Myken 4yo 2017/2021

Myken 4yo 2017/2021

Nordic Casks #1, Berry Bros & Rudd
Single malt - Nord-Norge
Straw 
61.4% ABV
Dram

Nose: Greengages, lemon zest, sea salt, peat, hints of vanilla, hints of cooked rice. With water, lemon zest, ginseng, cooked rice, greengages. 
Mouthfeel: Heavy body, expands, loosens, mouth coating. 
Tasting:  Bitter sour. Peat, lemon zest, fresh cut grass, sea salt, vanilla, hints of smoke. With water, lemon zest, lime zest, ginseng, peat, hints of smoke. 
Finish: Long. Sea salt, vanilla, lemon zest, wood ash, hints of smoke. 

Comments: 

Cask 15. Never had a Myken before, it seems to be briny and coastal, with a tangy bitterness that’s quite interesting. Sort of a Norwegian Talisker. This one is quite enjoyable, especially the ashy, smoky finish. 

Verdict:

I like this.

Fary Lochan 7yo 2014/2021

Fary Lochan 7yo 2014/2021

Nordic Casks #1, Berry Brothers & Rudd 
Single malt - Syddanmark
Pale gold 
60.9% ABV
Dram

Nose: Lemon zest, nettles, fresh cut grass, green tea, chocolate, cotton sheets. With water, lemon zest, greengages, fresh cut grass. 
Mouthfeel: Heavy body, syrupy, oily, warm. 
Tasting:  Bitter. Fresh cut grass, green tea, nettles, limes, olive oil, hints of oats. With water, chocolate, nettles, greengages, green tea. 
Finish: Short. Lemon zest, limes, olive oil, nettles, hints of smoke. 

Comments: 

Cask 06. Nettle smoked whisky, a first in my experience. It tastes… green, and vegetal. There’s some bitterness and some savoury notes, which bring to mind a good olive oil, and a gentle sweetness overlaid on top. Excellent stuff, I’d be looking to try more from this distillery. 

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

High Coast 8yo 2013/2021

High Coast 8yo 2013/2021

Nordic Casks #1, Berry Bros & Rudd
Single malt - Ångermanland
Amber
60.9% ABV
Dram

Nose: Black tea, red grapes, malted grains, cocoa nibs, prunes, hints of sea salt. With water, fresh baked bread, dark chocolate, raisins, sea salt. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, hot, expands, airy. 
Tasting:  Bitter sweet. Prunes, butterscotch, tobacco leaf, date molasses, red grapes, cocoa nibs, hints of honey. With water, black tea, fresh baked bread, raisins, prunes. 
Finish: Short. Red grapes, black tea, prunes, honey. 

Comments: 

Cask 1384. Highly sherried, and very high ABV for the age. Lots of underlying cereal notes but these are overlaid by chocolate, cocoa and dried fruit. It’s not that characteristic of the distillery, but it’s a decent sherried dram. 

Verdict:

I like this.

Kyrö 5yo 2016/2021

Kyrö 5yo 2016/2021

Nordic Casks #1, Berry Bros & Rudd
Single rye - Southern Finland
Amber, hints of gold
54.6% ABV
Dram

Nose: Black pepper, vanilla, rye bread, butter, apples, hints of cedar. With water, marmalade, strawberry jam, rye bread. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, astringent, warm, mouth coating.  
Tasting:  Bitter sweet. Damson jam, vanilla, marmalade, black pepper, cloves, bananas, hints of cedar. With water, sweeter, marmalade, rye bread, cloves, black pepper.
Finish: Long. Marmalade, damson jam, black pepper, cedar. 

Comments: 

Cask 16037. This is a very good rye, spicy and sweet with a luscious orangey flavour note. Black pepper is the main spice note, but cloves abound as well (and are intense enough to numb the mouth briefly). Water helps, opening up some bready notes that complement the fruit. 

Verdict:

I like this.

Ardnamurchan AD/04:21 Paul Launois Release

Ardnamurchan AD/04:21 Paul Launois Release

Official bottling
Single malt - West Highlands 
Light copper
57.6% ABV
Dram

Nose: Strawberries, green tea, brown paper, peaches, honey, orange peel, hints of rose water. With water, honey. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, hot, tingly, astringent.  
Tasting:  Sweet sour. Vanilla, peaches, white grapes, orange peel, green tea, honey, toast, hints of malted grains. With water, malted grains, honey, peaches, toast, hints of sandalwood. 
Finish:  Medium. Malted grains, toast, orange peel, hints of honey. 

Comments: 

Well finished in champagne and bourbon casks, this whisky is floral and fruity. There’s not much of the cereally Ardnamurchan character, but the finishing adds rather than detracts. A good and refreshing dram. 

Verdict:

I like this.

Blair Athol 12yo 2008/2021

Blair Athol 12yo 2008/2021

DS Tayman 
Single malt - Central Highlands
Amber pink
46% ABV
Dram

Nose: Malted grains, coffee, tyre rubber, sea salt, caramel, lemon zest. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, cool, watery around the edges, expands slightly. 
Tasting:  Bitter sour. Lemon zest, marshmallows, lemon sherbet, coffee, burnt orange peel, vanilla, hints of apricots. 
Finish: Medium. Lemon zest, burnt orange peel, vanilla, coffee. 

Comments: 

Cask 1801504. Quite a bitter expression this, unexpectedly so. But it’s still redolent of fruit and vanilla, it just has a toasted, sulphurous edge. It’s by no means unpleasant, in fact it creates a nice complexity. 

Verdict:

I like this.

Lark 5yo 2016/2021 Cask 1244

Lark 5yo 2016/2021 Cask 1244

Single Cask, Berry Bros & Rudd
Single malt - Tasmania 
Amber, hints of red
60.2% ABV
Dram

Nose: Strawberries, marshmallows, vanilla sponge, raisins, cocoa nibs, hints of bubble gum. With water, chocolate, strawberries, black tea, peaches. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, hot, airy, tingly. 
Tasting:  Sweet. Chocolate, cocoa nibs, black tea, marshmallows, strawberries, hints of raspberries. With water, orange peel, strawberries, chocolate, peaches, hints of sea salt. 

Finish: Long. Sour cherries, strawberries, black tea, hints of bubble gum. 

Comments: 

Cask 1244. It’s light and quite refreshing, compared to some of the other sherried Larks that I’ve had. Quite fruity and estery, almost bubble gum like in flavour. That’s not a flavour note that tends to appeal to me, but here it is alright. Quite tasty. 

Verdict:

I like this.

Imperial 25yo 1995/2021 (Milroy’s Exclusive)

Imperial 25yo 1995/2021 (Milroy’s Exclusive)

Single Malts of Scotland, Elixir Distillers
Single malt - Speyside 

Pale amber
53.6% ABV
Dram

Nose: Chocolate, toffee, white grapes, vanilla, nutmeg, butterscotch, hints of mint. With water, fresh baked bread, raisins, lemon zest, starfruit. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, loosens, airy, warm. 
Tasting:  Sweet sour. Lemon zest, malted grains, vanilla, butterscotch, white grapes, lemon sweets, hints of green tea. With water, white grapes, vanilla sponge, marshmallows, hints of rose water. 
Finish: Short. Malted grains, lemon sweets, green tea, white grapes. 

Comments: 

Quite full bodied and robust for an Imperial. This isn’t too delicate, in fact quite the opposite. Lots of floral flavours vie with sweet fruits and cereal. Highly complex and enjoyable. 

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Waterford Ballymorgan 1.1

Waterford Ballymorgan 1.1

Official bottling
Single malt - Munster 
Golden
50% ABV
Dram

Nose: Toffee, orange peel, lemon zest, fresh baked bread, mushrooms, molasses, hints of autumn leaves. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, warm, slightly tingly, expands. 
Tasting:  Sweet. Autumn leaves, orange peel, raisins, toffee, molasses, black tea, hints of vanilla ice cream. 
Finish: Medium. Vanilla, black tea, orange peel, hints of cloves, hints of nutmeg. 

Comments: 

Fair to say, I’ve not tried many Waterfords, but they haven’t lived up to the hype… so far. There’s some earthiness on the nose with this one, giving it some complexity. The high strength helps. On the tongue it dissolves into delicate sweetness, and tapering to a spicy finish. It’s good. 

Verdict:

I like this.

Rosebank 25yo 1990/2015

Rosebank 25yo 1990/2015

Rare Old, Gordon & Macphail
Single malt - Lowlands 

Sunshine yellow
46% ABV
Dram

Nose: Sea salt, white grapes, lemon zest, rhubarb and custard sweets, lemon thyme, hints of cucumber. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, warm, thickens slightly, tingly.  
Tasting:  Sweet salty. Malted grains, lemon zest, rhubarb and custard sweets, cream, lemon thyme, white grapes. 
Finish: Long. Malted grains, toast, fresh cut grass, white grapes, hints of lemon thyme. 

Comments: 

RO/15/11. I honestly did not think I would ever get a chance to try a Rosebank ever again. But I did, and well, it’s as magnificent as I remember. This one is light but assertive, characteristic floral sweetness blending with herbal notes on the tongue and on the finish. 

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Aberlour 16yo Cask 4738 (TWE Exclusive)

Aberlour 16yo Cask 4738 (TWE Exclusive)

Official bottling 
Single malt - Speyside 
Mahogany
53.5% ABV
Dram

Nose: Raisins, red wine, strawberries, red grapes, chocolate, hints of toffee apples. With water, strawberries, chocolate, hints of rose water.  
Mouthfeel: Medium body, slippery, loosens, tingly.  
Tasting:  Bitter sweet. Raisins, malted grains, red grapes, chocolate, toffee apples, hints of sea salt. With water, red grapes, toffee apples, chocolate, rose water. 
Finish: Long. Orange peel, chocolate, toffee apples, raisins, black tea. 

Comments: 

This is abunad’h on steroids. Quite sweet, but with a bitter tannic edge. Lots of appley notes, and a floral finish that opens up beautifully with water. Quite nice indeed. 

Verdict:

I like this.

Glen Scotia 27yo 1992/2019

Glen Scotia 27yo 1992/2019

Authentic Collection, WM Cadenhead
Single malt - Campbeltown 
Golden
45% ABV
Dram

Nose: Smoke, honey, charcoal, pears, leather, petrol exhaust, hints of cucumber. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, cool, expands, slightly oily. 
Tasting:  Sweet. Honey, peat, pears, wood ash, smoke, toast, candied orange peel, hints of cloves. 
Finish: Long. Pears, cloves, candied orange peel, hints of charcoal. 

Comments: 

Honeyed and sweet, very well aged indeed. There’s less and less to choose from between Glen Scotia and Springbank as time goes on. This one is oily and sweet, by turns ashy and honeyed. Excellent stuff. 

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Inchgower 27yo 1989/2017

Inchgower 27yo 1989/2017

Authentic Collection, WM Cadenhead 
Single malt - Speyside 
Pale gold
53.2% ABV
Dram

Nose: Apple juice, peaches, pears, sea salt, lemon sweets, hints of white grapes. With water, white grapes, peach gummies, honey. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, tingly, warm, mouth coating. 
Tasting:  Sweet sour. Apple juice, peach gummies, lemon sweets, leather, white grapes, hints of honey. With water, honey, apples, peach gummies, malted grains. 
Finish: Medium. Honey, peach gummies, golden syrup, white grapes, hints of clay dust. 

Comments: 

This whisky tastes quite like Calvados, lots of apple but also a huge amount of peach notes. It’s a bit like the Japanese peach gummies you sometimes get at Japanese sundry shops. There’s a drying, dusty note at the end on the back of the tongue. Quite complex and tasty. 

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Glen Moray 13yo 2007/2020

Glen Moray 13yo 2007/2020

Thompson Bros
Single malt - Speyside 
Bright gold
50% ABV
Dram

Nose: Chocolate, malted grains, toffee, sea salt, orange peel, ground almonds. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, sticky, syrupy, tingly. 
Tasting: Bitter sweet. Chocolate, vanilla, butterscotch, orange peel, fresh baked bread, hints of desiccated coconut. 
Finish: Short. Sea salt, malted grains, vanilla sponge, fresh baked bread, white grapes. 

Comments: 

There’s a touch of grain in this malt, oddly, at least as far as the flavour notes are concerned. Coconutty at the back of the tongue, the cereally notes are overlaid by chocolate and vanilla, rather good bourbon cask flavours. 

Verdict:

I like this.

Imperial 25yo 1994/2019

Imperial 25yo 1994/2019

Single Malts of Scotland, Elixir Distillers
Single malt - Speyside 
Bright gold 
44.1% ABV
Dram

Nose: Mangoes, pineapples, banana milkshake, lemon zest, hints of peaches. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, tingly, warms slightly, slightly astringent. 
Tasting:  Sweet sour. Malted grains, lemon zest, pineapples, mango lassi, toast, hints of green tea. 
Finish: Short. Mint, malted grains, fresh baked bread, sea salt, lemon zest. 

Comments: 

This Imperial hasn’t fared too well with others, but I enjoyed it. It’s fruity and sweet, lots of mango and cream alongside the normal white grape / sultana notes. Well aged and delicious. 

Verdict:

I like this a lot.