Category Archives: Let’s celebrate!

A World of Discovery, Brora, Let's celebrate!, Takin' It Easy

Hey Dora, you want some more’a that Chieftain’s 30yo Brora?

Highlands Region – 54.6%ABV – Sherry Butt # 1523 – 469 bottles –  1981/2011 – 30yo – was $249 at K&L Wines but is sadly all sold out (in a pre-release sale nonetheless!)

…how about you Fauna? You wanna?

A gold star to the first person that gets the references in this post’s title and in the first sentence.

It’s not often you get a chance to have Brora in your glass and when you do you need to give thanks to G-d, Adonai, the Whisky Fairy, El, Elvis… what ever you call your higher power.  Brora whiskies are like hens teeth.  Very expensive hens teeth (though comparatively speaking, at $249, this 30 Brora is cheap.  The last 30yo Brora I reviewed was from a $400 bottle!)

The Brora distillery, or “old Clynelish” as it’s sometimes referred to, closed in 1983 (along with many other distilleries).  It’s stills are no longer operational.  We’ll never see this lost distillery opened again which is quite sad as they produced stellar spirit!

As I pointed out in my last review of a Brora whisky, Serge Valentin of WhiskyFun! did a great piece on the Brora distillery over at the Connosr website.  It’s well worth a read.

On to the whisky at hand.

On the nose — Upon first nosing there’s an oh-so noticeable waft of sherry and oak.  It sort of slaps you.  Wakes you up.  Well, I’m already awake and prefer not to be slapped.

Let’s give this whisky a little time with some air.  (Ten minutes go by.)

It’s amazing how I am rewarded just by simply displaying a touch of patience.  The sherried notes are there, yes, as is the oak/age.  However, wonderful hints of mint and fennel followed by smoked caramels (salted) say hello to my nose.  Hi.

I am now able to inhale deeply and when I do there’s a fair amount of black pepper and some cured meats (think Linguiça).

Increasingly peppery with traces of dried fruits and tanning oil.

On the mouth — Wow.  Wow-wow.  Deliciously oily and slightly waxy.

Bursts of pepper along the sides of the tongue, crushed fruit cherry bars and sweet rose water up the center of the tongue.

Baked apples with a ton of brown spices and sugar.

Pot pourri, fig newtons.  Lots of fig cookie qualities here – breading and all.

Hints of smoke here and there.  Everytime you think you found the smoke, it hides away.

Not a touch of sulfur or a bit of that over-oaked “quality” you’d be concerned with in an older whisky such as this.

Finish — Incredibly lengthy with an Oolong, floral sweetness at the way back of the tongue.

In sum —  A absolute stunning single cask of whisky.  One of the best I’ve had this year.  Easily.  Balanced, luxurious, indulgent and warming.

Kudos to Chieftain’s for choosing this cask of Brora (great choice!)  and adding it to their range.

A World of Discovery, Highland Park, Let's celebrate!, Springtime, Summertime

Highland Park Thor. Hammers not included.

Islands region – 52.1%ABV – $180 | £120

I want to take the high road and not talk about the packaging choice for this whisky.  However, such a statement suggests that I am not a fan of the packaging and this is simply not the case.

I actually think the packaging is sort of cool.  Is it a bit over the top?  Yes.  Does it add on cost to the final selling price of the product?  Of course it does.  Can I use the wooden portion in someway?  (If I ever start playing Dungeons and Dragons again and *need* a prop to represent the boat to cross the River Styx???)  You’re gosh darned right I can!

I dig the concept for this new line of whiskies from Highland Park – a line that highlights Orkney’s Scandinavian history.  I also like the fact that, as opposed to the four vintages released by Highland Park recently, this whisky (23,000 bottles in all) is released at cask strength.

If I have one complaint about Highland Park (and I think there’s *only one* complaint), it’s that a majority of their whiskies are released at 40-43% ABV.  Thor, on the other hand, has been bottled at the wonderfully tasty strength of 52.1%ABV.

So, let us see how the Hammer of the Gods tastes.  Will it pack a punch?  Can it live up to the legend of Thor’s might?  I’m dying to find out…

On the nose — Forceful, sweet and malty, this Highland Park grabbed me off the bat with lovely, lightly smoked, tropical fruits (a mixture of pineapple and lemon).

I can not tell a lie, the nose on this whisky is intoxicatingly beautiful.

There’s a bit of spice and orange flavored salt water taffies.

The balance between sweet, spice, malt, light peating level…  Really, really lovely.

On the mouth — The peat is much more upfront here.  In fact, it’s the first thing to greet me upon initial sip.

Spicy along the side of the tongue.  Sweet and malty (again) right down the center of the tongue.

There’s a good deal of honey comb in here and the mouthfeel is both oily and effervescent-like at the same time.

There’s a fruity tartness here as well.

While *nothing* like the Highland Park 18yo, it has the same wonderful balance found in that whisky.

Finish — Long, spicy, oily and filled with slightly burned things.

In sum —  Four words: I am in love.  While I join the camp that thinks the packaging is over the top, there’s no denying that the liquid inside the bottle is exquisite.  I *shudder* at the thought that people will buy this whisky for its packaging and stick it on their whisky shelf to collect dust with the rest of the collection.  This whisky needs to be enjoyed.  Yeah, it’s that good.

Special thanks to Steph R for the sample!

Autumn, Cold Winter, Dalmore, Let's celebrate!, Sirius Whisky Purveyors

Sirius Whisky Purveyors – 1964 single cask of Dalmore

Highlands region – 60%ABV – $$??

Being that I don’t know much about this whisky (the exception being that it’s single cask, cask strength, 47 years old, natural color and no artificial coloring added) or the full scope of what Sirius Whisky Purveyors is up to with their whiskies, I’m going to keep the preamble to a minimum.

What I do know is that Sirius is an independent bottler to the Nth degree.  Pun is actually intended here as Sirius is owned and run by Mahesh Patel – the man responsible for a very unique whisky show – the “Nth” or, Universal Whisky Experience — THE ultimate whisky show with respects to it featuring only the oldest, rarest, high cost whiskies.

It’s no wonder that Mahesh has chosen this cask of Dalmore (in addition to many other casks soon to be released) – it screams premium!  A 47 year old single cask of Dalmore?  You know it.

Whisky shows as well as old and premium single malts aside, Mahesh is a heck of a guy.  A total charmer.  Personable, smart, sweet and, man, he knows his whisky!

I will release more information about Sirius Whisky Purveyors as soon as it’s available to me.

On the nose –  Sharp and bright yet its age is made known.  Notes of sugar cane and demerara rum.

Tiramisu and a big, boozy orange with traces of cloves and allspice.

Interesting note here – raw ramen noodles!  For a 47yo whisky – this is very alive.  Not at all tired.

Roasted nuts, pickled ones too.

A full humidor cigar shop (I’m thinking Corona Cigar Company in Florida).

The addition of water softens the whisky a bit and adds a “dusty” element and puts a focus on the tobacco notes.

On the mouth – Incredibly hot.  I think it’s safe to say that some water will help to open this one up a bit – it’s quite, tight.  The addition of water is like sending this to a whisky masseuse.

An interesting mix of what you’ve come to know and love from a sherried whisky (tobacco, prunes, cinnamon, cloves, citrus, etc…) but there’s a young, juicy quality here that I can only equate to Hi-C fruit juice – hey, I have kids.  What do you expect?

A touch of brine and a good deal of spice.

Finish – Decent length with allspice and oranges.

In sum – This whisky not only holds up to water but shines with it.  Without the water, I found it to be just too hot (for my tastes).  With water though, it’s really lovely.  No signs of its age from an over-oaked perspective.  However, it’s age shows in terms of complexity.  A touch off balance without water but spot on with.

I’m not sure what the cost of this whisky will be but my guess is a 47yo Dalmore will cost a pretty shekel so you’re most likely going to break this out for the “special times” in life or, this will make a great addition to your whisky collection (if that’s your bag).

A World of Discovery, Glenfarclas, Let's celebrate!

Glenfarclas 1953 Single Cask

 

Highlands Region – 47.2% ABV – $9479.71 | £5995

I’m going to keep the typing down to a minimum because, as you’ll see below, I’ve hand written this post and all of the tasting notes to accompany it.  It was suggested to me by a good friend to write the notes as if I was actually in 1953 so, I grabbed a pencil and paper and, viola!

What I am about to review is the oldest whisky to EVER be released by Glenfarclas.  A 58 year old whisky, this was distilled in 1953 and is one of 4 cask of its age – the oldest in all of Glenfarclas’ stock.

The single cask rendered just about 400 bottles and all of them are available exclusively through Master of Malt.

A 1953 Glenfarclas, 58 years old… I have very lucky taste buds and they are all thankful.  Very thankful.  I mention it in my review but a HUGE thanks goes out to the folks at Master of Malt, George Grant of Glenfarclas and Michal Kowalski for the generous sample!

And now, the review – there are two jpgs you can click on to view the pages in full size on a PDF if the type is too small or difficult to read – the PDFs are about 8mb each so they may take a couple of moments to download for viewing:

A World of Discovery, Autumn, Bruichladdich, Let's celebrate!, Octomore, Springtime

Bruichladdich’s Octomore “Comus” – Ummm, wow.

Islay Region – 61%ABV – £95 | $150

Sad fact of life – there is a lot of ugliness in the world.

From Hitler’s Nazi Germany to 9/11 and Bin Laden to that girl I met online all of those years ago that had a hump on her back, bad breath and broccoli in her teeth, the world can be an ugly place.

However, there is a lot of beauty as well.

From a young boy helping an elderly woman across the road to the wonders of new life and happy parents to One Day at a Time’s Valerie Bertinelli (she’s the young one in the middle, if you’ve never seen the show):

Boy, did I have a crush on her back in the day!!

Yes, the world can be beautiful and have gorgeous things in it.  Today’s pageant winner is the new Octomore Comus 4.2.

Bottled at 61%ABV, this 5yo was matured in French Oak/Sauternes casks and apparently peated to 167ppm.  Sweet Yoheved, mother of Moshe!  That is a heavy peating level!

Let’s see what happens when you take *heavily* peated spirit and mature it in French Oak/Sauternes casks for five years:

On the nose –  The canister and bottle say so.  Bruichladdich’s website and marketing materials echo it.  Various webshops concur.  The barley for this here Octomore was peated to 167ppm prior to distilling.

Well, heck if I can smell 167ppm worth of peating here.

It’s no doubt a peaty/smoky beast but, my face did not catch fire when sniffing at this whisky…

There’s smoke in here for sure but I’m also taken by crushed almonds and buttered biscuits.

A very briny nose as well – salted porridge.

Hard red plum minus the tartness.

Wow, the toasted biscuits with slightly darker edges really captures my attention.

There’s a spiciness here that flirts with cigarette smoke and a touch of salted black licorice in the background…

On the mouth – Like drinking one of Marc Bolan’s powder blue velvet suits – the mouth is incredibly soft and silky.  Almost honey like.  I’m reminded a bit of the mouthfeel on Glenmorangie’s Pride (another Sauternes casked whisky).  Remarkable mouthfeel.

A good deal of smoke upfront however this relents to waves of golden raisin, coconut, chocolate…. hermit bars.

Pears and apple are here too but not the tell tale pear and apple from a young whisky – this seems cask driven as it’s not spirity, if you catch my meaning.

Slightly buttery (maybe it’s just a mouthfeel thing…)

A bit spicy, more nutty notes (walnuts this time) and cooked and candied lemons.

Finish – Shortish with fruity & smoky notes.  There is brine and spice that stays on the back of the tongue.

In sum – This Octomore offers up balance and beauty like none before it.  Yes, the other Octomores I’ve had are/were very nice and well constructed but the Comus is above and beyond… a cut above, the big cheese, the head honcho, numero uno (sorry, I let my inner love for Airplane come out there).

One would never know this is 61%ABV.  Wonderful at cask strength.  Celebrate with this.

If you have nothing to celebrate – make something up…  It could be national “That’s what she said” day for all I care.

This whisky is so worth your time.

Truthfully, one of the best whiskies I’ve had year to date.

Special thanks to PJ, DF & EC of Bruichladdich for their tremendous hard work to get me the sample!!

*Special-Special* thanks goes out to ParcelForce for getting me the package in record time!  The sample was sent from the UK on Friday afternoon and arrive at my house on Monday afternoon.  THAT’S service!!