Tastes

One of the anthems of my youth, buried in a dusty cassette tape collection, urged ‘don’t believe the hype’. Normally words to live by, but I’m veering against the grain because this bottle of Hakushu 12 is completely worth the hype. It’s tremendous. Despite Japanese roots, this whisky masquerades as a scotch. Sampled blind it would probably be pretty common to mistake this for a lightly peated Speyside or Campbeltown pour. The nose is a nice blend of stone fruits, sour apples, and faint peat that leads into a malty and floral taste with a touch of brine + smoke. It’s crisp without being too polished. Rating: The Distiller score of 92 seems on the money. Inevitably any conversation about Japanese whisky veers towards price. After hearing this bottle would be mothballed for a handful of years, curiosity had me track this down. I found a bottle for $88 at a local market of all places and felt I overpaid by $20-25, but having seen the bottle subsequently around $120, I guess that’s decent. Definitely enjoyable, but it’ll put a dent in your wallet. Cheers

Another Campbeltown classic. A cousin to Springbank, the Kilkerran 12 Year is and has everything I want in a whisky: a revived distillery rooted in old school practices, non-chill filtered, no color added, fairway ABV, peat, smoke, salt, coastal air. The list of accolades goes on endlessly. The nose hits with peat first, followed by briny, pickled fruit mixed with malt. But that’s just the smells that are pronounced this time. The last pour was slightly different and the next pour will reveal something unique and different again. It’s all smoky lemon rinds & subtle bitterness on the palate. Complex & intriguing throughout the entire bottle. Rating: I’m backing the Distiller score of 92. Maybe even 1-2pts higher. At a mid $60s price point, this is a showcase scotch for any whisky shelf. Sophisticated enough for special occasions but works equally well as a leisurely everyday pour. Own this bottle. Cheers

Taking a rare spin down bourbon way as my taste preferences tend to veer away from the sweetness of corn-based whiskey. Glad I did since this 10 year old bourbon is quite good. In fact, it’s simply straight down the fairway - vanilla, caramel, spicy with a nice chest warmth. Rating: Distiller rates this high at 91. I’m leaning more towards 87ish. For $30 this is a no brainer to stock on any whiskey shelf. Barrel No: 3532 Bottled On: 8-16-06