The Lakes, The Whiskymaker’s Reserve No. 5, 2022, Oloroso, PX and Red Wine casks, 52%

Posted on 11 October 2023 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

I think this is the first time I have had an English whisky in my collection. I’ve had Dutch, German, French, Scottish (duh), Irish, Japanese, Australian, South African, Mexican, Canadian, Swedish, Finnish, and I’m probably forgetting some. But not yet English.

So, when this one came out last year, it was available at my local bottle shop and with 44 votes and a score of almost 90 points on average, this seemed like a no-brainer! Of course, by now the score has settled a bit more, although 44 votes is not nothing on Whiskybase.

Image from Whiskybase

Interestingly, this one is called ‘the Whiskymaker’s Reserve’, but when a whisky is drawn from Oloroso, PX and Red Wine casks I would expect it to be called the Cooper’s Reserve sooner, but that is probably my cynical mind showing up…

Sniff:
The nose on this one is fairly simple. There’s some sherry, with a bit of a youthful spirit undertone. Maturation was cut short, or forced with woody flavors. Let’s keep in mind that that is not necessarily a bad thing. There’s a peach cobbler with basil and another crisp note there. Maybe something yoghurt like.

Sip:
The palate starts with a note of charcoal and sweet, fruity pork barbecue marinade. So, young whisky with oloroso sherry? I think so. Definitely some lighter red fruits, raspberries, blackberries. Quite a bit of oak and twig like bitterness.

Swallow:
The finish initially dries the palate which makes the hotter notes sing a bit over-actively. But when it starts mellowing there’s mostly the twig like bitterness that lingers on top of sharp red fruits.

Even though this started out as a 90 point whisky when I bought it, it’s not that. Tasty, but not great.

83/100

Posted in The Lakes | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Edradour 12, 2011-2023, Oloroso Sherry Butts, 57.8% – Batch 1

Posted on 10 October 2023 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

So, as it turns out Edradour has also jumped on the ‘we now make a sherried cask strength version of our whisky’ bandwagon. Similar to Glengoyne, GlenDronach, and many others. There is a big difference though, because Edradour put an age statement on the label, which I consider to be a very good thing. I like information!

What’s also new is that this an Edradour I used in a bottle-share. Which means that I now have shared an Edradour in a bottle-share, because that had not yet happened in the last 15 years or so. Mostly because I tend to find most Edradour whiskies pretty shit, but this one scored massively on Whiskybase, so I decided to give it a try. In the end it only happened because whisky friend GvB decided to want a large sample and take all remaining parts, and I had 6cl for myself.

Image from Whiskybase

Sniff:
This is a big whisky that’s on the verge of being overpowered by the cask. Luckily, in a way, Edradour has a massive spirit that is so weird it’s still noticeable. There’s hints of cheese, a milky creaminess, that I find distinctive for the distillery (Cheddradour?). There are plums and peaches of the dried variety on the nose as well.

Sip:
The palate is fierce with the high ABV which makes itself known with hints of black pepper, chili pepper, a rather dry flavor of oak, and some slightly bitter dried fruits. Plums, cherry stones. It’s really bringing a lot of bite.

Swallow:
The finish is still quite hot and doesn’t mellow fast. Quite peppery, but with bitter notes to make it rather cask driven. It’s a bit more milky than the palate was, more like the nose in that way.

So, yeah, I can see why this is popular. Big sherried whiskies are always popular and this one is not different. Also it is a lot better than I’m used to from the Pitlochry distillery, so there’s some points for that too!

What also helps is that it is acceptably priced at about € 100 (slightly lower in Germany).

86/100

Posted in Edradour | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Weller Special Reserve, 45%

Posted on 9 October 2023 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

I got this bottling from 2017 in an auction a couple of years ago. Weller was on the internet a lot and people were paying shitloads for what was supposed to be epic bourbon. Of course, right after I got it it became far more available at lower prices, if I recall correctly, although that were slightly newer bottlings.

With ‘The Original Wheated Bourbon’ they try to keep their association with Pappy Van Winkle products alive, although those came from the old Stitzel-Weller Distillery and not the one that this is produced at. Interestingly, current Weller bottlings don’t even come from Stitzel-Weller but are produced at Buffalo Trace.

Anyway, brands tend to shift in America. More so than in Scotland, although the Famous Grouse Experience is no longer located at Glenturret and has moved elsewhere as well.

Image from Whiskybase

Sniff:
There is a certain dryness that is not so common in regular bourbons, so I guess that’s what the increased amount of wheat in the mash bill is doing. It’s different from rye because it’s only dryness and not a spicy heat as well. Other than that there’s puff pastry, oak and baked apple with cinnamon. Some cherries too, and a little bit of charcoal.

Sip:
The palate is rather gentle, but not without it’s black pepper. The dryness only shows after half a minute or so. Vanilla and some dried peaches are there from the get-go. There’s lot of woody notes. Oak shavings, sawdust, the wood section in a hardware store.

Swallow:
The finish initially has quite the peppery bite, but more in intensity than in flavor (again, the wheat versus rye thing). It mellows quickly but never becomes really sweet. Oak, corn flour, black pepper, a slight note of minerals.

While it certainly is not run of the mill bourbon, it’s also not as special as their reputation and the whisky’s ‘subtitle’ of ‘Special Reserve’ makes you believe. It’s nice that it is a more dry whisky instead of the often-found sweeter versions, so it’s far from bad stuff, this!

I thoroughly enjoyed going through my bottle, and I even believe I used it in a tasting at some point, although memory is starting to get a bit foggy of 20 different tastings that happened three years ago…

86/100

Posted in Stitzel Weller | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Roseisle 12, Diageo Special Release 2023, 56.5%

Posted on 5 October 2023 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

Tom likes to write, and when he gets the chance, he likes to write things quickly. As in, beat everyone to the punch by being the first to review something.

This one is no exception. The Diageo Special Releases are still being released, and he got his bottle in today. Since working from home is still a thing, a very fast review is too.

The whisk is the first ever release of Roseisle Single Malt, and quite historic in that regard, so let’s get right to it!

In the Malt Whisky Yearbook 2023 you can still only find an entry for the Roseisle Distillery between the “new distilleries” chapter. That might well change this year. The distillery went into production in 2009 and this year’s Special Releases 2023 by Diageo features the inaugural bottle of this mammoth whisky factory (10 million liters per annum). The only entry I can find in the Whiskybase is a blend of all 27 working Diageo distilleries that apparently included Roseisle. But this is the real deal. Just like Daftmill this single malt debuts on a generally considered ripe whisky age. Matured in first-fill ex- bourbon and refill casks. Now remember, Roseisle can make many different styles of malt, to supply the master blender with options. Let’s see what we got in the glass now.

Image from Whiskybase

Sniff:
Very malty fresh to begin with. Looking at the tube the bottle comes in, I notice they did not add “Speyside” to the words “Single Malt Scotch Whisky”. Vanilla rules supreme, no denying that. Underneath it there are some fruity notes, mostly yellow, like banana, but also some citrus elements. And then back to vanilla.

Sip:
There we go, our first ever sip of Roseisle. They really put much effort into creating balance. There is not an off-note to be found. The vanilla-infused wood notes are very attractive, but there is more when spicy herbs rise from the background. Black pepper, a hint of chocolate, but also sweetness. The addition of water brings out more tropical fruits.

Swallow:
Gentle and smooth, with good length, and enough kick from the high alcohol to make an impression. The abv never gets in the way in the form of hot notes. I do not recommend water for this. Excellent integration of all elements. Maybe slightly too much bitterness from the first-fill casks.

It is extremely well put together whisky, and fits well into the region. Speyside or not? It is not exactly the brutality of close neighbor Benromach. If you ask me, this sits well with the better expressions of Miltonduff and Glenburgie. So, yes, an addition to the Speyside domain. Maybe this Roseisle is just a tad too one dimensional but I do applaud the initiative to bring out a ‘naked’ version first, before seducing us whisky geeks with a dark sherried expression. I am sure this supple but oily spirit can stand more extreme casks. Look forward to that.

87/100

About Tom van Engelen

I’m a writer in a variety of fields and have a soft spot for whisky, mainly malt, mainly from Scotland. In other times I enjoyed a stint as editor-in-chief of one of the first whisky magazines in the world. When not sipping a good glass I like to write some more, read, watch 007 movies or listen Bowie music. I’m married to Dasha, I have a sweet daughter and I live somewhere between the big rivers in the middle of The Netherlands.

Posted in Roseisle | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Canmore and Canmore 12, Bourbon and Sherry casks, both 40% – Charles Edge

Posted on 5 October 2023 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

Apart from the Glenrothes and the Glen Garioch I reviewed a little while ago, the sample pack from Charles Edge also included two of their undisclosed single malt whiskies. One is a NAS (no age stated / non age statement) and one is a 12 year old.

There isn’t a lot to say about them since there’s almost no information to go on. The 12 year old mentions that it is sourced from a Highland distillery, but for the NAS one this is only mentioned in the reviews that have been published as marketing blurbs.

So, let’s just dive in. Keep in mind these are somewhat ‘entry level’ with them respectively clocking in at £ 34 and £ 47 at Master of Malt.

Canmore Single Malt, 40%

Image from Charles Edge

Sniff:
It’s been ages since I tried modern single malt at 40%. A bit of dry oak, slightly cardboard like. There is a grain sweetness here as well. A richness of sherry casks, but it doesn’t get much more specific than dried fruit. A minor note of charcoal too.

Sip:
The palate brings some spices. White pepper, sawdust, cinnamon. A bit of almond too, and some bite that I associate with young grain whisky, strangely.

Swallow:
The finish is slightly hot, with sawdust, white pepper and ground tree bark. Longer than I expected with some apple cores and cherry stones.

Initially, I thought this was a blended whisky. I’m not sure where my mind went to get to that thought, but while tasting it, it never screamed ‘single malt’ at me. It’s rather complex, and it’s also rather spicy in a slightly chemical way.

77/100

Canmore 12, Single Highland Malt, Bourbon and Sherry casks, 40%

Image from Charles Edge

Sniff:
Woody, with dried fruits, oak shavings. Quite some spices, with woody baking spices leading the way. A hint of coconut and orange zest. Quite a bit more like a single malt, compared to the NAS version.

Sip:
Gentle, with some white pepper, oak and a nutty bitterness. After a little while it mellows a bit,

Swallow:
A warming finish with a nice balance between wood and fruit. Woody fruitiness, so it still is a lot of cask. Medium long, cherry stones and a slightly nutty note.

Similar in complexity to the NAS whisky, but much more rounded. The longer time in oak helps a lot to take the young alcohol notes down to a nicer level.

80/100

Posted in Undisclosed | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Clynelish 12, Hand Filled Distillery Exclusive, Bourbon Cask, 58.9%

Posted on 4 October 2023 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

Even though when I was there no Hand Filled Exclusive was available, I got my hands on a sample of an earlier edition. I tend to love Clynelish, and therefore I try to get my hands on the occasional sample. It’s one of those distilleries that sits very near to the top of my list of favorites.

Image from Whiskybase

This one was bottled in 2021, at 12 years old. By my estimate it sold for about £ 100 to £ 125 back then, but it’s currently available in the secondary market for £ 365. Things like this can easily be seen as an investment, but you would have to be at the distillery at the right time, and keep yourself from opening the bottle. I guess I’ll never be rich.

Sniff:
Candles, wax coats and dried apricots. Lots of honey, a whiff of heather and gorse. A bit of oak in the background. With some time it gets a bit of a Sriracha fiery scent. Some dark oak and tree bark.

Sip:
Lots of oak, mulch and tree bark. Heather and honey and dried apricots. Not overly sweet but there’s a twig like bitterness too. Waxy, with candles and beeswax.

Swallow:
The finish starts quite waxy, but gets slightly more fruity within a few seconds. Dried apples and apricots. Heather and honey. Raisin twigs and grape seeds.

Again, quintessential Clynelish. I think I preferred the ‘Four Corners of Scotland‘ bottling, but that was a lot more expensive and a couple of years older, so there’s that. This would have gone quickly too, since it’s utterly lovely. Lots of ‘Highlands’ flavors, with honey and heather, oak and waxy notes. Gorgeous!

89/100

Posted in Clynelish | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Millstone 6, Batch 1, 48.9% – That Boutique-y Whisky Company

Posted on 3 October 2023 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

My local bottle-shop found a bunch of these in the store room and I picked one up. There’s no more story to it than this.

Luckily, this one is from the period after TBWC cleaned up their bottling line so it doesn’t taste like the absinthe they produced back in the day anymore. That was a bit of a miss with all kinds of awesome drams being wasted because of a fennel/aniseed flavor being added during bottling.

Image from Whiskybase

Let’s just dive right in! It’s not often that we find ourselves tasting Dutch whisky for some reason. The reason is fairly simple: Most of it isn’t very good, but there are more and more distilleries getting the hang of producing really good single malt nowadays! Just to calm everyone’s nerves if they’re afraid of more ‘Frysk Hynder’ atrocities.

Sniff:
Strangely, it reminds me a lot of rye whisky, and not as much of single malt. Lots of spices with a remarkable amount of dark chocolate. There’s hay, some pepper, orange rind.

Sip:
The palate is quite nippy, with a but of chili heat. Dark chocolate and dark grains. A bit of a stout like bitterness, with oak and rough tree bark. Pine cones and resin too.

Swallow:
The finish is a lot more dry, and leaves the chocolate in favor of more barley husks, straw, oak shavings and bitter citrus.

The fact that it reminds me of rye whisky explains why this doesn’t score too well on Whiskybase. American style whiskies tend to not do too well there. However, I am quite particular to the style, and this one is no exception. The fact that it’s a bit more mellow than the full on spiciness that rye sometimes has adds to my joy in drinking this. Let’s just say my sample went really fast, but I ordered another one.

87/100

Available for € 50 at Drinks & Gifts

Posted in - World Whisky, Millstone, Zuidam | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Vallein Tercinier L’Attente Lot 52, 70yo, 1952-2022, Cognac Grande Champagne, 43.9% – Jack Tar & Lux Coin

Posted on 28 September 2023 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

With collectors being collectors, and some collector diversifying into different collections, it’s not too surprising that a bottler of collectable and rare spirits pairs with a creator of rare and collectable coins.

The difference is mainly that the rare spirits have been created ages ago and are rare because of how long it’s been and how long it’s been in the making. The coins from Lux Coin are rare because they are created as such. There’s specific thing with drops of ultra rare spirits in them, and other things that make them special.

These drops of ultra rare spirits are things like a drop of Harewood rum from (I kid you not) 1780, Glenlivet from 1862 and Cognac Gautier from 1762. This last bit is also present in the Cognac we’re reviewing today. At least, drops of it are.

This Vallein Tercinier is 70 years old and matured in oak from 1952 to 2010, from which is was in a Dame Jeanne. Only 100 bottles of this are available at a price of € 825 a pop.

Image from Jack Tar

Sniff:
A very timid nose, with a herbaceous hint of mint or basil. Somehow it’s surprisingly crisp for a 70 year old spirit. Notes of minerals emerge, with a hint of flint. A dusting of oak and sawdust, and minor notes of fruit.

Sip:
The palate has a little bit of bite, with notes of oak and grapes. It builds nicely with an little increase of woody heat. A hint of charcoal and slate. Baked grapes.

Swallow:
The finish is very dry, with some grape skin tannins and a bit of a grapeseed bitterness. Lots of oak, some minerals.

It rather timid and the oak hasn’t taken over, so that makes for a very soothing and rather glorious drinking experience. I always find it quite remarkable to be drinking something that’s older than my dad, and this one is no exception. The quality of the spirit is tremendous, and therefore this is a very highly commended sip.

Thanks to Jack Tar for sending over a sample!

90/100

Available from Jack Tar

Posted in - Cognac, - Other Spirits, Vallein Tercinier | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

New Make Spirit from The Borders Distillery

Posted on 27 September 2023 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

By Tom van Engelen

When it comes to tasting new make spirit, malt distillate straight from the still and no contact with wood, I always think of Teun van Wel. This relaxed whisky enthusiast, known for organizing Maltstock every year, used to collect a plethora of new make spirits from every distillery that was willing to give him a sample. Because Teun is all about sharing, I tasted quite a few of them, with mixed results. Nonetheless, every now and then it is good to remind ourselves how whisky starts out.

A few years ago I tasted Ardnamurchan spirit and was blown away, so promising. And in January of this year I had the orgasmic experience of tasting Springbank spirit flowing straight from the still into my glass. Life is good. Of course, this highlight on Sjoerd’s blog can’t be overlooked either, the tasting of some spirits from Loch Ewe and Kilchoman.

The Borders is a new distillery located in Hawick, opened in March 2018. Go check their website. Seems like a beautiful operation, in an historic building. Let’s taste the product.

The Borders, New Make, 63.5% abv

Image from Whiskybase

Smell:
Classic new make, all on light orange fruit, mostly tangerine. Wet barley, obviously, almost generic, no smoke at all. With a good dash of water it becomes more milky and, strangely enough, there is a hint of barf. That keeps lingering, until white grapes emerge.

Sip:
Quite a fizzy mouthfeel, but the alcohol cloaks any taste. With water it reveals very dry bready notes. It’s not bad, it just proves why we need whisky to mellow in a cask for at least 3 years and a day.

Swallow:
Hot but not unbearable. A nice and sweet exit all on tropical fruits. With water these fruits (sadly) disappear. A soft shadow of sweetness remains.

Score: 60ish points.

It’s nonsense actually to score this spirit because it remains to be seen how maturation will influence the end product. I do get the impression this could well be a rather chameleon-like spirit, adapting to the cask instead of the other way around. Very much an easygoing lowlander, true to its location.

About Tom van Engelen

I’m a writer in a variety of fields and have a soft spot for whisky, mainly malt, mainly from Scotland. In other times I enjoyed a stint as editor-in-chief of one of the first whisky magazines in the world. When not sipping a good glass I like to write some more, read, watch 007 movies or listen Bowie music. I’m married to Dasha, I have a sweet daughter and I live somewhere between the big rivers in the middle of The Netherlands.

Posted in The Borders | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Talisker 12, 1990-2002, 46% – Hart Brothers

Posted on 26 September 2023 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

The benefit of being a bit closer to one of the older whisky shops in the country is that has been engrained in my system to check their website a bit more often than many others. The benefit of that, obviously, is that you’re quite quick to spot new additions to the shop.

That shop being De Whiskykoning, has quite a stockpile of older bottlings that are slowly being added to the webshop, instead of gathering dust in a store room somewhere. Things like this Knockando, some old blends and other weird stuff for which I can’t currently find the reviews are part of this series of old shit.

Image from Whiskybase

This Talisker is too. I got it a couple of years ago, I guess it was just before Covid, in part because it’s old Talisker, and also because mistakes on labels stand out. Like this one stating ‘Cask Strength’ while it’s obviously not.

Anyway, let’s go!

Sniff:
Even though it’s only from the early 2000s, there is already quite some old bottle effect happening. The gentle smokiness and black pepper that is so typical of Talisker is happening as well. Something metallic, iron-like as well.

Sip:
The palate, even at just 46%, feels like it’s quite a bit stronger. It’s intense, with black pepper, a sharp oakiness, dry peat smoke and salinity. Almost to a level of smoked fish, in regard to coastal notes. The old bottle effect is here too, with it’s notes of iron and slate.

Swallow:
The finish is quite long and a lot more gentle than the palate. Still old fashioned with hints of barley, iron, hessian, straw and smoked fish. There’s some sweetness in there too.

This does everything you want it to do. It’s is very much a true Talisker with some vanille, heaps of gentle smoke and black pepper. Coastal notes too. Very, very good stuff. The fact that it’s older with some Old Bottle Effect and a slightly different distilling regime only adds to the attractiveness of this one!

88/100

Currently going for a staggering € 500…

Posted in Talisker | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment