Dear Whisky Customers
Well it’s arrived! The 50th newsletter! Just like the newsletter has developed from somewhat humble beginnings I would like to think that I have developed as taster over that time as well. In fact I was think about tasting notes the other day, as opposed to writing them!
It would seem to me that whisky reviewers tend to fall into two broad categories when writing tasting notes. You have those that I would call ‘emotional’ tasters, whose notes include such phrases as ‘damp forest floors under a moonlit sky in august’ or ‘reminiscent of my grannies wardrobe’. Then you have what I would refer to as ‘analytical’ tasters. Personally I feel that I would fall into that second category. When I taste a spirit I try and break it down and try to get across in my notes the sensation of how it smells and how it flows in the mouth. Hopefully I’ll take readers on a journey and describe how the spirit evolves and flows, or doesn’t as the case may be!
But either way one hopes that you find my notes entertaining as well as enlightening. Whilst we are on the subject of tasting I really try hard to put aside ones preconceptions when I approach a whisky. I try to forget that Fettercairn is redolent of burning car tyres that Dufftown is undeniably industrial, that Cragganmore is dull and a bit bland and that Tobermory / Ledaig is downright awful. So in saying that I had one of those ‘oh my god, really’ moments when the list of what I had tasted for the Independent Bottlers Challenge came back.
Imagine my surprise to find that I had tasted a bottling of Dufftown and failed to use the words, industrial, nasty, etc at all! In fact I used the term ‘Quite elegant’!!! Good grief I, what is the world coming to! I definitely had to sit down there! Ok the palate was a touch on the confected/ watery side and my conclusion was that it was ‘Pleasant if a bit unremarkable’ but I had given it a score of 7.9 out of 10, which for a Dufftown is remarkably good. Oh and if you really want to try it yourselves it’s a Gordon & MacPhails Dufftown 1998 (13 year old) 43% bottled in 2011.
As I was saying earlier, the remit of the newsletter has broadened over the years, so this newsletter is one that will be heavily edited by Whisky Intelligence, because unlike the last one it will unfortunately or fortunately it contains references to r*m, c*gn*c, and v*dk* in this months newsletter! Also shock, horror I’ve even had a tasting of that notorious ab***the stuff.
Also in the edition is the usual new releases from Douglas Laing and Dewar Rattray. I’ve also been tasting the newly arrived Mezan Rum range as well as the rather fancily packaged Crystal Skull Vodka, a gin from Clapham, a few Cognac’s, the afore mentioned Jade Liqueurs range of absinthe, oh and I found time to squeeze in some whisky!!!!
But lets begin with the Bottlers Challenge………………
INDEPENDENT BOTTLERS CHALLENGE 2011 (SPEYSIDE)
The last time I judged the Speyside category for the Challenge was back in 2007, and although the number of samples I had to taste has diminished the overall quality of those bottlings being entered has definitely risen. Back in 2007 the average score for the 12 years old and under category was 6.97. This year it had risen to 7.13.
This trend was repeated in the 13 to 18 year old category where the average score had risen from 6.88 to 7.56, but the biggest jump was reserved for the 19 year old + category, which saw the average score rise from 7.63 to 8.53. That’s not to say that there wasn’t the odd duff bottling, but overall I was a lot more impressed than depressed!
12 Years Old & Under
My co-judge in the category this year was Joel Harrison of caskstrength.net and looking at his tasting notes he is definitely a fully paid up member of the ‘emotional tasters’ club. We were in complete agreement with regards to the medals in the 12 years old and under category, with the exception that I had a tie for the Bronze medal, but after that we diverged somewhat.
| Official Results | My Results |
|---|---|
| GOLD | |
| Berry Bros Miltonduff 1998 (12 year old) 57% | Berry Bros Miltonduff 1998 (12 year old) 57% My Score: 7.9 |
| SILVER | |
| Scotch Malt Whisky Society 1.158 ‘A Cricketer’s Dream’ (Glenfarclas) 1999 (11 year old) 61.8 | Scotch Malt Whisky Society 1.158 ‘A Cricketer’s Dream’ (Glenfarclas) 1999 (11 year old) 61.8 My Score: 7.7 |
| BRONZE | |
| Duncan Taylor Octave Craigellachie 1999 (11 year) 54.8% | Duncan Taylor Octave Craigellachie 1999 (11 year) 54.8% My Score: 7.1 |
| Ian MacLeod Dun Bheagan Strathisla 1998 (12 year old) ‘Petrus Gaia wine finish’ 43% My Score: 7.1 |
|
Tasting Notes:-
Berry Bros Miltonduff 1998 (12 year old) 57%
BourbonDist: 1998 Btl: 2010
Tasted: July 2011
A very intense and alcoholic nose with some leafiness, manure, heather and a touch of malt. A drop of water really releases the aromas – Beautiful and grassy now with hints of white liquorice and gentle citrus fruit. (3.8)
Palate: Quite sweet, yet balanced by the piquant alcohol. Slightly leafy with some malt and a hint of manure. Water doesn’t do much for the sweetness and brings out a touch of burnt caramel. Quite soft now but less expressive. (2.7)
Finish: A good length with some buttery oak and a lovely aftertaste, redolent of wood spices and liquorice. With water the caramel is a tad intrusive.
Conclusion: if it wasn’t for the burnt caramel this would have scored a couple of points more! (1.4)
Scotch Malt Whisky Society 1.158 ‘A Cricketer’s Dream’ (Glenfarclas) 1999 (11 year old) 61.8
First Fill BourbonDist: Apr 1999 Btl: 2011
Tasted: July 2011
Nose: A very oily and manuery nose. Serious globs of farmyards and peat along with some sweet fruit lurking beneath. With time some vanilla oak puts in an appearance. With water some lovely perfumed orange notes appear but the natural oils dampen it a tad. (3.1)
Palate: Quite sweet, opening with the vanilla oak. The alcohol is quite piquant and is followed by some citrus and manure. Water makes it a touch simpler. (3.0)
Finish: A mouth-watering, peppery and alcoholic finish. (1.6)
Conclusion: The nose is far more expressive than the palate and it certainly requires a drop of water.
Duncan Taylor Octave Craigellachie 1999 (11 year) 54.8%
BourbonDist: 1999 Btl: 2010(?)
Tasted: July 2011
Nose: Very alcoholic without water but there is some reasonably mature honey along with hints of manure and peppery tequila-esque notes. Water emphasises the manure notes along with some earthy peat. (2.8)
Palate: Straightforward with peppery tequila notes and some old wood. Water makes it rather soft and innocuous, bringing out some burnt caramel and citrus. (2.5)
Finish: Short and slightly sweet with lingering pepper, water lengthens a bit. (1.8)
Conclusion: its ok, an average youngish Spey
Ian MacLeod Dun Bheagan Strathisla 1998 (12 year old) ‘Petrus Gaia wine finish’ 43%
Sherry(?)/ Petrus GaiaCask: 90292 + 93
Dist: Oct 1998 Btl: 2011
Tasted: July 2011
Nose: A slightly leafy (re-fill sherry?) and seriously malty nose with hints of some lovely syrup coated orange fruit. Quite complex with hints of charred wood and liquorice. (3.3)
Palate: Soft, showing a fair degree of youthful cereal. Quite full with an invasive burnt caramel note. (2.5)
Finish: A good length, but again marred by the burnt caramel. The after taste is also somewhat sugary and slightly winey. (1.3)
Conclusion: An expressive and complex nose which is let down by an over carameled palate
13 to 20 Years Old
Well now we started to diverge in our opinions, although we both agreed on who should take the Gold medal, which was a superb dram and deserving of a 9.0. I’m surprised that the Angus Dundee Imperial didn’t take a medal, but Imperial seems to be a malt that divides opinion, yes, it can be a bit simple and quite a few find it bland but I have always had a soft spot for it. I think it never disappoints and with age can show a lovely degree of mature honey (see https://gauntleys.wordpress.com/category/scotch-whisky-h-z/imperial/) especially the Duncan Taylor bottlings.
Surprise number two was that I rated a Wemyss bottling! Overall I found their bottlings to be somewhat poor, but as they say every dog has to have its day! As for the SMWS Longmorn I can only conclude that Joel Harrison must like a bit of watery confectionery with his whisky.
| Official Results | My Results |
|---|---|
| GOLD | |
| Gordon & MacPhails Linkwood 15 year old 43% | Gordon & MacPhails Linkwood 15 year old 43% My Score: 9.0 |
| SILVER | |
| Wemyss Malt Whisky ‘Ginger Compote’ (Benrinnes) 1996 (15 year old) | Angus Dundee Distillers Imperial 19 year old 43% My Score: 8.4 |
| BRONZE | |
| Scotch Malt Whisky Society 7.66 ‘Harmonious Existence of Flavour’ (Longmorn) 1992 (18 year old 49.4% My Score: 7.3 |
Wemyss Malt Whisky ‘Ginger Compote’ (Benrinnes) 1996 (15 year old) My Score: 8.3 |
Tasting Notes:-
Gordon & MacPhails Linkwood 15 year old 43%
SherryTasted: July 2011
A stunning nose of soft re-fill sherry along with a touch of natural lemonade. There is some lovely maturity apparent especially in the honey department, which is shot through with some gentle spices and citrus. (3.9)
Palate: Wonderfully soft and broad, opening with some light coffee. Very liquor like and maybe a touch simpler than the nose but with time the gorgeously mature honey begins to shine. Great depth, enhanced with a liberal sprinkling of duty spices. (3.4)
Finish: A lovely, long, violety tinged finish. (1.7)
Conclusion: A superb nose with a level of maturity well beyond its years. Lovely complexity and an excellent balance between wood and spirit.
Angus Dundee Distillers Imperial 19 year old 43%
BourbonTasted: July 2011
Nose: Intense aromas of old straw and maturing honey. Lovely depth with hints of orange fruit and manure. (3.5)
Palate: Soft and malty with a liberal sprinkling of brown sugar. Softly fruity with hints of straw. Good intensity. Quite robust and full. (3.3)
Finish: Good length with a soupcon of spice in the finish. (1.6)
Conclusion: Dense and chewy, a lovely full bodied Spey.
Wemyss Malt Whisky ‘Ginger Compote’ (Benrinnes) 1996 (15 year old)
BourbonDist: 1996 Btl: 2011
Tasted: July 2011
Nose: A lovely nose of crisp citrus. A classic Spey with some beautiful light honey and barley. Very concentrated and deep. (3.8)
Palate: Soft and a touch fuller with more oak character, but the citrus notes just about balance it out. Still quite deep and concentrated although a smidge less complex than the nose would suggest. (3.0)
Finish: A good length with a citrus thread running through the oak until the end. Good grassy after taste. (1.5)
Conclusion: A very pleasant dram, but the oak vanillins do mute the palate a bit, but aside from that very enjoyable
Scotch Malt Whisky Society 7.66 ‘Harmonious Existence of Flavour’ (Longmorn) 1992 (18 year old 49.4%)
Refill BourbonDist: Apr 1992 Btl: 2011
Tasted: July 2011
Nose: A deep and intensely fruity nose with plenty of crisp citrus and granity notes. There is a beguiling maturity to the honey and the subservient oak adds a buttery twist. With time a slightly floral note emerges. However with water it becomes a lot oilier and a lot less interesting. (3.0)
Palate: Quite soft and linear with hints of barley and coffee. Dilution just makes it rather watery. (2.9)
Finish: Quite long with some herbal flourishes but water makes it confected. (1.4)
Conclusion: Water strips what little complexity it had to begin with!
21 Year and Over
Ok. I slipped up here! The funny thing is that when I first tasted the OMC Glenallachie it blew we away (https://gauntleys.wordpress.com/2011/08/26/douglas-laing-glenallachie-tasting-notes/) this time my notes were not quite as effusive, although I still rated it very highly. I think that when you are in judging mode one tends to be more critical. It’s a case of not necessarily picking faults but asking oneself the question as why one malt deserves to be scored higher than another. Either way, once gain both Joel and I were pretty close in our judgements.
| Official Results | My Results |
|---|---|
| GOLD | |
| Douglas Laing Old Malt Cask Glenallachie 1972 (38 year old) 50% My Score: 9.0 |
Scotch Malt Whisky Association ‘An Angel Fallen to Earth’ (Glencraig) 1974 (36 year old) 50.6% My Score: 9.4 |
| SILVER | |
| Duncan Taylor Rare Auld Glen Grant 1974 (36 year old) 52.4% | Duncan Taylor Rare Auld Glen Grant 1974 (36 year old) 52.4% My Score: 9.3 |
| BRONZE | |
| Scotch Malt Whisky Association ‘An Angel Fallen to Earth’ (Glencraig) 1974 (36 year old) 50.6% | Berry Bros Glenlossie 1975 (35 year old) 49.7% My Score: 9.0 |
| Douglas Laing Old Malt Cask Glenallachie 1972 (38 year old) 50% My Score: 9.0 |
|
Tasting Notes:-
Scotch Malt Whisky Association ‘An Angel Fallen to Earth’ (Glencraig) 1974 (36 year old) 50.6%
Refill BourbonDist: June 1974 Btl: 2010
Tasted: July 2011
Nose: Crisp and quite alcoholic to start with. It has a distinctly rum like rancio with dried, nutty fruit along with a touch of old treacle/ molasses and shot through with a vein of lively citrus. Wonderfully deep and evolving. A drop of water ramps up the lusciousness and emphasises the orange fruit. (4.0)
Palate: Soft, gentle and mouth-filling. The citrus and alcohol give it a wonderful vibrancy and edginess although the tannins do dry the palate somewhat. Dilution however lets the sublime depth of juice fruit shine. (3.6)
Finish Mouth-watering and long, again water makes it exceedingly juicy and brings out a spicy flourish at the end (1.8)
Duncan Taylor Rare Auld Glen Grant 1974 (36 year old) 52.4%
Sherry Cask 16569Dist: Nov 1974 Btl: May 2011
Tasted: July 2011
Nose: Pungent, leafy and herbal to begin with followed by pure manure aromas! With time some dried grape and orange rind appears along with some spicy dark chocolate (in fact it reminds me of Green & Blacks Maya Gold!) Simply stunning, luscious and aromatic. Water makes the nose slightly more perfumed. (3.9)
Palate: Soft, luscious and mature. A lovely complex mouthful of spicy dark chocolate and honey. Excellent intensity. A drop of water adds a dusting of brown sugar and tempers the alcohol. (3.7)
Finish: Mouth-watering finish with the dark chocolate notes lingering. Water brings out a slight herbal note. (1.7)
Conclusion: A beautiful, mature re-fill sherry(?) malt.
Berry Bros Glenlossie 1975 (35 year old) 49.7%
Bourbon Cask 5951Dist: 1975 Btl: 2010
Tasted: July 2011
Nose: A stunningly mature nose, full of earth, dunnage floors and old wood overlaying some delightfully luscious, sweet orange fruit. With time the orange notes become more dominant and some late mature honey joins in. (3.9)
Palate: Soft and lightly honeyed. Less complex than the nose but lovely nevertheless. Good depth. (3.4)
Finish: Very long with hints of lilly and elderflower. Quite sugary now but the alcohol balances. (1.7)
Conclusion: A superb nose. The palate possibly doesn’t quite reach the hights, but it’s still exceptionally good and the finish lasts for ages!
Douglas Laing Old Malt Cask Glenallachie 1972 (38 year old) 50%
Sherry Cask DL6880Dist: Sept 1972 Btl: Jan 2011
Tasted: July 2011
Nose: A big, first fill sherry nose. Quite mentholated with plenty of juicy orange and hints of earth/ dunnage floors. Very clean with developing wood spice and liquorice nuances. (3.6)
Palate: Soft and juicy. There is a lovely depth and concentration of mature sherried fruit, spice, old polished wood along with hints of liquorice and treacle (3.5)
Finish: Quite an oily and smoky finish with hints of coal dust and light tar. (1.9)
Conclusion: A lovely nose and palate, not much in the way of distillery character but some complexity from the aged sherry and a surprising (in a good way!) finish, there was no indication of smokiness on the palate.
OCTOBER OLD MALT CASK BOTTLINGS
Right, whilst we’re on the subject of OMC bottlings the latest box of miniatures duly arrived on my desk and I told myself that I really, really wasn’t going to buy anything this month, and I was sorley tempted by the Port Ellen, but by god it was expensive, (£206.16 retail per bottle) and I’m not sure if I can justify the expense of buying a full case, but if they were to split a case………….. hmm, and if anyone was interested in a bottle then I’ll have to have a chat with Hugh!
I was hoping that the Rosebank would be as good as some that I have tasted in the past (https://gauntleys.wordpress.com/category/scotch-whisky-h-z/rosebank/) but sadly that wasn’t the case. I’m sure some on-line retailers will stock it but hand on heart it really isn’t worth the almost £110 price tag. I couldn’t resist the Coal Ila though! But I could resist the Bladnoch!!
Douglas Laing Old Malt Cask Royal Lochnagar 1997 (14 year old) 50%
BourbonCode: OMC2081
Dist: Apr 1997 Btl: Oct 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
The nose is a touch high toned, but there is some pleasant crisp citrus fruit, but the overall sensation is one of neutral spirit (which is par for the course with a lot of Lochnagar bottlings). With time hints of malt biscuit and herbal notes emerge.
Soft and slightly oily on the palate. Again the overriding sensation is of neutral spirit with a dollop of caramel/ toffee. Quite weighty towards the middle with a touch of honey and spicy tinned fruit. Reasonable length with a slightly mentholated, herbal finish.
Douglas Laing Old Malt Cask Rosebank 1990 (21 year old) 50%
BourbonCode: OMC2086
Dist: Feb 1990 Btl: Oct 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
A clean, citrus nose. However it is pretty high toned and gin like with a serious degree of botanicals. Yes, there is some late creamy oak and a slight floral note, and maybe a soupcon of honey, but it seems disjointed and it has definitely lost its fruit, leaving just the botanical spirit character.
Quite dry on the palate opening with plenty of sweet barley, along with minerals and herbal notes. Again there is a distinct lack of fruit and thus it’s pretty much neutral-ish spirit all the way. Short and tartly citrus with a prominent degree of alcohol, and not much in the way of wood character apart from some bitter liquorice like notes at the death. In conclusion it’s gone over the hill to be honest and should have been bottled some time ago. In saying that I get the impression that this wasn’t an exceptional cask to start of with.
Douglas Laing Old Malt Cask Mortlach 1996 (15 year old) 50%
BourbonCode: OMC2087
Dist Aug 1996 Btl: Oct 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
An earthy nose with plenty of dried spice, root ginger, mature honey and botanical spirit notes. This must be the oddest Mortlach I’ve ever come across. It’s slightly peated and really peppery and although the honey does it’s best to mask the creaking spirit there is the faintest hint of old cardboard.
The palate is definitely cardboardy, and has overdosed on burnt caramel. Industrial and somewhat spirity. One dimensional, lacking any real fruit, it’s unfortunately in its death throws to be honest. Shame as the nose was quite interesting.
Douglas Laing Old Malt Cask Allt-A-Bhannie 1993 (18 year old) 50%
BourbonCode: OMC2084
Dist Feb 1993 Btl: Oct 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
A quite attractive nose of crisp citrus, barley, earth, white liquorice along with a touch of creamy/ toffee’d orange fruit. Light and relatively floral with time.
The palate is soft and reasonably full and very citrusy. The gentle spices build amidst the toffee. Good length and still very citrusy throughout. Lovely zesty, spicy finish. To be honest I pondered this quite long and hard, and I concluded that if this retailed at say just under 50 quid then I’d go for it but I don’t believe its complex enough to warrant a £63.95 price tag.
Douglas Laing Old Malt Cask Glenlivet 1992 (19 year old) 50% (website price £68.95)
BourbonCode: OMC2083
Dist Apr 1992 Btl: Oct 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
A gorgeously mature Speyside nose. Loaded with oodles of honey, spice and orange fruit. Yes there is a touch of botanical spirit but that’s kept under control by the honey and the beautiful, sawdusty oak. Seriously honeyed and wonderfully balanced.
The palate is full and honeyed. Rich and dense – a real mouthful of honest-to-goodness gently spiced honey, castor sugar coated barley and oak. Piquantly alcoholic on the middle which leads into a mouth-watering finish….. But….. those gorgeous orange honey and spice notes resolutely cling to the mouth before a touch of bitter oak appears but is almost immediately swamped by that lovely mature honey. Superbly balanced and very drinkable.
Douglas Laing Old Malt Cask Bladnoch 1992 (18 year old) 50%
Sherry FinishedCode: OMC2042
Dist Nov 1992 Btl: Oct 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
The Brownie of Bladnoch returns! (https://gauntleys.wordpress.com/2011/08/17/bladnoch-tasting-notes/) Slightly earthy with hints of damp cardboard and a distinct murky character. Some late butter and sherry spice notes appear but it’s rough, spirity and distinctly unclean.
The palate is pleasantly spicy but it’s so murky and industrial with burnt caramel and a touch of cardboard. Invasively alcoholic and lacking in finesse and length, well no that’s not quite true it does have a finish of sorts and that was fizzy. Shall we say it’s not the greatest cask of Bladnoch I’ve ever tasted.
Douglas Laing Old Malt Cask Caol Ila 1996 (14 year old) 50% (website price £60.95)
BourbonCode: OMC1989
Dist Sept 1996 Btl: Oct 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
An old skool, Coal Ila nose - fresh and iodiney. Moderately peated and very briny with hints of wet tar, creosote and burnt embers all wrapped up in a lovely, sweet, mature, fruity coastalness.
The palate is quite sweet and oilier than the nose suggests. Those rampaging oils do take away some of the freshness, but give the palate density and lubricate the mouth. Very tarry on the middle with a lovely degree of dusty/ sooty peat along with a touch of fresh, green apple. Superb length with a smoked kipper, burnt wood/ ashy finish.
Douglas Laing Old Malt Cask Highland Park 1996 (14 year old) 50%
SherryCode: OMC2053
Dist: Sept 1996 Btl: Oct 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
Gently sherried and quite nutty on the nose with hints of ozone and brine. Quite full and fruity with hints of tropical melon/ guava. Lovely complexity and balance for a sherried HP with a late heathery note and a soupcon of peat.
Quite sweet to begin with – sugar coated barley and light, bananary tropical fruit. The sherry adds a delicate nutty note to the proceedings and a touch of lightly medicinal peat, coffee and spice appears. Good length with a bracing finish.
Douglas Laing Old Malt Cask Port Ellen 1983 (28 year old) 50%
BourbonCode: OMC2056
Dist: Feb 1983 Btl: Oct 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
The heavy fish oils mute the nose, thus it takes awhile to get into its stride. Subtle, yet building aromas of mature honey, oak are accented by a gentle coastalness and flecked with medicinal peat. Gentle and mature with some late buttery oak and just a sprinkling of sea salt.
The palate is also a tad reticent. First impressions are that it’s a tad watery but after rolling it around the mouth it gently unwinds with oak, mature honey and fishy notes. Gently sooty/ ashy middle with hints of medicinal bog myrtle. After all these years it still retains a fresh, coastal edge. Very long with a touch of sweet parma violets and lingering soft peat.
OCTOBER PROVENANCE BOTTLINGS
Douglas McGibbon Provenance Glen Ord 2004 (7 year old) 46%
BourbonCode: PRV0747
Dist Sept 2004 Btl: Oct 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
The nose is quite Alsace-eque and full with soft, white pear and peach balanced by a very fresh citrus note. Quite gristy with a late spice note.
The palate is quite sweet and gristy, again with plenty of citrus and pepper notes. Lovely intensity of slightly perfumed white fruit with a hint of vanilla oak. Good length with a refreshing finish. Surprisingly good for such a young malt.
Douglas McGibbon Provenance Royal Lochnagar 2001 (10 year old) 46%
BourbonCode: PRV0737
Dist Jan 2001 Btl: Oct 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
The nose is relatively fresh although the rampant oils have subdued the nose somewhat. Slightly gristy with no shortage of vanilla and a touch of youthful cereal.
The palate opens with some gentle fruit coated in light syrup along with a touch of white liquorice. A pleasant aperitif malt with a reasonable length and a spicy, slightly bitter finish.
Douglas McGibbon Provenance Glenburgie 1999 (11 year old) 46%
BourbonCode: PRV0735
Dist Nov 1999 Btl: Oct 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
A dense, oily and creamy nose with a hint of barley and more than a hint of burnt caramel! A fresh citrus and grassy note tries to emerge from the oak morass, but ultimately fails to do so.
The palate is a tad nondescript, quite sweet and bitter; maybe a touch fleshy but the alcohol and burnt caramel really hammers the palate. Short with a citrus, granity, bitter finish.
Douglas McGibbon Provenance Strathisla 1999 (12 year old) 46%
BourbonCode: PRV0740
Dist Aug 1999 Btl: Oct 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
Quite big and malty on the nose with a touch of peat. Actually there is more than a touch of peat along with hints of coffee and unfortunately burnt caramel.
The palate is relatively sweet-ish and malty with a good depth of macerated dark fruits, liquorice, earth, a touch of peat and some drying tannins, Unfortunately for me that burnt caramel note is too invasive and spoils what could have been an interesting bottling. Good length with a distinct molasses-like character and a slightly spicy finish.
Douglas McGibbon Provenance Allt-A-Bhannie 2000 (11 year old) 46%
SherryCode: PRV0734
Dist Jan 2000 Btl: Oct 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
A lightly spiced, herbal and grassy nose with some crisp fruit, honey and exceedingly subtle sherry notes. The palate is a bit on the sweet and toffee’d side but there is enough grassy, citrus fruit to offset. Slightly winey with some nutty sherry notes on the middle and a long, warming finish with hints of moist fruit cake. All in all a very pleasant Spey with a good integration of spirit and cask.
Douglas McGibbon Provenance Craigellachie 1999 (12 year old) 46%
SherryCode: PRV0728
Dist Jun 1999 Btl: Oct 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
An odd nose to say the least. It reminds me of a liqueur made from marc! Faintly earthy/ musty macerated cherries in alcohol, which becomes rather stinky and manuery over time. There is a rawness to the spirit which verges on the industrial along with a sort of sherberty sweet sherry note. Like I said distinctly odd!
I’m afraid the palate is a lot less interesting. It’s quite sweet and industrial with too much burnt caramel and a touch of cardboard. Again the spirit seems very raw and it’s decidedly hard going.
Douglas McGibbon Provenance Inchgower 1999 (12 year old) 46%
SherryCode: PRV0736
Dist Apr 1999 Btl: Oct 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
Good grief! The nose reeks of Bovril! Seriously malty and spicy with hints of amontillado sherry cask. I have to say that the spirit doesn’t feel quite integrated with the cask and has a noticeable botanical youthfulness to it.
Quite dry, leading off with the Bovril-esque character. Again quite malty (obviously!) with plenty of spices and sweetly toffee’d-sherried dried fruit on the middle. Better integration on the palate and a good length with a pure spice flecked muscovado sugar finish.
Douglas McGibbon Provenance Dalmore 2001 (10 year old) 46%
BourbonCode: PRV0724
Dist May 2001 Btl: Oct 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
A soft, slightly earthy nose with a hint of berry fruits in syrup, crisp barley and a touch of honey. Quite pleasant for a Bourbon casked Dalmore.
The palate opens with some lovely spicy honey followed by the intense alcohol. When that clears it leaves a fudgy/ toffee’d oak character. A bit on the short side but pleasant nevertheless.
Douglas McGibbon Provenance Tamdhu 1998 (12 year old) 46%
BourbonCode: PRV0739
Dist Dev 1998 Btl: Oct 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
A polite nose of brittle honey with some cherry fruit and a touch of perfumed white flowers. The oak adds some caramel to round it off.
The palate is soft, full and rounded. Quite honeyed with barley, spice, soft fruit, a touch of smoke and light coffee. Good length with a slightly grassy finish. All very pleasant and unpretentious.
Douglas McGibbon Provenance Ben Nevis 1998 (12 year old) 46%
BourbonCode: PRV0715
Dist: Nov 1998 Btl: Oct 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
The nose is rather industrial for Ben Nevis with hints of burnt caramel, boiled sweets and high toned sweet marc and botanicals. Rather lacking its usual malty/ breadiness.
The palate is young and a bit simple with hints of grass and chardonnay-esque buttery fruit. Short and alcoholic. Pleasant but not exactly the best bottling of Ben Nevis I’ve ever tasted.
OCTOBER PREMIER BARREL BOTTLINGS
Douglas Laing Premier Barrel Mortlach 1997 (14 year old) 46%
BourbonCode: PBR0103
Dist: Apr 1997 Btl: Oct 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
The nose is a touch muted by the oils and thus it’s rather unyielding in the aroma department. However there is a hint of earth, peat and coffee.
The palate is pleasantly honeyed and full with some oily caramel, crisp barley and grass. Simple and quaffable, good length with a toffee’d, slightly peppery finish.
Douglas Laing Premier Barrel Laphroaig 2000 (11 year old) 46%
BourbonCode: PBR0106
Dist: Jun 2000 Btl: Oct 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
A relatively uncomplicated nose. A sort of ‘phroaig by numbers - oily seaweed, fish and herbal peat.
The palate opens with a pleasant sweetness with a touch of caramel and some gentle oils. A rather coastal, herbaly peated middle with a touch of soot. A pleasant length with a touch of medicinal bog myrtle on the finish.
I thought I can see why they have bottled this under the Premier Barrel label because the quality isn’t high enough to be a Provenance bottling, so I imagined that this would retail somewhere in the £40 bracket, because that would be a fair price for it. Imagine my surprise when I looked at the cost and worked out a price- £63.95!!?!!? What!!!? I think it goes to show how over priced some distilleries malt actually is.
SEPTEMBER COGNAC TASTING
You may have seen these tasting notes posted on the Gauntleys blog (http://www.gauntleys.com/blog/) The plan is to try and put tasting notes up there first, so please keep a regular eye on it for anything new and interesting. The two stand out producers from this tasting were Henri Geffard and Daniel Banchereau. In the end Banchereau just edged it as there was a greater degree of consistency over the whole of their range and thus it will be those cognac’s that I have added to the list. The Grande Champagne XO was absolutely stunning and well worth treating yourself to, but if your pockets are not quite that deep then the Napoleon is definitely worth a look.
COGNAC PRISSET
Annie and Roger Prisset are the fourth generation of cognac producers at Puycaillon, set high above the Grande and Petite Champagne hills. For 104 years, the family has been cultivating and distilling Fine Champagne cognac from their 30 hectares of vines here.
Prisset Petit Champagne VSOP (15 year old) 40%
Tasted: Sept 2011
A bold, dense nose with some lovely, softly mature honey and sweet oak, followed by plenty of sugar coated dried fruits. Full and enticing with an almost whisky-like character.
Full and oily on the palate, yet quite subtle. It’s a bit straightforward but it does have a lovely spiciness and a good depth. The finish is a bit dry and woody although it does have a touch of latent honey, but not enough to offset the wood.
DOMAINE CHEZ BEILLARD
Roger and Martine Blanleuil along with their sons Nicolas and Jerome, who represent the eighth generation to produce Grande Champagne cognac here, are based at Criteuil la Magdeleine. The original family settled in this region in 1800 and commenced wine production. Today, Cognac Blanleuil cultivates 45 hectares of vines in the heart of Grande Champagne.
Blanleuil Grande Champagne VSOP (10 year old) 40%
Tasted: Sept 2011
Quite a high toned nose and slightly spirity too, although it is pleasantly edgy with hints of oily, dried fruit and earth. It does develop some sweet orange and late oak.
The palate is soft, light bodied and elegant with plenty of wood up front followed by some light dried fruit and a perfumed burst on the middle. Good length with hints of tropical fruit, minerals and a slight earthiness in the finish.
Blanleuil Grande Champagne XO (20 year old) 40%
Tasted: Sept 2011
A dense and earthy nose with some lovely perfumed citrus along with mature honeyed dried fruit. With time some old spicy wood notes appear and the honeyed aromas run riot!
Soft and dense but somewhat lumpen on the palate. It’s a tad homogonous and simple to be honest but there is no faulting the density of dried fruit. The oak really bites hard on the middle and with the piquant alcohol it has a very dry and bitter finish. That lovely honey that was on the nose has gone completely awol and thus fails to balance the bitterness.
HENRI GEFFARD
The family of the present principal, Henri Geffard, has been making Cognac at their property at Verrieres in the Grande Champagne since 1840, so up to now this makes five generations and, today, his two adult children represent the succession. The family cultivates 29 hectares of vines between Verrieres and Juillac le Coq in the heart of the Grande Champagne.
Henri Geffard Grande Champagne VSOP (10 year old) 40%
Tasted: Sept 2011
A dense, rich and oily nose opening with some delightful liquid orange and sweet, sun dried raisins/ sultana’s. Very deep and polished with a slight perfume and a developing earthy nuance.
The palate is quite earthy and a touch whisky-like with the toasty oak up first followed by stealthily moving dried fruit and a beautiful maturing honey note. Intense and slightly floral on the middle. Good length with a delightfully sweet spice finish.
Henri Geffard Grande Champagne Vieille Reserve (20 year old) 40%
Tasted: Sept 2011
A simply stunning nose of liquid orange fruit, liberally sprinkled with demerara sugar and beautifully mature honey. The oak is very reminiscent of an old Glen Grant with that almost sawdusty character. The honey is absolutely luscious and the spices are to die for. Wonderfully balanced with some perfumed top notes.
Deep and dense on the palate but with a beautiful lightness of touch. Quite elegant with a subtly spiced, mature honeyed depth. The intensely bitter oak hits the middle along with the mouth-watering alcohol, leaving a palate cleansing finish. Personally it could have done with more sweetness to balance that bitterness. Maybe I’m just being a bit picky, but the palate doesn’t live up to the nose.
Henri Geffard Grande Champagne Tres Vieux (35 year old) 40%
Tasted: Sept 2011
The nose is a touch more reserved than the Vieille Reserve, showing more old oak character – coffee and dark chocolate, although that isn’t the dominant theme. Edgy dried fruit mingles with hints of beeswax and old floor polish and although the spirit is older than the Vieille Reserve it shows more verve. Wonderfully balanced and complex with hints of macerated plums and prune, all set against a lovely backdrop of mature, subtle honey and oak.
The palate is very much like the nose, with plenty of verve and edginess. A phenomenal depth of liquorice infused honey coats the dried prune, raisin and grape and like the Vieille reserve the bitter, peppery oak hits the mid palate like a speeding train, but this time there is just about enough sweetness to balance. Seriously intense, long and evolving, now a slight violety note appears along with an animally note which puts me in mind of an old Mourvedre. Wow!!!
DOMAINE BERNARD GAUTHIER
Bernard Gauthier, who is also the current Mayor of Malaville is at the head of the Gauthier family, one of the oldest in the cognac producing business. However he is far from being a traditionalist, his ideas make him one of the most original producers in the Grande Champagne, although they have been growing and making their cognac in the same place for eight generations. The family began at Le Petit Gauthier in nearby Birac in 1750!
The family vines are now idyllically situated on the chalky slopes above Malaville, one of the 26 communes of the Grande Champagne appellation. The Gauthiers grow their vines at quite an extreme elevation, as “Hautes Vignes” for extra protection of the grapes against scorching by the sun as well as other weather damage. They have also been practising organic farming for over 25 years here.
Grande Champagne ‘Reserve de La Famille’ (10 year old) 40%
Tasted: Sept 2011
A slightly perfumed and edgy nose with no shortage of crisp citrus fruit along with a touch of linseed/ poppy seed oil. Interesting and definitely different. The slight perfumed note aside this is a dense and masculine nose with some heavy, dark, sweet dried fruit aromas.
The palate shows the same density and weightiness as the nose implies although the natural oils do seemed to have dumbed the palate a tad. There is plenty of crystalised citrus and violet but the oak clamps down and bitters the finish. Some sweet, dark, liquorice infused honey does fight back but doesn’t quite balance the bitterness out.
Grande Champagne ‘Tres Vieux’ (20 year old) 40%
Tasted: Sept 2011
Surprisingly high toned and slightly spirity nose, although in saying that there is some lovely light nutty moments. Vigorous dried fruit, light coffee and walnuts are generously sugar coated and with time some lovely mature wood comes through along with a heavy, musky spice note.
The palate is again quite nutty with dried prune, apricot and citrus. However the flavours are all front of mouth as the bitter wood tannins dry the palate really quickly. Yes there is some delightfully sweet vanilla, but one feels like this has spent far too long in barrel.
COGNAC BANCHEREAU
Daniel Banchereau took over this 23 hectare wine estate from his family in 1968. It stands at Eraville in the east of the Grande Champagne region. In 1991 Daniel along with his children Frederique and Laurent set up their own distillery to produce their own cognac. Today the estate has grown to 45 hectares and they have a wide range of cognacs, which are extremely good.
Banchereau Napoleon (8 years old) 40% (website price £51.95)
Tasted: Sept 2011
A pungent, almost peated nose – Oooh that’s good! The aromas are grippy and edgy with a lovely dried fruit rancio with hints of citrus and cinnamon. Delicate and elegant.
The soft oak shows first on the palate before some lovely subtle but edgy mineral laced dried fruit emerges on the middle. Vibrant and piquant, yet there are plenty of balancing oils. Again slightly whisk-like in its character with hints of violets and that earthy/ peaty note showing in the finish.
Banchereau XO (12 years old) 40% (website price £69.95)
Tasted: Sept 2011
A stunning nose! The aromas are very reminiscent of an old grain whisky, deep, earthy and luscious with seeped dried raisins and citrus rind. Superb complexity, extremely polished with hints of sweet spices, liquorice and oak.
The palate opens with some dense, luscious, sweet dried fruit with hints of nuts, liquorice, oak and mature honey. Very harmonious and complex. Stunning depth with the oak imparting a touch of bitter, peppery spice, however there is more than enough sweetness to balance that bitterness. Superb length and polished finish.
Banchereau Grande Champagne XO (25 years old) 40% (website price £149.95)
Tasted: Sept 2011
A seriously stunning nose! Subtle, yet deep and seriously polished. Gently spiced dried fruit is shot through with the most luxuriously lazy mature honey aromas imaginable, followed by yet more sweet spices and a slight menthol note. Very full but wonderfully balanced by some vibrant citrus notes.
Sumptuously smooth and mature on the palate. Seriously mouth-filling, liquid mature honey mingles with raisins, dried grape and hints of died coriander and cinnamon. There is a brief but intense mouth-watering middle before loads of sweet almond and vanilla notes arrive. Poised and balanced with a slight bitterness from the oak and hints of coffee/ hickory. Incredibly long with the sweet spices returning.
A RUM DO? MEZAN RUMS TASTING
This range of rum’s have been created specifically for the London based spirits importer Eaux de Vie to fill the void left by the departure of the Plantation range to pastures new. The range is a bit of a mixed bag to be honest and I have selected what I consider to be the most interesting bottlings to add to Gauntleys growing rum selection.
Jamaican Barrique XO 40%
Tasted: Sept 2011
A blend of casks from the Hampden and Monymusk stills. Blended from spirits aged 4-23 year old, then re-casked for a number of years.
A very oily and estery nose. For a blend with some relatively old spirit in it, it reeks of youthfulness with an almost ‘off the still’ pungency. Quite edgy and with an agricole, vegetal character along with green banana and under ripe fruit sprinkled with castor sugar.
The palate is like the nose, oily and youthful. With a distinct peppery character. In fact that is the dominant theme here. Eventually there is a hint of dried fruit and castor sugar coated under ripe fruit. The finish is quite sweet, almost cloyingly so, but very long. I’m not sure about this at all.
Hampden (Jamaica) 2000 (11 year old) 40% (website price £32.55)
Dist: 2000 Btl: 2011
Tasted: Sept 2011
A light, fragrant, yet pungently estery nose. Full of oily dried fruit, camphor and menthol along with a suggestion of oak in the background. Lovely delicacy and complexity.
The palate is light, but oily, delicate yet pungent with a serious weight of dried fruit and sweet sub-tropical fruit on the middle. However that weightiness doesn’t detract from the elegance of the spirit. Lovely length with hints of camphor and menthol in the finish.
Westerhall (Grenada) 1998 (13 year old) 40%
Dist: 1998 Btl: 2011
Tasted: Sept 2011
A dense, oily, oak dominated nose. It has an almost grain whisky quality, especially with all that oak., although in saying that, the oak has a lovely sweetness to it and adds some gentle, sweet spices. On the downside though not much in the way of spirit character comes through.
The palate opens with a brief dried grape and banana note before the oak tightens its grip and it’s bye, bye spirit complexity. Short with an almost rye like nip in the finish and an oily after-taste.
Uitvlugt (Guyana) 1998 (13 year old) 40%
Dist: 1998 Btl: 2011
Tasted: Sept 2011
The nose is very similar to the Westerhall in that it has a distinctly grain whisky-like character, with probably more oak, of the burnt caramel persuasion which really flattens the nose out and allows even less spirit character to emerge.
The palate is quite delicate and commences with some lightly oiled dried fruit, and then, yes, you have guessed correct the oak begins to smother the palate. I’ll give the spirit its due as the oils try and hold back the advancing vanillins and the gently sweetened dried fruit does come out on top at the end. If only the oak wasn’t so heavy handed.
Enmore (Guyana) 1990 (21 year old) 40% (website price £40.29)
Dist: 1990 Btl: 2011
Tasted: Sept 2011
A pungent, mature, peppery and oily nose. In fact it’s quite reminiscent of an old Tequila with no shortage of heavy dried fruit and crystalised citrus all topped off with a hint of parma violets. Very complex and expressive with a seriously woody character, which probably comes from the fact that at the time of this distillation Enmore would have been using the famous wooden pot still.
Oily and weighty on the palate yet extremely elegant. There’s a lovely depth of woody dried fruit with that peppery note from the nose building to a serious intensity on the middle. The flavour fill the mouth and move into an almost oxidised white burgundy character. Damn the finish is woody, it feels like licking out the inside of a wooden still!
Don Jose (Panama) 1995 (16 year old) 40% (website price £36.47)
Dist: 1990 Btl: 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
Finally a proper tasting note!
A lovely luscious and elegant nose opening with a slightly botanical, agricole rancio along with hints of oily dried fruit, roasted coffee beans plus hints of coconut and toffee.
The palate is full and oily, but it retains a wonderful elegance. It opens with delightfully sweet sultanas and dried banana. The flavours continue to emerge on the middle – Coffee, milk chocolate, coconut and hints of the botanical/ agricole rancio. Lovely length with a distinct, sun dried raisin finish.
Caroni (Trinidad) 1991 (20 year old) 40% (website price £38.32)
Dist: 1991 Btl: 2011
Tasted: Sept 2011
Dense and whisky-like aromas of orange, coconut, gently spiced dried fruit, coffee and mature, macerated tropical fruit. With time the oak puts in an appearance but the edgy, high toned column still notes hold out and get progressively sweeter as if sprinkled with demerara sugar.
The palate opens with the gentle dried grape and demerara notes whilst that mature macerated tropical builds. Very intense with a tart citrus note that cleans the palate leaving notes of menthol and a vegetal agricole-esque touch. Lovely length with an elegant lightly oiled dried fruit finish.
WHILST ON THE SUBJECT OF RUM
Ok we’ll start with one to avoid and finish with one you must buy. If you are a rum lover that is!
Anguilla Rums Ltd Pyrat XO Reserve (Guyana) 40%
15 years in Limosin/ American oak
A sweet, oily and confected nose. This isn’t rum it’s a liqueur and the orange fruit is so sugary and false - it’s really nasty!
The palate is disjointed and so confected it’s untrue. Like the nose it has this nasty, false, confected orange character, which makes me wonder if something has been added to it, because Guyanan rum this isn’t. If you love good rum then, please, please avoid this.
St Nicholas Abbey 10 year old Single Cask Barbados Rum 40%
A selection of 8 year old Pot & Column Still spirits selected by Richard Seale (Foursquare distillery) which are re-casked for 2 years. Approximately 5000 bottles/ year released.
Tasted: Oct 2011
The nose displays a lot of oak, although it doesn’t overpower the spirit too much. A pleasant depth of dried apricot/ banana, raisins with a light touch of smoke and pepper.
The palate opens with fair amount of bitter oak, with just about enough dried fruit and molasses sweetness to balance. Good depth and quite full with a crisp botanical finish.
To be honest it’s quite corporate in style and would be a good mid level £40-ish rum, but it’s packaged in a hand engraved decanter, sealed with a mahogany cork topped with hand embossed leather. The label is hand applied and each decanter is engraved with both a number and date. This is all well and good but it pushes the retail price up to around £80, and to be honest the spirit in the bottle just isn’t worth that. Maybe if they had bottled it at cask strength it might be.
St Nicholas Abbey ‘The Unaged’ 46%
Tasted: Oct 2011
Many white rums have some oak ageing in order to round the spirit off and then are stripped of colour, this however is pure new make spirit distilled in their hybrid Pot/ Column still called Annabel!
This is a really interesting nose. Very creamy and full of vanilla (which given it has no oak ageing is amazing). Really complex with creamy white fruits, pure sugar juice along with hints of perfumed rose and mushrooms. Very unusual with a late hint of smoke and botanical overtones.
The palate is lovely and fresh with a beautiful balance. Quite smoky with some soft, yet crisp new make notes along with a gentle agricole note. It has a syrupy mouth-feel but the alcohol balances that well. Lovely length with quite a spicy finish. Superb stuff.
Dewar Rattray Monymusk (Jamaica) Rum 1986 (25 year old) 46% (website price £54.07)
Sample at 63.1%Bourbon Cask 10
Dist: 1986 Btl: 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
My god, how tight was that cask. 25 years old and over 60% abv!!! Unbelievable! I asked for some to be bottled at cask strength, just like last years Caroni Trinidad bottling they did, because just like that one, this was one hell of a ride, but unfortunately they had already cut it to 46%, so unfortunately you won’t have the pleasure of experiencing it neat. Mind in saying that at 46% it is amazingly good!
An intense, pungent and oily nose. Quite Guyanan in character but the bold molasses and Jamaican sweetness comes through. With time it becomes seriously mentholated and leafy in an agricole-esque stylie! Seriously sinus clearing stuff!
The palate opens with quite a bit of drying wood notes, green oak and leafy, vegetal notes followed by plenty of oily, seeped dried fruits. Good god the alcohol is immense and that vegetal rancio is so full on and wonderfully mature. This is tongue searing and eye watering stuff. What do they say about pleasure and pain?
With water (an approximation of what it will be like at 46%). The nose is still pretty pungent, but now it has become more floral with some coffee notes emerging along with green banana and some of the most beautiful, honeyed, tropical fruit I have ever tasted. Dilution has also let the seriously mature, sawdusty oak out. Seriously complex and beautifully intense.
The palate is soft and gentle now, opening with demarara coated banana along with a touch of mature, lightly syrupy pineapple. The agricole-esque notes are less pungent but still deliciously oily. Stunningly complex and very long with a bitter dark chocolate and Columbian coffee accented dried fruit finish. If you love good rum then buy this!
CRYSTAL HEAD VODKA
Is the brain child of the actor Dan Aykroyd and the artist John Alexander who took inspiration for this project from the legend of the 13 crystal heads that have been found in various regions of the world, from the American southwest to Tibet. These heads are reputedly between 5,000 and 35,000 years old have are believed to have been polished into shape from solid quartz chunks over time. According to expert engineers from Hewlett Packard they bear no tool marks. The heads are thought to offer spiritual power and enlightenment to those who possess them, and as such stand not as symbols of death, but of life.
Production of Crystal Head Vodka starts with the finest grains that are grown in the region of Chatham, Ontario. These grains are then processed and distilled four times to produce a neutral grain spirit at 95% alcohol by volume. The raw spirit is then reduced down to 40% alcohol by volume. Hidden deep in the Newfoundland, Canada countryside is an aquifer which slowly releases the perfectly pure water that forms the heart of Crystal Head Vodka. This water seeps to the surface through a bed of porous rock which serves as a natural filter as it has done for many thousands of years. It is this water that is used to reduce the high proof alcohol down to the legal limits required by law.
Crystal Head is quadruple distilled, then triple charcoal filtered. Finally, every drop is filtered three times through 500-million year-old crystals know as Herkimer Diamonds. These quartz crystals are found in very few places in the world, including Herkimer, New York and regions in Tibet and Afghanistan. Perhaps because they share the raw material from which the original crystal heads were carved, they are thought to have similar spiritual qualities. The production process is carried out at one of the last government owned distilling facilities in the world – The Newfoundland and Labrador Liquor Corporation.
The stunning skull shaped bottle was made by Milan based manufacturer Bruni Glass, and they have declared it to be a bottle of unsurpassed complexity and quality, and it looks pretty cool as well! Thankfully the spirit inside matches the quality of the bottle.
Crystal Head Vodka 40%
Tasted: Sept 2011
Quite a corn fat nose with some lovely sweet edgy rye-like grains and a tense minerality. The palate is soft, full and rounded again quite corn fat with a milky/ creamy mouth-feel. There is a pleasant nip from the alcohol. Good length with a touch of citrus and minerality in the finish. Lovely purity and character.
COMMON CLAPHAM?
So just what is the south London Borough of Clapham know for? Well there’s it’s common and, er, well, I bet you’re struggling to come up with anything else now aren’t you? Well so was I until I looked at Wikipedia, and it turns out that Jonas, son of the Duke of Lorraine was given a grant of land at Clapham, it then passed onto Geoffrey de Mandaville a knight of William the Conquerer after Jonas backed the wrong side!
In the late 17th and early 18th century it was a hang out for the wealthier London merchants whio built large houses around the common. Apparently Samuel Pepys spent the last two years of his life there. By the 1980’s it had become a bit of a middle class enclave as house prices rose due to its proximity to Sloane Square and Belgravia, and with its large number of swanky restaurants, bars and café’s it is now regarded as a fashionable and desirable place to live in. Oh and apparently Clapham Rovers won the FA Cup in 1880, funnily enough the same year that Gauntleys was established.
Anyway it’s now home to a boutique gin created by Charles Maxwell, whose family has been distilling gin in London for 300 years. It is distilled at the Thames Distillery in Clapham in small batches of around 500 litres at a time from a high grade base spirit primarily using wheat and a little barley. The gin receives a 12 hour maceration with the botanicals prior to a single re-distillation in a small pot still called ‘Tom Thumb’! (see picture)
SW4 London Dry Gin 40% (website price £19.95)
Tasted: Oct 2011
Distilled using Juniper, Savory, Orris root, Liqourice root, Almonds, Nutmeg, Lemon and Orange peel, Coriander seeds, Cinnamon, Cassia and Angelica
A pleasant and elegant citrus nose with plenty of juniper. Quite full with an underlying spiciness. The palate is quite full and sweet-ish. Slightly creamy with citrus, angelica and spice notes on the middle. Very long with a hint of almond in the finish. Excellent value for money.
YET ANOTHER DISAPOINTING OVER PRICED YANK?
This is the third American micro-distillery bottling that I have tasted (https://gauntleys.wordpress.com/2011/08/17/american-whiskey-tasting-notes/) and each one in my opinion has been a distinct let down. In most cases the spirit is way too young and has been rushed out onto the market presumably due to pressure from the accountants and investors than the spirit being at its apogee. Ok, it’s interesting to taste a spirit in its infancy and chart its progress over the years but I’m sorry but I’m not going to shell out 60 to 80 odd quid just to taste an experiment. It would have been better to take a leaf out of the Glenglassaugh book and release it in 20cl bottles.
Balcones Distillery, Texas Baby Blue Corn 46%
Tasted: Oct 2011
A touch spirity and oily on the nose, with what only can be described as a semblance of fat corn aromas. Why didn’t they just leave this in the cask to develop a bit of oak integration and character as at this stage in its evolution there is not much happening here!
The palate is exactly the same as the nose. Interesting maybe, but underdeveloped and the only thing the oak brings to the palate is a touch of burnt caramel. How it managed to get two gold medals at the San Francisco World Spirit competition is beyond me. Oh hang on it’s an American whisky in an American competition!
OCTOBER DEWAR RATTRAY
As you will have read earlier, Dewar Rattray has bottled yet another sensation cask of Rum, and as you will see from my tasting notes, some rather good whisky as well. Pick of the bunch, as much for price as well as quality must be the 19 year old Balblair, which tio be fair is an absolute steal. The26 year old Glen Elgin was rather good as well, and just to show that occasionally peat and sherry work together, the 12 year old Bowmore certainly hits the spot, unfortunately the other bottlings don’t quite reach those dizzying heights.
Dewar Rattray Balblair 1991 (19 year old) 46% (website price £38.27)
Sample at 61.1%Bourbon Cask 3294
Dist: 1991 Btl: 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
A beautiful, mature nose. Slightly gristy with plenty of brusque citrus fruit along with hints of earth and lightly coffee’d spices. Superb depth with a slight perfumed top note.
Intense and juicy on the palate. Quite earthy and alcoholic but there is a lovely dollop of mature honey and toasted coffee beans on the middle. The combination of alcohol and bitter oak masks the finish.
With water (an approximation of what it will be like at 46%). Oooh that’s a stunning nose! Dipping in all manner of luscious honey aromas. A delightful tangerine/ orange note has now appeared along with hints of clove and cinnamon. The brusque citrus and granity notes balance wonderfully. The palate is luscious and super smooth now. With the alcohol now in check it allows the sumptuous orange fruit and spices to shine and the palate to fill out. That gentle mature honey now coats the mouth and offsets the bitter oak on the finish.
Dewar Rattray Clynelish 1995 (15 year old) 55.3%
Sherry Cask 8657Dist: 1995 Btl: 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
A deep, earthy and coffee’d sherry nose with unfortunately a hint of struck match heads. Actually there is more than just a hint! The spirit also feels a tad disconnected, spirity and vodka-like although there is some honey, butter and cream notes, but unfortunately this will have to go down as another disappointing Clynelish.
With water the sulphur note is diminished slightly and some gentle orange fruit aromas have appeared, but the palate has become all watery and vague.
Dewar Rattray Craigellachie 1991 (20 year old) 59.5%
Bourbon Cask 6921Dist: 1991 Btl: 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
A rather hard, earthy and grainy nose. In fact tasted blind you would be forgiven for thinking that it was a grain whisky. There are some notes of brittle honey and toasted barley and with time the honey does become quite floral and the spirit notes become rather botanical in character.
The palate is very earthy with hints of mature honey along with a touch of coffee. The combination of alcohol and the graininess of the spirit make the middle quite mouth-watering. The light coffee/ hickory note is ever present and the finish is relatively oily, but the alcohol really needs taming.
With water the oak comes flooding in on the nose adding caramel, linseed oil and a touch of unsweetened marshmallow. Quite juicy now but too oak dominated. The palate is now softer but simpler and like the nose the oak holds sway but in doing so brings a lot of bitterness with it and I’m afraid there is not enough sweetness to balance that. The finish is now quite short and botanical.
Dewar Rattray Bowmore 1998 (12 year old) 62.8% (website price £49.53)
Sherry Cask 800167Dist: 1998 Btl: 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
An intensely phenolic nose with hints of nutty sherry. Extremely rubbery and manurey with plenty of astringent peat. You just have to love all that stinkiness! With time hints of fisherman’s friends appear.
The palate is oily and gently sherried (of the nutty persuasion). Earthy and violety on the middle, but there is not as much peat and alcohol as you would have expected. The soot and the oils build wonderfully and with the sweetness of the malt offsetting the peaty intensity a touch (that’s not a criticism by the way). Lovely length with hints of fisherman’s friends and a slight coastal intimation.
With water the nose doesn’t change very much, maybe a hint of lemon appears. The palate has become a lot sweeter and slightly less intense with a gentle level of peat, which allows some honey and lemon to come through. Slightly less coastal character too, so personally I would opt to drink this neat.
Dewar Rattray Caol Ila 1993 (18 year old) 56.7%
Sherry Cask 11145Dist: 1993 Btl: 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
A heavy, but clean nose of leafy sherry, dark coffee/ toffee/ chocolate and liquorice completely masking the slightly floral and coastal spirit. Only a touch of peat is discernable. A bit too heavy on the sherry for my liking.
The palate is very dry, slightly bitter and quite woody. The flavours mirror the nose – all being cask derived. Some coastal and peat notes try to emerge but they are submerged in the sherry. Quite a fresh finish – mainly down to the abv with a herbal/ mentholated finish.
With water there is a touch of struck match/ gun powder on the nose and it’s gone a bit flat to be honest. I’m struggling to pick out any particular characteristics now. The palate is very much the same. Flat and overall rather disappointing.
Dewar Rattray Macduff 1990 (21 year old) 59.4%
Bourbon Cask 1424Dist: 1990 Btl: 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
Burnt caramel overdose on the nose! Quite industrial (as expected) with some murky wood notes. I’m afraid to say rather textbook Macduff to be honest. Yes there is some mature honey aromas but they are well hidden.
The palate is oily, industrial and redolent of burnt caramel. Hard as nails with an alcoholic, murky wood dominated middle. Actually it has a good length and a pleasant peppery finish, but you have to suffer the rest of it to get to that point. It’s a bit like self flagellation I suppose!!
With water there is a slight intimation of floral white fruit but that unpleasant burnt caramel note is omnipresent. The palate has become a bit vague and watery, with, yes; you’ve guessed it – burnt caramel! Pretty charmless stuff with an almost mouldy note in the aftertaste. Once again my palate has been Macduffed up!
Dewar Rattray Glen Elgin 1984 (26 year old) 48.7% (website price £65.89)
Bourbon Cask 2861Dist: 1984 Btl: 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
A beautiful, gentle and subtly honeyed nose with hints of dried grass, black pepper and manure. Oooh the honey is veritably dripping in lusciousness now! Monumentally deep with a backdrop of some lovely sawdusty oak. With time hints of white peach, liquorice root and butter-cream emerge and a slight botanical note from the spirit is balanced by the honey/ creaminess.
Soft and gentle on the palate. Again subtly honeyed which builds rather pleasantly. Flecks of soft spice and wood tannins show on the middle and there is just enough alcohol to offset the now rampaging honey. My ones palate is salivating! Lovely depth and a great length with an ever so slightly bittering out at the death, but overall the balance is superb.
Dewar Rattray Tullibardine 1990 (21 year old) 46%
Sample at 58.6%Bourbon Cask 6100
Dist: 1990 Btl: 2011
Tasted: Oct 2011
A classic, hard as nails Tulli! It’s an odd nose with hints of brine, animals, pepper, wool fat soap and mildly perfumed candle wax! – See what I mean. Yes it’s a Tulli and you either love it or hate it!
The palate is oily, very bitter and at cask strength the alcohol is very intrusive. It opens with old coffee, burnt toffee and marc-like notes. The middle is very peppery with very pure decaying rose petal notes. Very hot, but I find myself actually liking it. Well I did after my tongue stopped burning!!!
With water (an approximation of what it will be like at 46%). The nose has become a touch more floral perhaps with some hints of liquorice and more pepper. The palate on the other hand is still relatively oily but has become a whole lot less fun, if that is the right word! It’s reminiscent of old marc and personally I wish it had been bottled at cask strength.
ABSINTHE TASTING (AN AFTERNOON WITH THE GREEN FAIRY)
Distilled absinthe as opposed to cold mix absinthe (which is essentially artificially coloured alcohol) is produced in a similar way to gin. The base spirit, usually eaux-de-vie (white grape spirit), although lesser variants were produced from grain, beet or potato spirit is re-distilled with macerated botanicals. The most widely used botanicals have come to be known as the holy trinity – grande wormwood, green anise and florance fennel. Other herbs which can be used include petit wormwood, hyssop, melissa, star anise, angelica, sweet flag, dittany, coriander, veronica, juniper and nutmeg.
This distillation produces a colourless distillate of around 72% and can be bottled clear as a Blanche or La Bleue absinthe or it can be coloured green. This was traditionally done by a secondary maceration of the botanicals, with the green colour being derived from the chlorophyll present in the herbal botanicals.
It’s surprising to know that there is virtually no regulation with regard to production, classification or labelling of absinthe. I guess this adds to the bohemian/ rebellious mystique that surrounds this spirit. However this lack of regulation allows less than reputable producers to use green food colouring to replicate the ‘verte’ colouration of the secondary maceration. In some cases producers were said to have used toxic copper compounds as well!
With regards to classification, it would appear that there is a loose categorisation based upon the quality and/ or the alcoholic strength of the spirit, these are Ordinaire, Demi-Fine, Fine, Superieure and Swiss (which funnily enough doesn’t have to have been produced in Switzerland!).
Finally no mention of absinthe can be complete without referencing its supposed hallucinogenic properties. Many people have mistaken belief that arch bohemians such as Oscar Wilde and Lord Byron would lounge around stoned out of their faces on the stuff merrily pontificating about belly button fluff. The truth is they were more than likely drunk or high on laudanum or opium. Anyway this supposed quality is down to the chemical thujone which can be found in a number of the botanicals used in its production, most notably grande wormwood.
This chemical compound was discovered by a Dr Valentin Magnam who tested the affects of pure wormwood oil on animals and found that it caused seizures independent from the effects of alcohol. From this he assumed that because absinthe contained this compound it must be more dangerous than ordinary alcohol itself. He went on to study 250 alcohol abusers and noted that those that drunk absinthe had seizures and hallucinations. It is partly these spurious conclusions which led to the widespread banning in the early 1900’s.
After the ban there wasn’t much in the way of further research into the alleged evils of absinthe until an article appeared in the scientific journal’ Nature’ in the 1970’s. It concluded that the molecular shape of thujone was similar in shape to that of tetrahydrocannabinol, which is the primary psychoactive substance found in cannabis and came to the conclusion that it would act the same way on the brain, leading to the belief that thujone was indeed a cannabinoid and one small sip would make you as high as a kite!
It was widely believed that absinthe contained between 260 to 350 mg/l (more than enough to kill your average laboratory rat!) but thankfully a 2008 study by Elke Scholten, Eric van der Linden and Herve This of the department of Agrotechnology and Food Sciences at the Wageningen University in the Netherlands with the aid of the laboratories of the INRA Group of Molecular Gastronomy based in Paris of 13 pre ban bottles using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry found that they only contained between 0.5 to 48.3 mg/l and averaged out at 25.4 mg/l which is probably not enough to get a flea stoned let alone kill a rat!
This study in part led to the European Union’s 1988 directive (No. 88/388/EEC) regulating thujone content in food and drink. Thus any alcoholic beverage over 25% produced using Artemisia spices, of which wormwood is one can only contain a maximum level of 10mg/l, however a World Health Organisation review led to an amendment in 2009 which allows any spirit distilled using Artemisia spices to contain up to 35 mg/l of thujone.
With this directive the ban in Europe was effectively lifted and those rumours about the evils of the green fairy were well and truly laid to rest.
JADE LIQUEURS (Ted Breaux)
Jade Liqueurs was founded in 2000 by Ted A. Breaux, a professional scientist and certified absinthe geek, who has dedicated over 16 years of research toward resolving the mysteries and myths associated with absinthe. As a native of New Orleans he was instrumental in getting the ban lifted in the USA. Although absinthe offered for sale in the USA must be thujone free, this in reality means having less than 10 mg/l. So the American’s are still not as enlightened as us Europeans!
All Ted’s absinthes are distilled from a Chenin Blanc base at Distillerie Combier in Saumur using 8 small and two large 1100 litre traditional copper absinthe alembic stills which were bought from the Pernod Fils distillery after the fire there in 1901.
PF 1901 Absinthe Superieure 68% 70cl (website price £53.95)
Reversed Engineered from sealed antique bottles of pre-ban absinthe that were distilled in the original Pernod Fils distillery in Pontarlier.
Tasted: Oct 2011
A seriously pungent nose of aniseed and liquorice along with an earthy, herbal/ botanical edge. Behind it has a slight soapy note which with time becomes rather floral. The aromas are quite thick and liqueur like – a beginners absinthe?
The palate is softly sweet and full of aniseed and leafy, green herbaceous notes. The alcohol is pretty intense (no surprise!) mouth-wateringly so, but it balances the sweetness. Linear but very long.
Water releases the innate oils in the spirit, as one would expect. It obviously softens the alcohol hit, but it does make it more soapier.
C F Berger V.S 1898 Absinthe Superieure 65% 70cl (website price £65.95)
Reverse Engineered from antique bottles from the famous Swiss distillery of C.F Berger
Tasted: Oct 2011
The nose displays more of the earthy spirit character with the aniseed and botanical notes being more subservient.
The palate is soft and sweet-ish. It has more of an edginess than the PF 1901. The botanicals are more gin-like in style with a distinct juniper note but the aniseed comes in on the middle along with the palate cleansing alcohol. Good length with a peppery/ spicy capsicum finish.
Diluted it again becomes a tad soapy, which seems to be a characteristic of the spirit with a slight woody bitterness in the finish.
Nouvelle Orleans Absinthe Superieure 68% 20cl (website price £23.95)
A recreation in homage to the old French style absinthe that was popular in New Orleans in the late 1800’s
Tasted: Oct 2011
The nose displays an even greater degree of spirit character with a lovely grapey/ light sugar-syrup sweetness. Pungent aromas of juniper, liquorice and aniseed are balanced by some floral and distinct wormwood notes. Very complex.
The palate is quite gelatinous to begin with but the intense alcohol lears that away to leave a very dry and distinctly wood middle. The alcohol, and although the same abv as the PF 1901 it feels higher, and thus definitely needs a drop of water.
With water the nose becomes more herbal, but even though it does become a touch soapy, like the others it definitely holds its intensity. The palate does become a shade on the watery side but it does become more creamy and one has to say with the alcohol being tamed it is very flavourful and has a lovely purity of aniseed/ liquorice.
Espirit Edouard Absinthe Superieure 72% 20cl (website price £23.95)
The first absinthe to be reverse engineered by Ted Breaux. This brand was very popular during the late 19th century.
Tasted: Oct 2011
Obviously the nose is very alcoholic, but there is again a lovely balancing sweetness from the spirit. Delicate but intense pure aromas of aniseed/ liquorice mingle with botanicals and wormwood.
Surprisingly it’s rather sweet initially, but the rampant alcohol soon halts that. This is obviously the Stagg of the absinthe world as the intensity and complexity is stunning. Very pure with a lovely length with the refined botanicals, wormwood and expected aniseed/ liquorice notes coming through on the finish.
With water it becomes exceedingly leafy and slightly milky on the palate. Like the Nouvelle Orleans it holds its intensity very well diluted and there is only a slight soapiness on the finish.
La Maison Fontaine Absinthe Blanch 56%
This absinthe is produced at the Emile Pernot distillery using a blend of 15 natural herbs, including grande absinthe, green anise and fennel. As it has no secondary maceration of the various botanicals that are used it has no colour.
Tasted: Oct 2011
The nose is softer and it comes across as more commercial in style. Quite pure and clean with hints of spearmint and lemon but an annoying burnt caramel note hovers in the background. The palate is very much the same as the nose and rather lacks the rusticity of the Jade Liqueurs range.
With water it displays more wormwood notes, and rather emphasises that burnt caramel note.
GENERAL ROUND UP
Four Roses Small Batch Bourbon 45%
Tasted: Mar 2011
A light-ish, polished and elegant nose. It seems like the crisp rye grains have been swaddled in the soft corn aromas. The oak kick in relatively quickly to become the dominant factor, however some floral/ violety notes try to emerge from amidst the sweet vanillins.
The plate opens with a floral note, quickly followed by some hard and brittle rye. The oak is very dominant (as the nose suggests) and possibly over grippy, which doesn’t let the complexity of the nose show. Yes it does have some lovely sweet vanilla moments but the oak really bitters out the finish.
Lagavulin 12 year old 56.5%
Btl: 2010
Tasted: Sept 2011
A crisp and phenolic nose with plenty of mentholated, briny peat. It displays a lovely depth with some beautifully sweet barley balancing the stringent peat reek. Quite oily and dense with hints of soft yellow fruits and banana.
The palate is full and intense. The peat builds pleasantly to a sooty, coal dusty middle. The extremely piquant alcohol kicks in on the middle! Add to that the rampant coastal character and you have a seriously mouth-puckering finish. It’s a complete contrast to the last bottle of cask strength 12 year old I tasted, that bottling was really subtle, especially compared to this one, which is what I love about small batch cask strength bottling, you just never know exactly what you are going to get. Anyway this wild ride draws to a close with hints of menthol, iodine, cocoa and a sliver of sweet barley lighting up the finish. Stunning stuff!
With water the nose has become a tad muted as the natural oils are released. The peat has taken on a more manuery character, but some sweet orange notes have now emerged. Obviously it is a touch softer on the palate with more tarry wood notes prevalent. The peat has become lazy and sooty and meanders across the tongue beautifully. Still mouth tingly fresh and briny with hints of shellfish and a sweet parma violet note in the finish.
Talisker 10 year old 45.8%
Re-Tasted: Sept 2011
A soft and briny nose with some dense, slightly confected sherry notes, orange peel and black pepper. It does become rather sweet, verging on being overly sweet but a touch of peat and smoke tries to emerge and balance the sugaryness. I don’t remember it being quite this sweet though.
Like the nose the palate is soft and sweet, quite rich with caramel laced sherried fruit. The middle is pleasantly piquant with plenty of pepper along with hints of camphor and menthol. Good length with some lovely sweet barley, gentle peat and brine in the finish. For me the palate has a better balance than the nose.
Kilkerran 7 year old ‘Work In Progress 3’ 46%
Tasted: Sept 2011
A soft and citrusy nose – pure lemon rind notes, followed by brittle honey and a salty twang. This is really maturing well and shows a lovely depth with just a touch of youthful cereal and background oak. With time the cereal note becomes pleasantly sweet.
The palate opens with the soft, yet lithe barley and a touch of toffee. Filling out rather well now with apricot, citrus and brittle honey. There is a lovely salt encrusted lemon intensity on the middle and a long, oily finish, with only just a touch of youthful cereal now and no shortage of pure sea salt.
Another year and it is really developing complexity and character!
Berry Bros Laphroaig 1998 (12 year old) 58.9%
Bourbon
Dist: 1998 Btl: 2010
Tasted: Oct 2011
A very phenolic nose. Briny and fishy with some seriously nose prickling alcohol. Pretty intense stuff with the classic rubber and manure-peat notes showing.
The palate is quite oily, youthful and cerealy. To be honest it’s a bit one dimensional, yes there is the expected dusty and sooty peat, but I think this has been bottles a tad too soon as it tastes a lot younger than you would have expected. Medium length with a fairly oily finish.
With water the nose becomes quite grassy and now some fishy, white fruit has emerged. On the palate it’s rather homogenous and quite sugary. In fact it does become a tad too sweet. Its ok, but I’ve tasted a lot more interesting bottlings of ‘phroaig than this one.
Chivas Regal 18 year old 40%
Tasted: Oct 2011
The sales blurb goes something like this “Premium aged mix of some of Scotland's finest whiskies with an above-average proportion of malt and an extended ageing period producing a truly fine blend.” – Well I’m afraid that I’m going to have to disagree with that!
The nose opens with some slightly muted sherry. Quite oily with a sub-industrial-dufftown character (could that be some rough old Tormore and Glenallachie?). Ok there is some sweetness and a slight floral note which tries to off set that character but it’s really hard going.
The palate is mellow and straightforward. Again it’s quite hard and industrial, slightly sweet, slightly sherried, and pretty innocuous with not much discernable character, well apart from that dufftown-esque disposition. The grain is well hidden and gives a pleasant bite to the finish. Personally I would stick with the Ballantines 17 year old!
Glen Garioch 12 year old 48%
Btl: 2010
Tasted: Oct 2011
A rich, densely sherried nose with hints of heather, clove and barley along with peppery boiled sweet/ marc-like notes and with time hints of aromatic peat and earth.
The palate is rich and fruity, quite heavy on the sherry with some peppery, malty notes coming through along with some sweet, heathery barley. Good length with the oak bittering out the finish. I have to say that it’s a pleasant sherried dram but it’s nowhere near as interesting or as balanced as the old 15 year old. Like Bunnahabhain they have appeared to have increased the use of sherry casks to the detriment of the distillery character.
Lagavulin 1994 (16 year old) Distillers Edition 43% (website price £65.81)
Pedro Ximenez Finish – LGV.4/498Dist: 1994 Btl: 2010
Tasted: Oct 2011
A big, sweet, dried grape and toffee’d molasses nose. The cask definitely holds back the ‘Vulin character but some stinky, manurey peat begins to emerge as does some coastal notes but the PX cask has it clamped in a vice-like grip.
The palate is to me not as sweet as I remember it, but that was 3 years ago. There is a profusion of dried grape, raisinated fruit along with chocolate and coffee. Like the nose the distillery character has been seriously blunted although it kind of creeps out on the finish with a touch of sooty peat. Not exactly my favourite expression, but there is no denying the quality of both cask and spirit.
Vana Tallinn 40%
Estonian LiqueurTasted: Oct 2011
The slightly spirity note indicates that it is predominantly grain spirit based, although that spirit is reasonably floral giving plenty of herbaceous citrus aromas, which mingle with the sweet, rum like dried fruit, liquorice, vanilla and cinnamon.
Quite thick and viscous on the palate with syrupy sweet dried fruit and vanilla along with herbs, cinnamon, aniseed and a slight sherberty orange character. The spirit comes through on the finish to clean the palate of all that sweetness, but in saying that there is still a fair amount of residual sugaryness left coating the palate. It’s not too bad as liqueur’s go.
Ardbeg Alligator 51.2% (website price £66.30)
Btl: 2011Tasted: Oct 2011
A seriously toasty and nutty nose. That charring gives it a heavily spiced, dark chocolate character along with a lovely, natural complexity of dense, fleshy apricot, gala apple, tangerine, macerated cherries, iodine, menthol, violets and slightly briny (elegant not supercharged) peat. You can tell that the spirit is relatively young with that give away cereal note but it’s balanced by a beguiling barley sweetness. However that spiciness is ever present and makes for quite an unusual Ardbeg.
The palate begins very much like the nose with the surprisingly gentle nutty, spicy oak up first. The oily peat begins to build leading into a dark, spicy, chocolatey middle with the sooty, medicinal peat showing its hand.. Again the overall impression is that is a much more natural bottling with hints of bog myrtle, tobacco and youthful cereal. The oak comes back on the finish with a serious black pepper bite. Superb length with a very sooty finish.
One word of warning though. Do not add water!
Although this is currently showing as out of stock on the website I should have some more in soon.
Ben Nevis 10 year old 46% (website price £33.47)
Re-Tasted: Oct 2011
A pleasant leafy sherried nose with a balancing edgy, granity note and sweet barley. Quite full with the characteristic doughy/ maltiness coming through along with a hint of violets. Pleasant and unpretentious.
The palate is soft and full, opening with some fleshy fruit and barley. Gently sherried and malty on the middle with a balancing granity note. Good honeyed length with a soft spiced finish.
Glen Scotia 12 year old 40%
Re-Tasted: Oct 2011
A solid, rich, gently phenolic nose that has been flattened by caramel. There is some woody orange, honey and malt but it never really raises to the occasion, although a costal note tries it’s hardest to enliven.
The caramel is very noticeable on the palate, yes it is quite full and there are hints of honey and fisherman’s friends but it fades rather quickly to a slightly watery and woody finish. I’m afraid that this has gone down hill since I last tasted it.
Well that’s about if for this newsletter. I had hoped to include the new bottlings from Bruichladdich but unfortunately those samples haven’t arrived as yet, well the DNA 1985 did and I can say that it is stunningly good. Hopefully the others will have arrived in time for the next newsletter. And finally a quick note to say that two new bottlings of Springbank will be arriving shortly – the Longrow Burgundy Wood Expression 56.1%, priced at £60.04 and the return of the legendary Springbank 21, with a legendary price tag of £177.75.
Lastly as this will probably be the last newsletter of the year, I’d like to wish you a pleasant Christmas and that if you do pop into the shop over the festive period say hi.
All the best
Chris Goodrum