Tastes
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Balvenie Caribbean Cask 14 Year
Single Malt — Speyside, Scotland
Reviewed July 15, 2019 (edited February 28, 2020)Nose: Rich creamy milk chocolate Grilled pineapple Imitation green apple Bourbon cask influence Vanilla Cherry pips A little rose water Arrival: Light golden syrup Bitter oak wood Pepper dry grass Development: Red pawpaw Persimmon Muskovado Finish: Billowing spices like when you dry fry baking spice Clean fresh woody Fruity Ethiopian coffee brew Little hint of milky breakfast tea -
Tasting this as the 50% abv batch 3 The smell hits you in a big way! Honestly I could smell this for a week straight and not get tired of it. Nose: Heavy grain pungent musty/sweet Sweet composting earth Leather Mushrooms Mulled mead Rummy vanilla Milk chocolate Floral perfume Arrival: Sweet syrupy Faint Thai chilli warmth that fades almost instantly Vegetal savoury sweet Grilled cucumber Dark bush honey Dark caramel Development: Very juicy Heavily brewed black tea with sugar Honey mint carrots Starfruit (carambola) earthy sweet Finish: Long salivating finish Fresh grassy sugarcane juice Boiled sweets Slightly Salty Sunburned tropical fruit
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All a little soft but quite pleasant. It can take lots of water and it’s worth stretching out. Takes a long time to open up. 15-20min Nose: Pretty candy barley Background musk sticks Light tropical fruit Tinned pineapple Arrival: Woody vanilla Apple mint Fine white pepper Fresh cut grass Development: White tea Dried mango Juniper berry Spiced mead Finish: Light menthol Horse radish Herbal aniseed leaf I got this one on special for around $80 aus, very much worth getting at that price but there’s a lot of better malts for $150.
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Glenlivet 12 Year Double Oak
Single Malt — Speyside, Scotland
Reviewed July 4, 2019 (edited September 20, 2019)A bit of a classic!! Don’t be a hater, it’s priced very well for what it is. Nose: Dehydrated pears and green apples Nice clean cereal notes Soft oak vanilla Classic oak woodyness (sorry I know that’s not a word) A bit of darker musky honey as it sits Arrival: Mid sweet sugar on the tongue Pleasant malt grain A little baking spice like nutmeg and cinnamon Development: Delicious wood tannins like black tea and cloves Black pepper A little spent match (only a hint) Finish: Refreshing and dry More of that wood note snipping off the finish quite shortly There’s a sneaky macallan 12 doublewood hint at the end (wet popsicle stick) A must have on the shelf. Don’t be afraid to share it and enjoy conversation with friends without the distraction of a complicated scotch. -
Unique and refreshing gin. A good supper. Not everyone is going to love this because of the herbal and weedy notes that dominate this spirit. If you give it your attention you will definitely pick up some sweeter fresh citrus and little hints of soft fruits. (Note: from the prospective of an Australian palate) Nose: Wonderful dusty dry lantana bush Unripe orange zest Coriander root Kaffir lime leaf Juniper berry A little short bread way off in the distance Arrival: Mugwort sour and earthy Peppery Coriander seed Development: Citrus unripe and acidic (in a good way) Over brewed dandelion tea Dried Liquorice A little soft fruit (reminds me of native aus. raspberry, very faint sweetness) Finish: Unripe mandarin after the tang subsides and the sweetness starts to work. A clingy lemon oil And that mugwort clings on all the way to the end Overall: This is a great gin to sip and really connect with the story behind it. With the bitter herbal quality it could replace absinthe in certain cocktails.100.0 AUD per Bottle
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Glengoyne 18 Year
Single Malt — Highlands, Scotland
Reviewed June 18, 2019 (edited September 20, 2019)This is a great quality, easy to love, classic scotch. Wonderful nostalgic notes of Christmas and comforting warmth. Nothing is unpleasant and not a lot is outstanding. Just a rich delicious whisky with enough tannins to offset the ample sweet fruity experience. Nose: Christmas pudding The caramelised ends of baked dried fruit Rich vanilla pod Orange rind A little musty leather Arrival: Full sweet flavour Sherry sweet but refreshingly dry the leftover rum that you soak the dried fruit for a Christmas pudding Development: Tea (black) Oak Wood tannins Delicate baking spice Dark chocolate and Peppermint Finish: Nice and long Red Plumb seed Fresh Wood linger Chest warming but not hot A little clove numbing -
Love it!! You have to work a little to get the best of it but it’s so worth the time and attention. This is a grossly under appreciated gem. Nose: Crisp pears Delicate ragweed and lantana Almost smoky but more floral herbal incense Vanilla Floral lemongrass Light bread and honey Arrival: Dense but soft flavour for the first few seconds Fairly sweet and nectar like Citric acidity develops A little green chilli Development: Starts showing it’s intensity at this point Grapefruit zest White pepper Tiny hint of herbal mulch Finish: Fresh cut hardwood Sauvignon Blanc style juicy, straw and gentle spices Finish lingers with a range of medicinal herbs If your a gin sipper I would say this is a good introduction scotch for you. A lot of the same characters show up in the bitter herbs and citrus notes. This is where you go once the gin trail gets a bit boring.
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Nose: Light malt syrup Talcum powder Soft and clean Fresh linen or lanolin Vanilla bright and metallic Arrival Gentle but it grows to the development Pretty herbal sweet Hot sugar syrup Citric acid Red corral lettuce bitter Vanilla bean Development white tea Bush lollies (sweet aphid sugar left on eucalyptus leaves) Stevia Fresh Basil and anise Finish Lovely finish, clean and refreshing Strong clingy parsley root Sweet herbs like mint and stevia I really enjoy this one. There’s nothing unpleasant or abrasive. The only downside is that I want more out of that arrival (water isn’t revealing more). Perhaps a higher proof would help but the proof is already 46.3%... I want 50+ haha I would pay extra.
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Loch Lomond 18 Year
Single Malt — Highlands , Scotland
Reviewed June 5, 2019 (edited October 7, 2020)Definitely the best of the three Loch Lomond I have tried: classic, 12 and this 18. It seems time and an oak coat do this malt a world of good. Nose: Enjoyably complex musky farm animal note dark dried fruit Old book pages A little milk chocolate Dust Saddle Leather with the horse still there Pine O’clean (disinfectant) Dry Roast beef salty Arrival: Nicely viscous Creamy and buttery dried fruit Dark muskovado sugar Development: Bright barley shines through There’s a bit of an American rye vibe Dark Salted caramel Finish: Sweet oily and sugary Black pepper Meaty smoke Dry sushi sheet seaweed There’s plenty here to be happy with but the overall quality still holds it back from competing with many other 18yo. For the price it’s worth getting a bottle. -
Loch Lomond 12 Year
Single Malt — Highlands , Scotland
Reviewed June 5, 2019 (edited February 21, 2020)Coming off the back of the NAS original. Oh yeah, this one is better with a higher proof and much more flavour both in smell and taste. Mostly in smell. Nose: Nice juicy barley Background Molasses There is a musty... perhaps sweaty note Cold cooked chicken (sorry never had that one before) Floral perfume Arrival: It is hard to believe this is 46% it is soft Bees wax Spice bite with clove, nutmeg, and cinnamon Development: Builds well here and the notes from arrival intensify kaffir lime Wood tannins Small peat oily coating that drags into the finish Finish: Black tea A little sweet cling Popsicle stick woody dry Huge improvement to the original which speaks to how cask influence affects the personality of the distillery character.
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