Tag Archives: Lychee

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!!

An everyday dram, Mackmyra, Summertime, Takin' It Easy

Sweden’s Mackmyra “First Edition” Single Malt Whisky

Sweden – 46.1%ABV – $53 for a 1 liter bottle in the US – £41 for a 70cl bottle in the UK (please note that the image shown on the right details the UK packaging.  The US packaging is slightly different).

If you’re a whisky geek like me, you might have been (again, like me) tracking this whisky like Aragorn tracks an Uruk Hai leader.  Our “friend”, the Uruk Hai, is situated to the left.

Non-dorks, please go see or read Lord of the Rings to understand the previous two sentences.

Luckily for me (and other US whisky consumers), Mackmyra is officially here in the states!  While we now have this “First Edition”, many other countries have access to a much broader line that Mackmyra offers.

So, what’s the deal with this particular whisky?  According to Mackmyra:

Swedish Oak & Small Casks

“Cold winters, deep snow. Summer nights when the sun never seems to set. Under these conditions, during more than a century, a fiery spiciness has developed in Swedish oak.  Now it generously adds character to the Mackmyra Whisky.”

“Our use of small casks gives time a new meaning. The whisky matures in a more intense manner, and by using different sizes of casks we get exactly the character we want.  Small cask – great taste.”

Mackmyra whisky is matured in an old mine!

“You might have heard about ’whisky on the rocks’ but Mackmyra Whisky is literally stored in the rock. Deep down in the underground we’ve found the perfect environment for our whisky casks. The abandoned Bodås Mine is now filled with gold in liquid form.”

Time to taste said whisky…

On the nose — A very intense nose (like the whisky equivalent of a close talker.  Step back, son!).

Very peppery & spicy yet honeyed at the same time.

Ok, after a couple of minutes the whisky is much more approachable and delicious smelling yet, still quite bright.

If this whisky were a spice girl, she’d be Delicious Spice.

An exotic mix of fruits such as cherries, lychee and banana (perhaps the skins of banana).

A warm summer’s night with cream soda in one hand and toasted marshmallows in the other.

On the mouth — A bit herbal.

A touch of juniper which quickly disappears and is replaced by blackberry juice and a mass of spice.

As spicy as this is, it’s got a very soft mouth feel.

Some unripened peaches and a little bit of pear.

Finish — Spicy, long and a touch fruity (lychee again) and oddly numbing my uvula…

In sum — A very enjoyable whisky, especially on the nose.  Not as complex in flavor (with it being such a little spice bomb).  But hey, this is a young whisky… part of the thrill is the occasional big ‘ol pepper fight you get from them.

The mouth feel, again, is nice and soft and only adds to the simple pleasantness of the whisky as a whole.  This light-bright-fruity-pepper-fight whisky would be fantastic as a warm summer evening dram.  Tasting notes & flavor nuances aside, is this a good whisky?  Yes – I found it to be dangerously drinkable.

Special thanks goes out to Jonathan Luks for the sample!

Arran, Let's celebrate!

Arran 15yr – Distillery Only, Open Day Dram

Islands region – 700ml bottle – £95.00 – Sold through the Arran website or at the Distillery only, 600 bottles in all!

Man-o-Maneschewitz, did I have a lot of fun opening this bottle or what!?  I did mentioned it in my post about WhiskyFest NYC — I was not planning on opening this bottle for a while but an opportunity presented itself and whisky is meant for enjoying and sharing in the right company.

Well, the opportunity was there – I had a bottle.  The company was there too – Andy Hogan of Arran, John Hansell of The Malt Advocate magazine and the What Does John Know? blog as well as Lew Bryson (managing editor of Malt Advocate).

The time was right — it was the night just before WhiskyFest; a very festive time… what better reason to open the bottle!?

What’s more is, I got to share this again later that night at Ward III with Michael Neff (one of the owners of the Ward III), a new friend Keith and the infamous World Traveler, Prankster & Ladies’ Man, Greenie D. McGee!

So, what is the Arran Open Day Whisky?  Not to be confused with the Arran 15yr Anniversary dram which is actually an 11yr old whisky finished in Amontillado Sherry casks — It’s a bottling of whisky (600 bottles in all) made of the first spirit fun from their stills back in 1995.  They vatted three casks from this run (all first-fill bourbon) to create this very limited bottling.

Here are my thoughts on the whisky (preview: great stuff!) —

On the nose — Big yummy bourbon nose!!

Hazelnuts – freshly cracked.

Coconut – freshly shredded and toasted.

Creamy and thick quality with over-ripened bananas.

Abundant vanilla and caramel.  Just a joy to nose.

Lychee nuts in syrup.

Some ocean breeze.

With a touch of water a really pleasant soapy quality is revealed.

Surgical soap and fruity taffy.

On the mouth — Apples, dowsed in caramel and nut laden.

Banana returns with a toasty feel to it.

Perfectly fresh mouth feel.

A touch of water brings out some pears.

But really, the water accentuates the apples and brings out a spiciness, also, the brine/salt that I got on the nose is now more pronounced.

Finish — A toasty & spicy finish, decent length.

Actually quite long with those lychee nuts just lingering about.

In sum — The balance is fantastic.  A wonderfully mature whisky but with enough spice to give you a “what for”.  A celebratory dram and one to enjoy on special occasions and with friends.  As you can see, I’ve done just that!