Adam's Misc bottle tastings.

[AdamMY]

A pair of notes on Gordan and Macphails 1997 Glenburgie (Binny's selected Cask) 12 year old.

Without Water
Nose: Savory herbs, roasted lamb, butterscotch, wild mushrooms, and melted brown sugar
Taste: Butterscotch, sour candy, cherry coke, and bitters
Finish: very long, licked 9 volt battery, and sour candies
I would say N: 24-25/25 T: 23/25 F: 20/25 B: 18/25


With Water

Note I was pouring water from a glass, and perhaps poured a bit too much, I should have reduced it drop by drop, but I did dilute it possibly a bit below the 40% level. Still quite interesting. ( I would guess 1/3 Water 2/3rds Whisky).

Nose: Pure melted butter into brown sugar, with hints of nutmeg
Taste: Caramel Apple, and buttered sweet potatoes.
Finish: A hint of spiced rum, and chili peppers and cinnamon

N: 22/25 T: 24/25 F: 21/25 B: 24/25

[AdamMY]

I had my first Ardbeg yesterday (Ardbeg Airigh Nam Beist), and I have been slowly working through the bottle. As I have a glass open now, I will write up some notes:

Nose: Lavender smoke, lemon drops, copper, pork fat, green apples and pears, (and now that Ganga has mentioned it some Honeydew).

Taste: Butter, caramel, tart/ sour candies, extra crispy bacon.

Finish: Licking 9 volt battery, and quite long. (oddly it works)

Nose: 25/25 Taste: 23/25 Finish: 21/25 Balance:24/25

[AdamMY]

Alright I received some pretty damn tasty samples from another forum member. I have been encouraged to post notes, so here is the first of the notes.

Scott's Selection 1985 21 year old Macallan

Color: Polished Bronze.

Nose: Lots and lots of oak, Brown sugar, cherry syrup, nice hint of a nut covered cinnamon bun. I also think there is a slight hint of Bamboo, and worn leather.

Taste: Lots of sweetness and oak, with just the right touch of sherry, presenting a good dried fruit character and nutty profile. To complement the oak and the fruits and the nuts there is a good bit of holiday spices, maybe a some cinnamon sprinkled on buttered toast. But actually a surprising bit of astringency.

Finish: Medium to long, a lot of lingering oak, and holiday spices.

Nose: 24/ 25 Taste: 23/25 Finish: 22/25 Balance 22/25

Overall: 91

Honestly where this whisky lost points is while its quite good and easily drinkable the Palate really overwhelmed most everything else.

[AdamMY]

Kirkland Selection Macallan 15 year old.

40% ABV. Sherry Cask finish. Possibly the most annoying thing about some of these grocery store brands is a lot of the facts real whisky drinkers like to know are often ignored. Such as What year was it Distilled? How long was it Finished in Sherry Casks?

Color: Acorn Brown.

Nose: Toffee, Marzipan, banana, assorted nuts, buttered toast.

Taste: Light, oily, butter, pecans, and hints of peach.

Finish: Short, touch of oak.

N: 23/25 T: 20/25 F: 19/25 Balance: 23/25


Overall: 85/100

[AdamMY]

I should say this is another one of the samples I received recently.

Pappy Van Winkle 15 year old

Color: Brown Ale.

Nose: Loads of oak, brown sugar, just about every brown spice in the spice cabinet, throw in some ginger, a bit of peppermint, and some fresh apples.

Taste: Loads of brown sugar, benedictine and brandy, coffee, and a nice bit of vanilla.

Finish: If I had to judge this on finish alone, I would think I had just drank a sip of Vanilla extract, with just a tinge of rootbeer.

Balance: From the second sip onward, there is next to no sign that this is 107 proof. Incredible flavor waves, none really overpowering or offensively strong.

N: 25 T: 24 F: 23 B: 24

Overall: 96

Incredibly tasty and complex, and even though I loved the finish I thought it was a bit 1 dimensional, and in terms of Taste and Balance its really just splitting hairs.

[AdamMY]

Another one of the Samples given from another forum member.

Redbreast 15 year old

Color: apple juice.

Nose: Peppery, toffee, crisp sour apples.

Taste: Butter, marzipan, and slight hints of nuts.

Finish: Medium long, peppery, and lingering sweetness.

N: 23 T: 20 F: 22 B: 23

Overall: 88/100

A very solid whisky, but lacks a certain wow factor that all very top notch whisky's seem to have.

[AdamMY]

Working my way through the Samples I have not written up yet.

Talisker 18

Color: Very light colored Amber.

Nose: Lots of smoke, steamed carrots, peat, wildflowers and honey.

Taste: Honey, lots of grains, light smoke and peat, and pound cake.

Finish: Smoked pork, honey, and the hints of smoke go on for at least a minute.

N: 23 T: 23 F: 24 B: 24

Overall: 94

Quite sweet through out, but not overly so.

[AdamMY]

Another sample.
Laphroig 18

Color: yellow.

Nose: Bacon, raw red cabbage, green apples, wildflowers, and honey.

Taste: Bacon, some sort of raw green vegetable, peat and a decent bit of malt.

Finish: Herbal Cough syrup, peat, and medium short.

N: 24 T: 23 F: 23 B: 24

Overall: 94

Another incredibly tasty Whisky.

[AdamMY]

Last of the Samples:

Ardbeg Uigeadal

Color: Freshly Fallen Acorn shells.

Nose: Charcoal, Tobacco, smoke, roasted peanuts, sea salt.

Taste: Lemonade, brown sugar, gingerbread cookies, and vegetal peat.

Finish: Lingering, roasted and caramelized vegetables and onions. And quite a bit of smoke.

N: 24 T: 24 F: 24 B: 24

Overall: 96

Near perfection, but no category is a 25 because I feel in order to get a 25 you need to be perfect, but also have a distinctive wow effect. And while certainly wonderful in just about all aspects, there was nothing that made me go "Wow."

[AdamMY]

Arbelour A'bunadh Batch 36
60.1%
Without Water

Color: Copper

Nose: 18 Brown sugar, nut covered maple cinnamon buns, quite closed, and if you get your nose really in there its pure alcohol burn. Lost quite a few points with the alcohol, and the fact that the aromas there where quite faint.

Taste: 24 maple syrup, walnuts, burnt caramel, and loads of oak.

Finish: 23 Lingering oak, with nice spice cake tones.

Overall: 22 Besides the nose this is almost perfectly acceptable to drink without adding water, it may be a big shock at first, but quite nice.

Total without Water: 87



With a good splash of water

Nose: 22 Cherries Jubilee, browned butter, toasted nuts, and a hint of fruit syrup.

Taste: 25 Flavor explosion, fresh fruits cherries, oranges, cantaloupe , Nut covered maple cinnamon buns, a plethora of other spices.

Finish: 24 Strong spice kick, mostly cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger, with a nice touch of alcohol.

Overall: 24 I must have hit the jackpot with that splash of water this came incredibly alive and was a wonderful mix of hearty comfort baked goods, and fresh flavors to prevent it from being too heavy.

Total with Water: 95

[AdamMY]

Signatory Linkwood 16 y.o 1995 Binnys Select

Distilled 30.01.1995
Bottled 05.07.2011
Bottle 73 of 258
Matured in Hogshead.
ABV: 54.6%

Color: Medium Gold

Nose: (22) Rosemary, sage, and other herbs one would use to season a roasting hunk of lamb. Apricots, and raisins, with just a hint of a smoke mixing with a bit of alcohol.

Taste: (25) Herb butter on a heavy duty multigrain bread, lots of dried fruits (apricots, raisins, peaches).

Finish:(25) Early on its a wonderfully made mixture of fruits with just a touch of honey, then a long lingering pancakes and maple syrup finish, with a hint of raisins.

Balance: (25) No need to add water, just the lightest touch of alcohol on the nose. So incredibly drinkable as is, absolutely wonderful.


Overall: (97) My oh my, I would say this is quite stellar, only negative remark is there seems to be little bits floating in the bottle (look clear and shiny like tiny crystals).

[AdamMY]

Tiffany's Wine and Spirits (Kalamazoo Michigan) Eagle Rare 10 yo Selected Cask.


Color: Typical Bourbon.

Nose: (20) Burnt toast, honey, lots of assorted grains, touch of paint thinner (which when the bottle was newer presented itself as Kerosene), and a bit of brown sugar.

Taste: (24) Loads of brown sugar and oak, with a nice hint of cinnamon, honey, and granola bars.

Finish: ( 21) Lingering sweetness and toasted oak, with waves of cinnamon and sugar.

Balance: (22) Nose comes across as overly strong, with that paint thinner / kerosene touch. Taste is where this really shines, and the finish is solid but could be better.

Total: (88/100).

[AdamMY]

Monkey Shoulder Batch 27

Glenfiddich, Balvenie, and Kininivie single malts all aged in bourbon casks make up this malt. So far it has not disappointed.


Nose: Fresh Fruits, apples, bananas, pears, but a slight straw/ hay off note.
Taste: Nice and sweet, with those fruits coming forward, with a touch of vanilla and brown sugar also. Perhaps a touch of wood too.
Finish: Vanilla and brown sugar.
Balance: Quite nicely balanced, although the nose was incredibly light today, might be with the slightly larger glass.

[AdamMY]

1997/ 12 year old Signatory Vintage Aultmore from the Un-Chillfiltered Collection

Cask Number 3345, bottle 6 of 343.


Color: Damn near Gin Clear.

Nose: (23) Somewhat alluring but incredibly hard to place. Lemons, pine sap, over ripe melons, and a hint of honeyed grains.

Taste: (10) Hot peppers, touch of pear, and syrup. Mostly just sweet water.

Finish: (5) Dry wood, and is that a slight touch of peat? lots of burn.

Balance: (15)


Overall: (53) From what I have heard about industry practices this might be a prime example of why you honestly shouldn't pick a cask based only on the aroma. This has an amazing aroma, but just about every other aspect of it is sub par, with the finish actually offensive.

[AdamMY]

1999/ 10 yo Gordon and Macphail Clynelish Cask no. 312936

Color: Polished Brass
Nose: (22) An alluring aroma full of mixed nuts, and dried cranberries, and fresh raspberries and strawberries. Though sadly comes across as slightly perfume like with the noticeable alcohol aroma. But it does have a nice hint of toasted oak.
Taste: (22) Sweet, almost a fruit syrup with strawberries and raspberries. Also a very present flavor of the spiced nuts you can find at Christmas markets. Sadly alcohol presence is quite strong even a few sips into it, while not initially it really builds up to a strong crescendo
Finish: (21) Lingering taste of burnt marshmellows, with a slight touch of almonds.
Balance: (19) Nose and finish are light and faint, but the taste is like running into a wall of bricks.

Overall: (84) ( older system likely close to a 90) I realized I have likely been scoring things slightly high so I am now giving lower scores to the whiskies I have tried to help really distinguish the amazing from the great from the good, or worse. Incredibly alluring and fruity. Not sure what sort of cask this was aged in, definitely not ex bourbon, but not sure it is sherry either. Its major flaw is how strong the alcohol can be at times.

[pkt77242]

1999/ 10 yo Gordon and Macphail Clynelish Cask no. 312936

Color: Polished Brass
Nose: (22) An alluring aroma full of mixed nuts, and dried cranberries, and fresh raspberries and strawberries. Though sadly comes across as slightly perfume like with the noticeable alcohol aroma. But it does have a nice hint of toasted oak.
Taste: (22) Sweet, almost a fruit syrup with strawberries and raspberries. Also a very present flavor of the spiced nuts you can find at Christmas markets. Sadly alcohol presence is quite strong even a few sips into it, while not initially it really builds up to a strong crescendo
Finish: (21) Lingering taste of burnt marshmellows, with a slight touch of almonds.
Balance: (19) Nose and finish are light and faint, but the taste is like running into a wall of bricks.

Overall: (84) ( older system likely close to a 90) I realized I have likely been scoring things slightly high so I am now giving lower scores to the whiskies I have tried to help really distinguish the amazing from the great from the good, or worse. Incredibly alluring and fruity. Not sure what sort of cask this was aged in, definitely not ex bourbon, but not sure it is sherry either. Its major flaw is how strong the alcohol can be at times.

Sounds good Adam

[AdamMY]

Clynelish 14 OB V. 99/10 GM Clynelish Binnys Beverage depot


Color

Fairly Comparable, with the OB slightly darker. ( Makes a since as it has an extra 4 years).

Nose

OB Smokey in the sense that it reminds me of the aroma on clothes the day after being around a lot of smoke. Vegetable medley, with hints of peanut brittle.


IB Hell of a lot more peat in this one. I would almost say half way to Talisker compared to the OB. Still getting light hints of fruit, with touches of cream.

Taste

OB Sweet, and candy like, lots of caramel, slight hint of butterscotch.

IB A lot lighter initially, with a lot more going on, almost oily in nature. This has hints of grape fruit with a heck of a lot of vegetables.

Finish

OB The peat reemerges on the finish, with a dry smokey hint, but mostly pretty sweet throughout the taste and finish.

IB Lots of pepper, and the peat or possibly the cask comes across as a harsher burnt note, think charred asparagus.


This was one of the first times I was able to put together a tasting like this, as its the first time I have had full bottles of whiskys from the same distillery to compare. I found this especially interesting as its an IB vs an OB. It also went to show a distillery may have considerably different taste profiles, especially when at least one of them is a single cask. The only thing that these had in common was the hints of peat, but amazingly the peat presented its self completely different between the two bottles.

[AdamMY]

95-15 SV Imperial by Adam Yusko, on Flickr

Nose:[15] Hints of Pepper, lot of malt aroma's, honestly reminds me of a bowl of dry cheerios.

Taste:[16] Again a good bit of cheerios, with black pepper, decent bit of minerals too. Just a touch of sweetness, and its quite oily.

Finish:[15] Quite woody, an herbal hard candy sweetness to it ( somewhat sweet, but not quite super sweet).

Balance: [17] Honestly felt like it fought itself a little.


Overall:[63/100] Its certainly nice to try, but its far from a stellar whisky.

[AdamMY]

Redoing some of the tastings from the Newly Popped thread as those tastings happened after a decent bit of wine, and my palate might have been compromised slightly.

95/15 SV Glenlivet UCF Cask 144361 first fill Sherry butt.

Nose: ( 23/25) Lots of green apples, leather, with lots of spices, assorted baked nuts, with a hint of coconut.
Taste:( 24/25) Raisins, tawny port, good deal of spices, and perhaps a touch of brandy.
Finish: (23/25) Lingering spices, maple syrup, and quite long lasting.
Balance:(25/25) Nothing wrong here.

Overall: ( 95/100) A damn tasty whisky, could only wish it were cask strength.

[AdamMY]

Glenlivet Nadurra 16 Cask Strength Batch 1111Q


Nose:(21/25) Vanilla, green apples, green bananas and coconut.
Taste:(20/25) Abundant vanilla, green apple and coconut.
Finish:(17/25) Vanilla Extract, with a hint of green apple.
Balance:(23/25) A little rough along certain parts, but pretty well balanced for a cask strength whisky, especially as the alcohol is decently well hidden.

Overall:(81/100) Not bad, far to light for my tastes, though has some very good glenlivet and bourbon flavor.

[pkt77242]

Redoing some of the tastings from the Newly Popped thread as those tastings happened after a decent bit of wine, and my palate might have been compromised slightly.

95/15 SV Glenlivet UCF Cask 144361 first fill Sherry butt.

Nose: ( 23/25) Lots of green apples, leather, with lots of spices, assorted baked nuts, with a hint of coconut.
Taste:( 24/25) Raisins, tawny port, good deal of spices, and perhaps a touch of brandy.
Finish: (23/25) Lingering spices, maple syrup, and quite long lasting.
Balance:(25/25) Nothing wrong here.

Overall: ( 95/100) A damn tasty whisky, could only wish it were cask strength.

Do you always rate it this high?

[pkt77242]

Glenlivet Nadurra 16 Cask Strength Batch 1111Q


Nose:(21/25) Vanilla, green apples, green bananas and coconut.
Taste:(20/25) Abundant vanilla, green apple and coconut.
Finish:(17/25) Vanilla Extract, with a hint of green apple.
Balance:(23/25) A little rough along certain parts, but pretty well balanced for a cask strength whisky, especially as the alcohol is decently well hidden.

Overall:(81/100) Not bad, far to light for my tastes, though has some very good glenlivet and bourbon flavor.

Sounds interesting. I have had 3 batches that ranged from 81-87 points.

[AdamMY]

Redoing some of the tastings from the Newly Popped thread as those tastings happened after a decent bit of wine, and my palate might have been compromised slightly.

95/15 SV Glenlivet UCF Cask 144361 first fill Sherry butt.

Nose: ( 23/25) Lots of green apples, leather, with lots of spices, assorted baked nuts, with a hint of coconut.
Taste:( 24/25) Raisins, tawny port, good deal of spices, and perhaps a touch of brandy.
Finish: (23/25) Lingering spices, maple syrup, and quite long lasting.
Balance:(25/25) Nothing wrong here.

Overall: ( 95/100) A damn tasty whisky, could only wish it were cask strength.

Do you always rate it this high?

I have enjoyed all the glasses I have poured so far, though I didn't expect it to score this high above 90 points. But when I really paid attention to it, I realized it is incredibly enjoyable with next to no flaws.

[AdamMY]

Talisker DE by Adam Yusko, on Flickr


Nose:(22/25) Lots of honey, and campfire smoke. Roasted carrots, squash, cauliflower, and parsnips, with a touch of cinnamon and nutmeg.
Taste:(20/25) Honey Nut Cherrios, and heavily smoked and cured bacon. There is almost a slight hint of a smoked and cured fish, with just a touch of raw carrots. A heck of a lot of smoke.
Finish:(21/25) Lingering spiced nuts, a bit heavy on the cinnamon, with a touch of dry smoke flavor. Rather long finish, and later on it gets sweeter, but honestly reminds me of the taste left after a cherry cough syrup.
Balance:(24/25) Heavy smoke but the heavy smoke carries on through the entire dram.

Overall:(87/100) Its a solid whisky, though for my tastes it is far to much smoke, though incredibly complex. I guess my taste buds favor the sweeter flavors in whisky, or the very rich flavors found in sherried whiskies.

[pkt77242]

Talisker DE by Adam Yusko, on Flickr


Nose:(22/25) Lots of honey, and campfire smoke. Roasted carrots, squash, cauliflower, and parsnips, with a touch of cinnamon and nutmeg.
Taste:(20/25) Honey Nut Cherrios, and heavily smoked and cured bacon. There is almost a slight hint of a smoked and cured fish, with just a touch of raw carrots. A heck of a lot of smoke.
Finish:(21/25) Lingering spiced nuts, a bit heavy on the cinnamon, with a touch of dry smoke flavor. Rather long finish, and later on it gets sweeter, but honestly reminds me of the taste left after a cherry cough syrup.
Balance:(24/25) Heavy smoke but the heavy smoke carries on through the entire dram.

Overall:(87/100) Its a solid whisky, though for my tastes it is far to much smoke, though incredibly complex. I guess my taste buds favor the sweeter flavors in whisky, or the very rich flavors found in sherried whiskies.

I find that my bottle (much older than yours) is more on salt, some pepper, a little wood smoke and a big dose of sherry.

[AdamMY]

I need to breath new life into this thread. Sorry about the photos I deleted them.

2003-9yo Gordon and MacPhail Glen Elgin Exclusive Glen Elgin Refill sherry cask 804576 46% Bottled for BC Merchants.


Nose: Nice mix of sherry and new make flavors. From the younger spirit there are green apples, and pineapple, from the surprisingly noticeable sherry profile, some nice spices, and figs, and raspberry jam. Also a very nice brown sugar note and vanilla note. ( 22/25)

Taste: Subdued compared to the nose, a lot of the brown sugar, vanilla, and spice notes of the sherry. not that many fresh flavors but if you can imagine a slightly thinned out and sweeter MacAllan 12 year old (sherry casks), you have a good idea of what this is like. (23/25)

Finish: Think the spices, the darker fruits, and a nice brown sugar and vanilla sweetness. ( 22/25)

Balance: Balance is impeccable, which may be why they choose to water it down to 46% (24/25)


Overall: (91/100) This whisky shows that sometimes aged isn't everything. While I would have loved it to be cask strength, this has a wonderful finish reminiscent of some sherry bombs out there just a bit sweeter. If this is a refill, what ever whisky was in before this must not have been in there long, as there is a ton of sherry character in this Scotch.

[Ganga]

One of these days, we're gonna screw your scale. Something that gives you a "Spinal Tap" moment!