Tastes

Continuing my adventures through the world of whiskies from independent bottlers, i have tasted a 1999, 15 year old Dalmore bottled at Cask Strength by Alexander Murray. This very good looking bottle (not as good as the proper Dalmlre distillery bottlings) has been matured in ex bourbon casks and Oloroso Sherry, and bottled at 55.6%abv. On the nose, there is the Dalmore DNA all over it, but fruitier. Prunes, green apples, the typical Dalmore orange note. Chocolate milk powder (formula), hazelnut, banana bread, almonds. Honey, marzipan and wedding cake, the expected glorius aromas from most single malts of this distillery. On the palate, it is delicious. Hay, hazelnut, and a spectacular chocolate. A very spongy Vanilla cake. Simple but amazing. Aftertaste is also great, with some figs, sawdust and peppery notes. Vanilla, almonds and ginger spice. Overall, i really loved this dram. It is like your standard 15yo Dalmore on steroids. The notes are very clean and well delivered. It is my first ever whisky from Alexander Murray and it impressed me. My score for it is 93 over 100.

Raasay is one of the two new distilleries of the hebrides Islands, and this expression called "while we wait" is prequel single malt, released before their actual inaugural release (which wasn't very good i have to say). I believe this malt has been matured for 3 years in tuscan red wines and bottled at 46%abv, with a burnished gold color. On the nose, it is complex but a little weird. Raw rice, salt, bbq sauce and burnt rubber are the first tasting notes i can perceive. After a first sip, the aroma changed into chocolate, salt, gooseberries and glazed ham. It has a winey profile, with hints of caramel somewhere. On the palate, it passed the test. Starts spicy, then releases this red fruit / strawberry flavor with some sulphur note surrounding it. Vanilla, gooseberries. Aftertaste is mildlt peaty, but it is not smokey. Rubber, salt, pepper and gooseberries. Raw rice. It is dry and not very long. Not bad though. Overall, this wasn't a very balanced dram. It felt like it was young and all over the place. I would like to try more from this novice distillery in about 8 years to experience a more matured and consistent dram. My score for it is a 78 over 100.

Lately i have been exploring the amazing world of independent bottlers. I have crossed paths with this amazing dram, called Secret Speyside 1990 vintage, 30 Year Old from "The Whisky Jury". It is always good wben you have the chance to drink a whisky that was distilled when you were 8 years old. Bottled at 46.6%, it has a deep copper color. On the nose is super complex, full of aroma notes. Sweet Pecans, cinnamon spice, hazelnut, vanilla powder and old apples. It is like a fried apple pie with cinnamon. Lovely aroma, very dark and fruity. Great fresh gooseberries aroma with hints of honey and cereal. Sider. Very complex, it has many aromas delivered in layers. After a first sip, a  salt crackers note with dulce de leche on top has appeared. Caramel. Lots of cinnamon. It is fruity but mostly spicy. Very sweet. Hints of coconut have appeared after 5 minutes. Butterscotch. Cooked pineapple. It is really super complex on the nose. In the palate, it is delicious. Toffee and almonds are the first flavors here. There is some salt rising after a couple of seconds. Very easy to drink. Cooked pineapple, cooked green apples. Very clean. A second sip gave me this caramel with sawdust note; actually a little overly oaked. It has a fruity profile, but it feels like the peels from the fruits. Honey has appeared on the third sip, very appealing, this is a very nice dram. Apricots. It has a smokey and hay aftertaste, completely different from the aroma and nose. Very, very dry. Long, woody finish. It is very oaky, i haven't had an oakier dram for a while. It drains your tongue, the sawdust is very potent. The third sip, gave me an incredible ashy flavor and salt. It is definitively peaty. Overall, this was a fantastic dram, very recommended if you can find it. If i had to take a guess, i would say this single malt is a Glenfarclas on steroids. My score for this beautiful whisky is 97 over 100.

Bowmore has grown in me. I started this whisky journey thinking of this distillery as a "light, boring islay dram", but lately i have been tasting some bery nice expressions that are truly worthy. Having said that, they have exploited the "devil's casks" story quite a lot. They just recently release a super expensive collection called "no corners to hide" which tells the same story of Bowmore's devil who ran from a circular church into the destillery and then proceeded to hide in varios casks. An actually this one is part of that story. Called "the Devil's Cask INSPIRED", this single malt is a 10yo bowmore, matured in oloroso sherry and red wine casks. Bottled at 46%abv, with a lovely red color. On the nose, lots of aroma notes that you love. Rum, molasses, lemon, bacon, smokey merthiolate and camphor. Plastic, grapes, winey, latex, salt and tobacco. After a first sip, the aroma went more complex, releasing chilli, a heathery peat and chocolate. On the palate, it is a red wine. Cabernet sauvignon, prunes, plums, very oily. Dark chocolate with salt. Blackberries. Delicious stuff. Aftertaste is where the peat is. A smokey barbecue, peppery, earthy. There is this wine profile but surrounded with salt and metallic notes. Smoked salmon and sowing land. Overall this is a fantastic whisky, not overly expensive and easy to find in a travel retail store. I believe that Bowmore's spirit is made to be matured in wine and sherry casks, there is where they have really impressed me. A lovely whisky, super balanced and flavorful, my score for it is a sweet 96 over 100.

In may 2019 i had the opportunity to be invited into Linn's House, Chivas Regal castle in Scotland. As a guest, for a week i had the chance to taste dozens of wonderful whiskies from Pernod Ricard, but one of those single malts was my favorite: The Glenlivet 13yo Sherry Cask Matured Taiwan exclusive. I simply loved it, and i said to myself: "i have to have this whisky in my collection". Auctions passed and i managed to score some bottles of my favorite Glenlivet ever. Well... it seems they improved the game. Taiwan had another exclusive, a 15yo sherry cask matured, and i had to taste it. Well, i got a bottle and i shared it on a tasting event, needless to say, everyone's mind was blown. Bottled at 40%abv, a reddish chesnut color. On the nose, perfection. The most amazing and powerful aroma of figs, cinnamon, dates and sherry. Christmas cake, maraschino cherries, toblerone chocolate, vanilla and dark chocolate. After a couple of sips, the aroma changed into a perfect maple syrup, leather, marshmallows and coffee. Just amazing. On the palate it is precious. Figs, nutty, cognac, raisins. Velvety; this whisky has a very winey profile, like cabernet sauvignon. It is like apples bathed in sherry. Aftertaste is completes an outstanding whisky. Tiramisú dessert, hay, Dr. Pepper soda, bitter chocolate. More sips revealed a smokey chocolate, molasses and liquorice. Overall, i don't have much more to say, this dram is going to be on my top 10 of 2021. It is one of the most wonderful drams ever. Totally recommended, you NEED TO FIND IT, YOU NEED TO BUY IT, YOU NEED TO TASTE IT, AND DON'T SHARE IT. My score for this spectacular single malt is 101 over 100. It is THAT good. Slàinte Mhath!

"Whisky is our canvas" is the slogan of Compass Box latest expression, a blended malt made of a special parcel of Tomatin that has been matured in Vino Naranja wine casks, with imperial single malt, Glen Elgin and some Glenburgie. Bottled at 46% in a lovely looking decanter, amber color, very thick legs in the Glencairn. On the nose, it has a lovely aroma. Tiramisú dessert, oranges, vanilla wet cake, honey and pears. After a first sip, it change into a more humid aroma, cream. It smells like a library or cloth softener. Orange "Tang" Juice. On the palate, it is a little simple. It is bitter, it is exactly as licking a new wood. Orange peel, sawdust and some othe citric flavors. Astringent. Aftertaste is very complex and interesting. Smokey, hay, pepper, salty, grassy, it is not too powerful, but fairly long. Sawdust, cough syrup, hints of chocolate and tiramisú dessert. Overall, as most Compass Box limited releases, this is a very enjoyable, balanced whisky. I like how the Compass Box DNA is shown here, i believe it is that Glen Elgin base they always use. Nothing too special, but a nice offering, my score for it is 86 over 100.

Benromach used to release vintage expressions for their "peat smoke" bottlings. I have had the 2006 one, and that was pretty interesting, so i was eager to try this 2008 one. Bottled at 46%abv, pale straw color. On the nose it is peaty and herbal. Plastic, mint, herbal and cotton candy. It has this impressive coffee bean aroma. Iodine. Very nice. On the palate it is good, but way too simple. Coffee, bitter dark chocolate and toffee. Aftertaste has a standard peaty profile. Peppery, earthy, metallic. Overall, this dram was nice, but nothing to die for. It felt simple and maybe a little boring; the 2006 expression was way better. My score for it is an 83 over 100.

One of Benromach's flag ships, the "Organic" expression has gained some popularity in the past years. I don't usually have good experiences with anything organic, and i have had few whiskies made that way and they weren't very good. Benromach means "The Peak" in gaelic, and it was reopened with a special guest in 1998, that guest was Prince Charles. Bottled at 43%abv, pale straw color. On the nose, interesting, a little strange and definitively organic. Malted barley, cotton candy, hay. Smells like a farm. Coffee, salty crackers, gas water; feels powdery. It has this strange feeling that resembles a coca cola. On the palate, it is not great. Honey, red apples, nutty and floral. Aftertaste is spicy, short and not very appealing. Pepper, ham and chilli. Nothing else. Overall, i have read some very nice reviews on this one, but for me it was a complete dissapointment. Don't get me wrong, it is not bad nor off-putting, it is just too simple and not very tasty. My score for it is 78 over 100.

Since 2015 when Bladnoch got a new owner, the australian surfer David Prior, the whole image of this Lowland Distillery has been refurbished, and they have released a blended scotch, with a lovely and heavy bottle called "Pure Scot". This is the "signature" expression, and has won a fairly amount of awards lately.  It says on the label that it has whiskies from all over Scotland, but their main malt is Bladnoch of course. Bottled at 40%abv, tawny color. On the nose, very sweet and minty. Butterscotch is the main aroma, dulce de leche, chocolate and a lovely note of mint liquor. Very herbal, like a lemon verbena or chamomile tea. After a few sips, it revealed the grain whisky of the blend, with a decent maize note. On the palate it is a very delicious dram. Again this fancy butterscotch, some bee honey, milka chocolate bar, toffee and danish cookies. A second sip gave me vanilla, a hint of pepper and maize. Very enjoyable. Aftertaste is slightly peaty. Salt, burnt hay, puffs of aromatic smoke and danish cookies (the salty one). Not very long. Overall, for a blended NAS whisky, this one is definitively in the competition against Chivas XV and Johnnie Gold, because of its flavor profile. Since it is new, but better good looking (the bottle that is), it should be considered as one step down from those two, but many steps forward from the classic 12yo blends. My score for it is a fair 83 over 100.

In the recent years Tamdhu has become a sherried power in Scotland. Their malts have won some prizes and they are positioning themselves as a luxury brand. I loved their expressions and they have nailed this "Batch Strength" releases. Now its time to rate their fourth one, bottled at 57.8%abv, tawny color. On the nose, this one is remarkable. Burnt caramel, Lemon, Glazed pork, peaches. Earth and Marzipan. Christmas cake and Thick vanilla. On the palate, it is definitively a luxury whisky. Cinammon, salt, dulce de leche and a fancy toffee. Aftertaste follows the same path, with a very well crafted caramel note; there is this sensation of having tasted a toffee liquor with cinnamon and Salt crackers. Overall, this single malt has the Tamdhu spirit all over the place. Their DNA is present and you can perceive this as a 12yo expression in steroids. A very nice dram, my score for it is 92 over 100.