The Glover 6yo

The Glover 6yo

Adelphi
Vatted malt
Pale orange
57.8% ABV
Dram

Nose: Wet stones, white grapes, pomeloes, malted grains, pencil lead, vanilla, lemon zest. With water, pencil lead, peaches, sandalwood. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, tingly, hot, airy. 
Tasting:  Sour sweet. Pomeloes, lemon zest, honey, white grapes, malted grains, vanilla, green tea, hints of pencil lead. With water, vanilla, malted grains, white pepper, honey. 
Finish: Long. Green tea, wet stones, vanilla, white grapes. 

Comments: 

Deliciously tangy and fruity, but with plenty of feinty minerally notes. There’s tannins here too, herbal green tea that takes over after a few seconds. A great meeting of distillates, this blending of Chichibu and Ardnamurchan.

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Union 5yo (bottled 2022)

Union 5yo (bottled 2022)

Official bottling 
Single malt - Rio Grande do Sul
Golden
58.4% ABV
Dram

Nose: Pineapples, lemon zest, lemon sweets, pear drops, germolene, leather, hints of driftwood smoke. With water, pear drops, lemon sweets, pineapples, tutti frutti. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, expands, mouth coating, tingly. 
Tasting:  Salty sweet. Pineapples, pear drops, peat, fresh cut grass, white grapes, driftwood smoke. With water, driftwood smoke, white grapes, pear drops, sea salt. 
Finish: Long. Driftwood smoke, peat, pineapples, caramel, lemon sweets. 

Comments: 

This was surprisingly good. It’s whisky from a non traditional whisky country, but from a distillery that has operated for a long time. It’s like eating barbecued pineapples while sat on the back of a diesel truck. Layered and complex stuff.

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Three Ships 12yo Master Distiller’s Private Collection

Three Ships 12yo Master Distiller’s Private Collection

Official bottling
Single malt - Western Cape
Sunshine yellow
46.3% ABV
Dram

Nose: Wet stones, peat, white grapes, lemon zest, leather, autumn leaves, raisins. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, cool, tingly, expands. 
Tasting:  Sour salty. White grapes, leather, tobacco leaf, lemon zest, photocopy paper, wet stones, raisins. 
Finish: Short. Raisins, leather, peat, tobacco leaf. 

Comments: 

Tart, fruity and feinty. It’s a lot more lively than some of the other whiskies from James Sedgwick that I’ve had. There’s minerally notes too, and some notes of tobacco, that integrate well. Rather good.

Verdict:

I like this.

Coleburn 38yo 1981/2019

Coleburn 38yo 1981/2019

Private Collection, Gordon & Macphail
Single malt - Speyside
Mahogany 
55.9% ABV
Dram

Nose: Chocolate, white grapes, persimmons, leather, magic marker, pear drops, papayas. With water, fresh cut grass, magic marker, raisins, chocolate. 
Mouthfeel: Heavy body, cool, slippery, loosens. 
Tasting:  Bitter sweet. Green tea, fresh cut grass, persimmons, white grapes, magic marker, pear drops, leather, photocopy paper. With water, fresh cut grass, magic marker, raisins, pear drops. 
Finish: Long. Papayas, persimmons, white grapes, pear drops. 

Comments: 

Sweet, luscious, rich and satisfying, this is a very special dram. It’s fruity and estery, showing its age but is still lively and spritely. Water peps it up a bit, showing even more fruit and esters. Delicious and unusual.

Verdict:

I like this a lot. D

Ardnahoe 5yo Inaugural Release

Ardnahoe 5yo Inaugural Release

Official bottling
Single malt - Islay
Buttercups 
50% ABV
Dram

Nose: Lemon sweets, peat, autumn leaves, fresh cut grass, lemon zest, smoke. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, cool, astringent, tingly. 
Tasting:  Bitter. Sea salt, germolene, fresh cut grass, autumn leaves, smoke, lemon zest, yoghurt, hints of dried apricots. 
Finish: Long. Smoke, peat, ginseng, lemon sweets. 

Comments: 

Islay’s newest distillery, and I’m sure that’s not the last time I will type that sentence. It’s very gentle and well integrated, lemony, slightly lactic and a little fruity. The smoke and peat are very gentle. Very promising. 

Verdict:

I like this.

Puni 4yo PX Cask Finish

Puni 4yo PX Cask Finish

Darkness, Master of Malt
Single malt - Alto Adige
Amber brown
54.2% ABV
Dram

Nose: Cream, yoghurt, peaches, raisins, redcurrants, malted grains, black tea. With water, redcurrants, cough syrup, raisins, black pepper. 
Mouthfeel: Heavy body, loosens, tingly, expands. 
Tasting:  Sweet. Black tea, fresh baked bread, black pepper, redcurrants, raisins, coffee, cream. With water, sea salt, fresh baked bread, cough syrup, mint. 
Finish: Medium. Black pepper, peaches, coffee, malted grains. 

Comments: 

Cask 11813/1006. A very classic Pedro Ximenez finish, lots of cough syrup and red fruit. It mellows on the finish to coffee and peaches, and water opens it up beautifully. My other thought, however, was that the cask is almost all of it.

Verdict:

I like this.

Eden Mill Sherry Cask

Eden Mill Sherry Cask

Official bottling 
Single malt - Lowlands
Chinese tea
46% ABV
Dram

Nose: Strawberry jam, new plastic, lemon sweets, orange peel, malted grains, hints of dunnage. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, thickens slightly, slippery, cool. 
Tasting:  Bitter sweet. New plastic, papayas, malted grains, apricots, raisins, dunnage, caramel. 
Finish: Short. Raisins, dunnage, marmalade, lemon sweets. 

Comments: 

Slightly rough, coarse whisky. It’s young, of course, and it could do with a little more age. Nevertheless there’s plenty of pleasant marmalade and warehouse dunnage. Pleasant dram.

Verdict:

I like this.

Riverbourne 2yo Batch 2

Riverbourne 2yo Batch 2

That Boutique-y Whisky Company, Master of Malt
Single malt - New South Wales
Golden, hints of orange 
51% ABV
Dram

Nose: Smoke, leather, peaches, limes, peat, orange juice, hints of pineapples, hints of sandalwood. With water, photocopy paper, olive brine, orange juice. 
Mouthfeel: Heavy body, loosens, expands, cool. 
Tasting:  Sweet salty. Rye bread, photocopy paper, black pepper, smoke, pineapples, cloves, hints of sea salt. With water, rye bread, black pepper, sandalwood. 
Finish: Medium. Rye bread, sandalwood, cloves, orange juice, pineapples. 

Comments: 

Quite savoury, yet it’s fruity. It’s clearly been aged in a warmer climate, it’s got a lot of flavour for its age. It’s almost too savoury, the salt and rye are really evident and threaten to overwhelm the more delicate fruit.

Verdict:

I like this.

Hillrock Solera Aged Bourbon

Hillrock Solera Aged Bourbon

Official bottling
Single bourbon - New York
Amber gold
46.3% ABV
Dram

Nose: Brown paper, cotton sheets, photocopy paper, chocolate, malted grains, raisins, sea salt. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, tingly, loosens, warm. 
Tasting:  Sweet salty. Malted grains, sea salt, cocoa nibs, cotton sheets, cinnamon, cloves, brown paper. 
Finish: Short. White pepper, brown paper, cinnamon, sea salt. 

Comments: 

Savoury and spicy bourbon. It’s got the requisite fruity brown paper notes, but is less cough syrupy than some other solera whiskies. Interesting stuff, would love to drink more from this distillery.

Verdict:

I like this.

Breuckelen Brownstone 6yo

Breuckelen Brownstone 6yo

Official bottling
Single malt - New York
Amber red
50% ABV
Dram

Nose: Pencil erasers, cotton sheets, barley sugar, corn syrup, peaches. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, thickens, slippery, cool. 
Tasting:  Sweet salty. Wet stones, peaches, almonds, fennel, cinnamon, corn syrup, white pepper. 
Finish: Medium. Orange peel, white pepper, fennel, cotton sheets. 

Comments: 

Herbal and peppery, with a decent level of minerality. I’m pleasantly surprised here because I didn’t think New York tap water was that hard. The distillery is in Brooklyn. Maybe the salts come from the barley.

Verdict:

I like this.