Compass Box The Circus

Blending magic. Simple as that. I came home after a week of vacation in the rain forests of Costa Rica, and found a nice sample of this provided by a friend of mine. After a week of just one pour ( Glenfiddich Winter Storm), and daily juices of various fruits and berries, this dram was a welcome sight to sore eyes and taste buds. I can’t really describe it...it’s just a whirlwind of flavors...rich, oily, yet light and fruity. You definitely get the sherry (seems like oloroso), but you can tell there’s really high quality well aged grain in there too, from the fruity backbone. Why the hell didn’t I buy a bottle when it was readily available? Hindsight is 20/20, but for now...enjoying this.

Simply amazing! This whisky is genius. The nose spins like a kaleidoscope of dizzying fragrances. Crisp, clean, dry sherry; probably both Oloroso and Fino, as the 4 components that make up this marriage spent their entire maturation in sherry butts. Rich, varnish like ethanol confirms old wood and an average age of blended whiskies calculated at 25.53 years. The blended grain piece exceeds 30 years in sherry with individual constituents spending additional time in unknown barrel types. As the wheel continues to turn an entire fruit basket of fruits and nuts arrives at your door in an awesome celebration of life. The composition is so delectable you’re not sure which piece to pick off first. This is followed by, I swear, elements of both bourbon and rye spiciness wrapped in honeyed vanilla. The complexity seems incomprehensible. If ever I’ve experienced a non-smoky whisky better than this, I know not when. The natural, amber colored liquid hits the tongue so smoothly that it belies its 49% ABV backbone. What can I say, it’s a rich and luscious medley of everything previously described that finishes extraordinarily well. Curiosity hints at a drop of water, but my mind is convinced the earth’s entire supply has vanished and won’t be available again until the next good rain. Good grief, I will have to suffer in ecstasy until then. 5 stars!