Tastes

I am not a fan of most irish whiskies, and i never expected this dram to be THAT GOOD. Well, this was amazing, it gave me a wonderful experience tasting it, and before talking deep about it, i can tell you right now: you should buy this whiskey. Jameson Round belongs to the "Deconstructed series" which was a project to separate the parts in a normal Jameson to enhance them individually and sell you three different whiskies that together construct the Jameson "DNA". This one is called "Round", the other two are called "Lively" and "Bold", defining the key characteristics of this distillery. Bottled at 40%abv, light gold color. On the nose this is really a sweet, perfumed dram. My first sniff on it made me think i was not going to like it because i got a creamy vanilla from grain whiskies. Then a nice chocolate note with infused caramel. Sider, very perfumed. Red apple notes are all over the place. Apple juice. Some red fruits. Very perfumed after a couple of minutes, very floral aroma. There is some oiliness to it. The spiciness on the nose is rather sweet and fresh like ginger. Nice aroma. Vanilla so sweet. Butter. On the palate, it is very easy to drink and friendly. Yellow and red apples, very fruity, very fresh. Ginger spice, pleasant. The most accurate apple flavor ever found in a whiskey. Very easy to drink, actually very ROUND. Delicious. And now... the best part. The aftertaste: WOW AFTERTASTE WAS FANTASTIC. Nice experience. Let me tell you this, its like milk powder; or froot loops powder (debris) that naturally appears after pouring it. Incredible. Its just a different experience. It is the most accurately way to describe it. Overall this was a surprising, beautiful dram. I hope the other two live to my new expectations of them. 93 over 100. Sláinte!

A cheap Blended Scotch, this can be considered as a smooth whisky, with ghostly flavors that fade quickly, but i guess it works for cocktails. Bottled (in a strange looking bottle) at 40%abv On the nose, it feels young. Right away grain whisky aroma. Butter. Cheap Butter chocolate. Acetone. Fresh fields. Aroma dissapears almost completely after 4 mins. Maize. After first sip a ghostly lemon note can be found. The palate follows the same path with Grain notes, very Smooth, Vanilla and Honey. Gets peppery. Easy to drink. Aftertaste has a very dim smoke note. Almondy. Its very short and dim. Very easy to drink, this is young but not rough. Not interesting, i guess you can taste it and forget about it. 56 over 100.

I am sorry. Truly sorry. I am sorry for waiting 581 whiskies to finally taste a Tamdhu. And i went full mainstream, with this 12yo expression, matured in ex-sherry casks, and i got to say i was mind blown. A very simplistic looking bottle, this is just a great 12yo whisky. Bottled at 43%abv, golden color. On the nose: perfection. Coffee; Dark dry cake (christmas /wedding cake); Figs, Prunes and Blackberries. Aniseed. Fondant /butter / cream. Beautiful sherriness, you can tell the barrels where exceptional. Impalpable sugar. Sweet fruit syrup. Awesome sweet nose. On the palate it is a little straightforward, but very pleasant. Immidiately you get the spiciness. Some pleasant alcohol note and oak spice. Very Woody (i dont ever use the "oak" and "wood" notes to describe a whisky, but this one is exactly that. Almondy, nutty. Not sweet. Rather woody and bitter. Toffee and honey on the third sip. It's more like caramel than honey. Buttery, butterscotch. Aftertaste is.... peaty??? Tobacco leaf. Hints of smoke. Very Dry. Hay and dry grasses. Very Rewarding. Long lasting peppery finish. Cigarrete notes. So, this is a great offer. It is sweet on the nose, then spicy on the palate, to finish grassy and peaty. Very complex, but rounded. Amazing dram. My score system says 90 over 100, but i believe it really deserves 91-92. I will buy this again... And again, and again...

Recently (not THAT recently) Jura released a series of expressions matured in Pedro Ximenez sherry casks, which represents something iconic of the isle of Jura. I have now tasted all three (i believe they later released a fourth one called "the paps") and i loved the previous two: The Road and the Loch. This one, The sound, has been matured in casks that previously held the marvelous Pedro Ximenez Sherry for at least 15 years, this one been the youngest in that matter, since the other two were matured in casks that held the same time of fortified wine for 20 and 30 years. It is said that the isle of Jura has a special "sound" and this bottle is a commemoration of that particular perk of the archipelago. Bottled at 42.5% abv, deep copper color. On the nose, it is rather nice. Uncorking, gives you cinnamon notes. First aroma you find on the glass is Baked apples. Grassy peat / earthy. Maple syrup, old and thick. Old almost rancid orange peel. Dim citric notes. A mild cigarrete aroma surrounds it. Less sweet than the other two Juras previously mentioned. Thick pineapple marmalade. Blackberry. Old cirus fruits peel. Some red fruits, old and syrupy. Blackberry marmalade after first sip, very nice. On the palate it is good, follows the same path: Tropical fruits like Pineapple and Peaches. Very gentle. Cinammon spice. Aftertaste gives you a completely different punch that somehow barely fits in there. There is a nice puff of smoke, followed by a dim pepper note and spicyness that sticks on your tongue for some time, nice but "ghostly". Grassy, burnt hay finish. Overall i think this one is my least favorite of this collection, there was a lot missing here that you can find in the other two expressions. Not bad at all, but normal /nice. 82 over 100.

Best Kurayoshi i have tasted so far (i have tasted 3) and i believe all its flavor comes from the higher abv. This scottish and japanese blended malt made me have a good time, and i really enjoyed it. Bottled at 50% abv. On the nose, it is beautiful. Very Floral, Perfumed. Dried fruits and Grapes No alcohol note whatsoever even for a 50%abv. Strawberries, sweet bread; Fantastic. Grape juice, Cereal, Honeycomb, Bananas and that "typical" dulce de leche, toffee note from the other Kurayoshi. On the palate, also very good. Almonds. Nutty. Butterscotch.Pepper and Citric notes. More dulce de leche (toffee) After the third sip it becomes earthy. Aftertaste is the best part by far. Perfect score. So rewarding. A super pleasant spice bomb, a mixture of pepper, ginger and oak spice. Overall, i got to say that there are better 18yo whiskies out there but this one deserves to be tasted at least once. Great whisky, only Kurayoshi i would recommend, 92 over 100. Kanpai!

I had a Kurayoshi tasting night, and i had the Sherry Cask, the 12yo and the 18yo. Got to say this one was the loser on that night, because even if it is not a bad whisky, it is not something you will remember. Actually Kurayoshi is a blended malt (pure malt in japan) from scottish and japanese whiskies, from the Matsui distillery. Bottled at 43%abv On the nose, it is an speyside whisky doppelganger with a little earthy note (which i found in every Kurayoshi).full Citric notes. Toffee. Grapefruit, Strong alcohol note; passion fruit. Earthy and Citric. Raw rice and Floral notes like a cheap Air freshener from a Taxi (a cab). On the palate, too straightforward, but nice i guess. Dulce de leche (toffee), citric and pepper. Aftertaste is intersting. Earthy like mud. Ginger. Very dry. Overall this is a whisky that is not bad, but lacks emotion. I guess that it's intention is to compete with other 12 year old whiskies out there (which might be the whiskies top competition) and for that purpose, it is a good offer. 77 over 100.

To this day, this one can be consider a rarity. I have only seen this Kurayoshi at israel airport. Although it is matured at the Matsui distillery, this is actually scotch. The new make is made in scotland and most of the casks are also scotish but stored on the japanese distillery. It is strange but its true. Bottled at 43% abv, amber color. On the nose it is AMAZING. perfect score. Due to its maturation on sherry casks, its aroma is wonderful. Red fruits, Berries, Purple fruits: Raisins. Vanilla, White wine, Dr. Pepper cola, Maple syrup and strawberry marmalade. On the palate it is more straightfoward but still very nice. Grapes, sherry, tobbacco and chocolate. Aftertaste is super candied and sweet. Its like hard bubble gum, cinnamon, peanuts, molasses, and a little bitter. Overall, this is a fine dram, very enjoyable. 86 over 100.

A beautiful looking bottle that represents a Kimono dress, a very drinkable whisky, which is too straightforward to be exciting. Here are my notes on Nikka Tailored that replaced the standard Nikka 12yo in 2019. Bottled at 43%abv On the nose it is pretty nice. Raw rice, Coffee, Toffee, dulce de leche, Tobacco, grapefruit. Feels barely young. Creme brulee. Super sweet, beautiful Capuccino note. On the palate is the easiest whisky to drink ever. Super fancy toffee with Pepper and that's it. Nothing else. A little boring. Aftertaste is more of the same. pleasant spice bomb with toffee. Very friendly, but not overly exciting. Overall this is a good, everyday whisky. Guess for a NAS that should be around 10-12yo it works. For critics and adventurers it feels too plain. 79 over 100.

The proper way to start this review is to tell you that this one will be on my top ten list of 2020. Highland Park Ice Edition is not only marvelous well crafted to actually feel "cold", but it is also a rewarding dram. Even the bottle is amazing. Actually i had the fire edition first, (which was released after this ice edition) and even if i did not like that one too much, i recognized that HP made a whisky that tasted like a volcano; and now that i have had the Ice one, everything fits perfectly, this distillery gave us a cold dram and a hot spicy dram and called them ice and fire. I applaud them. Having said all that, this beautiful green bottle comes on a mountain shaped case. It symbolizes the "fittingly chilly reflection of Nilfheim, one of the nine worlds of old Norse mythology and the birthplace of ice, frost and fog". Bottled at 53.9%abv On the nose is outstanding. Uncorking gives you this whisky mixed with ice and mineral water aroma. First sniff is all about salt and vanilla. Lemon meringue, no alcohol note; there is a COLD PEAT note, it is the only way i can describe it. Vanilla ice cream: Whenever a whisky feels cold it is always vanilla ice cream. The peat is present is a fashionable fancy way. Fancy citrus. The same scorched ground like in the Highland Park fire, but like frozen. Got to say they offered fire, they delivered, they offered ice, they also delivered. This are collection items but for the critics, they nailed it. Pineapple and tropical fruits. A little ashy. It is clear that they made this one first, and saw the "frozen properties of it" named it "ice edition" and then released the fire edition one. After first sip it gets more citrusy, lemon. Dulce de leche. And that was the nose. Palate is a little more "human" but also great. Dulce de leche (toffee), Pepper Another spice bomb, but pleasant. Mint liquor, Tobacco and Ashes. Prunes. Its like a powerful pepermint breath candy. Aftertaste is sooooo rewarding. I enjoyed it thoroughly. Peat, Pepper, Ashes. Dry grasses, Tobacco. Puffs of smoke. So amazing freaking finish, so rounded, makes you lick your theet afterwards. So, this was amazing. Truly an enjoyable whisky, absolutely recommended, go buy it, at least for the beautiful bottle. Incredible dram, 98 over 100. Sláinte Mhath.

Another one of JW experiments, this time a 2017 release (it seems like it was not that long ago) a blended scotch whisky finished in casks that held Caribbean Pot Still Rum. Bottled at 40.8% abv, light golden color. On the nose it is amazing. I had no faith on this whisky before opening it, since the other blender's batches i have had from Johnnie Walker were just regular. But the nose on this is great. Smells like rum. 100%; Tobacco Dry grass. Vanilla Feels young on the nose and turns grainy quickly. Butter. Rum notes have faded to a standard grain whisky, the most standard one you can imagine. Liquid artificial lemon, like the one bartenders pour on rum cocktails on a bar. Maybe a hint of pepper. Vanilla cake. Got to say it is young but the aroma meets the criteria to be exactly what they claim it is. After a first sip, it gets like a cuba libre with lemon artificial juice. It is a rum cocktail. A great dulce de leche note is also present. On the palate, it is not that great, but still not a bad dram: Bitter notes are the most notorious. Dark cake. Vanilla, Prunes and Pepper. A little Oaky/woody. A slight dulce de leche note that quickly turns bitter. Acid overall. Just like a rum. Aftertaste is awful. Off-putting the first sip. Super Dry, it tastes like a piece of cardboard box. Raw rice. Like tasting a dead leaf or licking a piece of paper. Although the second sip is slightly better, it is still very dry. A little pepper can be detected. Luckily is a short finish. Terrible. Overall, this went downhill way to quickly and way too abruptly. It lost so many points on the aftertaste than the resulting score of 70 over 100 could deceive you into believing this is a regular whisky, but really the finish is so bad that i wouldn't even think to buy it again. I know this JW collection is for cocktails and mixing, and i can see this going great with coca cola AND THAT SAYS A LOT ABOUT IT.