whisky. Vanilla ice cream, waffer and a crazy pepper explosion. Overall, the only way i can describe this one is "elegant". This is suitable for a king. It screams "virgin american oak" everywhere, since it is super sweet and spicy. Incredibly creamy for a single malt, my score for this is 92 over 100. -
53040 Mexican Corn Whiskey
Single Grain — Oaxaca, Mexico, Mexico
Reviewed December 2, 2022 (edited May 18, 2024)My first Mexican whiskey, (yes, with an "e") is this 53040, which was a lovely present from their distillers, who sent this incredibly looking bottle to me, in order to write an honest critic for it. The first you need to know is that the decanter is plain wonderful. It is a small oil can, which happens to be fully ecological. After talking to the distillery owner, he told me that the name "53040" was the zipcode of his hometown when he was a kid. 53040 is made out of four types of corn. Black, yellow, white and red, all from the Oaxaca zone in Mexico. Bottled at 43%abv, a copper color. It was matured in french oak, american oak and sherry casks. Pretty complex stuff. On the nose, starts with "old" notes and then it changes into a very sweet aroma. Old books, mountainside aroma, sawdust, dehydrated oranges and coffee. Vanilla and chocolate. Humidity. Marshmallows, chocolate topping of the ice cream. Coffee with milk. Very appealing. On the palate, some crazy new notes that i haven't experienced in any other whiskey before. Tree tomato juice. Grapefruit juice. Gooseberries and vanilla. On the second sip i got a white chocolate note and again this tree tomato juice flavor. It has a nice power to it. Aftertaste follows the same path, giving me the same grapefruit juice, the tree tomato juice and some salty and sulphuric notes. Overall, this was an exciting dram, to say the least. First of all, it doesn't have the creaminess of other grain whiskies; and it has the complexity and level of a good single malt. It is actually oily and not creamy, something that would have made me guess this was indeed a single malt and not a single grain if i had this at a blind tasting. Some of the flavor notes are so crazy for me, like the tree tomato one, and that is enough to earn a good score, specially if the whiskey is very good as this one is. My score for it is 89 over 100. -
I really love when a friend calls me and tells me that he has found a very old bottle from their parents or grandparents, stored in a closet for a long time. This was the case, where i got the chance to try a nice looking bottle of "Justerini & Brooks", yours truly, J&B. This expression is called "Royal Ages" by Justerini & Brooks. A 43%abv blended scotch whisky, that looks from the 1970s. On the nose, it starts with lots of grain whisky aroma. Then it gave me some notes of old books, humidity and sawdust. After a while, the fruitiness appeared. Gooseberries and old green apples. Bread and yeast notes, very nice. Bbq sauce. The palate is very straight forward. Honey, sider and green apples. Aftertaste has a nice spiciness and a lovely honey mustard flavor. Medium long. Overall, it is fantastic to have the opportunity to taste this bottles that are kind of a time machine, made of whisky. I love to think, how was the world, what was happening when this was distilled and bottled. Great experience, average dram, my score for it is 80 over 100.
-
Glendronach 10yo, Vintage 2011, Hart Brothers
Single Malt — Highlands, Scotland
Reviewed November 26, 2022 (edited January 2, 2023)Have you ever heard the phrase "you will always find a perfect dram in a Glendronach Cask Strength bottling, no matter what"? You might have not heard it, since i just invented it. But luckily for my new phase of a "Phrase-maker", my statement is very true. There is an independent bottler called "Hart Brothers", which is famous for some very old, very fancy releases, that have bottled this 10yo Glendronach, at a very nice 56.5%abv from a single sherry butt, vintage 2011. On the nose, starts with a lovely coffee, dark chocolate and Tiramisu dessert. Then it released a "Sharpie" marker note. Wedding cake, fruitcake and red fruits. Cherries and grapes, figs bathed in chocolate and quince. WOW THIS IS SUPER COMPLEX. On the palate, a sherry wonderful madness. Cotton candy, dates and blackberry jam. Figs, raisins and slight sulphuric notes. Bubbletape gum. A second sip gave me white chocolate. The first sip was creamy, the second was oily! This is the first i have tasted that have changed its body from one sip to another. Amazing stuff. Aftertaste is powerful and it follows the same path as the nose and palate. Vainilla powder, raisins, figs, pepper and "Crazy dips" lollipop. Overall, this is pure perfection. Everyone in my tasting event loved it, and started searching for it online. I have to be honest, i've never had a Hart Brothers whisky before, and now i am eager to find more bottles of it. My score for it is one big 100 over 100. -
Highland Park 15 Year Viking Heart
Single Malt — Islands, Scotland
Reviewed November 24, 2022 (edited September 9, 2023)I remember when i first tasted the 15yo Highland Park, a long gone expression, with the black and yellow label. It was fantastic. Years have passed and now another 15yo has arrived. This time a 44%abv, bottled in a ceramic decanter, that honours the ceramic jugs where whisky was held back in the 1800s. This is a new release called, Viking Heart. Pretty interesting thing. On the nose, burnt marshamllow; smoke and sown land, lemon peel and coffee. After a first sip, the aroma changed into a brie cheese, a horse stable and orange jam. It has a very clean note of a burnt pineapple, humidity and passion fruit. It really remind me of the milk that babies leave in the feeding bottle. Very complex. On the palate, i get notes of chocolate and milk. Super sweet, hazelnut, and Nutella. Marshmallows. Aftertaste is amazing. Burnt hay, recently cut grass and earthy. Iron, batteries, it is very maritime and salty. Oysters and sea notes. Quite a nice finish. Overall, this has lived to my good memories of what the original 15yo Highland Park from the 2000s was. A very nice, complex, full of flavor whisky, that is presented in quite a beautiful decanter. The palate it is very good, but it is the least amazing part, since the nose is beautiful and the Aftertaste is almost perfect. My score for it is 92 over 100. -
Dalmore 14 Year
Single Malt — Highlands, Scotland
Reviewed November 23, 2022 (edited December 29, 2023)I am a Dalmore fan, that is not a mistery to anyone by now. I try to get every new release (if it is humanly affordable), and they seem to have heard the critics that said that Dalmore were releasing too many 40%abv expressions. That is why, this 14yo, Pedro Ximenez finesse is a great gesture by the "Stagg" Distillery, who has given us a 43.8%abv dram. Tawny color. On the nose, your classic beautiful Dalmore. Peachesn figs, dark chocolate. Rum and raisins, cotton candy and cappuccino. Very fruity with a typical Dalmore note of school glue. After the first sip, the aroma changed into marshmallow, honey and tobacco. Three milk cake. On the palate, nice full flavor. Sawdust, jam, cherries and red fruits overall. Marshmallows. Very winey with a sulphur gunpowder note. Aftertaste also offers a fully, complex sensation. Herbal, sawdust, hay, cinnamon and ginger. A dry finish, some tobacco and salty notes. A little bitter. Overall, i believe this is 85% similar to the Cigar Malt, which is my favorite of the core range, i believe it to be even better than the King Alexander III. If i make that statement, you can only get the conclusion that i really, really liked this one. A beautiful, very complex dram, my score for it is 92 over 100. -
GlenAllachie 2007 vintage, 12yo, Signatory Vintage Cask 900510
Single Malt — Speyside, Scotland
Reviewed November 19, 2022 (edited November 20, 2022)Super cask Strength whiskies are always good news. If you add "GlenAllachie" to that equation, you are most certainly going to have a very nice time. Signatory is the owner of great distilleries like Edradour, but it is mostly known as one of the finest independent bottlers of our time. They have released this 12yo, 2007 vintage Glenallachie, bottled at a very appealing 64.3%abv, single Cask 900510, one of 615 bottles ever made. On the nose, it starts with a now trademark of GlenAllachie: an Orange peel note. Metallic, like copper. Lime and lemon peel. Vanilla fondant. Red berries, white chocolate and a little rancid spongy cake. On the palate it has two or three very clean and appealing notes: white chocolate; an orange acidity and red fruits. It has a nice bite. Aftetaste is very acid, but nice. Orange juice, with a remarkable acidity. Pepper and a Metallic copper flavor. It is a little sour. Overall, the most impressive thing, is that you almost don't feel the alcohol on this super powerful dram. It just doesn't seem to have 64.3%abv, and i believe that it tells you how well crafted this dram is. A wonderful single malt, my score for it is 92 over 100.
Results 261-270 of 1366 Reviews