Music in 2015

Posted on 29 December 2015 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

Another year has gone by and by tradition I do me end of year lists in the week between Christmas and New Year. Yesterday we celebrated 3rd Christmas Day with close friends so I’m starting a day (and a bit late).

Since I’ve not checked my blog yet for the best whiskies of the year, or I might not have reviewed it yet, I’m starting with the list of my favorite records. Regarding music (2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014) this year was a bit of a strange one, for multiple reasons.

First of all, a lot of great records came out in the first couple of months of the year and then it went really quiet until the last bit of the year. The spread wasn’t very good for people with my preference in tunes.

Also, while I normally have trouble restricting myself to ten records, I now have trouble filling it. I got around to seven, and after that it becomes rather arbitrary what the last three records are. The list of honorable mentions is quite impressive though.

Thirdly, I discovered a few cool records I’ve been listening to in the last couple of weeks that I think are great, but I have not yet decided whether or not they’ve got any longevity. Quite often it happens that I find a record in the last two months of then year and think it’s great, until I’ve heard it 10 times and never listen to it again. (Martha Wainwright in 2012 is the best example)

Anyway, without further meanderings, here we go.

7: Father John Misty – I love you, Honeybear

A great and quite sarcastic record with lyrics varying from the ridiculous to an almost protest song level of criticism of society. I like this style, the complexity in the song texts and just how simple Joshua Tilman makes it sound. Not very surprising since I loved his work with Fleet Foxes as well. He’s been in the music news I follow (stereogum, mostly) a lot with all kinds of covers and parodies of songs and situations. Of course, there’s a lot of flack he gets for this too. I don’t think he cares.

6: Calexico – Edge of the Sun

I doubted for quite a while where to put this. In a way, it’s not a very great Calexico record. A bit middle-of-the-road and not very innovative compared to the previous records. However, I thought, it’s just really really good. This makes for great easy listening and still, after all is said and done, a great record that I’ve played quite a lot in the car. It works wonders on road trips and holidays. What also helps is the great concert of them I went to in spring.

5: Modest Mouse – Strangers to Ourselves

I love Modest Mouse. They’re quite out there in compositions and lyrics, but I love them for the freakiness of it. The songs have some good drive to them, and each record has enough diversity to keep you hooked for a while. I doubt I’ll listen to it as much as I did ‘We were Dead before the Ship even Sank’, but this’ll pop up occasionally next year and the years after.

4: Joanna Newsom – Divers

This is probably the most freaky record on the list. Not many people in my circle of friends can deal with Joanna voice, and the way she composes her songs. That most of it is just her and a harp doesn’t really help with people who are more appreciative of regular band compositions. This came out only a little while ago and it’s not available on Spotify, which means I’ve not listened to it all that often except to and from work, in the car. It still works, contrary to her previous records which were slightly more gentle. But, in short, I fell in love with the record the moment I heard it. Not every song is as good as the average of the 18 songs of the previous record, but there are some really good ones on there. Just give it a couple of tries before writing it off…

3: Courtney Barnett – Sometimes I sit and Think, and Sometimes I just Sit

Where the previous record, and some others in this list can be abstract in subject and lyrics, Courtney Barnett picks her subjects from everyday life and writes that down more or less as it happens. No metaphors or poetic freedom, just simplicity and sometimes even banality of regular things.

I have loved this ever since her previous two EPs came out (this is the official debut album), but the songs are awesome. And, more often than not, reminiscent of the 90s. The style, the compositions are all fairly simple. The result is awesome, though.

Fun fact: Her song ‘Depreston’ is about Preston, in Melbourne. Shortly after this album came out I had to send some whisky there. Fun coincidence.

2: Torres – Sprinter

I can only compare this artist to one other, and that’s PJ Harvey. I love PJ Harvey.  This is more of Harvey’s style from a few years ago (just before White Chalk, I’d say). Anyway, it’s loud, it’s like the nineties in some ways, and it has a great ‘drone’ to it. I wish I had gone to see her show in Amsterdam this summer.

Somehow, I wouldn’t expect this kind of songwriting from a 24 year old. I just hope there’s a lot more to come from Mackenzie Scott in the coming decades.

1: Sufjan Stevens – Carrie & Lowell

A hugely personal record from Stevens about his upbringing with an alcohol mother who couldn’t really care for him, and his stepfather who took over. It’s very touching, and moving how he’s written songs about how his mom left him at a video store, and how he can see how that was the best thing at the time.

I’ve read some interviews (and hope I remember everything correctly) with Sufjan and he seems like a guy who’s been through a lot and really vents through his music. It also helps that the songs are gorgeous. The video below is also my favorite song of 2015. By a mile or so.

Do yourself a favor and sit this one out. Then do the same with the entire record.

 

Playlist Link!

Obviously, we then get to the honorable mentions that I couldn’t decide between for the rest of the top ten. Some of these records have been around since the early in the year (Decemberists, Bjork) and some of them I found only recently (Melody Gardot, Daniel Nordgren) but I like them all to some extent. Just not in comparison to the above list.

Faith no More Sol Invictus
Active Child Mercy
The Waifs Beautiful You
FKA Twigs M3LL155X
Daniel Nordgren Alabursy
Patty Griffin Servant of Love
Pokey LaFarge Something in the Water
Melody Gardot Currency of Man
Lindi Ortega Faded Gloryville
Brandi Carlile The Firewatcher’s Daughter
Bjork Vulnicura
The Arcs Yours, Dreamily
Julia Holter Have you in my Wilderness
Laura Marling Short Movie
Alabama Shakes Sound & Color
The Decemberists What a Terrible World, What a Wonderful World

(In bold the ones that would have been highest. The rest is really just an honorable mention)

Posted in - Music | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Glen Grant 1950-2015, 65yo, 59.3% – Gordon & MacPhail for Wealth Solutions

Posted on 26 December 2015 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

I’m not sure if you realized it while skimming the title of this post, but we’re talking about a 65 year old whisky that’s been bottled at 59.3%. That means, according to general practice in Scotland and the press release, that this only lost 4.2% of alcohol in 65 years.

I got this sample from Wealth Solutions for reviewing purposes. They’ve sent me samples before of their whiskies (and Cognacs, but I hope to educate myself a bit before I review those), which previously were a 58 year old Glenfarclas, a 48 year old Karuizawa and a 66 year old Glen Grant.

This Glen Grant is the first time they’ve released a whisky to their investors that is not the oldest one bottled by that particular distillery, at the time of bottling. Glenfarclas has since released a 60 year old and Karuizawa went for a 50 and a 52 year old by now.

Anyway, Wealth Solutions is a Polish investment company (they ‘solve your wealth’…) which focuses heavily on collectible items like great bottles of whisky, cognac and wine, but also paintings and other art objects.

The distribution of their first release, the Glenfarclas, was handled by Master of Malt. That’s the way I got on their list, because I don’t think they would otherwise have noticed my wee blog. Anyway, I’m very grateful for them continuing to send me samples. I waited a while before reviewing this sample, because I wanted to give it proper time and attention and not just squeeze it in on a random Thursday. Christmas seemed appropriate.

Sniff:
The nose is surprisingly smooth and gentle for a whisky at almost 60%. I get lots of oak and wood pulp, but there are also more crisp notes. Pine, mint and a gently sweet vanilla cream. Sweet caramel too. Strangely, though there are significant wood notes, it doesn’t really betray it’s age. Quite vibrant, at retirement age. At one point I got a whiff of paper, but that’s not really in the way of anything. It’s simply gorgeous.

Sip:
The palate is rich, but also quite a bit sharper than the nose (not surprisingly, although I had forgotten the ABV during the tasting). White pepper and oak, with a gentle sweetness. Some baking spices with pine and slightly bitter caramel. Quite spicy with lots of oak, but it’s all in a very fitting way. Grilled peach with the charry bits on, in the end.

Swallow:
The finish is a revival of everything you’d expect from such an old whisky. Oak, spices, dried fruits. Caramel too, peach, dates and figs. Glorious and long.

Let’s be honest here, just for a second. Normally I love to taste these whiskies, but generally I find that whisky of this age has been kept too long. Normally the oak is dominant and the spirit is interchangeable. Normally, it’s just the oak flavors that remain.

I think, with this one, that’s not the case. The whisky is still strong and very much alive. The oak has mellowed the alcohol flavors and integrated the oak flavors well with the spirit. It’s remarkable how such a strong whisky can be such a smooth experience when drinking it.

In short, this is truly a great whisky. Everything fits, everything is right. It’s plainly awesome. This is the stuff that makes the year, although I’ve had some bloody amazing whiskies this year.

Glen Grant 65 years old, 14 October 1950 to 2015, Sherry butt, 59.3%, Gordon & MacPhail for Wealth Solutions

Thanks to Wealth Solutions for sending the sample. Much obliged!

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Loch Ness Brewery’s Whisky Beers

Posted on 25 December 2015 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

About two and a half years ago we went to Scotland on our family holiday. Apart from spending a week on Skye, we also spent a week in the vicinity of Loch Ness.

During our stay there I (obviously) had to meet up with my buddy Jon Beach. He runs the Fiddler’s Inn in Drumnadrochit, which is a nice restaurant and an awesome whisky bar. He also hooked me up with the guys from the Loch Ness Brewery. Jon wrote a great report on my day in town.

Of course we kept in touch, and the better part of a year ago I got an email saying he sent me some of the new Whisky Beers that Jon has been developing with the guys from the Loch Ness Brewery.

When he said ‘some’, I expected two or three bottles, but it turned out to be ten. A few different versions of the range from the brewery. Over the last couple of months I’ve been slowly making my way through the beers and after all was said and done for the Blind Tasting Competition I decided to finally do a write up of all bottles.

Now, obviously, I find out I didn’t write tasting notes on them all. Most likely because there were multiples and with the first of each I thought “I’ll write notes with the next bottle”, while with the next bottle I thought “I already tried one, so my notes are already done”.

That’s what alcohol does to your brain, boys and girls…

Ghost of Tranquility 4.5%

Ghost of Tranquility is a red ale, matured in whisky casks. Red ale is, normally a bit of a middle of road beer style and I’ve not had many great ones. I did like this one though. There’s lots of earthy tones with licorice and bay leaf. I also got some cherries. The wood is clearly present, but not quite overpowering. (7 / 10)

Prince of Tranquility, 10.1%

The Prince of Tranquility, a spin off from their ‘ness’ beers namely the Prince of DarkNESS. It’s an imperial stout and therefore one of the more obvious beer styles to mature in whisky casks. It’s sweet, thick and heavy with lots of malt and a slight hint of coffee. Some oak and light bitterness, it’s also quite ashy.

An interesting beer that’s heavy but has lots of light flavors. (8.5 / 10)

Double Cask Prince, 10.1%

This is even bigger than the previous one. Also an Imperial Stout. It’s got roasted malt, grain, oak on the nose. Also it’s oily with plums and coffee and even slightly smoky. The palate is more smoky than the nose was with sawdust and smoke. Dried fruit and plums on the finish.

Another gorgeous beer that I’d love to have more off (as with all of them, by the way). I might have to go to Scotland to get me some in 2016! (8 / 10)

Peated Cask Seven, 7.1%

I didn’t really know what to expect, except that it would be a smoky beer. This one is a Scottish Ale, also known as ’80 shilling’, but with oak. You might want to know that I love this style of beer.

I misplaced my notes for this one, but I remember there being a lot of wood influence with it. The slightly roasted barley of the beer stood tall, with the peat flowing around it nicely. There were the more herbal notes of bay leaf and licorice too, and I really loved this one. (8.5 /10)

The Pict, 4.4%

Then, another lighter one. The Pict clocks in at just 4.4% ABV and my brother in law (a more Belgium focused beer drinker) told me he has a hard time liking these low ABV beers. Unlike the 14% stuff we had the rest of the night… Interesting…

Anyway, another 80 shilling ale, I guess based on the ‘Loch Ness’ beer the brewery has (which I also love).

It’s quite similar to the Peated Cask Seven, as it’s more or less the same beer. It’s slightly more mellow and a bit more sweet, but still had the roastiness of the barley, the licorice and the bay leaf. Even some salmiac and definite but gentle wood tones. (9 / 10)

I based my ratings here on what I entered on Untappd, but my favorite two beers are the Peated Cask Seven and The Pict. They are just awesome. And unique, that also helps.

All personal preference aside (well, not really), these are all really good beers. I’ve not come across many breweries that make quality beer at such a consistent level. Back when I was at the brewery in 2013 I also tried quite a few trial runs of this, from Mortlach and Caol Ila casks, and some bottle conditioned versions of their regularly available filtered beers. I remember loving those, even at 10 in the morning.

These add another layer of interestingness with the wood and whisky influence in them. What they’ve done well is getting the beers out of the cask before the oak overpowered the other flavors, which is a simple question of timing, but pretty important nonetheless.

I highly recommend you go after brews like this if you’re in the area. I don’t have a clue where you can get them but I bet Jon Beach has some available in his lunch bar / wee shop next to Fiddler’s.

Thanks to Loch Ness Brewery and Jon Beach for giving me those beers. If When I’m in the area again I’ll make sure to bring some interesting stuff for you to try too.

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Blind Tasting Competition day 18: Auchentoshan 1998-2014, 16yo, 59.1% – Malts of Scotland

Posted on 24 December 2015 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

Today is a weird day. It’s the last day of the competition and I’m sucking every step of the way. My highest score is 50 points, which was for a whisky of which I had the region right and was only one year off with the age.

So, at the moment I’m writing this I’m 42nd of the 72 participants. This is quite depressing, but I’m quite happy with the drams I’ve tasted. This year was an epic line of whiskies with today’s whisky maybe being the best. It’s hard to remember each and every one of them, but today’s is already pending for the wish list. It all depends on availability and price.

I have no idea what it is, however. As in, on other days I THOUGHT I had an idea to what it was. This time, however, I have none. I think it’s a highlander. I think it’s got some decent time in oak. I’m thinking it’s a sherry hogshead, or refill sherry at the least. I also think it’s not too strong, but cask strength at just over 50%.

Image from Whiskybase

Image from Whiskybase

Sniff:
It’s quite smooth, but intense. Lightly sherried with grilled peach. Fruity and sweet with toasted oak. Honey, cherries and some nuts. Smooth, but there’s a lot going on.

Sip:
The palate is sharp, with quite a lot of pepper. Some light smoke. Oak, fruit, and slightly sweet. Also slightly bitter as well, with lots of oak and some honey.

Swallow:
The finish is quite smooth with oak and slightly drying. Bitter and sweet, some honey and pine wood. Rather long too.

This is an awesome dram. One that offers a lot of complexity and has a hell of an awesome aroma to it. I loved every aspect of it. It could be anything and I’m hoping it’s some sort of off-the-beaten-path whisky that makes me focus on something else than the usual suspects. Last year that worked with the Imperial that was tasted on Day 18.

Anyway, I love the honey on the palate and the bitter and sweet combination. I love bitter as a flavor. I also like that it’s not the strongest, or fiercest whisky of the list but still has some punch to it. Fruit, some spices I can’t identify, oak, with none of them overpowering something else.

After the reveal: It’s a Christmas whisky! And an Auchentoshan. A friggin’ Auchentoshan. They must have gone through some trouble to find, approximately, the only really good Auchentoshan. It doesn’t taste like any Auchentoshan I’ve ever had, so that’s kind of a bummer for my score. Another zero points. It didn’t taste like almost 60% either, and my age was way off.

This made my final position 43rd out of 72 participants. Quite a shitty result, to be honest. I might have to do more blind tastings over the year!

Auchentoshan 1998-2014, 16yo, 59.1%, Malts of Scotland. Available until yesterday for € 109

The list for participation in 2016’s Blind Tasting Competition has already opened, and is filling up rapidly. Thanks to the Usquebaugh Society for enabling this, and to Ewald L. for the tremendous amount of work he’s put in, to make this all possible. Awesome, I’ve never had a blind tasting that was this much fun!

The fun was good, and the whiskies were tremendous. Mostly.

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Cleaning out the closet: Lots of samples for sale

Posted on 23 December 2015 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

At the beginning of the year I always set targets for different kinds of things. One of my targets was to get down to a certain number of open bottles, and while I have ended many bottles over the last twelve months, I did way too many bottle shares to stay in the low numbers.

Of several of those bottle shares I still have quite a lot available, and I’ve decided to empty some other bottles too.

By selling off a lot of samples (see below) I’m not emptying them since I still have to review almost all of them, but they’re getting near the kill zone and I might get a head start for next year.

Here are some sample sets that are available at the moment:

 

The Willett Bottle share, which I still have to review:

Willett 2yo Rye (own distillate) op 55.4%
Willett 2yo Rye (own distillate) op 54.9%
Willett 6yo Rye op 58.7%
Willett 8yo Rye op 58.8%
Willett 7yo XCF op 51.7%

5cl of each of these whiskies for a total of € 40, excluding shipping

 

The BenRiach Bottle share, to which I added two more bottles since it only was the OB 25s:

BenRiach 25, 50%
BenRiach 25, Peated, 46%
BenRiach 9, Peated / Virgin American Oak, 58.7%
BenRiach 1984-2010, 25yo, Bourbon Hogshead, Liquid Sun for Japan, 48.1%

5cl of each of these whiskies for a total of € 50, excluding shipping

 

The Arran Bottle share, which is sort of new since I never sold samples of this before, but they’re pretty awesome:

Arran 18, 46%
Arran 17yo, The Dark Lord, 53.2%
Arran 14yo, The White Wizard, 56.7%
Arran 12yo, Bright Early Spring, 56%

5cl of each of these whiskies for a total of € 35, excluding shipping

 

Of course this, and a lot more is available separately from my sample list, here.

Just let me know if you want in!

Posted in - Bottle share | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Blind Tasting Competition day 17: BenRiach 20, 1994-2014, 54.6%

Posted on 23 December 2015 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

The penultimate day of the Blind Tasting Competition was upon us yesterday. A big and sherried whisky was waiting for us and the only thing we knew was that it couldn’t be a Highlander.

I didn’t score much over the last couple of weeks, but that’s not really the point (I keep telling myself). Somehow I am not as jaded over the competition as I’ve been at some point over the last couple of years. Somehow I can see the fun in getting everything wrong and I focus more on tasting some kick ass whiskies.

The BenRiach it turned out to be, yesterday, is bottled ‘Fur Independent Spirit’ in Germany. The whisky was drawn from an Oloroso Sherry Butt and the fact that it was a sherry cask was no surprise after a single whiff of the booze.

Image from Whiskybase

Image from Whiskybase

Sniff:
Lots of sherry with bread and bread sticks. Dried plums and a bit fiery. A quite light profile behind all this sherry, with sponge cake. After a while some leather and furniture wax pops up.

Sip:
Some chili pepper. Mild on the arrival but it ramps up to a peppery bit of firewater right after. Bread, buttery toast and brown sugar. Peach and plum too.

Swallow:
The gentle finish is surprising. Surprisingly long too. Lots of sherry and spiced cake and some fruit. After a few seconds it’s suddenly a bit sharper but then mellows down nicely.

I went for Bunnahabhain, but doubted BenRiach for a while too. I didn’t pick it since I couldn’t really fathom the character of the spirit (the leather, and pepper) with BenRiach, but I’ve had heavily sherried Bunnahabhains that were a bit similar to this.

Since I also picked the wrong age (five years off) and the wrong ABV (4% off) I didn’t get any points. By now I’m used to it. I have more experience with it than actually getting points. It’s quite humiliating, this.

About the whisky then. It’s a ridiculously sherried whisky, but it’s really, really good. The sherry is really huge, but also quite interesting and leaves for a very interesting whisky with lots of different flavors. An awesome dram.

BenRiach 20, 1994-2014, Oloroso Sherry Butt, 54.6%, ‘Fur Independent Spirit’. Still available there for € 124

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Blind Tasting Competition day 16: Inchmurrin 1974, 47% – Cadenhead’s Cask Ends

Posted on 22 December 2015 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

At the moment of writing I’ve just finished today’s dram (by now, yesterday’s) and have no idea what it is yet. I just want to get the boring bit of the blogpost (the tasting notes) out of the way so in the morning I can actually spend some time with the kids before they go to daycare.

Depending on last night’s reveal I might just drop like a brick in the rankings, or I might go up a bit. I think I’ve made a fairly accurate guess, otherwise I wouldn’t have made it. It’s interesting how bad I am at this, and maybe I need to change the way I try whiskies.

Ever since I started trying massive amounts of whiskies I just tried individual drams and saw whether or not I like them. I never really kept track of how a particular distillery profile evolves, or how drams compare to other whiskies of the same distillery. Not in depth at least. Apparently, other people do that way more and score way higher in the BTC, which (in a way) is fine.

I wish I was better at it, but it would make tasting whiskies quite a bit harder, I think. As in, now I can just have a dram and scribble some tasting notes. The other way I have to compare things, have a benchmark whisky that more or less sits in the middle of spice, fruits, wood, alcohol, and others scents and flavors.

It would mean, in a way, to start taking it a lot more serious. I’m not sure whether or not I like that. It might make for better tasting notes because you set your palate before trying anything, and also wash out any remaining flavors from dinner, a snack or anything that might interfere with what you’re about to taste.

On the other hand, I like to keep things simple and write whether or not I like a whisky and what it tastes like to me. I don’t want to take this more serious than I absolutely have to, it’s just a drink after all. A very good drink with a serious amount of alcohol and a serious price tag. But a drink.

I’m looking for whiskies that I like, and want to buy. Whiskies that I like to drink on any regular night. Mix with that a few ridiculously awesome drams to have on special occasions and take to tastings with buddies here and there, and I’m set. Nothing hard or difficult. Just fun.

Anyway, I’m rambling. Tasting notes then. The part you skip when reading this post…

Really?

Really?

Sniff:
It’s strangely light and heavy. The lightness is sweet fruits like pear, apple and lychee. The heavy part consists of oak and leather. Also slightly grassy and Irish-like.

Sip:
The palate is light and slightly drying. Quite sharp compared to the nose, with a bit of a fatty feel to it too. Lots of fruit, lychee, pear. Quite sweet with soft white oak.

Swallow:
The finish has lots of fruit again, mostly sweet pear. Quite long.

My guess went towards Tomatin. It seems to fit the gentleness on the nose and finish, the load of fruit, and the slight heaviness at first. During writing this, I’m somehow also thinking about Inchmurrin, since people told me it is very fruity and not unlike some Irish whiskeys. It would also make sense for the heaviness since, in my mind Inchmurrin is a bit of a heavier whisky.

While I am considering changing my entry on the last moment (one minute to go), I also realize I won’t be able to load the site, change everything and press submit quickly enough, so I’m not even going to try. I probably should. Or not. Who knows.

Too late now…

Anyway, I really like this dram. I taste like a lower highlander, and I wouldn’t mind having a bottle of it. It’s very, very good. I guessed a 20 year old Tomatin of just above 50%.

Results:

FFFFuuuuu…. So it is Inchmurrin. Bloody hell. I still wouldn’t have guessed anywhere near the age this thing has. I am also incapable of wrapping my head around how this can all be in this competition. This is quite ridiculously awesome.

I’m seriously stunned by the 41 years old. Apart from the fact that I didn’t even know Inchmurrin existed for that long as a brand, it’s just insane to have a 41 year old whisky in a competition like this. It’s good, but not 41 years old by the taste of it. As in, there’s not thát much wood influence in it. Which is a good thing I guess.

Another great pick. Shame I only got 20 points.

Inchmurrin 1974-2015, 41 years old, 47%, Bourbon Barrel.

PS: When grabbing the image off the club’s website I saw that the organizer named this image ‘really’. I just imagine the question mark there, and it voices my exact thoughts.

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Blind Tasting Competition day 15: Linkwood 1990-2014, 24yo, 57.5% – Adelphi

Posted on 21 December 2015 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

When I look at the whisky’s we’ve had in the competition so far, with three more days to go, I can barely imagine getting anything but Glenfiddich 12, Caol Ila 12 and a Highland Park 12 for the remaining days.

The level of whisky has been staggering, with lots of older drams, almost everything at cask strength and from independent bottlers. Way more than last year, if I remember correctly.

Yesterday we saw an Adelphi Linkwood pass our taste buds, but I did’n’t recognize anything of it. It was a difficult profile to recognize, since there was a certain type of flavor that I’ve had in quite a few distilleries. Mostly Springbank and some Macallans. In the end I opted for the Springbank, but that meant zero points for me.

Image from Whiskybase

Image from Whiskybase

Sniff:
Slightly astringent on the nose, dry with hints of cork and walnut. Dried peaches in the way of peaches that have been lying around for too long, not the stuff that was meant to be dried. Rotting wood, sherry and a hint of vinegar.

Sip:
The palate is fairly strong, but not overly so. Consistent with the nose. Rich, with walnuts and dried fruit. Quite a lot of oak.

Swallow:
The finish is more sweet and ‘typical’. Long and still slightly astringent. Oak, old oak.

That hint of walnuts and vinegar lessens throughout tasting it, but it still is present every step of the way. It’s an interesting profile that makes for a very dirty whisky. Quite tasty, but dirty. Like not all steps were done to 100% of the regular schedule.

Still, this was a tasty dram. One I wouldn’t mind having in my collection, but like yesterday, it’s a bit on the expensive side. € 150 for a whisky that is similar in profile (maybe a little more depth and complexity) to a 12 year old Springbank CS of € 65 is a bit strange.

The drawback is that I don’t have the Springbank open, and the sample of the Linkwood is gone. Otherwise it would have been interesting to put them head to head and see where the differences are.

Another good pick by Ewald. He’s been on a roll this year!

Linkwood 1990-2014, 24yo, Sherry Hogshead, 57.5%, Adelphi

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Blind Tasting Competition day 14: Port Charlotte PC11, 59.5%

Posted on 20 December 2015 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

So, the end of the competition is drawing close, but there’s still room to get some points. Even so, if I would get 100 points per day now, and nobody else would too, I’d still win.

You can guess I like fantasy stories, right? Anyway, I’m massively screwing up everyday and in most cases getting any points at all is more based on blind luck than anything else.

Yesterday’s random Jura was a big miss with only 8 points based on ABV, which used to be my biggest scoring category anyway, but hasn’t been for a couple years now. Maybe I should change how I taste whiskies in general, but that seems like a big hassle.

Image from Whiskybase

Image from Whiskybase

Sniff:
It’s quite funky, with a lot of sherry. Even some sulfur and varnish. Putty and soup spices. Strangely, this all works and makes for an interesting and tasty nose. It’s quite old fashioned in the way the wood works with all this, the distillate is very heavy. There’s something crisp at the end too, mint or basil or pine. It’s timid, and with all the other scents being so heavy it’s hard to pin down.

Sip:
The palate has a lot more bite than the nose made me expect. It’s quite sharp even, somewhat sweeter than the nose. The crisp thingy is still here, with apple and alcohol. Some oak, flint and spring water.

Swallow:
Full, bitter and sweet. Some oak and sherry. Quite long and spicy.

Throughout this all there is a whiff of smoke, but not enough to make me think of Islay at all. I was thinking more of a Benromach (the 100 proof one, because of the ABV). It’s quite similar to that, even after watering this down and comparing it to the Benromach 10 at 43%.

A very interesting and tasty whisky, a very old fashioned profile I really enjoy and fits right in the category of whisky of yesteryear that’s popular at the moment. At least, with me.

Of course, I was wrong. It turned out to be a Port Charlotte which, strangely, is one of the most peated whiskies around. I didn’t pick up on that at all.

Also, what this tells me is that I’m glad I didn’t buy the PC11, since for the same money I would have bought 2.5 bottles of Benromach 100 Proof, which I find almost identical, at least in style. Money saved (or rather, spent on different bottles).

I did like this whisky a lot though. Kudos to Bruichladdich for making awesome stuff. And it got me 30 points since the age I guessed was only one year off!

Port Charlotte, PC11, 59.5%. Currently available for some € 180.

Posted in Bruichladdich, Port Charlotte | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Whisky Advent Calendar, days 13 to 19…

Posted on 19 December 2015 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

So, I suddenly stopped blogging about the Whisky Advent Calendar from Drinks by the Dram / Master of Malt. This didn’t happen for nothing.

I am also the editor-in-chief of our whisky club’s magazine, De Kiln. It’s a quarterly publication, completely independent and is released to some 450 people throughout the Netherlands and Belgium.

The December issue was about to be released and I had been slacking in my editorial work since I have barely been home throughout November, and there were all kinds of reasons to not do stuff earlier. Reasons can also be read as excuses. So, this all culminated in a huge amount of work to be done on the brink of the magazine’s release, especially since some promised copy was cancelled after being a week late.

Result of all this: A couple of all-nighters after work to get things done. Reading articles, rereading them, rewriting bits of it, page make-up, writing bits to fill gaps, sorting through hundreds of photos from our Scotland trip to find stuff to put in. Stuff like that.

With the Blind Tasting Competition going on too, which costed time anyway, I decided to blog about that and catch up on the Calendar later. Later is now. One week to go before Christmas and a few drams to go as well.

Let’s get cracking, shall we?

Day 13: GlenDronach 12, 43%

One of those drams you’ve had before, but never reviewed. Mostly because I didn’t have a blog back then. I knew it was nice, but in a completely different league than the revered 15 year old and the (in my opinion) even better 18 and 21 year olds.

On the nose it’s a bit thin but there’s a scent of chocolate truffles. Quite malty, almost to a beery level. Baking spices too. The palate is super gentle with some honey and malt. Some muesli too, barley and dried peach. A hint of black pepper in the back. The finish is slightly flat with dried fruits, wine gums and old wood.

A nice entry level dram for those who don’t know GlenDronach yet. Although, I’d recommend going for the 15 year old. There’s a lot more happening in that one. This one’s nice, but quite generic, especially for a remarkable distillery like GlenDronach.

Day 14: Jura Superstition, 43%

Funky Jura. I reviewed this back in 2010 and gave it five stars. That is wrong. It was part of a Twitter Tasting, and I think the label on the whisky should have read ‘Prophecy’, instead of Superstition. My bottle of Superstition, which I bought after this tasting, is nothing like the tasting notes back there. Quite a bummer, since this is a rather funky and flat whisky that focuses on the wrong elements of Jura whisky.

In short, I don’t really like this one.

Day 15: Fettercairn Fior, 42%

The entry level Fettercairn that was released in 2011 after revamping the distillery’s line up. One that I also have reviewed earlier and wasn’t a fan of back then.

It’s one of those whiskies that are pretty okay, and in this case a huge step up from what they released prior to 2011, but it’s still not very good.

Day 16: Balvenie 12 Double Wood, 12yo, 40%

Another entry level whisky from a well known distillery. This one I have never reviewed, but coincidentally I wrote tasting notes for it at the distillery.

On the nose there’s the trademark honey with some oak and butterscotch. The palate is smooth with honey and barley. Oak and butterscotch too. The finish is gentle and rich.

This is one of those whiskies which you forget about after a couple of years of dramming. However, it also is one of those whiskies that you can blindly recommend any beginner that wants a true classic from Speyside. I think, apart from Glenfiddich 12, this is one of the most classic whiskies out there, and it’s not for nothing.

It’s not the most complex whisky ever, but it is good. And tasty. And rich. Recommended.

Day 17: Mackmyra Brukswhisky, 41.4%

The fourth entry level dram in a row, fifth if you count the Caol Ila from the previous Advent Calendar post. It’s the basic whisky from the oldest whisky distillery in Sweden. It’s made as the middle ground for what the distillery does. Some sherry casks, some bourbon casks, some Swedish oak. The recipe is a blend of the smoky one and the mellow one.

I reviewed it here.

It’s an okay whisky, but, as to be expected from something marketed as the entry to Mackmyra, a bit middle of the road. Not bad, not exceptionally good either. Quite affordable though, since Mackmyra normally is ridiculously expensive (as are most Swedish whiskies).

Day 18: Girvan Patent Still, 100 Proof (57.1%)

Now this is getting interesting. Girvan is not exceptionally rare as a grain whisky. It is, however, quite new in the range of official bottlings by William Grant and Sons. They’ve released a couple versions of which a 30 year old is currently the oldest.

This is a NAS expression showcasing what the whisky does at a higher proof. Comparable to the No. 4 Apps which was released recently (it was recent, right?).

On the nose it’s rather crisp with apple, but also uncooked vegetables. Cauliflower leaf mostly. Slightly spirity and grainy. A whiff of matches too. The palate is sharp and fiery, quite raw. Lots of white pepper and vanilla, some oak and not a trace of fruitiness. The finish is hot, dry with loads of alcohol. Not very long.

A very interesting whisky, but one I would recommend for a whisky tasting. I think this is one of those whiskies that’s very interesting to try in a whisky tasting, but not one that you’d go back to over and over again if you buy a whole bottle for yourself.

Also, it’s a nice view into the philosophy behind the distillery from the company itself. How they see their whisky.

Day 19: Lost Distilleries Blend, Batch 6, 49.3%

The last one for this post. The Lost Distilleries Blend is a whisky from Master of Malt itself, officially from The Blended Whisky Company, for sales purposes detached from Master of Malt.

The blend consists of only closed distilleries, in this case those are Mosstowie, Port Ellen, Glenisla, Imperial, Caperdonich, Glen Mhor and Brora, and the grain comes from Port Dundas.

Thanks the high heavens they sorted out their fennel issue. About two or three years ago a lot of the blends coming from Master of Malt were very fennel like, and I suspected there to be some kind of pollution in their system. It seems they have fixed that and (for me) the quality of the booze leaped up after that.

On the nose it has an old fashioned graininess. The crisp flavors of grain whisky are there too. Slightly mineral like with hints of apple. Slighly cognac-like too. Granny Smith apples, mustard seed and coriander seed for spices. The palate is slightly sweet and quite sharp. Old grain and old grain whisky. Wheat, lemon and a slight leathery flavor. Sugar, syrup and a light smoke. The finish is slightly more smoky, with old lemon and dusty barley. The oak is quite timid, and there’s some sweetness. Warm and long.

With all the distilleries being closed for quite a while, it’s quite an expensive whisky. However, it’s also pretty great. The concept is very interesting and it would be nice to see how this would compare to a similar dram from open distilleries.

Most of these closed ones were closed in favor of another distillery (Brora -> Clynelish, Port Ellen -> Caol Ila, and there are more). Cracking stuff, this.

Well, that’s done!

Posted in - Blended Whisky, - Grain Whisky, - World Whisky, Balvenie, Fettercairn, Girvan, GlenDronach, Jura, Mackmyra | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment