Category Archives: Review

Review: Tullamore D.E.W. Cider Cask Finished

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cider-cask-2015Tullamore D.E.W Cider Cask Finished – 40% abv

Info: No age statement, but finished in ex-cider casks for 3 months. Triple distilled, triple blend Irish whiskey. Limited production made yearly between September and November.
Colour: Evening gold.
Nose: Rich, refined and malty with a real flinty metallic quality. After a short while it becomes quite aromatic and fragrant. If there are apples then they’re more in the background, quite a sour dry cider apple; don’t think sweet apple juice… they show their head after the whisky has had plenty of time to breath.
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Review: Aberfeldy 16yo

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Aberfeldy_16YOAberfeldy 16yo – 40% abv

Info: To finish off a trio of Last Great Malts related reviews, we arrive at Aberfeldy, a distillery I’ve always enjoyed ever since I had some of their whisky directly out of a cask in one of their warehouses whilst on a visit… It was one of the best drams I’ve ever had. Happily, Aberfeldy have now added and extra bottling into their core range and released a 16yo which is finished in Oloroso sherry casks. More info on SWB here.
Colour: Fairly bright and clear gold. Aberfeldy uses colouring although this seems rather more natural than some others in the range so maybe (as I know they would like) it’s now colouring free?
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Review: Compass Box Flaming Heart 15th Anniversary

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compass-box-flaming-heart-15th-anniversary-whiskyCompass Box – Flaming Heart 15th Anniversary – 48.9% abv

Info: First released in 2006, Flaming Heart was the first whisky to combine the rich, complex spice of Scotch aged in new French oak with the evocative peat-fired smoke of Islay malt.
Colour: Ripe corn to light gold; no colouring (or chilling) here.
Nose: There’s a light to medium smokey peat note there, amongst bourboney fruits and hints of honey and wax polish.
Palate: Thick, oaky and peaty… yum. There’s a good set of berry fruits at the front, followed up by an earthy clean peat with a good sweetness behind it to make it really enjoyable.
Finish: Slow, long and really warming on your chest, a good tickle of gentle spices to keep the dram going. Crushed berry fruits, raspberries and smoke.
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Review: This Is Not A Luxury Whisky by Compass Box

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This_is_not_a_Luxury_whiskyCompass Box – This Is Not A Luxury Whisky – 53.1% abv

Info: Inspired by René Magritte’s famous 1929 painting The Treachery of Images. Lots of Glen Ord in it.
Colour: Orangey golden.
Nose: Instant hints of old oak and dunnagey warehouses all mixed with seville marmalade, berry notes and some spices.
Palate: Nice and thick oils which cover your mouth in spices which get to a level that they’re fun but not overpowering. It’s enjoyably approachable, even at cask strength. There’s a gorgeous gentle sweetness running through it, hints of toffee.
Finish: The finish shows the most layers to me, fresh, quality old casks, a cola cube, spices, tannins and oak. It’s long and massively enjoyable.
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Review: RMW 40yo Three Cask Blended Malt

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RMW40yoBottleRoyal Mile Whiskies 40 Year Old, Three Cask Blended Malt Whisky – 47.1% abv

Info: A blend of three sherry cask single malts (Glenrothes, Macallan & Tamdhu) bottled at natural strength and colour without filtration. 337 bottles.
Colour: Rich autumnal leaves, plenty of rusty tints.
Nose: Deep, rich and nutty; plenty of malt and aged sherry fruits. Nice and layered with good complexity. Gentle oak notes with a damp dunnage background.
Palate: Gently spiced, but easy and thick on the palate hold it on your tongue for a long while and enjoy. There’s plenty of caramelized brown sugar along with mashed up winter fruits and a very small dollop of cream on top. Old antique malt.
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Review: Bowmore Devil’s Cask III (vs Devil’s Cask II)

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rightcolum_devilscasksiiiBowmore – The Devil’s Casks Batch III – 56.7% abv

Info: “Double the Devil”, so the label says. Matured in first fill sherry casks; both Oloroso and Pedro Ximénez. The third and final release in the series. NAS.
Colour: Dark and rusty, mahogany.
Nose: A fair alcohol nip if you nose too strongly at first. Behind that is a creamy, fruity and lightly smoked malt, backed up by some slightly sappy oaky notes. With some warmth and a little time you get a milk chocolate tone and the smoke notes start to come out more strongly… It’s more smoke than peat with a salty, ozoney, coastal air background, reminiscent of Bowmore’s island location.
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Review: Big Peat Christmas 2015 Edition

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bigpeatxmas2015Big Peat Christmas 2015 Edition Cask Strength – 53.8% abv

Info: The now traditional festive Big Peat Christmas Edition is back! No colour, no chill filtration, cask strength… what more could you want from this mix of Islay malts which includes Ardbegg-nog, Coal Ila, Snowmore and Party Ellen.
Colour: A very honest, light straw colour.
Nose: Peat, of course. It’s sweet and fairly fruity (black currants) with some younger new make type sweet notes. There’s a salty ozone quality. Hints of moss, a crack of black pepper and some digestive biscuits. Nice thick legs on the glass.
Palate: The cask strength helps give this some extra spicy kick, but once you’re used to it it becomes warming and creamy. It’s malt-sweet, with various layers of flavour to explore and enjoy.
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Review: The Ardmore Port Wood Finish

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Ardmore_Portwood_BottleThe Ardmore – Port Wood Finish – 46% abv

Info: 12 Years Old, matured in American white oak Bourbon barrels and then finished in European half port pipes.
Colour: Bright and golden with a distinct pink Port hue.
Nose: Gentle peat smoke amongst plenty of autumn and winter berries all mushed up. Slight hints of tar. Subtle malt background.
Palate: Fairly thick; the non chill filtration giving this the welly it deserves. It’s fairly gentle and easily accessed with sweet fruits and a fair pinch of spices, all backed up with gentle highland peat smoke. The more you hold it in your mouth the more creamy it seems to become.
Finish: The finish is quite long, as you would expect from a peated whisky. It’s fairly sweet with just a small amount of tannin and spices at the end just to finish things off and bring the sweetness down.
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