Tastes
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Teremana Tequila Reposado
Tequila Reposado — Los Altos, Jalisco, Mexico
Reviewed December 23, 2020 (edited January 18, 2021)Not a review of the tequila itself...but used a sample of this tonight to make Teremana resposado eggnog ice cream...damn freakin good in ice cream. -
Ritual Zero Proof Tequila Alternative
Zero Proof — USA
Reviewed December 23, 2020 (edited December 24, 2020)After a relatively favorable experience with Ritual 0% ABV whiskey ( provided you mix it and not have it neat), I decided to try their 0% ABV tequila. So, again...this isn’t meant to replace the real thing, but meant as an alternative...sort of like saying “ I can’t have a BMW, so I’ll drive a scooter instead “. Totally different class, and really can’t be compared or shouldn’t be compared. Only thing similar is that they both have wheels. There’s no way you can have this neat or with ice. You need to mix it. I followed one of the recipes and used a 1:1 proportion of orange juice to this, a spoon of agave no calorie sweetener, a few dashes of lime juice, and topped with plenty of ice. It’s actually not bad. Good enough for me to make seconds. Doesn’t taste like tequila...but instead has a herbal taste with a jalapeño burn in the throat...which is why you need a spoon of sweetener to calm it out. Would I have it again? Yes...but at $26/bottle, it’s not worth it. Instead just have the orange juice. With or w/o lime.26.0 USD per Bottle -
Isle of Raasay Single Malt Inaugural Release
Single Malt — Islands , Scotland
Reviewed December 22, 2020 (edited April 19, 2021)Here we go again with another inaugural malt. These things are like IPOs...comes in pre-open with one price, and then starts the opening day with sky high valuations ( yes...Looking at you ABNB). So, I actually was fortunate to pay only £60 for this when they first offered it 2 years ago. For £60, I was to get the full bottle. For that price, I couldn’t resist but purchase. Unfortunately all 3000 bottles sold out, and are now on secondary for £500+. So...If I may be allowed to get on my soapbox for a few sentences —- Folks—-what the hell are doing? £500 for a 3 yr old, just so one can say “I bought a first one “????? Why are we driving up prices for these 3 yr olds when when for that type of money, you can get a damn freakin good 30yr old?!?! It’s us driving it up...not the distillers...us, the consumers. These are highly illiquid ( here in the US ), and it makes no sense to collect as “investment”. We need to stop driving up prices for newbie malts just because it has a “inaugural” label. Anyway...off my soapbox. So...on to the tasting: First is the bottle design. I love the depiction of the isle seaside. Liquid color is just as eye-catching. The red wine influence shows up in that color. It’s lightly peated, so getting a gentle smoke aroma with berries. Taste—-apricots, gentle smoke, cherries. A fruity lightly smoked dram. Very nicely done, and a great start for this youngling. If you can find a pour for a reasonable price, it’s worth a try. But makes no sense to pay the secondary astronomical prices.65.0 USD per Bottle -
Caffo Vecchio Amaro del Capo
Amaro — Calabria, Italy
Reviewed December 17, 2020 (edited May 20, 2023)I bought this for a mere $20 USD after @cascode ‘s beaming review. It does not disappoint. After cleaning 10 inches of snow last night over a 100 foot driveway, I decided to forgo my once/every few weeks pour—-If there was a time I needed a drink, this was it. I always imagined amaro to be bitter. Not sure why...just an impression. It’s like those lay-off HR rooms at work. Ya’ll know what I’m talking about. Well at least the Americans here know what I’m talking about. The Europeans are like “ lay-off”? “ what’s that? “. So— When a company lays you off, your manager sets up your regularly scheduled 1on1 in a special room. You’re supposed to have no freakin’ idea you’re about to get laid off, but now you know when you see the invite. You know these rooms. We all have had impressions of this room. It’s a windowless sullen bland color room. No sharp objects. No whiteboard with chalks or erasers or pens. No pencils. No staplers. Nothing at all, except a well bolted down desk and a few bolted down chairs. The lay off room. Without ever entering it inside, you always would have this insidious impression of it. Somehow thinking it would be like a CIA interrogation center. But as soon as you come in, it’s not too bad. In fact, If it wasn’t for the dumbass boss and his pawn of an HR, that room would be damn cozy. Comfy chairs. Just can lean back and take a nap. Yeah...not what you’d expect as something bitter, but rather sweet...not too sweet, just right. That’s this pour in a nutshell. Amazingly aromatic of oranges and cloves. Taste a bit sweet, but that pulls back with some ice , making it just right. Oranges, cloves, rosemary, and maybe nutmeg? Damn good. Do yourselves a favor and pick this up. For sub-$30, it beats all others in that price range.20.0 USD per Bottle -
Bruichladdich Bere Barley 2010
Single Malt — Islay, Scotland
Reviewed December 11, 2020 (edited September 14, 2021)This is a strange little dram. So, at first, I couldn’t stand the aroma. Almost like turpentine. But then, after a bit, it changed to wet leaves and hay. Palette as well...goes from grassy to herbal to ashy. I’m strangely attracted to it, like a moth to a flame. Not sure I’d want a full bottle, but a few pours is really well worth experimenting. Thanks @Richard-ModernDrinking for the generous sample—-this one was quite a trip. -
Barrell Armida
Bourbon — Tennessee (bottled in Kentucky), USA
Reviewed December 5, 2020 (edited February 20, 2021)Somethings just come out of the left field. You just don’t expect it. A few years ago, at the Mumbai Bridge Club over in Shivaji Park, I challenged my father-in-law to a game of chess. It was a bridge club, and my father in law invited me over to just hang out. I noticed a chess board, and asked if he knew how to play. “ yes, back in my younger days, I dabbled a bit”. I figured I’ll go easy on this 80 yr old man, but I noticed we had only 15 min till Club closure. “ we have only 15 min”. “ oh don’t worry, that’s more than enough”. I figured he thinks I can beat him in less than 15 min. Fine...game on old man. He opens with a Queen’s Gambit. Forces me to play defense. In 10 min, we were done. He beat me handily. “Wait, you said you only dabbled a bit in younger days?” “ my dear son”, in his Mumbai British accent, “ I forgot to mention I was ranked in the top 5 in India and top 100 in the world “. So didn’t see that coming. So goes this pour, generously given to me by @jonwilkinson7309. This is just a myriad of aromas and flavors. First whiff is oranges and pears. Second...now more of sweet breads and cherries. Just changing every time. Palette is equally good. Getting oranges and pears first, but there’s that slight bitter tinge from the Amaro at the back end, just enough to hold back the sweetness from the pears. It’s a whirlwind of pears, bitters, and oranges just back and forth. Really well blended. I just didn’t expect this myriad of flavors. Personally, this might be the best Barrell blend I’ve had yet. Thanks Jon! I need to find myself a bottle. -
Pulquero Malate Mezcal
Other Agave — Oaxaca , Mexico
Reviewed November 29, 2020 (edited August 4, 2021)So, you guys or gals ever dated that one person back in college that was just a freak? In your head, you’d romanticize this notion of freakiness, thinking it’ll lead to elevated experiences that a normal straight-on-line individual simply couldn’t offer. It’s like bungy-jumping or skydiving —-it’s experiences that bring about an adrenal rush. Like that girl back in grad school...we’ll call her “A”. “A” was a straight up nut job. When it came to pushing boundaries, she was way on the other side of the boundary. Most of the experiences I can’t write in a public forum, but one such example of far extreme adrenal rush-borderline crazy was her penchant for taking these back Midwest rural highways. She’d speed up to 60mph, turn off the headlights in the pitch black night, count to ten...and see if we survive. This would turn her on, which leads to other boundary pushing activities in some poor guy’s corn fields. That freakiness wears thin real quick. Real damn quick. As in you checking your medical coverage before every date. There’s goes this pour. It was a sample from a mezcal that shouldn’t exist. This mezcal started life meant to be a pulque. Pulque is made from the same type of plants as mezcal, but it’s different because it’s made from fermenting the sap of the agave and it’s from a pulquero agave, which is used especially for pulque. Mezcal uses the agave plant itself. And not this particular agave. Also—The sap is environmentally sustaining—-it’s like maple syrup, you don’t have to kill the tree for it. The story behind this mezcal is that a bar in Oaxaca bought less pulque than normal because COVID hit. Pulque must be consumed in 2 weeks, else it spoils. So, what to do with all this agave that was meant for pulque? They turned it into mezcal. This is the weirdest funkiest freakiest mezcal I’ve tasted. No way in hell I can finish even a full pour, but was interesting to try a sip. The nose is really farm-y. Like wet hay mixed with barnyard scents. Taste—the first thing that hits you is an onslaught of wet hay. Then a metallic tinge followed by spicy pepper. Then more wet hay. Even wetter. That barnyard aroma and taste is just too much for me. It’s not nuanced at all...just hits you like a freighter. Like “A”, I’m glad I got to experiment, but so glad I didn’t marry. So goes this—-glad I got to experiment, but can’t buy a bottle. -
Ardnamurchan AD/09.20:01
Single Malt — Highlands, Scotland
Reviewed November 25, 2020 (edited December 2, 2021)I did something recently which probably makes flippers and collectors dumb-founded. I opened a hard to get inaugural release. Well, first thing is first, before we actually get to this whisky: we have to deal with the 800lb gorilla in the room. That is the sheer silliness of 3yr old first releases getting bought by collectors at prices 3-5x over its entry. Look at the recent Mc’Nean. On the shelf for a whole 1 minute at $50, then flipped the next auction for $200. Then there’s the first few releases of Waterford. Ratheadon, Ballyclavan and Bannow were $60, but flipped for $400-500. This is another one as such—-bought for $50, but now in the secondaries for $300. A 3yr old should barely be $50, not in the same playing field as well established 20+ yr olds. Anyway, enough of my rant...will get off my soapbox. So, this is the newest Highlander, owned and operated by Adelphi. Their claim to fame is the use of blockchain technology to track everything from crop to buyer. Can’t help but applaud them for using state of the art technology. That’s all good...but how’s the liquid? Well...it’s decent. Herbal and briny on the nose. I had to look up whether this was an Islander or not. Acts like an Islander, but it’s a Highland. Oak, spice, driftwood on the palette. Really feels like it’s an Islander...it’s as if Talisker would be at 3 yr and no peat. Just brine, driftwood and oak. I want to say “this is a great start for a 3 yr old”, and it is. At $50, yeah it’s worth it. But don’t pay a penny over it. Sadly, this 3yr old sold out in minutes, only to show up in secondaries for multiples of that price.50.0 USD per Bottle -
Kilchoman Fino Sherry Matured (2020 Edition)
Single Malt — Islay, Scotland
Reviewed November 22, 2020 (edited December 29, 2020)This is Kilchoman’s newest offering, their first fully fino sherry matured. I don’t think I’ve had many fino matured whiskeys , and I’m no sherry expert. But a quick google on fino sherry shows that it’s one of the sweeter variants, and strong tastes of almonds. I’m expecting the sweetness somewhere between oloroso and PX I guess, and I’d imagine the Islay character to match well against it. So...about 14k bottles of this. To me, that’s not “limited” despite the marketing tag. I only bought a sample though...had no interest in a full bottle. What surprised me the most immediately is the color. It’s pale yellow...so, maybe the casks weren’t as active? The nose is immediately bonfires and smoke. Taste is really well balanced—-you get the campfire but then followed by a dry-smoky sweetness. It’s not overly sweet, thankfully, but the sweetness is there, just plays second fiddle to the smoke. If you like your Islays sweeter, this may not be for you. But if you like the upfront smoke, with a bit of almond-y sweetness, this is worth the attention. I think I bottle is about $60-70. For that price, it’s worth it.5.0 USD per Pour -
Lagavulin 16 Year (White Horse Distillers)
Single Malt — Islay, Scotland
Reviewed November 6, 2020 (edited April 19, 2021)There’s a few events that I always open a special bottle: my birthday, my wife’s birthday, and special achievements ( more so from my kids ). This one was one I was interested in opening for quite some time. Just so happened my bday this year fell on Election Day...so, dual celebration. My particular White Horse Lagavulin was from the early 80s. There’s an interesting history of that below by @Rick_M . Ages ago, I think I paid barely $40-50. Now, these are well over $500, if you can even find them. One can’t help but wonder if the Lagavulin made during the bygone era was the same as that made today. So...I ran two tests: one was where I did a side by side with a just purchased Lag16; the other was where I peeled off the label, and had it next to the modern day Lag 16, also with the label peeled off. I had those two bottles when some close friends and family came over for Election Day / bday socially distanced get together in the backyard. Here’s what I found in the side by side: The modern day was more intense smoke than this one. The White Horse had more complexity, specifically the smoke was sweeter and fruiter. The modern day, as good as it was, seemed more one dimensional—-I got all smoke and brine. This layered that smoke with more citrus, coffee, and tabacco. So I clearly preferred the White Horse over the modern day. But—-it definitely isn’t worth the 5x premium you’d be paying. You’re paying for nostalgia than actual exponential increase in quality. Now, the second test: The modern day Lag lay 80% full, while the White Horse had barely a pour or two left. I casually asked a few folks why they preferred the unlabeled White Horse over the unlabeled Lag, and I got the same answer: fruity-smoke. There you have it folks...the White Horse seems to be somewhat better. At least in my two informal tests.
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