Tag Archives: Plums

Arran, Autumn, Cold Winter, Need To Bundle Up

1996 Arran Premier Sherry Single Cask exclusively for the US market

Islands Region – Single cask limited bottling, 165 bottles total (and interestingly low number of bottles from a single cask…), first-fill Oloroso Sherry, Cask # 1785 – 56%ABV – $125 (or so)

Apologies for letting a week or so pass by with out a post/review.  It’s that busy time of year where I’m out on the road; sales calls, trade shows, training seminars, etc…

OK, enough with the apologies, let’s get talking about whisky.  One thing I’d like to call to your attention on today’s post is the title of today’s post.  More specifically, the last five words in the title of today’s post: “…exclusively for the US market”.  While many brands out there seem to focus on special releases for Duty Free, the French market, etc…  Arran seems to be doing a bang up job sending the US some special release stuff.  Most notably, single cask releases.  True, the US did not get any of the “Icons of Arran” such as the Peacock, The Rowan Tree or The Westie.  And no, we did not see the beautiful “Sleeping Warrior“.

However, being that more and more single cask product (E.G. Single Ex-Bourbon, 8yo Sherry Cask bottling and today’s topic, the Premier Sherry Cask) is being sent our way, my guess/hope is that we’ll also start seeing more of the other “limited” releases sent our way – at least a small portion of the bottlings.  Fingers crossed!

A wise man once told me that the Arran spirit is perhaps too light and delicate to do well in a first fill sherry casks for an extended period of time.  This whisky is 15yo and was matured for that entire length of time in a first-fill Oloroso sherry butt.  Hmmm, let’s see how the spirit held up:

Color – Really dark – perhaps the darkest I’ve seen in an Arran whisky.  Dark yet translucent, deep brown fluid.  Like an Oloroso sherry.  The picture of the bottle shown above does not do the liquid justice in the color department.

On the nose –  Sticky cherry sauce followed by green apples – super fresh and very prominent.

Caramel and coriander notes are found here too.

Sherry soaked angel food cake (if there were such a thing).

Very hot and alcoholic nose.

Celery leaves then something slightly acrid (highly browned fruits perhaps) but yet… fitting and very pleasant in the context.

Water balloons (sans the water) – nice little rubbery notes.

On the mouth – Chocolates and chilis and loads (loads!) of stewed prunes and chocolate sauce.

Assorted dried fruits and even a little banana.

Sugared and sweet black plums.

More apples and way in the back, some saltiness and even some notes of plum pudding (and… tobacco??).

Ooey melted caramel.  Really quite scrumptious.

Finish –  Lasting warmth and just the right amount of drying.  Salty yet sweet.

In sum – There’s a reason Arran has been making headlines and headway within the community of whisky drinks but this is not it.

Actually, this takes Arran in another direction but it only helps to show that the Arran spirit can do well in sherry casks — it can hold its own as a heavily sherried whisky.

I’d suggest this whisky as an after dinner treat.  It’s an indulgence – grab the bottle and a glass, hide yourself away with a book, maybe a warm fire and a little plate of turkish delights and, enjoy some YOU time.

Top notch stuff.  Arran, I tip my hat to you.

Special thanks goes out to Andy H for the sample!

Arran, Autumn, Springtime

Arran 8yo Single Sherry Cask #1536, bottled by Arran

Islands region – 59.3%ABV – Somewhere around $75

Spring is here, spring is here!!

G-d damn it if this winter didn’t beat the crap out of me (and anyone else living in the North East of the good ‘ol US of A).

I kid you not when I tell you that at one point this winter we had a snow bank at the end of our driveway that was higher than 10 ft (for those folks who use the metric system, that’s a shit tonne of centimeters!).  Storm after storm, foot after foot of snow, shovel after shovel, vertebrae after vertebrae breaking work… Oy.

Thankfully, the storms of 2010/early 2011 are now a not-to-distant memory and we can (I can) finally move on.  Passover, for us, brought about a good deal of spring cleaning (inside & out of the house) which is still going on but, it feels fantastic!  The warm sun hitting this t-shirted bloke feels right good!

The flowers are popping, there’s a new scent in the air brought about by the various flora that surrounds my woodsy/swampy area.  A combination of scents, really — Wafts of skunk cabbage, tulips, daffodils, hyacinths, dandelions, pollen (times a gazillion), chainsaw oil, armpit sweat, sunblock… it’s all in the air and it’s LOVELY!

Spring has a good way of making one feel anew.  I don’t know about you but all winter long I felt as if I was just doing what I could to survive through it.

Like a snake, the spring time allows you to feel as if you can shed the recent past and start again with new skin.  Maybe this year will be different, somehow better than last year.  That, of course, is not something you can just hope on.  You have to work to make that come true.  But perhaps the feeling of this new season might help to give you that strength.  Forge ahead, embrace life and cling on (Klingon) to the unexpected for it’s what helps us all to live.  Not survive but live.

Arran single sherry cask #1536:

Color — Oversteeped tea with a slight ruby hue to it.  Lighter than expected given the fact that this has spent all it’s life in a sherry cask (2nd fill perhaps?).

On the nose — Fragrant, flowery, salty and slightly dusty and woody (sort of like an old church pew type note).

Actually, the more I nose it the more dust I detect.  Really dusty stuff…

Fruity too (think red plum without the tart).

Chocolate covered raisins.

On the mouth — Very juicy entry, nice hot attack without losing the flavor.

Think of a red fruit and, it’s in there.

This is insanely sweet and fruity.

None of the dust I got on the nose.

Notes of lime and even a touch of mint (a fun little combination of flavors).

A very different sherry matured whisky profile.

Finish — Lots of lime of the finish – like a lime ricky.  Very long.

In sum — The fruits and raisins on the nose were nice but I found the dusty element to be almost overpowering.  It’s all about the taste and finish with this one.  Flavorwise, this was delicious; one to enjoy with an assortment of desserts.  If you’re going to go sweet, go all the way baby!

A World of Discovery, Port Ellen, Summertime

Signatory Port Ellen 1982, Bourbon Cask #1202, 26 years old

Islay region – 54.1% – $339 | £? | €?

An out of the blue voicemal:

Marshall (this voicemail is completely paraphrased): “Hey Joshua, Marshall here, just checking to see if you might want a sample pour of some Port Ellen the LASC just got”

I was busy setting up a tradeshow booth so I sent a text:

Joshua: “As ‘The Dude’ would say: Does the Pope shit in the woods? Hell yes!”

The back and forth goes on from there but there are too many expletives and references to “Jewish English” that would make my reproducing of the entire transcript too risque for the JSMWS blog.  No shit.

Special thanks to Marshall and the LASC for the “bad-a$$ F&#$ing great pour” sent to me!

On the nose — Lemon soap suds & sweaty canvas sneakers.

Bright smoke.  Burning, salty driftwood.

Chamomile tea and a bushel of hay on a very, very humid summer’s day.

After a while the bourbon influence is very noticeable with scents of cinnamon and vanilla even fresh corn.

After this, it gets a bit dank and dewy.

On the mouth — The ABV is barely… wait a sec.  Wow, this is really…really heating up on me.

Oh crap!  This goes from oily, soft and sweet then onto being thin, hot and fiery in a matter of 6-7 seconds…

Let’s have another go at this:  Grassy, earthy, flinty, almost electric.

It starts off with freshly bitten plum then moves into pink lemonade.

This is evolving with every single sip.

Soapy, like on the nose and growing into sugary tart Sweetarts.

Honeyed teas and salted, baked lemons.

Finish — Lasting and evolving, hot, spicy and lemony sweet.

In sum — Nicely balanced.  I really dug the way the flavors exploded and evolved with every second.  A late summer’s night dram if you have a shit ton of cash to spare!  Very enjoyable.  For the $$ tag on this one, I can spend less on another whisky that can also be enjoyed on a late summer’s night.

Glengoyne

Glengoyne 8yr Single Cask – bottled for the SMWSA – Cask number 123.5

Highland region – 58.5%ABV – Go here to gain access to bottles from the Scotch Malt Whisky Society

Glengoyne.  Saying the name aloud and the Jew in me can’t help but think “Glengoyim” has a funny ring to it.

I don’t have much more to add today other than that tidbit of sophomoric hilariousness, except, looking at the color of this Glengoyne gives me the same lustful feelings this Yamazaki gave me.  Pure sexy!

On the nose — Hoisin sauce and Moo-Shu pancakes.

Sweet, spiced with cinnamon and something dusty smelling…

Laminated cardboard and glue.

A slight touch of nail polish and oat bread.

On the mouth — Jam & toast (raspberry without the tart).

Salt water taffies – think imitation chocolate and pistachio (again, imitation).

A bit of smoke in here (though, being a Glengoyne, I know this can’t be peated in any way – perhaps something from the barrel).

Grape lolly-pops.

Finish — Orange zest with maple syrup.  Salted and ¡zingy!  Decent length.

In sum — Fun.  Not my cup of tea.  Interesting for sure and balanced fairly well but the over-all flavor profile is not up my alley.  Granted, reading back at my notes, it sounds quite nice and some would LOVE it.  I didn’t.

A big thanks to Aron Silverman for the generous sample!

Suntory - Hibiki

Suntory Hibiki 12yr – An every day dram that is better to drink than to deconstruct

Japan – 43%ABV – $40 – $60 | £35 | €42

This is one of two Hibiki whiskies I’ve had to date.  Tomorrow I will be reviewing the 21yr but today, it’s the 12yr.

The music dork in me can’t help but think of Rush’s “2112” album when I think of the two Hibikis I’ve had.  Get it? 21yr. 12yr.

Whatever, now I can’t get “Temple of Syrinx” out of my head.  And now, you won’t be able to either…  Haha.

So, what does the latter half of Rush’s epic… I mean, what does the Hibiki 12yr smell & taste like?  It’s like this:

On the nose — Plumes of plums and the wine thereof.

Some honey, honey.

Lemons & lemon custard.

Just now my 2yr old daughter asked to smell this whisky and I asked what she smelled and without any hints or hesitation she said – LEMONS!

Actually, she screamed it.

Reminiscent of a few bourbons I’ve had with a high sweet note I often associate with new charred oak barrels.

Sassafras leaves & black licorice.

On the mouth — Chewy mouthfeel.

A slight touch of savory spices — too many to name; a good mix.

Grain is evident but so is the malt.

Oak & more plum wine notes.

Slivovitz (plum brandy), however, the note is slight.

New oak leaf buds (…the smell of.  And yes, I have smelled them).

Finish — The finish has a grainy sweetness that remains for a good bit.

In sum — Nicely balanced blend that is better to enjoy rather than deconstruct.  I review one to three whiskies almost every day and I can say that I reach for this one when I’m tired of reviewing.  An every day dram at a decent price.  Perfect for dropping it all, letting it go and enjoying the here and now.

“Sometimes you just have to say “What the F###”.“