Tag Archives: Oak

Ardbeg, Autumn, Cold Winter, Need To Bundle Up, Takin' It Easy

Ardbeg Airigh Nam Beist 1990, 16 years old

Islay region – 46%ABV – 750ml bottle – $79 and up | £64 | €71

So, a short while back the nice folks over at Shoppers Vineyard put on this amazing sale which, as of today (March, 12, 2010) is still going on – 46% off of their price on Ardbeg’s “Airigh Nam Beist” 16yr old beauty!!  Talk about a Sweet Sixteen!!  Take that Molly Ringwald.  You may never see a price like this again so my suggestion is to take advantage of it, while you can.

Pronounciation — The Airigh Nam Beist is pronounced “Ari Nam Baysht” (which actually sounds Yiddish to me).  Thankfully, the fine folks at Ardbeg decided to finally come out with products we all can pronounce: Rollercoaster and, umm, well that’s all of them I suppose (discounting the 10yr which was released years ago and we all can pronounce that one, right?).

As winter is now winding down, my taste for the peatier malts is beginning to wane.  So I wanted to get this review under my belt before the temps started hitting 70 deg F and the birds started chirping.

Initial whiffs — Peat (extremely warm peat, not like the citrusy peat you get from the 10yr), baby sick, quite fruity, gooseberry jam, the more you sniff, the less peat you get, grassy, oaky now but, not a ton

Palate — Warming peat, golden raisins, silky velvet in the tongue, very sexy mouth-feel like the Ardbeg licked my tongue, salted olive oil, pine nuts (like a peaty pesto minus the garlic & basil)

Finish — Shorter than I expected (due to the 46%Abv?), here comes the wood; now the beastie is showing it’s age (this baby is 16yrs old, BTW.  It can start driving here in the US), lots of wood but not too-too much (like a good Chardonay — the crappy ones are over-oaked, the good ones are complimented by the oaky influence), lasting peat with a warmth similar to that of the Lagavulin 16yr.

In sum — Wow.  Astounding stuff.  Alone, she shines like the morning sun.  Next to other, more youthful Ardbegs, not so much…  Drink her alone, this beast is a one guy gal (or a one gal gal).  Don’t believe me?  Check out Whisky Israel’s Corryvreckan vs Airigh Nam Beist review.  Enjoy this one with your family during Thanksgiving dinner (for my US & Canadian readers)!  Drinking this made me long for fun family times, roaring fires and relatives falling asleep due to high levels of turkey-induced tryptophan in their system.

UPDATE – I’ve come to find out from a friend that these bottles could have 16, 17 or 18yr scotch depending on the code etched into the bottle.  L6 = 16yrs, L7 = 17yrs & L8 = 18yrs old (or, another way of saying it is L6 was bottled in 2006, L7 in 2007 or L* was bottled in 2008 which makes this 1990 vintage 16, 17 or 18 years old).  My Airigh Nam Beist is 18yrs old, not 16yrs.  It make me want to try the 16 vs 17 vs 18yr old expressions.  Anybody up for some sample trading??

All You Need Is Love, Autumn, Cold Winter, Highland Park, Need To Bundle Up, Springtime, Summertime, Takin' It Easy

Highland Park 18yr – The best dram I’ve tasted in 2009!

Islands – 43%ABV – 750ml bottle – $75-99 | £55 | €64

I’ve read so many reviews on the HP18 (Highland Park, not Harry Potter, come on people!!) I figured, enough is enough – I had to try just to see what all the hoop-a-lah was about.

Back in October of 2009 I went to The Scottish Arms in St. Louis Missouri. If you’ve never been, go. Now. More than 150 drams (Scottish, Japanese, American, you name it) on their whisky menu – amazing! Well, while I was there I tried the HP18 and all I could say was…”eh…, so what”

PLEASE READ ON

I realized the reason the whisky was so sub-stellar was just because of the type of glass they used (should have brought my own Glencairn) and the fact that I had food getting in the way of the tasting. Note to self: only taste when you’re either A) done with food or B) haven’t had food yet (though on an empty stomach… that can be…ummmm…fun?!).

So, after many people telling me that I must be crazy for thinking the Highland Park 18 was no more than a big yawn, a little while later, I decided to shut them up and lay down the casheesh to buy a bottle.  I actually got the bottle for much less than what is shown but, it was an eBay buy so I won’t post that price.  Let’s just say, I got it for about the price of the standard 12yr bottle of Highland Park!!

Around this time I was reading that many people do their whisky tasting in the morning time so I decided to conduct my tasting during that time myself.  What a way to start the day!!  The following notes, by the way, were written in October, 2009:

Nose (almost 3 full whiffs!!) — Not as smokey as I had anticipated. Very sweet smelling, almost juicy with an underlying smokiness to it. Second whiff: More of the same, this time a little more smoke but now the oak came out a bit and something almost tropical – overripe banana perhaps? I couldn’t wait for the 3rd whiff…

Palate — Absolutely one of the most succulent drops I’ve ever had! The smoke was underlying but kept peaking it’s head out and was balanced so well by the sweetness. Sherry notes but thankfully not overly so. The age came out a bit, long vanilla oak notes and more sweet smoke. G-d damn, I’m in heaven!

Finish — Soft and silky, warming (which is much needed as it was 33deg F this morning!), smokey and long.

In sum — Those who know me now I am a devoted fan of the Glenmorangie line but I have to say, with the exception of the D’or (which remains to be my dram of choice), this has knocked all of the other Glenmos out of the way! Maybe it’s the weather, maybe it’s because I had it in the morning, I don’t know. I can tell you that I think I’m in love.

A World of Discovery, All You Need Is Love, Autumn, Need To Bundle Up, Stranahan's Colorado Whiskey, Takin' It Easy

Stranahan’s Colorado Whiskey Batch 29

Denver, Colorado, USA– 47%ABV – 750ml bottle – $45 | £64 | €78

I first had the pleasure of tasting Stranahan’s Colorado Whiskey at WhiskyFest in NYC.  To see my review of that event, please pop over to Whisky Israel (then pop back here to read this grand review!).

At WhiskyFest last year I was hopping around from table to table; so little to do, so much time… scratch that, reverse it.  Carrying on — I had a boatload of tables to visit during the event!  I’ll be quite honest in stating that, while I had interest in visiting the Stranahan’s Colorado Whiskey booth, if I missed them, I missed them.  This was not because I didn’t have the interest, I was simply more focused on Scotch whisky rather than American whiskey.

So there we were, going from this table to that, from that aisle to this aisle… our heads were spinning – it was quite an experience!  We were on our way to the Old Pultney/Balblair booth when my buddy Jeff stopped me and said “Josh, you’ve got to try this $hit!!”.  I saw that he was at the Stranahan’s booth and I said to myself that I could at least scratch these guys off my list (and then get to Balblair already!!).

The nice man at the booth poured me a wee bit and I sniffed… Wow… This is not like any other American Whiskey I’ve ever nosed before!  I continued with the next step (umm, the tasting of course) and wham-o!! My friend Jeff said exactly what I was thinking: “Dude, it’s like liquid banana chips!”  And it was.  Absolutely delicious, these guys nailed it and made something so very unique from all the other American whiskies I’ve every had.

This being said, by hook or by crook, I had to get a bottle.  And that I did.

Now, before I go on I will tell you that I do not know what batch number(s) were being served at WhiskyFest NYC but I can tell you that what I bought was very different from what I had at the fest.  Not in a bad way — at all (though I do wish I could find the banana chip batch.  I’ve got an email into them already so once I find out, you will find out).

Initial whiff – Berries, off the bat.  Some cinnamon, a little banana peel, spices (for my Jews out there, reminded me of Havdalah spices).

On the mouth – Quite spicy but wildly smooth.  Mouth coating, banana (whole banana, not chips), vanilla, lots of vanilla and a little oak which surprised me as this stuff only stayed in barrels for two years.

Finish – Here’s where it gets really interesting and a bit… “R” rated (but hey, we’re all over 21, right??). Directly after the swallow, the most interesting taste came up on the back sides of my tongue.  I asked the drummer of my band to corroborate… we both got the amazingly strange taste of Marijuana in our mouths!  As if we were with Bill Clinton, not inhaling, and taking a hit off of a pipe (or “bowl”, to use the parlance of our times…).  So odd!  It brought me back to the good ‘ol days…  The finish made my mouth felt like it was at a Whitesnake concert circa 1988

In sum – This is quite amazing stuff and I liked the fact that my batch was so very different than the batch at WhiskyFest.  It’s like trying single cask scotch whisky, every cask tastes very different.  That being said, for this batch, I think I would suggest to drink it in a relaxing type mood or when cuddling up with a book, a wife, a husband, etc…  Enjoy this year round but try it in the late fall time when the leaves are changing (if that happens in your neck of the woods).  L’chayim/Slainte/Cheers!

A World of Discovery, Balblair, Refreshed, Springtime, Summertime

Balblair 1997

Highlands – 43%ABV – 70cl (non-US) –  £29 | €34

I’ve got a couple of twitter buddies from the Holyland (one of them being Gal from Whisky Israel) who, knowing that I’m into the sweeter drams, suggested this one to me. They’ve not steered me wrong yet so I decided to listen to their suggestion and pick up a bottle.

This one is not available in the US because it’s not a 750ml bottle, rather a 70cl (or 700ml). Why the US will not accept bottles at the 70cl volume is just ludicrous and beyond me. Luckily, there are some good shops in the UK that do ship to the states so I got my bottle anyway. Ha, take that America!  In your face!!

Initial whiff — Pineapple, right away. Some sweet melon, think casaba and a little bit of spice, like a gum drop spice.

On the mouth — Waves of fresh fruit. So refreshing. Really, unlike any sweeter dram I’ve ever had. These are all tropical fruits (no apples, pears, etc… that you usually get from American Oak). Oakiness comes through now but does not overtake.  This is like a drinkable, tropical fruit salad.

Finish — Medium-long, spicy, some oak and the tiniest hint of smoke (?? could be in my head).

In sum — This stuff is so refreshing, you could forego brushing your teeth at night (or in the morning, if that’s your thing) and just get a dram of this stuff!

Autumn, Cragganmore, Need To Bundle Up, Springtime, Takin' It Easy

Cragganmore 1992 Distiller’s Edition (Double Matured in Port Casks)

Speyside – 40%ABV – 750ml bottle – $58-80 (seriously, where are all of these spreads coming from??) | £35 | €40

Not sure if you’ve seen it yet but Jason of WHISKYhost just posted a stellar review of the Cragganmore 10yr Cask strength.  If you have not, check it out now, then come back for my review of Cragganmore’s 1992 Distiller’s Edition.

The standard 12yr Crag’ is such a cracker of a dram.  The price is right (about $40USD) and I’d say it’s just an all-around-great-everyday-dram.  I read a review somewhere whereas the Crag’ 12yr was referred to as “the little dram that could”.  While I can appreciate the loving note on the Crag’ 12, “little” is not really be applicable to Cragganmore…

Wait a sec, I’m reviewing the 1992 Distiller’s Edition, right?  Ok, enough of my blathering on about the 12yr.  Here we go on the dram-at-hand:

After having the Balvenie 21yr Portwood, then the Glenmorangie Quinta Ruban, I was excited to find out that Cragganmore also had a Port finished whisky: 1992 Cragganmore Distiller’s Edition (picture shown is their 1993 edition which I have not yet tried).

Initial whiff — Some brine & spirit (more spirit than I expected for the ABV), peppery oak and perhaps some minted honey & orange rind. All this was drawing me in, big time.

On the mouth — Nothing, at first, like the nose. Initial reaction: Butter, the feel is like melted butter with a warming toffee flavor. Then, it gets a little spicey and tingley (think ginger on a good sushi roll). There more wood influence then port but wow, a nice experience so far.

Finish — Lasting, oaky, spiced orange (the taste of the smell of oranges that have cloves stuck in them, if’n you know what I mean).

In sum — I was expecting a little smoke here, as with the standard Cragganmore (just a little smoke) but I think something overtook it, perhaps the port…  As interesting as this one is (and as much as I like port finished whiskies), I have to say that I prefer the standard Cragganmore 12yr expression over this.  I can’t wait to try their 10yr Cask Strength