Jolly Toper Tasting Edinburgh (& by post) 25.9.8

[jmrl]

The next tasting in the Tollbooth Tavern, Canongate, Royal Mile, Edinburgh

7.30 pm Thursday 25th September

£20/17 (lower price for first timers or members - membership is £10 for first 13 months then £5 for rest of life- mine or yours) post and packaging at cost.

a slight change to the line up posted at write up to last tasting:-

Bladnoch 6yo sherrywood 56.9%
Longrow CV 46%
Banff 29yo cask strength Cadenheads Bourbon hogshead
North of Scotland single grain 1972 36yo 51.1% closed distillery from Malt Whisky Buyers Helpline
Hanyu 'Two of Clubs' 7yo Japanese single malt 57% closed distillery Japanese oak finish
+ a mystery dram

[jmrl]

As is my habit I'll quickly comment on the drams in this tasting.

North of Scotland single grain 1972 36yo

Very nice. If you are unfamiliar with grain you might not know what to make of it but I'm sure you'd like it. Who could refuse the pleasing sweet vanilla nose then the rich palate and long finish? This example was very affordable but a comparison could be easily made between this and lighter American/Canadian drams at even lower prices

Banff 29yo

Again a luxury of a malt. Sweet, deep and long. Drink and buy closed distilleries now. Heed my words.

J&B -6

Is it new Make? Is it it Vodka? No its a heavily chill-filtered blend. Very interesting and surprisingly enjoyable but a bit odd to spend time, effort and money creating flavour then some more of the same taking it out.

Bladnoch 6yo sherry cask

If this is what Raymond and the happy gang in Wigtonshire have got in store for us in the future we have nothing (except armeggedon and stuff) to worry about. Excellent interaction. Best sherry cask for me for ages. And all in only 6 years.


Hanyu 7yo Japanese oak

Another closed distillery and another (relatively) young dram. A cracker with so much on offer. Oak, smoke, spirit all coming and going in a most pleasing fashion. I liked it more every time I tried it.
Longrow CV

Again youth shows its bouncy fun side giving the grace and wisdom of the oldies a foil. Bright and lively with a sophisticated peaty contribution. Should have gone for a stronger bottling though.


Next tasting:-

Special Islay

x4+1 quadruple distilled Bruichladdich

Lagavulin 1993-2008 for Feis Ile 52.9% European oak

Caol Ila 'only from the distillery' 58.4%

Laphroaig Cardeas 55%

Bruichladdich links Turnberry 14yo 46%

Tickets sold out but thought somebody might be interested to know.

[Deactivated Member]

I hope you don't mind me adding a comment here, it's not criticism or a complaint, just my perspective on one of the drams:

I was recently given three Bladnoch samples, the 6yr Sherry wood, the 6yr Bourbon cask and some new spirit. (Thanks Sue!)

I have to say the new spirit was excellent, the Bourbon cask also fantastic and the sherry wood, well, it was the weakest of the three.

So if you like the sherry wood so much, please try the bourbon wood as it is even better!
MT

[Willie JJ]

That's not really been the consensus as I have found it so far with the 6yo Bladnochs Keith. Most of the dozen or so folk that I have talked to preferred both the sherry and the peated to the bourbon. Mark has all 3 and I'm not sure what his opinion is on this, but I think the bourbon is still showing its youth, while the peat and sherry have masked that a little.

Having said that I reckon there was more than one batch of these, so we may not be tasting like with like.

Cheers

[jmrl]

The Bourbon cask I have is 57.3% and really isn't in the same league as the sherry. The lightly peated (58.5%) being between the extremes. Again only my opinion. May the 20cl bottles have come from different casks?

[Deactivated Member]

Hi Jmrl, I really didn't want to upset anyone or show dissent. This was just my own impression.

I found the new spirit to be excellent, just like a grappa.
I agree that in this respect the bourbon shows similar traits to the new spirit in that it is light, very floral and obviously related to the new spirit.

The sherry one I found to be rather insignificant. It didn't have the floral traits, but neither did it exhibit much of a sherry dram.
My comment at the time was that this was probably not a first fill and it would need a good many years before it could really compete with other sherry drams on the market.

The sherry one is 56.4% and the bourbon 56.9%.

Once again, no offence meant.
MT

[Deactivated Member]

My tasting notes for the three Bladnoch are online.

Just follow the link and page down a little:

http://www.whiskymag.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=21&t=8147&st=0&sk=t&sd=a&start=70

[jmrl]

Malt-Teaser I have no reason to take offence! If I made the stuff and you said it was disgusting that might bother me but I didn't and you didin't.


I let Helen from the Bow Bar try all three and she was most impressed by the sherrywood, buying a bottle, but not so the other two.

The sherry wood we tried was 56.9%. I tried the new make a few years back and I remember being struck by a yeasty aspect. I was told this may have been because by hosing through resepticles and pipes towards the stills solids reached the still that might normally not appear. I didn't quite follow that expalanation as I thought distilling would not allow solids over. Perhaps a vital flavour from the yeast was created during brewing thanks to the yeast strain or the fermentation regime. Any body out there able to comment from an experience angle?
Also I tried some new make from Bladnoch kept in a bottle with a lump of stave in it. This was a revelation! It tasted part matured. Bar the oxygen in the bottle the container was sealed. I can't remember how long it was in there but if Diageo get wind of this they'll skip cling filming the casks and just bottle new make with wooodchips in them.

Do you think if we campaigned enough distillers would bottle new make? I have had fewer disappointing new makes than mature spirits. What a saving on maturation costs.

[Deactivated Member]

My first comment when I tasted the Bladnoch new spirit was "why don't they bottle it!" I found no yeast notes, just a superb floral spirit that was equal to any grappa I ever tasted and, believe me, I have tasted many and I like grappa.

I hope you have a good tasting!
MT

[zippy]

Interesting views on the merits of the various Bladnoch 6 yos

I got the 3x20cl pack (bourbon/sherry/lightly peated) - to my tastes the bourbon and lightly peated are decent enough considering their youth (and I suspect definitely worth drinking in another 6 years) but the sherry version is a cut above - seriously tasty stuff with plenty of rich fruity flavours.

I guess there may be some variation dependent on which casks your bottles came from.

Needless to say the sherry is nearly finished but the other two are relatively untouched

[TheTross]

My first comment when I tasted the Bladnoch new spirit was "why don't they bottle it!" I found no yeast notes, just a superb floral spirit that was equal to any grappa I ever tasted and, believe me, I have tasted many and I like grappa.
MT

I've only tasted the one grappa. I cannot recollect which one, nor indeed how it tasted, as it was a good few years ago now and I don't think I was entirely sober at the time.

However, I can definitely recollect trying Bladnoch new make - via our very own Willie - and I too remember it as being quite floral and having no yeast notes. I also recall it being very plummy, both on nose and palate. So if grappa tastes like that, I may have to give it a proper go sometime!

But yes, the Bladnoch new make is a bit of a revelation really, as I never thought that completely immature spirit could taste that good.

[John McGill]

The Bourbon cask I have is 57.3% and really isn't in the same league as the sherry. The lightly peated (58.5%) being between the extremes. Again only my opinion. May the 20cl bottles have come from different casks?

The 20cl bottles I have are as follows:

Bourbon 57.3%
Lightly Peated 58.5
Sherry 56.9%

This would suggest that they probably came from the same casks (well, the ones I have anyway, there might be others out there).

I'm not sure which is my favourite between the lightly peated and the sherry as they're both good but I'd put the bourbon in third place.

[jmrl]

I wonder what size the sherry cask was. It seems to have taken out enough new make taste quickly without stamping its authority too much. Generally Bourbon casks are smaller and it seems reasonable the spirit was from the same batch. So in 6 years chances are the Bourbon cask should be ready first but this seems reversed here. I wish bottlers would detail the type of sherry used even how many times the cask has been used and for how long on each occassion. I would also like petrol prices to be lowered and for there to be a good bit more daylight at this time of year. Maybe I should try Jim'll Fix It.