Hanyu 2000 Final Vintage

Hanyu 2000 Final Vintage

Official bottling
Single malt - West Honshu
Golden
59.7% ABV
Dram

Nose: Oak, honey, soy sauce, smoked ham, cream, hints of caramel . 
Mouthfeel: Light body, expands, loose, watery, mouth coating. 
Tasting: Sweet salty. Honey, cream, salted caramel, condensed milk, peanuts, soy sauce. 
Finish: Medium. Cream, honey, soy sauce, hints of smoked ham. 

Comments: 

Big hits of soy sauce and smoked ham, this time quite salty. Offsetting those savoury notes are equally big hits of honey, condensed milk and cream. Nutty, sweet and salty. Yum yum, I could almost chew this whisky.

Verdict:

I like this a lot.

Karuizawa 1982 Sherry Cask (for The Whisky Exchange)

Karuizawa 1982 Sherry Cask (for The Whisky Exchange)

Official bottling
Single malt - West Honshu
Deep red brown
56.1% ABV
Dram

Nose: Cream, blackberries, strawberries, chocolate, hints of cherry.
Mouthfeel: Medium body, smooth, loose, spicy.
Tasting: Bitter sweet. Cream, chocolate, blackberries, strawberries, cherries, honey.
Finish: Long. Cherries, honey, hints of wet leaves.

Comments:

Incredible. Huge sweet and spicy flavours, redolent with red fruits. Very autumnal, with big hits of blackberries and in the background, an earthiness like the smell of wet leaves. This is fantastic whisky, worth every penny.

Verdict:

I like this a lot.

Ichiro's Malt Hanyu 15 yo

Ichiro's Malt Hanyu 15 yo

Official bottling
Single malt - East Honshu
Pale gold
46% ABV
Dram

Nose: Honey, oak, salted caramel, soy sauce, hints of smoked ham. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, loose, watery, expands in the mouth. 
Tasting: Bitter. Honey, mint, soy sauce, oak, dried apricots, hints of bitter gourd. 
Finish: Short. Mint, salted caramel, honey. 

Comments: 

First ever Hanyu! Lots of salty and sweet notes, but surprisingly bitter in the mouth. But not unpleasant. There's a very unusual note in the flavour, which I interpret as bitter gourd (slightly earthy, fragrant bitterness). Very nice indeed.

Verdict:

I like this a lot.

SMWS 66.44 (Ardmore 10 yo 2002/2013)

SMWS 66.44 (Ardmore 10 yo 2002/2013)

2013, SMWS
Single malt - Speyside
Deep red brown
56.9% ABV
Dram

Nose: Soy sauce, oak, strawberries, vanilla, caramel, smoke. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, loose, watery, thin. 
Tasting: Bitter sweet. Soy sauce, strawberries, smoke, bacon, vanilla, chocolate. 
Finish: Medium. Smoke, bacon, vanilla. 

Comments: 

I was seduced by the gorgeous colour. I ought to know better by now - the colour of a whisky is in no way indicative of its flavour. Smoky and sweet, but with big hit of soy sauce and meaty bacon. The flavours aren't very well-balanced, although the whisky is a bit young. Disappointing, given my expectations.

Verdict:

Not bad.

SMWS 39.82 (Linkwood 13 yo 1997/2011)

SMWS 39.82 (Linkwood 13 yo 1997/2011)

2011, SMWS
Single malt - Speyside
Yellow gold
60% ABV
Dram

Nose: Leather, roses, lemon zest, pears, hints of toffee. With water, pears, hay, grass. 
Mouthfeel: Heavy body, thick, spicy, weighty in the mouth. 
Tasting: Sweet sour. Leather, pasilla chillies, roses, lemon zest, butterscotch. With water, grass, pears, slightly bitter. 
Finish: Long. Warm, leather, roses, pears. 

Comments: 

Fruity and flowery on first nosing, but with an undertone of leather trousers. That's not as unpleasant as it sounds. Once water was added, it became much more light, turning grassy and vegetal while retaining its fruit and floral notes.

Verdict:

I like this.

SMWS 7.91 (Longmorn 20 yo 1993/2013)

SMWS 7.91 (Longmorn 20 yo 1993/2013)

2013, SMWS
Single malt - Speyside
Dark gold
50.6% ABV
Dram

Nose: Orange peel, custard, apples, butterscotch, hints of leather. With water, pomegranate, red grapes. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, thickens, mouth coating. 
Tasting: Sweet. Custard, strawberries, apples, cloves, lemon zest, hints of tobacco. With water, tobacco, banana, leather. 
Finish: Long. Tobacco, leather, apples, cloves, custard. 

Comments: 

Oof! This whisky smacked me in the mouth with its complexity. Lots of lovely sweet spicy tannic flavours. It was a little full on, so I added water. Then it became much more like a good bourbon, bursting with tobacco and banana, but without the cardboardy taste that drags down some bourbons. Very nice indeed.

Verdict:

I like this a lot.

SMWS 46.21 (Glenlossie 11 yo 2002/2013)

SMWS 46.21 (Glenlossie 11 yo 2002/2013)

2013, SMWS
Single malt - SpeysidePale gold
60.9% ABV
Dram

Nose: Chocolate, orange peel, caramel, butterscotch, lemon zest.With water, pepper, maple syrup.

Mouthfeel: Light body, thin, loose, spicy, watery. 
Tasting: Sweet. Chocolate, orange peel, cayenne pepper, popcorn, oak. With water, sweeter, hints of bacon and maple syrup.

Finish: Long. Chocolate, butterscotch. 

Comments: 

Quite Christmassy at the beginning, with lots of lovely sweet, spicy notes.Then, with water, morphs into a little bit of a McDonalds' breakfast - bacon and maple syrup, on hotcakes. This one is a bit of a chameleon.

Verdict:

I like this.

SMWS 3.198 (Bowmore 14 yo 1997/2012)

SMWS 3.198 (Bowmore 14 yo 1997/2012)

2012, SMWS
Single malt - Islay
Copper brown
57% ABV
Dram

Nose: Smoke,honey, chocolate, mint, rhubarb and custard. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, watery, expands. 
Tasting: Sweet. Tarry, woodsmoke, chocolate, strawberries, honey. 
Finish: Short. Smoky, seaweed, mint. 

Comments: 

Surprisingly sweet. This is one of those rare Islays where the smokiness is an accent to the flavours, rather than the other way around. Nice hints of seaweed (and wet stones? Hard to tell) at the end.

Verdict:

 I like this.

Inverleven 15 yo 1991/2005

Inverleven 15 yo 1991/2005

Distillery Labels, Gordon & Macphail
Single malt - Lowlands
Pale copper
40% ABV
Dram

Nose: Grapefruit, honey, rhubarb and custard, lemon peel, hints of caramel. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, thickens, chewy. 
Tasting: Sour. Vanilla, honey, chocolate, grapefruit, hints of lemon peel. 
Finish: Medium. Chocolate, vanilla, grapefruit, lemon peel. 

Comments: 

Refreshing and light, this is relaxing and pleasant in a glass with lots of soda. But it's from a closed distillery, and it would be a waste to dilute the flavours like this. Dilemmas, dilemmas... Any how, very nice on a hot summer's day.

 Verdict:

I like this a lot.

Fettercairn Fasque

Fettercairn Fasque

Official bottling (Tesco exclusive)
Single malt - East Highlands
Amber Copper
42% ABV
Dram

Nose: Red fruits, bananas, chocolate, vanilla, hints of nutmeg. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, smooth, loosens on the tongue. 
Tasting: Sweet. Bananas, red fruits, vanilla, chocolate, toffee, hints of cinnamon. 
Finish: Medium. Sweet, vanilla, chocolate, cinnamon. 

Comments:

This is a Tesco exclusive bottling. Fettercairn was a favourite of an old gentleman who was a kind and gentle chap. This is the first Christmas without him. Great tasting, decent value on Christmas offer at Tesco. I especially like the spicy notes that seem to spark in the mouth and in the finish.


Verdict:

I like this a lot.