Port Ellen Tasting - October 4th - 7 PM

[Sherried Malt]

PE 2nd Annual Release (Thanks, MT.)

Nose: Floral like the Sig but with more depth and character. Spirit/alcohol also more prominent. Upon standing, caramel and vanilla come out. Very nice.

Palate: Bigger and sweeter than the Sig. Alcohol fills the entire mouth. Hot.

Finish: Very hot and peppery but not in the way a Talisker is peppery... That characteristic overwhelms everything else.

Nose is surely the best part of this dram but not sure I like it enough overall...

[Willie JJ]

Old Bothwell 26yo 1979 - 2006 Cask #7094 53% (courtesy Daveski)

Nose: Back to the farmyard, but not in a bad way. This is a well managed, clean farm. some nice clean vanilla notes that you would expect to get from first fill bourbon casks. Not much in the way of fruit unless its cooked, but the malty, grist is here.
Palate: Wonderful barley sugars that aren't dominated by the wood. The vanillins just add to the effect. I really think this must have been a first-fill bourbon cask. There is spice but it is very much in the background as seasoning rather than being dominant.
Finish: The vanilla gradually dries on the tongue leaving a lovely sweet spice. Kind of like cinnamon and clove rock. Beautiful.

Best so far.

[Willie JJ]

Yes nice notes Gordon and thanks for the Sig 10yo.

Cheers

[mikeymad]

Another bottle of water and an opener and then I should be good to start my samples....

Cheers,

[Willie JJ]

Oh hi SM. Never noticed you coming in there.

[Jimmy321]

Bladnoch cask 2036 25yo 2007 58.1%

N. Smoke & oak

T. Quite strong.. peat then oak, spice & honey, salt.

F. Lingering spice & fading peaty oak.

For me a very good IB PE. Think i will have a few more drams of this.

[daveski]

OLD BOTHWELL. PE 2006 26yo, Oak Cask, 53%

Nose. Peat, moss and a touch of citrus. Light sense of seaweed as well.

Palate. Deeper smoke and a more medicinal almost TCP-like taste.

Finish. Peat again and burnt wood. A long flavour with smoke and an earthy afternote.

D

[daveski]

BLADNOCH (Father in Law's view)

Nose. Grain store and a touch of saddle soap.

Palate. Cigar Box (not the cigars!), walnuts and again the grainstore.

Finish. Fresh soaped tack and a bit of ashwood smoke.

[Willie JJ]

PE AR3 (courtesy Jimmy321)

Sorry I have been indiscriminately drinking this for the last 20 mins.

Nose: Slightly dirtier farmyard here but not too bad. Definitely just walked past a field gate where fresh cows pee has leaked out. Slight mustiness. But for all these apparently repellent elements this really works. There also vanilla sweetness and porridge there too.
Palate: barley sugar rush again, but it doesn't last as long before the spice gets to it.
Finish: The spice rolls towards the tip of the tongue concentrating as it goes until it is almost painful. Very lengthy and marvelous.

This dram may not sound that attractive but it really works. Brilliant.

[daveski]

OLD BOTHWELL. PE 2006 26yo, Oak Cask, 53% (father in law's view)

Nose. faint smoke.

Palate. Initially unripe gooseberries and then pears. Then sweet molasses, nuts and leather. Plenty of smoke.

Finish. Smokey!

Must leave now though, as am on the 3am feed. The little one may not be too appreciative of too much peat when i breathe on her!!!

Thanks to all. I shall read the rest of the notes tomorrow.

D

[Ganga]

I'm off for a dinner party. I shall return later this evening.

[Willie JJ]

Right, 8 down 4 to go.

[Willie JJ]

Bye Dave, bye Ganga.

[Leorin]

I really enjoyed the tasting tonight.
I tasted seven rather good to exquisite expressions of PE. Any more would have made no sense in my opinion.
Thanks to everybody for their interesing tasting notes.
See you
Kevin

[Wave]

Good evening/morning all!

Starting with
Port Ellen 22yo 1979 Signatory Vintage cask #5537 43%

Nose; Light sherry, melons and some smoke
Palate; Lots of sherry sweetness and peat smoke. Salty
Finish; Long and drying smoky sweetness gives way to a slightly sour taste

It's almost like chewing on sugar-coated hickory chips soaked in just enough alcohol to keep it interesting. Easily drinkable.

Cheers!

[mikeymad]

Sounds like a good one to start with wave....

Mine is from Ryguy... bottle 53/768

Port Ellen 22yo 1979 Signatory Vintage cask #5537 43%

[Ras Mazunga]

Good evening Wave.
Have a nice tasting.

Taking a break of the PE for a bit. Having some Scotch Blue for the moment.

[Willie JJ]

Bladnoch bottling 25yo Butt #2036 58.1%

Nose: Ooh I'm getting soft toffee on the nose for the first time tonight. Maybe a hint of rubber here too. Oranges and a hint of oloroso.
Palate: Bitter orange. Delicious stewed fruits, then a gentle influx of spice.
Finish: My palate is pretty shot now, but this keeps on giving and making my mouth water when it has no right to have water. Lovely.

Must try this on a fresher palate because I think it i better than I am able to discern right now.

[Willie JJ]

Hey Tom, nice to see you.

[mikeymad]

Port Ellen 22yo 1979 Signatory Vintage cask #5537 43%


Not big on notes tonight. I guess too much typing during the week....

Very light in color, like a light yellow or pail straw kind of thing going on...

It comes of light on the nose first thing out of the glass. Light peat and some lemon notes. Grass and some oil come out at well.

The first tast (I admit I took a little nip of it when I poured it), stays on the light and fruity side. touch of peat, touch of lemons, touch of oil, and some pepper all over the palate.

The finish is smooth and medium in length, It is lingering with the peat and pepper more than anything else.

Good overall dram... At 43% it could be drank very quickly since it does not seem to put up a fight.

[Wave]

Port Ellen 18yo 1983 Scott's Selection 55.5% ABV

Glass: Glencairn
Added Water: None. Earlier tastings proved that this malt is best tasted in it's natural state.

Nose Molasses and prunes wallowing in a peaty bonfire
Palate Thickly sweet coal tar coats your mouth. Dried fruits like apricots and raisons in the background
Finish: Long, peaty and chewy with sweet sherry overtones

It doesn't mention what cask type was used but it's pretty evident that it was at least a refill sherry cask as the whisky is a deep gold with a tinge of redness in color One of my favorite Port Ellen's I've tasted in a while.

Cheers!

[Wave]

Cheers Willie and Mikeymad!

[Willie JJ]

PE AR2

Nose: Nice sherry influence here. Oranges and kiwi. Soft peat. Some tannins.
Palate: Oranges again.
Finish: Very nice return that offers really good flavour development. Still Citrussy.

Another one that needs to be tasted on a fresh palate

[Willie JJ]

I don't know what to do now. Clearly my palate is thrashed and needs a break. Maybe I'll have a drink of water.

[mikeymad]

Port Ellen 25yo 1979 (50%, Old Malt Cask)


This one starts off with a little more color for you... a light amber with a touch of gold about it.

It is coming off a lot more powerful on the nose. The peat on this is pushed way back. It is more like a lacquer.

The palate is nice and balanced with peat, pepper, and light fruits.

The finish is all in the mouth and it is peat and pepper

[Wave]

On to an across the Atlantic favorite tonight...
Port Ellen 25yo Bladnoch Bottling cask #2036

Glassware: Glencairn
Water added: Dash of spring water

Nose: Tons of peat and smoke. Ardbeg? Water brings out some citrus like oranges and lemons. The smoke almost makes your eyes water!
Palate Not quite as mouth coating as the 18yo Scott's but still a nice creamy texture. Tons of sweet peat and smoke. Chocolate fudge.
Finish A long slowly drying smoky sweetnes.

Wow, no wonder others have given this high marks! Very nice!

Cheers!

[mikeymad]

Now that makes me want to have a dram wave... nice notes.

Cheers,

[Willie JJ]

Right let's see if I can taste anything yet.

[Ryguy]

Good Evening Everyone!

Nice note on the Bladnoch bottling Wave, sounds like a good one. I'll be reading thru some notes, then starting right in.

[Wave]

Port Ellen 22yo 1983 Old Malt Cask
Refill Hogshead Cask #2119
Distilled: March 1983
Bottled: November 2005

Glassware: Glencairn
Water Added: None

Nose: Milk chocolate and whiffs of smoke
Palate: Smooth and lightly peated, some sea salt
Finish: A medium length salt and pepper finish with a smoky background. Quite warming.

Not one of my favorite PE's though not bad. If I had a chance to buy another I probably wouldn't.

Cheers!

[Ryguy]

My lineup looks like this for the evening....lots of samples, plus a few bottles of my own.

Port Ellen 19yo ( 43%, Provenance, 1982-2001 ) (Nick)
Port Ellen 22yo 1979 ( 43%, Signatory Vintage, 8.28.79/6.25.02, Refill Sherry Butt Cask #5537, 53/768 )
Port Ellen 23yo 1982 ( 46%, Provenance, April 82-May2006 in box ) (Mikeymad)
Port Ellen 25yo ( 46%, Berry's Own, 1982/2007, Cask #2469 ) (Ras)
Port Ellen 25yo 1979 ( 50%, Old Malt Cask, 1979/2005, n/182 bottles )
Port Ellen 1982/2007 (51.5%, DDC, Cask #1144, 294 bottles, Royal Mile Whiskies 10th Anniversary bottling) (Stuart)
Port Ellen 24yo 1979/2003 3rd Release (57.3%, OB, 9000 bottles) (Stuart)
Port Ellen 28yo 1979 ( 53.8%, Original Bottling, 7th Annual Release, 1979/2007, 0170/5274 )
Port Ellen 22yo 1982/2004 ( 61.1%, Douglas Laing - OMC for PLOWED, Sherry cask #748, 264 bottles ) (The local PLOWED Dr)

Thanks again to everyone for the samples!!

[Wave]

Good evening r-guy! Nice lit'le list of Ellen's!

Cheers!

[mikeymad]

Cheers Ry....

Notes of a beverage of yours....

Port Ellen 7th release 53.8%

Not much of a sample left for this one...... a light gold in color

Nice smoke and peat jumps out of the glass when you first step up to it. Pepper comes on strong as you continue to work the nose on it.

The peat and grass hit hard on the palate with the pepper again. A small pile of lemons and limes follows as well.

There is a little bit of a caramel note that seems to follow this all. Dark Chocolate as well as the finish develops.

For a lot less money I would like this one around.

[Ryguy]

Port Ellen 19yo ( 43%, Provenance, 1982-2001 )

SMWS Glass

N: Ocean air, some saltiness, a bit of light fruits (pears?)
P: This is an easy drinker, a tad oily, definitely lemon present and some salt
F: Medium finish, with a tad of the wood smoke coming through. Enjoyable and light, really easy to drink at this strength.

Thanks again Nick (C57)!

After a second try of this one, i'm actually getting a hint of smoke on the nose as well.

[Wave]

Time for another freshly opened newbie
Port Ellen 25yo 1982 Signatory Vintage 58% ABV
Sherry Butt -Cask #2844
Distilled: 11/11/1982
Bottled: 30/11/2007

Glassware: Glencairn
Water Added: None

Nose: Heavy sherry and lots of smoke, a slight whiiff of sulphur
Palate: Creamy sherry and peat intertwine well, some smoky oaken embers.
Finish Long, sweet and peaty, some vanilla and salt in the distant finish. Powerful.

This is my first 1st fill sherry casked Port Ellen and I must say it's a real dandy!
Best of all it's still available.

Bonus! Nice sweet peaty burp.
Cheers!