October 2012

Glenlivet 18 Year

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky, Speyside /

The Glenlivet Single Malt Scotch Whisky 18 Years of Age
43% ABV/86 Proof
$75
Website
The Glenlivet 18 Yr Old
What the Distillery Says:
The Glenlivet 18 Year Old is the perfect expression of age and elegance – balancing the archetypal ripe fruit notes of The Glenlivet with a drier evocative oak influence. The perfect after-dinner dram

COLOUR
Old gold, with ripe apricot hues.

NOSE
Fragrant, elegant, complex with a sweet oakiness reminiscent of an antique shop. Oak leads the way to heady floral fragrances of Freesia and Peony. Toffee notes emerge in time along with butterscotch, mint chocolate and summer fruit pie

PALATE
Smooth and velvety, with a firm foundation. Sweetness is immediately followed by a tantalising burst of spices and bitter oranges drying out on oaky notes.

FINISH
Lasting, oaky and gingery. Distant smoke. A dry austere touch.

What Richard Says:
Nose: Butter, nutmeg, sherry, orange blossoms, and licorice.
Palate: Floral, grassy, and lightly sweet. Very easy to drink.
Finish: Mellow oak and a wispy sweetness that perfectly tapers off.
Comments: This doesn’t get the flashy press of a Macallan 18 but it’s a solid top shelf dram that is easy to find, relatively well priced, and consistently good. This isn’t going to make any top ten lists for whisky nuts but it won’t disappoint.
Rating: Stands Out

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Glenlivet French Oak 15 Year

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky, Speyside /

The Glenlivet French Oak Reserve Single Malt Scotch Whisky Aged 15 Years
40% ABV/80 Proof
$45
Website
The Glenlivet 15 Yr French Oak Reserve Single Malt Scotch Whisky
What the Distillery Says:
Selective maturation in new French Oak casks made from Limousin Oak creates a characterful and unique expression of The Glenlivet. The rich, spicy notes from French Oak interplay with the fruit and floral notes of The Glenlivet. A delicious whisky to savour.

COLOUR
Deep gold, with intense late afternoon summer sunshine shades.

NOSE
Creamy and rich. Resinous fragrances swirl up before melting into a citrus fruit salad bowl. Orange peel and candied grapefruit aromas. Then, the bouquet opens on buttery notes. Shortbread, almond brandy snaps, vanilla toffee, fudge sauce. A dry spicy echo with a touch of liquorice resonates in the back.

PALATE
Round, sweet, incredibly smooth and velvety. Wood is entirely integrated but present all the way, sweetly enveloping fruity and nutty flavours in an oaky shell. Luscious chocolate fudge lingers on.

FINISH
Lingering with traces of toasted hazelnuts and lightly smoked almonds.

What Richard Says:
Nose: This one is kind of like a vanilla stone fruit parfait. Apricots, peaches, and cream jump out on first whiff. I also get a lot of the oak the dram is named for.
Palate: Fruity (mostly apple), malty, vanilla, and oak. This is a sinfully drinkable dram.
Finish: Initially creamy and then it leave a tannic bitter note accompanying the oak and spice. The finish is my least favorite aspect of this dram but I mitigate that by drinking more of it. 😉
Comments: This is a regular in my home whisky bar. It’s a staple of my table whiskies. I don’t like it as much as the old 12 Year Old French Oak Finish it replaced but it is a very enjoyable sub-$50 15 year old.
Rating: Must Try

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SMWSA Cask 33.113

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky, SMWSA Whiskies /

SMWSA Cask No. 33.113
Islay, South Shore
60.4%% ABV
Distilled July 2003
$85
US Allocation: Unknown
October 2012 Outturn Release

What the SMWSA Says:
You’re in a fabulous pavilion – soaking in a bubble-bath – sweetly peaceful. Nearby, a platter of exotic fruits (pineapple, papaya, lychees) and a dram of this. Across the room there’s a fire of fragrant pine cones. Outside, the eighteenth green of the world-class golf course that you have just completed way under par. The door opens and another serving girl appears with poppy seed biscuits, Italian fennel-flavoured salami and a beaming smile. You are tired but still feeling strong and proud of your achievements. Everything is in balance and harmony – the dream, the feeling, and the evocative scents and flavours from this ‘small headland’ dram.

Drinking tip: The perfect dram for unwinding after a hard day.

What Richard Says:
Nose: Brine, iodine, hints of canned cherry pie filling, and matchbook strike strips. Water opens up rubber bands and fresh asphalt.
Palate: Light, green, and smokey. The high alcohol content leaves a cayenne like burn in the mouth and numbness on the lips. Waters kills the burn but leave cracked fennel seed and more rubber bands.
Finish: Bitter and dry.
Comments: I like Islay as much as the next scotch fiend but this too young dram isn’t doing it for me at all.
Rating: Probably Pass

Review sample provided courtesy of the SMWSA and is available to society members through their website or 800.990.1991.

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SMWSA Cask 5.35

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky, SMWSA Whiskies /

SMWSA Cask No. 5.35
Lowlands, Western Lowlands
54.7% ABV
Distilled June 1999
$105
US Allocation: Unknown
October 2012 Outturn Release

What the SMWSA Says:
Initial nose is fresh and light, elderflower cordial, green apples and lemon puffs. Deeper and sweet notes develop quickly, giving homely and warm feeling, like baking bread or jam doughnuts. Quite hot and lively to taste, strawberries with black pepper, turning fruity and fizzy like strawberry Creamola foam, also creamy similar to a raspberry milk shake or Macchiato coffee. That creaminess carries on when adding water and aromas of apple toffee, rice pudding, butter icing, strawberry jam and doughy bread emerge. The taste is that of dark hot chocolate, brown sugar, cinnamon and blackberry am. And to finish, from this distillery known for distilling three times, cold peppermint tea and fresh slightly soapy laundry.

Drinking tip: Whilst baking bread and doing the laundry

What Richard Says:
Nose: Green apples, limoncello, apricots, blood oranges, a little licorice, and demerara rum.
Palate:Much more mellow than the nose would lead you to believe. Lightly fruity with hints of cinnamon.
Finish: Warming and spicy at the edge of the tongue. This one wears its proof on its sleeve right out the cask. There is a chalky rubbery aftertaste this probably my least favorite part of the dram. Water mellows the finish but still leaves that weird aftertaste.
Comments: On olfactory dram for sure. The nose is magnificent. The palate is nice but unremarkable. This finish is…meh. Not my favorite Auchentoshen for sure.
Rating: Average

Review sample provided courtesy of the SMWSA and is available to society members through their website or 800.990.1991.

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SMWSA Cask 85.23

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky, SMWSA Whiskies /

SMWSA Cask No. 85.23
Highlands, Speyside (Lossie)
59.4% ABV
Distilled September 1999
$105
US Allocation: Unknown
October 2012 Outturn Release

What the SMWSA Says:
The first notes are typical of ex-sherry wood maturation: lightly sulfury, with struck matches, or as one put it ‘home-made egg mayo with granary bread’. The sulfur notes soon blow off, leaving yeasty, sour pumpernickel bread and baked pecan pie. At natural strength the taste is very sweet, burnt and aggressive. Water re-introduces the sulfur notes, which linger behind burnt toast spread with butter and bramble jelly or plum jam, and later treacle toffee. In the mouth, the texture is thick and smooth, the taste very sweet and slightly bitter, with raw brambles and redcurrants.

Drinking tip: Strolling in an autumnal orchard

What Richard Says:
Nose: Butterscotch and sherry jump way out and overshadow everything else.
Palate: Sweet like dark corn syrup with nutty bread pudding notes.
Finish: Wood sticks to the back of the tongue like glue. Savor roasted meats and a nutty essence on the way out.
Comments: Candy covered whisky? This is a dram for those with a sweet tooth. I myself have a huge sweet tooth so I’m loving this one. Water works well it. It mellows out the alcohol and keeps all the rest.
Rating: Must Try

Review sample provided courtesy of the SMWSA and is available to society members through their website or 800.990.1991.

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