192 – The Balvenie Single Barrel 12 years Cask 2133 47.8%
Nose – crushed ants, raspberries, cream, apricots,
Palate – spicy, cream, raw dough, dates, raisins, pastry, blackberry leaf
Finish – cream, cream, cream, salted butter
Tag: balvenie
Whisky 2018 – 160-163, The Malt, Taipei
160 – Burnside 1993 World Bar Tour The Mash Tun 22 Years Refill Hogshead cask 1798
Nose – chocolate cake with whipped cream and apricots, candied orange zest
Palate – chocolate, marzipan, almond shells, green apricots, cherry danish
Finish – chocolate mousse, apricot jam
161 – Glenturret 1977 The Whisky Agency Refill Hogshead 46.3%
Nose – Wood glue, bruised apple, pastry out the oven
Palate – intense short lived sweetness, fruit cordial, old whisky, cream and tobacco, orange zest
Finish – almond slivers and cream, orange pith
162 – SMWS 123.8 (Glengoyne) “In the Spanish mountains” 2001, 12 Years Port refill 59.2%
Nose – Apple pie, spice rack, prune juice, honey, umeshu
Palate – cake mix, spice biscuits, toffeed figs, prunes, woody cream, my grandfather’s dried apricots,
Finish – milk chocolate, panforte,
163 – TTL (Omar) Sherry Cask #754 2009-2013
Nose – roasted hazelnuts, cream, apricots, orange zest, a galvanized fence
Palate – super creamy, loads of stone fruit, dark chocolate, tea tannins, dried fruit
Finish – loads of cream, strawberries and cherries, mango, cloves, liquorice
Whisky 2018 – 85-87
85 – Burnside (Balvenie) Silent Third Kyoto by Whisky Find Cask 5749 Sherry Hogshead
Nose – rock melon, wax, cake mix, hot chocolate, dried banana
Palate – coconut, dried apricots, chocolate, salty cream
Finish – coconut cream, apricots, bounty bars, burnt butter
86 – Glenrothes 20 Years old by Drunken Master Bar 1997 Cask 7162
Nose – brown sugar, soy sauce, maple syrup, cold salted butter
Palate – cocoa, leather, vanilla, musk, woody, tomato paste, chicos, dark chocolate
Finish – woody, salty, butter, ice coffee
87 – Okayama Takashimaya Buyers Select “Sherry cask debut” 58%
Nose – meringue, caramel, burnt marshmallow, honeycomb, dark toffee, liquorice
Palate – honey ice cream, chocolate, Xmas spices,
Finish – melon, chocolate, cream
Whisky 2018 – 44-48
Some incredible drams at the Elysian with Hideo Yamaoka and Toru Suzuki. These were all top level drams but the “Water of Life” Speyside is in my top all time 5, just mind blowing.
44 – Burnside Speyside Blend by The Whisky Find for The Mash Tun Tokyo and Little Happiness Hiroshima 1990, 27 Years Cask 4393
Nose – dusty, apricots, chocolate, liquorice
Palate – wax, apricots, maple syrup, pencil shaving, chocolate, cough drops, caramel, gun powder
Finish – salty, woody, red wine tannins
45 – Chichibu Galaxy Express 999, 2010 bottled 2017 selected by Hideo Yamaoka
Nose – hazelnuts, marzipan, chocolate, menthol, juicy stone fruit, formic acid,
Palate – scones with apricots and cream, almond kernels, bright and spicy,
Finish – perfume, cream
46 – Akashi in Cognac and Chardonnay Cask #61191 Distilled 2011 6 Years selected by Hideo Yamaoka
Nose – honey, maple syrup, butter, yeast, toast with butter
Palate – honey, butter, chili peppers, maple syrup, old tinned pineapple, soy sauce
Finish – cream, honey, salt
47 – Douglas Laing’s Old Particular Longmorn for Mashtun, Elysian, Drunken Master, Etc 1994, 22 Years
Nose – apricots, galvanized fence, Cottee’s caramel
Palate – caramel, salt, nori, stone fruit, minerals, short bread
Finish – caramel, eggy pudding
48 – Speyside (Glenfarclas) Malt 1973, 43 Years “Water of Life” Cask #8 selected by Carsten Ehrlich and Hideo Yamaoka *
Nose – hamburgers, mayonnaise, cream, candle wax, tomatoes, caramel, chocolate nibs
Palate – passiona, cream, juicy, cream, cream, cream, tropical fruits, wax, hazelnuts, toast with butter and brown sugar
Finish – cream, hairspray (in a good way), tropical fruits, cream, cream
Whisky 2017 – 130-135 – Balvenie Tasting
Huge tasting on at the Elysian. Alex Moores from Dark Valley brought back some very good hand drawn single cask bottles from Balvenie. Alex and I shared a few other drams afterwards.
130 – Balvenie 13yo ex-bourbon barrel matured, cask #2022, 61.7%
Ice cream on warm pine apple pudding, red apple skin, choc-banana muffins. Super huge raspberry, choc-banana muffins, loads of vanilla cream, gooseberry, leather, dried apple.
131 – Balvenie 14yo ex-bourbon barrel matured, cask #13330, 53.2%
Fruit tingles, lemon and coconut cake, vanilla cream, strawberry jam. Great mouth feel, short bread, toasted coconut, strawberries, loads of cream, wood shavings, green herbs.
132 – Balvenie 14yo ex-sherry butt matured, cask #2378, 62.7%
Roasted corn cobs, treacle, crushed cloves, roasted almonds, peanut brittle, marshmallow, Earl grey tea cream. Woody, beef jus, rubber, peanut brittle, caramel taken too far, hazelnuts, Musk sticks, mushroom pate, tea tannins.
133 – The Whisky Find and The Mash Tun Craigellachie 1990 Cask 5401
Candle wax, soft gooey French cheese, dried apple, rock melon skin, caramel, fruit sherbet bombs, lemon butter. Bees wax, coconut, rock melon, coffee, strawberries, flowers, nasturtiums, caramels, salt.
134 – The Whisky Agency 2003 13 Years JD for Bistro Inn, The Elysian Whisky Bar and Drunken Master Bar
Butter soaked toast, crushed ants, tomatoes, rhubarb and whipped cream. Butter, cultured butter, cream, formic acid, cinnamon toast, dusty, raw almonds.
135 – The Arran 21st Anniversary Edition – Ex-Olorosso Cask
Cream, metallic apricots, toffee, chocolate, pouch tobacco, peanut brittle, hazelnut paste. Tobacco, apricots, green grass, cream, tinned pineapple, hazelnut butter.
Whisky 2016 – 175-179
175 – Old Masters Burnside (Balvenie) 2007 Bourbon Cask 86
New make, honey, salt, slight butter and strawberry jam on white bread, caramel slice, coconut, Seville oranges. Hot caramel and apricot jam, cream, tobacco.
176 – Signatory Edradour for La Maison Du Whisky 2005 Oloroso Sherry Butt Cask 19
Musk, rubber, wood, sugar, maple syrup, glue. Dusty and beef bones, sugar, slight flinty and ashy note.
177 – Chapter 7 Miltonduff 2008 6 Years
Buttery, maple, honey. Charcoal, wood, honey, honey, honey, lpg, salt, butter, cherries, leather
178 – Cooper’s Choice Glen Keith 1993 Madeira Cask finish, Cask 9153
Black bananas, pancakes, peaches, rock melon, chocolate, yeast. Lollies and stone fruit, kiwi fruit, butter and cream, brown bread, beer,
179 – The First Editions Glenburgie 1998
Wax, stone fruit, apples, musk, orange zest. Green tea, peaches, tropical fruits, butter, apricot jam.
Whisky 2015 – 96-99
96 – SMWS 112.9 Cooper’s apron; perfumed mink (Loch Lomond)
Wood shavings, whipped cream, digestive biscuits, chocolate coated almonds. Candy sweetness, very thick and syrupy, vanilla icecream, oat biscuits.
97 – The Balvenie 15 Year Single Barrel Cask:10130
Rubber, Sherry, vanilla, dried fruits. Beautiful caramel hit followed by dried peaches and apricots, cardamom, cloves, vanilla bean and warm cola.
98 – Ben Nevis 10 Year Old, 2002 bottling
Sulphur, rose petals, rubber, vine leaves, caramel. Peppery, salty, sugary sweetness, sulphur and leather.
99 – Dramboree Ledaig for Whisky Exchange
Fresh shucked oysters, seaweed, like the rind on Camembert, some honey. Camembert and oysters, lick of paint. A very different dram for me – I was tasting Camembert for the next 2 hours.
Whisky 2015 – 12-18
12 – Kavalan Solist Vinho
Cola, apricot and formic acid. Loads of vanilla. Tasty.
13 – Springbank Society Members 8 year old
Earthy chocolate, sugar cane, maple wood and dried apricots. Intense fruit sweetness on the palate to begin with candy cane, tobacco, herbaceous, lemon pepper, cream.
14 – Hakushu Bourbon Barrel
Banana bread, cloves and all spice, citrus, vanilla ice cream and formic acid. Fairy floss, banana flavouring and banana fucking milkshake, toasted coconut, even slightly cheesy notes and meringue.
15 – The Single Malt Scotch Whisky Tobermory 19 years – Whisky Exchange
Coconut rough, rubber and vanilla essence. Dried figs and dates, slight rubber and vanilla.
16 – Glendronach 1994 PX barrel 326
Melted butter, cake mix and brown sugar. Butter, vanilla, woody, rock candy. Huge and delicious.
17 – Balvenie Portwood 21
malted vanilla milkshake, dusty, banana. Vanilla and quite underpowered for me. Disappointing.
18 – Limeburners Tiger Snake
Really big hit of cloves, lime zest and ever so slightly dusty. Great palate of cola, cloves, vanilla and coffee.
Whisky 2014 – 130-132
130 – Cadenhead Small Batch Auchroisk 24 Years
Brown sugar and butter, with wattle seed and cola. Buttery palate with a hint of rubber.
131 – Yamazaki 1998 Rare Sherry Cask
Banoffee pie, cola, peanut butter and Pedro Ximenez. This thing is delicious, expensive, but delicious.
132 – Balvenie Tun 1509 Batch 1
Spicy banana bread, yeasty, nutmeg and a slight green medicinal tone. I found tropical fruit, almost like the tropical cordial I remember as a kid and some orange peel on the palate.
grey whisky 