Tastes

Color: Shiny brass doorknob Nose: Light smoke drifting through a ripe orchard. Wet grass with engine grease, or an oily bike chain. More floral than smokey. Palate: Dry white campfire ash gives away quickly to tart orchard fruits (apples, pears) with an iodine sting. Thick mouthfeel with a grainy texture. Finish: Here's the smoke. Charred oak hits me with a powerful marine character. Classic chemically peaty blast. With water: Almost flowery nose, with a little of the chemical pinch but more roses than bandaids. Palate brought a lot more sweetness, with some honey and molasses and a little toasted graham cracker. Finish still packs the smoke, but gentler, with more of the orchard fruit.

Color: Sunset through smog. Nose: Smoked, fatty meat, like pork ribs. Heavy, ruby red wine notes. Soft white ash sprinkled in a dry red. Palate: Less meat, more campfire. Like wet, smokey logs. Still a ton of fruity burgundy, but with an anchor of barrel wood. Very light caramel with deep rich honeycomb and melted milk chocolate. Glazed salmon leaps to mind. Finish: Very mild. Not hot or punchy, but mellow red fruits and a few wisps of smoke. Fruitier on the back than the front. With water: Nose diminished a bit, much less smoke but a little more sweetness. Palate was still very strong, with a livelier bouquet of fruit -- almost a Speyside to me. Red apples, ripe plums, and plenty of deep black grapes. Finish sports currants with an iodine tingle.

Color: Pollen dust. Nose: Bubblegum, lemons, and fresh mint leaves. Hints of dewy wild grasses and light sugary fruits. Mild coconut shavings throughout. Palate: Sweet liquorice chased by chamomile tea and honey. Whispers of citrus fought off by candy and molasses. Palate is a little brief, definitely a younger impression. Finish: More coconut -- can really taste the rum cask. Otherwise hot and short, with more of a chalky spice than the earlier sweetness. With water: More fruits (dragonfruit? acai?) and flowers (lilacs?) on the nose. Palate similarly gets fruitier, with pineapple and kiwi lending acidity. And the arrival of even more bubblegum!

Color: Green tea. Nose: Soft and hot. Sweet bread, fresh baked with honey or light syrup. Maybe some treacle as well. Slight apice, possibly a little juniper. Palate: A little creamier, with more vanilla, than expected. Can taste the first fill ex-bourbon barrel. Grainy, maybe some porridge with sugar. Toffee and butterscotch with a little mushy banana, on second look. Heat overwhelmed the flavor somewhat. Finish: Spicy resin, tree sap, tons of oaky barrel flavor. Hot and spicy and sort of feels like a different whisky. With water: Soft fruits and rainy flower petals on the nose. More sweet bananas as well. Spicier on the palate. More floral top to bottom. I think I get some coconut too, but overall a little thin.

Color: Light straw Nose: Untoasted marshmallows with a fresh bouquet of garden flowers. Some citrus, like lemon tarts or key lime pie. Palate: Cake icing, marmalade, and fresh grass. Oily mouthfeel with tons of sweetness and candied fruit. Some light hints of brown sugar and cinnamon -- sweet, sweet, sweet. Finish: Some oak, with surprising heat. The finish is dry, without any of the fruit or much of the sweetness. With water: Nose is even more floral. Richer as well, with stronger fruit notes. Sweetness still there on the palate, but easier to find the spices -- like a frosted cinnamon roll. Not much finish to speak of.

(Batch No. 69) Color: Copper penny. Nose: Plums and raisins. Rich baked holiday sweets. Maybe a little caramel. Palate: Raisins and dark mulled wine up front. Sweet syrup and butterscotch underneath. Pleasantly hot with a great, thick texture. Finish: Much less fruit, more of the baking sweets. Maple syrup is stronger here, as is the heat. With water: Still fruit-forward, but more delicate. Berry patches and blossoms on the nose, and the same with a little more tartness on the palate. Much more floral.

Color: Burnt orange. Nose: Menthol, cherry pie filling, herbal mint, and fresh lemon. A little wood polish on the end. Palate: Cherries! Heavy cinnamon and spicy gingerbread. Citrus underneath, more orange than lemon, with some chewy leather. Finish: Hot and spicy, but pretty short. Almost abrupt. It gets on you fast and then it's by you. While it's there, though, more of the traditional rye/baking spices. With water: Really brings the fruit forward on both the nose and palate, much more discernable orange. Almost a maltier character. Like a fruity, spicy Speyside.