Tastes

Bottle purchased on 8/1/18, and killed on 2/28/19 Springbank OB 14 years old Bourbon Wood 55.8% ABV Distilled 11/2002 Bottled 8/25/2017 Limited Release of 9000 bottles Price: 123 USD Springbank without any sherry influence is like Caol Ila without any peat. It’s a weird one. Springbank goes wonderfully with sherry casks because the spirit itself is sulphurous and mineral (desired, if you’re a Springbank fan), so it hides sulphur from the cask (undesired, but inevitable in modern times). This dram has a deviant character arc that goes from a friendly, sweet, buttery, vanilla nose and arrival on the palate, which progresses to an austere, oaky, mineral, and dry finish. The funky, farmy Springbank distillery character is strong throughout, but it’s missing the familiar sherry influence. I don’t get the tropical fruits that I love with most other Springbanks. This is a more elemental Springbank. Some quality bourbon casks were obviously used; the nose and palate are great, but the finish is just missing deliciousness, which I’ve come to expect from this distillery. I don’t regret the purchase, but I probably won’t buy another bottle; the 12 year old CS is cheaper and more to my tastes. Rating (price not a factor): 90 / 100 Purchase satisfaction (price factored): 3 / 5

* Please note this review is for a different, unlisted bottle of Mortlach. Bottle killed on 2/15/19. Distillery: Mortlach Bottler: Duncan Taylor The Octave 16 years old 54.6% ABV (Cask Strength) Distilled 1997 Bottled 2014 Cask No. 797668 Limited release of 88 bottles Price: 210 USD An Octave cask, as I understand it, is like those 2L mini oak barrels you can buy on Amazon for $49.95 to add some maturation to some shit whiskey you regret buying… but a little bigger. The essential idea, regardless of industry fluff on the boxes, is that the producers are itching for payday, so they took some whisky that wasn’t ready to be bottled, and forced some maturity and character into it by giving it some hard-time in a tiny, cramped cask. Well, it worked. Hey, call it a shortcut, but I’m not going to deny a good tasting whisky. Duncan Taylor must’ve carved themselves out some fine tiny sherry oak staves, because this is a decadent, figgy, honeyed, buttery Mortlach. The waxy, fruity, meaty spirit character is still evident after the sherried arrival. The only complaints are a lack of integration, as this feels like two separate whiskies; and a lackluster finish. The sherry drops off quickly, and you are left with a little harshness that betrays the lack of maturity that the sherry finish was trying to cover up. Some water definitely improves things. I found aiming for around 48% ABV was the sweet spot, smoothing out the transitions and removing the harshness on the finish. You probably won’t be able to find this particular cask. Most, if not all, of the 88 bottles probably ended up in the Hagerstown, MD area. There are multiple other casks of a 16 year old Duncan Taylor Octave Mortlach available in other areas listed on WhiskyBase. I probably won’t be getting another bottle, favoring to try other releases from The Octave series, or other independent bottlings from Mortlach. Real Scotch lovers know that Mortlach is a beast for independent bottlers, and it’s hard to go wrong with any cask strength release with a decent age statement. Rating (price not a factor): 93 / 100 Purchase satisfaction (price factored): 4 / 5

This bottle was opened summer 2018 and finished on 1/16/19 Bunnahabhain OB 18 years old 46.3% ABV Bottled 2015 Price: 155 USD First time I tried this, my wife and I were having some Nookta Sound oysters (sweet Pacific oysters) with a flight of 18 year olds from Bunnahabhain, Glendronach, and Macallan. I felt the Bunna won, although the other two were delicious, and I was happy to overpay for a bottle in order to buy local. It turns out Bunnahabhain (12 and 18) pairs well with food, but isn’t as mindblowing when sipped alone. This 18 is fairly complex, with both sherry and bourbon influences strongly present, but the ordering of arrival is wrong. What I loved about the old Hightland Park line, before the Viking nonsense, is that the whiskies had a bourbon arrival, and then the sherry, before fading into a soft, flowery peat. The story is harmonious. Bunnahabhain 18 gives you a luscious Oloroso greeting with raisins and chocolate, before the bourbon notes of caramel and vanilla take over. Not that the individual notes are bad, but the story is backwards, if you know what I mean. The finish is spicy and woody, and really does spectacular with the right food pairing. Try a dark and salty piece of chocolate… or sweet Pacific oysters. At 120 USD, I would consider buying this again. Rating (price not a factor): 89 / 100 Purchase satisfaction (price factored): 3 / 5

Purchased on 2/23/18. Opened on 2/?/18. Finished on 1/7/19. Distillery: Heaven Hill Brand: John E. Fitzgerald Larceny NAS 46% Price: 22 USD I used this whiskey for cooking mostly. The only redeeming feature is that it makes my steaks taste better. The basic Jack Daniels that chain restaurants like to boast about using gives steaks too much sweetness. I don’t like the traditional American taste profile of sweet and savory. This Larceny adds a more corn and molasses note to steak, which can be balanced with some butter, lime, and herbs. It makes for a more natural steak. I’m talking about cooking meat because I truly hate this whiskey when sipped. It is way too nutty, and it’s nuts that have gone bad. The mouthfeel makes you want to scrape your tongue. The finish is long and atrocious. It will ruin your entire evening. Shouldn’t have expected much after taking into account the branding, which boasts about theft. This is a stolen ring made of fake gold. No thank you. I think I’ll end up using Buffalo Trace for my cooking bourbon; similarly priced, but it doesn’t have to all go into the fire. Rating (price not a factor): 45 / 100 Purchase satisfaction (price factored): 0 / 5

Bottle purchased, and opened, on 3/?/2018. Killed on 12/23/2018. Kilchoman OB Single Cask Release Cask 510 (sherry) 5 years old Distilled 11/26/2009 Bottled on 7/15/2015 61% ABV Price: 130 USD Without water, sharp notes of a young desert wine do not play well with an ashtray that needs to be dumped. The alcohol is too present, and the dram is too dense. Generous water releases a more typical Oloroso nose, which gives way to a sweet BBQ palate, and an ashtray finish. Water definitely smooths out this beast, but also reveals some acrylic notes that were previously masked by the high ABV. The liquid plastic is something that spoils sherried peated whiskies that are too young. Laphroaig NAS’s such as the PX cask and the Triple Wood are the biggest offenders. This Kilchoman gets kudos for being single cask with a very clear age. But the kudos gets retracted for being quite over $100. Young peated whiskies should be bourbon matured. Rating (price not a factor): 85 / 100 Purchase satisfaction (Price factored): 2 / 5

Bottle purchased on ?/?/2018 and killed on 12/17/18. Irish Distillers Redbreast OB Cask Strength Batch B1/16 12 years old Bottled in 2016 57.2% ABV Price $73. Got a bottle of Batch B1/17 for same price. Redbreast is my preferred sherry profile dram now. Their entire range is insanely good. RB 21 year is my favorite, but the 12 year cask strength wins value for money hands down. Exclusively sherry-aged scotches, even well-aged expressions, have become less interesting. For the price of a Mac 18, I’ve found that I can get a 50+ year old port, madeira, or sherry; and the wine is way more decadent (although the bottle only lasts a few weeks after being opened). But this Redbreast is just the definition of decadence for me right now. Sherry sweetness is at the forefront. But the use of unmalted barley and bourbon aging gives you so much more texture. There’s the dark rummy fruits with the freshly baked vanilla cookie, and Christmas spices. If you want freshness or salinity, this has none. The relatively young age and cask strength gives you some maltiness and alcohol bite. Pretty irresistible. I could not stretch this bottle out to Christmas. Rating (price not a factor): 91 / 100 Purchase satisfaction (Price factored): 5 / 5

Bottle purchased on ?/?/17, and killed on 12/16/18 Diageo Johnnie Walker Black Label 12 years old 40% ABV Bottled in 2017 Price: 36 USD It took well over a year to finish this bottle after opening it. Initially, the syrupy grain filler bothered me. Recently, I changed my mind and think the grain adds a nice sweet caramel chocolate note to the nose and palate. The finish is still short and bad. Which is better than long and bad, I suppose. This is a fairly complex and superbly balanced blend. It’s most notably sherry influenced with raisins, but also contains citrus, apples, a little brine, and a little soot. I am surprised by how much I ended up liking this mass-produced blend, given how unimpressive it was when I first opened the bottle. But I don’t believe my newfound respect for JW Black is because this blend became so much better with oxidation. It’s because so many recent single malts have been disappointing. I am so sick of NAS cask finishing trickery; give me an age-statement blend any day. Rubbish casks, given enough time, will at least smooth out the unpleasant notes of even cheap grain filler. When you finish too-young whisky in sherry-seasoned or fino-fucked casks; charred, scraped, and re-assembled to shit, you end up with a bad product. And when you use marketing gimmicks and jack up the price, you end up with a disgraceful product. It’s like trying to fix a friend with terrible body odor. Would you rather him take a good shower or just spray PX sherry all over himself? Anyway. Rant over. I’m coming full circle. JW Black and other blends were the first Scotches I’ve had. Then I became a single malt snob. The single malt ship is starting to sink, and now I’m starting to move back to blends. Rating (price not factored): 81 / 100 Purchase satisfaction (price factored): 4 / 5

The whole tasting notes thing has ultimately become silly to me. I cannot get other people's notes. I cannot even get my own notes from earlier. Ultimately, whisky notes are prisoners to the moment in time; once past, cannot be recreated, even from the exact same bottle. They are like a personal journal; useless things, unless you are a stalker. Going forward, if you care, I'm only going to put up reviews, without much in the way of notes, of bottles that I purchase and finish. The main goal will be to offer an opinion on whether or not you should buy the bottle, and also to remind myself on whether or not to restock the bottle. Of course, the first bottle I finished with this new approach is not on Distiller. Bottle purchased on ?/?/17, and killed on 12/10/18 Springbank OB Longrow Red Fresh Pinot Noir Casks 12 years old 52.9% ABV Bottled in 2015 Limited release of 9000 bottles Price: 90 USD. I purchased a second bottle for $110. There is a definite sharp pinot noir influence, especially on a freshly opened bottle. The wine is not completely integrated with the whisky, which is not necessarily a flaw, as it adds to the excitement. The ashy smoke adds to the complexity. Tart and sweet fruit jams battle with the dank, earthy peat of Longrow. Creamy mouthfeel. Medium and complex linger with tobacco and fruits. This is not a traditional single malt; not the smoothest, or most balanced; but it's delicious, and memorable. Rating (price not factored): 92 / 100 Purchase satisfaction (price factored): 4 / 5