Tag Archives: Effervescent

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!

An everyday dram, Autumn, Peat's Beast, Springtime

Peat’s Beast Single Malt Whisky

Region of Scotland – ?? – ABV 46% – Released on March 27th, according to the bottlers, specifically in conjunction with “World Whisky Day.   You can find a bottle at Mast of Malt for £38 (not available in US stores but MoM does ship to the US).

A few months back I received an email that basically said:  Hey there, I’m sure you hear this all of the time but, we want to send you a sample of a single malt, un-chill filtered whisky and are curious to know your thoughts.

The obvious response to a statement such as the above is, well, “Ummm, OK.”

I followed up, mind you, with some questions:

What are the details of the whisky?

Who produces or who bottles it?

The response was basically… well, there was no response.  But you know what?  I sort of liked that!!

A short while later, just prior to the whisky arriving at my doorstep, another email came my way telling me that the whisky in question was to be called “Peat’s Beast” and that it was a intensely peaty whisky.

There was also mention of Richard Paterson giving his tasting notes on the Peat’s Beast website but they were very clear – Richard’s review was simply that – a review and they were independent and in no way tied to Whyte and Mackaye.

So, all I knew at this point (as well as all I now know) is that:

  1. Peat’s Beast is a single malt whisky, not a blend
  2. Peat’s Beast is, well, peaty
  3. It’s bottled at 46% ABV and there is no chill filtration.

Nothing about age, distillery, terrior.  Nothing.

You sneeky-cheeky-monkeys!!!

Let’s investiage…

Color — Very pale – like a Sauvignon Blanc (young 1st fill bourbon casks or a 2nd fill?  A mixture of 1st, 2nd and refill casks?  The world may never know…).

On the nose –  This little beastie does offer up some smoke infused notes (peat smoke indeed) but what I find most striking, and enjoyable, is the waft of lavender then lilac that floats above it all.

Reminiscent of a whisky dunnage warehouse, dirt and oak in all.

A tiny hint of apricot and buttery crumpet.  Fruits that tend to give away a whiskies youth: Pear and maybe (maybe) a touch of apple.

Not so much a big beast but I’ve had other self-proclaimed peat monsters that haven’t offered up some of the interesting floral tones I’m getting with this one.

So far, so good.

On the mouth – This is where the fiery roar comes in to play.  Lots of burning twigs.  Very peppery.  A snuffed out spring campfire (snuffed by spring morning dew with the slightest hint of spring moss rolling around here).

Not big with the mouthfeel but not overly watery.  A young effervescing quality to this whisky.

New buds, young wood.

Not sure if this is all inspired by spring fever but it’s all on the burning of old brush and in the with new life for me with this one.  This does pack a smokey wallop (though not very peaty as the nose initially suggested, just very smoky).

Finish – Longer than I expected given that this is supposed to be a younger whisky.  Peppery and smoke lasts and tingles the sides of the tongue.

In sum – A satisfying young, brash whisky that will satisfy most (I include myself that that “most” category).  Bottled at a solid ABV (46%) and the fact that it’s non-chill filtered and there was no color added makes me smile.

I can find myself pouring this as a no-brainer, “I need a smoky whisky”, whisky.  I like young peaty whiskies and if you do, too, then you can’t go wrong with this whisky.

Special thanks to Pauline G for the sample!

Let's celebrate!, Strathlsia

Strathisla 1957 (bottled in 2007), Gordon and MacPhail 43%ABV

Speyside region – 43%ABV – £194

Now ain’t this something here?!  My first 50yo reviewed on the blog…  Big thanks goes out to Red for the sample swap.  A few CL of my precious Glenmorangie Margaux Cask for some of his 1957 Strathisla – seemed fair enough.

Not only is this my first reviewed 50yo whisky (though I have had other 50+yo whiskies before), this is my first Strathisla.  Some of these Strathislas are legendary (or so they say).  I’ve had a few friends that could say nothing more than that they could not fully understand what what going on in their mouth as they sipped it – just odd, great stuff.  Hearing this, I could not wait to taste some.

I’m going to move straight into the tasting notes but, as a bit of a spoiler alert, I loved this stuff!!

On the nose — It’s all about crazy right here.  What stops me in my path is a strong sense of dill weed and chives.  I’ve gotten that note one other time in Master of Malt’s 50yo release…  Wacky.

There’s a sharp, bright and lemony quality here as well.  So far, it doesn’t seem like a crotchety old whisky.

Oak influence is here, no doubt but either it (so far) is not over oaked or the addition of water to bring this whisky to its bottled strength of 43% helped to subdue the uber-dryness that is often associated with old whiskies.

A new (now old) box of M.U.S.C.L.E. men figure type plastic-y notes.

Pouring water over stones in a Swedish sauna with a hint or two of smoke in the background.

On the mouth — Lovely high sweetness here (astro-pops, wax lips… tons of penny store candies).

Quite herbal as well (tough to place all of the various herb type notes but, wow.  really nice).

A fantastic mouthfeel – oily yet a bit fizzy-feeling on the sides of the tongue.  Incredibly fresh.

Part of me doesn’t even want to dissect – I just want to enjoy.  But for you, dear reader, I shall forge on!

Fresh fruit platter with sprigs of parsley thrown about it.

Great notes of light red wines, plum wines and fine armagnac (with just a touch of a petrol quality to it.  A quality I often fine in armagnacs).

Finish — Fruity and a tad salty (just a tad), slight smoke, bright and long!

In sum —  Can not consider myself lucky enough to have tasted a whisky such as this.  The quality is amazing – a delicious and well balanced whisky through and through!  If you can get a bottle, I suggest you enjoy and share and do what these guys suggest:

Serge Valentin of WhiskyFun seemed to love this one too.

Glenglassaugh, Let's celebrate!, Takin' It Easy

Sharing is caring – Glenglassaugh’s “The First Cask”

Highland region – 59.1% ABV – £90 – Distillery only bottling (though available through the distillery’s online store until it’s sold out) – 650 bottles.

Who does this?  Who reopens a distillery, gets it’s up and running (a long & difficult process), fills the first cask, and then instead of holding that cask for years and years to make major beau coup bucks/quid say… 18-30 years from now, he releases the whisky only three years into maturation.

Stuart Nickerson does, that’s who.

And while, truth be told, I initially thought the idea was a crazy one… I think the move did a really great job of saying “Thank You!” to all of us who have been supporting the distillery and waiting with baited breath for it to release its first whisky in about twenty-five years.

Thank you, Mr. Nickerson, for releasing Glenglassaugh’s first baby.

While the move to release the First Cask might have been a maverick one I would submit, too, that the make up of the cask is also a maverick move.  The “First Cask” is not just whisky that’s stayed in that single cask for 3 years to then be bottled.  No.  Instead, Mr. Nickerson concocted an interesting maturation recipe to help give this whisky its unusual flavor profile.  Here is the description straight from the distillery itself:

“The very first cask, a refill butt, that was filled on that “first cask filling day in 2008” was emptied and refilled into 2 smaller casks on the 16th December 2010. These smaller casks were a first fill ex-Pedro Ximenez (PX) sherry hogshead and a first-fill ex-Palo Cortado sherry hogshead. On the 16th September 2011 the whiskies were returned from these two casks into the original butt and are now marrying  for a period of exactly three months.”

That’s quite a journey in such a short period of time for this first distillate to be matured!  What it has done to the whisky is even more interesting…

On the nose –  Massive, massive waves of fruit and mostly of the tinned variety with a fairly clear focus on the halved cherries and the heavy syrup those fruits swim about in.

What seems to be evident is the natural fruitiness of the Glenglassaugh spirit is being amplified with the unusual choice of casks and maturation.

Pickled walnuts and perfumed tobacco leaves/cigars.

Yeah… all of the scents are, for lack of a better term, “chunked up” (and made moreish), I think, by the casking journey of the whisky.

On the mouth –  Vanilla cream soda and orange drink powder.

Sweet and fruity and now we’re back to those tinned fruits…

Clementine, cherries and papaya…  Puckering stuff.

Slightly oily yet quick to an effervescence and then over to a drying quality with ever increasing spice and powerful sweetness.

Tobacco floats over the tongue as do young mangoes.

Finish – Pickled walnuts (again), long and effervescent still.

In sum – So. Very. Drinkable.  Restraint is needed; it’s right up my alley.

Yes, this is young stuff but it’s got a depth beyond its 3 years.  So nice to see that the spirit quality shines through yet the wood influence (three different types of sherry influence) is so strong that it makes you think this is an older dram than what’s in your glass.  If you have a bottle or can get a bottle (they will ship to the USA, btw)… drink the stuff.  Yes, it’s the first cask from the new ownership but it was shared for a reason – to enjoy; not to lie dormant.

Other thoughts on the First Cask from Glenglassaugh:

Iain over at Dramperday.com seems to have enjoyed it.

Jason at guidscotchdrink.com clearly finds the stuff as drinkable as I do.

A World of Discovery, All You Need Is Love, Glenfiddich, I'd not drink this one if I were you...

Four Glenfiddich Single Malts all under one review – 15yo, 15yo “102”, Glenfiddich 21yo Rum Finish & Snow Phoenix

Speyside region – Four expressions from Glenfiddich.

As I write this post, I am holed up in a hotel room room with my two little girls asleep in a king-sized bed in the next room while my wife and I are cuddled up on our hide-away couch/bed.

You see, we’ve been sort-of victimized by hurricane Irene.

Thank G-d (B”H) we and our family not hurt and our house is damage-free.  I consider us lucky compared to some people I know who’ve had their houses completely flooded; trees down on their houses, etc…  We’re lucky.  We’re only victims of an extended power outage.  Power should be restored sometime next week and once we have power, we’ll have water.  Not to get to graphic but, toilets are only good when they work.  It’s a shitty situation.

I hope and pray that all those affected by the storm can return to normal life ASAP.

So, what to do when you’re finally in a place where you have electricity?  Well, I don’t know about you but, I like to write whisky reviews so that’s what I’m’a doin’ right now.

Special thanks goes out to Heather Greene for the samples of the four Glenfiddichs below.  I had a lot of fun with them and fell in love with two of them!

Enjoy (I did)!
Glenfiddich 15yo Solera – 40%ABV – $35 | £32

On the nose — Very woody – more so than I expected from a 15yo whisky such as this.  It’s not a bad thing, just a strong note.  Let’s hope there’s some spice or fruit to balance it out.

Moving on.

Honey and apricots and almond slivers.  Laminated cardboard and a warm… scratch that, hot sauna.

On the mouth — Here comes the fruit I was looking for – casaba melon, red pear and red plum.  Honey and spice and a wisp or thread of peat smoke.  Increasingly spicy or, spiced.  Soft and mouth coating yet tannic.

Finish — Very dry finish reminiscent of a light yet dry wine.

In sum —  I had this whisky a few years back.  Actually, if was my first Glenfiddich and I liked it quite a bit.  Upon a return to it, I didn’t appreciate it as much as I did the first time around.  I think there’s just too much wood it’s a bit too drying for me.  I’d not say no to this if it were offered to me and I may choose it over other whiskies (old 12yo Bunnahabhain 40%ABV, I’m looking at you).  Then again, if I had a choice between a whisky at 40%ABV and a higher or cask strength version, I think I’d pass on this one – give me the Cask Strength version please!  The higher ABV let’s you play with the whisky a little more (adding water & how much?)  Speaking of which… let’s move on, shall we?

Glenfiddich 15yo “102” – 51%ABV – $55 | £40

On the nose — Thick, fat, meaty mafia don sherried type nose.  Perhaps some root veggies in there (sugared as it were).  Ginger and nuts.  New sneakers, fresh in the box.  Big and rich raisins still in the cardboard box.

Just an overall pleasing, sherried nose.

On the mouth — Pow!  The taste of this stuff is picking up where the nose left off.  Fried walnuts, dirty socks, sour apples and toasted apple skins.  Warm almonds and loads of popsicle sticks (wet and sugary).  Caramel, fudge and hazelnuts – Toffifay!

Oh, yum!

Finish — Long with hints of plastic bags, walnuts and graham crackers (graham crackers??  Where’d you come from?)

In sum —  It’s nice to taste a Glenifiddich in it’s natural cask strength.  Sort of a rare-ish opportunity to show you what the whisky is like in it’s natural state.  This is one for a late night and a good book or as part of a sherried whisky tasting event.  This’ll hold it’s own for sure!

Glenfiddich 21yo Gran Reserva Caribbean Rum Finish – 40%ABV – $120 | £77

On the nose — Snooty college girls puffing on clove cigarettes.  NYC library.

Gobs and gobs of vanilla and a tad (just a tad) of honey mustard.  Black raisins, currant.

On the mouth — Massive oak attack.

Tiramasu soaking, even dripping, with rum.  Back to the NYC library (like a warm oaken room).  Burnt sugar.

The mouthfeel is thin but then again, many of the rum cask finished whiskies I’ve had have had a thin mouth feel.

Finish — Long and sweet with wine soaked grapes.  Buttery and oaky

In sum — A lovely grouping of flavors and a nice little ride but, similar to the 15yo bottled at 40%, I really think this stuff would benefit from a higher ABV and no chill filtration.  Very nice smell and flavor-wise (great balance) but slightly…tired and I did not care for the mouth feel.

Glenfiddich Snow Phoenix – 47.6%ABV – $89 | £93

On the nose — Big bright and rambunctious nose.  This is like the Pippy Longstockings of whisky.

Very fruity, slightly tropical but more like super fresh and sugared pears with a cinnamon dusting.  Light hay, honey, buttermilk biscuits.  What most notable about this whisky is just how lively and inviting it is.

Just a joy.

On the mouth — Great malty attack with bursts of that initial sweetness/fruitiness I got on the nose.  Spicy, lemony (though not sour in anyway, very, very sweet).  Raisins in Reisling.  Incredibly fizzy and lively – this stuff just dances on your tongue.

There’s a slight off-note in here, like the rind or pith of a fruit.  Forget what I said about no sour note, it’s there (though integrated quite well).

A mere hint or thread of smoke in here (perhaps a wood effect?)

Finish — Interestingly woody, long and spicy.

In sum —  I’ve had many a ‘fiddich but few, if any, I found to be as lively and engaging as this one.  This will cure the summertime blues (forget what those guys say, there is a cure!).  I hope this experiment is one that the folks a Glenfiddich can use to help gauge what an additional direction for Glenfiddich could be.   I’ll be singing the glories of this whisky for some time to come…