Forager's Keep 26 Year

The nose has some caramelized malt notes, coconut, and orange peel. This has a really wonderful flavor - it's bursting with wood spice, there's pepper, but much more than that there is loads of dried ground ginger, and that lingers from start to very long finish. It's almost too spicy, but is as spicy as can be without crossing that line. There is some wood in the body and finish, but it's far less woody than I was expecting after 26 years in a barrel. I can, surprisingly, still pick up some pleasant, malty barley notes. This is also quite oily and has a robust, rich body behind it. This is something special, I'd recommend grabbing a bottle if you can find it without an exorbitant markup.

Sweet and spicy in equal amounts, a nice burn to go along. Wonderful!

Strong whisky notes, not as smooth as I was expecting. In my opinion not worth the price. Much better options out there.

Black licorice was the main takeaway immediately, along with an intense alcohol burn. As it faded, hazelnuts and brown butter came through. Adding a bit of ice, tamed the alcohol and brought out the maple syrup and dried fruit. After 6 years of not drinking, this was great to come back to, because it confirmed my decision to quit. Black licorice is gross.