Tastes

The Bottle: Fairly standard Laphroaig fare. For this Cairdeas expression(and likely others) they have forgone the traditional green glass in favor of clear, letting you get a good look at the spirit inside. The spirit itself has some bronze overtones to it, which play nicely against the red portions of the label specific to this Madeira release. All-in-all, no real surprises here. In the Glass: Burnished bronze. With a few drops of water, which you will need seeing as how this is cask strength at 51.6% ABV, a nice Scottish Mist begins to develop. On the Nose: There's the traditional medicinal, peaty hit that is associated with the standard 10 year old; but it's wrapped up in what reads as a fruit compote. There is a very strong marine backdrop to this... harbors, sea salt, crusty sailors and smoked kippers. It reads very much like a seaside fruit-stand that specializes in smoked marmalade. For those of you Laphroaig fans who appreciate that TCP hit, there's nothing here to be mad at :) Taste: Assertive. Medicinal. Fruity. Peat. This one attacks your palate as if you had somehow insulted it's mother. Water is definitely required to tame this down to a level where the nuance comes out. There's the whole Laphroaig peaty thing that we all know and love; but the madeira maturation really does start to shine after the glass has about 10 minutes to open up. It almost starts to get into Longrow Red territory, but this is more "minerals and medicine" if you catch my drift. The finish is dominated by sweet marine notes and sea stones. Less Talisker, more Spanish merchant ship. My guess is that it's a little less than 10 years old, given that it's a NAS; but it doesn't seem to suffer from it. That second maturation in madeira really does fill in any of the gaps in flavor that would be left behind from shortened maturation time frame. For fans of Laphroaig, this does not disappoint. Another in a great range of specialized maturation releases from the Cairdeas line. (Laphroaig, if you're taking suggestions, I'd love to see a Calvados finished one!)

The Bottle: So it's interesting, the Tobermory 15 bottle is actually different than their standard 10 year old. It's taller and thinner with the label in a slightly different place. I'm not sure why the change, but I don't hate it. The bottle doesn't feel mass produced either, as it has some irregularities to it's shape that give it a hand-crafted feel. This thing looks like something that Blackbeard would keep on his desk. The label calls out that it's un-chill filtered, but doesn't say anything about a Natural Color. I kind of think that it is, since there'd be no reason to color something that spent this long in a sherry cask, and I don't think that they use any in the 10 year old...but, then again...Bowmore 15.... Whatever, I like it. In the Glass: Deep amber/topaz. On the Nose: Raisins soaked in dark rum, leather, hints of chocolate, fig pudding. Think of all the sticky-sweet, dark sherry and Christmas "holy hell, how can this cake be so heavy?" kind of treats and you get the idea. Taste: The relation to the standard 10 year old is present, but you can tell that this went to a different university for its education. There is still that underlying coastal dryness that you get with the 10, that dried sage thing that it does so well; but it's very much in the background. What you get here is a very heavily sherried expression that just screams, "Drink me next to the Yule Log." I've seen more than one person comment that this has a Raisinettes thing going for it, and I have to agree. Dark fruit and milk chocolate abound here; wrapped up in Uncle Oloroso's blanket. The 46% ABV is a welcome bottling strength as it helps carry more of the complexity. For me, this is in the same league as some of the sherry monsters from Speyside; but from a very different angle... Less Highland, more Island. I would certainly take my time with this one. Where I live, bottles of this are as rare as a good vampire movie, so I'm not sure how likely I am to come across it again. It was quite a bit more expensive than other 15 year old's out there(I think that I got it on sale for about $110), but that has more to do with scarcity than anything else. Tobermory is a a really interesting distillery in my opinion. Even as far as other coastal and island distilleries go, I've never come across anything that's quite like their unpeated expressions(Tobermory vs. Ledaig), and this one is no different. I look forward to trying the new 12 year old release!

The Bottle: A pretty classy design that Highland Park has stuck with for several years now. It has a nice oblong shape to it instead of the typical round bottle that you're used to. The label isn't overly flashy and has some relatively useful information on it. There isn't anything about Natural Color or the absence of Chill Filtration, so I'm going to assume that both are at work here. In the Glass: Light Bronze/Apple Juice. On the Nose: Barley sugar, dried fruit and some sea salt. I don't get any of the peat that I know is in there, but your mileage may vary. Simple and well put-together. Taste: Rich and full-bodied. Here's the peat, hiding behind what comes off as honey and dried apples. Looking for a Rosh Hashanah whisky? I think that we've found it. This isn't as complex as some of the older offerings, but as a standard bottling; this one really ticks a lot of the boxes out there: sweet, full-bodied, dried fruits, honey and a touch of smoke on the finish. The maritime component to this is present, but I think that it comes off on the nose more than on the palate. It kind of reminds me of a 12 year old Old Pulteney in some ways. Highland Park is often referred to as the Scotch whisky that you get for someone when they either aren't a Scotch drinker, or you aren't sure what kind of Scotch it is that they like. $55 is a touch overpriced for this, in my opinion(this would sit more comfortably between $45-$49), but it is a well made and nicely aged spirit that should please just about anyone.

The Bottle: Fairly straight-forward. The label isn't flashy or overstated, though it does contain a fair bit of good information about the contents of the bottle(pot still, triple distillation, non-chill filtered, etc.) In the Glass: It doesn't say that it's a natural color; but if there is any use of spirit caramel in here, I think that it's fairly restrained. The color is fairly brassy. On the Nose: Quite savory, actually. There's that typical "Irish Whiskey" thing going on, but it isn't as blatant as I've seen in some other blends. The barley is at the forefront with some of the honeyed notes sitting in the back. A hint of the typical "whiskey baking spices" in the background as well. This isn't terribly complex, but I also don't think that it's trying to be. Taste: There's practically no arrival to this stuff, it just moves straight into the development. It's kind of amazing how it goes from so little to so much in terms of flavor. The development is a lot of savory barley blended with cinnamon and sandwiched into layers of honey. That may sound kind of ridiculous, but this stuff does a good dry/sweet balancing act. It finishes with an astringency that has a nice bitterness lingering around the tongue. This is one of the better of the affordable Irish whiskeys out there that I've come across. It isn't overly sweet or overly processed and the "handcrafted" marketing on the label doesn't seem to be completely made of fluff(which is nice, for a change). This would be a perfect "session" kind of drinking whiskey for a gathering of friends around a card table. Good value for the money.

The Bottle: Modern and Classy. The are few distilleries out there that play it as ballsy as Bruichladdich do with this bottle. Opaque, teal glass with bold white text? Sold. It works brilliantly. In the Glass: Very light gold. On the Nose: This is a springtime malt. Flowers, honey and a touch of maritime citrus. It makes you wonder what some of the other peated Islay's would taste like in an un-peated expression. Taste: Thick, powerful and sweet. There is a real weight to this malt that belies its age (~8 years). Great mouth-feel, though at 50%abv, it needs water to calm down a bit. The flavor is in alignment with the nose…bottled sunshine. Strong arrival with a delayed development of honey and citrus, turning pleasantly bitter and astringent, with more floral on the finish. This would be a great gift for a Highland fan looking to branch out. The standard bottling for this is trending older, as Bruichladdich now does an official age statement. I look forward to buying the 10 year-old. Terroir, indeed.

The Bottle: Distinctive and "Old-Timey". The gold label plays well with the black glass. The bottle design is an improvement over its predecessor, even if the malt isn't. In the Glass: Dark gold. On the Nose: This has a Highland/Speyside thing going on. The Islay that's in here (Bunnahabhain, if I recall) is practically nowhere to be found. Not much going on, mostly honey and cereal notes with some astringency. Taste: Alright, so this is a young blend. Very swift arrival with a moderate development. I get cereal, toffee and some honey sweetness; but that youthful astringency is every present. I'm not sure if it's because I know the background of the blenders, or if I'm really getting it; but there is a faint "Bergamont" kind of Earl Grey finish on this that's quite nice. I mean, it's $24, so set expectations accordingly. A decent blend, but the youthfulness is a bit too noticeable for me.

In the Glass: Light gold. On the Nose: There's no mistaking it, this is a Talisker. There's a mineral kind of smoke to this, more seaside than campfire. There isn't the depth that you get in the 10 year-old expression, but it's also half the price. There is also a subtle sweetness in the backdrop that sits nicely in the mix. Taste: Peaty and sweet with an alcohol nip. At nearly 46% ABV, and no age statement, I recommend some water with this one. The arrival is quite swift with a rocky/briny peat blast, which goes into a more heavily peated development. The finish is where the non-age statement comes into it. There is a sweetness there initially, which turns slightly bitter over time. It shows off the age, or lack thereof, as you work through the glass. Overall, an enjoyably dram, especially for the money. I'd put this against Johnny Walker Black, which is similarly priced, because of the unique flavor that this offers. So far, it's the most affordable "good" peated single malt that I've come across for less than $40. Laphroaig 10 would be a good step up from here if peated is your thing.