Tastes

** Disclaimer: This review is what I would consider a “Quick Hit”- meaning I won’t have my usual in-depth notes that I usually like to take. The reason: this sample was poured at Whiskyfest DC on 4/17/18. All of these reviews will not be scored and I am actively looking to try them again at some point to do them more justice. This was the second Kavalan I tried at the festival and it had some serious, yet weird, flavors going on. Heavy raisins and grape sweetness and it bounced around from dry to oily all during the same sample. It left a lingering oak note on the tongue and that was the only negative aspect I recall. I’d be interested in trying it again to give it another go. I have a feeling the Soloist series is the highlights from Kavalan. Maybe I’ll divert some scotch funds over to these bottles, as I think they’d make a great addition to my collection of Asian whisky. Cheers.

This review was transferred over from the Barreled App: You can always tell you are drinking Laphroaig as soon as you pull the cork from the bottle. Surprisingly, this is where the 200th anniversary 15 YO changes gears from their most traditional offerings. That medicinal, smoky smell fills the glass (and sometimes the room) but after that everything seems really restrained. This is the most mellow Laphroaig I think I've ever had and while I'm not complaining, it really isn't what I expected or wanted from a special release. It is, however, a perfect way to indoctrinate your non-Islay drinking friends into peaty single malts. I rated this one a bit lower because it feels like it should be called 10 Year Old Light and thankfully the price wasn't jacked up for the anniversary release. I'm still a huge Laphroaig fan, but this one was kind of a letdown to me.

This review was transferred over from the Barreled App: I stumbled across this gem at Monk's BBQ & Bourbon in northern VA yesterday and was extremely excited to get a taste. This might've had the biggest, in your face wood profile I've ever tasted in any whiskey. The initial burst was borderline overpowering on the tongue, but after a bit of a "chew" it really opened up- big oak char finishing with a punch from the rye. It finished hard as I suspect it should. It's not something I'd want to drink often, but I'm incredibly happy I got to try it once. Good good stuff. Cheers.

The review transferred over from the Barreled App: It's now time for another special dram that isn't available in the U.S: Ailsa Bay Peated Lowland single malt. This is a newer distillery located in the Lowland region of Scotland and was built in 2007 by William Grant & Sons. It was built to help supply single malt scotch to WG&S for their blended scotch offerings. The stills are copies of the ones that Balvenie uses and it is believed they built this facility to lessen their need for Balvenie malts for their blends. However, for 2 weeks a year they distill a peated single malt and have decided to bottle this under their own brand name. This is the first bottling and I believe this was distilled in 2011/2012, thus making this only 3-4 years of age. Near the bare minimum time required to call it a scotch whisky. It comes in at a nice 97.8 proof and I believe a bottle runs about $55 over in the U.K. and Western Europe. Like most peated and Lowland malts it is very light in color. It produces very thin legs in the tasting glass and upon nosing it there is a nice burst of grassy, earthy peat. The medicinal "band aid" and briny sea salts are unexpectedly missing, but it doesn't take away from the taste at all. In fact, it's quite eye-opening. There's also a nice, floral aspect keeping the overall impression very light and airy. Surprisingly, for a whisky this young I don't get much oak barrel. Interesting. The first sip is actually quite decadent. There's a strong hit from the peat and a pleasant pop of toasted almonds to go along with the fresh oak. It's a lively dram (as it should be) and all those flavors really flow into the long, warm finish. It's not overpowering despite being almost 100 proof, but it isn't butter smooth either. Very solid execution. With this being a Lowland whisky it really shocks me that such a great flavor profile is coming from a distillery this new. Hats off to the head distiller here. Well done. I have to hope that production ramps up enough to where some of this gets shipped over seas and remains relatively cheap. I would certainly buy a bottle of this for those times I want a peated whisky without the heavy feel of a Laphroiag or an Ardbeg malt. A big thanks to @PBMichiganWolverine for sending me a pour of this back in 2016. He is also providing another pour of this for the guys in the SDT in the final round, I believe. Cheers.

This review was transferred over from the Barreled App: I have a hard time rating Jack Daniels. I used to drink bourbon exclusively mixed with Coca Cola. I was never much of an on-the-rocks guy when I was younger. I really loved JD before switching to the cheaper Jim Beam when I drank B&C's. Now that my focus is on scotch whisky and the occasional neat bourbon, I have a hard time seeing what the fuss was ever really about. I'm trying to appreciate other whiskies, it's just taking a bit longer to get with the program. That said, this is a fantastic (albeit expensive) version of JD. I'm glad a friend brought it to the whisk(e)y tasting tonight. I never would've paid what this bottle costs for a chance to sample it. It's ultra smooth and that makes it a fitting tribute to Frank, I suppose. If you really like Jack then I'd say seek it out, but if you have moved on to more adventurous whiskey you should maybe skip this and put those funds into something that might give you a more interesting experience. Cheers.

This review was transferred from the Barreled App: Seeing all these recent bourbon reviews I've decided to pop open one of the few special bourbons I have in my collection: Jim Beam Signature Craft Triticale. One of six releases under their Harvest Bourbon Collection, this one uses the rye and wheat hybrid, triticale. It has also been aged for 11 long years and comes in at 90 proof. I have a small pour of regular Beam just to (hopefully) provide some obvious distillery similarities. Right away, the triticale is deeper in color and the nose is much more involved. There's a slight sweetness penetrating through the heavy oak spice. On the tongue there's a nice vanilla and malt presence that gets drowned out quickly by oak and pepper spices. It's incredibly smooth with a warm, rye-like biting finish. It feels close to a good single malt scotch that has been aged in single use bourbon barrels. I let it sit a little longer before finishing it and it explodes with even more vanilla sweetness. Great, especially for a Jim Beam product. All that said, price point is beyond ridiculous at $50. That's insane for Jim Beam and to make matters worse- this bottle is only 375ml (around 13oz). Yikes! I can't recommend it at that price, although it is interesting enough that I'm glad I was able to try it. Seek out a friend willing to share instead of buying it yourself. Cheers.

Transferred from Barreled App: Here's to the final Johnnie Walker core range, blended whisky that I need to try to complete the catalog. The Green Label is a blend of 15 year old malts and comes in at 86 proof. Thanks again to Paul for this generous sample (I've sworn off of JW blends at this point as I think they are almost all subpar and too similar to warrant chasing them all). The nose here is heavily chocolate influenced with a bit of peppery oak cask. There's some faint smoke to help round things out, as well. The palate is thin and after an initial mocha creaminess is overpowered with oak spice. Too much spice. It sort of wrecks the finish by carrying over into it, while washing away pretty quickly. I guess that should be considered a good thing, but for some reason it isn't. I hate sounding like I'm flip-flopping with my expectations but this feels like what's happening. It doesn't seem like a typical JW, and that is a small plus to me. While I don't think I'd want an entire bottle of this, it is better than most other JW blends I've had. If I had to rank my top 3 it would be: JW Double Black, Rye Cask Select, and this Green Label. There, I'm done with you Johnnie. Moving on.... PS- A big thanks to @Generously_Paul for the ability to review and add this to my whisky total. Cheers.

"""** Disclaimer: This review is what I would consider a “Quick Hit”- meaning I won’t have my usual in-depth notes that I usually like to take. The reason: this sample was poured at Whiskyfest DC on 4/17/18. All of these reviews will not be scored and I am actively looking to try them again at some point to do them more justice. I think I can mark this one down as one of the more pleasant surprises of the festival, even though my palate was surely fried because this was sampled during the seminar at the very end of the night. Whereas I thought the regular Dark Cove was not different enough that a typical Ardbeg 10 to warrant a separate release- the Committee Edition was a vast improvement over what I remember about the regular DC. The sherry notes seemed well pronounced, tempered well with typical Ardbeg smoke, and the extra strength amplified all the aromas and flavors from the nose to the long finish. I could see giving this one 4.5 stars, easily. It’s a bit late in the game to search for a bottle, but if I come across one it would be hard not to bite if the price was reasonable. Cheers.

""** Disclaimer: This review is what I would consider a “Quick Hit”- meaning I won’t have my usual in-depth notes that I usually like to take. The reason: this sample was poured at Whiskyfest DC on 4/17/18. All of these reviews will not be scored and I am actively looking to try them again at some point to do them more justice. This was the sister bottle to the Artist’s Blend and this one has more sherry cask influence, and therefore a much sweeter profile than the Artist’s. Both had similar vanilla and pie crust notes to them- with the Glasgow delivering a slightly smoother mouthfeel and a sweeter, vine fruit bite. Neither bottle showcases much cask influence nor do they offer much in the way of heat from ABV. Another fantastic, cheap sipper from CBW. Spend the $40 required, sit back and relax while enjoying this one neat from a highball glass.

Updated review: 5/15/18. I decided to open a bottle of the Artist’s Blend to do a comparison between it and a bottle of the Artist’s Blend Single Marrying Cask. The latter is a special bottling done by Compass Box for certain retailers and offered in very limited numbers. Please see the Artist’s Blend Marrying Cask for a review of that specific bottle. This is an update for the normal release. First of all, let’s look at the ingredients and breakdown: 46% is Cameron Bridge single grain whisky, 29% is ex-American-oaked Clynelish, 17% is CBW’s in-house blend of 3 Highland malts that have aged in new French oak, and 8% of Linkwood aged in sherry casks. All ages of the whisky used is undisclosed. (Thanks to @PBMichiganWolverine for getting the breakdown info from Compass Box for me.) The Artist’s Blend has a nice buttery, apple pie flavor albeit with a decent amount of cask influence coming through. There’s some nice vanilla and apple notes ringing through. It really is buttery smooth and completely easy to drink. The finish is short, though, while still being quite tasty. It’s a fantastic, sweet sipper that would probably also play very well in various whisky-based cocktails. It’s a solid 3.5-3.75 star caliber dram. I’m glad I have a couple bottles of both this and the Glasgow. Never mind a few bottles of the rarer NY Blend (peated). Good stuff. CBW does it right 90% of the time. Spend $40 with confidence, my friends.