Etikettarkiv: Recension

Famous Grouse, naked malt, Scotland, Unspecified

The Naked Malt (Naked Grouse)

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ABV: 40 %
Origin: Unspecified
Type: Blended Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 2/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is sweet and fruity. At first there’s a thick layer of vanilla and dried fruits and berries. There are raisins as well as tropical fruits and lemons. There’s also cinnamon, a whiff of tobacco and a piece of sponge cake. Underneath, the distillate comes through as rather flat and uninteresting. There’s a metallic note coming through as well. It’s extremely top heavy and the sherry cask covers everything else. This is a nice enough nose, but it’s just a big fruity and sweet lid on top of a flat whisky.

Mouth: It starts out with the distillate peeking through with a surrounding sweet layer. It feels a bit young and spirity yet flat from the low ABV. The fruitiness is residing on the edges and stays there. It’s a fresher fruitiness than on the nose and reveals a larger portion of tropical fruits and lemon. The vanilla coats the palate together with a hint of the oakiness. The ripe notes can be found in the back but they are somewhat subdued. A slight spicyness will come for those with patience.

Finish: The sweetness carries over and are immidiately joined by a fresh oakiness and a hint of sulfur. The fruitiness is now once again leaning towards ripe and dried darker fruits. It doesn’t take long before the oakiness takes over and the late finish becomes very oaky and a bit clingy. There’s not much to it other than that. This is an ok whisky which is obviosly a cover-up. The (presumably) seasoned sherry cask is doing a good job, but in the end it just makes the whisky top heavy with a shallow bottom.

Additional information
This is the rebranding of The Naked Grouse. The malts used are not entirely specified but Macallan, Highland Park and Glenrothes are known. It’s finished in first-fill ex-Oloroso sherry casks.

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Bruichladdich, Islay, Port Charlotte

Port Charlotte 10 YO Heavily Peated

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ABV: 50 %
Origin: Islay
Type: Single malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 4/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is sweet and peaty. At first there’s a very round and gentle honey and vanilla sweetness with a savory note mixed in. It’s surrounded by a dry and earthy peatiness which gives it a nice contrast between sensations. There’s an ocean spray saltiness, as well as mixed fruits, floating around somewhere in between the other layers. They sort of act like a cohesive between everything else. The fruitiness is coming through as fresh, leaning towards green apples and pears with just a hint of ripe plums. This is a fantastic nose with a lot to discover.

Mouth: It starts out with a rich maltiness together with honey and vanilla as a core. The peatiness is somewhat subdued and lets the fruitiness come through towards the edges. It’s overripe red grapes and blueberries and the fruitiness is a lot different compared to the nose. With time a mild spicy black pepper note arrives together with a dry smoke and earthy peatiness. The backbone has a complexity to it with a salt and savory character.

Finish: The finish starts out with the ripe fruitiness on the edges and in the back while the peatiness and the sweetness sort of dips down for a few seconds. When they once again increase in intensity it’s the peatiness that picks up pace and takes over. The sweetness creates a caramel note in the center though. It moves along together with the oakiness which shows up fashionably late. At first it’s a rather anonymous oakiness but in the late finish it shifts towards a nice walnut nuttiness. This is a great whisky for the explorer and there are tons of small things to discover.

Additional information
The Port Charlotte 10 YO is aged in a mix of 65 % first-fill and 10 % second-fill ex-bourbon barrels together with 25 % second fill french ex-wine casks. It’s unchillfiltered and has natural colour.

Mackmyra, Sweden

Mackmyra Svensk Ek

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ABV: 46.1 %
Origin: Sweden
Type: Single malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 2/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is fruity and sweet. At first there’s a mix of vanilla and ripe apples and pears. There’s also a second layer behind the fruitiness with honey and fresh oak. It feels quite young and spirity. There are some wood spices coming through as well as liquorice. This is a decent nose but there’s not much happening in the glass. It stays the same throughout which makes it a bit uninteresting.

Mouth: It starts out with the same ripe apples and pears covered in vanilla and oak. It’s quite spicy with black pepper and wood spices. The oak is a bit hard to pinpoint and it feels a bit dry and weird. The whole feels a bit more homogenous at this point but there’s still not much to discover other than what is presented from the start. For those who wait there’s a hint of toffee and a savory note emerging from the back.

Finish: The fruitiness dies down rather quickly and all that’s left is the oakiness and the black pepper spicyness. It’s a dry oak with a perfumey character which actually makes the finish a bit weird. It still feels young and the cask influence feels rushed. This is an ok whisky but it feels a bit boring and rushed for flavour. It should be good as a base in longdrinks and cocktails.

Additional information
10 % of this whisky is aged for 18 months in new heavily charred swedish oak casks. The rest is aged in ex-bourbon american oak barrels.

Islands, Jura

Jura Prophecy

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ABV: 46 %
Origin: Islands
Type: Single Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 2
Impression: 4/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is sweet and peaty. At first there’s a leathery and slightly ashy peat dominating the palate. It’s quite rowdy but it doesn’t feel protruding or sharp. There’s a vanilla and honey sweetness which slowly becomes noticable. The same goes for a soft and mild, slightly ripe, red berry fruitiness. When it settles there’s a dry soil earthiness floating around somewhere within. There’s also a sweet liquorice note coming through towards the edges. This is a rich and full flavoured nose which has a lot to offer.

Mouth: It starts out with a hit of the dry soil peatiness with a peppery spicyness on top. The sweetness is still in there but it’s not as sweet as on the nose. The sweetness eventually creates a butterscotch layer on the edges. After a few seconds the leather note appears as well as a sulfuric background note. There are ripe red berries up front and a thin sour lemon note in the back. The whole is slightly astringent and sort of hard to reach with a rock-like minerality to it.

Finish: The minerality and the dry soil never budges through the transition. The other flavours take a slight dip before returning. The peatiness has become a bit more herbaceous at this point and the fruitiness is residing a long way back on the palate. This gives the oakiness room to be noticed and it brings a fantastic hazelnuts and old oak combination. The oakiness is joined by the peat a long way down the line and the late finish is the best part of the journey. This is a really good whisky with a not so commersial composition. This makes it stand out in a very good way.

Additional information
The Prophecy is aged ex-bourbon, ex-sherry and limousin oak. The whisky is unchillfiltered and more peated than other Juras.

Cotswolds, England

Cotswolds Founder’s Choice – Batch 01/2018

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ABV: 60.9 %
Origin: England
Type: Single malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 1
Impression: 4/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is high ABV spicy. There are peppermint and rye spices with anise and liquorice root. There are also honey and vanilla and a thin toffee note in the back. The oak peeks through but there’s no direct sign of the red wine casks on the nose at first. A smell of wet clothes after walking in the rain resides in the back. It gets sweeter with time in the glass and a thin savory note builds up as well. There’s no apparent sign of the young distillate.

Mouth: It starts out very mild and honey sweet for about a second before the high ABV brings a hefty spicyness. There’s still anise and liquorice found, but It’s almost directly pushed out of focus and gets overrun by a very pronounced fruitiness mixed with honey and vanilla. The oakiness is shining through and the rejuvinated red wine casks creates a fruitiness with red berries and tropical fruits. There’s a bitter side to it and some dark chocolate notes appear after a couple of seconds.

Finish: It basically gets even fruitier. This is full of every fruit imaginable. There are mangos, pineapple, peaches, raspberries, grapefruit and lemons. The oak arrives late in the finish and isn’t dominant. It’s a fresh oak that doesn’t leave too much of an impression. After everything dies down there’s a slight metallic note left in the mouth giving away the young age. This is a well made whisky.

Additional information
The Founder’s Choice is a cask strength Limited edition whisky. 2850 bottles were produced in this batch. The distillery was founded in 2014 which makes this a maximum of 5 years old. It’s aged in recondtitioned american oak red wine barriques. It’s not coloured and it’s unchillfiltered.

Golden Shoe, Unspecified

Golden Shoe Blended Scotch Whisky

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ABV: 40 %
Origin: Scotland Unspecified
Type: Blended
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 1/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is harsh, sweet and grain spirit heavy. A massive vanilla note dominantes together with what could be described as rubbing alcohol. The sweetness is just generic white sugar-like. There’s no fruitiness nor oak. There’s a hint of cardboard coming from behind. It’s one-dimensional and lacks both depth and complexity on the nose.

Mouth: It starts out very watery with just a touch of sweetness. The vanilla continously move forward and a tiny spicyness appears on the tip of the toungue. A bitterness builds up in the back. The grain spirit is very pronounced and ”boozy”. It’s not a very nice mouthfeel.

Finish: The harsh grain spirit flare up and soon gets replaced with vanilla once again. It quickly switches over to a very bitter and somewhat unpleasant oakiness. The oakiness stays for a pretty long finish, which in this case isn’t a good thing. This is a bad whisky and it should not be consumed neat.

Additional information
The Golden Shoe/Golden Goal whiskies are released as limited editions for soccer championships. The content is not disclosed, but it’s bottled by Schwarze & Schlichte Markenvertreib GmbH & Co. KG.

Box, High Coast, Sweden

Box Dálvve

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ABV: 46 %
Origin: Sweden
Type: Single malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 4/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is young and peaty. At first there’s a menthol layer sitting above a fresh herbaceous peatiness. There’s vanilla and some green fruits starting to come through after a few seconds. There’s also a small hint of play-doh floating around in the middle of everything. The peatiness evolves slowly towards ashes and burning tobacco and the smoke mixes with the menthol. It becomes sweeter with time in the glass. This is a nice and interesting nose.

Mouth: It starts out quite spicy with a fruity bottom layer. The peat arrives right away and it’s creating an outer layer together with honey and vanilla. It’s still herbaceous with a side note of tobacco. In the middle there’s a maltiness and a savory note. There’s also a bitter black coffee note and freshly planed oak. It still feels young and unsettled, but there are a lot of flavours seeking attention.

Finish: The menthol returns for a quick but substancial visit and then just sort of lingers through the entire finish. Next to come through are both the peaty outer layer and the honey sweet and malty core. The fruitiness is still there, but never really breaks through the big flavours up front. Eventually the oak shows up and it’s nice enough, but feels a bit characterless. The bitter coffee note is not as pronounced in the finish as it is in the mouth. This is a great, albeit young whisky with a lot to offer.

Additional information
This whisky is matured for about 5 years in american ex-bourbon barrels. The distillate is made from 24 % peated malt and 76 % unpeated. The peated malt has a ppm level of 39. It’s unchillfiltered and has natural colour. This is batch 003.

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Glen Deveron, Highlands, MacDuff

Glen Deveron 16 YO – Royal Burgh Collection

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ABV: 40 %
Origin: Highlands
Type: Single malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 4/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is dark fruits and honey. At first there’s a dense sweetness with malt, vanilla and honey with a thick layer of dark ripe fruits on the outside. It’s raisins and overripe, almost molten plums together with a black liquorice note. It’s got a dusty and damp feel to it and after it settles it also produces a slightly fresher fruitiness as a nice contrast. It’s fresh, but still dark, berries like blueberries. This is a really nice and rich nose, but it presents itself a bit too mild due to the low ABV.

Mouth: It starts out with a mild and sweet approach. The sherry notes with raisins and plums are next to arrive and they bring a thin layer of sulfur along. After that some kitchen spices and a nice bitter note come through. The dusty feel is still in there, but it’ not as dense as on the nose. The oakiness is detectable and it brings a hint of walnuts to the table. The fresh fruits are not present anymore.

Finish: The first impact is somewhat muted and it’s a seemless trasition to the finish. There is a mild spicyness on top but the main flavours are still the sweet honey and vanilla mix in the middle and the dark fruitiness and sulfur on the outside. It stays that way until the oakiness starts to push through. It’s a nice, slightly astringent oak with hints of walnuts and black coffee. It never turns over to become bitter though and the finish is quite long and rewarding. This is a fantastic whisky, but it’s hurting a little bit by the low ABV. It puts up a fight against it though and delivers quite a lot of flavours.

Additional information
This is made by the Macduff distillery and was released in 2013 as a part of their travel retail exclusive range ”The Royal Burgh Collection”. It’s aged in ex-sherry casks.

Highlands, Loch Lomond

Loch Lomond 15 YO

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ABV: 46 %
Origin: Highlands
Type: Single malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 4/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is fruity and mildly peated. At first there’s a center of mixed red fruits with a soft and sweet layer of honey, vanilla and malt surrounding it. The peat is creating an outer layer which also covers the background. It’s a herbaceous peat with a back note of assorted flowers. When it settles it also reveals a lemon note in the back. With time in the glass everything slowly merges together to create a very nice and interesting nose.

Mouth: It starts out with a nutty bitterness in the back and the herbaceaous peatiness on the sides. It takes a second or two for the fruitiness and the sweetness to arrive and when they do, they’re a bit more subdued than on the nose. The fruitiness is a mix of darker dried fruits with a twist of lemon and the sweetness is somewhat undefinable. There’s also a slightly dusty note coming through from behind. A thin butterscotch note makes for a nice surprise for those who are patient.

Finish: It starts out quite dusty with a mild toffee and vanilla sweetness. The fruitiness is still a bag of mixed dried fruits, now with an orange peel bitterness attached to it. The peatiness is still present in the background but it’s a bit less noticable. The oakiness comes through in a very subtle way, emerging through the dust and orange peel. It’s a very pleasant nutty oakiness which never overshadows the other flavours. This is a great whisky with a lot of flavours to find.

Additional information
The Loch Lomond 15 YO was launched in september 2018 as a swedish market exclusive. It’s created by a mix of different unpeated and peated distillates. It’s aged in a mix of refill barrels, refill hogsheads and recharred hogsheads.

Glenfarclas, Speyside

Glenfarclas 15 YO

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ABV: 46 %
Origin: Speyside
Type: Single Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 4/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is vanilla and dried fruits. At first a layer of vanilla and dried exotic fruits sit beneath a thin veil of menthol. There’s a fresh lemon and peach note as well. It becomes fruitier with time in the glass. There is a tiny hint of salty caramel in the background. There is a sweeter side to it as well, like an icing sugar on top of a fruit cake. This is a very pleasant nose.

Mouth: It starts out with a darker fruitiness with raisins and overripe plums. There is a clear sulfur note sitting in the back. It’s oily and the lemon is still detectable. The dried exotic fruits are still in there, as well as the vanilla, but they are not especially pronounced. The salty caramel note is completely gone. There is a speck of dust in the middle and as well as a honey sweetness. It gets somewhat spicy after a few seconds.

Finish: A mix of both dark and dried fruits flare up together with the menthol. When it settles it reveals the sulfur as well as a savory note. It then switches over to the oakiness, which is a nice dry, slightly bitter oak with notes of coffee and hazelnuts. The sherry notes stay as a top layer throughout the long oak finish. There is a hint of smoke coming through in the late finish. This is a liquid fruit cake, and a great whisky.

Additional information
The Glenfarclas 15 YO is aged in european ex-Oloroso sherry casks. It’s lightly peated with 4 PPM. It’s unchillfiltered and has natural colour.

Speyside, Tamnavulin

Tamnavulin Red Wine Cask Edition – Grenache

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ABV: 40 %
Origin: Speyside
Type: Single Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is mixed fruits and butterscotch. At first there’s a bright and slightly pointy fruitiness hitting the nose. Behind that there are notes of oranges, red fruits and butterscotch. A cooling mint is hovering above everything else. With time in the glass the red wine berries start to be more detectable as a single entity. This is a very approachable and quite fantastic nose.

Mouth: It starts out very sour. There’s a big layer of lemons sitting on the outside. In the center there’s a mix of butterscotch and ripe red grapes together with grey oak planks. There’s also a coffee bitterness. It feels quite young and a little bit prickly on the tongue. It becomes honey sweet after a few seconds.

Finish: A honey sweetness fills the mouth and it is soon joined by a butterscotch note. The ripe red fruitiness comes through almost as a part of the butterscotch. The lemon sourness is not as pronounced in the finish but it still creates a layer surrounding everything else. The oakiness is still dry and brings the mind towards dry grey oak planks. This is a good whisky with a fantastic nose.

Additional information
This is a single malt first aged in american ex-bourbon casks and then finished in Grenache red wine casks. There is no information on aging time. This bottle is from batch 001075.

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Glenfarclas, Speyside

Glenfarclas 12 YO

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ABV: 43 %
Origin: Speyside
Type: Single Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 4/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is sweet and fruity. At first there’s a layer of vanilla and honey on top and sweet liqeuer-soaked red berries in the back. There’s a hint of dry smoke floating around as well as hint of sulfur which together create a nice, slightly gritty background. With time the fruitiness settles and the honey becomes the top note. A mix of lemon and ginger can be found in the back. This is a pretty straight forward sherried nose with a nice array of sensations to discover.

Mouth: It starts out with lemon and honey. It then becomes malty and the sherry fruitiness starts to emerge around the edges with raisins and overripe plums within. There’s a dusty texture to it and the smoke and sulfur is still creating a nice gritty background noise. There’s also a good amount of wood spices coming through as well as a hint of the oakiness itself.

Finish: It starts out quite spicy and it feels potent despite the low ABV. The lemon and honey do come through around the edges quite early. When it settles it a nice complex mix of everything emerges. The sherry notes, vanilla, malt, ginger, smoke and sulfur are all fighting for attention in the center of the palate. This leaves room for the oakiness to come through in the surroundings. It’s a very nice oakiness with a lot of hazelnuts within. This is a great whisky which produces a lot of flavours despite the low ABV. It rewards both the explorer and the occasional drinker.

Additional information
The 12 YO was originally intended to be a travel retail exclusive but it’s now part of the distillery’s core range. It’s aged in ex-Oloroso and ex-Fino sherry casks for the entire aging period.

Singleton, Speyside

The Singleton of Dufftown 12 YO

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ABV: 40 %
Origin: Speyside
Type: Single Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 1
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is sweet and fruity. Juicy pears and a mild butterscotch are first to present themselves. There is a slight spicyness floating around but it’s not protruding in any way. There are honey and vanilla notes deep down underneath together with a speck of dust. After some time in the glass it gets maltier and the fruitiness changes towards dried apricots. This is a nice and easy nose, but a bit too mild and uneventful.

Mouth: It starts out a bit watery and then the butterscotch sweetness takes lead. After a few seconds it becomes malty and the fruitiness returns. It’s now assorted dried fruits with a lemon note in the background. The oakiness creates a very thin layer surrounding everything. It’s a dry, slightly spicy and bitter oakiness. With patience the dried fruits turns into a feint tropical fruitiness. It’s richer in taste than on the nose.

Finish: There is a small window where the fruitiness comes through before the spotlight turns towards the oak. Vanilla lies on top and there’s a spicy quite bitter note underneath. It doesn’t take long before the oakiness completely takes over and now with its bitter side up front. It’s almost too bitter in the end. There’s a small walnut note coming through and maybe some very dark chocolate. This is a good, solid speysider with a twist in the end.

Additional information
This whisky is matured in both ex-bourbon american oak barrels and ”a high percentage” of ex-sherry european oak casks. This is one of the main components in Bell’s Blended Whisky.

Macallan, Speyside

The Macallan 12 YO – Double Cask

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ABV: 40 %
Origin: Speyside
Type: Single malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is sweet and fruity. At first there’s a layer of honey and vanilla sitting on top of fresh red berries. When it settles both cinnamon and a hint of sweet liquorice arrive. There’s a nice balance between the sweetness and the fruitiness. It’s mild and not especially complex. After some time in the glass the fruitiness shifts towards dried assorted fruits with Raisins as well as dried coconut flakes. This is a straight forward nose with a lot of nice things within.

Mouth: It starts out a bit flat for a second or two before a mild spicyness builds up. The oak is present in the background from the get-go as well. The fruitiness is much darker compared to the nose with a heavy emphasis on raisins and overripe plums. There are still notes of cinnamon and vanilla and it feels very dessert-like. There’s a fresher fruitiness peeking through from behind but it takes a few seconds before it’s noticable. It doesn’t feel as balanced as on the nose and it feels like the different components never interacts with each other.

Finish: The sherry fruitiness starts out around the edges and the center part feels sort of empty. The fruitiness then moves towards the center to make room for the oakiness around the edges. There’s a hint of orange marmelade coming through as well as raisins and figs. It’s a fresher fruitiness than before. The oakiness is a bit indecisive, with a mix of fresh vanilla and sligthly nutty and bitter oak. There’s a slight spicyness coming from the oak as well. This is a good whisky but it lacks power and feels a bit unbalanced to the taste.

Additional information
This expression from Macallan is matured in a combination of American and European oak for at least 12 years. The american oak casks are also ex-Sherry and haven’t contained any bourbon.

Dalmore, Highlands

The Dalmore Gran Reserva

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ABV: 40 %
Origin: Highlands
Type: Single malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 5/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is dense, sweet and fruity. Honey, liquorice and vanilla fight for attention against a fruitiness from both dark and dried fruits. There’s rum-soaked raisins and sultanas, liqueur-soaked cherries and a fruity red wine. There’s also some dark chocolate with a hint of cinnamon sprinkled on top. The oak is already noticable. The fruity red wine notes, now leaning towards fresh berries, move forward a bit with time in the glass and so does the dark chocolate.

Mouth: At first it’s just sweet but soon the other flavours join in. It’s dark and bitter with raisins, dark chocolate, oak, walnuts and coffee. The vanilla is still in there and so is the red wine note. A touch of spicyness lies on the top of the toungue. The bitterness increase with each sip. It’s slightly astringent.

Finish: The oakiness flare up and basically hogs all the attention from everything else. When it makes way for other flavours a savory note shows up in the middle of the palate. The vanilla reappears but resides in the back. A tropical fruitiness arrives late and comes through within the oakiness creating a nice break from the otherwise dark and bitter flavours. The dark chocolate, liquorice, honey and coffee notes are clinging on to the finish before the oak takes over again.

Additional information
The Gran Reserva is an expression aged for somewhere around 10-15 years. 40 % of its content is aged in first fill american ex-bourbon barrels and 60 % in first fill european ex-Oloroso sherry casks. The marriage period is about 6 months. It’s now discontinued.

Highlands, Loch Lomond

Loch Lomond Inchmurrin 12 YO – The Island Collection

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ABV: 46 %
Origin: Highlands
Type: Single Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 1
Impression: 4/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is sweet and fruity. At first there’s a mix of honey, vanilla and malt with an apple and pear fruitiness. After a few seconds a nice subtle peatiness starts to show up together with red berries, oranges and a hint of sulfur. With time the fruitiness becomes the main focal point. It is a very well balanced and pleasant nose with a lot of subtle nuances.

Mouth: It starts out with lemons and oranges in the back and a big bunch of apricots and dried tropical fruits up front. In between there’s a sweet malty layer with vanilla and honey. The oak is detectable and sits together with the peat and the sulfur towards the sides. It’s got a nice rich texture to it. A hint of butterscotch and a tiny amount of oak spices appear after a while.

Finish: It starts out with the apricots and oranges up front. Another fruity layer with dried tropical fruits and pears sits in the back and vanilla and oak is floating around in between. The peatiness is now covering the edges and the sulfur is still sitting in the back. The finish is long and the fruitiness follows along a long way down the line. When the oak finally gets to come through it’s a nice oakiness but it’s a bit generic. This is a great whisky with a lot of things to discover.

Additional information
This was rebranded and relaunched in 2015. It’s aged in a combination of first fill, second fill and refurbished newly toasted american ex-bourbon barrels.

Dundee, Unspecified

The Dundee 10 YO – Vintage Reserve

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ABV: 40 %
Origin: Scotland unspecified
Type: Blended
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 1/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is very sweet and slightly fruity. At first there’s a thick and heavy vanilla and butterscotch sweetness which covers everything else. When it settles a green apple fruitiness comes through together with the grain spirit. It’s very mild and round without any pointy bits. With time the butterscotch and vanilla shifts towards more of a toffee note and a hint of the oak shines through, otherwise it basically stays the same throughout the nosing. This is a decent nose but it’s not especially interesting.

Mouth: It starts out with a sweet layer of vanilla and toffee and a metallic and ethanol heavy background. The oakiness pushes through and it’s a bitter and not so pleasant oak. The toffee switches to a metallic butterscotch coming from the grain spirit. There’s also a hint of cinnamon floating around. The fruitiness is less noticable and it feels like there’s a very small variety of red fruits somewhere within. It’s still very mild and round but it doesn’t feel flat.

Finish: The impact is rather weak and uneventful. The metallic butterscotch note returns with the oakiness and a mild minty note. Everything else never really pops up and everything just crumbles and leaves the oakiness behind. It’s not a nice oakiness at all. It feels bitter and intrusive. This is not a good whisky, but it’s a bit better than the average cheap blend. It should be used in cocktails and not consumed neat.

Additional information
This is made by Angus Dundee Distillers. The content is not disclosed, but the company owns two single malt distilleries, which probably contributes to the taste. Those are Tomintoul and Glencadam. The grain whisky part comes from the Lowlands.

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Spirit of Hven Backafallsbyn, Sweden

Spirit of Hven Backafallsbyn – The Nose

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ABV: 44,9 %
Origin: Sweden
Type: Single Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is spicy oak and dark fruits. The oak is very pronounced from the get-go. There are notes of pine and ethanol connected to it which seems to come from the vodka casks. The combination creates a prickly sensation which is rather unpleasant. Underneath lies a layer of undefinable dark ripe fruits and berries. The fruitiness is wrapped in a vanilla coating which becomes sweeter over time. There’s also a hint of green apples coming through from the back. After a while a hint of sulfur and peat starts to emerge which gives it a nice depth. This is a very busy nose which seems rather unbalanced and a bit over-oaked. It’s an interesting exploration nevertheless.

Mouth: It starts out with a fruity sweetness together with the same piney oakiness as on the nose but it’s now a bit less prominent. It’s still not a great addition to the whole though. It takes a few seconds before the sweetness and fruitiness starts to give out vanilla and ripe red grapes with a hint of lemon in the back. The peat and the sulfur are still creating a nice gritty background but it’s overrun by the top notes. It’s still very busy and sort of unbalansed, but a lot better than on the nose.

Finish: When the initial impact subsides the first thing to push through is a mix of the peat, vanilla and the oakiness which now has shifted and started producing a nice hazelnut nuttiness. It finally seems to have found its balance between the flavours and the late finish is actually pretty good. The gritty background seem to follow along in the late finish which gives a pleasant experience in the end. This is a good whisky which seems a bit over-engineered and all over the place. It’s a nice exploration but not the best tasting whisky out there. And ironically, the nose is the worst part of the journey.

Additional information
This single malt is aged for at least 8 years in a mix of 21 casks. 14 Querqus Petraea french ex-wine casks and 7 american Querqus Muehlenbergii casks, some virgin oak, some ex-vodka. It’s then been married in spanish Querqus Robur ex-Oloroso casks.

Speyside, Tomintoul

Tomintoul With a Peaty Tang

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ABV: 40 %
Origin: Speyside
Type: Single Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 1
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is sweet and peaty. At first there’s a pleasant mix of butterscotch, vanilla and a toned down savory peat smoke coming through as a cohesive center. When the initial impact resides a hint of marzipan and a slightly metallic note is also detectable. It feels young and slightly harsh. The butterscotch note increases in intensity over time. This is a decent nose for a budget whisky.

Taste: It starts out very mild and approachable with the sweetness, with notes of honey, butter and toffee as the most prominent feature. There’s also fresh oak and a heathery peat layer that covers the mouth. Some oak spices show up after a short while and bring some walnuts along. It’s still coming through as quite young.

Finish: A very mild mint develops over the sweetness. Some assorted green fruits shows up quite unexpectedly underneath. The vanilla and butterscotch notes follow along but die rather quickly. A hint of bitterness shows up in late in the finish together with the oakiness. It’s a short finish with a mild floral peat note lingering when everything else disappears. This is a decent budget whisky. It’s a bit flat and uneventful but There are som nice flavours presented.

Additional information
The peaty tang is a mix between 6 YO peated whisky (55ppm) and older unpeated whiskies. It’s matured in refill ex-bourbon barrels.

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Glenfiddich, Speyside

Glenfiddich 15 YO – Unique Solera Reserve

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ABV: 40 %
Origin: Speyside
Type: Single Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 1
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is very fruity and sweet. Baked red apples and honey create a core with ripe bananas and a hint of flowers surrounding it. A layer of aromatic oak sits in the back creating a nice richness to it. There’s also a vanilla note somewhere in between. The age shows with a nice hint of dustiness and well-rounded distillate. A sour lemon note can be found somewhere in the background.

Mouth: It starts out honey sweet with some dustiness within. It soon turns towards a slightly more bitter character and astringent dry oakiness comes through before the fruitiness kicks in. A bit of spicyness comes through together with baked red apples with cinnamon and toffee. The oakiness brings some coffee and hazelnuts.

Finish: The oak is very up front from the get-go. It’s very aromatic and dry. A spicy note hits the tip of the toungue before the sweetness and fruitiness come through. Apples, cinnamon, vanilla and toffee are all found once again. The oak is still very much in focus. It still delivers notes of hazelnuts and coffee. It’s astringent, especially after a few sips. Far down the finish a hint of anise appears. This is an easy sipper and a dessert in a glass.

Additional information
The Glenfiddich 15 YO is aged in european ex-sherry casks, first fill, and refill american ex-bourbon barrels. It is then married together in a 50 000 liter big solera vatting tun that is never emptied below the halfway point.