Jura Tide 21 Year

Neat

Sydney Whisky Show May 20th 2023. Whisky #16 Nose: Crème brûlée, candied preserved fruits, honey, warm spiced cookies (powdered ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg and caraway seed) straight from the oven. Dark cherries and boiled Christmas plum pudding appear after repeated sips together with a subtle maritime note and a puff of smoke. Palate: The arrival is chock full of caramel stroopwafels, milk chocolate and vanilla flavoured mascarpone (so yeah, I was hooked instantly). As it develops, stewed apples topped with cinnamon sugar and cream appear along with honey, tinned peaches and a gentle trace of smoke. The texture is oily and mouth-coating. Finish: Medium. Some grassy notes emerge in the late palate with mild spices, honey and a pinch of salt being the last flavours. This was one of a pair of confusingly branded Jura 21 year old releases that came out in 2019, jointly marketed and boxed as “Time & Tide”. The “Time” expression (which I have not tasted) was TWE only and the “Tide” variant was for retail distribution. I don’t know if there was a difference between them and I have no idea why the distillery did things in such a confusing way. Just how confusing is reflected in the postings for the two whiskies here on Distiller - look at the thumbnail illustrations and you will see that they have been swapped around. Anyway, this is a very pleasant whisky that I would happily buy were it not so outrageously expensive. It has complexity but is also very gentle and easy to drink, which may make it seem simplistic at first taste, but you need to persevere and get to know it. I returned to the Jura stand twice to get repeated tastings of this and it appealed more each time. It has the same sort of “complex simplicity” as very old grain whisky. If it was priced at AUD$250 I’d snap one up but for just under $400? No thanks. “Very Good” : 86/100 (4 stars)

Jura used to be a lot better. In the past 5-6 years, its name has lost some popularity, and you can feel how the owners are incapable to stop the down trend they are suffering. Having said that, this 21 year old Release is one attempt to recover some of their good old fame. This is one of two 21yo expressions, that were released at the same time, called "Tide" and "Time" in a very confusing way. Even the marketing and the labels are super difficult to tell apart. This "Tide" has been matured in american Ex Bourbon barrels and then finished in virgin american oak casks. Bottled at 46.7% abv, it has an orange caramel color. It has a really amazing nose. Dark Christmas cake; chocolate cake with raisins and candied fruits. Very yeasty, lovely aroma. Recently baked brownies. Dark dehydrated fruits, figs and dates. After a first sip, it gave me an exact aroma of stroopwaffles. After more sips, out of nothing a salty sea breeze appeared. Great. On the palate, it starts with thick honey. Cough syrup, hot honey. A second sip gave me stewed apples, apple pie. It is hot on the palate, its been ages since i felt a hot note on a whisky in the palate. Syrup. Long flavor that never lost its intensity. Aftertaste has the aromatic peat smoke with hints of salt. Very well crafted, but not too long. Heathery, earth, grass. Smokey. Pepper and sea salt. Overall, this one is a delicious whisky, but It is not complex at all. The simple notes it has,  are very well delivered, and incredibly enjoyable. For a 21 year old whisky is way too safe, and easy drinkable but it lacks some emotion. I would definitively drink it if some gave me a glass, but i don't think i am buying it for myself. My score for a very good whisky that could be better, is 89 over 100.

Rich, dry, wood notes