Tastes

I read an article that said Johnny Walker is the best selling scotch in America, and Glenfiddich is the most popular distillery everywhere else. Having just finished a bottle of GF 18, i decided to enjoy this bottle after for comparison. I enjoy a blended malt as much as the next single malt fan, but i dont understand why JW continues to rebrand… platinum sounds good, 18 year may speak more to followers, but Gold is good, and we also have a gold reserve ??? On the nose: smells like christmas. Citrus and smoke! Grapefruit and lemon roasted with cinnamon sticks and some firewood. The palate: satin mouthful of fruit and festive spice. I detect candy cane sprinkled in cinnamon with citrus fruit. There is a touch of smoke and pine. This bottle is nice, but i prefer i the Gold label reserve. It tastes younger and more energetic in the palate. There was a time the platinum was the best in the linup IMO, but now i find Green and Gold Reserve to be better offerings.

Finishing a bottle from 2019 and it occurred to me i never reviewed the dram. This bottle has sat near half full for two years, the palate has softened some but stull very pleasant. The nose; A symphony of sweet fruit with toffee and honey. I smell apple& pear with some rasin and apricot. You can smell a fine oak note, but it takes time to come through. I find this nose to be very enjoyable! I let my glass breathe for 45 minutes. The palate: sweet leather! Some of the softer tastings i recall have diminished through the years. I remember tasting more fruit and baked crumble, but now i taste leather varnish with a touch of chili and cherry. The mouthful is medium thick butter that goes down like Wagyu. Considering i first opened this bottle nearly 4 years ago i am very impressed with how it has help up. The palate is refined and complex, with a nose that i would love to ahower in.

A sherry cask that is not a sherry bomb. Simple, sweet, and deliciously fruity as you can expect from Glenrothes. Its a shame they blew up their core lineup. Interestingly enough they seemed to revist the Sherry Bomb decision with Makers Cut. On the nose this greets with orange and ginger. After letting my glass breathe, sherry comes over with grapes and sime nutmeg. On the palate, orange zest hits first with ginger following.Faint vanilla and oak after. The mouthful is oily, light and sweet. The finish is short and subtle, sweet orange zest hold on for a few moments. After some time candy cane and orange slices are left. It’s a shame this is no longer in production. I picked this up in the Caribbean and wish i grabbed more than one. Its a delicate offering that is not overly complex with unique fruity offerings.

Wow is this a tasty 18??! Year old. Im a fan of Jura despite their reputation. I recognize they are not always consistent and some of their offerings miss the mark. Yet This bottle is pleasantly surprising. It does not taste like an 18 year old, but it is also not priced like one (Ontario Canada) so i can appreciate what it offers for the value. Plum rasin wax with a briny tip. Yum yum! On the nose, plum jam with a brine and sea salt. It leaves a touch of oak and spoce at the end. Its soft and flavourful, but not a strong nose On the palate, the mouthful is delightfully waxy compared to the 10 & 12. Dark fruits greet your mouth, i taste plums with rasins, some sea salt and vanilla. Scorched chili makes an appearance on the back end. The finish: short. Much shorter than you would expect for the age statement. A Briny fruit flavour bids you farewell. After some time sea salt and vanilla remain.

For every palate profile there is a season. Glenrothes 10 delivers a delightful handshake of soft and subtle flavours. Vastly different from others in the core lineup, if you enjoy light scotch and unique fruit sensations, this a delicious bottle. On the nose: strong sent of Cantaloupe with Lemon and vanilla on first pull. A second pull draws in banana, cinnamon and some chilli pepper. Similar to its 12 year old brother, but much lighter and with the cantaloupe being ore dominant. The palate: Biting into a juicy fresh cantaloupe, melon greets the mouth, followed by some vanilla and Toffee. The texture is soft and slightly oily. Weak in strength, the flavours are gentle and delicate. The finish: vanilla makes a final punch on the way down with a hint of citrus. It does not last long, and all that is left is a touch of oil coated in your mouth. I’m a fan of Glenrothes, they offer the delicious Speyside profile but with unique ingredients. The 10 year is not complex, but for those who at times want something light and soft that is free of spice,this a great dram.

This dram feels unique compared to others in the lineup. This bottle is a holiday spirit, a perfect mix of nuts in a bowl with some pine needles and a fresh pine cone on the side. The nose offers nuts, iodine and pine needle. A deeper pull has me smelling dried fruits and sugar cane. On the palate, it greets you with dried fruit, perhaps apricots and figs. A pleasant nut taste quickly follows, I taste cashews with beer nuts. The finish remains nutty, with iodine make a delightful appearance. The bottle I am drinking is near empty and opened for 1 year so the intensity has faded some. I find this bottle delicious and a great palate to Try at least once.

Second tasting that is from a bottle near finished. Letting this air out opens the profile and softens the bourbon finish. A bottle of scotch that ages like fine scotch. The nose is a bouquet of flowers wrapped in leather with caramel. This bottle is over a year old and still sings of flavour. The palate is rich and full, A nice dram you can chew on for a while. Candied Apples drizzled in toffee and some vanilla. The finish brings some chilli with more toffee. Its short, with the chilli lasting more medium in length. I’m a fan of most offerings from Tomatin, the 12 IMO is one of the best for dollar value with a profile that is most popular. Sadly, the price point jumped since the pandemic.

On the nose: Eat your heart out! First nose brings bananas, apple, honey, and some peat. Second nose brings some chilli, oak and cashews. It’s quite complex, yet very transparent and gentle. The palate: it greets my mouth with an oak plank drizzled In honey with sawdust. Bananas on top with chilli and pear. The finish is medium in length, chilli and honey lasting on its way down. This bottle offers a great balance of taste and delight. It’s a smooth and complex, definitely an easy sipping dram. But for the price, there is plenty else out there from Scotland with a similar profile for better value.

Grabbed this hoping it to be similar to the beautiful 12 year age statement, it’s not…but It is good at what it does. Nose is pleasant and soft, lemon and orange with a light smokiness. Palate brings more citrus notes with vanilla. The peaty flavour makes a stronger appearance here. The mouthful is soft and not very oily. I was expecting this to be more complex like it’s siblings from HP. It’s not bad in any means, but this is the first time I can say a bottle from this distillery is simple. Enjoyable, but I won’t be restocking.

Winter holidays comes more than once a year thanks to Glenfiddich’s fire and cane. A sweet Winters eve, you are enjoying a candy cane by the fire. The flavour is both sweet and Smokey, with subtle fruit offerings. The nose is a complex delight, candy cane and raisins with soft peat smoke peat notes. The palate continues the sweet note, candy cane opens the door followed by apple & pear with a cinnamon stick. The finish brings some chilli pepper and peat with the candy cane remaining throughout. This bottle surprised me, offering a wide variety of flavour that somehow play very nicely together.