Tag Archives: Stewed Veggies

Ardbeg, Big Peat, Bowmore, Caol Ila, Port Ellen

Big Peat (or, what you’d get if you mixed Ardbeg, Bowmore, Caol Ila & Port Ellen in a really smart way)

A vatting of Islay region whiskies – 46%ABV – $80 – $100 | £30 | €35

Continuing my week of vatted/blended whiskies, I move onto “Big Peat”.

Not sure about what it’s like where you are but, it’s getting colder around here (Connecticut, USA).  Especially at night.  I’m seeing temps at 40 – 55deg fahrenheit (about 4.5 – 13deg celsius).  To me, based on my patent pending Mood-And-Season-O-Meter™, this means peat season!

I love a good smokey Islay malt in the fall & winter time (heck, I’ll take a heavy/smokey Campbeltown or a peated Highland malt too).  Mood will affect what you reach for in a whisky and season will affect your mood.  It’s the triple “S” effect.  No, not Shit, Shower & Shave.  Stupid, simple science.  Light & fruity whiskies (and wines) for the warmer months, heavy (and/or peaty for whiskies) and big for the cooler months.  Stupid, simple science.

I’ve been hearing a whole heck of a lot about the cost of this whisky accompanied with complaints of: “why so much for a… blend?”  Many folks see that this is, and is labeled as, a blended whisky so they wont break out their wallets for it because of the higher cost (especially in America).

Statements such as these make me break out my soap box so I can scream to the world “MORE THAN 90% OF SINGLE MALTS ARE BLENDS PEOPLE!!!”

Yes, it’s true.  That Glenfiddich 12, Highland Park 18 or Caol Ila 18 you love so much is a blend of many different barrels which could (and do) contain whiskies that are, 12, 15, 18, 25 years, etc… to create a flavor profile that the distilleries are comfortable labeling as their 12, 15 or 18 year old product.  Single Malt simply means that the whiskies were malted at the same single distillery.  The age statement tells you what the youngest whisky is that blend, I mean, single malt.

Update: In years past, if you mixed different malt whiskies from different distilleries it was OK to call it a “vatted malt”; if you mixed malt whisky with grain whisky it was then called a “blend”. Even though this is a vatting of four different single malt whiskies, the SWA has deemed that a mixture of whiskies from two or more distilleries (be it malt or grain) is now to be called a “blend”.  While I’m not sure I agree with this move, thems the breaks when it comes to labeling Scotch whisky!

OK, off of my soap box.  Let me review this fluid to see if  it’s worth its weight in whisky:

On the nose – Well, there is big peat in here for sure!   A nice peat blast upon initial whiff.

Very briny and a blast of lemon zest.

Do I detect a bit of sherry influence here (mere hints of dried fruits)?

Well used canvas sneakers (rubber, canvas and salty perspiration).

A little flinty (maybe the Port Ellen rearing it’s head).

The smoke is a dirty one.

On the mouth – It’s all about the mouthfeel here folks.

Lush, chewy and coating.  Yum!

Stewed root veggies.  Salty, salty, salty.

Less of a smoke attack on the mouth here.

Teas galore: Chamomile, Sencha, Black Oolong and Rooibos – it’s all there and a bit over steeped.

Finish – Sweet carrots and singed tea leaves, all in the back of the mouth.

In sum – Tough to tell which whisky is strongest here.  The Ardbegian lemons are out there for sure but so is the flintiness of Port Ellen and the mouth feel of many Bowmores I’ve have.  I’d be happy to enjoy this on a hot summer’s day.  Seriously.  It’s bright and refreshing (even with all of that peat smoke) like a nice Caol Ila.  Kudos to the people who made this blend.  Well done.  Take a bow (more)!  Impressive.

All You Need Is Love, Autumn, Benromach, Cold Winter, Springtime, Takin' It Easy

Benromach 10yr – More powerful than a Blackhole!!

Speyside – 43%ABV – 70cl (non-US) – US (in a 750ml bottle) $49 | £29 | €34

The Benromach 10yr is one of the most attractive malts I’ve ever had. Granted, I’ve only been imbibing the harder stuff for 3 years or so. So, I’m new to this wonderful world of whisky…

Like many of you, I read review after review of how spectacular this stuff was and I had every intention of trying some at WhiskyFest NYC 2009 – Sadly, one of the many booths I missed.

It wasn’t until I read Dr. Whisky’s review of the stuff that I finally opened up my wallet and laid down the cash for this baby. It ended up coming on my Birthday – what a birthday it was!

Initial whiff — Sweet warm smoke, honey, sweet peony, penny candy store (hanging out by the butterscotch), damp towel, vanilla, sweet pipe tobacco or, better yet, my Grandpa John’s old pipe collection

On the mouth — Gooey-ooey butterscotch riddled with smoke, root veggies (Dr. Whisky nailed it when he said he tasted stewed carrots – dead on!), fresh soil, leather, more butterscotch – mouth coating and smooth as heck!

Finish — Long, smokey oak, vanilla is back with some nuttiness creeping up.

In sum — This is the ultimate comfort dram. Usually, I like an ABV of at least 46% but I think they nailed it with the 43%. I had two drams that night.

So, here’s where the black hole comes in. I am a total freak when it comes to shows about space, black holes, supernovas (including the Ardbeg Supernova!!)… good sciencey stuff. I was watching a show on black holes the night I opened this up and I found my self completely blocking the outside world and was staring at the legs in my glass as they slowly danced back down to the bottom. I was so taken by this stuff that it took me from my science show! And, that’s really saying a lot. Truly astounding stuff – great effort from the folks at Benromach (even thought I said 43% was dead on, I would love to try this as a cask strength!)