Kilchoman, Single sherry cask release 2012, 58.4%

Posted on 30 April 2013 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

By far the youngst whisky with an age statement. That last bit is added because you don’t know how old the Naked Grouse is…

Kilchoman is the youngest distillery on Islay and is technically not much more than a big farm with some disitlling equipment and a malting floor. They do everything themselves and are a truly ‘Islay whisky’ if there is one.

I visited the distillery in 2010 but didn’t do the tour since the malt floor was just emptied and after a dozen or so distilleries that was the only bit we still wanted to see. The shop sold lots of non-whisky-related stuff from heather soaps to woolen sweaters. Of course they had to make money but it did put me off a bit.

Kilchoman 2007-2012

Kilchoman 2007-2012

Sniff:
Really thick sherry at first, bit a huge blast of peat behind it. The wood stove is burning at full blaze too, with straw on the floor and heather somewhere around too. It does have some spiciness with clear hints of clove. It gets more fruity after it sits for a few minutes, which makes it a bit more fresh.

Sip:
Sweet and dry. The dryness can also be more because of the alcohol than the wood influence, but I’m not sure about that. It becomes a bit more full if you let is swim for a few seconds but it gains a lot of heat from alcohol and pepper. It does becomes a bit more fruity, woody and heathery.

Swallow:
The finish is even drier with leather and wood. Some furniture polish, heather and clove.

Kilchoman bottled on my birthday

Kilchoman bottled on my birthday

I thought about buying this bottle because it is bottled on my birthday and it’s rather tasty. The flavours are really a punch in your mouth but still pretty delicious. It might even improve with some water but I didn’t try that yet (I still have a drop left in a sample bottle that might be tried soon).

Kilchoman 2007-2012, 58.4%, single sherry cask release, bottled for Whisky Import Nederland, around € 85 when it was still available.

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Canadian Whisky Book Review and Twitter Tasting

Posted on 29 April 2013 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

Be a part of the world’s first ever whisky book review/twitter tasting. Social media are changing the way we read and the way we taste whisky. We’ve decided to integrate the two! Each Sunday for the next four weeks we will review several chapters from the book Canadian Whisky: The Portable Expert and discuss them on Twitter. And we will do this while we taste a representative whisky from that chapter.

If you wish to comment on the book, interact with author, Davin de Kergommeaux, or discuss a Canadian whisky you are tasting, please join us each Sunday at 3:00 pm Eastern time, on Twitter at #DavinTT.

The twitter reviews and tastings begin this Sunday, May 5th at 3:00pm EST when we will be talking about chapters 10 – 13. Davin will join us to answer questions, and contribute to discussion among the participants, etc.

After chatting for about 30 minutes about 15 participants from around the world will open a mystery bottle that we have sent to them. You didn’t get a bottle? Feel free to join in anyway. The more the merrier. After tasting the sample and talking about it we’ll reveal which distillery it came from and which whisky we tasted. Sound like fun?

This Sunday we’ll begin with chapters 10 – 13. Then, Sunday May 12 th we will discuss chapters 14 – 17; Sunday May 19th, chapters 18 – 21; and Sunday May 26th, chapters 22 – 25.

We invite the whisky bloggers among us to blog about the book, the experience, the whiskies and/or Davin. Let the fun begin!

If you have any questions, feel free to get in touch with me, @WhiskyLassie on twitter.

Canadian Whisky: The Portable Expert is available at Barnes & Noble, Chapters/Indigo, and many other fine bookstores, or on-line at Amazon.com and Amazon.ca.

www.theperfectwhiskymatch.blogspot.ca

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Linkwood 1993, 52.8, 19yo – Gordon & MacPhail for Van Wees

Posted on 29 April 2013 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

This one was an unannounced extra from De Whiskykoning. He thought to throw in an extra kick-ass whisky because he forgot about it at first and the tasting wasn’t ridiculously underpriced enough.

There isn’t much to say about this whisky apart from the heavy sherry influence. Also, four of the people at the tasting had been to a previous ‘stock news’ tasting at De Whiskykoning and they all bought this bottle. That says enough, I guess.

Linkwood 19 for Van Wees

Linkwood 19 for Van Wees

Sniff:
Really spicy sherry, with (duh) lots of spices and not much fruit. The ‘sherry’ scents are really heavy. A bit of peppery heat too, and a rather sharp weight to it. Allspice I think, with quite a bit of wood influence too.

Sip:
The palate is a bit more fruity but still has the heat from the pepper and sherry flavours. Bitter and sweet with sweet tea.

Swallow:
The finish is a bit more friendly but still has a lot of pepper and wood. It doesn’t last very long but shows a remarkable amount of sherry again.

This, although a rather strange one without much fruit, and LOTS of spices, is a damn delicious whisky. I even found out that my tasting notes had some similarities with the description on the bottle! What are the chances of that…

Anyway, I’d love to find myself a bottle of this stuff but I probably won’t. I didn’t know what to expect from it, but it proves again that Linkwood is a distillery that produces some damn fine whisky. I understand more and more that Tom is a fan.

Linkwood 1993-2012, 52.8, 19yo, Gordon & MacPhail for Van Wees. This should set you back about € 80 if you can find it.

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Springbank 21, 46%, 2012

Posted on 26 April 2013 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

Ah, Springbank 21! One of the few bottlings of last year that I really wanted to try, but didn’t want to buy. When it came it out it was available for about € 250 or so, which I find too much for a random bottle of booze. Especially if I haven’t tasted it before.

Anyway, the old Springbank 21, of 1998, 2001 and 2004 I have tasted and those are absolutely stunning. If this one is just half as good, it’d sell out and it did. So this was my chance to see if that is justified!

Springbank 21

Springbank 21. The label is shit to take a photo of.

Sniff:
Salted barley with some farmy notes of mud and hay. Also a hint that can be associated with dusty attics: dust, mold and cardboard. There are some sherry notes, but less than there are in the older bottlings. Of course, some old bourbon casks. It’s slightly spicy too.

Sip:
Gentle with hints of vanilla and caramel, sherry and wood. Also the same salt, barley and hay notes as on the nose. Gently spicy too, so all this adds up to typical Springbank if you ask me.

Swallow:
The finish is full but not too long. Slightly salty again with those atticy flavours again. The spices are hard to pin down but I’m starting to think of yellow curry for some reason.

This is a bit of a strange one, mostly because I had expectations of it. It’s not much like the old Springbank 21s and rightly so. They’ve changed their regime a bit with different maturation with mostly bourbon casks. If I look at this without regard for what I expected it simply is a very, very delicious whisky. Very gentle with lots of flavours going on and highly unique. Just like the distillery that runs like you’ve just gone back in time a few decades.

Springbank 21, 2012 edition, 46%, OB. No longer available but used to cost about € 250.
You can get a sample at Master of Malt.

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Auchroisk 30, 54.7% – Diageo Premium 2012

Posted on 25 April 2013 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

Another of the Diageo releases from last year. Another stunner, according to the host of the evening. Earlier (I believe it was in 2010) there was a Diageo release of 25 years old which I really enjoyed, so I had high hopes for this one! There have been some indie Auchroisks as well that were rather stunning, also from refill sherry casks.

Usually a blenders whisky and I really don’t know how to pronounce the name correctly. According to the Whiskykoning himself, you have to spit most of it, make sure it’s just over one syllable and throw your head to the side. I’m not sure that covers it, though.

Auchroisk 30

Auchroisk 30

Sniff:
Pretty sharp, especially for a thirty year old whisky. I get traces of fruit and sherry, rather dry with oatmeal crackers (bannoch bread, I recently learned) but also orange and a little sulphur (in a good way). Slightly bitter from the wood.

Sip:
There’s wood, quite a bit. Also some cracked black pepper and chilis. The European oak is rather pronounced and it certainly is dry and bitter, with hints of coffee and chocolate.

Swallow:
The finish is still sharp with orange and sherry hints. The bitterness from the palate is still here, but less pronounced.

To be honest, I didn’t really like this one. But you have to put that in perspective of the tasting. In many a line-up this would have shined, but between the Dalwhinnie and tomorrow’s Springbank 21 it just didn’t do it for me.

Anyway, I believe it was more or less the favourite of the evening if you only count whiskies that are still for sale. I saw someone buy a bottle and some other people would’ve if it fir their budget. Just as yesterday, though, this is too expensive for many, including myself.

Auchroisk 30, 54.7% – Diageo Premium 2012, € 325 at De Whiskykoning.

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Dalwhinnie 25, 52.1% – Diageo Premium 2012

Posted on 24 April 2013 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

The first ‘real’ Bokito of this year’s tasting was this beautiful Dalwhinnie 25. One of Diageo’s special releases from last year and one of more interesting ones if you ask me. Dalwhinnie doesn’t see many releases apart from the regular 15 year old and their Distillers’ Edition. Both of those are nice so it is nice to be able to taste another one at a very different age.

It’s located in the southern part of the Scottish Highlands which, more or less automatically, makes it a tourist highlight. I might even visit it on my upcoming trip to Scotland, but since my whisky-time is rather limited I think I want to go for more off-the-beaten-path distilleries.

Dalwhinnie 25

Dalwhinnie 25

Sniff:
At first I get toast, slightly burnt. This was highly suggestive since the host of the evening blurted that out right away. I also get yellow apples and barley, with a hint of grass and straw. Some very gentle (but very present) vanilla but also some spiciness and tea. The longer you leave this out to breathe, the stronger and creamier the vanilla notes get.

Sip:
White pepper at first, so quite a bit of spiciness. White oak too and white grapes. I’m getting the ‘white’ theme here. Some citrus fruits with most of it being lemon. Dry and a hint of bitter oak. Again, that tea note.

Swallow:
The finish has a lot of pepper again and is rather long and woody. Some spices again, but mostly juicy fruit. The apples and grapes again, maybe even some pineapple. Slightly drying too.

It might not be completely evident from the review, but this is a very vanilla heavy dram. At first I didn’t notice it all that much, but after a few minutes, and even after an hour it keeps giving thick creme brulee goodness. Even after the rest of the tasting (five upcoming posts) it held it’s own, solely based on that vanilla.

Anyway, this is a damn good whisky and I would love to set it in my cupboard. The bummer with most of these Diageo premium releases is that they are premium priced and a bit too rich for me. Anyway, delicious stuff, but a bit expensive.

Dalwhinnie 25, 52.1%, 5358 bottles available, OB, € 258 at De Whiskykoning.

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Naked Grouse, 40%

Posted on 23 April 2013 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

Around Christmas the Whiskykoning in Den Bosch hosts a Bokito tasting with that year’s highlights according to him and his ‘tasting panel’. The tasting panel is him.

He picks from that year’s releases and sets them aside for that tasting. Since he can only accomodate about 10 people at a tasting, he does the tasting three times. Two of which are after Christmas and last Friday was the third one.

He started off with this Naked Grouse, last year’s special edition from Famous Grouse. A whisky that feels ‘engineered’ to fit modern palates. Ralfy talks about that as well in his video review of it.

Naked Grouse

Naked Grouse

Sniff:
It’s fruity with lots of sherry influence. Strangely enough I had very strong port wine feelings with this (more on this below). There’s quite a bit of wood influence, but more in a juicy, sappy way than it being dry or bitter. Vanilla custard too, with nuts. Rather sweet too.

Sip:
The palate is really gentle (no surprise at 40%) with sherry influence and lots of tropical fruits. Juicy, but not very special. Some vanilla custard and caramel too.

Swallow:
The finish does the same trick as the palate without adding anything. It doesn’t last long either.

It’s a nice blend, but there’s not much too it. Another dimension from the regular Famous Grouse with a good bit of sherry casks in it I think, probably refill and such. I can’t imagine The Edrington Group wasting their prime casks on blends when there is shitloads of cash to be made of it in Single Malts.

On the port wine: When I was in Porto a couple of years ago I went to do the tour at Taylor’s and they told me they mostly use new casks. They sell a lot of their used casks to Famous Grouse. It wouldn’t surprise me if there are some port casks in here too.

Anyway, a nice warm up, but not a whisky that will change the world. With it tasting ‘engineered’ it does fit another category of drinkers so from that point of view it’s a rather good move…

Naked Grouse, 40%, OB, available at most shops for about € 30. Also at De Whiskykoning of course.

Posted in - Blended Whisky | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Imperial 1979, 40% – Gordon & MacPhail

Posted on 22 April 2013 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

I recently (as in, today) received my newest auction winnings. A curious term, winnings. You didn’t win anything, you were just the idiot that wanted to pay most for something.

Anyway, this sample of Imperial is an oldie from the ‘retro labels’ by Gordon & MacPhail and it’s bottled at 40%. I think that makes it at least a decade old since they went to 43% for everything quite a while ago.

Not to worry though, I just wanted to try an Imperial, since it had been ages since I did and this seemed like a good opportunity.The distillery is booked as mothballed, but the owners tore it down last year in favor of a new distillery with a new name that they will be building on the spot.

Imperial 1979, Gordon & MacPhail.

Imperial 1979, Gordon & MacPhail.

Sniff:
Sweet barley and grains in general. Also some acidity from unripe fruit, apples and grapes maybe. It’s crisp but after a while I get a spicy notes that I associate with chocolate milk and mole. There’s something else to it that I just can’t pinpoint. It’s very much like a grain whisky by the way. The thick vanilla and grain could easily be something from a column still.

Sip:
Sweet and slightly spicy again. Some pepper too now, but with the sweet grain, and a thick, greasy vanilla feeling as well. Black pepper it is.

Swallow:
The finish continues on, on this road but it gets a bit more irony, like Dutch apple spread for on sandwiches (our version of marmite, but without it tasting awful). There’s also a hint of burning or roasting barley.

It’s tasty, it’s nice, but it’s very much like a grain whisky. The fact is that those grain whiskies are rare, but generally quite affordable. It’s fun to taste stuff like this for a couple euros from an auction or at a tasting but I won’t be buying any Imperial based on this sample. Nice, but that’s all.

Imperial 1979, 40%, Gordon & MacPhail

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Nikka Coffey Grain, 45%, 50cl

Posted on 19 April 2013 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

The Coffey Grain whiskies from Nikka come in two shapes: 45% regular releases and ridiculously strong single casks (think of 60% to 63% ABV). I have tried one or two of the strong ones and found them to be to my liking, so I was curious to try this one too. A small trade of samples between me and Phil Blake got me this option.

Coffey Grain is named after the Coffey still in which it is distilled. Now I can write a lot of technobabble, but in short: It’s grain whisky. From Japan in this case.

Nikka Coffey Grain at The Whisky Exchange

Nikka Coffey Grain at The Whisky Exchange

Sniff:
Vanilla and coconut, but mostly coconut. No surprise there, I have found this earlier in this kind of dram. There is some wood influence with a touch of sweetness and vanilla sugar. A small hint of something spicy is in there too. Nice, but very straight forward.

Sip:
Syrupy sweetness at first, and a very thick bourbon-cask style dram. Pineapple juice and coconut. I get a very big pina colada feeling here, but the rum is replaced by whisky. It does have some of that white Bacardi sweetness though.

Swallow:
The finish continues on without much news. It does add a few notches to the white rum flavour, with a touch of oak too.

I think a large chunk of the Nikka All Malt is coming from these kind of whiskies. Not a bad thing but something rather similar. Lots of sweet coconut going on. It’s nice and will never disappoint, but it is a very simple and straight forward dram.

Nikka Coffey Grain, 45%, 50cl is available at The Whisky Exchange for £ 36.49

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Yoichi 25, 1983-2009, Japanese oak matured, 58.9% – SMWS

Posted on 18 April 2013 by Sjoerd de Haan-Kramer

It’s been ages since I reviewed any of the samples from the SMWS I have sitting on my to-taste shelf. This has to do with a lot of ‘commercial’ samples I got which I handle on a higher priority basis.

To think I should start with a Yoichi is beyond any reasonable thought, but these are the tasting notes I had lying around. For ages. I probably wrote them around Christmas or early in January.

So Yoichi, peated and Japanese oak matured. That should be good right? I love Yoichi, usually. This has to do with the fact that they’re way up north in Japan, out of the way for any other distillery, and they are the last distillery that I know of that still used charcoal to heat their stills. The character is something I have not come across in any other whisky so far.

Yoichi 25.

Yoichi 25. “Not peat for peat’s sake”. Image from Whiskybase

Sniff:
Really big, and peaty. There is a light spiciness with all spice and a hint of vegemite. Also barley with big hints of smoked and grilled fruit.

Sip:
The palate is really sharp. No surprise, this happens often in older Japanese whiskies. It has smoke and chipotle pepper, but also barley and charcoal. There is also a touch of bitterness and it’s rather complex all together. Greasy charcoal (like it has some barbecue dripping on it). It’s very tasty, but it demands a lot of attention.

Swallow:
The finish is surprisingly gentle. Still pretty sharp but nowhere near what the palate offered. Smoke and charcoal again, with that greasy touch. It’s not really long, but long enough.

This is a big whisky. Unfortunately, I had only one wee sample because of this kind of stuff I would really love to own a bottle. Or a case. There’s quite a bit going on and contrary to a lot of single malts, most of it is happening on the palate instead of on the nose.

It proves that Yoichi makes some stunning drams, that are a lot of fun when you can taste single barrels. The regular vattings are very good too, but way out of most people’s league (financially that is). To think that this bottle was only just over € 100…

Yoichi 25, 116.15, 09.1983-05.2009, Japanese oak matured, 58.9% – SMWS

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