Saturday 29 June 2013

Bruichladdich Port Charlotte PC7 Review

Port Charlottle PC7 - 61% abv.

Bruichladdich is in the process of reviving the old Lochindaal distillery in Port Charlotte on Islay.  I believe the intent is for that distillery to be the eventual home of all heavily peated bruichladdich products.  In the mean time, they've been distilling heavily peated whiskies at Bruichladdich and I believe they've been aging those in the Port Charlotte warehouse.

Over the years, Bruichladdich have made annual releases of age-stated Port Charlotte releases.  There's been PC5 (for 5 years old), PC6, etc. up through PC10.  Each release has seen some different maturation and of course more time in oak so you get progressively different whiskies. 

As discussed in my previous post "Calgary Floods," this one is Port Charlotte PC7 - Sin an Doigh Ileach.  According to Head Distiller Jim McEwan, this one had done time in both former bourbon casks and in former Sherry casks.  

Colour: liquid gold with copper highlights

Click photo to enlarge - This one is big!  

Nose: like nothing I've nosed before!  Sweet cereal and a nuttiness accompanied by a phenolic peat fire.  This one won't be for amateurs!  Medicinal.  I get the floral notes that are typical of the tall-necked Bruichladdich stills long with maybe some field berries?  There is the typical Bruichladdich menthol note here as well.  I get something savoury on the nose and I am wondering if I am finally getting/understanding the "mussles in broth" note that I see some people write in their notes. 

Palate:  tingle-y, sweet and then richly smokey on the palate and seems to then kick into another gear and you get a pop of profound ashy fire. Blinder!  This is intense.  This is REALLY big!  Again, different from anything I've ever had.  You definately get the fruit from the sherry cask here.  This rips!  This has more intensity than the 40ppm phenols claimed might have you believe.  

Add some water and you get more of the broth note that I think I nosed.  Its like a savouriness.  Adding more and more water seems to kill the intensity a bit and spread the flavours out some more while bringing out some chipotle and chocolate notes.

Finish: pretty long with lingering ashes that make it down to mid-chest. 

Comment: Complex and intense and wild and delicious.  This is in-your-face and big and not the kind of thing that a bunch of boomers will sit around sipping on a patio talking about how "smooth" it is etc.  This is good for a day where you just need some "pop."  

Described in four words: A pretty heavy whisky.

Tuesday 25 June 2013

Calgary Floods

Sin An Doigh Calgary

Calgary has run into some deep water - literally.  I'm sure we've all been stunned by the destruction that has taken place in Alberta since last Thursday June 20, 2013.  What I wanted to talk to is the spirit of Calgary.  

I have been fearful and concerned for a long time that the friendly and neighbourly nature that defined Calgary for me as a child was totally gone.  However, this flood has truly brought out the best in the people in our city.  Why write about this in 'The New Testament," a blog about whisky?

I was reminded of a story told by Jim McEwan as seen on Youtube.  He was discussing Bruichladdich's Port Charlotte PC7.  There is a gaelic saying on the tin and bottle which reads "Sin an Doigh Ileach."  This translates to "It's the Islay way."  Jim put this along with pictures of various people who have helped Bruichladdich on the PC7 tin because when he went to pay these folks for large amounts of heavy work and labour they completed for Bruichladdich and they said "No, its the lslay way.  We help each other."  

After seeing thousands of folks turn up to a volunteer call for 600, stranges helping strangers randomly, etc. All I can say is thank you Calgary and maybe we are finding our own way again.  I hope so and, if we have, may it never change.  Let's hope that we are rediscovering ourselves and "It's the Calgary way" becomes the common saying it should be.

In honor of the sentiment, the next review will be Bruichladdich Port Charlotte PC7 which is still available here in Calgary at my local whisky shop.  

Sin an doigh Ileach.

Thursday 20 June 2013

Springbank CV Review

Springbank CV - 46% abv. (purchased early 2013)

This is a whisky that's intended to portray the Springbank style of single malt.  Some suggest "CV" stands for Curriculum Vitae... an entry into the Springbank brand that shows what its all about.  If that's the case, its an excellent first impression!


Colour: Mid-gold.

Nose:  Manuka honey and lemon on the nose along with the smoke of drying embers.  Some salty brine there too.  This is coastal.  Some other fruit in the background with some christmas cake notes. As it opens I get a hint of chocolate and maybe caramelizing sugar. The smoke is more ashy than the rich smoke of Lagavulin or Octomore. Some mint shows up as well.

Palate:  sweet on entry.  Salt and smoke. Nice! The smoke is richer and then dries.  It certainly tastes good and interesting.  The smoke seems to linger throughout the other flavours rather than bringing a big wallop.  The "other fruit" nosed might be dates?  There is a definite salinity in there.  I had this with a sort of toasted smoked salmon sandwich at a food pairing event and this went very well with the smoked salmon.  Having it alone confirms that this would still be nice pairing.  
There are nice sherry-influenced flavours through this dram and a nice, sweet richness.  

Finish: good length with nice heat warming the back of the neck and shoulders.  Drying.

Comments:
A solid single malt and truly enjoyable!  Different from Lag-16 and less peated than the Longrow CV but would fit the bill for anyone enjoying those drinks.  Great to get such good value for money with something like this.  I like Springbank!

Monday 17 June 2013

The Glenlivet Nadurra 16 Year Old Batch 0911P Review

The Glenlivet Nadurra 16 Years Old - Batch 0911P - 53% alcohol

The Nadurra range from The Glenlivet is something I think is a great idea.  They create a batch of whisky and age it for 16 years in selected bourbon barrels.  After that, they bottle the whisky without chill filtering and with no colour added.  This is all sounding great to me and you know that each batch will be different and have its own nuances.  I don't know why The Glenlivet doesn't simply produce all of their whiskies without colouring and without the chill filtering.  Anyway... 
Click to enlarge - The Glenlivet Nadurra 16 Year Old Batch 0911P - Scotch whisky lemonade?

Colour: full gold

Nose: like lemon custard on the nose but the pastry chef put lots of lemon zest in that custard.  I get some sort of sweet fruit on the nose as well.  Soft on the nose for a cask strength but will give some burn if you pull too hard.  I get some tartness on the nose.

Palate: sweet and tart like dessert lemons.  Nice mouth feel - you pick up the extra texture from the non-chillfiltering. I've said before that this is "like scotch whisky lemonade" and I think that stands. A creamy lemon note is in the forefront. There is a light butterscotch or vanilla thread going thru there as well. At full strength, it certainly gives spice and heat at the tail end of the palate.

Add 5 drops of water and the palate gets a little softer and creamier but the tart lemon note still stands.  Scotch whisky lemonade... is that a real thing?  

With another 5 drops more water the butter scotch becomes more pronounced. I'm liking this!

Finish: the finish is shorter but certainly on the long side for a whisky aged in bourbon barrels. Its great for warmer weather (I first tried this in Hawaii and enjoyed it very much!). 

Comments:
This is the kind of whisky that the "I don't drink anything younger than 18 year old" crowd would often buy for less money if they just freed their minds enough to try it and explore a little.  My local shop just pulled out the next batch of Nadurra (can't remember the batch number off of the top of my head) and this drink excites me to try the next one.  

I just tried the Glenfiddich Cask of Dreams - Canadian Edition this weekend and it is a bourbon aged higher-alcohol special edition that oozed the butterscotch and vanilla notes almost like this one really gives that lemon custard note.  Makes me curious if the next Glenlivet Nadurra will be similar in profile to the 0911P or if it will be like the 'fiddich I just tried or if it will be something really cool that I never would have thought of.  Hopefully we'll see.

Anybody want to send donations to get me to buy one and find out?
P.S. After I wrote this, I thought about something that Local Scotch guy told me and I think this applies to this drink (and any cask strength, probably) is that you should, at some point, try and destroy the thing by adding drops of water and tasting.  You can see how far you can push it.  I kept adding water to this one and it changed from very lemon-centered flavour to a quite pronounced butterscotch flavour.  Next time I have it, if I feel like that butterscotch profile, I might add 10 - 15 drops of water right off the bat.  Anyway, its a good experience to taste, add water, taste add water, and so on as you can see what comes of it.  Some whiskies will take a lot and some won't.  My only tip is that you should quit when you get it to a spot you really like.

Wednesday 12 June 2013

Glenfarclas 105 Cask Strength Review

Glenfarclas 105 Cask Strength - 60% abv. / Aged 10 years 

Moving on with a classic Speyside distillery, Glenfarclas.  Glenfarclas is known for a couple keys things that I can think of: 

1. They are an independent distillery; and 
2. They make delicious whiskies aged in former Sherry casks
Click to enlarge - Glenfarclas 105
This time we are talking about the Glenfarclas 105.  The "105" stands for 105 British Proof.

Colour: beautiful deep amber

Nose: this is what Christmas smells like!  Sweet fruit cake with spice (and everything nice) and drizzled with icing.  I get dark, soft fruit like dates on the nose.  There's also a bit of alcohol burn from the 60% alcohol content but not too much.  If you know Glenfarclas at all, this is unmistakably 'farclas.  If you're new and trying to figure out what sherry aging does or can do to whisky, this would be a perfect educational example.

Palate:  wow!  That is a big pop of sherry-aged flavour!  Its sweet and really opens in the mouth with all sorts of fruit and spices and solid shot of heat.  The "Whisky Bitch" referred to this as a "Sherry bomb" and I think that is a good way to describe this.  Simply bursts with flavour.  Lovely christmas cake notes with rewarding sugars.  Some tasted oak shows up as you chew through this.  There's almost a little lemon at one point.

(Add about 5 drops of water): It softens and opens and gets creamier or something.  This is desert.

Finish: long and warm.  The warmth and flavours make it right down into your chest and leave you feeling relaxed and cozy.  Good one for a cold day!

Drink this on Christmas eve or any other time you want desert or a warm massage from the inside.  Jim McEwan once said that, when you drink whisky, you should be able to picture the people who made it.  I met George Grant last year and I must say, he is a warm and sweet fellow just like his family's whisky.  Check out the Family Cask 2002 I bought at that event that George signed for me!

Click to enlarge - The Glenfarclas Family Cask 2002 signed by George Grant. Good whisky by good people.

Friday 7 June 2013

Tomatin 15 Year Old Review

Well, its time to review a Highland Malt.  The Highland region basically covers the northern half of the Scottish mainland and tends to yield whiskies that are softer and more subtlely flavoured rather than in-your-face and salty whiskies that come from coastal or island locations like Islay.

Tomatin 15 - 43% abv.
Click to enlarge - Tomatin 15.  No colouring added here.  This is a nice bourbon-aged example.

Colour: Pale gold.

Nose: 
(Neat) the nose is quite bright and fresh!  Its also quite soft and gentle - it kind of says "I am your friend."  I think this would be welcoming to beginners.  There is pronounced lemon on the nose.  Honeyed lemons and sweet cereal. 

(Two drops water added) With water, the nose softens a bit and seems to get a creaminess.

Palate:
(Neat) Sweet and soft up front but with the brightness and freshness that the nose hinted at.  Again, clear lemon tones come thru. Another taste brings cereals and a spicy heat at the tale end of things.  This is quite easy to drink and would be a good choice for beginners to the scotch world to get their feet wet.  Some nice toasted oak notes too.

(Two drops water added) Wow!  A vanilla/toffee note really comes thru with the water.  That's  lovely.  The softness is quite nice and suits certain moods really well.  The water seems to bring some more creaminess thru.

Finish:
The finish is on the shorter side, as you'd expect from a whisky aged in bourbon casks, but is longer than other american oak aged whiskies I've had.  


This is a nice, friendly drink.  It would go well as an aperitif rather than a desert in my opinion.  This one isn't a total stunner but is lovely and soft and has a great profile for a warmer day or if you just want an easy-drinker that anyone can enjoy.  It stands out for its softness and you can be sure it won't offend anyone.  

Another thing I like about this whisky is that its very consistent.  The nose leads nicely into the palate which leads nicely to the finish.  I guess aging for 15 years can do some good things!

Saturday 1 June 2013

Bruichladdich Octomore 4.1 Review

Bruichladdich Octomore 4.1

Okay, I was toiling for a very long time over whether or not to plunk down the cash for one of Bruichladdich's monstrous-sounding Octomore whiskies.  Just ask Scotch Friend from work!  I finally did it and, man, what a totally outrageous experience this is!


Click to enlarge.
The mighty Octomore.  I tried to capture the spirit in the glass to show how pale it looks. Looks can be deceiving.

Color: pale straw.  Surprisingly pale given the huge 167ppm phenols this Octomore has (enlarge the picture to better see the whisky in the glass since I did such a cheap pour!).  

Nose: smoke and menthol on the nose.  Nose a little more and wow the smoke is quite sweet (maybe even gentle given the 62.5% alcohol).  As I continue to smell I almost get something like After-8 mints or Junior mints on the nose... chocolate and mint.   Walk away and come back and there is massive smoke and salt.  You can tell this is going to be a totally new experience!  Are there some dates on the nose?  Maybe.  As it continues to open we get swirling smoke and chocolate and caramel - smoke turns around caramel and chocolate and salt.  Wow!  Must taste.

Palate:  Like a creamy caramel candy with a freakin' monstrous smokey brushfire inside!  Wow! Serious heat there that goes right to the back of your neck and really warms. Taste more and there really is chocolate in there - sweet and creamy milk chocolate - like a Caramilk bar on fire!  ha ha!  This drink is an absolute peat bomb. A rocket. A monster!   However, so much complexity is there that is so nice.  Some salt in here too.  Surprisingly easy to drink for the 62.5% abv.!

(Add a few drops of water) - seems to get a bit of a lemon-lime note and the coastal salt air seems to come forward a bit more.  This whisky gives a real picture in my head.  The picture is of a salted caramel shell with a smokey peat bomb inside.

(Add a few more drops of water) - more water seems to take some of the punch away and soften the bomb affect to a lovely mix of the flavours described above.  Still really warming with heat on the finish.  Some ash in the finish.  Man, what a wicked dram for a humid, cold day like the one I am tasting this on!  The sweet-salty-smokey caramel leads in to a menthol-smoke.  Seems to get sweeter and less punchy with more and more water.  Gets creamier too.

Finish:  the finish keeps going and going and going as you keep chewing away.  Maybe the longest finishing whisky I've had.  Crazy that this is only 5 years old!  The finish goes from smokey with the other discussed flavours mixed in to a nice warm heat in your chest.  Of note was that I drank this in the late evening and was still tasting it when I was laying in bed.  That was a really good way to fall asleep!  

Last thoughts: This dram stands on its own as an amazing desert and just begs you to take a long time to sip and enjoy!  Its a real journey!  Truly like nothing else.  I think this is the most incredible drink I've ever had.  A game changer and totally worth the money.  A real experience.  What quality and artisanal care in this! 

Go and enjoy it.  This is how a person can spoil themselves!  

P.S.  I recall Jim Murray describing this one as "Choctomore" due to the big chocolate notes and I can agree with that.