Tag Archives: Grassy

A World of Discovery, Arran, Autumn, Summertime

Arran 11yo Single ex-bourbon cask – Absolute deliciousness.

Islands Region – Cask #650 – 57.6%ABV – $85 | £46

Just over a month ago, the Connecticut chapter of the Jewish Single Malt Whisky Society (or at least a part of it) had the distinct honor of having Andy Hogan of the Arran Malt Distillery host a tasting for us.

Twenty-two people gathered together to taste, experience and explore a collection of Arran’s best whiskies.  We had some people trek a good way to be a part of our tasting.  Joe H from Boston and Stephen M from Providence (and of Malt Impostor fame) both drove about 2.5 hours to join us.  Thanks guys!! Great having you there!  Also, Andy flew all the way from Scotland to be with us – Thank you, Andy!!

Andy did a wonderfully fantastic job taking us through his whiskies; teaching us about Arran as well as the ins and outs of Scotch Whisky in general.  We learned, we laughed, we tasted, we had a blast.  Mr. Hogan brought with him 6 different whiskies: Arran 10yo, Arran 14yo, Machrie Moor (peated Arran whisky), Arran Amarone Cask, a very secret Arran whisky that’s never been bottled (but was totally delicious; perhaps the 2nd favorite of the night) and lastly, this here whisky — an 11yo Single Ex-bourbon cask (first fill).  This whisky was the easily favorite of the night.  I liked it so much I bought two bottles!

Here are my notes:

On the nose – Intense notes of banana peels and salted green apple skins.

A bit of nail polish remover (in a nice way).

Fresh-fresh coconut shreds & chunks followed by spiced anjou pears and lemons.

Delicious warmed rice pudding.  Fresh, uncut green grass.

All of these notes are incredibly strong — this is a no holds barred nose.

I’ll have to take this one by the horns and ride the rodeo.  Next up, the taste…

On the mouth – Chewy, thick, oily mouth feel with loads of warmed caramels and gooseberry jam.

Back to the grassy notes (fresh grass) but there’s a great note of sassafras in here – hey now!

Buttered butter beans and green beans.

Back to the savory chewy/candied notes: candied walnuts, toffee and salted caramels.

An intense malty & oaky note creeps in (not sure how I missed it from the start.  It basically slapped me in the face just now).

A good deal of vanilla as well.

Finish – Very long with notes of malt and the sassafras I got on the palate.

In sum – While delicious, this whisky is not to be taken lightly.  I might suggest it be diluted by a little bit of water if you feel you need it (however it is not required).  To be enjoyed at dusk just as it starts to get a little cooler and almost sweatery.

Let's celebrate!, Mackinlay's, Springtime, Takin' It Easy

Mackinlay’s Rare Old Highland Malt Whisky (Shackleton’s Antarctic whisky replica)

A mixture of Speyside & Highland region whiskies – 47.3%ABV – $165 | £99 | €111

I understand and fully appreciate that what I am about to taste here is history.  Actually, I’m getting a preview of the history that you all out there are about to taste (should you go out and pick up a bottle) and I thank all those involved for sending me a sample to allow me this opportunity.

I could say a lot about this whisky – much of is has been reported by the major (and minor) news outlets.

Rather than throw in my $0.02 in a poor attepmt to expand on the historical aspect of the Mackinlay’s Rare Old Highland Malt Whisky, I’ll let this video do the talking (then review it, as shown below):

On the nose — Very grassy and flinty, a fist full of hay and a full jar of sea salt.

Untoasted & freezer burnt English muffins.

Then the fruits, nuts and saltier treats lay on good and thick – -pineapple, assorted nuts and unripened peach drizzled with melted toffee.

Threads of smoke from ocean grass and and driftwood.

Sea glass and a long walk on the beach (high tide).

An empty box that once held Nilla wafers (wow, that sounds pretentious but, I’m smelling it; the pretentious bastard I am…).

The mix of scents and over all balance is so nice, part of me is refusing to taste this stuff.  But, I must move on.

On the mouth — Smoky, bright and crisp.

Lots of flavors here, all of them have burnt edges.

A touch of meatiness here (not in an offensive way, it’s subtle).

Lemon rinds, pears, bruised apples and a high malt influence.

Smokey, malty goodness.  Really, a good deal of malt.

Salty but not nearly as much as what I detected on the nose.

Nice mouthfeel over all, a good mix of light viscosity and zingy, fizzy effervescence.  I’m sure you know this but, when I say fizzy, effervescent, etc… I’m not suggesting that this (or any other whisky I describe as such) whisky is carbonated.  No, I’m describing the feel/sensation one gets from a fizzy drink.  Cool?  Cool.

Finish — Fizzy pop rocks minus the “POP!”, long, salty

In sum — My initial thought was that this resembles a nice Springbank mixed with some bourbon cask Port Ellen (due to the coastal, flinty, mineral, smokiness).  If this replica is exact, Mackinlay knew what he was doing and Shackleton was drinking some fine fancy juice!  Well balanced, composed and thoroughly delicious.  I’d save this as a treat for yourself or perhaps to impress your friends with.  There’s a fantastic story to accompany this one.  Lots of great conversation can started with this whisky.

Special thanks goes out to Jill of Whyte & Mackay & Andy H for working your magic to get the sample to me!

A World of Discovery, Port Ellen, Summertime

Signatory Port Ellen 1982, Bourbon Cask #1202, 26 years old

Islay region – 54.1% – $339 | £? | €?

An out of the blue voicemal:

Marshall (this voicemail is completely paraphrased): “Hey Joshua, Marshall here, just checking to see if you might want a sample pour of some Port Ellen the LASC just got”

I was busy setting up a tradeshow booth so I sent a text:

Joshua: “As ‘The Dude’ would say: Does the Pope shit in the woods? Hell yes!”

The back and forth goes on from there but there are too many expletives and references to “Jewish English” that would make my reproducing of the entire transcript too risque for the JSMWS blog.  No shit.

Special thanks to Marshall and the LASC for the “bad-a$$ F&#$ing great pour” sent to me!

On the nose — Lemon soap suds & sweaty canvas sneakers.

Bright smoke.  Burning, salty driftwood.

Chamomile tea and a bushel of hay on a very, very humid summer’s day.

After a while the bourbon influence is very noticeable with scents of cinnamon and vanilla even fresh corn.

After this, it gets a bit dank and dewy.

On the mouth — The ABV is barely… wait a sec.  Wow, this is really…really heating up on me.

Oh crap!  This goes from oily, soft and sweet then onto being thin, hot and fiery in a matter of 6-7 seconds…

Let’s have another go at this:  Grassy, earthy, flinty, almost electric.

It starts off with freshly bitten plum then moves into pink lemonade.

This is evolving with every single sip.

Soapy, like on the nose and growing into sugary tart Sweetarts.

Honeyed teas and salted, baked lemons.

Finish — Lasting and evolving, hot, spicy and lemony sweet.

In sum — Nicely balanced.  I really dug the way the flavors exploded and evolved with every second.  A late summer’s night dram if you have a shit ton of cash to spare!  Very enjoyable.  For the $$ tag on this one, I can spend less on another whisky that can also be enjoyed on a late summer’s night.

Angry, Bruichladdich, Cold Winter, Need To Bundle Up, Port Charlotte

Port Charlotte PC7 – Bruichladdich’s 7yo Cask Strength Peaty Goodness!!

Islay Region – 61%ABV – $90 | £63 | €73

Here in the Northeast; beautiful picturesque (mostly picturesque; I’m traveling through northeast New Jersey right now…) Northeast/New England we just encountered a massive, massive snow storm.  The second large storm in a two week span.

While normally I’d love this, it just so happens that I am trying ever so hard just to get home so love turns into hate & frustration.  As I write this review I am sitting on a train back to Connecticut that may not make it all the way there.  I left Chicago yesterday afternoon (luckily) and got to Philadelphia around 3:00pm or so expecting to hop on a 5:55 train back to CT.  I decided to pass on that train as US Airways told me that my flight to CT was still on, leaving at 5:40pm.

The flight was canceled at 5:38pm.

My wife was good girl and she found a super-duper, over-priced hotel (perhaps the only hotel with vacancies due to the cost) for me to stay at.  Thanks babes!!

Last night I “enjoyed” vegetarian food at the steakhouse which is adjacent to the hotel.  Ha!  Accompanying my dinner was some Glenmorangie Original and Talisker 175th Anniversary (no complaints there).

This morning I walked to the 30th street train station and picked up my train tickets and hoped onto the train back home to Connecticut.  Yay!!

My wife texted me to let me know that there was no service to CT but I didn’t believe her.  Amtrak told me there were no issues… until I got to the gate.  Then they announced there would be no service to CT. Ugh.  Note to all the husbands and/or life partners out there: LISTEN TO YOUR WIFE!  SHE KNOWS HER SHIT.

So.  Here we are.  Here I am – now on a train which will stop in NYC hoping on a wing and a prayer that the tracks will be cleared and this locomotive will be allowed to get me back home!

It’s situations like this and weather such as we’re experiencing here in the Northeast that make me want to reach for some Port Charlotte whisky!!  I reviewed the PC6, 6yo whisky here.  Today I am reviewing the PC7:

On the nose — Soured milk.  More soured milk – in a surprisingly good way.

Rich & creamy butter.

Honey, yogurt and salted caramel.

Peaty but not very smoky.

Bruised apples.

New cotton.

Some youth showing through (in the form of pears), but hey, this is only 7 years old.

On the mouth — Mustard seed and other savory herbs.

Smoke, Eeyores thistles and pricker bushes.

Salty and buttery.

The apples from the nose are here.

More sour milk.

Mostly big & smokey but there’s a good deal of licorice in there too – and maybe a touch of vanilla.

Finish — Long with burnt sugar and Kiss™ brand licorice rock-n-roll dresses (as if you’ve never had one!?).

In sum — I’m a fan of the Port Charlotte.  This one is nice but the PC6 was a mammoth.  Looking forward to trying more of these.  A winter dram for sure.  This stuff will light you on fire from the inside out.

A World of Discovery, Brora, Let's celebrate!

Brora 30yr 2009 release

Highlands region (Brora is now mothballed, used as a visitors center for Clynelish) – 53.2%ABV – £245 – not available in the US – Master of Malt has it here.

Brora has quite a history and is a malt that is very sought after.  Serge Valentin (of Whiskyfun! fame), a true Brora devotee, wrote a great piece on the history of Brora here on Connosr.

Connosr, by the way, is a wonderful and vibrant whisky community.  If you’re not a part of it yet, sign up here.

It was based on Serge’s passionate recommendation that I looked further into Brora.  Thank you Serge!

Thanks to Master of Malt, I was able to choose this as a whisky blogger’s freebee from their Drinks by the Dram selection as long as I posted on it.  Thank you Master of Malt!

Ok, enough of the plugs, let’s get to work…

On the nose — Light and soft, yet upfront with notes of peat smoke and a good deal of smoked salt.

Herbal tea – chamomile mostly.

Medicinal – almost reminds me of fresh band-aids.

The peat is ever present here and there’s a peppery prickliness to this.

Even under these peaty & medicine notes I can detect some fruits – banana (peel) & peach skins.

A good deal of vanilla that somehow went undetected until about a minute into nosing this.

On the mouth — Creamy entry followed by fire – very hot stuff!

Hotter than I expected at 53.2%.

Let’s try this again and see if I need to add a wee bit of water…

Apples – fresh ones at that – and etrog (like a lemon, less intense yet much more fragrant).

Very waxy and still medicinal.

The herby/grassy quality I got on the nose carries through here.

“All-sorts” licorice candies.

Honey mustard.

Less smoky on the palate as compared to the nose.

Did I mention this is delicious?

Some dried fruits in there, mostly fig.

Finish — Mint notes appear, some almond & a tad more licorice.

Lingering.

In sum — My first Brora and, I’m in love.  The style of this whisky is quite unique.  I love the older, more elegant peat in this.  This is black tie whisky.  I’d love to pair this stuff with some nice chocolates.  A treat, through & through!