Category Archives: Whisky

Review: Six recent Wemyss Malts releases reviewed

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February and March saw two sets of single cask releases from Wemyss Malts, a bumper crop which includes two bottlings at cask strength.

[expand title=”Click here to see information about the bottings”]

February Release…
“Kirsch Gateau” 1988 single cask from Bunnahabhain Distilery, Islay, Cask Strength
“Cacao Geyser” 1998 single cask from Bowmore Distillery, Islay
“Snuffed Candle” 1999 singe cask from Aberfeldy Distillery, Highlands
“Dark Treacle Fondant” 2002 single cask from Craigellachie Distillery, Speyside
“Honeysuckle Bower” 1995 single cask from Linkwood Distillery, Speyside
“Caribbean Crème” 1988 single cask from Invergordon Distillery, grain

March Release…
“The Rockpool” 1995 single cask from Bowmore Distilery, Islay, Cask Strength
“Foraged Fruit Fool” 1991 single cask from Blair Athol Distillery, Highlands
“Toffee Tuile” 1999 singe cask from Aberfeldy Distillery, Highlands
“Kumquat Cluster” 1993 single cask from Glenrothes Distillery, Speyside
“Stem Ginger Preserve” 1995 single cask from Mortlach Distillery, Speyside
“Rhubarb Royale” 2001 single cask from Benrinnes Distillery, Speyside[/expand]
 

I’ve been lucky enough to able to review six of the recent releases, so without further ado, let’s take a look at my thoughts…

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News & PR: Talisker launches new whisky, Talisker Skye

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TALISKER™ LAUNCHES NEW WHISKY TO CELEBRATE
THE WILD BEAUTY OF ITS HOME, THE ISLE OF SKYE

TaliskerSkyeBottleTALISKER SKYE is the newest release from the distillery on the Isle of Skye. Crafted to reflect the rugged, wild beauty of the Isle of Skye, the new whisky pays homage to the island’s majestic landscape and coastline.

Capturing the essence of Skye in a bottle, the liquid has been made from a combination of hand selected toasted and refill American oak casks, carefully chosen by Talisker’s master blenders to accentuate the sweet, citrus notes of Talisker, whilst retaining the distillery’s unmistakable character. The result is a Talisker expression that opens with welcoming, smoky sweet notes, developing into deep maritime flavours and culminating in a powerful, spicy conclusion.

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Visit: The Glenrothes Distillery

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Glenrothes-Logo

 

GlenrothesKilnRecently I was lucky enough to be invited up to visit The Glenrothes distillery. There’s a few things I want to quickly clear up before I continue… Firstly, The Glenrothes distillery is in Rothes, Speyside…. Not Glenrothes, Fife. Secondly, it’s a brand owned by Berry Brothers & Rudd (BBR)… but the distillery itself is owned and run by the Edrington Group, who produce the spirit for and on behalf of BBR. There’s not many arrangements like that in the whisky industry!

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News / PR: BenRiach Launches 10 Years Old Single Malt

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BenRiach+10+Years+Old+2New core range expression marks a significant milestone for the Elgin distillery

This release is a momentous high point for the award-winning Elgin distillery as the whisky is the first core range expression to be produced predominantly from spirit distilled under The BenRiach Distillery Company’s eleven-year ownership.

Managing Director Billy Walker and his South African partners Wayne Kieswetter and Geoff Bell acquired BenRiach from Chivas Brothers in April 2004.

Bottled at 43% vol, the BenRiach 10 Years Old is Classic Speyside in character. The cask formula focuses on ex-bourbon and ex-sherry casks – exactly the types of wood we favour at BenRiach. This fresh, lively, fruit-laden single malt captures warm oak spices, green apple, dried apricots, peach and banana with subtle touches of aniseed, lemon zest and barley.

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Review: Cu Bocan – Virgin Oak Edition

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CuBocanVintageOakBottleCù Bòcan – Virgin Oak Limited Edition – NAS – 46% abv

Info: Limited edition fully matured in First Fill Virgin Oak casks. More info on SWB here.
Colour: Full, bright and clear gold.
Nose: Vanilla and fresh oak intermingling with gentle smoke and sweet malt.
Palate: A nice thick mouthfeel which quickly makes the fresh woody oak apparent to you; it’s sweet, malty and oaky behind which it’s gently fruity with a touch of spice. The smoke is there, but quite tamed by the variety of other tastes that are going on. There’s a slight BBQy thing going on, something I’ve found in the past from Texan whiskies, good stuff!
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Review: Tomatin Cask Strength Edition

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tomatin-cask-strength-57-point-5-percent-whiskyTomatin Cask Strength Edition – NAS – 57.5% abv

Info: Matured in a combination of Bourbon and Oloroso Sherry Casks, this is a permanent edition to Tomatin’s range. More info on SWB here.
Colour: Fully ripened straw to light gold.
Nose: Toffee pennies (toffee sweets) with light malt notes and a puff of cask char. Slightly spicy with a bit of a bite from the high alcohol. Some classic Tomatin notes, but all turned up a notch.
Palate: Toffee malt hits your palate straight away, followed by slightly hot spirit because of the high abv, it’s spicy but sweet with some good oak notes and some sherry fruits and nuts. You soon become fairly accustomed to the strength which leaves you with fairly thick oils on your tongue.
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Review: Highland Park Odin

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HighlandPark-OdinHighland Park Odin – 55.8% abv

Info: 16yo, created from a combination of Spanish oak sherry casks and re-fill hogsheads.
Colour: Rich autumnal gold, touch of rust.
Nose: A light smokiness leads you in to gentle citrus fruits, tangerines and then back to peaty smokiness again, a light floral peat smoke, not your heavy Islay smoke. In the background there’s touches of fairly old oak soon superseded by milk chocolate notes, then back to citrus.
Palate: Really thick, gently oaky, very oily and peaty; peat almost going to the coal side of things, in a good way… Similar to the nose it’s a very light floral peat, no TCP, the more it opens up a BBQy type peat flavour comes out.
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Multi Review: anCnoc 12yo, 2000 & 18yo

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Multi Review: anCnoc 12yo, 2000 and 18yo
A #ModernTradition Twitter Tasting

As luck would have it, I’ve been invited along to a Twitter Tasting to try out some lovely drams from the Knockdhu distillery, otherwise known as anCnoc on the shelves (so as to not get confused with Knockando).

We’re going to take a look at the 12yo, the 2000 vintage, and the newish 18yo. So without further ado, let’s get cracking… Continue reading →

Review: Arran 18yo

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Arran18yoBottleThe Arran Malt 18yo – 46% abv

Info: Arran finally comes of age with its release of their 18yo, the third and final release in a trilogy that started with a 16yo which was released two years ago. More info on the 18yo here.
Colour: Light golden with great legs.
Nose: Malty, oily & full. Spicy but sweet, touches of ozone.
Palate: Thick and buttery, and easier on your palate than you would imagine from the slightly spicy nose. There’s malt, but really well balanced with autumn stewed fruits, red berries, gooseberries, blackcurrants and stewed apple, with a small dollop of vanilla custard. Very pleasant.
Finish: Long with a gentle freshness, slightly herbal, smoothly sweet with those late summer fruits lingering for a good while.
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Review: Bruichladdich Classic Laddie Scottish Barley

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bruichladdich-scottish-barley-the-classic-laddie-whiskyBruichladdich Classic Laddie Scottish Barley – 50% abv

Info: “Made from 100% Scottish barley, trickle distilled, then matured for its entire life by the shores of Lochindaal in premium American oak, it is a testament to the quality our ingredients.”. NAS.
Colour: Light straw to gold, classic and natural.
Nose: A slightly more easily accessed nose to the Islay Barley 2007, it’s light, fruity, yet strong and oily. There’s ripe melon and cask char.
Palate: Easy, classic unpeated Bruichladdich, yet the higher abv and cask aging has given it quite some bite and spices. It’s fresh but also with a touch of a coastal nature to it, it’s sweet, with some vanilla and gentle oaks.
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