Tastes

A new Royal Salute, this time a black bottle, that is called "the Lost Blend", that contains whiskies from lost and closed distilleries. A 21yo Blend as the standard one, but the real change here is that they sell this one as a peaty expression; lets see if it can live to the great Royal Salute name. Bottled at 40%abv, a lovely tawny color. On the nose, starts very herbal. Coffee with milk, toffee and floral notes. A thick vanilla. After a first sip, fancy spices have appeared and Marshmallows. Dim cherry syrup and red fruits. Very nice aroma. On the palate, it is one of the smoothest whiskies ever. Fancy vanilla, some mineral notes rise after a couple of seconds. Red fruits, burnt sawdust. A second sip was all about oranges. Orange peel. Aftertaste was rewarding, but a little simple. Again this burnt, aromatic sawdust; almonds and a mixture of salt and pepper. Overall, this one was a super enjoyable whisky. A wonderful (classic) decanter, that enhances the experience. It didn't feel peaty to me, but i recognize some salt and burnt sawdust as some relevant notes here. My score for this whisky is 87 over 100.

Whisky has evolved a lot in the past 15 years. Back in the early 2000s, at least in my country (Ecuador) people only drank the classic blended whiskies: Johnnie Walker, Chivas Regal, Buchanan's and Old Parr. You might not have heard of the last two, or even had a taste of them, but here they are incredibly popular. Everybody was drinking the 12yo expressions of this "classics", until the single malts exploded everywhere. Nowadays you can find a Blended Malt of each of those brands, which some years ago were exclusive to a Johnnie Walker Green Label. Chivas Regal released their "Ultis" expressions, a expensive, nice whisky; and now its Buchanan's time to do the same. This "Malts" edition is a Blend of malts, without grain whisky, in an attempt to release a different product, to capture some markets where whisky enthusiasts are booming. Bottled at 40%, golden color. On the nose, peaches. Lots of them. It actually starts with a beautiful peach aroma with hints of pepper. Syrup and cherries. Baked brownies and vanilla. Very appealing and different. On the palate, very straightforwars but not bad. Peach syrup, pears and a nice caramel. Aftertaste begins been very watery, and that scared me for a second; but, then a nice smokey aftertaste rised beautifully. Hay and smoke. Overall, this is a very interesting whisky, that you can enjoy easily. I don't think it is easy to find, but i recommend that you buy one to share with friends, specially those that are not very "picky" with their beverages. My score for it is 83 over 100.

Flaming Heart is one of those Compass Box expressions that comes and goes. This edition, has been made by blending Deanston, Caol Ila, Clynelish, an undisclosed Highland Malt and a parcel of the Spice Tree Extravaganza. It is marketed as oaky and peaty, for a late night with a cheese pairing. Bottled at 48.9%abv, it has a pale gold color. On the nose, it is very peaty and a little too powerful. A Rubber kind of peat. Pineapple and recently baked brownies. Burnt hay, fresh gooseberries. Strong mint candy. Very fresh with a lovely honey note. After 3 minutes this has become a honey candy. After the first sip, the peat, mint and everything harsh has tamed, a small honey and salt is the only thing present. On the palate, it is an instant sea wave.  Very salty, a little honey and some pineapple heart. The spiciness is exactly as bitting the pineapple heart. The second sip is full of honey. Candied almonds. Aftertaste is incredible. Burnt wood, maritime, salty, oak spice and beautiful island peat. Incredible finish. Burnt hay and bonfire. It felt truly amazing. Overall, this has the Compass Box Signature all over it. It is very enjoyable and not overly complex. It delivers a very good amount of peat. The palate is not super great but manages to survive. My score for it is an 88 over 100.

Back in 1999, one of the most popular football teams in the world, The Mamchester United, obtained "the treble", winning the English Premier League, the FA Cup and the European Cup (nowadays called Champions League), this last one in a very nerve-wracking matches in football history. Since Chivas Regal is the official sponsor of Manchester United, in 2019 they released this Ultis "Victory Edition", a 20yo blended malt to honour the famous treble. The incredible looking bottle and the box where it comes are simply part of the whole experience. This blended malt has been made from 3 malts (one for each trophy): A Strathisla matured in traditional oak casks; A Longmorn matured in ex Bourbon Barrels and a Braeval (A.K.A. Braes of Glenlivet) that has been matured in Sherry butts. Bottled at 40%abv, it has a beautiful red color that reminds me of Manchester United. On the nose, it gets close to perfection. Cherry syrup and pepper spice are the first notes to kick in. Thick maple syrup; honeycomb. Very elegant spices and red fruit syrup. Fried pinneapple; Its a dessert. Winey, honey, thick. A wonderful coconut note has appeared. It has the exact aroma of the flaming of the creme brulee. On the palate it is very good. Red apples with spices. Red fruits, Strawberries. Hay and clove; the spices here are the predominant flavor. Aftertaste is not the best part, but it is not bad at all. Tobacco, cherries. Very grassy and dry. Hay. It has a nice power, even for a 40%abv. Overall, i felt this whisky as a very fancy and enjoyable one. It doesn't have any traditional flavors, which is a nice bet for a 220$ whisky, that achieves a good experience for the drinker. A lovely dram, it felt better than what my score says. I rate it 88 over 100.

I consider myself a whisky enthusiast, i have tasted a good amount of whiskies to know a bit of the subject. I know nothing about wine. To be completely fair, the little things i know about wine are those that i have learned in my journey through whisky, specially the ones matured fully or partially in wine casks. Having said that, i have had some wines in my life (less than a 100, so i am really an ignorant in the subject), and i believe i can distinguish between a bad, normal and a good wine, based on my taste only. This GlenAllachie has been finished in Grattamacco Wine, a type of wine that comes from a special Tuscany location in Italy, between the towns of Castagneto Carducci and Bolgheri. When googling it i found out that it is a small winery, with 5 types of wines, primarly Cabernet Sauvignon. Bottled at 48%abv, a light peach color. On the nose, this one has a very light and fruity aroma. Starts with gooseberries and a hint of burnt paper. Green grapes is the most accurate and predominant aroma here. A little acetone (feels a little young), it has a hint of chocolate fudge somewhere. This aroma just reminds you of a vineyard. After a first sip, the aroma became darker. Dark, dehydrated fruits like figs and raisins. Very winey. On the palate it feels cold. Most whiskies might give you a hot sensation, this one is cold, very refreshing. Very grapy; gooseberries. A mild spiciness has risen after 10 seconds. Hay and old dried grass. Very earthy, winey. A second sip was lighter, with a raisin flavor. Aftertaste is amazing. Super earthy, feels like an italian vineyard in your mouth. Tobacco leaf, very earthy. Crushed grape peels. Long finished that resembles eating a whole box of sunmaid raisins. Overall, this felt like a super expensive, fancy wine. If you give this dram to a wine sommelier he might think it is an actual fortified wine, and not a whisky. It is super interesting, fresh and full of non-traditional flavors. Great experience, my score on it, is 90 over 100.

Torabhaig is the newest distillery from the Isle of Skye (the other one is one of my all time favorites, Talisker), and it is a very young spirit. Born in 2017, this single malt promises peat and bold flavors. The bottle looks a little cheap, and the marketing is inferior in comparison with other new distilleries like Raasay or Waterford. In my book, that is a good thing, because i have always believed that if the bottle is not pretty, that means that the whisky is so good that it doesn't need marketing. Bottled at 46%, pale straw color. On the nose, very earthy. Mud and grass, peaty. Very spicy on the nose, white wine and bananas. It has a tropical, peaty profile. Chilli, coconut. After a first sip it gave me a stinky but beautiful earthy aroma, with hints of chocolate. On the palate, it was very enjoyable. Grassy, vanilla, coconut and sand. A beach feeling, some very nice american oak casks have been used in here. Aftertaste is very rewarding with remarkable herbal notes. Salty and very grassy, green tea and ginger. The peat is not overpowering. Very herbal. Overall, i loved this whisky. In contrast to the inaugural release of Raasay, this dram has managed to hide its young age, and delivers something very rounded and enjoyable. For a 3 year old whisky, you can easily guess that Talisker will have some competition in some years from now. Beautiful single malt, nice experience, my score for it is 90 over 100.

Well... this was dissapointing. Raasay is one of the Hebidrean Islands new distilleries (the other one is Torabhaig), and i saw this bottle in auctions since the very first day it was released. The incredible good looking bottle has been made to resemble the rugged terroir of Raasay Isle, which in part is responsible for this single malt flavor (allegedly). This whisky has been matured using a mixture of 6 barrels, divided in two categories: peated and unpeated. The three unpeated whiskies are matured in the same type of casks of the peated whiskies: ********* oak (a type of american white oak), Bordeaux Casks, and Rye barrels. Everything here promises a nice complexity, including the 46.4%abv of the final product. Well, lets see how it went: On the nose, a little winey and peated, nice mixture but not overly appealing. Starts with what you could define as a Blackberry peat. Winey, raw meat; a little stinky. A lot of Rye and cereal aromas. Wet trees and tylenol pills. After a first sip it gave me grapes and gooseberries. On the palate, it is your classical rye whisky. Super ricey, raw rice. It tastes exactly as the rice you have just put into the rice electric pot with water. Feels organic, with a nice rye spiciness. A second sip tasted exactly as sugar corn flakes with milk. Aftertaste was simple, and dull. Dry , rye, rice and sugar syrup. Overall, this young malt has a long way to go. It felt very raw for some moments, which is not something that i necessarily dislike, since i like strong, "punch in the face" drams; but in this case what felt most strange, was the excesive rye profile, making it feel like an american whiskey. It wasn't really maritime, nor it felt like something that came from 6 casks or a rugged island. I believe that it is not a bad dram, and maybe in ten more years they will have something really surprising, but right now this whisky needs less cask experiments and more maturation. My score for it is 77 over 100.

A beautiful ceramic decanter holds an Ian Mcleod Blended Whisky, and the beautiful bottle shows the Skye Island. A very appealing 21 year old whisky that is very easy to drink and very hard to find. Bottled at 40%abv, tawny color. On the nose, it feels old. The first aroma is humidity, and old library, old books. Sawdust, caramel, dry orange cake. Burnt hay, ashtray. After a first sip, it released toffee and dark chocolate. On the palate it is very good. Oranges, caramael. Super salty, a hint of pepper and red apples. A secind sip gave me more salt, but a velvety feeling with leather also present. Aftertaste is peaty and a little too salty. Smoke and salt. Hay and mint. A salt bomb really, but not off-putting. Overall, this is a very well crafted blended whisky. It doesn't even feel as a blend, since no grain whisky is felt here. Some Tamdhu notes are recognizable in here. Nice dram, my score for it is 89 over 100.

Balvenie is one distillery that has given me a lot of dissapointing experiences. And i know it is a favorite among some whisky enthusiasts and collectors, but i always find it excessively light and boring. Well, i got a sample from this famous expression to see if it can change my mind about this distillery. Beautiful reddish blood color, bottled at 47.8%abv. On the nose it is very appealing, specially as soon as you pour the dram. Red fruits, an incredible hazelnut note; nose is quite beautiful. Chocolate butter. A sawdust note hids in the back. It is like a sherry wood syrup if that exists. If i wouldn't know that this is a Balvenie, i would have guessed it was an Aberlour. A nice spiciness is present and citrus notes appear every 20 seconds. After a first sip a Hanuta / Nutella aroma appeared; the sawdust has intensified. Dark Chocolate. On the palate it has a sherry, winey flavor. Very spicy. It doesn't resemble any other light Balvenies that i often critiziced. The second sip was lighter, a little watery as most expressions from this distillery, but the pepper bomb that follows, covers it up to score some more points and hide the flaws. A third sip revealed how really light and watery it is. Drops the ball. Dim vanilla and sawdust. (I wrote this while holding the whisky in the palate). There is a nice spiciness on the Aftertaste. Sherriness is very well crafted in here. Some brown sugar notes and crazy dips. There is some salty finish that has breached through the sherry profile. Aftertaste kept some power after a few sips and manages to get decent points. Overall, this is one of the best Balvenies i have had, without been something special. The overload of sherriness here almost accomplished the mision of hiding how light and uninteresting this spirit is. My usual opinion on this distillery is that it is mostly watery and after a couple of sips of the first glass that opinion became a fact once more. Having said that, this ranks second amongst Balvenies that i haven't been totally dissapointed, (the other, actually very good one, is the peat week expression). My score for it is 87 over 100.

If you get the words "Kavalan" "Cask strength" "sherry cask" in the same label, you already know it is going to be a very good thing. This exclusive edition was bottled for "The Whisky Exchange" retailers. The expression i had was bottled in 2016 at 57.8%abv. The color on this is simply impressive. Mahogany, a color mostly seen in whisky textbooks. Very dark reddish stuff. On the nose, the aroma is simply perfect. Coffee, cherries, prunes, figs and blackberry marmalade. A Cognac overall feeling, smells like macerated fruits and a hint of hazelnut. You get the idea. The palate is fantastic as well. Starts with a macerated fruit flavor, with pepper. Dark and dehydrated fruits; very winey with Chocolate notes also present. Aftertaste is strong, powerful but enjoyable and rewarding. Blackberries and pepper. Long incredible but straightforward aftertaste. Overall this is an amazing single malt that i feel very lucky to have tasted. Everything here is made for a whisky lover, starting from the natural color of it. The aftertaste wasn't as complex as the rest of the criterias, and that is why this one doesn't get a perfect score, but as they say in Football, "it hit the post!". My score for it is 97 over 100.