Craigellachie 31yo

Craigellachie 31yo

Official bottling
Single malt - Speyside
Golden beeswax 
52.2% ABV
Dram

Nose: Smoke, pineapples, apple juice, honey, lemon zest, peaches, hints of wax. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, loose, warm, slightly tingly. 
Tasting:  Sweet sour. Brown paper, candle wax, toast, cinnamon, pineapples, peaches, apples.

Finish: Medium. Black tea, toast, pineapples, peaches, apples. 

Comments: 

Thanks Eddie for the taste. This is a newish addition to Craigellachie’s core range, and is what you might call ‘classic’. Heaps of pineapple, smoked, baked, along with plenty of other fruity notes, melded together into a harmonious whole. 

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Port Ellen 27yo 1983/2010

Port Ellen 27yo 1983/2010

Douglas of Drumlanrig, Douglas Laing
Single malt - Islay
Golden
46% ABV
Dram

Nose: Roast beef, cinnamon, baked apples, smoke, leather, peat, hints of fish sauce. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, loose, airy, cool. 
Tasting:  Bitter. Roast beef, honey, apple juice, leather, white grapes, smoke, hints of raisins. 
Finish: Medium. Fish sauce, dates, raisins, apple juice, white grapes. 

Comments: 

Cask LD 6443. Another chance to taste Port Ellen, can’t be many left. Anyway, it’s a slightly atypical one, the smoke is gentle and fades a little into the background, there are a lot of fruity notes over the underlying savouriness that I like in Port Ellen. 

Verdict:

I like this.

Waterford Single Farm Origin - Bannow Island 1.2

Waterford Single Farm Origin - Bannow Island 1.2

Official bottling 
Single malt - Southern Ireland
Dark gold
50% ABV
Dram

Nose: Green tea, cinnamon, cloves, toast, white grapes, prawn cocktail. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, loose, tingly, slightly astringent.  
Tasting:  Sweet sour. Cinnamon, white grapes, apple juice, green tea, brown paper.
Finish: Medium. Vanilla, cinnamon, green tea, prawn cocktail. 

Comments: 

Another new release, this time from Mark Reynier’s new project in Ireland. Made with barley from Bannow Island farm, it’s spicy and light, very gentle and subtle. Irish whisky style.

Verdict:

I like this.

Nc’Nean Organic Single Malt Batch 1

Nc’Nean Organic Single Malt Batch 1

Official bottling
Single malt - West Highlands
Chinese tea
46% ABV
Dram

Nose: Fresh cut grass, barley sugar, lemon peel, rhubarb and custard sweets, white grapes.  
Mouthfeel: Light body, slippery, loosens, warm. 
Tasting:  Sweet sour. Lemon peel, white grapes, fresh cut grass, brown paper, hints of sage. 
Finish: Short. Barley sugar, lemon peel, green tea, camphor, hints of celery.  

Comments: 

First release from this new distillery in the West Highlands. Very herbal and grassy, lots of white fruit too. Quite an impressive dram, for something that’s under 5 years old.

Verdict:

I like this.

Clynelish 26yo 1993/2020

Clynelish 26yo 1993/2020

Celebration of the Cask, Carn Mor
Single malt - North Highlands
Golden
52.7% ABV
Dram

Nose: Wax candles, honey, mangoes, rhubarb and custard sweets, cinnamon. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, warm, astringent, static. 
Tasting:  Sweet salty. Candle wax, rhubarb and custard sweets, white grapes, black tea, vanilla, honey. 
Finish: Long. Honey, lemon zest, rhubarb and custard sweets, white grapes. 

Comments: 

Cask 11215. This Clynelish is magnificent, hugely waxy yet redolent of tropical fruit. Lots of mangoes and cinnamon. No water please, this is great as is. Lovely, lovely stuff.

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Speyside Blended Malt 22yo 1997/2020

Speyside Blended Malt 22yo 1997/2020

Chorlton Whisky
Teaspooned malt - Speyside
Golden
55.4% ABV
Dram

Nose: Starfruit, marzipan, white grapes, cream, hints of leather. With water, white grapes, green tea, white pepper. 
Mouthfeel: Heavy body, loosens, tingly, astringent. 
Tasting:  Sweet sour. Malted grains, leather, white grapes, green tea, sourdough bread, orange peel. With water, sweeter, allspice, orange peel, cinnamon.  
Finish: Long. Orange peel, green tea, allspice, cream. 

Comments: 

This is teaspooned Kininvie - teaspooned with what, I don’t know, probably Balvenie. It’s quite a Balvenie-like whisky as it happens, lots of orange and fruit. But there’s some white grapes, as well as spicy herbal notes. Very nice indeed. 

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Craigellachie 17yo 1974/1991

Craigellachie 17yo 1974/1991

Connoisseur’s Choice, Gordon & Macphail
Single malt - Speyside
Amber
40% ABV
Dram

Nose: Pineapples, rose apples, honey, pears, malted grains, mint, tobacco leaf. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, astringent, warm, tingly. 
Tasting:  Sweet salty. Pineapples, cloves, honey, peaches, pears, brown paper, white pepper.  

Finish: Medium. Black tea, cloves, pears, peaches. 

Comments: 

Thanks Eddie for the taste. This is magnificent stuff, heaps of spice and pineapples, and it wears its age lightly - very little old bottle effect. Very intense, classic Craigellachie. 

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Corsair Wry Moon

Corsair Wry Moon

Official bottling
Single rye - Tennessee
Colourless
46% ABV
Dram

Nose: Sour cream, white grapes, orange juice, gooseberries, limes, hints of pomegranates. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, warm, tingly, slightly slippery. 
Tasting:  Sweet sour. Malted grains, white grapes, limes, pomegranates, yoghurt, orangeade, lemon zest. 
Finish: Medium. Lemon zest, malted grains, limes, gooseberries. 

Comments: 

New make rye spirit from a very good US distillery. It’s surprisingly fruity, with little of the spiciness that characterises rye whisky. Maybe that comes with wood. But it’s very pleasant indeed, and there’s a nice tart note of lime, in common with some of the other Corsairs that I’ve had. 

Verdict:

I like this.

Glengarriff Series Peat Charred Cask Finish

Glengarriff Series Peat Charred Cask Finish

Official bottling
Single malt - Southern Ireland
Bright gold
43% ABV
Dram

Nose: Malted grains, oranges, raisins, tobacco leaf, hints of leather, hints of buttermilk. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, thickens, slippery, tingly.  
Tasting:  Sweet. Orange juice, tobacco leaf, menthol, fresh baked bread, leather. 
Finish: Medium. Menthol, fresh baked bread, buttermilk, vanilla. 

Comments: 

Irish whisky finished with wood harvested from Glengarriff forest - an interesting idea. This one is cereally, albeit light, with some interesting milky flavours and rather a lot of vanilla. The peat is very gentle, more leathery than anything else. 

Verdict:

I like this.

Ardbeg Blaaack Limited Edition

Ardbeg Blaaack Limited Edition

Official bottling
Single malt - Islay
Amber
46% ABV
Dram

Nose: Smoke, roast mutton, chocolate, vanilla, peat, hints of rubber.  
Mouthfeel: Medium body, cool, thickens slightly, turns sticky. 
Tasting:  Bitter salty. Roast mutton, vanilla sponge, chocolate, white grapes, smoke, peat, hints of rubber.  
Finish: Medium. Chocolate, smoke, leather, honey, vanilla.  

Comments: 

A limited edition Ardbeg! Very meaty, sticky, even oily. There’s a lot of sweet in this, but it’s flavour notes masked by the salty spirit. Lots of smoky chocolate as usual. Lovely stuff. 

Verdict:

I like this a lot.