THE BALVENIE Single Barrel 15 years old 47,8%

Nose:
Refined and complex malt of a biscuit-like persuasion. Vanilla and oak. An intriguing nose.




Palate:
A bit oak-lazy at first with vanilla to the fore. Eventually the multi-layered malt comes into its own. Somehow manages to be both relaxed and uptight at the same time.




Finish:
Attacks you at the back of the throat. Differing strands of marvellous
malt weaved into the oak.


Comment:
This must be the ideal whisky for those who shy away from sherry. Somewhat different to the earlier 50,4% version (less sweet and fruity) but just as enchanting. Perhaps a little less individual in character. InCaskDate: 21.04.88. Bottling date: 23.04.03

Rating: 8/10

TWO BOBS Single Barrel 13 years old 63,6%

Nose:
Freshly sawn off wooden planks interlaced with walnuts and raisins.




Palate:
Marmalade thick. Toasty oak on top accompanied by tobacco and more raisins.




Finish:
Overripe cherries splashes down on a bed of dry and complex oak. Marvellous!


Comment:
From the Barton distillery in Bardstown.Distilled in June 1994, bottled in August 2007 by Ian Macleod. This easily outshines the distillery´s own premium brand, Ridgemont Reserve. Only 228 bottles made. May we ask for a rerun, please?

Rating: 9/10

HIGH COMMISSIONER 40%

Nose:
Sharp grainy fruitiness mixed with cloves. Slightly spirity. After warming glass for a minute or so, a malty pocket of resistance appears.



Palate:
Initially caramel blunts out all opposition. Gradually a rather nice if somewhat metallic fruitiness takes command. The malt refuses to make an encore.




Finish:
Suprisingly long and expansive. Hard flinty grain merges with the oak.


Comment:
Hardly likely to sweep up the premium awards, this is all the same a decent everyday whisky. Upping the malt level just a little bit wouldn´t hurt, though.

Rating: 6,5/10

BUSHMILLS 1608 Anniversary edition 46%

Nose:
Sherry and freshly baked bread, eventually merging into something rosy. Seem to recall it as more vivid when brand new.




Palate:
Sweet and sour fruitiness. Cherries and raspberries. Hefty spices rumble in the background. As smooth as the label promises but certainly not bland. Somewhat oily (or is it the caramel?).




Finish:
Dry candy-laced oak. Quite tasty.


Comment:
A special bottling made for the supposed 400th anniversary. Some quality sherry casks put to good use here.

Rating: 8/10

JOHNNIE WALKER Gold Label The Centenary Blend 18 years old 40%

Nose:
Warm and invigorating honey sweetness. Sophisticated fruit.




Palate:
Delicious creamy texture, indicating a perfect marriage between malt and grain. Less sweet than the nose suggests. Apples and blackberries.





Finish:
A surprising appearance of peat battling it out with the complex grains.


Comment:
One of those bottles where you just know that when it´s empty you have to replace it pronto! The best JW I´ve had in recent times.

Rating: 9/10

CONNEMARA cask strength 58,6%

Nose:
Aggressive. Peat. Faint charcoal. Lots of sugar cane. Possibly cardamom. After warming something chemical or glue-like emerges.



Palate:
Refined sugar theme continues and almost in full domination. Initially something charcoal-ish. Peat certainly present but somewhat overshadowed by that massive sweetness.




Finish:
Massive wall of peat. Dry.

Comment:
Not sure what to think of this one. Certainly an enjoyable whiskey but there is room for improvement. The peat could do with acting a bit more "extrovert".

Rating: 7,5/10

GREEN SPOT 40%

Nose:
Very earthy. Herbs zigzagging amidst the glorious pot still character. Vanilla.




Palate:
Full bodied. Unknown herbs picked from a hidden moor. Honey mixed with just a smudge of sherry. Pot still at its most vibrant.




Finish:
Enormously long and complex. Life-affirming.



Comment:

At the end of the 90´s this was so scarce, I had to order it from a small Internet shop in Ireland. Since then it has become much more visible and even managed to pop up once at my local store. A transition which must mean increased production. Despite this, it has managed to retain all of its great qualities. No mean feat.


Rating: 9/10

OLD GRAND-DAD 114 proof

Nose:

Extremely dry and spicy. Apples in the background. After warming the glass in hand, toffee sweetness and modest charcoal appears. Quite complex.

Palate:

Elegant candy-like sweetness with an undercurrent of heavily dry pepper which rocks the balance somewhat.

Finish:

Mindnumbingly dry. A little of that aforementioned sweetness can be detected at the back of the throat.

Comment:

This should be from Jim Beam stock, albeit an earlier version than the existing one (different neck label). Many redeeming features on display but let down by an über-obtrusive dryness.

Rating: 7,5/10

YELLOWSTONE Mellow mash, 7 years old 91 proof

Nose:

Creamy. Cherry de luxe. Exotic spices. A unique nosing experience.

Palate:

More or less a continuation of the nose. Luxurious. Curiously rum-like.

Finish:
Aggressively spicy with a subdued fruitiness in the background.

Comment:

A late 70´s (?) bottling from the now silent Yellowstone distillery in Louisville. I have no idea what part the mellow mash (as opposed to sour mash) plays but this tastes like no other bourbon I have tried. Not that dissimilar to a Guyana pot still Rum. A minor complaint would be that it lacks some of that whiskey robustness.

Rating: 8/10

OLD GRAND-DAD 86 proof ( DSP KY. 14 )

Nose:

Dry woodsmoke. A faint echo of tobacco.

Palate:

Starts off dry then develops a magnificently refined sweetness. Exquisitely textured. Short burts of pepper in the background.

Finish:

Spicy oak mixed with natural sweet toffee.

Comment:

Not the current Jim Beam product. This is from the defunct Old Grand-Dad distillery in Frankfort. A sad loss, heavily accentuated by the fact that this is not even a premium whiskey.

Rating: 8,5/10