Well, I’ve been absent from reviewing whisky for a little over a month now: chalk it up to fatigue, being overworked or the fact that I want to ball up in the fetal position over the state of the US stock market and the devaluation of my 401k. Pick one, they’re all accurate. Anyway, I was digging through my pile of samples and spotted this pour that I received from John (over on the Barreled app), via @Generously_Paul: the Bushmill 21 year old Irish whiskey. This is from the 2015 Batch, bottle #5580 to be exact. It’s bottled at 40% and I’m not sure what the price point was- perhaps John can chime in here if he remembers. This sample was sent to me back in the early spring, so even he may have moved on. The appearance is copper gold and giving it a spin produces fat, quick-running legs and heavy droplets around the rim. Weirdly enough, it appears oily and watery at the same time. I suspect it’s the low ABV leaving this thing caught in between both. Oh well, how does it smell and taste? The nose is fantastic: red berries in the forefront with wafts of tropical fruits, honey, tea leaves left me smiling from ear to ear. A light, minty backbone sealed the deal with apples and faint oak. This is a damn fine Irish whiskey just to nose. The palate arrives with those same red berries on the tongue. Toffee and bittersweet chocolate threw me a delightful curveball by the mid sip point and it’s incredibly smooth and warming, even for 40%. The Barrel makes itself known at the tail end- which is always appropriate in my opinion. The finish is medium length, smooth and oily once again, with lingering oak notes before ultimately turning dry. It’s that dryness that makes you want to go back in. Ah, those crafty Irish lads: How do we make people drink more, they must’ve thought- make it dry at the very end- make ‘em thirsty again. Lol. Overall, this is amazing juice. You can tell it’s well aged and it has one of the better overall flavor profiles I’ve ever had in an Irish whiskey. A huge thanks to John for seeing that I get to try this incredible dram. I think I might need to source a full bottle for myself, regardless of price. It is that damn good. 4.75 stars. Cheers, my friends.