Tag Archives: Cloves

All You Need Is Love, Autumn, Breakfast Whisky, Glenmorangie, Let's celebrate!

Glenmorangie Companta – Private Edition release #5 – 46% ABV

 

GLENMORANGIE COMPANTAIf I had a million dollars for every time Glenmorangie came out with a Special Private Edition whisky, I’d be five million dollars richer! Also, I’d use a good chunk of that cash to purchase more of these Private Edition Glenmos (though they tend to be fairly priced between $79-$99 whenever they’re released so I’d still have a good chunk of change left over for, well, more whisky!).

This bottle will run you about $99, maybe a little more depending on who you buy from.

So yes, this is the 5th release of the Glenmorangie Special Private Edition whiskies and **spoiler alert** this one is my favorite from the bunch.

A little unnamable birdie told me that this whisky is made up of:

60% of the vatting = 1999 distillate aged in ex-bourbon casks until 2008 then finished 5 years in Clos de Tart casks. Total age = 14yrs

40% of vatting = 1995 distillate aged in ex-bourbon casks until 2005 then finished in fortified Rasteau casks for 8 years. Total age = 18yrs

So, while this is an NAS (no age statement) bottling, it’s not immature whisky by any stretch of the imagination!

Furthermore, this is bottled at a respectable 46% ABV and non-chill-filtered.  Kudos to Glenmorangie for sticking to these quality requirements.

Let’s give is a taste now…

Glenmorangie CompantaOn the nose — So far it smells like my Tuesday morning: massive presence of red wine gums and hazelnut coffee grounds. (Please don’t tell my wife I sneak some wine gums for breakfast or my tea-snob friends that I indulge in the occasional flavored coffee.)

Burgundy soaked peach halves are an obvious and welcome note but I did not expect the presence of Spanish olives, pimento and all (am I sensing manchego cheese too or just getting hungry?).

Glenmorangie CompantaDeep and dark chocolate with some fresh cut roses. Was Dr. Bill Lumsden thinking of a Valentine’s Day whisky when he created this one?  Hollow out those dark chocolates and fill them with raspberry jam.

Not sure if you’re getting it yet but, boy, this is a decedent dram!  At least on the nose it is.  Time to put it in my mouth. (Hey Hatton, keep it clean!  Pfft.)

Glenmorangie Companta

On the mouth —  Mouth-filling-ly dense, rich and oily.  Wow, this is a big whisky!  The heart is pure Glenmorangie but it’s layered so elegantly with flavors of citrus and clove, sugar cooked pecans, a touch of dark caramel and a dash of toasted and spicy oak.

The scents and flavors are very well integrated.

Glenmorangie CompantaLet’s sip again (no water needed here, folks!): That raspberry jam from the nose is still here and the oil on the tongue only helps.  Add some cranberry to that raspberry mix and perhaps a little more spice.

Loads of stewed red fruits and warming potpourri.

Finish — My one complaint: the finish is a bit on the short side however the final flavor is that of red wine soaked blood oranges and, boy, that’s a nice way to end the experience.  Well I suppose you can just take another sip, right?  Right.

In sum – I know there were some people that went Ga-Ga over the last special release (Ealanta) but this is, in my honest opinion, a far superior whisky.  This is a whisky that is very sure of what it is supposed to be.

The story stays true from beginning to end and the experience on the whole was a whole lot of enjoyment and fun.  If you can get a bottle, get a bottle.  You will not be disappointed.  This is perfect as an evening or morning warmer-upper.

**Special thanks to DB for the sample and to Billy Lumsden for another fine creation.  Well done, sir!

A World of Discovery, Compass Box, Need To Bundle Up

Compass Box – Spice Tree “The Second Coming”

Blended Malt whiskies from the Highlands – 46%ABV – $58 | £35 | €41

There a great story behind the Compass Box Spice Tree and why there needed to be a “Second Coming” of the blend.  You see, this whisky was, at one time, deemed illegal by the SWA due to some interesting and innovative casking practices for this whisky.

To release this new version, Compass Box had to make some tweaks to how the whisky was extra-matured.  Compass Box being Compass Box, the tweaks were made but quality was not adversely effected.  Compass Box explains their new, updated (and now legal) maturing process:

“Over the past three years we have developed a new maturation process which yields similar if not superior results to our previous method, and this new process is something the SWA can’t take any issue with.

As in the past, The Spice Tree is 100% malt whisky sourced from northern Highland distilleries, (notably and primarily malt whisky distilled at the Clynelish distillery). The primary maturation is in a mix of first-fill and refill American oak.

What is different is the secondary maturation. Rather than using inner stave inserts, as we did for the original Spice Tree, we rack the whisky into barrels with heavily toasted new French oak heads. We have created a method for getting a super heavy toast on the cask heads which imparts a flavour profile similar to the flat staves used for the original Spice Tree. We use oak with three different levels of toasting on the barrel heads, thus allowing us to blend the resultant whiskies to create additional layers of complexity. This secondary maturation lasts as long as two years.”

Sounds interesting, right??

On the nose — Inner tire tubes lead to orange zest and cloves.

Biscuits and blackberry bramble.

Some quick hints of dry sherry then an interesting blend of ginger beer and cream soda ride up my nose using the aforementioned inner tire tube.

Hint of soft yet dry red wine.

On the mouth — Big, waxy, chewy and insanely appetizing.

There’s a reason this is called the spice tree; you name it – ginger, cloves, cinnamon, and nutmeg are all joining schwartzes here.

It’s as if those spices are being mixed in a cup of orange vanilla cream.

Cherry tarts.

As we get closer to the finish, there’s an oakiness that comes through.

Finish — Long and oaken with ever lasting hints of vanilla and cherry.

In sum — A lovely after dinner sipper that’s got a decent nose but shines like a diamond in the tasting of it.  An instant favorite for me but I could see this being almost too spiced and sweet for some people.  This is as ‘in-your-face’ as a bourbon yet NOTHING like a bourbon (it is Scotch malt whisky after all).  For bourbon drinkers, this could be a gateway whisky for you into the wide world of Scotch malt whisky.

While I found the Compass Box Hedonism to be my favorite blended whisky of 2010, I think I would have had made a different choice if I reviewed this one last year.

Special thanks goes out to Robin R for the sample!

There are a lot of good reviews out there for this whisky but I thought I’d bring your attention to this one from the Malt Impostor(s) – I love their reviews <jedi mind trick> and so do you </jedi mind trick>

A World of Discovery, All You Need Is Love, Cold Winter, Lagavulin, Let's celebrate!

Lagavulin 21yo – a stunningly magnificent Scotch Whisky!

Islay Region – 56.5%ABV – $895 (750ml) | £575 or €684 (700ml)

Happy Birthday, Happy Birthday… To the JSMWS blog!

That’s right people, today is the one year anniversary of the Jewish Single Malt Whisky Society’s blog.  It’s hard to believe that it’s only been a year since the blog was started.

We celebrated the birth of the blog with an Islay malt – the Ardbeg Uigeadail.  Even though the newer version is slightly different than the one I reviewed, I still can not drink that whisky without thinking of the combination of seaweed, leather, blood and raisins.

Being that the blog was birthed on Islay peat, I thought it’d be a good idea to celebrate the anniversary with Islay peat.

Folks, what I’m about to share the details of has to be the finest whisky I’ve had to date.  Plain and simple.

On the nose — This is 56.5%ABV?!  Insanely soft on the nose.  Not quite sure where to start as this nose seems to be filled with a bazillion different scents…

Instant sweetness – dark brown sugar and black strap molasses.

Sweet cigars, smoked dates (is there such a thing?) and fresh sea air yet something a bit musty or dusty about it.

Warmed and sticky chocolate fudge – I can practically smell the fudge soften!

This is just plain brilliant!

Oysters on the half-shell as well dried and salted whitefish.

Driftwood, salty capers and warm salted carmel.

The nose is incredibly dense and rich and purely decedent.

On the mouth — Much more tannic/dry than expected.

Fantastic smokey attack accompanied by Mineola oranges and powered sugar candies.

The smoke attack turned into a “sweet blast” which then turned quite peppery.

Some more of the oyster notes I got on the nose but now it’s transformed into smoked oysters.

Sugared and dried figs as well as vanilla pods.

Dusty attic furniture, a very active humidor, dates mashed with demerara sugar, nutmeg and cloves.  Fresh potting soil.  The list could go on and on and on…

Finish — Long and nutty with traces of fried walnuts, green olives and a honeyed oakiness.

In sum — Do you have an extra $900 or so?  If so, buy a bottle STAT.  This is the ultimate in smoky celebratory whisky.  I had this one to celebrate the one year anniversary of the blog.  A well chosen dram for the occasion.

If I had a full bottle, I’d save the next dram for my oldest daughter’s Bat Mitzvah.  Yup, I’d wait 9 years to pour this again.  It’s worth the wait.

Unending thanks goes out to Stephen L, Marshall N, the LA Scotch Club and the Green Bay Packers.

A World of Discovery, Bowmore, Caol Ila, Eades, Takin' It Easy

Eades Double Malt – Islay

An Islay vatting of Coal Il & Bowmore – 46%ABV – 750ml – $70

A while back, during my last trip to Chicago, I was in Binny’s checking out their selection and these Eades bottles caught my attention.  Eades Double Malt.  What is a Double Malt?

We know what Single Malt means, right?  Malt whisky from a single distillery.  So, what’s double malt?  It’s the combination/marriage of two single malts by Jim McEwan of Bruichladdich for The Virginia Distilling Company.  For the Islay Double Malt he took an 18yr Caol Ila and a 10yr Bowmore, matured them further in a Chateau d’Yquem Sauternes & Grenache cask (respectively).  He then took 30% of that Caol Ila and 70% of the Bowmore, mixed them up, bottled them up and bam! – we have the Eades Double Malt – Islay.

Sounds interesting right? Right.

Before I go much further, I need to thank Pat J for the samples of this and the soon to be posted Speyside and Highland Double Malts.

Let’s see if this stuff is worth it’s weight in whisky:

On the nose — Big, thick nose filled with burning twigs and smoldering Birkenstocks (cork, rubber, leather – slightly charred).

Push this aside and now I’m confronted with royal jelly.

That classic Bowmore soapiness rears it’s head (you know, anytime I hear the term “rears it’s head” I get the impression of… well, think about it for a second… got it?  Good).

Tannins are there.

Indian summer – humid, damp… fresh rain on asphalt.

Cranberries.  What a nose!

On the mouth — Sweet smoke and a super succulent mouth feel.

Very smooth and silky.

The smoke now moves to the background as fall like flavors come to the fore.

Think of cloves and nutmeg.

Some nuttiness and apricots in there (the Sauternes influence for sure).

Drying leaves and honeyed herbal teas.

That fresh rain note is in the flavor as well.

Delicious!

Finish — Toasted apple peels.  Honey, subtle smoke.

In sum — Oooof!  What an interesting combination of aromas and flavors!  There is a lot happening here!  Insanely drinkable as an easy-goer but you can deconstruct the heck out of this too (if you want).  One to enjoy with friends.  Start it off as a conversation piece.  I guarantee you’ll be coming back to it no matter where the conversation goes.  For the academia folks out there – this is a back to school dram.

All You Need Is Love, An everyday dram, Autumn, Balvenie, Springtime, Takin' It Easy

The Balvenie 12yr DoubleWood – a tale of two noses.

Speyside – 43%ABV – 750ml – $35-40 | £30 | €36

Balvenie week, Day #4.

Alright, we’re coming down the pike here.  Only two days left of The Balvenie week.  I’ve decided to save my favorite Balvenie whiskies for the last two days.

Here, on our fourth day, I am featuring what is quite possibly one of the best bang-for-your-buck whiskies out today.  Full, rich in character and in flavor and… for only $35-$40??  Come on.

There are other bang-for-your-buck whiskies out there and I think that the good folks over at whiskyparty.net do a great job with their top 40 whiskies under $40 series.  Check it out (then come back).

Also, as an aside and with regards to The Balvenie DoubleWood, this whisky was my good friend Gal Granov’s (Whisky Israel) gateway dram.  You can read about it here in this interview with him on chwisgi.com.

As with my other Balvenie Week posts –  before we get to my review of today’s whisky, please sit back and enjoy this exclusive video with a very special employee of The Balvenie (please note that my saying this is not meant to imply that the other Balvenie workers we’ve shown aren’t special) – today’s guest is Dennis McBain, Coppersmith for The Balvenie for nearly 51 years.  You can read more about Dennis here and here.  I am very honored that he agreed to be recorded for this series.  Dennis, thank you.

Now, my review of Dennis’ favorite Bavenie expression, the DoubleWood:

On the nose – A tale of two noses.

Initial few whiffs offer up great (though not overwhelming) sherried notes filled with chocolates & licorice.  

Better yet, chocolate covered licorice (yes, it exists).

Wine soaked raisins.

Right beside these scents I get notes of a full jar of honey and cup of vanilla tea.

Clove laden orange.

On the mouth – Succulent.

Warm.  Warming.

Chewy toffees and warm butter.

Boston baked beans (the candy coated peanuts).

More sugared nuts.

Finish – Baklava.  Walnuts.  Medium length.

In sum – A solid… let me rethink then restate this…  Beyond a “solid” whisky, it’s a must have.

Inexpensive and interesting enough to give to your guests who have the occasional whisky (perhaps this one will turn them into whisky geeks – as mentioned, that’s how it happened for Gal of Whisky Israel), complex enough for the whisky connoisseur, easy enough to be an every day drinker.