Tastes

Thanks to @Scott_E, i was extremely fortunate to sample a pour of this. Only 150 winners were selected globally, to sample a pour from one of their 51 bottles, single cask. I was @Scott_E’s guest for this event in NYC. For a 51 yr old, it’s astonishing robust. Nose is all pineapples and warm brown sugar. But the taste is anything but fruity. It’s old leather, tobacco leaves, polished wood. Finish...like being in an old cedar wood library with worn out books. Something royally elegant. I’m not sure I’d ever have a chance to have a single malt this old. It was truly an experience; not just the whiskey, but the setting as well. It was in the basement of a darkly lit toasty warm bar, where the ground floor was an elegant restaurant, but a long alley way led to a speakeasy style bar in the basement. The tasting was private, behind the curtains. Regal, exclusive. Considering they have only 51 bottles from one cask, and only 150 winners, I’m thankful to have the opportunity. Thanks again @Scott_E

Back in college, I had this one professor of Microbiology, we’ll call him Dr. W. I dreaded running into him into the restroom. In fact, if possible, I’d go run across the street to the Engineering building, or simply go to another floor. You see, he had this rather unusual habit in the restroom. Yes, most of us consider it hygienic to wash our hands after we do our business at the urinal. But Dr.W took it to a whole new level of hygiene. He used to stand there in front of the sink, and wash his schlong right there on the sink. He lathered it up, put on the soap, and just continued washing. He then walked over to the dryer, schlong in hand, and dried it under the blower. All the while, he was having full conversations with me, asking me my opinion on various MicroB topics. He’d stand there doing his schlong wash and rinse, while asking me “ so, how do you think a retrovirus inserts it’s RNA ?” What was I to do? I’m his star student. Guy is writing me a recommendation for that summer internship in the Chilean Andes researching local flora ( side note: I didn’t give a rat’s ass about Chilean flora. I just wanted to get drunk and get on with the South American girls ). Anyway...that was Dr.W. Fully transparent, showed everything and didn’t give a damn. That takes me to this bottle. These guys apparently ran some podcasts for bourbon and whiskey enthusiasts, and then decided to take their hobby up a notch by sourcing bourbon and bottling it. But...their transparency is all over the bottle. It lists everything such as where it’s sourced from ( state), years, casks, etc. All in all, they bottle some really good stuff. So my pour, courtesy of a business dinner I had last week, was from a 14 year TN whiskey. It’s Christmas in a bottle. Nose of sweet plum, brown sugar. Palette —gingerbread and vanilla. Really good stuff, bottled by enthusiasts for enthusiasts, and fully transparent as much as

I’ve been a huge fan of High West. Visited their distillery. Did the tour. Paid for the overpriced 14 yr Distillery only whiskey. But it was my first taste of their act 2 and 3 that made me fall in love. I recall those early acts were like orange infused spice markets, filled with scents like mulled wine. More on the oranges, cloves, and dark fruits with the right balance from the wine. But I also felt that their more recent offerings of Midwinter simply didn’t stand up the amazing Act 2 and 3, but almost doubled in price. I held off buying Act 6, even though it’s now made partially with their own juice. Thanks to my buddy @Scott_E, who sent me a generous pour , I got to sample it. I’m afraid the more recent Acts do not live up to the original early versions. There’s now somewhat an imbalance of the wine cask. Less oranges and cloves, those winter spices, and more of the red wine. Slightly tannic, much more cinnamon-y hotter. Personally I’d still rank their Act 2 and 3 as my favorites ( possibly top 10). This is pretty good, but at the current prices of $140+, hard pass. Instead if I want a midwinter-y rye, I’ll go for the $40 offering from Splinter Group. Thanks for this @Scott_E —thanks to you, I’ve now have had every Act of Midwinter (except their inaugural Act 1).

Seems like cask strength full proof is becoming more and more common now. I get the reasoning: as enthusiasts, we can decide how much, if any water, to add. You see, this is where I screw up. I always take one sip without water, and realize it’s just too potent for me. Then I add a bit more, and it’s still too potent. So, being a man short on patience, I then just dump a big piece of ice. For most folks that strategy would work, but I drink my pour over the course of 1-2 hours while watching a Friday night Netflix or Sunday GoT and John Oliver. Now...that big piece of ice just became a glass of water with a bit of whiskey in it. The flavor profile changed significantly. So...I guess to make this ramble end: this is why I prefer generally not cask strength or full proof...I’m just not smart enough to handle that delicate pipette level chemistry. So...this pour was graciously sent by @dubz480. That man knows his bourbons. I don’t think I ever had this one before, but will need to look up the regular non-CS version of it. Without water, I had all heat. I couldn’t manage it. But somewhere between no water and whiskey flavored water, the profile was amazing. Best part was the nose: aromas of toasted marshmallow, caramel and dulce de leche. Taste changed to oak driven, a bit of peanuts, and still retaining the marshmallow. If the price is right, I need to look up the standard version of this. Thanks @dubz480 for the pour!

I feel as if this one is the Arya Stark of the whiskey world. You don’t expect much from it...but delivers in spades. Well, let’s see...I can easily picture Macallan as the Night King. Walking tall, like he’s god gift to mankind. Strutting around like he’s all that and a bag of chips. Sansa is like Glenfiddich. We’ve all heard of her. She’s amazing to look at in those posters hanging around the NYC Subway. She’s plastered everywhere in magazines. But, when it comes time to test what you’re made of, she’s probably in the cellar hiding out, waiting till the coast clears. Highland Park...that’s gotta be Euron Greyjoy. Arrogant. Putting on a show like he’s some Norse-god Thor like conquering Viking. But, let’s face it...he just wants to be with a demented murderous sexy sherry cask named Cersei. So...back to this Arya. This one is an underrated and understated Japanese malt, lost between the hype of Yamazaki and Hibiki. It’s potent, but beautiful in every sense of the word. Floral nose, but not too much...just enough oak in there to let you know there’s a bit of oomph. Taste of sandalwood (ther’es the mizunara ), dark cherries. Finish is hot. Lingers for a while. If only that finish were a bit smoother. Probably needs a few more years in the barrel. Nonetheless, a really good true Japanese malt (not like those made in UK, US, and CA, only to be aged in Japan). Thanks to my buddy @LeeEvolved for a generous pour.

I can sit and smell this all day. The mizunara aroma permeates like a garden full of jasmine. Highly floral, incense like. The nose alone is a 5 out of 5. The palette is a few notches down though, unfortunately doesn’t live up to the nose. The jasmine garden becomes more waxy, honeycomb and shortbread biscuits. I can see why Mizunara is generally more expensive than sherry or ex-bourbon. It’s highly porous, making it quite difficult to work with as compared to the others. But the aroma it imparts...just amazing. Thanks to @LeeEvolved for this generous pour

Was hoping for Margery Tyrell: robust, vivacious, can win you over with a smile. Instead, it’s Loras Tyrell: very much forgettable. It’s got the classic waxy feel of Clyneish, but just seems imbalanced. Hot at first, then suddenly this mossy taste, then hot again. Thanks to @Richard-ModernDrinking for the generous pour. I’ve been meaning to try the GoT bottlings, and I can knock one more off my list. Thanks again !

Every summer for years I’ve been trying to grow rare hard to find vegetables in my little garden. Kashmiri cucumbers. Chinese green radishes. French boule d’or melons. And every summer it’s a bust. Either the NJ seasons aren’t long enough, or the climate just isn’t what it (obviously) is in Kashmir, south of France, or southern China. Last year, I stuck finally to the reliable NJ tomatoes, eggplants, and squash. And voila....had a bounty of a harvest that tasted better than anything in grocery stores. Sort of like this Tamdhu. It’s a solid sherry matured whisky; it’s reliable, great value for money, and beats these NAS Macallans coming out with marketing back stories, and fancy tv ads (despite ones being pulled by the UK authorities). Why pay an arm and a leg for lousy Macallans when there’s reliable solid options like this? This has all the classic sherry flavors of dried fruits, hazelnuts, with enough oak influence to know it’s not a youngster. Figs, some marzipan. Long finish, cinnamon and roasted nuts. A solid 4 stars. At about $80, and average rating of 4.42, it’s about a 5.5% on a Price / Rating ratio. That’s pretty good considering 10% is for something like $50 that has perfect 5 ratings Thanks @Generously_Paul for this sample!

Finishing whiskey with a strong red wine like Cabernet is risky business. And then taking that whiskey, and blending it with bourbon finished in rum and then port, is even riskier. This does just that, with a 10 and 11 yr old whiskey and bourbon, respectively, and does it damn freakin well. I’m a huge fan of Barrell, one of the few blenders (along with Compass Box and High West) that somehow make the sum greater than the parts. At $80, this isn’t a bargain. But when you think of it as a 10 and 11 yr old, twice finished, then it seems to make sense. So...on to the tasting. The nose is all rum. Sweet molasses, rock candy. Taste is where the Cabernet shines. You get dark cherries, marshmallows. Rich and sinful. I’m astonished how well balanced this turned out. Whiskey and bourbon finishing can be polarizing, but these guys nailed it. And the price of admission won’t have you taking a second mortgage (hey...BTAC, that’s for you).

Bought a pour of this over a sushi dinner this evening. I have no idea why this was so much in demand, close to $150 /bottle in price, and so damn hard to find. There’s dozens of others at a fraction of the price and much better. This has aromas of toasted rye bread with butter, and taste of dill ( MGP?), charred oak, and mint. Do yourself a favor—-save about $100/bottle and instead buy Whip Saw rye. This one simply lacks the complexity and depth for something that’s close to $150. Drinks more like a $30.