Tastes

This is actually the first time i have ever heard of the Orphan Barrels. It seems Diageo has some special, unique, "orphan" Barrels, that contain diferent whiskies from undisclosed distilleries. Actually a pretty good story, because they say that this are all very limited bottles and once they are gone, well... they aren't coming back. Bottled at 45.1%abv, Ok. The story is something. The tasting and nosing notes are another. Caramel in the nose. Metallic coins, creme brulee. A little toffee. Vanilla. A little refined aroma notes. On the palate, very herbal and butterscotch. Apricots. Aftertaste is medium, long, very pleasant. It is a fine bourbon. But it is not a Pappy. Not a John E. Fitzgerald 20yo. Compared to those two, this one is fair. 85 over 100.

A few days ago i told you my story on how i got my hands into two pappy van winkles, the 15yo and this one called "Van Winkle Special Reserve 12yo Lot b". Equally as impossible to find as the other ones in the family, this is a little less great than the 15yo, but still a marvelous complex bourbon. 45.2%abv, deep copper color. On the nose is where it is a little standard, losing some points. Caramelized apples, Brown Sugar, old mashed bananas, rust as in a penny coin, no alcohol note at all. On the palate is very very very complex. Ill describe the taste by sips: 1st sip: sour at the beggining. Sour prunes, orange, caramel, a rye spicyness, and a little burn in the finish. 2nd sip: herbal notes, liquorice, clove, orange jam/cough syrup. 3rd sip: bourbon's typical prune notes, herbal spicyness and... crazy dips? (Yeah that crazy lollipop that popped in your tongue)(its not the first time i have seen it in whiskies). 4th sip: mostly vanilla and clove. Well to summarize it: IT IS VERY COMPLEX AND FULL OF LAYERS. The aftertaste has fresh clove and ginger notes. Ginger made my mouth so numb. After the first two sips, vanilla was present on the finish. Mostly ginger, lots of it. My score card gave me a 94 over 100, but due to its complexity i feel compel to give it at least a 96 over 100 to make it a 5.0 stars bourbon whiskey. So that's that. Cheers!

It lived to my expectations. Spectacular on the nose, nice on the palate. Bottled at 46%abv, with a burnished color. On the nose is amazing. The most sweet dram i have ever nosed without a doubt. Caramelized apples, brown sugar, chocolate, lemon, prunes, caramel rolls, sophisticated vanilla, cinnamon, hints of liquorice. Sweet and complex. On the palate is delicious but can be too sweet and can numb your palate. Liquorice, caramel, apples. A full tobacco sensation as soon as it hits the tongue, transforms into a pleasant elegant hotness. Full mouth sensation. Even the nose gets a little action. Herbal notes, very pleasant. The spices are very balanced. An amazing dram truly. Very enjoyable. Made for experienced drinkers. Lots of cinnamon in the nose and palate. Just the right amount. Finish is long but too sweet even for me. Overall i give this baby a 93 over a 100. Absolutely recommended.

Currently visit in the mountains of Ecuador in a very cool Place called "baños" i entered a bar and looked atthe whisky shelf and found a rarity: a limoted 15yo Old parr. I bought a glass, neat, to make the most important kind of tourism there is: whisky tourism. First of all it is a lot better the the normal old parr, i believe this blended scotch is not too famous in the US or Europe bur here in South America is like drinking water since it is so popular. Bottled at 43%abv light gold color. On the nose: stinky peat (like Johnnie walker red label) spicy notes, coffee and Salt, it is nothing special on the nose. On the palate is rather good, starts with caramel (i can bet it is colored) spicy, peaty in a good pleasant way, medium bodied, smooth and oaky. The finish is medium - long, very pleasant. With peat and spiced. Very well crafted. After adding a couple drops of water all peatyness is gone to enhance spicyness and the toffee, caramel flavors and nosing notes. A rarity. If you can find it in any journey, buy it, you wont be dissapointed. 86/100

Another rare finding, a very vintage bottle (from 1976), in a porcelain decanter, 43%abv (86 proof), but lots of flavor and interesting notes here. This Old Fitzgerald conmemorates the bicentennial celebration of the United States of America. It even has some of the original patriots drawn in the bottle (not talking about Tom Brady here lol!). On the nose, Brown sugar; Old banana that has gone like brown. Grain sugar sweetness. Soap. On the palate, Banana, Prunes; feels Much more "bourbonish". Soap and Pepper. Aftertaste is also very good and interesting. It feels dusty, like old. Ginger notes and has some overall dust note. This is a good whiskey. It has been made to celebrate and in a very fancy way. It is not something i would drink daily (specially since this is a very rare and expensive bottle) but i can say it exploits my scoring system to get this high score: 91/100.

After 544 whiskies (not in one night lol) i finally had the "super peated", incredibly famous Octomore. I know there are a lot of Octomore expressions but i managed to get me a sample of the 08.1. Octomore as you might already know, is the heavily peated whisky from bruichladdich distillery, which is known for its organic barley. It is called "masterclass" and it has 167ppm of Peat, which is like 5 times an Ardbeg. Unchill filthered and uncolored. But, was it any good? Bottled at 59.3%abv, amber color. On the nose: SUPER PERFUMED. It is quite lovely and easy on the nose. The peat presents itself very strong but perfumed. Like cologne infused foam. Not smoky or earthy at all, but perfumed. Then, clean citric notes appear: fresh limes and oranges. After a couple of minutes that fresh orange turns into a more artificial / sugary orange. After a couple of sips, lemon air freshener and thick caramel notes appear. On the palate: it is very straightforward, only four flavors: lemon, lime, oranges (all of them very fresh and clean) and pepper. Then.... kaboom. Aftertaste is way too powerful. It feels like it can cure you from any disease because no bacteria or virus can survive a sulphuric bath like the one you just inflicted to your esophagus. Very earthy dry, smoky, sulphuric and full of mint, this one i will remember for ages. I have had whiskies with higher abv and none of them deliver this black mint, super listerine, smoky sensation. It is not unpleasant but not amazing either. Overall this dram has a very good nose and not a very complex palate. Aftertaste is way too powerful and i get it, you wanted to make world's peatiest dram and you went for it, that doesn't necessarily means its going to be great. It is not what i expected, it is not bad but not that enjoyable. 84 over 100 is my score for it.

Yet another Game of Thrones whisky, and to be honest this is actually a good expression. Maybe the second best after the great Lagavulin 9yo. Oban always live to the expectation and even if this is one very straightforward dram, it is a very enjoyable one as well. If served in a blind tasting you wouldn't guess it is an Oban. Bottled at 43%abv On the nose: Blackberry marmalade, dim Liquorice notes, Strawberry and more Red fruits. On the palate, Pepper and cinnamon. Red fruits marmalade. Jam. Aftertaste is salty with hints of liquorice. This is the only moment you actually experience some of the classic salty notes from Oban. Overall this is an easy drinkable whisky. For the Game of Thrones collection it mantains the mood of the whole set, easy drinkable, not bad but nothing remarkable. 84 over 100.

My first drink in this Eurotrip, my first Oban. I gotta say i might have expected more, but i was a good dram. Bottled at 43%abv, with an amber color. On the nose you get this Salty aroma, which prevails over the other notes. Tobacco, brown sugar and a slight peatyness is also present. On the palate is delicious, with caramel, old banana, ashes, oaky hotness notes with a very very long salty finish. Medium bodied. Overall i give this one an 83 over 100, because the nose is not that great and it can be a little harsh for some people. Cheers!

I was invited a dram of this beauty and i got to say i loved it, this one is a very elegant and balanced drink, and i dont think it is cheap, but you certainly get what you are paying for. This is a Vatted (blended) malt, but japanese people call it "pure malt" Bottled at 43% with an amber color. On the nose you will find brown sugar, cremé brulee, oranges, caramel, cola, slight pepper and gas water (this is the first time i ever get this aroma). On the palate is outstanding, with wood, allspice, pine tree, oranges and almonds. The finish is medium with an ashy note. Overall this one is a 90 over 100, great dram.

An excelent expression, specially for the price. The main perk of this whisky is that it is a single malt but it has been distilled using coffey stills (continuous or column stills) which are usually used only to distill grain whiskies. Bottled at 45%abv, tawny color. On the nose, very citric. Nice. Orange, lime; Dark chocolate; Tang orange juice. Wet Rice (no japanese cliché, this is really the aroma i got). Soap. On the palate, very steady more of the same: chocolate, oranges, pepper. Aftertaste is nice with almonds and chocolate with ginger infusions. Very well done. Overall this is a great everyday dram. Mostly citric and sweet. Good job from Nikka. 88 over 100.