Tastes

Direct Review. Will do another as a comparison with the standard sherry release. Also have to say this is the most syrupy whiskey I've ever had. Nose: Laphroaig peat but its strength has been cut in half by bright cherry candy. Peaches and sharp lemon. Light caramel. Chocolate covered raisins. Extremely faint hint of tobacco. Peat takes over more as it sits. Taste: Laphroaig peat is taken over by intense stewed cherries, raisin, and chocolate ganache. Light lemon, herbal notes, dry tobacco and hay linger on the finish. Water tames it down but removes almost all the sherry notes except for a finish of cherry, raisin and tobacco. This is interesting as it presents oddly as a finished whiskey. The finishing doesn't intermingle on the taste, but is more like you sipped normal Laphroaig for a second, spit it out, sipped some fortified wine, then finished with a sip of Laphroaig. The high proof carries this one for sure.

Just as a random note; the bottle is actually terrible. It is completely black so you can't see how much is in it. The pour spout is too small and the geometry of the area around it makes it difficult to pour. Nose: caramel, apple, cinnamon, brown sugar. Worm wood / cardboard / hay. Light citrus comes after a while. Taste: sharp cinnamon and peaches with dense syrup collapses into nutmeg and cloves with light cherry and caramel. Water dramatically opens it up despite being 43%. Nose: Chocolate, toffee, and peaches with light citrus fruits and vanilla. Pancake malt almost gingerbread cookie. Taste: strong hay and malt followed by dense sweet fruits. Blueberries and strawberries with an intense peach and clove finish.

Batch 4 bottle 1105, 56.15% ABV Nose: tobacco, apricot, worn out book pages. Wintergreen, dill, light lemon, hint of chocolate covered espresso bean. light hint of apple. Taste: Intense apple and baking spices with a background of wintergreen mint, nutmeg, light cinnamon, dill and olive brine. Slight hint of orange on the finish. Water brings out sweet vanilla cream and light caramel.

Warehouse RN Barrel 7632 Nose: Cherries, orange, vanilla cream. Dark chocolate with light peanuts / hazelnuts. Taste: dense orange followed by the sweet cream and cherries. light chocolate and hazelnut. heavy lemon and floral / rye finish. Water just collapses everything and adds oak. One of the few whiskies that was hyped and not disappointed by. Definitely has a unique profile compared to other bourbons.

Nose: Spicy chestnut, burnt sandalwood, Fuji apples, starfruit, light pear. Slight hint of sherry / grape jam. Taste: Strong malt and grape with grassy hay / light herbal peat. Sweet vanilla and caramel middle with a fruity finish of grapefruit, orange, and starfruit.

Nose: cranberries, bitter orange / bergamot / earl grey tea. Light whisp of peat. Violets / bluebells. A bright note similar to strong mint or grapefruit zest. Maple syrup, vanilla, light caramel. Apricots. Taste: salty grape and apricot. Strong malty / yeasty finish with a bit of plum / citrus that eventually morphs into a sweet tobacco note. Middle is fruity and ginger. Asian pear and lime leaf with starfruit and a hint of lychee. I'm sure this will open up more with time as most Japanese whiskies do but honestly this doesn't match the hype especially at the crazy prices I've seen it at.

Nose: caramel, apples, charcoal, tar, lime leaf, vanilla sugar, mild dark chocolate, Taste: strong char and peat with a lingering sweet and sour flavor. Some of the malt flavor is peeking through throughout. Strong fruit and sweet caramel / honey finish.

Nose: Honey, barely, grapefruit / lemon zest. Acidic white wine sort of vibe. Dense burnt fruit cake, caramel, gold raisin, Taste: Dense honeyed fruit cake with golden raisin, apple, light caramel and vanilla. There is sort of a bitter dusty oak note about halfway through, almost like the aftertaste of really bitter dark chocolate. Grapefruit zest is on the finish. Water smooths everything out and mellows out the bitter and barley notes. Amplifies the fruit and sweet flavors and brings out a creamy quality and tempers the sour notes into a more sweet orange flavor It's good but not really worth seeking out

Nose: wheat bread with orange marmalade. Light wintergreen and sweet toffee. Maple syrup. Light hint of cinnamon candy. Taste: wheat bread and honey collapse into vanilla cream caramel with an explosion of lightly bitter citrus. Spiciness sets in with a hint of clove and cinnamon. Cherry also shows up on the front of the palette eventually.

Nose: dense thick treacle almost burnt sugar. Burning hay and strong wood, but not overwhelming. Lemon, light floral bluebells, crisp pear and apple skin. Vanilla sweet cream also appears. Taste: heavy pear and peach with rye herbal notes coming in behind. Burnt vanilla sugary finish with a dense wildflower honey aftertaste. Tobacco also sneaks its way in. Taste is very light but has some much needed complexity.