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.

Box Single Malt - The Explorer

Box Single Malt - The Explorer

Official bottling
Single malt - Angermanland
Golden
48.3% ABV
Dram

Nose: Peat, peanuts, cherries, apples, molasses, hints of pine. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, loosens, airy, slightly watery. 
Tasting:  Bitter sour. Peat, pine, apple juice, molasses, lemon juice, hints of black tea. 
Finish: Medium. Lemon juice, apple juice, black tea, peat, smoke. 

Comments: 

A medium peated whisky, not sweet at all. Instead it's redolent with tart fruity notes, pleasant herbal scents and a caramel bitterness that is reminiscent of molasses. The peat is very obvious on the finish, perhaps less so on the tongue.

Verdict:

I like this.

Box Single Malt Dalvve

Box Single Malt Dalvve

Official bottling
Single malt - Angermanland
Silver gold
46% ABV
Dram

Nose: Peat, vanilla, plums, apple juice, hints of honey, hints of black pepper. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, slippery, loose, slightly oily. 
Tasting:  Sweet sour. Black tea, molasses, peat, apple juice, hints of lemon zest. 
Finish: Short. Black tea, black pepper, apples, lemon zest. 

Comments: 

I may have exhausted my palate by the time I had this - judging from others' tasting notes I missed some subtle oily pine notes. Nevertheless this was remarkably fresh and light, tart, slightly bitter, even tannic in the finish. Also remarkably spicy. Good whisky from a distillery I've not tried before.

Verdict:

I like this.