Whisky 2016 – 7-8

Annoyingly my post on these two got deleted – I actually wrote something detailed for a change. 

Anyway the upshot was these drams from “Wheaty Whisky” are their independent bottlings of Southern Coast Distilleries. This is seriously rare stuff from South Australia. As far as I am aware these drams are only available at The Wheatsheaf in Adelaide. 

You can read the sad tale of Southern Coast here. 

7 – Wheaty Whisky Cask #23 Port Cask bottle 5/60 (distilled by Southern Coast)
Huge maple syrup, really woody and leathery, musk. Woody, cream, butter, really long, slightly toasty and creamy – a really late brandy butter, coffee and rock melon note is surprising.

8 – Wheaty Whisky Cask Strength PX (distilled by Southern Coast)
Pine resin, maple syrup, French toast with blueberries, coffee, banana. Cream, wood, slight pipe tobacco note, slight milk chocolate, sarsaparilla and cola – quite light on the palate given the huge resiny nose.

Whisky 2016 – 5-6

5 – High West Rendezvous Rye Batch 14F17
Crushed ants, milk chocolate, raspberry lollies, vanilla, marshmallows. Raspberry lollies, musk sticks, my Nan’s whipped cream (full of vanilla essence and airy). Water is no help here, slight watermelon note comes into play.

6 – Whistlepig Straight Rye 10 Years
Bananas lollies, brown sugar, raspberry, vanilla pudding, watermelon (this is stuck in my head). Woody palate, deep dark sugar, weak maple syrup, raspberry and raspberry leaves.

And Whisky 2016 is go

And we are away. Bit of a break over January but we will be breaking 150 for the year again.

1 – The Old Malt Cask Benrinnes 15
Sultana Danish, pear juice, toffee, butterscotch, maple syrup on pancakes with sour cream. Dried mango, pepper, fruit cake, pound cake.

  
2 – The Old Malt Cask Craigellachie 14
Sultanas, brown sugar & butter, wood polish, green bananas. Huge palate, Xmas pudding, custard, salt, slight bitter, slightly woody, slightly sulphury, brown butter and dried stone fruit.

3 – The Coopers Choice Ben Nevis 1996
Eggy cake batter, my Nan’s apricot jam, slight milk chocolate. Apricots, floral, cake mix, vanilla sugar, chocolate milk shake, Sacher torte.

  

4 – G&M Connoisseur’s Choice Caol Ila 2001
Band-aids, peanuts, autumn leaves, mulch, cured sausage cooked on a fire. Fire place, liquid smoke, jersey creams and a walk down the avenue in late autumn.

Favourites of 2015

I’ll probably have a few more drams this year but these have been my favourites for 2015.

49 – SMWS 124.4 (Miyagikyo) Full of Secret Pleasures
Muscat, port, Sherry fino, rubber, dry warmth, oil soaked rags, spices cloves and anise, maple. German spice biscuits, a rubber fire, cocoa, liquorice, toasted bran, so much going on. Jeezus!

70 – Heartwood Beagle 3
Pine resin, the sweet end of turps, marijuana, chocolate, crushed ants, tomato vine. Tobacco, leather, pepper, beef jerky, super powerful vanilla – it’s really chewy and salty. With time pina colada on the nose and beautiful rich thick caramel. Wow! Really impressed. One of the best for 2015.

121 – Ichiro’s Malt 2015 Tokyo International Bar Show Cask 2360
Wow just wow – favourite for the year!! Banana, ice cream, malty bread with butter, tomato paste, fruit tingles, slight vino cotto, CHICOS. Yeast, brown bread, vanilla, banana bread, prunes, plums, grapes.

143 – Whisky Base Ben Nevis
So much honey, aspirin, maple syrup, butter on crumpets. Melted salted butter, cloves and vanilla cream – it’s such a beautifully structured whisky nothing is offensive or is aggressive, pipe tobacco, tiny bit of pineapple and mango.

164 – Cadenhead Glenrothes-Glenlivet 24
Sulphur, gas, maple syrup, wood, chicos, brown tea and hay. Salt, wood, rubber, maple, dried strawberries or maybe strawberry jam, brown sugar, rum, brandy butter, caramel, chocolate and LPG. So damn complex.

Whisky 2015 – 169-170

169 – Suntory Royal (Maybe an 80s bottling)
Toffee, malt, slight vanilla, pineapple cake, chestnuts, stewed apricots and tobacco. Caramel, earl grey tea, mango and tropical fruits.

170 – Palace Bar 14 Year
Hay, green vines, passionfruit, coffee, green bananas, gasoline. Bananas, mangos, slight bitter notes, grilled nectarines, white peach, sour cream and crepes.

Whisky 2015 – 165-166

165 – SMWS 70.10 Teenage Shenanigans Balblair
Peach Melba, almonds, slightly gassy, marzipan. Such a great solid mouth feel. Green bananas, cloves and cinnamon, banana bread, slight tobacco and cream.

166 – Balblair 2000 Single Cask 1343 14 years distilled
Beef stock, maple syrup, tobacco, dark chocolate, chicos, brown butter, rose petals. Sarsaparilla, coke, vanilla, cream, pepper, cloves, wood, earl grey tea, slight burnt rubber finish.

  

Whisky 2015 – 163-164

Sorry all have been a bit ill.

163 – Springbank 2001 Rundlets & Kilderkins
Honey, plastic, caramels, grapes, vanilla cream, watermelon. Honey, cream, the bitterness of rocket, slightly ashy and medicinal, cherries.

164 – Cadenhead Glenrothes-Glenlivet 24
Sulphur, gas, maple syrup, wood, chicos, brown tea and hay. Salt, wood, rubber, maple, dried strawberries or maybe strawberry jam, brown sugar, rum, brandy butter, caramel, chocolate and LPG. So damn complex.

  

Whisky 2015 -157-162

   

 157 – Signatory Imperial 1995
White pepper, oranges, mulled wine, cloves, mineraly, heavy cream. Cream, cream, cream, dried fruits, xmas cake in summer, the final bite of a flap jack.

158 – Kilchoman Single Cask Sherry
Coke, cherry flavored medicine, slight bacon fat, a real heavy caramel on the nose. BBQ with Asian salad, orange zest. Wow!

159 – Douglas Laing’s Rock Oyster
Honey, spices, cucumber, vanilla custard. Cucumber, slight peat, slight pepper, honey.

160 – Springbank 17 Sherry Cask
Chocolate drops, raisins, oranges, prunes. Dried fruits, coffee and peat.

161 – Signatory Glenrothes 1997
Sulfur and rubbery, apple juice, plums and prunes. Green figs, sulfur and pepper, dates, dried figs.

162 – Signatory Clynelish 1997
Lemonade, marzipan, frozen Coke, mangos and passionfruit. Cream, passionfruit, coffee.