Tastes

Douglas Laing has this very good blended malt range of expressions, and one of the most famous ones is "Big Peat". When "La Maison du Whisky" celebrated their 60th anniversary, a special edition was made for them called "Old Big Peat", bottled at 50%abv with a white wine color. On the nose, it has this incredibly aromatic peat. Cigarrettes; very perfumed. Heather and mint hard candy. There is a dim saltiness and maritime profiles. Green grapes. After a first sip it became a lot more perfumed. Very floral. There is some sugar syrup notes here. It is really very floral. On the palate, it was very interesting. Chocolate with salt, very salty. Meaty, but easy to drink. There is this milk with sugar note incredibly appealing. Super syrupy, super sugary, milky and then a salty touch. Aftertaste is a little dissapointing, specially after a great palate and nose. Puffs of smoke, tobacco, hay, grassy note. Short finish. Too short. Overall, this will have a score that is influenced by a very mild aftertaste, because it has a lovely nose, a very appealing palate but a boring, short and weak finish. As all other "Big Peat" expressions, i find them not that peaty, and much more perfumed and fairly perfumed, in a nice way. My score for it is 82 over 100.

BN8 is part of a collection of whisky expressions from Islay called "Elements of Islay", which marketing makes resemblance to the Periodic Table of Chemical Elements, but with famous single malt whisky initials, like "Lg" for Lagavulin, "Bw" for Bowmer and "Lp" for Laphroaig. This one ifbof course a Bunnahabhain 8yo, that has a gold color, bottled at 58.4%abv. On the nose, it is the perfect mixture of chocolate with oranges. Chocolate powder. An incredibly fresh orange juice. Definitively an orange peel spice if such thing exists. Cocoa nibs. Some lemon zest and other fresh citric fruits. Milk powder (formula). Orange caramel. After a first sip, the orange peel note was amazing. Chocolate powder formula, like nesquik. On the palate it starts spicy, with orange acidity. Orange peel. Thick orange syrup . After three sips, a vanilla ice cream note has appeared. A hint of salt has appeared. Aftertaste has this super acid orange flavor. Ginger. it is not very long and definitively not complex. Chocolate and sawdust have appeared after three sips.  Orange mixed with salt. Overall, this felt a little simple for a cask strength Bunnahabhain. It has all the classic Bunna notes in there, oranges, salt and chocolate, in a very clean and powerful way, but it lacks some complexity. It still is a decent single malt, but the higher abv really did not enhance the notes, or gave me something different. I don't think it is expensive, and it also comes in a 50cl decanter, so it is safe to say that this was intended for soft sipping every now and then. My score for it is 84 over 100.

My first Mars Japanese whisky is this lovely "Komagatake", which translates into "Horse Mountain". This is a 2020 limited edition, which has received very good critics and scores. I managed to get a sample, lets see how was it. Dark gold color, botted at 50%abv. On the nose, it is a little hard to define. The first aroma is like a peach syrup, with a thick caramel mixed with some hay/dry brown grass note. Definitively sweet, mostly syrupy. Honey. Cough remedy. Some pepper spice. I have to do a lot of work here to identify the aromas, it feels like eveything is stacked in disorder. Recently baked brownies. The most syrupy whisky aroma ever; very thick. A very clean orange note has appeared after 5 minutes. After a first sip the brownie aroma has exploded, it is amazing. On the palate, it is not very complex, but very enjoyable. Dry peaches, honey, cough syrup. Peach peel. A second sip was much more sugary. Aftertaste was all about tobacco, salty and peppery finish. Definitively grassy, hints of chocolate and malted barley. Overall, this is a solid, fancy dram. Not overly complex but fairly enjoyable. I don't think it is changing anyone's life forever, but if you can find it, grab a glass of it. Interesting stuff, my score for it is 88 over 100.

The latest Redbreast edition, has my two favorite letters together: "PX". This "Iberian Edition" has been matured in ex Bourbon casks, and Oloroso sherry, to then be finished for at least 12 months in a PX sherry Butt. Redbreast is always a synonym of a good dram. Tawny color, bottled at 46%abv. On the nose, it is exactly what you expect. Dehydrated oranges, quince dessert, red roses (very floral), and a spongy vanilla cake. There are some fig notes there, and impalpable sugar. After a firdt sip, it gave me passion fruit, and other exotic tropical fruits like dragon fruit. Church wine and a magnificent note of coffee with milk. On the palate it is a sweet as you expect. Chocolate, oranges and vanilla. It is really a citric delight. Hay. Aftertaste follows the rythm with a peat hint. A "grain whisky" vanilla note. Chocolate, tobacco. It is actually Smokey and a little earthy. Actually, this was a very good dram, specially if you have it while enjoying a Creme bruleè as i did. A sweet expression with some peatiness is always nice, my score for it is 87 over 100.

Yet another beautiful looking bottle from Compass Box. This time a fruity promise: "Orchard House".  The official disclosure for this blend is There’s 39% Linkwood, 29% Clynelish and 20% Benrinnes, 2% Caol ila and some other highland malts, all aged 8 years in first-fill bourbon barrels, plus minor parts of Aberlour (Oloroso seasoned butt), Caol Ila (first-fill bourbon) and their signature Highland Malt blend (custom French oak barrel). Pale straw color, bottled at 46%abv. On the Nose, super fresh pears as soon as you uncork the bottle. There is some fruit spiciness. Pear peel. Cinnamon stick. Dim dulce leche. Dry peaches. Red apple peel. After a first sip, definitively toffee and honey. On the palate, it is easy drinkable. Honey. This is a very light dram. Yellow apples. There is this creaminess typical from Compass Box Whiskies. Apples, sider. The third sip was all about a thick fancy toffee, with a hint of cinnamon spice. Afterstate is all about hay and tobbacco. Salty. Very grassy. Aftertaste is a "Cowboy heaven". Dry finish, medium long. Waxy. Malted barley. Overall, even if i am not a super fan of overly fruity-speyside whiskies, this is a nice offering. I really like the different tone of the aftertaste, it gave me a pleasure experience. Compass Box delivers their promise of a fruity whisky, which is nice for consumers. My score for it is 83 over 100.

When i buy whisky samples i tried to make the most of it. I often buy samples of limited expressions, and one of such cases was this Highland Park 2003 vintage, 16yo, matured in an european sherry butt No. 1885. It was bottled at 58.9% with a lovely Reddish dark blood color, exclusively made for the online retailers "The Whisky Exchange". On the nose, it is really complex. Coffee beans and a strawberry juice are the first notes i got. Hazelnut, milk chocolate and the most amazing Tiramisu dessert note i have ever got since the Glenmorangir Signet. The tiramisú milk cream is there. After a first sip, the red fruits have taken over.  A "Crunch" chocolate bar. There is this amazing maraschino cherry aroma with a hint of pepper that has appeared. Wonderful. The aroma is full of chocolate and cherries. On the palate: Wow this is a bomb. Starts with a powerful red fruitiness. Winey. Nuclear Pepper. There is some acidity to it. A third sip clarified things. Chocolate, acid prunes and ginger. Aftertaste is good. Sulphur and salt. Some chocolate notes, very appealing. Red wine. Tobacco. Not a hint of smoke, nor that heathery peat from Highland Park. It is like hard mint candy. This one is on the sweeter side, almost not peaty. Hints of an earthy flavor. It is very dry, a little grassy too. Overall, It doesn't feel as a Highland Park. It is more like an Edradour; actually if i had been on a blind tasting, Edradour would have been my guess for this dram. It is a very good whisky, but it is also a little rough. I love Cask Strenght single malts, but Highland Parks at high strength have never been my cup of tea, even if this one doesn't taste at all as a HP. My score for it is a solid, well deserved 89 over 100.

Somehow, Taiwan and Japan have made a pact with the almighty to receive the most sherried expressions ever. They have the incredible Glenlivet sherry matured (13 and 15yo) and now this Macallan 12yo Gran Reserva, that goes for a hefty price of $700, which is absurd for a 12 year old whisky... or maybe not. Macallan Gran Reserva is a collection of super sherried Macallans, which i have only heard about a couple of times. I have managed to obtain a sample; bear in mind my usual skepticism for any Macallan, since i find them usually overrated. Bottled at 45.6%abv, amazing chesnut color. On the nose it is from another galaxy. Blackberry marmalade, Macerated red fruits; Beautiful dark fruits. Hints of hazelnut. Figs bathed in dulce de leche. There is some spiciness that comes from the dark fruits; The nose got dimmer after the first sip. Glazed ham. OMG the hazelnut have mixed with the red fruitiness, it has become incredible. Pop tarts. It is an out of this planet aroma. A chocolate bar. I just can't stop nosing it.  Perfect score. On the palate, it is marvelous. A thick grape caramel, blackberries, oak spice, sawdust. Very winey. It is just a mixture of dates, blackberries and figs. Toffee for a second, then an amazing note of old grapes; winey profile that is just fantastic. It is like the heart of a fig. Aftertaste should be longer. Red wine, cabernet sauvignon, sawdust. A little short, very elegant. Grape peels. There is a hint of smoke and tobacco on the third sip that was outstanding. Red fruit peels. Overall, this is what Macallan should be. If this were their standard level of whiskies, it wouldn't be beaten by any other brand. This Gran Reserva is a fantastic piece of art work, but way too expensive and difficult to find. I have no doubt this is obe of the expressions that built the brand to make it what it is today. Regretfully, they don't do this whiskies for the normal consumer. I feel lucky to have tasted it, my score for it is a 98 over 100.

"Pure Scot" is Bladnoch's owners brand of blended whiskies. With beautiful, heavy bottles, they are trying to compete with some dinosaurs of the Blended Scotch Market. "Virgin oak 43" is one of their first expressions, the other two that i know are "signature blend" which i already reviewed and "Midnight Peat" which seems interesting. Lets get into business. Bottled at 43%abv, where it gets its name, this bottle has a burnished gold color. As soon as you uncork it you get this bourbonish aroma. On the nose, lots of american whiskey notes. Red chilli peppers, prunes and a bloody mary coctktail. Thick vanilla, Bbq sauce; hints of coconut. Feels a little young. Letting it breath will turn it to an exact cherry coca cola, not Dr. Pepper. Very grapy. It got a lot better. Thick very thick caramel. On the palate it is nice. Vanilla, new wood, wood polisher, prunes, chilli. Second sip was a toffee hard candy, spiciness has been tamed. Sour and bitter. A third sip was super sweet; all the sourness and bitternes appear if you hold it for 10 seconds. Toffee. Aftertaste is a little surprising and rewarding. Sawdust, hints of vanilla. Oaky, hints of tobacco. On the second sip it gave me something that i can only describe as "smoked almonds" (if such thing even exists), hints of milk chocolate. Overall, the virgin oak has left it a very bourbonish profile. If i were on a blind tasting event, i would have guessed this dram as an american whiskey. It is a solid, enjoyable dram, but intended to be drank by Johnnie Walker or Chivas drinkers. Not bad at all, i am actually going to work my way to the end of the bottle whenever i feel like having a normal dram, maybe in the beach. My score for it is 83 over 100.

I love most Chivas Regal expressions, and i always say that the first Chivas Regal Extra ever, the oloroso sherry cask matured one, is my war horse. Having said that, Chivas have released 3 more "Extra" expressions, and they have given them age statements, even for the traditional sherry one, and all of them are 13yo. The three new releases are Tequila Cask finish, Rye Cask finish and this one, the Rum cask finish. I actually love rum cask finishes in whisky, and i lately had the Glenlivet Caribbean reserve which i found fantastic. Bottled at 40%abv, golden color, this Chivad Regal has a nice, colorful label. On the nose, an instant rum and raisins ice cream note, which is very accurate. Vanilla cream; some floral notes. Definitively vanilla ice cream, there is an acetone note present, and i am not used to those aromas in a Chivas.  After a first sip it gave me dates, and definitively rum and raisins ice cream. Hints of Dulce de leche. On the palate, it has a very creamy vanilla note with a very salty which is surprising. Toffee, almonds, sawdust; i am amazed how salty it is, i feel it in the joints between my teeth. Aftertaste follows the same path. There is some hay, and almonds with chocolate, not too spicy. It has a good bite, grassy finish. More sips revealed sawdust and crushed almonds. Overall, this wasn't as good as i expected it to be; some parts of it felt a little young, or immature. I didn't felt the molasses or dark fruitiness that i tend to find in rum finished whiskies, and really the rum part was the rum and raisins ice cream. Not a bad whisky, very easy drinkable and fairly sweet and salty; my score for it is 76 over 100.

Singleton, a single malt that i usually avoid, has this 18yo expression, which was given to me by a friend and i thought to myself "i might as well taste it to see if it is one of those light apple juices that i expect from normal speysiders". Guess what, i was kind of right. Bottled at 40%abv, golden color. On the nose, a nice aroma, typical speysider with some enhanced notes. Caramel, green apples; Super fresh. A very accurate mint liquor note. Eucalyptus, and a hint of recently baked brownies. A second sip gave me Gerber's mashed apples; old red apples with dulce de leche. Nice aroma. On the palate it is good. Mint liquor, very herbal. Green tea with a hint of salt. Sider. A second sip gave me the classic toffee y dulxe de leche; with a slight coconut note. Aftertaste is very short. Salty, very herbal. Wet grass, slight tobacco. Not much here, not bad, just too short. Overall, this whisky could have scored higher if the aftertaste wasn't so quick. I liked the nose, the palate was ok, and the aftertaste was dissapointing. Not a bad whisky, but for an 18yo, it is not what you should get. My score is a very generous 83 over 100.