Tastes

Dreamy, spicy, clear as a winter night, full of smiles and sparkling stars. A little salt, a little pepper, a little iodine burn on the tongue just to remind you of the fiery pleasure of life, and nearly no afterburn, except to remind you that this is an exceptionally friendly, classy, sassy but polite spirit. A near perfect low-affect single malt, with an unopened text from peat: you know it's there, but you need not pay very much attention to it. Really perfect transition from the highlands to the islands, and something for fans of both.

The best thing here is the finish, which is rich and warm; nose is reminiscent of, well, sharpies, which isn't really a bad thing at all. Taste alternates sharp and soft, with an interesting hot vanilla/black cherry effect. I found myself searching for the port aspect, so readily evident in the Angel's Envy Rye offerings, but barely detectable here. Although I greatly prefer the Angel Envy's Ryes, this is a neat winter's night -sitting-by-the-fire spirit, and each sip is a little friendlier, though it never let's you get too comfortable...which is a good -- and a bad -- thing.

Nose is sweet corn with a hint of vanilla and just a soupcon of burnt cherries (as if someone had shown the bottle a Xerox of picture of burnt cherries). Taste is sweet, creamy, very slightly oily, almost dreamy, milk chocolate with a little bit of hot red pepper. Aftertaste has a bit more of a kick than the original light, sunny sweetness would make you think was coming. Absolutely pleasant if not thoroughly memorable, the kind of bourbon that is gorgeous, but not handsome. A worthy addition to your shelf.

A surprise from first to last, and a delight throughout. A sticky, oily, almost airplane-glue like nose -- imagine a chemical fire in the bazooka bubblegum factory, starting where the old mimeograph machines were stored -- leads to a luscious, vibrant, smoky, charred taste, with elements of vanilla, dark chocolate, cinnamon, charred rum-dipped cherries, and an almost novocaine numb-buzz on the top of the mouth (which will stay with you well after your last sip). An exotic and extremely attractive whiskey, full of seduction, smoke, and fire; in many ways it reminds me of my first experience with opium, absinthe, and krautrock, a mixture of heat and sweetness and just plain decadence. Highly recommended. Oh -- if you want to slightly mute the pronounced Technicolor Dream affect you may experience from this fine and unique whiskey, I strongly suggest throwing in a chip of ice or two (say, a dime-sized cube). This will allow you to enjoy the rare, powerful but sweet peat, flavor, and smoke without having to worry too much about the surprisingly rapid and somewhat disorienting head buzz even small doses of this whiskey may engender when taken neat.

Very little nose to speak of, but what is there speaks faintly of cherries, vanilla, wet red brick, and juicy fruit gum. The taste is pleasant albeit virtually anonymous, and it goes down as smooth as a Vanilla Fribble. If character or taste are not exceptionally important, this is a perfectly decent late afternoon bourbon, offering some inoffensive conversation before your real friends arrive. Let's put it this way: I had it in an airport lounge -- it was the free-pour bourbon on the counter -- and it's pretty good for an airport lounge. So let's call it what it is: A good airport lounge bourbon.

With the addition of one small ice cube, I find this to be an almost perfect Rye. Smooth but not over sweet, with a hint of caramel and cherries and a tiny bit of burnt wood, and the perfect level of heat on the back of the throat that turns into a very nice warmth at the top of the chest. A terrific entry point for the less-sweet side of the Rye spectrum.

Damn fine if you like fierce, tasty, and Peaty with a capital "P"... and I like fierce, tasty, and Peaty with a capital "P"! My first impression: A fiery, mossy "Spucke der wütenden Erde" (Spit of the Angry Earth), almost the literal definition of Fire Water, cruel but attractive. But then I took the advice of the DISTILLER reviewers and added a few drops of water, and suddenly a spirit most alluring and rare emerged! Peaty, rich with newly too-ripe fruit, an almost Jolly Rancher-like foretaste, full of memory (something about it made me recall the smell of mimeograph ink, alluring and deep) and utter joy. Those few drops of water made all the difference in the world -- it is now one of my favorite spirits!