Compass Box Delilah's XXV

The label is unfortunately hideous. The nose, on the other hand, is quite nice. It has standard Scotch elements like mild sea spray with an emphasis on brown sugar, vanilla, and cherry. It smells delightfully rich and indulgent with a nice balance and clear flavors - you know, like the hedonism is supposed to be. The palate is surprisingly herbal with an unfortunate bitterness stepping in. It isn't a nice anise or smokey flavor so much as it is.jist bitter herbs. There's a slight mintiness, but not much. The other flavors are nicely rounded though with plenty of sea spray going on and a full sweetness. It's moderately rich. There are nice plum notes, though they are a bit obscured. With the herbs there just unfortunately something a bit off here. There's not in-your-face alcohol flavor, but those herbs are a real nuisance. There are some very good flavors in here, but there isn't anything amazing and there is that bad backing that can't be escaped. It's fairly creamy (though not to the extent that Compass Box Hedonism is). It also has an exceedingly oily mouthfeel. Unfortunately, it's kind of like the tremendous sweetness was tossed in to counterbalance the bitter herbs and the result is discordant. I could sip this, but I'd prefer not to.

Nice fruity malt, with red fruit on the nose. Vanilla and the obvious cherry cask is there, together with lighter notes of red apples, spices like cinnamon, and I think I smell a hint of banana. The nose is surprisingly sharp for a 46% ABV whisky. The taste is rich and oily, with dried confectionery fruit. Caramel and vanilla. I get mostly chocolate and pepper on the finish, which is long.

Sherried notes come through on the nose in addition to some sweet elements. Fruity palate with more sherry and a medium/light body. Moderate finish - shorter than I’d expect. A nice drink but massively overpriced.

The wife is heading to Chicago on business at the end of next week and I'm tagging along so we can spend the weekend in the Windy City.  It seemed appropriate to prepare for the trip by imbibing the sample of Delilah's XXV that I recently acquired. I found the nose to be fairly mild - sherry, fruit, and malt.  The palate has more malt and fruit, and a heavy dose of oak.   It is rich, bold and full.  The finish is a bit hotter than I expected given the age of the whiskeys that were used, but not at all unpleasant.   So overall, very nice, although it's more oakey than I prefer.  At the going rate of about $100, I'm on the fence about purchasing it, even though it gets a few bonus points for another great Compass Box label and a cool tie-in to Delilah's Chicago.  The bottom line is that I might want to spend my Compass Box allocation elsewhere. Speaking of Delilah's, the wife has a business dinner the night before our weekend begins, so I think I'll head over to experience it firsthand.  Hopefully I'll come away with a good whiskey tale or two.