So, what are you drinking now?

@OdysseusUnbound Wasn't it sous vide weenies?

@OdysseusUnbound There is indeed a steamed hams Simpsons reference one of the odd early segments that made the show so interesting. These NJ steamed hams predate that.

I’m currently sipping some Glengoyne 10 and I have to say it’s pretty impressive. There seems to be a lot of maturity for such a young whisky. It’s also far more sherry-forward than I would have expected. Yummy. Beneath the raisins and figs, it’s actually got quite a light, floral character with a bit of maltinesss.

Well, since I mentioned it in my post when I was drinking the lower neck pour from the 21yo Glendronach, I decided that my next dram would be from the 15yo Glen Garioch Oloroso sherry cask mature.

I am not sure how available it is in your area, but I don't think it is available at all in the US. Thus, I sent a message one of my friends in Tokyo, to see if he could pick up one or two bottles of it the next time he is near the city centre area. I told him, if I am able to travel I will get them then, but I hoped he can get them soon before the are snatched up.

I will mention that although I was introduced to the Glen Garioch distillery by watching Ralfy, it wasn't until I saw Horst's review of this that made me aware of the 15yo Oloroso sherry cask matured. Then when I was in Tokyo and saw it there, I took a risk and got it. I was already a 'fan' of whisky that had been matured in ex-sherry casks, so I thought I wouldn't go wrong here, and I didn't. Of course, I played it safe and bought one bottle. The next time I went to Tokyo, I got two. And now that I am in a hoarding mode, thanks to COVID19 and toilet paper, I decided I will at least get my friend(s) in Tokyo to help me. ^_^

I should end with, this is the only Glen Garioch expression I have purchased, but not the only one I have tried/sampled.

Tonight, the next to last dram of one of my favorite Westland’s. Single Cask # 2542 (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.

@ajjarrett I'm glad you've had bettter luck with Glen Garioch than me. The one I reviewed on Connosr was pretty badly sulphured, and I've sampled a few more since with the same result.

@Nock The Laphroaig 10 CS I've got is Batch 10. Interestingly, the adjectives you use to describe this 'frog are some of the same adjectives people have used to describe me: challenging, complex, and most notably, a bitterness that I didn't appreciate.

@BlueNote - Thanks, man! Pretty much on point there but add all that to a very slight innate mechanical issue that has compounded over time and an experimental operation a few years back that didn't help, to put it mildly, and there you go!

when the problem was diagnosed the first consultant, when I asked what I could do to help my condition, said, 'have a large shot of vodka every night'. Gee, thanks, Doc! Pain meds are strong and make me nauseous and also mean I shouldn't drink - now I might be tempted to but the heartburn and weird taste in my mouth usually render it pointless anyway.

I am on a list to have a hip replacement but I'm not even sure God knows when that will be now ...

@OdysseusUnbound

I got lucky with one, and that's it. haha. Now, if I could just have one jackpot winning Power Ball or Mega Millions ticket. That would be even better.

@RianC Bloody hell, I feel for you brother.

Today was day one of Drynuary. No booze until Feb 1st. We'll see if I can shed a few pounds and maybe even feel better.

@OdysseusUnbound... I had a bottle of Glengoyne 10 several years ago and the maltiness of the profile is what really stuck out for me. A really nice bottle, and one that I feel that all Scotch drinkers should have at some point in their journey, especially if they want to experience the malted barley essence of Scotch.

@OdysseusUnbound

I do enjoy maltiness in some of my whisky. One of my favorites, years ago, was the 12yo Tomatin. That had (for me) a nice maltiness to it. I must admit, I don't get that with the whisky I drink now, so maybe I will hunt for one later. I have other bottles to 'get through' before I buy any more. And although this is off topic, I have decided to stop buying stuff until I can travel. haha. Or if I win the lottery or there is a truly amazing sale. haha conditions, conditions.

Back to the Glengoyne, I never had the 10yo, I just have the 12, 15, 18 and 21yos. I don't pick up much maltiness in any of them, but I might have to see if there is some in the 12yo, it has been a while since I poured myself a dram of that.

@ajjarrett I fear for your stash of Nadurra if you aren't planning to buy anything for a while...

@Nozinan

They do not fear since they are in the storage area and I have several bottles opened that I need to get through, such as the 18yo Glendronach, 15yo Glencadam, 17yo Taketsuru, and even a bottle of 12yo Bunnahabhain...

Edit... And how could I forget the 21yo Glendronach? HA

@ajjarrett How many attack dogs do you have patrolling the "storage area?"

@Nozinan

No dogs, but I do have the killer rabbit from Monty Python and The Holy Grail; and no, the Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch isn't enough to kill it.

A friend of mine is starting a series of on-line whisky classes. He asked some friends to attend a "mock" class last night as a trial run and to see how things flow. To compensate us for our time, 5 whisky samples were provided to taste during the class. My wife and I shared the 1/2 ounce samples.

First sample was Breckenridge Distillery (Colorado) port finish bourbon (45% ABV). The bourbon is 3-4 years old plus about 6 months in tawny port casks. The bourbon is a high-rye mash bill (30-40% rye). The nose and palate reveal typical bourbon notes. The port influence was not really noticeable. It seems the ports purpose is to smooth off the rough edges of a relatively young whiskey. This was enjoyable enough, but I wouldn't run out and buy a bottle.

2 - Bull Run Distilling Company (Portland, Oregon) 'Temperance Trader' Chinato Barrel Aged Straight Bourbon Whiskey (44.93% ABV). This bottling is their standard bourbon that was finished in barrels that previously held Chinato D'Erbetti (an Italian style sweet vermouth) from Cana's Feast Winery in Carlton, Oregon. This bourbon is also considered "high-rye" (65% corn, 25% rye and 10% malted barley), aged a minimum of 4 years in new bourbon barrels and then aged an additional year in sweet Vermouth barrels. The bourbon must have been poured into the casks shortly after the vermouth was dumped (wet casks) because the vermouth influence was very pronounced. It was almost like dinking a Manhattan cocktail. This was very enjoyable and very unique. Again, not sure I would buy a bottle, but I liked it a lot.

3 - Glenmorangie Allta (51.2% ABV). This private edition uses a wild yeast (Saccharomyces diaemath) discovered by Dr. Bill Lumsden growing on a Cadboll varietal of barley near the distillery. The initial nose reminded me of a farmhouse ale beer (very yeasty). After a few minutes in the glass, this dissipates revealing notes of biscuit / bread, floral, vanilla, raisin and orange. The palate is citrus, butter (creamy), candy, vanilla, orange and floral with an earthy finish. A theme is starting develop; another very unique whisky that I enjoyed, but not sure I would buy it.

4 - Glenfarclas 9 year old from Single Cask Nation, but for this bottling the name was changed to Double Cask Nation since this is a marriage of two Oloroso sherry hogsheads (one first fill and one second fill), both distilled in November 2008, bottled at cask strength (59.5% ABV) in December 2017. This was rich, complex and warming with a pleasantly dry finish. Notes of oak, caramel and vanilla balanced by a distinct plum tartness. A wonderful dram; my favorite of the night. Wish I would have bought this one, but sadly, no longer available.

5 - Joseph Magnus Cigar Blend Bourbon (62% ABV). A combination of Joseph Magnus 11 and 18 year old Bourbon finished in Armagnac casks. Notes of tobacco, spice, leather, vanilla, almonds, and toffee plus notes of fig, prune, and dried apricot from the Armagnac cask finish. An absolutely stunning bourbon, but it should be for $300 per bottle.

After the class, I was in the mood for one more dram; Woodinville Whiskey Company Straight Bourbon Whiskey finished in Madeira casks - 53.27% ABV.

I am nosing this little beauty as I prepare sample bottles. I’ve held off distribution of most of the samples until my wife brought this late 2020 purchase home from Alberta.

So far it is fresh and fruity and my taste buds are starting to get excited.

Though only 10 cc, this is my first pour of whisky in 2021!

Tonight, a lightly peated, high ABV, appropriately named Speyside dram;

Allt-A-Bhainne SMWS 108.14 (7 year - Nov 2011) "An enjoyable curiosity" - 2nd-fill ex-bourbon barrel - 66.2% ABV.

Earlier tonight, my wife and I attended a virtual Ardbeg tasting with the local chapter of the Women Who Whiskey. While I have previously tasted each of the whiskies in tonight's lineup, it was very interesting tasting them one after the other. The order was Ardbeg 10, Wee Beastie, An Oa, Corryvreckan and Uigeadail.

Ardbeg 10 - I haven't had the 10 in a while. It tasted much like my memory of it, but the lemon citrus note was very pronounced. A classic!

Wee Beastie - I owned a bottle of this a few months ago and while I was disappointed that it wasn't a "beast", I enjoyed it, but I didn't run out to purchase another bottle of it. Tonight, it did not taste anything like my memory. After the 10, the nose was earthier and the palate had a huge tar (in a good way) note. This expression is 60% ex-bourbon casks and 40% ex-Oloroso casks. I was surprised how different it tasted to night.

An Oa - I also owned a bottle of this a few months ago. I liked it then and tonight was no different. The nose was much closer to the 10 than Wee Beastie, but it was richer which I assume is due to the PX and virgin oak casks. (An Oa is 20% PX, 20% virgin oak and 60% ex-bourbon).The palate had more of a campfire note and less of the lemon citrus that the 10 has.

Corryvreckan (57.4% ABV) - Not sure why, but I haven't owned a bottle of this in quite some time. Tonight reminded me how much I like this one and need to add it to my cabinet. It is mostly ex-bourbon casks, but also has some toasted (no char) virgin French oak casks. The initial palate is basically a cask strength version of the Ardbeg 10, but then the French oak appears in the finish. With a little water, the French is much more prominent. There is a creaminess and salted butter note.

Finished the tasting with Uigeadail (54.2% ABV) - This is a combination of 1st and 2nd-fill ex-bourbon casks as well as Oloroso sherry casks. The whiskies in the vatting range in age from 8 to 14 years. This has a beautiful burnt end meat (roast or prime rib, not BBQ) and maple glazed smoked ham note. Savory and salty. Need to get another bottle of this one as well!

@bwmccoy thank you for your nice report. I find it extremely interesting to see mention of 8 to 14 year old whiskies in Uigeadail. This is the first 'off the record' age stating I have seen mentioned for Uigeadail. This was from an Ardbeg brand rep?

I am never surprised to see variation, sometimes wide variation, in Ardbeg products. I made my plunge into Connosr almost ten years ago on exactly this topic

connosr.com/ardbeg-uigeadail-whisky-review…

Ardbeg has always been and remains my favourite Scottish distillery, but I consider their products to be quite inconsistent. The good news has been that even the batches and bottles I haven't liked have gotten much better with air exposure.

@bwmccoy thanks for the thoughts on the Ardbeg line! Being a fan-boy I always love to see other people’s take on the line up. I agree that the lemon note in the Ardbeg 10yo has become more pronounced in the regular releases in the past few years. It is clearly a signature note that they are happy to highlight. Personally, I don’t enjoy it as much. I find those batches “tainted.”

On the We Beastie it sounds like you are drinking a sample and not from your bottle. Is that correct? My guess is that you are drinking from a new batch. I would imagine that we will see a lot of batch variation on a 5yo whisky. Hopefully for the better! That first release was decent but not compelling.

And I want to highlight @Victors question about the age range of Uigeadail. The last I heard at the distillery (a few years back) is that the Uigeadail contained a mixture of ex-bourbon (mostly Jack Daniel’s) casks aged 8yo to 11yo, and some 6yo ex-Oloroso sherry casks. So, if your information is from an official Ardbeg representative that would be very interesting.

@bwmccoy Nice one. I don't think anyone can go wrong with the Ardbeg big three (Ten, Uigeadail, Corryvreckan) in their cabinet. The rest of the Ardbegs are just window dressing and mostly over priced and over hyped IMHO. What would really make me happy would be the return of the 18 year old Airigh Nam Beist, at a reasonable price, of course hahaha

@Victor @Nock and @BlueNote - Thanks for your comments. The person leading the tasting last night is an official rep of the company. He is an "Ardbeg Ambassador" that happens to live in the area. He made a comment last night that he often gets in trouble with his bosses in Edinburgh for releasing both too much information and information before it was supposed to be made public. He is the one who said that Uigeadail is comprised of whiskies that are 8 - 14 years of age. Based on his comment about often getting into trouble, I took him at his word.

The samples for last night's tasting were also provided by the Ardbeg Ambassador, so yes, @Nock, the wee beastie was a sample and not from my bottle. I currently do not have a bottle of wee beastie, but the sample last night must have been a different batch than the bottle that I owned previously because the nose and taste last night were completely different than the memory of the bottle I owned. A huge difference. I liked the sample a lot more than my bottle.

The Ambassador referenced a few slides from a huge PowerPoint presentation and several of us attending the tasting asked if we could get a copy of the entire presentation. The ambassador said yes, but I am still waiting to receive it. If I do get it, I will let you all know if there is any other gems of information that you may be interested in.

One final comment that the ambassador made which he said he will get in trouble for; Without too much detail, he said that Ardbeg is releasing a new whisky this year called "Scorch". Apparently, this is another of Dr. Bill's experiments that will see the light of day. It is a revisit to a heavily charred cask (think Alligator), but the casks used this time are ex-red wine casks. At least that is what I took away from the vagueness of the comments from the ambassador. I apologize if I misunderstood, so take this information with a grain of salt (or barley in this case).

Last night, Kaiyo Whisky Japanese Mizunara Oak - 43%ABV

@bwmccoy How was it? I have been loving Mizunara finishes!

@bwmccoy Have you tried the cask strength version? It's worth a sip or two.

A good friend of mine lost his sister a few days ago. The service (family only) was today. This friend went with my father and I in 2018 on our Islay trip. Having a distillers edition Lagavulin and some Iain Burnett chocolates.

@TracerBullet - sorry to hear about your friend’s sister.

As for the Kaiyo Whisky, it’s ok, but the Mizunara Oak influence is not as prominent as other whiskies that I’ve had. It’s good, not great. I don’t regret buying it, but won’t replace it when it’s gone.

@Nozinan - No, I’ve never had a chance to try the cask strength version or any of their other expressions. I would be glad to try any of them, if the opportunity presents itself.

Tonight, a dry, nutty, winey dram; Ben Nevis SMWS 78.41 (19 year - Dec. 1997) - "A real sherry monster" - Refill ex-Oloroso sherry butt - 57.1% ABV. So good. The finish goes on and on. One sip and you’re still tasting it (at least) 20 minutes later.

@bwmccoy that Ben Nevis sounds like a winner!