Nose: clove, grape, orange cream, malt, grass, pear, Frosties cereal Palate: honey, white wine, ginger, malt, green apple, pear, white pepper Finish: Caramel, pepper, grape, malt, medium short drying finish _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_- Last 16, Match 8: Speyburn 10yo versus Bunnahabhain 12yo I think @Scott_E nails it in his review here: https://distiller.com/tastes/31362 It has a clean nose that is lighter than the Bunna12’s sherry darkness, and similarly it is bright and summery on the palate, which I enjoyed more this evening. This dram never really registers on people’s “best of” lists and what I was surprised to learn is that, according to Charles Maclean’s Whiskypedia, this was once in the top six bestselling malts in the USA and number one in Finland. _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_- Qtr Final, Match 4: Speyburn 10yo versus Glenfarclas 12yo I’m starting to wonder whether I was duped by Speyburn last time, and whether it really was the deserving victor against the Bunna12, given the reputation Bunna has. The Speyburn is again bright and summery and lovely with it, but why is it that I favour the regal richness of the sherried dram on this occasion? The ‘farclas forges on. _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_- The intolerable torment of a whiskyphile. I have too large a backlog of samples and miniatures to go through. Selecting a dram can make my head spin like Linda Blair. So, I developed a plan so clever you could put a tail on it and call it a fox. 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