Tag Archives: Lasting

In a few more years, Kilchoman, this might be *really* good!

Kilchoman Sherry Cask Release – 2012 bottled at 46%

 

Islay region – 46%ABV – $79 – only 100 cases allocated to the US!  This is already sold out in all of the UK shops I’ve checked.

Following Kilchoman’s success story as the months and years go on is a very fun ride for a whisky geek like me.  And really, they go from success to success with a seeming ease

Kilchoman is Islay’s youngest distillery (as many of you know) and the tiny island’s first new distillery in over 124 years.  If that’s not pressure on this small farm distillery, I don’t know what is.

Thankfully, Kilchoman has a great team on their hands as was evident when I visited them back in March of this year.  You can read about my visit with Kilchoman here on the Jewish Whisky Company/Single Cask Nation blog – the post penned by Seth Klaskin.

So here we are today, again following the Kilchoman story line from start up and now getting ever closer to that 10 year mark. (They opened in 2005 so they’ll turn 7 years old in 2012.)  And for today we have their 5yo sherry cask release, bottled at 46%ABV.

On the nose — Peat smoke upfront however, it’s somewhat abbreviated and what follows is a good deal of black licorice (salted licorice at that).

Citrus sweetened green cabbage.  Now *that’s* an odd yet fun note!

More medicinal than expected given Kilchoman’s usual sweet peat profile and the fact that this whisky is from sherry casks.

Some notes of canvas sneakers (slightly loved).

A very promising nose.  The black licorice-like quality is quite nice.

On the mouth — Window putty and fresh caulking.  Somewhat artificial/industrial in flavor.

Slightly sweet yet very drying/tannic from the start.

A touch hot given the strength – it tastes closer to 50-55%ABV or more.

Unripened banana, hints of softening strawberry.

Better yet, Starburst artificial strawberry flavor (subtle though).

Finish — Long finish, the window putty and caulking notes last for a while as does the unripened banana element.

In sum —  This is the first time I’ve tried a 100% sherried Kilchoman.  Comparing this to the others I’ve tried,  I think I more prefer the 1st fill bourbon matured ones or the releases that were a mix of ex-bourbon and sherry (E.G.  the Kilchoman Machir Bay which is just lovely).    I was not really able to connect with this one as I would have hoped.  However, a lot of people out there will enjoy this one for sure. (In fact they already have, seeing as this has completely sold out in the UK and EU where most of the bottles have gone.)  It does show promise for future.  I look forward to trying more sherried Kilchoman.

Special thanks to the good folks at ImpEx for the sample!

Cold Winter, Glen Moray, Need To Bundle Up

Glen Moray – 8yo Chenin Blanc, Distillery Only, Single Cask bottled at 60.7% ABV

Image shown is not of the actual bottle itself but shows you what the Glen Moray distillery bottlings look like.

Speyside region – 60.7%ABV – £60 (distillery only)

Many people in the states have not heard of Glen Moray or if they have, they only know of their 12yo whisky (a solid, solid whisky if you ask me).

Most people in the UK think of Glen Moray as the supermarket single malt.  A bargain malt, if you will.

My initial experience with Glen Moray was quite different…

It started with a chance purchase of a single cask expression.  While at the time I had not known much about the distillery, I was attracted to this single cask of Glen Moray as the whisky had spent its full 13 years of life in a new charred oak cask.  Sort of like a Scottish bourbon, I thought.

Yes, obviously, nothing like a bourbon being that the distillate is 100% malted barley but perhaps a bit like an American whiskey in that the maturation took place inside a new charred oak cask (a very un-Scotch whisky thing to do, mind you).  The cask choice intrigued me so I had to buy a bottle.

In four words: I fell in love.

After this my friend David B treated me to their standard 12yo and even at lower 40% ABV — I am usually an anti-40% ABV elitist-whisky-geek prick but often find myself enjoying the strength.  A difficult position to be in… perhaps I’m a mystery broken into a jigsaw puzzle, wrapped in a conundrum, hidden in a Chinese box, a riddle — I found it to be robust, well balanced and had an amazing mouthfeel.  Thanks again David, I am a convert.

Since then I have had my good share of Glen Moray whiskies.

During my last trip to Scotland I had the good chance to visit their amazing distillery which had, perhaps, one of the most beautiful distillery welcome centers (Iain, you’ve done a bang up job!) I had ever seen.

While at their distillery shop I had the chance to taste the following whisky: Glen Moray Chenin Blanc Distillery Only Single Cask bottled at 60.7% ABV.

At only 260 bottles and being a distillery only bottle… this stuff is like hens teeth!

On the nose — Earthy, pungent & sweet.  This is big and bold – a powerful smelling 8yo whisky.

Fresh cut (green) tubers come to mind as I sniff this whisky as do white cherries but, and perhaps more so, white raisins make quite an impression.

(I’m fairly positive that the preceding sentence was grammatically incorrect in some way.  Please forgive me.)

Golden birch, cinnamon sweetened fruit biscuits and the distinct smell of a burning cotton t-shirt.

On the mouth — Well, if I thought the nose was big and bold, it’s a veritable pussy cat compared to the attack of this whisky upon first sip.  Massive stuff!

It let’s you know that it’s 60.7% ABV.  It’s not hot, just *incredibly* forceful.

More (dark) birch beer, quite spicy and drying with touches of over cinnamoned french toast, maple sugar candies and honey reduction.

It’s almost like drinking hi-octane Chenin Blanc except that the malt content is quite obvious (yet so is the cask effect).

Finish — Very sweet and filled with boozy peaches.  Long too.  Let’s not forget that bit!

In sum —  Sweet and puckering stuff.  You might want to put on your big boy/girl boots before delving in!  A little bit goes a long way.  You’re going to want to spend time with this one.

Whether you choose to add water or not is up to you.  I decided not to but a little bit might help (as you’ll learn from the review over at guidscotchdrink.com and another great review from Matt and Karen at Whisky For Everyone.)

Special thanks goes out to IA for the sample – cheers!

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.

Glenmorangie, Let's celebrate!

Glenmorangie 18yo – another whisky in the “let’s open this one, it’s time to celebrate!” column

Highlands region – 43% – $79 – $89 | £77 | €88

After tasting this whisky, for some reason or another (perhaps it’s because my brain works in movie clips) the scene below seemed to sum up my experience.  Invite me over for dinner and offer me some Glenmorangie 18yo and I might act just like Jack Black, Amy Poehler and their kids.

Perhaps you should read the review AND THEN watch the clip.  Enjoy:

On the nose –  Lychee nuts and syrup – pretty amazing how dead-on the lychee notes are!

Lemon citrus nose with an oaky backbone.

Grapes skins and maybe a little chocolate sauce.

This is such a nice juicy nose – ripe peach just oozes out of my glass.

Very inviting and, for me, perhaps one of the nicer noses Glenmorangie has to offer in the standard line.

On the mouth – Oak is more prominent in the taste as is some vanilla bean extract.

Banana skins and actual banana arrives and even a little honey and sugared white plums.

Some more citrus with a focus on the lemons (again) and a bit salty.

Some salted apples (salted apples sounds odd but the notes do hit me side by side) and now lovely butterscotch notes help in flavor and in creaminess.

Joshua is a happy boy right now.

Finish – Fairly long and fruity.  Actually, really long… about 2 minutes later and I’m still experiencing some oak and butterscotch.  Maybe even some of the lychee I got on the nose.

In sum – This really is one to celebrate with.  Very luxurious – you feel like you’re treating yourself to something with this here whisky.  Go ahead, have a baby; graduate college; get married then pour some Glenmorangie 18yo.

Special thanks to David Blackmore for the sample and Mazel Tov to you and your wife on the arrival of your first baby!!

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

1981 Glenmorangie Pride

Highland region – 56.7%ABV – $2699 | £2500 (limited to 1000 bottles)

Yes, yes, I know… the bottle looks like something off of Sephora’s website.  And yes, I’m sure LVMH could have saved a £50-60 (maybe more) putting the whisky into a slightly simpler vessel.

I’m not posting here to talk about the whys & whatfors of corporate marketing.  Yes, I do work in sales & marketing and I understand the whys & whatfors but I’d prefer to focus on the liquid that Dr. Bill Lumsden created, not what the good folks at LVMH have cracked up to sell the stuff – as smart and fancy as it is.

Glenmorangie Pride 1981 is a 28yo whisky that was aged for 18 years in first-fill ex-bourbon barrels and then extra-matured exclusively in Chateau d’Yquem Sauternes casks for an additional 10 years before being bottled at 56.7% ABV.  Sounds sexy to me!

Color – Deep gold with tints of green (I don’t always mention color but this is some attractive fluid!)

On the nose –  Thick jams (quince and even some fig).  Black strap molasses and ginger snap cookies (spiced with nutmeg and cinnamon).  Sweet, sweet marzipan.

Damp and earthy.  Man, I am taken by this nose.  This juice demands your attention.  Part of me doesn’t even want to dissect it, I just want to enjoy it as a whole.

But carry on, I will…

The Glenmorangie character is strong here and will not be ignored: Think citrus zest and even some peach; thoroughly ripe and juicy peach.

Walnut oil and even a bit of sauternes-drown golden raisin.

Vanilla extract and in the distance, toasted oak and almonds.

Coming back to the nose after a sip and there’s a very noticeable high lemon note just floating on top of it all.

On the mouth – Thick and insanely mouth coating – it’s invading every part of my mouth (like that scene in The Matrix where the liquid metal is taking over Keanu Reeves’ body until it goes down his throat).

Sticky sweet jams (like the ones mentioned above).  A touch of citrus but not as much as on the nose.

Creamy, creamy but also a bit like thick honey when it starts to crystalize (tiny, tiny sugar crystals throughout the honey).

Speaking of honey, this stuff oozes with it.

Warm apricot jam over toasted almonds.

As the fluid starts to go from juicy sweet to drying on to the finish, booze soaked oak notes round out the flavor experience.

Finish – Long, drying, warm; and sitting like a king on the top/back portion of my tongue is the actual sauternes itself – apricots, peach, nuts and woody tannins.  After a short bit, an interesting watermelon note popped up followed but some of that lemon note I got on the nose.

In sum – I can see why Dr. Bill Lumsden refers to this whisky as his “Pride”.  If this whisky were a college bound student, she would have full scholarships to the Ivy League school of her choosing.  This is so balanced, so well constructed and thoroughly enjoyable.  Pride is as full and robust as it gets (without peat or sherry).

I come back to this over and over again, Sauternes finishes are my absolute favorite.  Done right (like this whisky here), and it’s light years ahead of nearly any sherried whisky I’ve had.

There are only 1000 bottles of this stuff on G-d’s green earth and if you can find & afford one, I won’t say no; I’d accept the gift very graciously :).  However, if you decided to keep the stuff for yourself, I would not blame you at all.

I will suggested, however, that you open this for the most celebratory of occasions but what’s more is that you NEED to open this.  Don’t just buy and collect because NOT tasting this stuff (if you have the $$ to afford it) is doing yourself an injustice.

Huge thanks goes out to David Blackmore for the sample!