Must Try

Dunville’s Three Crowns Vintage Blend Irish Whiskey

/ / Irish Whiskey, Review /

Dunville’s Three Crowns Vintage Blend Irish Whiskey
Sherry Finished

43.5% ABV
$35-40
Website
Dunvilles Three Crowns Irish Whiskey Sherry Finish

What the Distillery Says

Dunville’s Three Crowns Irish Whiskey is a premium vintage blend of superior aged whiskeys finished in three of the finest sherry casks.

Nose: Very gentle, floral, sweet and juicy. Orchard fruits intertwined with nutty caramel, nougat and powerful butterscotch overtones.
Palate: The initial sweetness from the malt gives way to light citrus fruits, orange, lemon, green apples, pepper and clove. The wood spice and lovely oak tannins firm up this whiskey before the oloroso sherry casks take the final curtain.
Finish: Orchard fruits and caramels give way as subtle notes of walnut, nougat, vanilla and dried fruits come through in the soft lingering finish.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Malt, heather, floral notes, sponge cake, shortbread biscuits, apples and butterscotch.
Palate:  Thick mouthfeel that is rich and creamy, sherry sweetness, raw honey, fruity with apples and oranges, clove, nutmeg and a hint of cinnamon.
Finish:  Moderately long and damp with sherried fruit notes.
Comments:  Wow – from the nose I wouldn’t guess that this has a lot of age on it (get a bit of a grain note that has me guessing there is some fairly young malt in the blend), but this has a lovely, thick and chewy mouthfeel that for me overcomes that. I’d never had anything from Dunville’s before, but do like sherry finishes so for $35 thought ‘What the hell’. Glad I did – this is delicious! For the price, I can’t imagine any fan of Irish being disappointed – and would encourage them to give this a try. It reminds me a bit of Slane in that it isn’t an incredibly complex dram, but is a really great drinker (although this has a better mouthfeel, and is definitely worth the small lift in price from my perspective).

Rating: Must Try

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Alberta Premium Cask Strength Rye 2021

/ / Review, Rye Whiskey / ,

Alberta Premium Cask Strength Rye 2021
Canadian Rye Whisky

63-67.0% ABV (sample reviewed @ 63.7%)
$75
Website
Alberta Premium Cask Strength Rye 2021
We would like to thank Alberta Distillers and Multiply for sending us a sample to review.

What the Distillery Says

Alberta Distillers, Distillery of the Decade as named by the 2020 Canadian Whisky Awards, proudly announces its 2021 release of Alberta® Premium Cask Strength Rye Whisky into the U.S. market. Hitting shelves this month as a limited time offering, this premium whisky showcases Alberta Distillers’ expertise and skill in crafting true 100% rye whisky, which is a notoriously difficult grain to work with.

Made in Calgary, Alberta, Alberta® Premium Cask Strength Rye is crafted from 100% Canadian prairie rye grains grown by local farmers and nutrient-dense, glacier-fed spring water from the famed Rocky Mountains. The result is a perfectly balanced liquid that reflects the brand’s unique natural surroundings, Canadian heritage, and expert whisky craftsmanship.

“Following the success of Alberta® Premium Cask Strength Rye’s debut in the U.S. last year, we are thrilled to offer stateside whisky drinkers the limited 2021 release of our award-winning whisky,” said George Teichroeb, General Manager of Alberta Distillers. “When Alberta Premium debuted in 1958, we were one of the first distilleries to create a true 100% rye whisky, and this cask strength rye is the culmination of our hard work and dedication to crafting exceptional rye whisky.”

Highly revered by whisky enthusiasts, the 2020 release of Alberta® Premium Cask Strength Rye received numerous prestigious awards including Double Gold at the 2020 and 2021 San Francisco World Spirits Competitions, Double Gold at the 2021 SIP Awards, Best All Rye Whisky at the 2021 Canadian Whisky Awards and 1st Place Best Canadian Whisky at the 2021 International Whisky Competition. This special whisky is best enjoyed neat with a drop of water or on the rocks, and features the following characteristics:

Alberta® Premium Cask Strength Rye:
Proof: 63-67%
Taste: Exceptionally smooth with notes of caramel, vanilla and a hint of chocolate balanced with the spiciness of rye and black currant
Finish: Smooth and lingering with the complexity of spice, warm vanilla, and dark fruit
Packaged in an eye-catching, faceted glass bottle, Alberta® Premium Cask Strength Rye will be available in limited quantities in select U.S. markets beginning in October 2021 for an SRP of $74.99 for a 750ml bottle. With demand and popularity gaining for the distillery’s premium spirits in the U.S, whisky fans can rest assured there’s more to come from Alberta® Premium in 2022.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Vanilla buttercream frosting, soft oak, cedar, mint, nutmeg, hints of maple and cherries.
Palate:  Caramel and vanilla, milk chocolate, black currants, cinnamon, nutmeg, subtle mint, cracked pepper with a bit of clove.
Finish:  Moderate in length with cedar, mint and lingering baking spices.
Comments:  Another really lovely offering from the folks in Alberta! I tried this side-by-side against a bottle of the original 2020 release, and they were incredibly similar – which is great news for me as I really liked that one!  It also benefits from some time in the glass to let the alcohol vapors dissipate, and thickens up nicely with some water. A few dollars more (which given this environment is more than reasonable) but well priced and more than fair in my opinion. If they maintain the same profile, this would be an annual pick-up for me. Too few cask strength 100% rye whiskies out there. Plus – this lovely bottle has a lovely screwcap closure which I’d rather have on ALL of my bottles!

Rating: Must Try/Must Buy

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Templeton Rye Barrel Strength Straight Rye Whiskey 2018

/ / Review, Rye Whiskey / ,

Templeton Rye Barrel Strength 2018
Straight Rye Whiskey

57.2% ABV
$60-$70
Website
Templeton Rye Barrel Strength Straight Rye Whiskey 2018

What the Bottle* Says

Limited Bottling 2018
This special addition to the Templeton family is a barrel strength edition matured to perfection in flame charred American oak barrels. Natural, non-chill filtered and bottled at 57.2% ABV, this limited release is bursting with rye spice and black pepper giving way to summer fruits, butterscotch and oak. Templeton Rye Barrel Strength is both complex and intriguing and represents the expression in its purest form. This exquisite whiskey is a fitting tribute and salute to the town of Templeton – a small town with a strong spirit.
Produced and Bottled By:
Templeton Rye Spirits, LLC. Templeton, IA
Distilled in Indiana
* The Templeton Distillery website makes no mention of this whiskey.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Bright with mint, eucalyptus, lime, dill, ginger, subtle vanilla and pear.
Palate:  Rich thick mouthfeel, orange spice with cinnamon, nutmeg, pepper, honey and mint.
Finish:  Moderately long with citrus notes, pepper and mint.
Comments:  This is a really nice, barrel proof rye. Although I don’t care for the lack of transparency (which is putting it mildly) from Templeton, and might not support them financially (this bottle was gifted), the whiskey itself is pretty delicious. And if you don’t care about the backstory and just want a decent high-proof rye, I think this fits the bill. A bit of water thickens, and damps down the edges nicely bringing out more sweetness.

Rating: Stands Out/Must Try

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Cotswolds Dry Gin

/ / Other Spirits, Review / ,

Cotswolds Dry Gin

46% ABV
$50
Website
Cotswolds Dry Gin

What the Distillery Says

Our Cotswolds Dry Gin is a delectable blend of nine carefully-considered botanicals, including local lavender from nearby Snowshill and freshly-peeled pink grapefruit and lime zest. Due to the unusually high volume of botanicals we use, our gin causes a beautiful pearlescent cloud to appear when ice or tonic is added. To make the ultimate Cloudy G&T, mix with premium tonic water, lots of ice and garnish with a bay leaf and a slice of pink grapefruit.

The finest ingredients
Juniper berries, coriander seed and angelica root form the classic foundation for our London Dry-style Gin. We then add Cotswold lavender from nearby Snowshill and bay leaves. The citrus element comes from freshly-peeled lime and pink grapefruit zest – unusually we use fresh peels rather than dried because of the greater quantity of essential oils. This entails peeling several hundred limes and grapefruits per week, by hand! The final botanicals are cardamom seed and black peppercorn, to give a hint of spice.

Lovingly crafted
Quantity matters. We put about 10x the average volume of botanicals used to make most premium gins in our copper pot still. This process creates the richest possible flavours and mouthfeel due to the high proportion of essential oils and botanical extract. These flavour-rich oils are the reason our gin goes from clear to cloudy when tonic or ice is added. The pearlescent glow, also known as a ‘louche’, happens because we choose not to chill-filter our gin to remove the oils as this would reduce the rich flavour and mouthfeel.

What do we mean by purity? It’s what we throw away that makes what we keep so special. The slower we run the stills and the more heads and tails (unpleasant beginning and end of the run) we discard, the purer the gin will taste. Our ‘heart cut’ is rested for 5 days to allow the flavours to marry. The only thing added before bottling is demineralised water to reduce the strength. This process, known as ‘single-shot distillation’, creates a superior gin. We never ‘stretch’ the batch by adding more neutral spirit (known as ‘multi-shot’), so the gin we distil is the gin you drink.

Tasting notes
Nose: Fresh notes of grapefruit with earthy coriander backed-up by sweet, piney juniper. A hint of perfumed Cotswold lavender.
Palate: Clean, pine juniper spice with fresh citrussy grapefruit. A touch of dryness from the angelica root, with eucalyptus notes from bay leaf. Subtle lime and lavender.
Finish: Clean and balanced. Juniper, citrus and some cooling notes from bay leaf and cardamom.

What Gary Says

DISCLAIMER: I’m a whisk(e)y enthusiast, and not familiar with Gin (so read at your own risk!)
Nose:  Lavender, lime, pink grapefruit, botanicals, pine and a hint of juniper.
Palate:  Lime, lavender, pink grapefruit and a bit of pepper.
Finish:  Short to moderate in length, with lime and grapefruit.
Comments:  Usually the nose and palate of spirits are similar, but I was struck by how nearly perfectly aligned they were in this case. I haven’t been a fan of gin; not sure what I had tried before but it left me feeling like gin was just a juniper bomb (probably how someone who hadn’t ever had whisky and tried Laphroaig might think all whisky is like chewing on peat!) This was a refreshing education. I still get this “cleaning product” vibe, but that isn’t meant to be negative (again – Laphroaig has notes of bandaids and earthy peat, which wouldn’t sound appealing – but I love it!) This was the first of three samples I tried, and was the most complex and my favorite.

Rating: Stands Out/Must Try

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Compass Box Orchard House

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky / ,

Compass Box Orchard House
Blended Malt Scotch Whisky

46% ABV
$51
Website
Compass Box Orchard House Blended Malt Scotch Whisky

What the Blender Says

Fruit-forward & spirit-driven
What is more universally delicious than ripe fruit? Even the greatest chefs have been known to serve a simple dish of strawberries or a single, perfect peach as a dessert.

Orchard House gathers together some of the fruitiest malts Scotland has to offer, including whiskies from the Linkwood and Clynelish distilleries; what’s more, we have sourced many of these whiskies as new spirit and laid them down in our own oak casks. This, our monument to fresh fruitiness in Scotch whisky, has been many years in the making.

When neat or poured over a large ice cube, Orchard House makes for an outstanding pre-dinner malt. It will ably partner amber and pale ales, as well as swathes of soft cheeses. Welcome to our home among the fruit trees – the door is unlocked.

TECHNICAL DETAILS: Natural colour | Not chill-filtered

FLAVOUR PROFILE: Aromas of apple and pear dominate, with hints of pineapple, lemon and lime zest, and Earl Grey tea. Take a sip and note the malty and gingery flavours. These are soon joined by honey, wild strawberries and vanilla shortbread.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Fruity and floral, green apples, poached pears, hint of lemon zest and apple cider.
Palate:  Creamy mouthfeel with peaches and cream, apples, vanilla, pears, nutmeg and honey.
Finish:  Moderately long and drying with fruit and subtle mulling spice notes.
Comments:  This is delicious, and dangerously drinkable. It has a really nice fall vibe, with some apple cider – perfect for this time of year. I picked this one up at the same time as Compass Box Canvas, and I liked this almost as much as that – but like the price point on this way more. It doesn’t have the same mouthfeel (which I wouldn’t expect), but if you’re a Compass Box fan – I’d definitely give this one a try.

Rating: Stands Out/Must Try

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