It’s 2020. It’s December. Let’s shut this year down with a brand new whiskey (or whisky) every day. It’s my own personal whiskey advent calendar. +7! Dec. 29, 2020 I wish I could say this was only the second gift set I have purchased specifically for the glassware during the 2020 holiday season. Or the third, or the fourth. But no, this is the fifth and seemingly unlikely final gift set purchased during holiday 2020 specifically for the glassware. And (for science) I have a Glenlivet 12 year rum finish to compare. Nose is peach ice cream. I can get that grape/raisin I expect from a Speyside, but there’s a sweet vanilla that turns the whole nose for me into delicious peach ice cream. Body is juicy. Grape jam, sugar, strawberry, bitter chocolate. Gummy bears. I can bring the peach in from the nose but it feels forced. Finish is heavy on baking powder, but that chocolate remains. Short and gentle finish. Peaches and cream return! I just had an epiphany. This is the scotch version of Jefferson’s Reserve. They have very similar mouth feels and share many major notes, which is remarkable given that they have completely different processes. While I don’t care for Jefferson’s Reserve, the grape jam/gummy bear notes work better on this scotch, which is drier and less sweet by nature. Also, this is the first time I’ve tasted peaches on a scotch, and I dig it. Unlike Jefferson’s, where a rum finish takes a mediocre product and makes it a solid contender, the rum finish on Glenlivet makes a very different but equally decent product. In both, the rum finish tones down the sweetness without obliterating the notes that work well with that finish, like the chocolate and the fruit notes. It’s fun to learn things! Oh, and I probably won’t by another bottle of this. Unless they pair it with some keychains or a pencil topper or something. ‘Tis the season. I’m day-to-day on my whiskey selection, so if you’re reading this and there’s something readily available out there you’d like me to enjoy/suffer through this holiday season, leave it in the comments. Merry whiskey to all, and to all a beer flight!