Affects of Age on the Spirit

In the course of one evening we manage to break a lot of society records.  In one tiny room in Teviot Row House we manged to pack in 28 whisky drinkers, 4 Balvenie Ambassadors, 2 Monkey Shoulder Ambassadors, and the oldest whisky that the society has ever tasted : 38 year old single cask, cask strength Balvenie. Needless to say, we were all doing happy whisky dances throughout the night.

Balvenie New Make 70%
Nose: pear, green fruits, red berries, sweet, grapes, meadow on a sunny day, cereal grain, bread dough, yeastings turning maltings
Taste: not entirely unpleasant

Balvenie 8 year old, 58% American Bourbon Cask
Nose: maple, vanilla, burned sugar, honey, four roses bourbon, muffins, cherries
Taste: apples, sugar, melons
Overall: Quite enjoyable, but the typical signature aspects of Balvenie were absent.

Balvenie 12 year old, 57.7% Re-fill Bourbon Cask
Nose: "smells cask strength", sugary, grassy, vanilla
Taste: honey, coffee finish "like Balvenie". Spiced honey coffee. The age "allows the spirit to talk". Pear drops also present. Needed water to fully develop
Overall: Very good. This is part of the double wood. Here we got the typical Balvenie flavors running throughout the whisky.

Sam swings the dog

Balvenie 30 year old, 49.2% American Oak
Nose: apple, plums, honey, pears and other dark fruits
Taste: Parmaviolet, woody, citrus notes still present 
Overall: Still Balvenie, a different kind of Balvenie (probably because most of us don't drink 30 year old whisky on a regular basis). Still a bit rough around the edges.

Balvenie 38 year old, 47.6% Spanish Sherry Butt
Nose: nice floor polish, jam, mint, grape, cinnamon
Taste: full bodied cooked red fruits. No citrus or honey notes at all.
Overall: a good whisky, a fine experience but it was not Balvenie in terms of typical expressions.

Balvenie 30 year old, Official Release
Nose: creamy, burned sugar, "smells like Balvenie", honey and spice, plums
Taste: cinnamon, oranges, honey with a coffee finish
Overall: The only way to describe this dram is elegant. It had all the elements of Balvenie and delivered them with class and grace.

There was so much amazing whisky present and it was awesome to have both Andy and Sam there to walk us through the affects of age on the spirit. We cannot express our gratitude for such an astonishing experience. Speaking of thanks, I would like to take this time to thank everyone who contributed to my birthday bottle of whisky, Glenfarclas 15 year old. I was thoroughly surprised and grateful to receive this gift for my birthday. So, thank you--to all of you. 

Thank you!

One Day You Will

It has almost been a month since Jamie took us on a tour through Glenfiddich's core range. One of the most well known distilleries in the world, Glenfiddich is a common brand of single malt scotch whisky. We discovered on March 8th that is a result of high quality whisky combined with the values held by the Grant family. The people behind this whisky make Glenfiddich what it is. The whiskies we had stand on their own without the intense marketing that comes with such a huge brand. That being said, the new commercials are pretty epic and awesome and I love them:

12 year old
Nose: pears, vanilla, toffee
Taste: candied apples
Overall: very drinkable, high standard house whisky

18 year old
Nose: mellowed pears, "amazing" green apples
Taste: hint of salt, buttery salted toffee
Overall: rounded off the flavors of the 12 year old. Obviously a more mature whisky and better for it.

15 year old, Solera Vat
Nose: honey, raisins, cinnamon apples
Taste: "Shandy!", spices (cloves cinnamon) rich alcoholic cream or milk
Overall: The society had tried this whisky previously at the finishes tasting, on this night it received a better reception in the middle of the Glenfiddich range.

Jamie surprised us with Glenfiddich new make

15 year old, Rich Oak
Nose: pineapple, mash tun, pencil shavings, ground up wood, cherries, toffee and caramel, "jigsaw puzzle with a 70's glam guitar", floor polish, marzipan, toasted hazelnuts
Taste: "Like whoa yo!", mulled wine, roller coaster of rich oak flavors
Overall: This whisky really surprised me on the night, the flavors it delivered were quite surprising.

15 year old, Distiller's Edition 51%
Nose: caramel, melon, biting and yet very fleeting taste. Hints of freshly ground pepper and vanilla.
Taste: Creamy, smooth notes of melon still coming through. Pear still present amazingly floral and seemingly delicate. A lingering finish that left you warm
Overall: This was many people's favorite whisky of the night. Its cask strength nature allowed it to develop a bit longer than many of the others.

Scott ponders the flavors of Glenfiddich

21 year old, Gran Reserva
Nose: intense and sweet, strong floral notes with hints of banana. Toffee, fudge, and figs all present as well.
Taste: Initially very soft and mellow, then almost on the verge of overwhelming with vibrant notes of vanilla, lime, ginger. The typical note of oak is still present as is the barest hint of smoke.
Overall: Wow. Just wow. An incredible balance of flavors are delivered because of the attention to detail during the maturation process for this incredible dram. The American oak casks deliver the Glenfiddich style while the Caribbean rum cask adds totally unusual flavors. Neither totally dominate, bringing a fully satisfying whisky experience.

Glenfiddich is the most awarded whisky in the world. After a night experiencing the dynamic flavors that they offer, I don't stop to wonder why.

Look at the smiles on our faces!

Trying it Blind

Our 8th Annual Bottling Tasting was last Thursday March 1st. Jan from Douglas Laing and Darren from The Whisky Shop come together and present us with four whiskies that we taste blind. Scoring the whiskies throughout the night, the one with the highest is bottled by Douglas Laing with the Society's name on it. Jan and Darren gave us some great whiskies and a fabulous night with a couple of surprises was enjoyed by all. My tasting notes were confiscated with the others (the notes will go onto our bottling) so these notes are what I remember from the night.

Benriach Heart of Speyside
A welcome and warm up dram from the committee. A fairly light and sweet dram to get the palate thinking about whisky

Allt-A-Bhainne 11yo
This was the first whisky we tried blind. With only six votes, it came last in the competition. I thought it was very basic without a lot of character. I got burned hair and other such pleasantries on the nose. It finished with a lingering bitter taste.

Corey isn't too sure about the first dram

Craigellachie 12yo
Coming in at third place with ten votes was our second blind dram. A bit more complex than the first one as it had some spice and a little kick to it.

Ardmore 7yo 
With thirty-one votes, the third dram won first place and will be bottled with the society's name in the next couple of weeks. This one smelled of burned sugar cookies with red fruits and had a very complex body to it. My personal favorite of the night, I am pretty happy that it won.

Bowmore 9yo
Third place was awarded to the fourth dram of the evening. The only dram from Islay, this was very seaside smoky for me. Personally, I thought it was not as complex as the third one. But I know many people were upset that this didn't win. 

As the results were tallied and counted by the committee, Jan revealed that he had some whisky in the back for us to try. However we would have to share because he only brought one bottle.

Jan and his "one bottle" of Big Peat

A gallon of Big Peat (this version called the Really Big Peat) was brought out to the delight of everyone present. Everyone enjoyed it and it was an excellent close to the tasting. 

Braw, honeysuckle, mulled cider, Egyptian tobacco, and hot embers at the gates of Hell

On February 23rd, Nick Malcolm from The Scotch Malt Whisky Society came to our humble society with five bottles of single cask, cask strength whisky for us to enjoy. By bottling unusual whisky from all over the world, these drams inspire conversations and debates about tasting notes. Every cask they bottle is extremely unique and it really demonstrates everything that I love about whisky: its variable character.

Cask No. 97.21 "Laurel, meadowsweet and honeysuckle"
(Littlemill 21yo 54.7%)
Nose: light floral, treacle, chai tea with cream, citrus notes mostly mandarin that evolves into mandarin pancakes. "whisky warehouse" "pinewood and lemon sorbet," "play dough," "hint of pears." "herbal sorbet".
Taste: spicy, pine. cloves, rooibos, mexican rice, creamy, honey "gummie sweets," "coconut," "tropical lime".
With water: many more of those citrus notes and very fragrant fruits.

Cask No. 105.18 "Mulled cider and beef goulash"
(Tormore 28yo 54.5%)
Nose: sweet and sour pork, red apple pie, cloves, caraway. damp and rich. Applewood smoked bacon. "Guiness HP Sauce," "appley with spice," "oak, cognac". 
Taste: fresh. Promises to be a big chunky sherried whisky but is then very subtle. "licorice," "cider apple sauce," "Worcestershire sauce and bbqs, red grapes".
With Water: Sweet shop, bacon bits, brie, bleu cheese. Becomes more bitter like a struck match.

Cask No. 35.57 "Egyptian tobacco"
(Glen Moray 34yo 53.8%)
Nose: Big sweet notes, melon, cherimoya, pineapple, lots of fruit, flavored tobacco. "juice green apple skin, lemon abas oil," "old brewery," "coke float"
Taste: Wow. Pipe tobacco, toffee, fudge and caramel. Youthful vigor but dry in the mouth. Banana fudge. "salted leather," "candyfloss/ fruity sweets," "vanilla ice cream"

Cask No. 93.50 "Hot embers at the gates of hell"
(Glen Scotia 20yo 58.6%)
Nose: trout, algae, polluted river, pork fat, bacon grease, sulfur, mackerel, dirty and fatty. "old socks," "rotting, or dull old water".
Taste: stick to your teeth fat, chips in hamburger fat, burned oil. "ember oil," "gasoline," "clammy" "ash".
Through Water: citrus and toffee

Cask No. 33.115 "Man that's braw!"
(Ardbeg 11yo 55.4%)
Nose: salty sticky toffee pudding, sea side custard, salty caramel, cherries, pepperoni and pineapple. "Charcoal orange-creme crates" "sea weed" "hints of leather"  
Taste: serious bite, burned veggies (sweet potatoes, bell peppers, butternut squash) cooked red onions. But still very sweet and light. sublte hints of moss, earth. sits at the front of the mouth. "wet peat. a burning barn" "hot dogs with mustard. open wood fireplace" "Islay- 'nuff said."

The whiskies were so good, even Tom was smiling!

Superstition and Prophecy

The one, the only, the legend, the wonderful man himself: Mr. Willie Tait. Mr Tait came to our society last Thursday and gave us one of our best tastings of the year. Master Distiller and Global Brand Ambassador, Willie had all 110 of us in stitches all night long. His understanding of Jura's whisky and the whisky process as a whole is unrivaled and everyone was thrilled to listen to such a remarkable man. Especially when he compared the aroma of a particular whisky to the unforgettable "perfume of the girl who dumped you".

The night began with The Claymore. This blend was chosen by the committee in order to welcome the hundred participants as they walked into the room.
Nose: very mellow aroma, hints of oak
Taste: For my palate, I thought that this was a very harsh blend. Typically, I enjoy blends as they serve to open the taste buds and other senses. This was an exception to that rule. The Claymore finished in extremely bitter tastes. It left the back of the throat dry in a very unpleasant way.
Overall: I did not enjoy The Claymore at all. It was hard to drink and made finding the flavors of vanilla, oak, and tiny bits of honey within it almost impossible.

After the room was packed to the rafters, Willie took over. He lead us on a tour through Jura and the people who come together to create the whiskies we were sampling. The island of Jura and its whiskies are often compared to and cast in the shadow of those of Islay. Willie showed everyone that the whisky made on Jura stands apart from those made on Islay.

Our taste journey through Jura

 

Origin 10
Nose: oats, warm sunshine, salty, dry
Taste: caramel, other sweets, oak, "brewing dark coffee", slight bitterness like a burned espresso. Finished in a mellow salty, oaky and malty flavors.
Overall: A very enjoyable and delectable dram. Great session whisky and one that you could easily return to time and time again.

Diurach's Own 16
Nose: a rich and yet subtle nose of citrus and warm fruits. "Lazy, hot sunny afternoons in August." Small hints of natural smoky that turned sweet.
Taste: dark chocolate covered citrus. Tangerines, oranges. A hyper whisky on the palate with a long-lingering finish.
Overall: This was one of the favorites of the night. I walked around filling glasses and listening to critiques of it, no one had anything bad to say.Frequently I heard, "I would drink this any night" and "If I was going to introduce a friend to whisky, this is the one I would use". Very highly received and really enjoyed.

Superstition
Nose: floral peatiness comes across immediately. A lightly peated whisky, there are also notes of dried orange peels, some caramel--maybe butterscotch and crushed peppercorns.
Taste: Smoke, spice, honey, a bit salty. Some got hints of pine and others found it finishing in definite orange influences while other found bonfire smoke.
Overall: This one encountered mixed reviews. Many had tried it before, but few had tasted it within the basic Jura range. Nevertheless, it was not voted the favorite of the night. Many preferred the other aspects of Jura's personality.

Superstition and Prophecy

Prophecy
Nose: heavily peated the smoke dominated the nose on this dram for quite a while until the cinnamon-y spice had an opportunity to come through.
Taste: The lack of chill filtration really made this dram stick to your teeth. Very rich and full bodied this whisky kept unfolding flavors. Again the Jura salty and orange definitely came through the very heavy smoke.
Overall: This was a very popular dram of the evening. A great way to finish the night and a fine example of the high quality that is Jura's whiskies.

All too soon, Willie finished taking us through the fabulous whiskies of the evening. His anecdotes about the family tree of the whiskies helped represent the citrus and salty flavors in Jura. I don't believe that anyone will be forgetting this night any time soon.

How do you say "Bruichladdich"?

Our first dram of the Second Semester

For the first Water of Life Society tasting of 2012, we were fortunate to host Craig Johnstone from Bruichladdich distillery. As an American, I whenever I saw "Bruichladdich" I expected to develop a cold trying to get all of those consonants into one word. While the Scots aren't silly enough to and don't even attempt to pronounce every letter, I first thought that it should just be spelled "brookladdie". Now, I believe that these whiskies are so complex that they do need all those extra letters in their name. They require a name that demonstrates their finesse and boldness with a lot of extra consonants.

Our journey through Bruichladdich began with the classic Laddie Ten and finished off with a dram from the Port Charlotte An Turas Mor (Gaelic for "the great journey" appropriately enough). Throughout the night I took notes on what I personally experienced with each dram, as well as what I heard others saying. I hope that these will help others remember the experience of this fabulous tasting.

The Laddie Ten
Nose: Roasting walnuts, honeyed lemon, fresh summer fruits at a sea side picnic
Taste: Creamy ginger, quite delicate bourbon flavors, very light in nature and subtle that finished in a rounded vanilla after-taste.
Overall: An excellent session whisky, very easy to drink and enjoy

The Organic
Nose: "old cheese", salty fish, dried and salted pork
Taste: Roasted chicken, hints of lemon and almonds, a hurried flavor that revealed all its secrets instantly and left the back of the throat dry in a salty sea of smoke.
Overall: Not my favorite of the night, this whisky seemed to polarize the room. Either you hated it or loved it.

The Bordeaux First Series: The Sixteens
Nose: Cooking cherries and peaches, not roasting but almost like making a cherry-peach jam.
Taste: A surge of cinnamon followed by a slight taste of charcoal. Sweet, honeyed red berries that were extremely transient. Almonds, brown sugar, and a definite flavor of red wine. A bouncy dram that left a certain bitterness that made you long for the initial sweetness.
Overall: A really excellent dram and a very unusual concept behind it. I definitely enjoyed it. 

Eimear examining her dram of the sixteens

Black Art 2, 21 years old
Nose: Butter, fruit, crasins in a cucumber walnut salad, fresh shortbread
Taste: "a more intense 16 year old" but more than that. The same red berries were present, but they were rapidly followed by a wave of glorious sunshine.
Overall: This was the dram that did it for me that night. From its presentation in the black bottle with archaic symbols to the surprise of the bright maroon color of the whisky, this dram kept changing and becoming more and more intense and intricate. Extremely provocative and seemingly simple this was a dram that just kept giving. It was something very unusual and a world unto itself.

Port Charlotte: An Turas Mor
Nose: Very smoky, especially compared to the others during the night. Still hints of vanilla and lemon present within a presence of saltiness.
Taste: Dry, heavy peat spiced by lemon, cinnamon, citrus, lime. A bit of beef jerky--in a creamy kind of way. The flavors eventually mellowed out in the mouth after building a series of smokey and citrus layers.
Overall: Again, a very great whisky that really complimented the power house of the Black Art 2 that preceded it. Many people said that this was their dram of the evening, and I was inclined to agree that it was something pretty special.

Olivier, Scott, Eimear, Craig, myself, Sam, Simeon and Bruichladdich

We truly enjoyed having such a special tasting to usher in the new year and the new semester. Craig was also patient with us as we acknowledged two committee members that night. Scott and Sam turned 21 over the holidays and many of us in the society came together to present them with a little something special to mark the occasion. Both of the young men were given 21 year old bottles from the Scotch Malt Whisky Society, and boy were they happy!

Apparently this is how men express their feelings