Tag Archives: Pipe Tobacco

All You Need Is Love, Macallan, Takin' It Easy

The Macallan 18yr

Speyside region – 43%ABV – 750ml bottle in the US, 70cl in the UK and elsewhere – £70 | $90-$120 | €84

Wow to you oh whisky peeps, for a dram was bought by me to have (because the notes, they sounded so good).  Let him who hath understanding wreckon the number of the dram [that turned me on to The Macallan].  For it is a Scotch Malt Whisky Society of America number.  It’s number is twenty-four point one-one-one.  (sorry, my inner Iron Maiden fan could not help himself).

I am so very thankful to the Scotch Malt Whisky Society of America for helping to open my eyes once more to The Macallan – for that review, click here.

I received a sample of The Macallan 18yr early last week (special thanks to Igal!) and was not sure what to expect.

I’ve mentioned in the past that their standard 12yr didn’t do much for me (again, I’ve not had their 12yr expression in a bit more than 2 years) so I was not expecting much from their 18yr bottling.

After pouring the whisky into my Glencairn, here’s what I got:

On the nose – Plump dollops of sherry notes travel up my nose.  These notes are covered in chocolate and there is more than a hint of oak and vanilla.

Dried fruits are here — think prunes, dates and fig.  The more I smell it, the more I like it.  Leather & suede.  Big grapes appear in the final sniff.

On the mouth – The first thing I get here is sulphur but that is quickly pushed aside (thankfully) to reveal an incredibly smooth chocolate note.

Pipe tobacco and leather jackets.

Root veggies galore!  I’m even getting a hint of beets here – like whisky borscht (it’s slight but, I am getting it).

The smoothness of this whisky is really remarkable and, it’s nice and chewy too.

Finish – Medium length but there are some long lasting bitter notes to it that really offset everything I just smelled and tasted.  This, I think, is a good thing.

Yes, it’s a good thing.

In sum – This oozes of luxury and all things “comfort”.  This is something to break out for Shabbat (non-Jews, Shabbat is the Hebrew word for the Sabbath which many Jews, myself included, treat both as a holy day and a holiday – read here for more info) for sure!

A World of Discovery, Autumn, Highland Park, Springtime

MacKillop’s Choice Highland Park Single Cask 1981/2006 – Independent bottling

Islands – 56.3%ABV – 700ml bottle – Price ?? I could not find this bottle available at any of the shops I frequent – Thanks to “O.K.” for the sample! (Note: the picture shown is for the 1985 version, not the 1981 as I had tasted)

This will be sort of a shorter review today.  Or at least, the lead up to the actual tasting.  Truth be told, this one took a lot out of me.  The whisky (specifically, the nose) was quite demanding and I’m not sure I was up to the challenge.  Yes, I think I gave it a fair shake (or maybe I gave myself the shake) but it took a while for all to be revealed.

They say good things come to those who wait.  Maybe I was too impatient.  You can decide for yourself…

On the nose — Man, this whisky needs some time to open up.  A few minutes and some nice cherry notes are revealed along with an overall saltiness to it – quite oceanic but at high tide, not a fishy low tide type ocean scent to it.

The nose is brisk and has just a mere hint of smoke (think pipe tobbaco – fragrant).  A few extra minutes and the nose opens more giving me some nice orange notes (Mineola to be exact, very tart).  With a few drops of water some buttery notes come out and it get ever so floral.  I love this nose but I had to dig and wait quite a bit for the scents to show themselves.

On the mouth — Hold on here, this is quite a departure from the nose.  The flavors are not subtle here, you don’t have to work quite as hard – fresh grassy notes and bitter fruits, a good amount of pepper (think cayenne with out the burn).

I think I need to add some water here (it did wonders for the nose) — the mouth feel gets chewy and some white pepper comes out as does something quite sweet thought I can’t put my finger on it.

Finish — A long finish.  The orangey notes remain as does the pepper.

In sum — Part of me felt like a paranormal investigator here.  I knew I had a “spirit” nearby but the nose made me want to scream “Show Yourself!!”  Thank G-d for the palate and finish though, it really came through.  In the end, a nice single cask whisky but I’m not sure it was worth all the trouble.


A World of Discovery, Angry, Autumn, Cold Winter, George T Stagg

George T Stagg 2008 70.9% ABV – Hot damn!

Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey – 70.9%ABV – 750ml bottle – $55-90 for the 2009 release | £95 | €107

There’s an old saying I once heard…  a saying that has stuck with me throughout most of my young adult and current years.  We all have these, right?  A saying or phrase; something that, in certain situations just comes to you right off the bat because when you first heard it, it struck a chord.  These sayings become a part of you for good or for ill.  That’s just how it is.

When I first sipped this bourbon, at 70.9% alcohol, without water, all I could say… all that would come forth from my mouth was:

“That’s hotter than a whore in heat!!”

And Man-o-Maneschewitz, if this stuff did not burn the top layer of skin off of the roof of my mouth – Whooo-eeee!

A quick summary as to what it was like without water (then I will continue my review with the addition of water, trying to bring it down to about 55% (a big thank you to Jeff, the Scotch Hobbyist, for his ABV calculator iPhone app!))

To nose it was like sniffing a sugar fire or perhaps a small burning pile of spiced gum drops.  To taste it was a bit different.  Yes, it burned like all hell but it was so lip smacking and sweet; quite spicy too – made me pucker.  Like a delicious cinnamon bun sitting atop a burning stern-o can.  The finish was L.O.N.G. Long! But full of ripe bananas (flambe perhaps??) and sugared vanilla and oak.

OK, now I must go on with the 55%ABV review.  It’s just way too hot to drink without water (go ahead, call me chicken, I don’t care).

On the nose — Pipe tobacco and fresh grass, nutmeg, cinnamon and pizza spices (think oregano – so odd!), banana peel comes though, much easier to nose at this ABV.  I don’t want to stop nosing.  It’s both inspiring and imposing, pleasant and brash.

On the mouth — Still hot.  Much hotter than the nose.  The palate flavors are a near mirror image of what I got on the nose.  How cool is that!?  There’s an addition of some citrus notes though and the banana is more prominent here.

Finish — Lingering, all burny and stuff… lots of spice and the oregano comes back but it’s very sweet, not so savory.

In sum — Holy Frijoles!  This is some good stuff that makes you slap your leg and say wow!  This is such an American drink.  In your face and unapologetic.  If I could put a name or personality to this drink it would be Eminem.  

This bourbon whiskey just doesn’t give a rat’s ass.  It is what it is.  If you like it, cool, then you get it and love it.  If it’s not up your alley, this whiskey will give you the finger and tell you to F### off.

Sorry for all the potty-words but, try this whiskey and you’ll see that you too will be swearing like the dickens and calling your mother names! (Mom, if you’re reading this, I never called you any bad names.  Promise.)

A special thanks goes out to JH for the sample!!

Lastly, in up-coming news —

I will have two field trip posts going up with in the next two to three days!  One for Whisky Live NYC which I attended last week.  Another for a tour of a newer boutique whiskey distillery!!  Stay tuned!!