Tastes

Just having a relaxing evening, watching the Last Samurai, and needed a whisky to go with that. Something to sit back and relax with, not too strong (hitting the shooting range in 9 hours, not trying to get wasted tonight). This fits the bill. Light, friendly, not too complex, but still tasty. Nose starts with plums, some cherries, decent malt notes, some dark chocolate on the back end and some raisins mixed in there. All things you'd expect in a sherried Speyside Whisky. Taste is dark chocolate, some malt, dark fruits to compliment that all, a bit of bitterness for contrast and very little sweetness surprisingly. Almost like unsweetened dark fruit tea. Finish is chocolate and fruits, nice and unchallenging. This is a solid speyside sherry. Could maybe use a bit higher proof, but most 80 proof whiskeys could use that.

Bourbon Time. The Colonel was one of the bourbons I had my eyes on for a while. Unfortunatly, it is on the rather expensive side over here (about 100 to 130€), so I always hasitated a bit. Had this sample sitting on my shelf, but today was the day to try it. TL;DR up front....I want a bottle. This is a damn fine bourbon. On the nose you get some corn sweetness, typical vanilla notes with hones, some oak spices and a layer of creamy milk chocolate. The chocolate is a dominant note throughout the entire tasting,together with vanilla, some hot spices (the 100 proof helps with that), oak and a hint of dark, heavy pipe tobacco. What stays with you is an initial spicyness with oak, and then it mellows out into pure chocolate milk with cinnamon. Very tasty, rich bourbon. No shooter, rather something to sit down with and contemplate life. 5 stars well earned.

Usually I like the more honeyed sweet stuff like this, but to be honest, I've had better. The nose is a load of hones, some hints of smoke and a bit of orange peel. Tase is straight up honey cereals. Bit on the thin and watery side to be honest, but the thick honey kicks in just in time to make you overlook that initial impression. It's tasty for sure, but there really is not a lot going on here. It's friendly and easy to drink, but boring. Good choice for a beginner, but then again, Dalwhinnie 15 blows this out of the water, even for a beginner. Another whisky in that category would be Glenfiddich 18. So yeah..out of those 3, Walker always finished last. Talking about finish...there really is none. Short, sweet, gone. Stick with green or blue label, those are at least interesting.

Port Ruighe. Wanted to try a Port finished whisky for a while now, and today I just got to it. And while I have to say I'm a bit disappointed with the Port finish itself, the whisky on it's own is quite good. Might need to get my hands on something entirely aged in port next time. As for this one, the nose is a nice smoke note, some vanilla, and those dark chocolate plums you can buy. All in all quite dark, but inviting. I still get some vanilla on the taste, together with salty caramel, some malt, dark fruits (I'm thinking plums and maybe blueberries here...thos really ripe and sweet ones). There is some spice and smoke, and quite a heavy chocolate note. Expected a bit more fruit than I got, but it's still very very nice. The finish is a bit of a weak point, rather short, but warm and smoky. All in all, another good Talisker.

Talisker has been a favorite of mine ever since I tasted their 10 year old, so I figured it's about time to give their other expressions a shot. The 57°N is much heavier on the peat, and that's a good thing. Once your nose gets past that wall of peat, there is a coastal breeze with salty air and brine that greets you, and also somebody left a fresh apple pie on the windowsill to cool somewhere, because that apple smell is mixed into the briny air. Taste is not surprising at first, starting with peaty malt, a dash of salt, but then there are some smoky dark fruits. just below the peat layer, and some of the sweet apples on top. The 57ABV gives it a bit of a spicy burn that feels right at home in the peaty mix. The aftertaste is long, very long, and consists of spicy, herbal and salty smoke. This is almost twice the price of the 10 year, and I'm not really sure if that's too pricy or not, but hell, without the comparison, 75 bucks are allright for this amazing juice. Not a go to whisky, but something for a dreamy journy along the shores of the Isle of Skye.

Second Whisky for tonight. God damnit this one is amazing. It really deserves the scores it's getting. The nose starts with a light vanilla, heavy coconut cream, dash of cinnamon and some honey sprinkled over that. It somewhat reminds me of Raffaelo, you know those coconut-cream-almond sweets. And that's exactly how it tastes for me too. Honey, vanilla, loads of slightly toasted coconut, heavy cream, almonds and some cinnamon. No burn, no aggressivness, just delightful pleasure without too much sweetness. And an aftertaste that stays forever, bitter, creamy, coconut. If you have a chance, or if you are debating which Compass box to get....this one is a strong contender. Love it.

It's another sleepless night, so I decided to indulge in some whisky. Two of them, to be exact, both Compass Box. Starting with this amazing liquid. On the nose there is a light, delicate layer of honey, together with citrus peel, cloves, cinnamon and a strong oak note. It smells a lot sweeter than it tastes, but that is not a bad thing. The taste starts with some oranges and cinnamon, heavy cream with spices in it (oak, cloves....dash of pepper). No real sweetness, but to be fair, if I want sweet, bourbon, rum or sherry scotch it is. It's called spice tree after all, not sugar tree. The aftertaste stays very, very long, is quite creamy and bitter, with a very satisfying oak base layer. Now, I'm gonna finish this dram, and then I'm going on to the next one..Hedonism. See ya in a bit.

Was in the mood for a Rye today, and this was the first Rye I grabbed. I've heard good things about it, and I have to say, they are true. The nose starts with an intense smell of mint-chocolate sweets, some cloves and a very interesting layer of aloe vera. Fresh and spicy, unlike any other Rye I had before. I don't get any of that chocolate in the taste, but there is still a lot of that fresh and spicy mint, a nice satisfying base layer of roasted brown sugar, some anise and other rye spices and quite a bit of heat. Not very sweet, but still enjoyable. The finish is medium long and rather on the spicy side, again typical for Rye in my expierence. It is a bit more expensive than for example Bulleit Rye, but it's worth the extra money. I'm curious how the Double Rye will compare to this.

For my 80th review I picked something that at least sounds badass. To be honest, the name was the main reason for me to buy a sample of this stuff. And I'm happy that I did. The nose invites you with a layer of honey, and a very prominent note of Mon Chery cherries (you know, those dark chocolate-cherry-alcohol sweets). There is also a faint layer of citrusy, zesty smell. Rather enjoyable. Taste starts with the typical honey-malty-barley basetones, supported by dark, ripe fruits, some pepper, almost a bit of smoke, though I expect this might come from the bourbon barrels. There is also a note in there that reminds me of swedish snus, a type of chewing tobacco, usually salted that you put under your lip. The same burny, bitter, salty taste, without the nicotine buzz. Haven't had that anywhere else yet. The Blood Oak releases you with a lingering aftertaste of spicy fruits with just a dash of honey. This is a bit of an underrated gem in my opinion, but that's the fate of many travel retail exclusives. If you can, get a sample of this. It's worth it.