Chivas Regal 21 yo Royal Salute
This is an old blend, Chivas launched this in 1953 in honour of Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation. The constituent malts are not known, except for the heart malt which is … Continue reading
Teaninch 30yo 1975/2006 Dewar Rattray Cask Collection cask 9419
Teaninich distillery is located in Alness, making it another Eastern Highlander. Built in 1817, the original 4 still distillery chugged along till 1970, when a new distillery with 6 stills … Continue reading
Glenugie 29yo 1977 Part des Anges ‘Closed Distilleries’ cask PDA 360
Glenugie. How rare! Glenugie was located in Peterhead, Aberdeenshire, putting it in the Highlands category. It was the most easterly distillery, today that title has moved 20 miles inland to … Continue reading
Arran 12 yo Cask Strength
It’s a strange time of the year. Decidedly undecided between 2 great big holidays, it’s a bit of a no man’s land between working off Christmas’ inertia plus related excesses, … Continue reading
Flavour wheels across beverages
First off, there’s really nothing I can do to top the research and study that went into this fantastic blog on flavour wheels. Besides whisky, I also enjoy fine teas … Continue reading
Caol Ila 12 yo OB
Caol Ila is a huge distillery, at 6 stills and 3.75 million litres of newmake a year. Most would know it as the blending beast feeding Diageo’s blends, but did … Continue reading
Scoring System
When I decided to start Whiskyrific, I believed that tasting notes and descriptors were sufficient to convey my interpretation of a whisky’s quality (and how much I liked it). I … Continue reading
St. Magdalene 26 yo 1982/2009 Chieftain’s cask 2219
St. Magdalene otherwise interchangeably known as Linlithgow, because it was located in the town of Linlithgow, but specifically on the grounds of the former St. Magdalene hospital for lepers. Here … Continue reading
Dailuaine 2002/2013, Gordon & Macphail, cask 7068
Here’s a distillery whose output goes primarily into blends – if you’ve had a Johnnie Walker, you’ve had Dailuaine. In terms of pure production capacity, Dailuaine is big. Churning out … Continue reading
Johnnie Walker Double Black
How ’bout a blend. as any person serious about whisky knows, Single Malts are not always better than blends – though I myself would rather be drinking a cheap cheap … Continue reading
Barrel finishing at home
A while ago I made a post on the DramFull Facebook group on some data I found on the Islay distilleries, that can be found here. A shorter while ago … Continue reading
Old Pulteney 17yo
One of the most strangely shaped bottles around, said to resemble the shape of the stills: Nose: Orange peel and beeswax. Wood polish. Mentholated, then sea water and fruit … Continue reading
Glenglassaugh 33yo, 1979
If a distillery could have a run of bad luck, Glenglassaugh certainly qualifies. Built 1875, but nearly silent between 1908 and 1960, and again after 1986. Purchased from the Edrington … Continue reading
Perfumery vs Whisky
I wonder if some lesson can be gleaned from the method of olfactory analysis used by the perfume industry. After all perfume is 70-80% methanol, whisky is 40-60ish% ethanol. Ahem, … Continue reading
PE5 ‘Elements of Islay’
Elements of Islay is a range by Specialty Drinks, the indie bottle line of Whisky Exchange*. Whether a result of marketing or contractual limitations, no distillery name is printed. Instead … Continue reading
Glendronach 12 vs Glenfarclas 15
Alright, so it’s not a fair fight. The Glenfarclas has 3 years over the Glendronach, but while the Glendronach is matured ‘in a combination’ of PX and olorosso sherry casks, … Continue reading
Glendronach Cask Strength ‘Batch 1’
Yum Glendronach.. bound to be good. Nose: Dusty cocoa powder, moist raisins, treacle, candied ginger. With water, more perfumed and floral. So much more than I can tell. Hey, grape … Continue reading
Pappy Van Winkle 20yo ‘Family Reserve’
Had a Japanese in an earlier posting, why not a bourbon tonight, lest this blog appears overly scotch-biased. Crowds of people queuing outisde Macallan for the Easter Elchies bottling? Meh, … Continue reading
Bruichladdich 15 yo ‘Links’ series, Birkdale, England
A smokeless whisky from Islay? Yup. Those familiar with Bruichladdich would know the story of it’s convalescence and revival, and the stock of old whisky ‘rescued’ by wood finishing in … Continue reading
Nikka Taketsuru 21 ‘Pure Malt’
Nikka Taketsuru 21 yo ‘Pure Malt’ Time for a Japanese treat. I don’t drink enough Japanese, but the quality is almost always great. Note for the nerds – Pure Malt … Continue reading
Brora 1981 23 yo ‘Unfiltered’ by La Maison Du Whisky cask no. 05/593
THE original Clynelish, till 1968 when an expansion next-door was completed. This new distillery became the Clynelish we know today, and the old distillery became known as Brora. Interestingly the … Continue reading
Balmenach 1988, 25 yo, Signatory Vintage
This is bottled for the Whisky Exchange, cask no. 1132, which yielded 187 bottles. That’s 130.9 out of 250 litres after 25 years, slightly over half full. Angels were thirsty … Continue reading
Peat
Peat, we hear about it all the time. Often used to describe whiskies with either an effusive joy that stems from true love, sprinkled with terms like ‘ppm’, ‘heavy’, ‘medicinal’, … Continue reading
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