Knappogue Castle 16 Year Old

My thanks to @mscottydunc for the reviewed sample. This single malt was distilled at Bushmills Distillery and is aged in both sherry casks and bourbon barrels

Nose: rich high-quality re-used wood flavours with lots of natural-smelling caramel and vanilla; high quality malt, with a very good sweet and dry balance. There is just a hint of the sherry influence. Great nose. Score: 23.5/25

Taste: crisp, sharp-edged, and slightly sour in the mouth; the caramel is stronger in the mouth than in the nose. I wish this tasted just as the nose smells. Score: 21/25

Finish: long; this moves pretty sharply to the bitter and then stays there. Score: 19/25

Balance: excellent balance in the nose, only adequate balance on the delivery, too bitter on the finish. Score: 20/25

Water added: 1) added a pleasant high pitched sweetness in the nose, and 2)bundled the flavours in the mouth, leaving the finish a little more sour, but much less bitter

Total Sequential Score: 83.5 points

Strength: good strong flavours throughout. Score: 23/25

Quality: it all works in the nose, but bitterness, presumably from the wood, mars the palate, and especially the finish. Score: 21/23

Variety: good wide variety in the nose; from delivery to finish this one just gets narrower and narrower into a bitter monotone. Score: 21/25

Harmony: great harmony in the nose, adequate harmony on delivery, total loss of harmony into the bitter finish. Score: 19/25

Total Non-Sequential Score: 84 points

Comment: This one would score poorly for me if not for the excellent nose. If I owned a bottle of Knappogue Castle 16 yo I would spend a lot of time with the nose. I would probably most often nose it neat and then add some water when I was ready to drink it

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