October 2019 – grey whisky

Whisky 2019 – 102-107, Blackadder and Firkin Tasting

102 – Blackadder Raw Cask Aultmore 2006 11yo, 57.6% Cask #307142

Nose starts tropical with strong dried pineapple and mango skin, sweet honey, raw pastry, salted lemons

Palate of milky sweet tea. It’s malty with tropical and stone fruit. A hint of flinty minerality.

Finish is a simple salty butter.

****

103 – Firkin Whisky Co Firkin 49 Tullibardine 2011 8yo Oloroso Amontillado Casks, 48.9%

The nose was nutty, clear stone fruit, lemon sip, milk chocolate.

Palate had a lovely iced coffee note. Followed by heather, flinty, Brazil nuts and a touch a salty citrus.

Finish of cold salted butter, kopiko (coffee) lollies.

***

104 – Firkin Whisky Co Firkin Ten Royal Brackla 2008 10yo Madeira Cask, 48.9%

Nose: Rose heads, peach ice tea, my mum’s Madeira cake (yes I’m serious)

Palate: great mouthfeel, light tropical, nutty,

Finish: long finish, liquorice, flourless orange cake

****

105 – Blackadder Raw Cask The Old Man Of Hoy 2005 12yo 2018 Batch 1 Single Orcadian Malt, 60.7%

Nose was rubbery and chocolate which makes me think HP. Has very good seaweed and maritime elements.

On the palate it is heavy, honey and charcoal dominant. Pleasant sweet rubbery notes.

The finish becomes flinty and minerally and heavy with wet stones.

****

106 – Firkin Whisky Co Firkin Islay Caol Ila 2012 7yo Marsala Cask, 48.9%

Nose super maritime, gluey, dark chocolate, sweet lemons, corn chips

Palate has a gorgeous mouth feel, really flinty, stones and campfire

Finish of band-aids, dusty, toasted almonds and campfire

****

107 – Blackadder Raw Cask Smoking Islay Blended Malt 2019, 60.2%

Nose of glue and honey, chlorine,

Palate smokey, autumn leaves, pool water

Finish glue, salt and sea water, burnt leaves

Whisky 2019 – 100-101

100 – Balmenach 2001 by MASAM cask 06/06081

Nose is like fino sherry. The salt, the spray, the nuttiness. Some oyster shell and leather. With time the caramel, notes ring.

Palate is creamy, burnt wood giving way to stone fruit and camp fire rocks with a driving minerality.

Finish is clear and fun boiled sweets, fruit tingles and sherry saltiness

*****

101 – Bunnahabhain 40 years by MASAM cask 7229

Nose full of fruit and apricots, cream and light caramel, pencil shavings. Would not pick it as a Bunna.

Pencil shavings, candle wax, intense jasmine tea, stewed fruit, and soy sauce on the palate.

Finish of waxed fruit, apples and stewed apricots with cream

****

Whisky 2019 – 97-99

97 – Bruichladdich 2004 13yo by Silent Third Kyoto Cask 1543

Heavy maple and crispy bacon smoke on the nose, with heather and rich nori butter

Palate of wood smoke with a great heavy coating mouthfeel. The caramel and peat very fell integrated into orange zest scented Xmas pud.

The orange zest continues on the finish and turns dusty into date and date syrup.

****

98 – Tweeddale “Grain if Truth” 46%

Nose: Honey leads to jersey caramel and a slight earthy new make smell.

Palate: nicely sweet and then some nice chocolate milk notes but that’s about it. It’s simple.

Finish: Stays chocolate milk and hot and a little cream. Pretty flat on the finish though.

99 – Littlemill 1988 bottled in 2015 by Pearls of Scotland Cask #135

Nose is intensely over sherried wood, leather, maple syrup and hairspray.

Initially sweet and spicy, it is rancio in the extreme. Some great plump raisins and cooked pastry but those old wood notes are a frontal assault. There is really clear fresh and dried figs.

Finish is salty and woody, unsurprisingly.

Love this dram for it’s uniqueness… but objectively it is only good as those woody rancio notes are ridiculous.

***

Whisky 2019 – 91-96 – The Single Cask Tasting

91 – TSC Royal Brackla 2006 11yo Cask #310864

The nose was chocolate dipped pineapple with a side of sweet milky tea. Some nice woody notes.

Sweet and oily palate. Lemon tart, resin and chestnuts with spice. With water sweet jasmine tea

Simple sweet and salty finish.

***

92 – TSC Braeval 1994 22yo Cask #165641

Nice nose of snickers bars, stewed stone fruit and toasted coconut.

Simple and straightforward bourbon cask palate that is full of tropical fruit. It has nice creamy and woody notes.

Finish is really delicious salted coconut milk with fresh mango.

***

93 – TSC Deanston 1997 20yo Cask #1982

Curious nose with great earthiness like terrariums. Some chocolate and surprisingly gun powder. End notes of jasmine flowers.

Older Deanston are known to express waxiness on the palate and this certainly did. It was sweet and tropical like tinned pineapple and salty. The the earthy and mineral notes came.

The finish was salty sweetness with leather.

****

94 – TSC Tobermory 1994 23yo Cask #SA1294

Nose: roasted chestnuts, earthy, apricots and salt, vino cotto

Palate: hot and salty, peaches, really interesting and complex.

Finish: bitter and oily but in a good way.

Super confusing dram.

***

95 – TSC Ledaig 2008 10yo Cask #700076

Nose is gluey and oily, salty and maritime. Crisp green apple.

Palate is like licking a painters pallet splashed with fruit cordial.

Oily and maritime, standing in the sea spray.

****

96 – TSC Bruichladdich 2004 14yo Cask #12

Generous nose with apricots, crispy bacon, leather and carob. Reminiscent of old butter slathered on camp fire toast.

According to everyone at the tasting this is my type of palate – super sherried, super rancio with controlled sulfur. Great black fruit and proper maraschino sweetness. Loads of Christmas pudding!

A gentle finish which is dusty and has the umami of dried shiitake

****