May 2020 – grey whisky

Whisky 2020 – 57-61 – BenRiach Tasting

57 – BenRiach 2006 Sauternes Cask 12yr cask 1853 55.3%

Nose or pears, honey and saffron, egg tarts, pineapple, white flowers

Palate peach, pears, honey

Finish is super long with spice, vanilla egg tarts and flowers

****^

58 – BenRiach 2008 South African wine cask 10yr cask 7856 59% (adoro winery)

Nose for me is heavy cooked chocolate, black berry, graphite, cherry ripe and tropical fruit?!!

Palate super spicy, grass and a touch or cream, blueberry napoleons

Finish woody, coffee and grape seed

***^

59 – BenRiach 2005 PX cask 13yr cask 6924 56.2%

Nose is deep milky caramel coffee, Turkish delight, dates, sultanas, honey

Palate honey joy biscuits, dates, tannin, rubber and sulphur but not balanced.

Finish a bit too tannic, sulphur but some nice plums and liquorice.

***^

60 – BenRiach 21yr “Temporis”

Nose wood chips, plastic, dried seaweed

Palate honey and seaweed, band-aids

Finish really iodine and juicy.

***

61 – BenRiach 1995 peated oloroso cask 23yr cask 7385 51.7%

Nose of BBQ ham, orange and citrus, chlorine, pine needles.

Palate duck a’la orange and smoked ham, green wood smoke and shoe polish

Finish caramel and chalky

***

Whisky 2020 – 52-56 – Berry Brothers & Rudd tasting

52 – Berry Bros & Rudd Benrinnes 1997/2017 19yo Bourbon Cask #856, 46%

Nose is honey, honey, honey loads of honey. Lemsip and apricots.

Palate is biscuity, waxy and some orchard, green pineapple, salty, orange blossom

Finish cream, slate and dried apple slices

***

53 – Berry Bros & Rudd Retro Label for Shinanoya Aultmore 1991/2015 23yo Bourbon Hogshead #6090, 49.9%

Nose is honey, waxy, orange zest, vanilla cake, chocolate milk, chocolate biscuits fresh out of the oven

Palate rye bread with salted butter, honey, grass and white flowers

Finish spicy and salty

***

54 – Berry Bros & Rudd Retro Label for Shinanoya Teaninich 1983/2018 34yo #6729 Refill Bourbon Hogshead, 46.2%

Wow! This nose. Shoe polish, maybe?? Carob, pineapple lumps, camphor

Palate really funky, minerality, lots of spice and juicy fruit. Tastes like “old whisky” and elegant.

Finish leather, tobacco, orchards.

****^

55 – Berry Bros & Rudd North British Single Grain 1996/2014 18yo Oloroso Sherry Butt #224766, 56.8%

Nose is crumpets, maple syrup, butter, Brazil nuts

Palate dates, red dates, wood notes lead chocolate liquorice and super spicy,

Finish dates and metallic

****

56 – Berry Bros & Rudd Ben Nevis 1997/2018 20yo Sherry Cask #85, 54.6%

Nose is apricots and oranges, coconut, lime, bitters, honey cake

Palate butter cake, loads of fruit, leads to dates, golden syrup

Finish metallic honey, toast with butter and liquorice

****^

Whisky 2020 – 50-51

50 – Glenfarclas 2005 sherry cask for The Whisky Club Australia

Nose of fudge, lemon barley cordial, roses and plastic.

Palate of chocolate milk, dried rose petals, cream, honey and lemon zest

Finish old leather couches and barley sugar lollies.

***

51 – Hazelgrove 2000 by Maltman 16yrs PX cask 11078 47.1%

Nose chocolate mousse, fruit cake, Campbeltown funk, bruised apples, prunes and coal.

Palate spiced apples, rich mushroom and beef broth, dark bitter chocolate, dried pineapple, smoked ham and soy sauce

Finish of bruised apples, salt, tar, ham soup and bitter drinking chocolate.

****^

Whisky 2020 – 45-49 (More iso drinks)

45 – Aultmore 11yr exceptional cask series

Nose is sugared almonds, cloves, gulab jamun and dried mango

Palate is light and airy with sugar sweetness, apple skin, rose petals, red berries and some milk chocolate

Finish is relatively complex and shows flintiness, candy, cream and bruised apples

***

46 – Balblair 2000 18yr Sherry Cask 46%

Nose of sultanas, caramel fudge, golden syrup, cloves in orange. Dried dark fruit, especially prunes and dates.

Palate pecan pie, vanilla bean cream and tobacco. Slight sulphur note.

Finish is warming think brandy cream sauce drenched Xmas pud and a handful of hay.

***^

47 – Inchgower 9yr by Cadenhead 56.5% (3y ex-bourbon 6y sherry)

Nose of warm date scones, honey, milk chocolate

Palate is of medium weight and starts with light maraschino cherry then honey, banana cake, salt, woody and a good lick of date syrup

Finish tea tannins, brown bread, touch of sulphur but a really lovely cranberry jelly note singing.

****

48 – Cardrona Oloroso Dramfest 2020 cask #735

Nose is really woody to begin, like fresh cut pine and balsa wood. Vanilla essence and dates.

Palate is hot and unbalanced. Eventually some cream, egg whites and cocoa notes. Maybe some dried fruit like fat sultanas.

Finish that pine note returns.

49 – Ledaig 2007 12yrs by Rest and Be Thankful sherry cask #700612 58.5%

Nose of honey comb, home churned butter, band-aids, river stones and tar.

Palate is autumn leaves, honey, salt, coal and plastic.

Finish more river stones and tar

***