Tag Archives: Citrus

Kavalan, Springtime, Takin' It Easy

Kavalan Single Malt Whisky “Solist”, ex-bourbon, cask strength

Taiwan – 58.2%ABV – 200ml sample (thanks to Ian Chang of Kavalan for the sample)

This is the final day Gal of Whisky Israel and I will be sharing our thoughts on the Kavalan range.  While I’m not tasting these whiskies blindly, Gal and I will not be sharing our thoughts on these whiskies prior to our posting them.  Be sure to check out Gal’s notes on this whisky (a link to Gal’s review is listed below my notes).

Well, so far, for the Kavalan range, I’ve really enjoyed their King Car whisky.  The “Concertmaster” port finished whisky was good (if a little off balance) and the Sherry cask “Solist” was quite the delicious pick-me-up.

This final “Solist” is also a cask strength whisky.  Kavalan have an ex-bourbon cask strength (this one I’m reviewing today) and an ex-sherry (yesterday’s review).

I am a big fan of ex-bourbon cask whiskies and if they’re cask strength… bonus!

Let’s see what we get:

On the nose – Big bright bourbony nose filled with vanilla and coconut (almost like a Sno-ball.

Also rubbing alcohol and tropical fruits (think pineapples and even a little guanabana).

Fresh cream (and creamy smelling).

On the mouth – Creamy mouth feel – very nice.

Vanilla and honey.

Birch beer with some high effervescence – it’s all fizzy in my mouth.

Finish – Long, more fizziness, lemon drops and vanilla ice cream.

In sum – A straight forward, light and fruity whisky.  Very impressed with the mouth feel – creamier than I expected, but with some lasting fizz to it – right up my alley.

This is a big, young sweet treat.  Early spring in a warming sun is just right for her.

I truly had a lot of fun reviewing these whiskies (and doing so with Gal!).  I look forward to their being more widely available and feel the world is ready for more “world” whiskies.

Be sure to read Gal’s review here.

An everyday dram, Kavalan, Summertime

Kavalan Single Malt Whisky – King Car Whisky

Taiwan – 40%ABV – 200ml sample (thanks to Ian Chang of Kavalan for the sample)

I first heard about Kavalan single malt whisky back in January when Luxist posted the details of a blind taste test with Charles Maclean as a taster:

“In a blind taste test organized as part of Scotland’s Burn’s Night festivities a Taiwanese Whisky shocked everyone by coming out as the clear winner over its Scottish and English rivals.

The contest took place in a hostelry north of Edinburgh and when the results were announced whisky connoisseur Charles MacLean exclaimed “Oh my God, is this an April Fools?” The scores tallied up with Taiwan’s Kavalan receiving 27.5 points out of a possible 40, with the next place (the premium Scottish brand Langs) scoring only 22 points.  The other competitors were Scotland’s King Robert (20 points), England’s St George (15.5 points), and Scotland’s Bruchladdich X4+3 (only 4.5 points out of the possible 40).

Kavalan comes from Taiwan’s first distillery, which was built by a firm from Banffshire, and uses Scottish malt in its production.”

This is the beauty of blind tasting.  Take away the label and all presumptions dissolve.

For the next four days, Gal of Whisky Israel and I will be sharing our thoughts on the Kavalan range.  While I’m not tasting these whiskies blindly, Gal and I will not be sharing our thoughts on these whiskies prior to our posting them.  Be sure to check out Gal’s notes on this whisky (a link to Gal’s review is listed below my notes).

On the nose – Light nose.

A touch grassy and very honied.

Hints of pears.

Coconut soup with all of the fixings but mainly some lime leaf.

Sugared hard candies.

On the mouth – Perfect mouthfeel – almost succulent.

Citrusy.

Fresh ground coffee.

Cooked sugar.

Finish – Sweet finish.

Medium length and traces of tropical fruits.

In sum – While not an overly complex whisky, it’s balanced quite nicely and dangerously drinkable.  Though not an everyday dram, I can picture myself reaching for this any day I’m looking for something light.  A nice summer dram.  Enjoy in warmer weather.

You can read Gal’s notes here.

A World of Discovery, Highland Park, Summertime

Highland Park 10yr Single Cask – Bottled for the SMWSA – Cask number 4.142

Islands region – 700ML – 750ml bottle – Go here to join the society & gain access to their bottles

So, beyond bottling some fine whiskies, the SMWS (in America) puts on a series of tasting events called “The Single Malt & Scotch Whisky Extravaganza“.  The “Extravaganza” is now in it’s 17th year.  If you’ve never been to one of their events, you may want to change that, and soon!

Perhaps I can help.  I’ve been working with the good folks at the society and they were kind enough to extend to me a discount code for my readers; specifically for people who are not members of the SMWSA.  Tickets to one of their Extravaganzas, for members, are $120.00ea, non-members are $135.00ea.  If you use the discount code JMS10, all of you non-members can purchase your first two tickets at the member price of $120.00.  Not bad!

For more information on the SMWS events and on how to purchase your tickets, click here.

See below for a full listing of their fall events schedule.  I always jump at a chance to meet my readers so, for those coming to the Boston event, drop me a line: jewmalt [at] yahoo [dot] com – I’d enjoy the chance to talk with you.

Now, onto the review of what I think is a fine Highland Park:

On the nose – Chewy sweets gums like Jujyfruits; the lemon ones specifically (these are also known as wine gums to my friends on the other side of the pond).

Increasingly fruity and altogether tropical (papaya, horned melon, mango).

Very tangy and a deliciously smoked backbone.

Not smoky but smoked; like smoked cheese (interesting, I’ve been finding this note in a few of the whiskies I’ve had as of late.  Maybe I shouldn’t do these reviews on an empty stomach…).

Rosewater chews/Turkish delights.

On the mouth – Hello you little shapeshifter.

I think this is more a transformer than it is a whisky – tons of sweet coconut; both toasted and the milk thereof, salt, nail polish and vanilla.

What started off as a thin mouth feel gets viscous, the taste of the smell of hot plastic milk jugs (tee-hee, I said jugs…).

The smoked quality I got on the nose is gone giving way to some nice sharp cheddar notes but the body now has a smoky tone to it (just around the edges).

Like I said, this is a transformer, not a whisky 🙂

Finish – Makes the mouth water with hints of powdered sugar and the rosewater pops again.

Long and strong like bull.

In sum – Another summer dram with lots to offer.  Very different from any OB Highland Park I’ve had but hey, that’s OK.  It’s more than OK.  It’s wonderful, surprising and welcome.  Thank you single cask whiskies, thank you SMWSA!

As a reminder, a short while back I did an interview with Alan Shayne (President of the SMWSA and an all around great guy).  To read that, click here.

A World of Discovery, Autumn, Bowmore, Double Barrel, Highland Park, Need To Bundle Up

Double Barrel vatting of Highland Park & Bowmore

A vatting of Highland Park & Bowmore – 46% ABV – $60 | £34 |€39

Forging forward with reviews of  blended/vatted whiskies.  Today I present a Double Barrel expression by Douglas Laing.  A combination of Highland Park & Bowmore.

Douglas Laing is one of the more prominent independent bottlers who brings us the Old Malt Cask, Premium Barrel & Provenance bottlings.  They also are the masterminds behind Big Peat and, now, these Double Barrel expressions.

Similar to the Eades Double Malt expressions I recently reviewed, the Double Barrel whiskies are vattings (or blends) of two different single malts.  The difference being that these are not further matured in wine casks (like the Eades double malts are).  As far as I can tell, both the Highland Park & Bowmore are ex-bourbon casks with no extra finishing (very light in color!).

On the nose – A tricky nose here.  Bowmore whiskies are known for their soapy noses and I’ve found a few un-sherried Highland Parks to have the same quality.

So, at first sniff, it’s tough to tell which malt is stronger, or, which is which.

Let’s focus on the scents, shall we?

Garlic cloves and lemon zest.

Peachy, fruity handsoap.

Crispy tempura batter.

White pepper and turmeric.

On the mouth – Fresh lake water.

Orange zinger tea bags.

Exceedingly citrusy – vanilla notes are there but the citrus cuts right through.

Astro pop brand lollipops.

Very malty with traces of pears and honey.

Decent mouth feel, not thin, not oily.

Lingering smoke weaved throughout.

Finish – A lasting numbness on the back of the tongue.  Peppery finish.

In sum – A very enjoyable nose here.  Lots for the foodies out there.  While I enjoyed the flavor it seemed a bit off balance and the play by play between the vanilla notes and the citrus notes was uneven.  Overall, I did enjoy this expression and am curious to see what else the good folks at Douglas Laing will come up with next.   Perhaps it’s the mood I’m in now but, I’ like to sip on this again soon (in other words, this is a nice Autumnal whisky)

Special thanks goes out to Aron of the SMWSA for the sample!

A World of Discovery, All You Need Is Love, Autumn, Glenglassaugh, Let's celebrate!

Glenglassaugh 26yr Whisky – 46%ABV

Highland Region – 50%ABV – 750ml (or 700ml outside of the US) – $260 | £150 | €180

After a few days of tasting “spirit drinks”, it’s nice to get onto some actual whisky.  Don’t get me wrong, I very much enjoyed the past three spirits I tasted but, to me, whisky is where it’s at.

Older Glenglassaugh whiskies are, well, old of course, but also very rare and therefore very expensive.  What we have here today, however, is a fairly old Glenglassaugh at a price that’s… not too bad (given the age and rarity of it).  Believe me, I understand $260 | £150 | €180 is A LOT of money for many people (myself included).

Let’s put the money out of our minds for a second and perhaps focus on the whisky itself.  As opposed to their 40yr (that review is forthcoming) and their 30yr expression, this whisky is NOT cask strength.  However, it’s still bottled at the fairly strong ABV of 46%.  Still acceptable, if you ask me (if it were 40%, I may have shuttered a bit but hey, that’s me).

This 26yr old whisky was distilled only 2 years before Glenglassaugh was mothballed back in 1986.  For more history on Glenglassaugh and it’s grand reopening back in 2008, you’ll find links at the bottom of this post to an interview I did with the distillery’s Managing Director, Stuart Nickerson.

Without any further ado, my review:

On the nose – Smells juicy and fruity (think sugared lemonwheels).

Brown paper lunch bags.

Oaky new humidor scent.

The more I nose it, the more prickly on the nose hairs it becomes.

Vanilla and caramels.

More oak but, not over oaked – extremely inviting.

Smoke deep in the background?  Could it be?

On the mouth – Oak and butterscotch.

Buttered cinnamon crumpets (my favorite breakfast treat!).

Such an wonderful balance, very well integrated.

Warmed nuts at a baseball game (on another type of  blog, this statement would mean something quite different).

The mouth feel is pleasant.  Not big and chewy like I prefer but nowhere near like holding water in the mouth.

Finish – Short and nutty with that brown paper bag note I detected in the nose emerging from the palate’s belfry.

In sum – Another celebratory whisky from Glenglassaugh.  Perfect for when the air starts to cool as summer rolls into autumn.  The bottle is both sexy and regal (and can be reused as a decanter).

For Jason of Guid Scotch Drink’s notes, click here.

I recently had the honor and good opportunity to interview Stuart Nickerson (Managing Director of the newly re-opened Glenglassaugh distillery).  If you’ve not yet had a chance to read it, you may want to do so right now. Part 1 & Part 2