So, what are you drinking now?

This bottle kill deserves its own post. My wife gave me this bottle for our wedding anniversary in 2017. I opened in March of this year to celebrate our 15th wedding anniversary. This is the 2nd bottle of Portwood that I have owned and it lived up to the memory of my 1st bottle. Not sure when, or if, I will ever be able to get another one so I’m really going to enjoy this last dram.

@bwmccoy killing these sentimental bottles is always hard but the memories live on.

(very) Slowly chipping away at my samples, this evening, started with High West Midwinter's night dram Act 7 scene 5 and then followed up with an independent bottling of Highland Park, an 18yr old from Berry Bros & Rudd, it's full bourbon cask maturation and spoiler alert... I really like the latter.

@cricklewood - Well said! Like you, finishing off a sample tonight. Westland Distillery Single Cask # 5410 that was aged 6 years and 1 month. It is their standard 5 grain mash bill that was first aged in a 1st-fill ex-Westland cask, then it was transferred to a 1st-fill ex-bourbon cask before spending the last 26 months in a French oak ex-Syrah Washington State wine cask from Guardian Cellars (Red Mountain AVA). 57% ABV. This is perfectly balanced; I love how the red wine notes come through at first, but the standard Westland flavor comes through in the finish.

@bwmccoy I have to say I'm always a little jealous when I read your descriptions of Westland single casks, the standard line is nice enough but it seems these single casks or special editions are where it's at.

A trio of very small drams: Scapa Skiren while I cooked dinner, followed by Aberlour 12 and Highland Park Magnus after dinner and into the evening.

This week refuses to end, so I’m easing my way through Thursday with some Glengoyne 10. I’ve just opened the bottle and I’m only nosing my first pour so far, but it’s much more sherry-forward (all clean so far) than I expected. Raisins, cranberries, maraschino cherries, along with some honey and oak. It’s also quite pale, as Glengoyne doesn’t use any E150a, so the casks are probably mostly second fill sherry.

@cricklewood - I agree. I would probably never buy one of Westland's standard releases (except maybe for cocktails), but their single casks have mostly been amazing. It's interesting because I have had pretty much the same experience with Copperworks, another Seattle distillery. Their standard range does nothing for me, but some of their single casks have been outstanding!

Last night I started off with a Greenpoint cocktail; Rittenhouse rye, Green chartreuse, Sweet vermouth, Angostura bitters and orange bitters. Garnish with lemon peel.

After dinner, I finished off yet another bottle. It was the pre-release bottling of Copperworks Distilling Company SMWS 143.1 "Sea buckthorn tea time". Bottled as a 3 year, but it was actually aged 46 months (distilled Mar. 14th, 2016) in new oak (18 month air seasoned staves) heavy toast, medium char (#2) - 60.2% ABV. This malt was made from a six row barley variety known as Alba. Three batches of wash were combined prior to distillation, each having between 9 to 13 days of fermentation. Official tasting notes; The aroma was that of Acacia honey on slices of buttered toasted malt loaf next to simmering red currants almost ready to be filled into jars for jelly. On the palate, full roasted oak and coffee flavors with hints of molasses and a slightly bitter turmeric finish. It was really special to have this bottle for 6 months before it was released to the public.

Tonight, I'm starting off with a Chocolate Manhattan cocktail; 2oz Maker's Mark 46, 1/2oz sweet vermouth, 1/2oz Creme de Cacao and 2 dashes of orange bitters. Garnish with dark chocolate.

I got an unexpected bonus at work today for a project that I worked on all year, so I decided to celebrate by opening a bottle that I've had in the cabinet for a year and half or so.

Bushmills SMWS 51.15 (16 year - May 22nd, 2002) "Boiled sweets and cut flowers" - First-fill ex-bourbon barrel - 56.4%. Sweet, floral and fruity; roses, pear, fruit salad syrup (without being syrupy sweet). Spicy heat without water, but with water, add marzipan. If I would have tasted this blind, I would have assumed Speyside, not Northern Ireland.

Last night, my wife and I had a couple of Black Manhattan’s made with Maker’s Mark 46 before dinner.

@bwmccoy Would definitely be on my Mt Rushmore of scotches.

Unfortunately now at a current pricepoint that the 2-3 bottles I have had of this delicious whiskey will be just a memory

Last night had another couple over for a socially distanced holiday celebration.

Started off by opening a bottle I’ve had in the cabinet for 5+ years; Teaninich SMWS 59.51 (30 year - November 1983) "A refined cocktail" - Refill hogshead - 51.5% ABV. They just don’t make whisky like this anymore. Stunning!

Bushmills SMWS 51.15 (16 year - May 2002) "Boiled sweets and cut flowers" - First-fill barrel - 56.4%. Drinks more like a cask strength Speyside than an Irish whiskey.

The Dublin Liberties 13 Year Single Malt “Murder Lane” Batch 02. Finished in Tokaj Casks after maturing in Bourbon barrels. 46% ABV. Interesting. A lot of plum notes.

Woodinville Whiskey Company bourbon finished in Madeira casks. 53.27% ABV. This retains all of the bourbon notes upfront with an added layer of complexity from the Madeira. Beautifully balanced.

High West A Midwinter Nights Dram; Act 7 Scene 6. Rye aged in French oak, then finished in port casks. 49.3% ABV. What’s not to like; rye, French oak and port. A whiskey trifecta!

With dinner (grilled steak, grilled brussel sprouts and twice baked potatoes), 2Bar (Seattle) straight bourbon whiskey finished in Washington state ex-wine barrels. 45% ABV. Not bad, but my least favorite of the night. It did go well with steak.

With dessert (bourbon pecan pie), another bottle opened tonight that has been sitting around for a couple of years; Ben Nevis SMWS 78.41 (19 year - Dec. 1997) - "A real sherry monster" - Refill ex-Oloroso sherry butt - 57.1% ABV. This is Sherry perfection with a very dry finish.

Allt-A-Bhainne SMWS 108.14 (7 year - Nov 2011) "An enjoyable curiosity" - 2nd-fill ex-bourbon barrel - 66.2% ABV. Aptly named; sweet peat, but more earthy peat than Islay peat.

Caol Ila SMWS 53.325 (7 year - Mar. 2012) "When two powerful pearls meet". After six years in an ex-bourbon hogshead, finished in a refill ex-Madeira hogshead - 61.2% ABV. Again, beautifully balanced. Everything I love about Caol Ila with added depth.

Finished the night with Bunnahabhain SMWS 10.190 (6 year - Oct. 2013) "Make moine a devil!" from a second-fill ex-Oloroso Sherry butt - 61.1% ABV. Perfectly combination of heavily peated and heavily sherried.

A fun night with great friends celebrating the holidays.

Christmas Old Fashioned, made with Cranberry Syrup.

Earlier tonight, Jerry Thomas Manhattan made with Rittenhouse rye BiB.

Now, having a dram of Westland Distillery Cask # 2542 Single cask release, cask strength (6 year-Distilled 2012) 27 months in Coopers Reserve New American Oak followed by 45 months in an ex-Pedro Ximénez Hogshead - 50.8% ABV.

Last night, M & H Whisky Distillery Elements Sherry Cask - 46% ABV.

Compass Box Peat Monster Arcana - 46% ABV. A combination of American oak bodies with toasted French oak heads. This is a blend of whiskies from Talisker (73%), Miltonduff (10.5%), Peat Monster Cask Strength (9.5%) and Ardbeg Distilleries (7%). This is even more mellow than the standard Peat Monster, if that’s possible. :-) The nose is like peat perfume; sweet, elegant peat. The palate is sweet peat, but not much smoke on either the nose or palate. It is a beautiful whisky; I’m happy to drink it, but not something I would buy. This was a sample from a friend. Glad that I got to try it.

Yesterday was a good whisky day;

Started off visiting some friends at their house. First we had a Noix On Broadway cocktail made with 3 parts whiskey (we used Old Grand Dad 114) and one part walnut liqueur. This was a luxurious version of a Manhattan garnished with an orange twist.

Next up was an Old Fashioned cocktail made with Woodinville Cask Strength 100% Rye (59.93% ABV), Woodinville barrel aged maple syrup, Angostura and Cacao bitters, also garnished with an orange twist. This was good, but a little too sweet for me.

Switching to drams, I started off with an 18 year GlenDronach (pictured below). This is the 2019 version of their 18 year old which is apparently 24 year old whisky. Either way (18 or 24) it was delicious!

Followed that up with my recently opened bottle of Ben Nevis SMWS 78.41 (19 year - Dec. 1997) - "A real sherry monster" - Refill ex-Oloroso sherry butt - 57.1% ABV. What a contrast to the GlenDronach. This one is earthier and drier, where the GlenDronach is elegant, richer.

Next was a GlenDronach Cask Strength Batch 8 (61% ABV). The elegance of GlenDronach at cask strength is something special indeed!

Finished our visit with Bruichladdich Black Arts 4.1 (1990 - 23 year) 49.2% ABV. This was the last Black Art that Jim McEwan released before his retirement. Beautifully complex and stunning.

Later, after getting home, attended a "fancy Scotch" virtual tasting with the Seattle Whiskey Collective.

Started off with a Blair Athol 20 Yr (45% ABV) from John Milroy. A bottle that retails for $250. Honey, apple, cereal, wet grass and gingerbread. This was nice. A good one to start with, but would not pay $250 for this. It was my 4th favorite of the tasting.

Next up was the one that I was most looking forward to. It was also the first SMOS bottling that I have ever tasted. Imperial 23 Yr (45%) from Single Malts of Scotland. $500 retail. Was it worth it. Well, this is at least a closed distillery, so I would rather pay $500 for this than the $250 for the one above. Surprisingly, the Imperial was only my 2nd favorite of the tasting. Notes of green banana peel / freshly peeled banana, bready, pear and apple. This was lovely!

Bruichladdich Black Art 08.1 (45%) at $490/bottle was my biggest disappointment of the tasting and my least favorite. It had very little wine influence which is the hallmark of previous Black Art releases. The nose was cereal, grass / hay, tart, bitter, musty and herbal. The palate was savory and sweet with what can best be described as a cinnamon red hot candy finish.

Isle of Arran 23 Yr (47%) from PM Spirits at $220 per bottle. This bottling consisted of 2 casks that were distilled in 1996 and matured for 16 years at the distillery. The 2 casks were then taken to France where they were transferred to Cognac casks for the remaining maturation. Notes of caramel, butterscotch, apple pie, caramel / candied apple. This was my third favorite of the night.

Finished with Highland Park 14 Yr (60%) from Single Malts of Scotland at $220/bottle. For me, the best of the tasting and totally upstaged the Imperial. This was the best Highland Park that I've had in a long time. The best value of the tasting. While on the upper end of my budget, I would buy a bottle of this. Notes of honey, hospital menthol, camphor, evergreen tree, pine and earthy. A great way to finish a great day of whisky.

I forgot one. At our friends house, we opened a bottle of Glenmorangie Dornoch that we purchased at the distillery in April 2016. ABV: 43% (70 cl). This Glenmorangie was first matured in ex-bourbon American white oak then transferred to ex-Amontillado sherry casks. Notes of apple, nuts, toffee and dried fruits. The finish is floral, vanilla and citrus.

Drawing close to Christmas I hope you're all having a nice holiday season with your near and dear. I'm having Christmas at home with the missus and tonight I'm having glüwhein with glengoyne 21 yrs in it. A beautiful match! Merry Christmas to you all!

@bwmccoy I'll let you know if the 24 year old Imperial is similar to the 23. Nice (The) Glendronach decanter, BTW.

@BlueNote - thanks, but that decanter is my friend’s. She’s in the industry and gets all kinds of cool stuff. Another note on the Imperial; nosing the empty glass, there was a strong vegetative note. That combined with the banana peel note made me think of a funky rum. Not initially, but an interesting development for a very interesting dram.

Last night, rated a couple of open bottles.

Woodinville Whiskey Company Straight Bourbon Whiskey finished in Madeira casks - 53.27% ABV. Rating: 87. I love the contrast and balance of this one. Standard bourbon notes upfront with the Medeira appearing in the finish.

Ben Nevis SMWS 78.41 (19 year - Dec. 1997) - "A real sherry monster" - Refill ex-Oloroso sherry butt - 57.1% ABV. Rating: 93. This is the opposite of a sweet, syrupy sherry bomb. It’s big and bold, but very nutty and dry. Appropriately named. Love it!!!

‘‘Twas the night before Christmas”... In celebration of the holidays, a 30 year old Teaninich; SMWS 59.51 “A refined cocktail” from a refill ex-bourbon hogshead. Distilled in 1983, this was bottled in 2013/2014 and has been sitting in my whisky cabinet for 5+ years. They just don’t make whisky like this anymore. Stunning! Rating: 95.

Ho ho ho!

Finished the night by finishing off the sample of Compass Box Peat Monster Arcana.

Merry Xmas.

First dram today but the last of my bottle of Yellow Spot. I really enjoyed this one.

@cricklewood I have an unopened bottle of this. I’m hoping we see Red Spot and Blue Spot in Canada.

@MRick I'm hoping the same as you. Red spot did make an appearance out west but sold out in a flash (the price was a bit steep if memory serves). This blue spot release should be an interesting one.

@cricklewood Red Spot still available in Ontario, though only in the "center of the universe" aka LCBO Summerhill (Toronto) location (160 bucks)

@65glenfarclas yes I was kindly reminded of its availability by a few eagle eyed members.

It's price makes me hesitant to buy before I try. If it's too cask driven I'm going to be disappointed.

I poured myself a dram of the 18yo Glendronach even though I purchased a bottle of the 21yo, as my Christmas bottle. I just got the 'taste' for the 18yo.

Merry Christmas, and for those who might see this tomorrow, Happy Boxing Day.

I have been binge watching Last of the Summer Wine. Watch out for Nora Batty's broom!

Cracked the 25 year old, 50% ABV Glenfarclas before dinner. Quite outstanding. The extra ABV really puts it into a different league from the 43% version. I think with some air time it will be truly spectacular. After that, I proceeded to eat far too much and drink too much wine. Pretty much the same pattern as every other Christmas day.

Cheers. Hope you all had a good one.