Nose: Pear, honeyed cereal, muted grain alcohol, butter, puppy, raisin Palate: pepper, malty, sweet, a bit sharp maybe, sherry Finish: a dry, paracetamol grapefruit (but not bitter), sherry, oak _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_- Last 16, Match 5: Cutty Sark Prohibition versus Tobermory 10yo Okay, I swear I got a puppy smell or maybe I just need a shower. In any case, at least I got something from the nose compared to a very non-descript Tobermory. A bright-young-thing start to the palate then wood and pepper kicks in. Its youth maybe holds it back mid-game but a stronger finish than the islander sees it carry the victory. Impressive for a reasonably low-cost blend, but unfortunately its hard to find near me. _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_- Qtr Final, Match 3: Cutty Sark Prohibition versus BenRiach Curiositas 10yo Found some stewed blackberry this time out in the contest with BenRiach Curiositas. But overall it is not a match for the Speysider. If I’m being generous to the Cutty Sark I could rank it even on taste, but it is bested on nose and finish and so it is cast adrift and it is the Curiositas that sails into the next round. _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_- The intolerable torment of a whiskyphile. I have too large a backlog of samples and miniatures to go through and making a decision on what to drink next is hard. Like choosing the right footwear in the morning I flip flop. So, I have picked sixteen scotch whiskies that are 12yrs or younger or NAS to battle it out in a Scotch Deathmatch. It’s my incentive to lighten the logjam. Follow along if you care (and really why should you?). Oh the drama! https://challonge.com/ScotchMadness