Tastes

This is actually the Cask Strength version at 53.96% Nose - Sweet & sour tannic cherries, tannic dark grape skins, sour fruit funk, dark berries, caramel, wet oak Taste - Blackberries, caramel, fruity honey, sweet/sour cherries, almost like a sour cherry Lambic beer, hint of clove/spice bitterness/funk, cherry pits, sweet meaty vibe, like a candied salmon or pork jerky Finish - Lingering wet oaky sweet, honey, sour bright berries, bit tannic, caramel, dark chocolate, oaky vanilla Score - 92/100 Final Thoughts - Woodinville knocked this one out of the park. It's the perfect combination of weird and funky, yet still interesting and tasty. I'll state that it's definitely unique and will not be for everyone, but I really like the combination of flavors in this release. It's a bourbon, but with enough there to set it apart from all the other bourbons. The ginja cask finish adds this interesting (in a very good way) this funky sweet sour fruit vibe but still has the backbone of a good bourbon. I can see this excellent neat as well as in a well crafted cocktail that would take advantage of the fruity funk in this. Would I drink it if offered? - Yes Would I specifically order it? - Yes Would I buy a bottle? - Yes NOTE - All reviews are done without factoring in price.

Nose - Fresh cut apples, fresh hay, golden raisins, hint of caramel, apple cream/custard Taste - Fresh cut apples, gentle barley-wine, fresh hay, golden raisins, creamy apple compote on top of scalded cream/milk Finish - Fresh apples, like tasting an apple orchard Score - 88/100 Final Thoughts - Very tasty, nicely balanced, but very forgettable. Well done ex-bourbon cask Scotch, but doesn't really feel like this is anything super special other than it just felt really well balanced. Nothing really stood out, apples dominated the flavor profile, hints of sweet barley in the background. Would I drink it if offered? - Yes Would I specifically order it? - Maybe Would I buy a bottle? - No NOTE - All reviews are done without factoring in price.

Nose - Sweet nuts, golden raisins, sweet fresh pressed apple juice, Marcona almonds, sweet tropical fruits Taste - Creamy ginger heat/tingle, tropical fruits gummies, pineapple, golden raisins, rich fruity apple juice with a coconut milk creaminess Finish - Tropical fruits, pineapples, cooked bananas, that slight tang at the back end of eating longan, golden raisins Score - 93/100 Final Thoughts - The nose on this one is just absolutely phenomenal. Tropical fruit bomb for being a lower 43% abv, but carries so much flavor and balance. It feels like a tropical gummy sweetness with a nice rich balanced creamy coconut milk mouthfeel without the strong coconut milk flavor. Hard to describe, but this is something that I feel as if I could sip on all day and get different notes each time. Would I drink it if offered? - Yes Would I specifically order it? - Yes Would I buy a bottle? - Yes NOTE - All reviews are done without factoring in price.

Nose - Caramel, cinnamon, leather, dark chocolate covered raisins, grape skins, cloves Taste - Cinnamon heat/spice, cherry twizzlers, dark chocolate, caramel, hint of leather, cloves Finish - Lingering cherry sweet, ginger/cinnamon tingle/heat, caramel, dark cherry/raisin sweet Score - 91/100 Final Thoughts - This was a very good port finished rye and I have a feeling they made a wise decision to proof this down before bottling as I think it might have been a bit on the hot side or maybe even a bit too sweet if they hadn't. The port influence is definitely there, but it isn't overpowering. It has been a while since I've had their proofed down rye, but I forgot how much soft chocolate note I get from their stuff and it's fantastic. This is great to sip on neat and I can see this working very well in cocktails too in that it'd add a nice cherry and chocolate note to whatever cocktail you were mixing. This would also be great next to a campfire too. Would I drink it if offered? - Yes Would I specifically order it? - Yes Would I buy a bottle? - Yes NOTE - All reviews are done without factoring in price.

Nose - Creamed corn, candy corn, sweet cream, cotton candy, hay, splenda Taste - Caramel, vanilla, corn syrup, light astringent sweet, splenda-like sweet corn, sweet creamed corn Finish - Astringent sweet, light bitter, corn syrup sweet, splenda Score - 72/100 Final Thoughts - So right off the bat, this one smelled fairly young. It felt like this was barely aged and felt quite young and astringent. Loads of corn in various forms, but I just realized it felt a bit creamy/buttery most likely from the wheat. It had this sweetness that went back and forth from being splenda-like to being corn syrup like. Overall it wasn't horrible, but it definitely felt young and flawed. Would I drink it if offered? - No Would I specifically order it? - No Would I buy a bottle? - No NOTE - All reviews are done without factoring in price.

Nose - Ripe apple & pear cider, raisins, prunes, apricot preserves, orange peel, orange & cherry hard candies Taste - Apple caramels, hint of peppery spice, raisins, orange & cherry life savers, hint of orange cream Finish - Buttery & warming, light bitter orange pith, raisins & vanilla cream Score - 87/100 Final Thoughts - Having tried two of the other Explorers Series previously, this one seems to be a bit boring? It's a good sherried expression, fairly standard sherried nose, good fruit notes, nothing really off putting, but it just comes off as fairly generic. There's nothing in here that makes this really memorable. It's got a pleasant nose, nice balance on the palate, but otherwise feels like any of the other unpeated sherried expression out there. Would I drink it if offered? - Yes Would I specifically order it? - No Would I buy a bottle? - No NOTE - All reviews are done without factoring in price.

Nose - White wine poached pears, candied ginger & orange zest, milk chocolate, raisins, golden raisins, cognac vibes Taste - Chocolate, raisins, sweet vermouth, candied ginger, orange zest, hint of dried sour/tart cherries, sweet white wine poached pears, hint of red wine poached pears for a hint of tannic/dark chocolate/leather note, burnt sugar Finish - Gentle warmth, hint of salt, light nutty bitterness, feels like a dried fruit & nut mix, light tart dried cherries, long lingering old brandy/cognac vibe Score - 91/100 Final Thoughts - The nose on this one was quite nice. There was quite a lot going on and I feel as if there's a good mix of different types of casks going on here as I get various aromas that come in waves of sweet raisins, golden raisins, dark aged wine, brandy/cognac vibes, and a hint of bright sweet white desserty wine. Great nose, palate was nice with the gentle spice/warmth that hits you from the start but isn't too overwhelming. Feels like a good mix of dark stone fruits and dark chocolate with enough poached pear and wine influence to keep it from being too overly sweet. Great finish, although a bit on the bitter side. I typically like this in a finish, but it didn't feel as cohesive as it could've been. Feels like there's a good mix of ex-bourbon, sauternes, cognac/brandy, red wine, and a few oloroso sherry and maybe a PX thrown in there for good measure. Good mix, but not the best Black Art I've had. Would I drink it if offered? - Yes Would I specifically order it? - Yes Would I buy a bottle? - Not another for the price NOTE - All reviews are done without factoring in price.

Arran 21 The Explorers Series Volume 3 "Kildonan & Pladda Island" Sherry Butts, Puncheons, & Ruby Port Pipes Nose - Sharp sweet dried red berries, candied oranges, prunes, strawberry jam, dark applesauce (w/ water) Same Taste - Candy sweet fresh strawberries, fresh red berries, candied ginger, light tingle/heat, fresh red berry preserves (w/ water) Adds a bit of fresh oranges Finish - Lingering red berry jam, hint of sweet nuts, lingering tingle/heat (w/ water) Reduces tingle otherwise mostly the same Score - 91/100 Final Thoughts - This one screamed "dessert dram" from the start. Loads of ripe fresh sugary sweet strawberries, red berry jam/preserves, hint of dark raisin and prunes mixed in with a light base of sweet applesauce. Although this was a bit on the sweet side, it wasn't cloyingly so and was a great example of a well sherried single malt. This screams summer to me and feels almost like something I could pour over some vanilla ice cream (although it isn't quite chick enough) but it gives me strawberry ice cream topping vibes, but made with fresh sweet strawberries. A bit of water helps this one in that it adds this layer of fresh sweet oranges and tones down the sweet a tiny bit. Would I drink it if offered? - Yes Would I specifically order it? - Yes Would I buy a bottle? - Yes NOTE - All reviews are done without factoring in price.

Nose - Ripe pears, oranges, creamy caramel, buttery toffee, hint of salt (w/ water) Same with a hint more salt Taste - Ripe pears, creamy caramel, salt, raisins, buttery toffee, honey, oranges (w/ water) Adds a layer of fruity spice, but sort of ruins the nice creamy/buttery mouthfeel Finish - Gentle warming heat, still buttery cream, rich fruity caramel, baked pears, raisins, orange zest (w/ water) Same Score - 92/100 Final Thoughts - This was a very nicely done sherried Arran. It had a great mouthfeel and nice poached/baked pear notes that dominated, but were nicely complemented with creamy/buttery caramel/toffee. It had a great mouthfeel and it wasn't overly sweet. Nice hints of raisin and orange that just balanced everything out. Quite a nice pour and something I could see myself enjoying all year round. Would I drink it if offered? - Yes Would I specifically order it? - Yes Would I buy a bottle? - Yes NOTE - All reviews are done without factoring in price.

Nose - Clean apple juice, gentle ashy smoke, lemon zest, light graphite, honey Taste - Black pepper heat/tingle, lemon, gentle clean smoke, lemon zest, honey, apple/pear cider, a bit thin but also oily Finish - Lingering gentle tingle, lemon zest, gentle ashy clean smoke, hint of metallic vibe, sweet apples Score - 85/100 Final Thoughts - This is a very tasty blend, nothing too terribly off putting other than the brief hint of metallic vibe I get on the back end of the palate the continues to the finish. Feels a bit thin overall, but has a hint of an oily texture which seems a bit contradictory but that's what it feels like. The smoke is very subtle on the nose and only makes a grand entrance on the palate. I get waves of classic Caol Ila in that it's a super clean peat/smoke, but has nice hints of lemon/lemon zest all over. A nice fairly easy sipping blended malt that's primarily ex-bourbon so it really does put the characteristics of all 3 distilleries spirit on display. Would I drink it if offered? - Yes Would I specifically order it? - Maybe Would I buy a bottle? - Not at the price it's at NOTE - All reviews are done without factoring in price.