Cutty Sark Prohibition Edition

커티샥 프로히비션 3.7 프링글스 어니언맛 시즈닝, 알코올 비릿한향, 바닐라, 피트 커피 노트도 있고 괜찮은듯

Rating: X/23 I tried the absolute palate destroyer Ry3 Cask Strength a few hours ago and my taste buds are still a mess. So it's a great time to just take some swigs of something that has some good flavors, but is hindered by some bad ones that I'd like to not notice (especially sulphur). Enter Cutty Sark Prohibition Edition. This is the first time that I agree with the flavors listed on the back. Back pepper hits me first. It's still a bit harsh, but I can't really tell with my tongue so numb. So that's not new, but there's also some actual toffee. So their claims of "cracked black pepper & toffee" are accurate if you absolutely wreck your palate first. There's also some lemon. Or maybe it's yuzu, actually? Somehow, I am actually still getting some sulphur. This is better than I remember, but I still detect problems. I'm not rating it anyway, so it doesn't really matter, but there it is.

Dissssgusting...

N: Huge with both ripe and sour fruit right out of the bottle - peach, pear, and even mango. Some brine and ocean behind that. Definitely some bread and nut notes behind that. And there's a funk in it too that's really hard to place. And enough ethanol to let you know you really are slummin' it tonight. P: Now I realize the funk is peat. Sweet peat with some toffee. Coffee roast. Hot and malty in the middle with a distinctive black pepper bite laid on top of caramel honey bread. Finish brings more heat with baking spices, cayenne, and then eventually just numbness. The more time you spend thinking about this dram, the less you're probably going to enjoy it. At face value, it's unique and interesting with the black pepper, honey, fruit, and funky peat. Leave it at that, don't try to go deeper. And I'd also highly recommend using it as a chaser for an IPA - the spice cuts right through the hop bitterness, which in turn supercharges the sweetness in this in an absolutely delightful way. _______ Please come join a lively new spirits related discussion happening in real time amongst a bunch of regular Distiller reviewers: https://discord.gg/crpksjtkMu.

Cutty Sark with some oomph. Spice, lemon and fruit on the nose with some earthy and nutty notes reminiscent of Bunnahabhain. The same continues on the palate while bringing the heat into the finish. Pleasant overall and miles more interesting than the usual Cutty.

Nose - mushroom, bell pepper, apple, light peat, cereal grain, sulphur, lemon oil, honey, mild to moderate ethanol burn. Taste - honey, fungal notes, sulphur, apple, pear, cereal grain, oily peat, lemon pith, white pepper, caramel, candy corn, vanilla, mild to moderate alcohol bite, finishing short with cereal grain, honey, and fungal flavors. I’ve never tried a Cutty Sark product before, but I understand that this release contains a different blend of grains and malts, along with being bottled at a higher 50% ABV. The nose is pretty rough. The standout aromas are grain, oil, and mushroom. The sulphur dominates the other more subtle notes like honey, apple, and pear. The palate is particularly oily, with more fungal sulphur alongside grain, orchard fruit, and stale candy corn flavors. This is not good, but it’s not horrific either. I thought I was smelling a tequila like Corralejo at first. There are some pleasant blended malt qualities, but those oily, mushroomy, sulphuric notes overwhelm the senses. Safe to say, I won’t be picking up one of these anytime soon. Many thanks to @ContemplativeFox for providing the generous sample!

Rating: 10/23 The back of this bottle suggests that this whisky (well, its 1920s American Prohibition era equivalent) is the origin of the phrase "the real McCoy". An exciting story to be sure. Sadly, a quick web search reveals that the phrase goes back to the 1800s and Cutty Sark doesn't even make it onto the Wikipedia article. So, in a sense, this is most definitely not "the real McCoy". Still, I've heard quite positive things about this one and it took me a while to track it down, so I'm excited to try it. N: Lemon zest, a touch of oil, a faint black pepper presence, something sweet and a bit grainy. Not a very full or complex nose. A bit of sulphur as I dig down into it. I have to imagine that there's a lot of grain whiskey in this and it's quite young. P: Lemon and pepper with a slightly oily sulphur backing. There's a definite graininess here that fits in with the burn. Unfortunately, when I add water it becomes apparent that the burn is not just caused by the high (for a scotch) ABV: this is actually a kind of harsh whisky. There's some sweetness that's kind of like wheat bread with some really light caramel. That basic profile makes me think of Three Scottish Brothers, but this is less full and far harsher and also has less wood. There's a little happening here, but it isn't really pleasant. That sulphur never goes away. F: burns for sure. Hints of lime and black pepper. A bit of malty sweetness. Still some sulphur. - Conclusion - I do notice the higher proof here, but I don't really care about it. It's lemony and light compared with Dewar's 15 The Monarch (13). The Dewar's is more balanced with a fuller, more mature profile as well - and far less sulphur. Coming back to the sulphur, Highland Park 12 (12/23) has way too much sulphur. This doesn't have as much sulphur, but it's in the same cluster of whiskies that have an unpleasant amount unless you dull your palate first. The Highland Park also has more complexity and fullness of flavor with more interesting things happening. I'd take it over this. OK, so this is definitely less than a 12. For a while, I was thinking that this was an 11, but I'm now thinking that might be a bit too generous. I think a 9 or 10 is most likely. This does strike me as better than Ardbeg Wee Beastie (8/23), but it's harsh with sulphur. Not great. I'm thinking it's a 10.

Probably the first whisky with a cocoa note hidden within it peaty profile I've savoured. Too bad the mouth isn't as interesting, just typical thin flavoured blended whisky, with an oily mouth feel. More burny than other whisky's as well. For it the price tag it comes with. It's decent.