Tastes

Nose - Sweet candied ginger/raisin spicy sweet, dark apple juice Taste - Sweet candied ginger tingle/heat, caramel apples, raisins, golden raisins Finish - Lingering tingle/heat, apple juice sweet, light golden raisins Score - 83/100 Final Thoughts - So if I didn't know this was a PX finished Scotch, I wouldn't have thought of that at all. I don't get the dark raisins/syrupy dark stone fruit notes at all in this from the nose to palate to anything. This tastes like a generic sherry finished blended Scotch to me. Nothing off-putting, but nothing that makes it stand out either. Pleasant to drink, but that's about it. You seem to forget about it seconds after you drink it. Easily sippable, but nothing to remember later. Would I drink it if offered? - Yes Would I specifically order it? - No Would I buy a bottle? - No

Nose - Sweet sugared red berries, toffee, hint of leather, dark chocolate Taste - Sweet red berries, toffee, gentle ginger spice/heat, syrupy apple juice Finish - Lingering ginger spicy heat, lightly bitter red berry sweetness, light tannic leather Score - 88/100 Final Thoughts - This was quite an interesting one in that the port influence I get is a very fresh red berry vibe which doesn't really line up with any of the ports that I've tried, but this is quite nice. I quite enjoy this sweet/candied red berry vibe I get from this one. Good balance of flavors, nothing outstanding, but just a good overall dram. Would I drink it if offered? - Yes Would I specifically order it? - Yes Would I buy a bottle? - Yes, if priced about $50 USD

Nose - Vanilla caramel, light pine sap, sweet cinnamon, double bubble gum notes Taste - Fruity vanilla, fruity spice, bubble gum sweetness, cinnamon oak, hint of pine sap, light piney bitterness Finish - Lingering vanilla/fruity sweet, light tingle/heat, double bubble gum after all the sweetness is gone & you're just chewing pink rubber, lingering sweet pine sap notes Score - 87/100 Final Thoughts - This one like the bourbon was quite interesting. I'm not sure if it's their mashbill or if they're using a special type of yeast, but I really get this bubble-gum note out of their distillate. It's weird, but not unpleasant. It's like they somehow managed to capture the "cheap" double bubble gum that is coated in loads of corn starch & gently infuse that into their stuff. This rye seems to combine all of that w/ this light pine sap that's not quite MGP rye herbal/mint/dill but more subtle. It's very unique but I'm not sure if it's my favorite. Would I drink it if offered? - Yes Would I specifically order it? - Maybe Would I buy a bottle? - Maybe

Nose - Light apple notes, oaky simple syrup, light hint of ethanol Taste - Much sweeter on the initial palate than the nose would suggest, caramel apple candies, sharp sweetness, almost splenda-like, apple jolly ranchers, slightly bitter like apple seeds/stems Finish - Light tingle, lingering sweetness, similar to sugar-free apple candies, simple syrup Score - 69/100 Final Thoughts - This one had a farily boring nose, not much there, faint hints of apple mixed in with the typical nose I get from younger triple distilled grain whiskies (like basic Jameson). On the palate it was much more flavor intensive with a good creamy mouthfeel, but quite sweet. Sadly this sweetness was a very artificial sweetener-like sweetness with quite a bit of bitterness that was a little distracting. I think this might be delegated to making cocktails where it shares the role with either an apple brandy or other Calvados as it's not that great neat. Would I drink it if offered? - Yes Would I specifically order it? - No Would I buy a bottle? - No

Nose - Dark honey, sweet red berries, caramel, ripe pears & apples, raisins, hint of orange zest Taste - Gentle ginger spice/heat/tingle, sweet red berries, ripe pear, light chocolate, light tannic/bitter black tea, hint of orange zest, dark honey Finish - Lingering gentle ginger spice, fruity honey, sweet pear, light red berries, light tannic black tea Score - 90/100 Final Thoughts - This is quite a nice dram. Great nose, nice balance on the tongue, great from start to finish. The tannic over steeped black tea notes are a bit distracting, but otherwise quite tasty. Good light sherry influence to add some red berries to a great honey/pear backdrop. Would I drink it if offered? - Yes Would I specifically order it? - Yes Would I buy a bottle? - Yes

Nose - (w/o water) Floral honey, dark apple juice, golden raisins (w/ water) Adds an additional component of a vanilla custard with a tiny hint of lemon zest Taste - (w/o water) Rich floral honey, dark apple juice, hints of vanilla, nice light cinnamon heat/tingle, dark golden raisins (w/ water) Adds an additional component of pleasant citrusy notes, more floral, more creamy custard & more rich mouthfeel Finish - (w/o water) Lingering warm fruity tingle, pleasant dark apple juice with grape & vanilla caramel undertones (w/ water) Makes the finish less sweet but more fruity & floral, more "bright" fruit and quite pleasant Score - 90/100 Final Thoughts - This is a very well put together Speyside dram that is just very well put together from start to finish. Simple flavors done very well with zero off putting notes and actually is a lot more balanced/nuanced with a tiny bit of water added. It really opens up with a few drops of water to reveal citrus & cream that were previously hidden. This is quite delicious and really highlights what this distillery was capable if aged nicely for 28 years. Would I drink it if offered? - Yes Would I specifically order it? - Yes Would I buy a bottle? - Yes, if I could find one for ~$200 USD

Nose - Gentle sweet brioche, baked apples, hints of cedar wood, toasted almonds, vanilla Taste - Sweet spicy cinnamon/oak heat/tartness, gentle sweet apples, light apple stem/seed/peel bitterness, toasted soft brioche bread Finish - Lingering light cinnamon tingle/warmth, bitter/fruity apple stem/seed/peel lingers Score - 80/100 Final Thoughts - This was overall a very pleasant dram. Nice nose that shows promise, but sadly doesn't quite deliver on the palate. Still very pleasant at first as the Calvados influence is present but not overwhelming/overpowering the base spirit. Sadly there is this fruity bitter aspect that is a bit distracting to the entire experience since all of the flavors in this malt are quite subtle. Overall quite nice, but the bitterness from start to finish gets a bit distracting. Would I drink it if offered? - Yes Would I specifically order it? - Maybe Would I buy a bottle? - Probably not another

Taste - Bity watery initially but develops to a fairly rich mouthfeel, light chocolate, some raisin, dusty young unprocessed grains, light spice similar to a spicy rye whisky Finish - Lingering sweet raisins, bit harsh ethanol, return of the young unprocessed dusty grain Score - 50/100 Final Thoughts - I guess without an age statement on this one this smells like a very young whisky. Interesting thing is that after a bit of air time, the raw young ethanol slowly fades away, but remains on the palate. Sherry influence on this one is present for sure, but is a bit bland with traces of chocolate and raisin. Sadly it's dominated by this young, raw dusty grain vibe and raw ethanol taste, like they included some of the heads & tails in this distillate or something. Would I drink it if offered? - No Would I specifically order it? - No Would I buy a bottle? - No

Nose - Smells very young, light "gently" aged new make rye, toasted grain sweetness, unripe pineapple Taste - Sharp sweet young whisky, very young rye spice, lightly floral, unripe pineapple sweet/sharpness Finish - Lingering young spirit sweetness, raw ethanol, unripe pineapple sweet/tart Score - 48/100 Final Thoughts - This smelled like colored new make rye. Almost like they took their new make & poured it into the bottle in a heavily charred oak funnel. The super harsh new make astringency is faint, but very present. Has a nice floral/tropical fruit aspect to it, but definitely needs much more time in wood to mellow out and round things out. Would I drink it if offered? - No Would I specifically order it? - No Would I buy a bottle? - No

Nose - Clean sweet peat, fairly one-dimensional, sweet malty simple syrup Taste - Clean sweet peat, faint dark raisins, chocolate, dark prunes at the back palate Finish - Lingering clean sweet smoke, more dark raisins emerge, prunes, dark chocolate Score - 67/100 Final Thoughts - I guess peat really helps cover up young spirit as finally the raw ethanol vibe is gone here. Sadly the clean peat covers up much of the PX sherry influence on the nose and only appears at the back end of the palate, but luckily lingers through to the finish. Would I drink it if offered? - Maybe Would I specifically order it? - No Would I buy a bottle? - No