Port Ellen Tasting - October 4th - 7 PM

[Leorin]

PE 3rd AR 57,3%

N: needs water to unravel, fatty, phenolic, scardey cat plant, burnt fudge,
P: violets in bloom, bitter oranges, rather sharp, vegetable peat
F: citrusy, metal, peat, medium lenght
C:A good expression, but some of the independent bottlings are not onlly similar in style, but also at least equal in quality

[Ras Mazunga]

Bladnoch bottling 25 yo 58.1%
n: smoky, almonds, gets fuller after breathing and more woody: cigar boxes.
t: salted fruits, fudge, fresh tobacco, milk
f: fresh red pepper for a moment.
c: a nice one. I might start to learn something about older peated whiskies tonight.

[Ganga]

A drop of water.

Instead of custard on the nose it's more like warm apple pie. Oh, palate has the same aspects but it is much nicer, more enjoyable. Best of the batch for me.

[Dram fine idea]

PE 27yo 54.2% 6th release 1978/2006

Nose Germolene, vanilla and sweet candy. Gentle.

Taste Lovely sweetness comes through the middle with the iodine/germolene down the side. Bubbles nicely on the tongue. A real treat.

Finish More of the same. Medium length finish with the sweetness lingering. Delicious.

Comment I bought this one from the Grill pub in Aberdeen last night (£13.20 for 25ml measure) - pleased that I did. It is my favourite of the evening, similar to PE 24/25yo 46% Berry Brothers 1982 2007 #2469 (which I received from Ras). I'm going to wallow in this for a while. Reminds me of the Queen of the Moorlands Rare Cask Bruichladdich 1991 (Anniversary Bottling) - which I have finished because it was so good.

[Ganga]

PE: AR #7, 1979, 28 yo, 53.8%
Glass: large brandy
Nose: the kitchen with cinnamon rolls in the oven
Palate: Brownies and cracked black pepper
Finish: Long, slight burnt brownies

[Spirit of Islay]

PEAR5 1979 25yo 57.1% from Islay Pack

N: This one is really tarry , peat ? .
P: Aniseedie , touch pepper , old Black bullets ? peppermint ?
F: Long , licorice .
C: very strange PE after the others , can't quite work out wheter i like it or not......

[Ganga]

Additional water is a little different (quantity) from the other glass. I'm getting some fresh pears and apples now. Really is quite tasty with some water.

[Willie JJ]

Signatory Vintage 22yo 1979 - 2002 43% abv, Refill Sherry, Cask 5537 (courtesy Ryguy)

Nose: This is more like it. Still a hint of the farmyard, but without that acridity that was in the 10yo. Again wwith the powerful cereal notes that are unaffected by the peat. Grist and malted milk. Some wine here too though. A little chardonnay. Yeast. Restrained peat, more like incense than carbolic.
Palate: immediate wine followed by musty wood. Think the barley sugar must have been there once but it is now submerged in woodspice. A little pear, but the wood is dominant. Camphor.
Finish: The wood pulls it up short, wrapping the palate in a spicy blanket.

Hmm, the nose on this is lovely, but the rest of it is taken over by the wood. Very enjoyable but the spice is very powerful.

[Ras Mazunga]

PE 19yo 43% , McGibbons Provenance1982-2001.
n: winey, leather, almost like it is finished... cooked fruits appaer, panforte. some smoke and later the wood gets stronger.
t: lemon, tea, a bit thin
f: first just lemon later a mouthfilling old whisky sensation. a little camphor appaers.
c: great nose and finish only the taste is lacking. very nice finish.

[Jimmy321]

Berrys own 1982-2007 46% cask 2469

N. Like sea air when the tides out.

T. wine gums and slight wood ash.

F. Pears, mellow custard then salt.

[lohssanami]

23 yr 1982 Provenance - April '82' - May '06' - 46%

Nose: I get some bread and a slight "Wine ace'd presence" here. Spicy sweetness.

Taste: Dry chocolate and a little oil with a bit of a wine aftertaste.

Finish: Short finish, "wine" is gone with slight pepper.

Though I don't usually like "wine" tastes, this one wasn't bad.

[Willie JJ]

McGibbons Provenance 19yo Spring 1982 - Spring 2001 43% (courtesy C57)

Nose: Hmm seems to be sherry influence here. What a wonderful fresh nose for a 19yo. This time the peat is more evident. Lint, seaweed and distant bonfire on the beach. Slightly nutty with butter and milk chocolate. Silage. Grist. Very nice.
Palate: Hit of oloroso, cream, chocolate. Then the barley sugars come through, mmmmm. Nice and orangey. The gristiness is there too.
Finish: Wood spice, but mouthwatering. lengthy finish. Slightly drying but delicious.

This is a really nice dram and the age is just about perfect I think. Lovely.

[Spirit of Islay]

Bladnoch Forum 1982 24yo Cask 2461 60.4%

N: Tar , pepper , Christmas Cake , spices .
P: The old Christmas cake in a bottle to start with , crikey the spirits strong..... well balanced though , slight peat .
F: Long , spicy , peppery .
C: Cracking PE either No.3 or 4 in my list , mind you this has got to be the best bargain of any PE .

[daveski]

BLADNOCH Butt 2036 58.1%
-
Nose. Light, but dry and smokey with a touch of sweetness following through.

Palate. A much stonger taste of smoke with a hint of seaweed and iodine - medicinal?

Finish. Smoother than expected (yet my tongue tingles). Peat remains there, with a touch of grainstore.

Very pleasant dram. Thank you Willie

[Ras Mazunga]

PE 22yo 1979 sig vintage 43%
n: cereals, fruits, the smoke seems to come later with a lot of oak
t: less salty, oranges a bit winey again. later fuller oranges: marmelade. a little yeast. anisseed and some fudge
f: smoky, drying, wood

I start to wonder if my notes make any sense since my nose is partily blocked due to a bad cold. (Can't smell a farmyard in here, and I miss that)

[Willie JJ]

Berry Brothers 1982 - 2007 Cask #2469 46% (courtesy Ras Mazunga)

Nose: No sign of sherry here. Back with the full on farmyard. Butter and cream there too though. Lint and a hint of carbolic. Old sea shells on a pebble beach. The cereal isn't really coming through here.
Palate: Initial gentle delivery then a rush of spice that carries white fruits and custardy notes.
Finish: Huge spice, but complex with aniseed and fennel, camphor and cardboard.

Very enjoyable dram where the wood is strong, but not unpleasant. Lots of life and complexity and no mustiness at all. Good stuff.

[Dram fine idea]

PE 25yo from Bladnoch Butt 2036 bottled Nov 07 58.1% (638 bottles). Many thanks to Willie JJ.

Nose Poured it a while ago and then enjoyed the 6th release for a bit longer. With a bit more time it has opened up slightly. It is quite sweet, with a touch of vanilla balanced by some oaky dryness/astringency.

Taste Sweet on one hand and wood astringency on the other, this really plays tricks with the two dimensions.

Finish Rather short, with sweetness first and the dry oak having the final word.

Comment A good whisky, well worth trying.

[lohssanami]

25 yr 1979 Old Malt Cask 50%

Nose: Oranges truffles and a bit of smoke...

Taste: This is a bit creamy with some chocolate undertones and an oily stickiness.

Finish: Definitely a sweeter PE than the others, and the finish is fairly short.

Very enjoyable!

[Spirit of Islay]

Plowed Ellen 1982 22yo Cask 740 61.1%

N: Heavily Sherried , burn't matches , Mint humbugs , the nasty sherried bits dominate unfortunately........
P: Very strong Spirit , with water it tastes better , peppery but the sherry burst through it , mint humbugs , still a wee bit of sulphur but not a lot .
F: Long , sherry , humbugs .
C: Shame this is spoiled by the nose , though this has settled down a lot since i opened it .

[Willie JJ]

McGibbons Provenance 21yo Autumn 1982 - Summer 2004 46% (courtesy Leorin)

Nose: Ooh, more sherry. The peat manifests as creosote but not fresh, its been on the fence for a while. The lint is there too with some interesting tannins. Delightful. Almost comes across like Armagnac at times. There's a nice creamy nuttiness, with a hint of linseed. Very distant farmyard this time.
Palate: Mmmm spicy dark chocolate cookies. Then strong tea and carbolic. Loads of spice, but fresh not dried.
Finish: nice but fast fading. Oh wait, there's a late rush of barley that sets the mouth watering. Lovely.

On the evidence so far they should have put PE into sherry casks. It really works for me.

[daveski]

Signatory Scottish Wildlife

Nose. Lightly smoked with a touch of peat. I have a whiff of fruit - i think.

Palate. More smoke here and lightly peated.

Finish. Very short in comparison to other PEs. Limited peat or smoke, slightly disappointing in that it has a limited finish and yet, remains citrusy. Unexpected, but not surprising i suppose for a 10 yo.

Daveski

[Willie JJ]

Ok on to the cask strength drams now.

[Dram fine idea]

PE 25yo 1982-2008 60.4% Cask 2466 AD Rattray (Thanks to Stuart/The Tross)

Nose Sweet with a lot of peat and vanilla. Very nice.
Taste Sweet, with the peat making itself known early on, slightly metallic but it all hangs together well

Finish Spices, smooth, gentle, lingers on for a while, slight dryness at the end but the peat and smoke has the final say.

Comment I really enjoyed this one.

[Ras Mazunga]

What would you recommend as a good snack in between the PE's?

[Ganga]

Ardbeg.

[Willie JJ]

Oh hi Dave. Are you both there? Is it a consensus view or just your's?

[Dram fine idea]

That's me for the night. I have really enjoyed taking part tonight. Thank you kindly to everyone who sent me samples - it is greatly appreciated. Goodnight and take care.

[Sherried Malt]

Hey guys. Errands took much longer than I expected and now my lovely wife tells me we have a dinner party to go to. This will be shorter than I expected...

Time to fetch the samples and set things up.

[Spirit of Islay]

Ardbeg.

LOL!

[Willie JJ]

Dormant Distillery Company 1982 - 2007 Cask #1144 51.5% (courtesy The Tross)

Nose: Wow, lovely fresh nose. Barley sugar, pear drops, marmalade. Very subtle peat. Hints of shellfish. Dried tea.
Palate: Wonderful sweet barley sugar start before a violent onrush of tannins.
Finish: Amazing. Waves of different flavours rushing across the tongue. At times sweet and sour, then hot and sour, then very strong but high quality tea, barley notes, citrus notes. Mouth watering, chewing. What an experience.

This dram is weakest on the palate, but if it didn't smell or taste of anything very much initially it would still be worth it for the finish. Fabulous.

[Willie JJ]

That's me for the night. I have really enjoyed taking part tonight. Thank you kindly to everyone who sent me samples - it is greatly appreciated. Goodnight and take care.

Cheers Steve.

[Ras Mazunga]

Thanks Ganga.
Let's stay on topic now:
PE 3rd 57.3% 24yo 2003
n: peated, malt, heavy, later honey ans some vanilla
t: peat, creosote. coal, resin, medicinal, anchovis
f: long enough but surely solid
c: this is the most full right in your face kabang whisky sofar. Maybe not so subtle but excellent full of taste.


Update on the Bladnoch one butt 2036: starting to smell like soya sauce. Very nice!

[Spirit of Islay]

That's it for me on the PE's , i'll now move onto something else and continue chatting in the SOI chatroom .

[Sherried Malt]

Ganga's 1979 Signatory PE Butt 5537. (Thanks again, Ganga!)

Nose: Very floral like toilet water. (No, not water from a toilet. Toilet water!)

Palate: Surprisingly light on its feet. Hint of gum base... Sorta winey... Unusual sweetness to it. My first PE, expected more peat or smoke.

Finish: Finish a bit on the shortish side with a weird aftertaste. Can't place it. Medicinal to be sure.

[mikeymad]

Cheers SOI.... Thanks for all the notes.....

even if you had to plug your nose to get some down...

Cheers,