Tastes

Nose - Sweet coastal lactic funk, saline, sweet riesling, golden raisins, apple custard/yogurt, apple gummies (w/ water) Same but more vibrant Taste - Lightly drying, bit woody, saline, lactic sweet funk, golden raisins, apple custard, charred cinnamon bitter (w/ water) Less drying, sweet custardy apple, white grape gummies, less cinnamon char Finish - Lightly drying, apple/wood tannic, custard, salt (w/ water) Less tannic/drying/woody, creamy apple custard, salt Score - 94/100 Final Thoughts - This one was quite tasty and much better than the last VDN cask I had. This one is classic laddie with nice sweet white wine notes on the nose, but adds this nice creamy apple custard note to the palate that works incredibly well. One other incredibly surprising aspect to this as well is that this drinks way below the proof. It's a tiny bit hot on the nose and palate, but feels nowhere near the 61.7% it clocks in at. This feels more like low/mid 50s. This truly benefits from a hint of water as it makes the nose pop a bit more and reduces the tannic notes that are present on the palate and finish. 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.

1994-2011 Vintage Batch 32 / 53.9% ABV Taste - Pear, floral honey, gentle ginger spice, rose water, lemon/orange sherbert taffy, light fruit stem bitterness (w/ water) Fresh pear turns into canned pears, more green apple, gentle candied ginger spice, thinner mouthfeel, bitterness more subdued Finish - Lingering pear, Asian pear skin bitter, floral honey (w/ water) More generic dull "pear" flavor, light floral honey Score - 84/100 Final Thoughts - This had a very pleasant nose to it despite being a bit boring. The hit on the palate was very "creamy" feeling and was like eating a pear/lemon/orange taffy. Very floral notes which was nice. Addition of water sorta threw things out of balance and although it removed the fruity bitterness, I think it took away too much. This is pretty tasty and has nice pear dominated notes versus the more apple vibes I get from most other distilleries. 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.

Sherry Butt 5229 - 52.2% Nose - Ripe apples with hints of dried red berries, faint milk chocolate, orange zest, candied ginger (w/ water) More vibrant, chocolate notes pop more Taste - Ripe apples, dark honey, dark raisins, dried red currants, honey, dried apple rings, orange zest, candied ginger heat, cocoa nibs (w/ water) Lightens everything up, less dried fruits, more candied ginger, honey, fresh apple with raisins Finish - Lingering dark chocolate/cocoa nib bitter, apples, ginger spice, orange zest with a bit too much pith (w/ water) Less sweet, like a bland apple, cocoa nibs, ginger, orange pith Score - 88/100 Final Thoughts - This one was quite tasty and felt like they used a fairly re-used and inactive cask as this one only had gentle notes of sherry and seemed to retain more classic notes of apple and honey. I feel as if this one was better without any water as water seemed to mute the flavors quite a bit and kind of ruined the finish. Would I drink it if offered? - Yes Would I specifically order it? - Maybe Would I buy a bottle? - Maybe NOTE - All reviews are done without factoring in price.

Batch AB3099 Sauternes Finish - Casks 7,8,9,10 Nose - Ripe dark sweet baked apples, dark golden honey, golden raisins, sweet chestnuts, lightly tannic green grape skins Taste - Initial fruity apple stems/metallic bitterness, golden raisins, light honey, thin apple juice, baked apples, more metallic bitterness Finish - Lingering metallic/fruity bitterness, hints of honey and golden raisins Score - 67/100 Final Thoughts - So the nose on this one is quite pleasant, loads of baked apples with golden raisins and honey and really leads you to believe you're getting this amazingly fruity dram. The instant it hits your tongue, you're hit with this oddly bitter apple fruit stem vibe that's been sitting in a metallic container in the sun for a few days. There are hints of baked apples and honey that you get from the nose, but it's really quite dominated by the metallic and fruity bitter notes that's really quite distracting. The finish is more of the same bitterness and sadly doesn't get much better. Would I drink it if offered? - Maybe Would I specifically order it? - No Would I buy a bottle? - No NOTE - All reviews are done without factoring in price.

2016 / 54.2% ABV --- Nose - Sweet fruity, lightly meaty smoke similar to a honey teriyaki smoked pork jerky, hints of candied red berries (w/ water) Smoke is much more subdued, savory sweet, like a lightly smoked Korean kalbi marinade Taste - Sweet & ashy soot, savory sweet smoked meat, light raisin/prune syrupy vibe, light metallic vibe, saline, ginger tingle (w/ water) Less syrupy sweet, ashy savory sweet smoke, saline Finish - Sweet ashy soot, saline, salty sweet smoked meats (w/ water) same Score - 84/100 Final Thoughts - I can sort of see the draw of peated malts more & more. It definitely adds another dimension to the dram and I can actually see this pairing quite well with lots of salty snacks and is like a pork/beef jerky in a glass. It has hints of a sherry cask influence and the saline is a nice touch in that it's present, but not overbearing. I think a bit of water does this good in that it reduces the metallic vibe I get and highlights more of the sweet savory smoke. I don't think this is something I'd regularly reach for, but I can see this being great next to a campfire/bonfire with some savory snacks like beef jerky or some salty chips. Would I drink it if offered? - Maybe Would I specifically order it? - Maybe Would I buy a bottle? - No NOTE - All reviews are done without factoring in price.

Nose - Lactose sweet, saline, caramel, apples, candied ginger, fresh ginger, white chocolate sweet (w/ water) Bright, but otherwise the same Taste - Bit hot up front, fresh ginger tingle, crushed cereal/toasted barley, Total cereal + Captain Crunch cereal, apple leather, salt, black peppercorns (w/ water) Less heat, milk candy, candied ginger, crushed cereal (more Total, less Captain), apple leather, salt Finish - Lingering tingle/heat, dark apple juice, dark brewed tea, almost over steeped (w/ water) Same Score - 84/100 Final Thoughts - So it's been a while since I've had the Classic Laddie but the 6.3% bump over the classic laddie makes a fairly large difference. This felt a lot hotter and younger than what I remember the Classic Laddie being, but it could just be my bias. This one felt like it had a higher percentage of bourbon barrel in it as I got quite a bit of caramel combined with the classic lactose sweet I get from most Bruichladdich. It's a bit tough to fully describe, but I think it almost smells like sweet steamed milk for a latte. Anyway, this had all the classic Bruichladdich notes of saline and lactose that makes it interesting at a slightly higher proof. Nice fruity notes to keep you on your toes, but honestly just feels like a higher proof Classic Laddie. 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.

57.9% Nose - Sweet ripe apples, plump golden raisins, floral honey, caramel, apple spice hard candies (w/ water) Adds a hint of sweet buttercream cake frosting & crushed smarties Taste - Sweet honey, candy apple coating, bright sugar candy sweetness, light fruity metallic "funk", light grass, lemon zest, golden raisins (w/ water) Honey, green apples, hint of papaya sweet "funk", lemon zest, golden raisins Finish - Lingering heat, bright fruity sweet, candy coating sweet, honey, light fruit "funk" (w/ water) Same Score - 87/100 Final Thoughts - So I had to read on what Barolo was and turns out it's an Italian red wine, but you wouldn't guess that from the color of this one as it's fairly light in color and actually in overall experience too. I get an overall bright, refreshing, light fleshed fruit vibe from this one from start to finish. There's a light fruity "funk" that I get from this that makes it interesting, but not too distracting. Kind of funny how I identify it as a papaya funk in that I'm not a huge fan of ripe papaya, but it somehow works here. Would I drink it if offered? - Yes Would I specifically order it? - Maybe Would I buy a bottle? - Maybe NOTE - All reviews are done without factoring in price.

Nose - Caramel, fruity vanilla, cinnamon, orange zest, dried light fleshed stone fruits, grape "must" Taste - Fruity caramel, vanilla, cinnamon, light tannins, light stone fruit pit bitterness, fruity honey, dried light fleshed stone fruits, flamed orange zest Finish - Lingering honey/fruity sweet, caramel, lightly bitter fruit, charred cinnamon Score - 90/100 Final Thoughts - The influence the moscatel cask influences on their bourbon is quite nice. It adds a very nice fruity vibe to it and gives it hints of dried light fleshed stone fruits (apricot/white nectarine/white peach) throughout. Hints of sugared/flamed orange zest is quite nice and I can see this making a fantastic old fashioned too. Tiny bit of fruity bitterness might be a sign of overextraction of the barrel, but otherwise quite nice from start to finish. 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.

Reviewed Blind --- Nose - Oddly muted, dried apple rings, golden raisins, what's there feels like it might be "hot" Taste - Dried apples, gentle heat, bitter cocoa nibs, gentle oak, light salt, toffee Finish - Lingering tingle, very gentle dried apple ring sweet, light fruity bitterness Score - 76/100 Final Thoughts - The nose on this one was oddly difficult to pick out. It seemed very subtle and hidden and what I did get when I nosed it felt like it might be one of those hidden high proof bombs where what was there felt like it could've been "hot". I was terribly wrong though as when it hit the palate, it initially felt quite low proof only to gradually hit a bit higher. Strangely enough, the muted nose translated to the palate, but more of the same dried apple rings with a hint of bitter cocoa nibs and the tiniest hint of some dark dried fruits, but barely there. The finish was more of the same where it was more a general heat/tingle than anything and it was quite forgettable. Not a bad dram by any means, but it feels as if what's there is quite muted. Would I drink it if offered? - Maybe Would I specifically order it? - No Would I buy a bottle? - No NOTE - All reviews are done without factoring in price.

Nose - Caramel, raisins, milk chocolate, more of a dark dried syrupy sweet Taste - Caramel, raisins, milk chocolate, cinnamon, prunes, light oak Finish - Lingering cinnamon, dark raisins, bitter dark chocolate, caramel Score - 89/100 Final Thoughts - This was a lot darker dried fruit vibe and had a more dark syrupy sweet note that I feel work just a bit better with bourbon than Oloroso did. On the nose you get darker raisins and dark chocolate that help cut back on that typical bourbon caramel/vanilla sweet. It tames back the cinnamon char a bit but adds a hint of tannic oak that pairs fairly well to make this something that isn't cloyingly sweet, despite it being a PX finish. 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.