November 2008
The Twenty Seventh Edition of "A Whiff of Peat Smoke...." , Why ? because i can !
A "Cracker" of a month ......
This month there seems to have been a mountain of releases , the SMWS released 43 bottlings to celebrate their 25th Anniversary and Bruichladdich have tried to match them.....
First off 3 of the the SMWS ones....
| 33.72 | |||
| Year - May 1998 | Age - 10yo | ABV - 57.2% | |
| Colour - Gold . | |||
| Nose - Very prickly at first , Fishermans Friends , Creamy Coffee and Chocolate . | |||
| Taste - Peaty , Coffee (Latte) , Medicinal . | |||
| Finish - Long , Sooty , peaty , Medicinal . | |||
| Comments - From a 1st fill Barrel , 1 of 255 Bottles . At times this tastes like the Renaissance , Excellent malt , just what the Peat Heed needs ! | |||
| 10.65 | |||
| Year- Aug 1997 | Age- 11yo | ABV- 56.4% | |
| Colour- Polished Gold | |||
| Nose- As soon as you open the bottle you can smell a bonfire ! Almost a Fishermans friend smell , if i didn't know it was a Bunnahabhain i would have been guessing South Shore . | |||
| Taste- Wow ! Peaty or what ! Again slight Fishermans friend , very smoky on the palate as well . | |||
| Finish- Long , smoky , the Bunnie Sweetness (Edinburgh Rock) . | |||
| Comments- From a Refill Hogshead , 1 of 293 Bottles . Wow what a Bunnie ! This is from an Experimental Batch of peated Bunnahabhain done in August 1997 (a man who knows told me....) . This is possibly one of the best Peated Bunnies i've had , how good ? It sold out darn fast ! | |||
| 125.16 | |||
| Year - April 1996 | Age - 12yo | ABV - 58.8% | |
| Colour - Golden Syrup . | |||
| Nose - Loads of Vanilla , touch orange , creamy fudge , absolutely wonderful ! | |||
| Taste - This has been a very good , fresh cask , loaded with Vanilla . A sweetness i can't identify . | |||
| Finish - Long vanilla Custard . | |||
| Comments - From a 1st fill Barrel , 1 of 247 Bottles . Yet another wonderful Society Glenmo , very fresh and the extra ABV does seem to make a difference . | |||
And so to the Laddies.....
| Bruichladdich Sixteens - Bourbon Cask Aged | |||
| Year | Age- 16yo | ABV-46% | |
| Colour- Golden Syrup | |||
| Nose- Bags of Vanilla , Creme Brulee , slight green fruits . Lovely clean nose . | |||
| Taste- Clean sweet palate , very smooth , Citric (lemon ) , big on vanilla again . | |||
| Finish- Long and Smooth , lots of sweetness , slight citrus (lemon) . | |||
| Comments-A thoroughly enjoyable bourbon Laddie but it's been aced...... Originally Matured in Jim Beam casks it's been aced in Buffalo Trace casks , probably why it's very bright and seems loaded with Vanilla . A very nice Laddie never the less . | |||
This next one when i first saw the tin and bottle in real life made me think of a story Billy Connolly told on his TV show "A World Tour of Scotland " way back in 1994 . He was Fishing in a river when a man went by in a loud blue suit , he said it wasn't just Blue......It was F*$£ing Blue !
| Year- 2001 | Age- 7yo | ABV-46% | |
| Colour- Light Gold | |||
| Nose- Honey with Green Fruits , Soft but with a slight Prickle . After a wee while standing the Vanilla and Butterscotch burst out along with a touch of lemon . | |||
| Taste- Doesn't seem as open on the palate as on the nose , Butterscotch and a twist of lemon are the main tastes , for a young whisky it's very relaxed and it seems initially restrained . | |||
| Finish- Long and Butterscotch but again with that twist of Lemon . | |||
| Comments-The Very first release from the post take over stock of ordinary Bruichladdich , this one is at 10ppm though . Bottle No.12252 of 24000 . Distilled 23/10/2001 , Bottled 8/11/2008 . An excellent whisky for a 7yo , fantastic nose , Better than what i remembered it as a 6yo at Jims masterclass . This is going to be a killer malt in it's teens . | |||
Mickeys Ardbeg 2008 Releases Tasting and Chat
On Wednesday night we were joined by the manager of Ardbeg , Mickey Heads , for a chat and Tasting of this years releases .
The Chat is available for download as a word Document , it is available By Clicking here (Size 314kb) .
Berry Bros and Rudd Tasting Newcastle 07/11/2008
Have you ever been to a tasting where you would quite happily have bought 6 of the 7 whiskies on offer ? Well that's what happened at last nights Whisky Lounge tasting in Newcastle ! This one was slightly different to previous tastings by Eddie in the way that all the bottles were from one bottler , Berry Bros and Rudd , and it was hosted by Ed Bates , one of the 2 guys responsible for cask selection at BBR . As usual we scored all the whiskies (bar the last one ) out of Ten and then worked out the overall group score .
The Whiskies on offer tonight were.....
- 1982 Berrys Own Selection St Magdalene/Linlithgow ,Lowland,46%
- 1993 Berrys Own Selection Clynelish , Highland 46%
- 1992 Berrys Own Selection Glen Scotia , Campbeltown , 55.7%
- 1990 Berrys Own Selection Laphroaig , Islay , 46%
- 1996 Berrys Own Selection Benriach , Speyside , 46%
- 1991 Berrys Own Selection Mortlach , Speyside , 46%
- Blue Hanger , 4th Limited Edition , Blended Malt , Bottled 2008 , 45.6%
After a brief history of BBR (including a look at a price list from 1909 , i'll have the gallon of 1853 Talisker please....) the First whisky of the night was the St Maggie ( Cask 2199 from a Bourbon Hoggie) , Light Straw in colour , it was a very good Lowlander , on the nose very citric , a touch grassy and a wee touch of smoke . The palate was Honey , creamy with Butterscotch , the finish i found to be long and of Lemon drizzle cake . I gave it 7 1/2 out of 10 and the groups overall score was 7 3/4 . A very good start to the night !
Second up was the Clynelish ( Cask 7540 , Refill Hoggie) , this one was ripe Straw in Colour , the nose was Sea Air , slight Smoke , Spicy and Vanilla . The palate was again Spicy and Vanilla but with Banana Fritters in the Syrup Sauce ! The finish was long , citric and vanilla . This was one of the best Clynelishes i've had , quite complex and well worth the score i gave it . 9 - 8 . A bottle was purchased !
Next came the Glen Scotia (Casks 220 & 234 , Refill Sherry Butts) , Pale Amber in colour the nose was a bizaar mix of Christmas Cake (spices , Dried fruits etc) and Fishermans Friends ! Again the Palate had the Christmas cake and Fishermans Friends but with Kippers and brine . The finish was long and spicy . As Strange as the notes sound it worked incredibly well together , it was a really oily dram and quite pungent , definitely the better whisky from this area ! 8 1/2 - 7 1/4
4th of the night was a Laphroaig (Cask 2249 , Fresh Bourbon ) , although older this was like a 10yo Laphroaig from long ago , Ripe Barley in colour , Nicely Medicinal and Sea Air / Sea Shore on the nose , it definitel was medicinal on the palate , real Laphroaig iodine ! Very long and Medicinal on the finish , A very good example from the distillery , Medicinal and pungent , a Classic Laphroaig ! 9 - 8 1/4 Just edged out of the purchase by the two i did get .
Next was the worst of the night for me , i just can't get away with this type of speysider , A Benriach (Cask 43217/8 , Refill Hoggie) , Colour was pale straw , the nose was Green Fruit , apricots and grapes , the palate was chalky and Edinburgh Rock with a medium finish of Confectioners sugar . I would say this was a typical average Speysider but with a note that i find in a few that i just don't like . 6 1/2 - 7 1/4 .
Number 6 was a Mortlach ( Cask 4227 , Sherry Butt ) , Mohogany in Colour , this was the perverbial Liquid Christmas Cake in a bottle ! The Nose was Sherry , Christmas Cake , slight Smoke and burnt toast with Marmalade . The palate was very dry , oloroso and Christmas Cake (spices , dried fruit etc) . it had a long , dry oloroso finish with smoke . A delightful sherried Mortlach , reminded me a bit of the old Oloroso Ardbegs . 8 1/2 - 7 3/4
Last up was the Blue Hanger , an interesting beast this one , a vatted malt ooopps! blended malt from 7 casks ( 3 Bourbon , 4 sherry) , youngest 16yo , oldest 34yo , all from 3 Speyside Distilleries (Glenlivet , Glen Elgin and Mortlach) . A cracking Vatting ! Amber in colour and bursting with the usual sherry characteristics in the nose , palate and finish , i would have given this one at least an 8 but we weren't asked so didn't...... But i did buy one !
A really good night , first time i'd had a real go at BBR malts and i hope it won't be the last , Ed and Eddie were great hosts , BBR's cask selection seems spot on and i hope it's not too long before Ed returns up north for another tasting but at some pointin the not too distant future i'll be hitting BBR's website to buy a couple more of tonights drams......
Berry Bros and Rudds Malt Selection
Today i received the Case of 2002 Octomores Futures ordered 6 years ago .
Obviously one has been opened !
Initial tasting notes......
Colour - Pale Gold , lovely colour from the Buffalo Trace Casks .
Nose - a Touch spirity , toffee , sweet peat , Green Apples , Sea Air .
Palate - Peat , again Toffee , quite a bit of Bourbon cask as well (wood , vanilla) , a wee touch of feints .
Finish - Not long , sweet peat , dying bonfire smoke.....
Conclusion - Must say i'm initially disappointed , this could possibly have been outstanding in a few years time . But it is a very nice malt , very drinkable . I've tried it against the recent "Peat" release and i must say it makes the "Peat" seem very immature . Will write a new set of notes in a couple weeks time when i've had the chance to try it again.
Edit - Must say it's improving with every dram.....still a little bit spirity in places.......
Another one of Raymondos excellent value forum bottlings ! Caol Ila has been a bit of a strange one for me , never really liked the first O.B. i had , the 15yo F&F , then when i joined the Society and tried theirs i fell in love with it ! The Distillery 12 and 18yo Bottlings have failed to impress since but the CS , NCS and 2 25yo's have hit the mark ! So how does this compare ?
 |
Expression - Bladnoch Caol Ila Age - 25yo ABV - 53.2% Details - Hogshead No.4807 , Dist . 12/10/1983 , Bottled 18/10/2008 . Colour - Honey Gold . Nose - Gentle Smoke , Slight Citrus (Lemon Drizzle Cake) , Medicinal , Seaweed on the seashore when the tides gone out ! Palate - Creamy Fudge at first , apples , peppery , a wee bit peaty . After a wee while it becomes more medicinal and pepperminty . Finish - Long Creamy peat . Medicinal after a little while . Comments - Very oily with great legs in the glass . Seems a bit of a different to other 25yo Caol Ilas at first but after a while the medicinalness seems to come through . Will need to do a head to head with the others soon...... |
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