Month: January 2016

Whisky Review: Port Charlotte Heavily Peated

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Tasting Notes

Port Charlotte Scottish Barley Heavily Peated ☆

Style: Vivid and Deliciously Complex

Nose:

Lovely notes rising out from the glass with fresh apricots and cheese, followed by a wave of barley, lavender and vanilla scent. Undertone of smoke and creamy peat (which I can relate this to the milky touch of Octomores) gradually looming from the back… Spices illuminates, slightly nose-numbing with strength and style. This is a rich and balanced nose to me.
Palate:

Vivid palate charged up by industrious spice, carrying dynamic flavours of vanilla, nectar, peaches, oak, smoke and malt which collides, interacts and exploded like fireworks! A delicious burst of flavours which is very spirited and savoury! Enticing smoke wraps around the remaining notes of peat, fruity and vanilla at the ending minutes which makes it a smooth finale.

 

Finish:

Picturing this finishing with a scene – drinking a light hearted fruit mocktail outside of a seaside barbecue house. Soft and pleasing tropical fruit punch, next-door char grill smoke and distant coastal touches. Brilliant.

 

Thoughts:

A young, happy and lovely whisky! The flavours have been marshalled by the vibrant spice which set up a lively tempo and makes everything so smooth and refreshing! I love how the flavours are lined up so cleanly and exploded spontaneously. It is like watching a firework scene how different colours, sizes, elements are setup and released at the same instant to create a beautiful display.

(2013/NAS/50%/OB/GR)

 

Whisky Review: John Walker & Sons Private Collection 2015 Edition “Rare Fruit Character”

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Style: Fruity and Complex

Nose:

Starts with a delightful malty nose. Plucked a splendid chord of rose petals, dried barley, simmered red dates with a tad of sourness, giving off a very all-rounded aroma. Light spices supports the structure in a non-invasive manner. A very entertaining nose.

Palate:

A fascinating blend of dry and fresh fruity notes. Dried figs, dates and orange peels mixes with vibrant and refreshing lychees, coconut and mint grassy notes. A busy palate as vanilla, oak, liquorice, chocolate and honey shooting in at different times and join the party. Tamed spice react at the very last moment to give a handsome buzz.

Finish:

Mix of complex fruitiness and malty notes at the finish. Hints of milk chocolate swing by and the remaining flavour coated around my tongue and leave a savoury sweetness, impressive ending to it.

Thoughts:

Gorgeous fruity dram with nuanced complexity, the fascinating part is the immediate mix of dry and fresh fruity notes. Sometimes it really makes me think how did they do it… The flavours have been consistently laid around the rich fruitiness and that makes a very purposeful profile here. This reminds me of the ongoing discussion of blend versus single malt at different levels, some might think blended whiskies represent inferior quality as flavours are scattered all over the places, but this whisky proves the contrary and demonstrated how a blended whisky can possess a big character with exceeding qualities.

☆ [Recommended]

[46.8% • 2015 • Blended Scotch Whisky • Non Chill Filtered • Limited Edition • 8888 Bottles]

-Esmond

Whisky Review: Lagavulin Aged 12 Years 2014 Edition

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Tasting Notes

Lagavulin Aged 12 Years Cask Strength 2014 Edition ✓ [Recommended if you like the style/distillery]

Style: Smoky and Crisp

Nose:

Begins with caramelised bacon and fresh pineapple, followed by some grassy, slightly floral and pine scent. Intermediate peat wrapping around the fruity and flourishing vanilla notes with light spices. Really smoky through and through.

Palate:

Heavy touch on the palate with a curious mix of tropical fruits, zest, vanilla, hay, twigs, peat and masculine spices. The smoke element continues to play the zenith role- fumy, light on flavour but with intense presence. Then we have some pine freshness and vanilla cream rolling in, counter balanced by the ashiness and burnt timber. The core erupts and give the Whisky a very long, lovely fizz.
Finish:

The gentle teasing of spice continues at the finish, leaving a trace of smokiness hints of charcoal. Light toffee notes relieves the load on the palate. Faint hint of bitterness from the smoke. Soft, smoky, sweet and delicious.

Thoughts:

Heavily smoked, but with incredibly light aromas, Lagavulin 12 CS is easy to drink but the complexity is there with a unique balance between the stronger and weaker notes. Some are so elusive that I need quite a few drams to capture it. Both Nicholas and I think that it is a distillery that worth more attention. We do not see enough of the general releases other than the trademark 16 years old as well as the distillery edition. Definitely a nice drink for a stormy night in Sydney…

[54.4%・2014・Original Bottling・Cask Strength・Non Coloured・Non Chill Filtered・Limited Edition]

-Esmond