We almost never publish straight
Press Releases on WF as they’re
all the same anyway, which was what
we wanted to (sort of) illustrate
with yesterday’s posting.
But we got caught at our own game
by the clever people at Duncan Taylor’s,
who were quick to test our little
template and to send this to us:
PRESS
RELEASE We are delighted
to be recognised by such a prestigious
publication as xyz weekly, which is
one of the most highly respected throughout
the world. The award is a fantastic
reflection of the fabulous work we
have been doing here within the company
since so many years in terms of innovation
and quality. It’s really a great
accolade to all of our long-service
craftsmen and employees and everybody
is truly excited here in Huntly.
We are even more delighted because
our new Black Bull 30yo Blend is the
quintessence of everything Duncan
Taylor stands for, which is making
the whisky of tomorrow for today’s
whisky lovers and with our past in
mind. Black Bull really is an exciting
new expression and it is already a
huge success among the most discerning
whisky enthusiasts.
To celebrate this tremendous achievement,
we are delighted to offer the opportunity
for one of our Duncan Taylor fans
to win a bottle of another of our
exciting new expressions, {errr we
don't do prizes that would involve
giving something away!}, that has
been finished for many weeks in high-end
first fill Château {err we haven't
found a chateau in Huntly yet} barrels
and bottled without chillfiltration.
To participate, please go to our successful
new website www.blackbullwhisky.com. END
Whaaaah,
that’ll teach us!
TASTING
TWO ‘FOREIGN’
ODDITIES
45
South (42.3%, OB, Lammerlaw, New Zealand,
Blend, 1980s)
A rare blend by the now defunct Lammerlaw
Distillery in Dunedin. I’ve
read that 45 South was never successful
and that new owners Seagram had discontinued
it… even before they closed
down the distillery. Colour: pale
gold. Nose: extremely unusual with
its huge whiffs of pine resin, Ricola
lozenges and wet paint coating notes
of cranberry juice and tamarind (I’m
not joking, why would I?) Even more
unusual: notes of tomato sauce! And
what’s even funnier is that
all that is rather nice, but as often,
the devil may hide on the palate…
Mouth: no, this is not bad at all,
just totally unusual again. These
very resinous notes are well there,
but the fruitiness is different from
the nose, that is to say much more
on orange squash. Hints of ginger
and maraschino, going well with the
pine resin. It’s not bad stuff!
Finish: rather long, still half-fruity,
half-resinous. Like if you put orange
drops and cough drops at the same
time into your mouth. Comments: a
good surprise considering it’s
a blend but alas, this is now totally
unobtainable. Hey, could it be that
this was the All Blacks’ secret
weapon?… SGP:731 - 78
points.
Reisetbauer
7 yo 1997 (56%, OB, Austria, Chardonnay
and TBA finish)
TBA means Trockenbeerenauslese (not
To Be Absorbed.) This is a bottle
of single malt whisky that I bought
in Vienna, under the abashed look
of some Austrian friends. It seems
that Reisetbauer make some great eau-de-vie,
but also that they used their eau-de-vie
stills to make this whisky. Vorsicht,
that NEVER really works, it would
be too easy… Colour: straw.
Nose: a rather feinty spirit, all
on porridge, muesli and baker’s
yeast premixed with sweet wine. Maybe
noble rot, maybe not – let’s
not try to be smart. Very discreet
hints of baby puke (not the kind of
baby one would spot in Sturgis during
the Harley-Davidson gathering!) Actually,
this isn’t unpleasant at all
but very far from ‘malt whisky’
as we know it, especially from Scotland
(having said that, at the rate things
are going over there…) Mouth:
once again, this isn’t bad at
all but we’re even farer from
whisky. Actually, this tastes like
a grappa – and a rather good
one. Now, this isn’t Grappafun.com,
is it? Finish: indeed, this is heavily
finished. Long, on sweet wine and
grappa (something muscatty.) I remember
having had a chardonnay grappa in
Italy that tasted exactly like this.
Comments: not bad at all, but wrong
labelling, hence wrong shelves. This
isn’t whisky. SGP:620
– 65 points.
MUSIC
– Recommended
listening: granted, this is no happy
music but I like it more than Philip
Glass, if you see what I mean. It's
multi-instrumentalist Richard
Skelton doing Fold.
Please buy Philip Skelton's music...
WF
Statistics - update.
Some happy fellows have been mildly
(and madly) questionning the figures
that we announced on March 1, as well
as Alexa's all-relative reliability
(righfully so in our view). No big
deal of course but for number crunchers
only, here's a screen
capture of our current statistcs.
We couldn't be more transparent, could
we?
March
13, 2009
NEW!
FREE!
WHISKYFUN
INSTANT HELP
(TO OUR FRIENDS IN THE WHISKY INDUSTRY)
Did
you just win an award from a magazine,
website or any kind of known or
unknown organisation but are too
busy dealing with the new whisky
loch and have no time to write a
PR piece, speech or edvertisement?
No worries, here's a free template
that you may simply copy and paste
and then customise as you see fit.
<START
HERE> We are delighted
to be recognised by such a prestigious
publication as {name of organisation
- please double check spelling},
which is one of the most highly respected
throughout the world. The award is
a fantastic reflection of the fabulous
work we have been doing here within
the company since so many years in
terms of innovation and quality. It’s
really a great accolade to all of
our long-service craftsmen and employees
and everybody is truly excited here
in {name of town}.
We are even more delighted because
our new {name of whisky}
is the quintessence of everything
{name of company}
stands for, which is making the whisky
of tomorrow for today’s whisky
lovers and with our past in mind.
{name of whisky}
really is an exciting new expression
and it is already a huge success among
the most discerning whisky enthusiasts.
To celebrate this tremendous achievement,
we are delighted to offer the opportunity
for one of our {name of company}
fans to win a bottle of another of
our exciting new expressions, {name
of other whisky}*, that has
been finished for many weeks in high-end
first fill Château {name
of château - please double
check spelling} barrels
and bottled without chillfiltration.
To participate, please go to our successful
new website www. {name of
company}.com. * We’re sorry, we cannot
disclose its age but there is some
very old whisky in it. <END
HERE>
TASTING
TWO
TOBERMORY for Germany
Tobermory
13 yo 1995/2008 (51.3%, Alambic Classique,
Jamaica rum cask finish, cask #810242,
249 bottles)
Finished for ten months in rum casks
from Monymusk Distillery. Colour:
pale gold. Nose: powerful and rather
spirity, with the rummy notes to the
front but also quite some kirsch and
plum spirit plus hints of ginger and
faint notes of rubber (rather bands
than tyres). Slightly buttery as well.
We’re rather far from ‘malt
whisky’ here, not that it’s
unpleasant mind you. With water: a
little more rubber (but we’re
below the limit) plus added notes
of cider as well as a little liquorice.
Mouth (neat): punchy, with even more
rum and a pleasant sweetness (cane
sugar syrup). I like this palate better
than the nose, even if the kirschy
notes remain. With water: even sweeter
and sugary (brown sugar) with hints
of coffee liqueur. Not complicated
but pleasant. Finish: medium long,
more on cane sugar again. Comments:
the rum does not dominate here, and
brings a nice sweetness to the whisky.
SGP:531 - 80 points.
Tobermory
35 yo 1972/2008 (49.4%, Whisky Doris,
First fill dark sherry, 191 bottles)
Colour: mahogany with shades of bronze.
Nose: a heavy sherry it seems but
the profile is rather different from
the usual sherry monsters. Starts
on a lot of chocolate, leather and
game (well-hung pheasant ;-)) and
develops on huge notes of balsamic
vinegar and old pu-erh tea plus thyme
and rosemary. Superbly dry and very
aromatic – no fruits! With water:
huge notes of leather and mega-huge
notes of smoked bacon, pretty impressive!
Mouth (neat): very rich and a little
fruitier than on the nose (a lot of
orange marmalade), with also much
more old oak and hints of ‘dirty
peat’ that remind me of some
Ledaigs (quirkiness included.) Gets
then very meaty/sweet and sour (beef
jerky.) Very good and entertaining.
With water: more nice bitterness and
dryness, with a great rancio and notes
of yellow/flor. Finish: long and still
very meaty and leathery. Comments:
if you like ultra-dry sherry you’ll
adore this. SGP:263 –
90 points.
MUSIC
– Recommended
listening: don't we all need some
positive music these days? So let's
have the good ol' Florian Fricke
and Popol
Vuh's short Morgengruss
2 and... Aren't we in a better
mood? Please buy Popol Vuh's music...
March
12, 2009
PETE
McPEAT AND JACK WASHBACK
TASTING
– THREE BLAIR ATHOL
Blair
Athol 1974/2007 (46%, Berry Bros &
Rudd, cask #8818)
Colour: amber. Nose: a sherry of very
high quality! Big whiffs of squeezed
Seville oranges and marzipan, then
more woody tones including cigar box,
‘nice’ varnish and old
walnuts. Goes on on liquor-soaked
cherries (make that guignolet –
or wild cherry liqueur) and caramelised
poached pears, with finally a little
milk chocolate and cappuccino. Oh,
and hints of fried Swiss cheese (or
comté) – not gym socks,
min you! Pretty perfect! Mouth: excellent
attack, smooth but firm, on, well,
Irish coffee. A lot of figs, quinces
and dates, then liqueur-filled chocolate,
plum jam, chestnut purée, then
more chocolate (dark this time), espresso…
Gets bigger and bigger, and beautifully
drier. Excellent whisky with a long
and very entertaining development.
Finish: medium-long but fabulously
chocolaty. Comments: another great
cask selection by Mr McIvor and the
BBR team. Recommended – I think
it’s still possible to get this
one. SGP:552 - 90 points.
Blair
Athol 18 yo '200 years' (56.7%, OB,
bottled 1998)
Bottled by the owners for the bicentenary
of the distillery. Colour: full gold.
Nose: very strange… that they
would have bottled this as a commemorative
item. Indeed, it’s rather dry
malt, slightly metallic, slightly
soapy and slightly meaty, developing
on very organic touches such as cooked
mushrooms, game, leather grease and
dark tobacco (Gitanes). It’s
not that it isn’t nice, it’s
just very ‘unconventional’
so to speak. With water: it got immensely
grassy and farmy (manure). More leather
grease (or Barbour grease) too. Interesting
but weird. Mouth (neat): once again,
this is very unusual, metallic and
spirity (kirsch). The sherry’s
a bit odd, a little too vinous in
our opinion. With water: ah, it’s
a little better now but still disconcerting,
raw and polished at the same time
(raw kirsch – fruit liqueurs.)
Tangerine syrup, roasted chestnuts.
Finish: long, still on eaux-de-vie
and liqueurs plus chocolate and always
these metallic notes than remind us
of old silver forks. Comments: what
to say? It’s not bad at all
but, as I already wrote, disconcerting.
SGP:451 - 79 points.
Blair
Athol 24 yo 1975 (57.5%, Kingsbury,
Hogshead, cask #13847, 112 bottles)
Colour: gold. Nose:
all I can say is that I never nosed
a whisky that came even close to this
one. It’s big and extremely
almondy and grassy at first nosing,
with even whiffs of exhaust pipes
(a motorcycle’s of course) and
fresh putty. Gets then a little closer
to the OB, with the same kind of meaty/organic
notes and then we finally get tons
of lemons and tangerines. Unusual
for sure. With water: wowie! That
worked beautifully, as we now have
a full basket of various citrus fruits
under our nose. You don’t need
a list, do you! Mouth (neat): it’s
got a bit of the OB’s strangeness
but it’s rather straighter this
time, fruity and candied (orange marmalade)
but with the same kind of spirity
notes when undiluted (raw eau-de-vie,
kirsch). With water: it’s not
quite as big a miracle as on the nose
with water but the added spicy and
herbal notes go very well with the
orangey notes. Finish: long, cleaner,
on fresh oranges and a little pepper
and cardamom. Comments: another unusual
whisky, a tad hard to assess, but
it really gets great with water. SGP:551
- 88 points.
And
also Craig
Athol 12 yo (43%, Atholl Distilleries,
Pitlochry, Blend, 1970s)
Colour: pale gold. Nose: smooth,
easy-going but characterful, with
notes of almonds and crystallised
tangerines that we already had in
the malts. Superb whiffs of honeydew
arise, as well as freshly baked baklavas,
orange blossom water and mega-huge
notes of beeswax. It is superb! Unexpected
medicinal notes coming through after
fifteen minutes (antiseptic.) Mouth:
superb! It’s not unlike and
old Sauternes actually – and
I’m not joking. Apricots, mint
drops, faint smokiness, liquorice,
quince jelly, hints of coriander,
orange marmalade… And a very
oily mouth feel. Finish: medium long
and still creamy and fabulously orangey
and Sauternes-ish (!) Comments: there
shouldn’t be much grain whisky
in there – probably none actually.
It’s a magnificent drop nonetheless,
and I hope the blender who composed
this has his statue somewhere north
of Hadrian’s wall. SGP:642
- 89 points.
MUSIC
– Recommended
listening: the delicious Sara
Gazarek singing Let's
Try This Again (from her CD
'Return To You'.) Jazz, whether
straight ahead or more progressive,
will save this world! Please buy
Sara Gazarek's music.
March
11, 2009
CONCERT
REVIEW by Nick Morgan
COLIN BLUNSTONE
The
100 Club, London, February 20th
2009
Colin
Blunstone, you may remember,
was lead singer with sixties outfit,
The Zombies, whose 1968 album, the
famously mis-spelt Odessey and Oracle,
is now widely regarded as a masterpiece
of pop from that decade.
The
band had already disbanded when it
was released, with Blunstone working
in an insurance office when the ‘phone
started to ring with offers of a solo
career when ‘She’s not
there’, a single from the album,
went into the top five of the Billboard
charts. He re-recorded ‘She’s
not there’ under the pseudonym
of Neil MacArthur (I have a copy somewhere
on a piece of forgotten vinyl) before
embarking on a successful stint as
a solo artist with hits like ‘Caroline
goodbye’ and ‘Say you
don’t mind’. As his solo
career waned, Blunstone joined the
Alan Parsons Project, eventually returning
to touring and recording with fellow
Zombie Rod
Argent. Along with Argent and
the two other surviving members, the
Zombies (guitarist Paul Atkinson died
in 2004, and was replaced by Keith
Airey) performed their magnum
opus last year at the Shepherd’s
Bush Empire (spawning a live recording)
and are touring a small number of
venues later this year, presenting
O & O “for
the very last time”. Perhaps
buoyed by the interest this has engendered,
Blunstone is back with a new solo
album, The Ghost of You and Me, and
a short tour of the United Kingdom.
Colin Blunstone
There
may be a recession, but outside it’s
London on a busy Friday night. We
only just managed to get seated for
our Keralan dinner (thanks heavens,
no more fish and chips for a while),
and the 100 Club is pretty full. It’s
a wonderfully mixed audience. Diehard
Blunstone fans (mostly female, mostly
over 55) have staked out their spots
right at the front of the stage –
their partners (mostly male, mostly
bald, mostly over 60) have got the
bar under siege. But there are some
families here too (less Dads and Lads
than Mums and Daughters), and some
young folks who’ve come along
to see a legend at close quarters.
And it is close. Blunstone has never
played here before, and I’m
not sure how unnerved he is by the
proximity of his admires, all only
an arm’s length away. I heard
him interviewed on the radio by chance
and he explained that as his dancing
skills were limited he was under orders
from his family to keep his arms by
his sides and not to move under any
circumstances. This then explains
the rather awkward figure he can cut
(a figure that is bulging slightly
over a tightly buttoned pair of trousers,
I observe). He certainly sounds relaxed
enough when he speaks – pleasant,
in fact quite charming, and certainly
self-demeaning.
Predictably,
the evening mixes old material with
new, most of which manages to sound
pretty much like the old stuff, or,
I was just thinking, the aural equivalent
of a comfortable pair of old bedroom
slippers. And he mixes this with a
broad sweep of his back catalogue:
there’s the Zombies/MacArthur
‘She’s not there’,
and ‘Caroline goodbye’,
‘Say you don’t mind’
and ‘Misty roses’ from
his first solo album One Year. ‘What
becomes of the broken hearted’
was a Zombies favourite cover, which
he subsequently recorded with Eurythmic
Dave Stewart. Then there’s a
clutch of songs from his other seventies
albums, Alan Parson’s Project’s
‘Old and wise’, ‘Turn
your head around’, recorded
with Keats (a short-lived post-Parsons
venture) and Oxygen from his 1995
album Echo Bridge. I have to say it
all sounds a bit the same –
but that’s not a criticism,
rather a tribute to the impact of
Blunstone’s voice, which is
so distinctive as to define almost
anything he sings. It’s not
entirely flattered by the sound system
of the 100 Club, and his surprisingly
rocking band (driven on largely by
the highly accomplished Airey) mean
that occasionally he has to fight
to be heard. But it’s still
a masterful performance, and seeing
him work at such close quarters demonstrates
the real concentration and effort
he puts into his singing, with nothing
left to chance.
The fans are delighted – some
transfixed for the whole performance.
The guys at the bar, their football
talk occasionally hushed by the disapproving
crowd, are several pints of pretty
decent beer for the better. And the
curious no doubt more than satisfied.
Personally I’d find it hard
to give a Blunstone album any room
amongst my CDs or downloads, but as
a live performer he’s difficult
to resist. - Nick Morgan (concert
photographs by Kate)
Balvenie
15 yo 1985/2001 'Single Barrel' (50.4%,
OB)
All these ’15-SB’ were
bottled at 50.4% until 2002, and then
at 47.8% ABV up to current times.
No natural cask strength of course
– and big savings I guess…
Colour: pale straw. Nose: rather raw
and spirity, without Balvenie’s
usual roundness and über-fruitiness.
A little grass, vanilla, banana skin,
baker’s yeast (or lager beer)
and oak sawdust. Very austere, let’s
see whether water will help or not.
With water: it doesn’t get any
less austere, rather grassier and
kind of mineral. Notes of paraffin.
Actually, I like it like that. Mouth
(neat): completely different from
on the nose here, much fruitier even
if still simple. Apricot jam, plums
and ripe apples coated with vanilla
crème and a little lemon spritz.
Some grassiness too (walnut skin,
apple peeling.) With water: same,
no further development. Finish: medium
long, all on apples, tea and oak.
Comments: it had its moments but it
really lacked Balvenie’s usual
playfulness that we like so much.
SGP:261 – 78 points.
Balvenie-Glenlivet
'As we get it' (108.6°proof, Macfarlane
Bruce and Co. Ltd, early 1970s)
This independent version was rather
popular thirty years ago, it came
in various ABVs. I think the ‘as
we get it’ wording has been
used by various companies and these
days Ian McLeod carry the ball. Colour:
white wine. Nose: very raw, sharp,
extremely spirity and rather tea-ish
but water is probably obligatory here.
With water: ho-ho, this is great!
Really in the ‘old Highlands
style’ in my view, that is to
say mildly smoky, waxy, sooty and
farmy. More and more smoke and whiffs
of wet hay. Mouth (neat): sure it’s
extremely powerful but it’s
also very good now, very sweet, fruity,
pleasantly bubblegummy, with a lot
of white peaches and strawberries.
Probably very young but it has big
charms. With water: just like on the
nose, water really makes wonders,
exactly in the same way. That is to
say more wax, resin, leafiness, smokiness,
herbs (dill?), peat… Finish:
long, back on strawberries. Comments:
probably very young but very good.
These old young whiskies arevery rare
at such high strength so I believe
these bottles are unique opportunities
to try malt whisky as it used to be
made fifty years ago, whilst not much
bottle ageing may have occurred, thanks
to the 60+% vol. SGP:572 –
88 points.
March
10, 2009
CONCERT
REVIEW by Nick Morgan
ROBYN HITCHCOCK AND
HIS FRIENDS
The Union Chapel, Islington, London,
February 12th 2009
It’s
almost Spring, or so it seems. From
snow to sunshine. Shining daffodils
on the kitchen table. And outside
my window at night the persistent
twittering of insomniac birds. What
are they saying? Are they discussing
the meaning of life or simply swapping
self-absorbed semaphore at a volume
that others can’t escape? I
can’t really say and frankly
don’t care. I’m contemplating,
full of remorse. Well, that might
be a slight overstatement, but not
for the first time I have to admit
that here’s an artist who has
passed me by for many years, simply
a name on a shelf-divider or a listings
page. On the basis of this performance,
I can confirm that this is something
I deeply regret.
We
saw Robyn
Hitchcock deliver an
uncertain and unremarkable contribution
to last year’s Rogues Gallery
show, but something sparked my curiosity.
Was it the garish shirt, the almost-Nick
Lowe haircut, or the easy-hanging
Stratocaster? I’m not sure which,
but either way we jumped at these
tickets, even if it did mean yet another
trek across snowbound London and another
visit (two within a week) to the you-know-where
for a plateful of you-know-what, and
a nice cup of tea. The lovely yet
chilly Union Chapel is maybe only
about two-thirds full, but yet again
it’s clear that we’ve
come to a church that’s full
of believers, with high expectations
of some sort of spiritual enlightenment.
It
began with Hitchcock’s shirt,
black and white spots that almost
exactly matched the design on his
Buddy Guy Stratocaster.
Robyn Hitchcock
The
slight sense of disorientation that
this caused as the guitar moved was
nothing compared with the effect of
Hitchcock’s spoken contributions,
delivered in the theatrical style
of an Edwardian actor-manager. Occasionally
cleverly-constructed song introductions,
sometimes simply surreal observation.
Some of it just twitter. It polarised
the audience. Some looked bewildered,
if not a tad embarrassed. Others –
the majority, I’m glad to say
- laughed. Frantically. At one point,
during a particularly lengthy and
obtuse introduction to the wonderful
‘NASA clapping’ the Photographer
was in tears, something normally only
achieved by comedian Ken Dodd at his
bizarre best. It demanded huge powers
of concentration just to keep up with
Hitchcock’s musings, let alone
the fifteen or so songs, all pretty
strong material, including a few from
his new album Goodnight Oslo, recorded
with his sometime band the Venus 3
(featuring, it is mandatory to note,
REM guitarist Peter Buck). If you
don’t know, Hitchcock has been
recording since 1976, first with The
Soft Boys, then, in between solo work,
with the Egyptians and more latterly
the Venus 3. He’s recorded more
albums and accumulated more re-releases
and retrospective box sets as he’s
moved record company, than most of
us have eaten, well, plates of fish
and chips. So it’s hard to know
where to start, although Goodnight
Oslo certainly won’t disappoint.
Tonight’s
band features long-time collaborator
Paul Noble on bass, Rob
Ellis on drums and Jenny Adejayan
on cello. Hitchcock divided his time
between acoustic and electric guitars.
On the latter he achieves, with the
aid of an array of pedals and a quite
unusual technique, a distinctive droning
tone that fits marvellously with the
cello to produce a sound that sits
somewhere in time and texture between
the Beatles’ Revolver and Sergeant
Pepper.
It’s slightly psychedelic, and
infused with a very attuned late sixties
pop sensibility. At its most extreme,
it falls into the infectious pop-pastiche
of ‘Saturday Groovers’
from the new album. But the material
is so diverse in tone and content
that the sound never becomes repetitive
or overbearing. As a writer Hitchcock
falls into that school often dubbed,
and almost dismissed, as ‘English
eccentric’, a phrase that tends
to devalue. He’s a great fan
of Syd Barrett (they even share
a discussion
group, and he recently recorded
a tribute gig to Barrett in a London
pub) but if you listen carefully you
can see that he draws his influences
far more widely than from one person.
And specific song titles speak for
themselves and for the tone of the
evening: ‘I’ve got the
hots’, ‘Sinister but she
was happy’, ‘You and oblivion’,
‘The museum of sex,’ ‘Sounds
great when you’re dead’.
Hitchcock ended with the title track
from the new album, derived from a
few days that he and Maurice Windsor
(drummer with the Soft Boys) spent
in Oslo twenty years ago under the
influence of Norwegian amphetamines,
an experience from which, he tells
us, he has yet to fully emerge. Now
that might explain something.
It’s
a fantastic and enlightening show,
in every sense, evidenced by the excited
chatter of the audience as they leave.
I can only urge you to go and see
Mr Hitchcock if you get the chance
– he’ll be touring the
States with the Venus 3 in April -
and maybe dip your toes into his extensive
discography, which is what I’ve
been doing. And as we left the Union
Chapel it’s snowing again, putting
Spring on hold for few more weeks,
but I know that somewhere in the distance
those birds will still be twittering.
- Nick Morgan (concert photographs
by Kate)
Suntory On The Rocks Whisky (12%,
OB, Japan, 225ml)
As you may imagine, this one was already
the subject of many questions within
maniacal circles! Can it be ‘whisky’
at only 12% vol.? Was it designed
to compete with wine? Sake? We’ve
also seen a clear version at 25%...
Anyway, this is/was only available
in Japan. Colour: pale gold. Nose:
almost none, not unlike plain tap
water. Distant whiffs of new plastic,
cooked asparagus and metal polish.
New polyester sweater? Very, very
discreet, this was probably never
designed to be ‘nosed’.
After a few minutes: hints of cider,
getting a little nicer. Mouth: highly
diluted whisky and that’s all.
It’s not bad at all, mind you,
but much lighter than wine and maybe
even than most beers (okay, not American
Budweiser). Very little flavours.
Finish: pardon? Comments: right, this
isn’t bad actually, just not
something for whisky drinkers (nor
beer drinkers, wine drinkers, sake/
Nihonshu drinkers…) Probably
quite drinkable on a lot of ice in
the middle of Japanese summer. SGP:120
- 50 points (not to be taken
seriously). Update:
you may also read Johannes' comments
in his latest edition of his 'liquid
blog', the father of all whisky
blogs as he started it in January
1997 - and still the best in my opinion.
By far!
McDowell’s
N°1 Diet Mate (42.8%, OB, India,
bottled 2007)
‘Blended with Scotch and select
Indian malts.’ Marketing blurb:
‘The smoothness of a reserve
whisky is combined with the goodness
of Garcenia - an ancient Indian herb,
which has the rare ability to burn
excess fat and control cholesterol
levels in the human body. Targeted
at the health & fitness-conscious
drinker.’ Hey hey, that’s
exactly me! Colour: pale gold. Nose:
oh! Que gran horror! Plain wood alcohol,
caramel and… and… well,
nothing. Where’s this Garcenia
thing? Maybe these faint whiffs of
sunburnt geranium? Mouth: much nicer
than on the nose at first sipping
but gets then sort of dirty and imprecise,
with notes of raw alcohol and a lot
of caramel. Any Scottish blend is
better than this. Finish: quite long,
actually, but kind of liqueurish (cane
syrup). Weird cloying aftertaste,
overly sweet. Comments: what’s
sure is that just by not being able
to swallow this rather horrible ‘whisky’,
drinkers should lose weight indeed.
Clever, innit! Now, chilled down to
5°C… Oh, and we’ve
taken the time to read the small prints
on the bottle (looking for an apology
;-)) and there were these rather scary
bits: ‘Manufactured by Baramati
Grape Industries Ltd, Pimpali, Maharashtra
under technical knowhow from McDowell
& Company Limited – For
sale in Maharashtra State only.’
Licensed distilling… even cleverer!
SGP:320 - 15 points.
PS: we love India and the Indian people!
PPS: we had a look at Garcinia on
the Web and here’s what Wikipedia
says: ‘Aka Mangosteen. Often
contained in appetite suppressants
such as Hydroxycut, Leptoprin or XanGo,
but their effectiveness at normal
consumption levels is unproven. They
may contain significant amounts of
hydroxycitric acid, which is somewhat
toxic and might even destroy the testicles
after prolonged use.' Aaaargh!!!
March
9, 2009
TASTING
– SIX 1982 CAOL ILA
Caol
Ila 1982/2007 (46%, G&M for Royal
Mile Whiskies, cask #694, 264 bottles)
From a refill sherry hogshead.
Colour: straw. Nose: starts fresh
and clean but gets soon a tad buttery
and porridgy, albeit not excessively
so. Hints of lemon drops and tonic
water, seawater and sour fruits (apples).
Mouth: good sweet attack with a little
salt upfront, then more overripe apples,
pepper and a faint yeastiness. Still
clean and compact, nicer than on the
nose in our opinion. Finish: long,
sweet, peaty and peppery. Comments:
good Caol Ila - that won’t make
you scratch your head - but there
are so many excellent Caol Ilas around
these days! Rather an easy drinking
one. SGP:446 – 83 points.
Caol
Ila 26 yo 1982/2008 (54.6%, Duncan
Taylor for The Nectar, cask #2738,
279 bottles)
Colour: straw. Nose: this is an ashier
and more mineral Caol Ila, cleaner
and zestier. Superb notes of smoked
ham, lemon juice, white chocolate
and oysters. With water: wet hay and
wet dogs galore (sorry, dogs). Wool,
whisky-sprinkled porridge. Definitely
wild. Mouth (neat): big, crisp, ultra-lemony
and peaty, a huge presence. Less gentle
than most Caol Ilas! With water: superbly
candied, salty, smoky, phenolic and
resinous. It really took off. Finish:
long, on almonds, quince, peat and
lemon marmalade. Comments: absolutely
excellent (second tasting, first was
blind, score unchanged.) SGP:447
– 89 points.
Caol
Ila 25 yo 1982/2007 (54.7%, The Single
Malts of Scotland, cask #127, 244
bottles)
Colour: straw. Nose: same quality
as the DT for The Nectar but a tad
thicker and rounder, with much more
vanilla, nougat and butterscotch.
With water: a little more lemony and
phenolic. Patchouli, infused tea.
Just a tad less farmy than the DT/Nectar.
Mouth (neat): almost the same as the
DT/Nectar at this point. Huge, compact
and pleasantly invading. With water:
indeed, same as cask #2738. Maybe
a little more ginger. Finish: same.
Comments: same. SGP:447 –
89 points.
Caol
Ila 26 yo 1982/2008 (55.2%, Duncan
Taylor, Germany exclusive, cask #2733)
Colour: straw. Nose: we’re closer
to the ‘Nectar’ again,
just a tad more on oranges than on
lemons. Maybe a tad fatter in fact,
but the quality level is the same,
that is to say very high. With water:
frankly different from the other ones
now, much more smoky/ tarry. Kerosene,
‘fisherman’s boat’.
Mouth (neat): same as both previous
ones. Big peat and citrus fruits.
With water: same as the others. Finish:
ditto. Comments: ditto. Maybe a tad
more resinous. SGP:447 –
89 points.
Caol
Ila 26 yo 1982/2008 (55.4%, Duncan
Taylor Rare Auld, cask #2736)
Colour: straw. Nose: another little
step towards a bigger fruitiness and
maybe a little camphor. Other than
that we’re in the same league
once again. With water: a farmy one
again (you know, dogs, hay and so
on.) Very close to the DT/Nectar now
– and no more camphor. Superb
smokiness I must say. Mouth (neat):
once again, this is very similar to
all the CS 1982s we just had. The
alcohol is too high to get nuances
anyway! With water: no nuances, it’s
more or less the same whisky. Maybe
just a little more pepper. Finish:
right-o. Comments: yes. SGP:447
– 89 points.
Caol
Ila 25 yo 1982/2007 (57.9%, Adelphi,
cask #685, 225 bottles)
Colour: straw. Nose: we’re rather
more in the SMOS’ style again
here, with more vanilla and nougat
but also the same kind of buttery
notes as in the G&M. Sour cream
and apples. The farmier of them all
in fact (wet hay.) With water: it
did not change, unlike all the other
ones. Maybe a little camphor? The
shiest so far. Mouth (neat): just
as big s the others, maybe a tad more
citric. Lime juice. With water: oh
no, once again, this is almost the
same whisky on the palate, whether
reduced or not. Maybe a tad spicier.
Finish: indeed, a little longer and
spicier ala Talisker. Comments: excellent
on the palate but this one lost points
on the nose. SGP:347 –
86 points.
Conclusion:
all these Caol Ilas were very good
or excellent, even if maybe not as
magical as a great Ardbeg, Lagavulin
or Laphroaig of the same age. Now,
we did a quick vatting of all six
and believe it or not, it’s
fairly more complex. Funnily, added
notes of roasted nuts and camphor
came out. Why?
PETE
McPEAT AND JACK WASHBACK
MUSIC
– Recommended
listening: we're in 1977 and here's
another totally wonderful song by
Gil
Scott-Heron (with Brian
Jackson) called We
almost lost Detroit. Yes, more
than 30 years ago... Please buy
these masters' music.
March
7, 2009
Muhahahaha!
Another proof that with the Web 2.0/social/whatever,
everybody's really an expert - or
has a good sense of second degree
humour! (via Twitter -> Islayblog.com
- see, it works!)
March
6, 2009
TASTING
– STRATHISLA WITH A GAP OF
30 YEARS
Strathisla
1997/2008 (43%, Jean Boyer, Best Casks
of Scotland, 810 bottles)
From re-coopered hogshead. Mastermind
Jean Marie Kovacs seeks purity and
fruitiness in his young whiskies and
I must say he usually succeeds beautifully.
Colour: white wine. Nose: indeed,
this noses very well, being all on
pear juice and muesli as well as fresh
almonds. Very fresh and ultra-clean,
uncomplicated an calling for…
Summer! (and maybe a few ice cubes.)
Mouth: fresh, fruity, youngish but
clean and full-bodied, with notes
of pears, bubblegum and vanilla custard
plus cornflakes and a little strawberry
jam. State of the art young Speysider
with little direct wood influence,
well in the style of the series as
far as young whiskies are concerned.
Finish: medium long but ultra-clean,
fruity and playful. Comments: I’ll
keep a few drops of this one and take
it as a summer aperitif, should be
perfect! SGP:721 – 80
points.
Strathisla
41 yo 1967/2008 (48.3%, Duncan Taylor
Rare Auld, cask #2721)
We’ve already had quite a few
casks of Strathisla 1967 by DT and
all have ranged from frankly good
to excellent, depending on the oakiness
of each cask. The spirit itself is
always great! Colour: pure gold. Nose:
can one notice any resemblance between
a 1997 and a 1967 that were just bottled
(hence not subject to OBE)? It’s
rather hard to tell… Sure the
pears are well here but they’re
rather dried pears in the old one.
What’s sure is that this shows
how age is important to whisky, as
no quick modern sped-up malt will
ever nose like this old Strathisla!
Superb fruits, plum jam, ripe apricots,
pistachio nougat, dried lychees and
some beautifully soft spices. Mulberries.
Superb, with just whiffs of sawdust.
Mouth: phew, no striking oakiness
so this one will probably be an excellent
one. Indeed, it starts on some playful
fruity notes (quinces, crystallised
lemons, apricots) and unfolds on more
crystallised fruits and all things
resinous (cough syrup, eucalyptus
sweets, menthol, you name it.) The
spiciness is soft and rounded and
the oak plays it smooth and caressing
(cut the crap, will you!) Finish:
long, still creamy and candied, with
a little more spices and pepper/nutmeg/cinnamon.
Comments: excellent, just excellent
but warning, it’s another one
that’s very (too?) drinkable…
SGP:651 - 91 points.
Strathisla
41 yo 1967/2008 (48%, Duncan Taylor
Rare Auld for Germany, cask #2718)
Colour: full gold. Nose: a shier version
of cask #2721, less emphatically fruity
but also a tad more resinous and much
more rummy. Rather big notes of cane
sugar, tobacco and even hints of fresh
mushrooms. Both casks start to converge
but only after a few minutes…
And after fifteen minutes both smell
just the same! Very faint whiffs of
varnish in this one. Mouth: frankly,
it’s the same whisky as cask
#2721 on the palate. Maybe this one
is just a tad harsher and a tad less
polished (yeah, right). A little more
fruits, a little more oak, a little
less roundness/creaminess. Finish:
similar, with maybe a little more
pepper. Comments: same standard, same
high quality, same rating of course.
SGP:652 – 91 points.
(and thank you, Herbert).
MUSIC
– Recommended
listening: right, Light
my fire but this time it's Dame
Shirley
Bassey's Jamesbondesque
1970 version. Anthemic, as they
say. Please buy Shirley Bassey's
music...
March
5, 2009
CONCERT
REVIEW by Nick Morgan
FAIRPORT CONVENTION
Union Chapel, Islington, London
February
7th 2009
I
have decided, Serge, that for many
enthusiasts, watching Fairport
Convention is a bit like
stamp collecting. Not that there’s
anything wrong with the most popular
hobby in the world, a pastime fit
for pauper or even premier. It just
seems to me that it might be a tad
backward-looking, a touch retrospective
rather than futuristic, or head-in-the-sand
rather than head-in-the-clouds.
Something
that might be considered to turn Great
Men of Deeds into country postmasters,
fussily rearranging forgotten jars
of jam and marmalade on dusty shelves.
Look, for example, at the way Fairport
obsessives dissect the minutiae of
every tour: “What’s the
set list going to be this winter?”,
“Will this Autumn’s T-shirt
be as awesome as the Cropredy one
from the year before last?”,
“Did anyone notice Ric’s
hat?”, “How grumpy was
Simon Nicol?”. These and other
questions of mind-numbing irrelevance
dominate the virtual
Fairport firmament, where hordes
of soon-to-be ex-public service workers
share their fanatical, almost philatelic,
infatuations with like-minded souls;
clearly their other point in common
is having far too much time on their
hands. It’s as if all they’re
really interested in is finding that
rare and unimagined imperfection,
something that no one else can possibly
have. Rather like John Fowles’
Collector. Spooky.
Left
to right: Dave Pegg, Ric Sanders,
Chris Leslie.
It
is a shame, since going to see the
Fairports is still rather fun (as
it should be) and especially with
Jozzer, who may know a little too
much about them for his own good:
I’m told he goes to sleep humming
‘Matty Groves’ . But his
maniacal ranting (“did you know
that Dave Swarbrick once played ‘Rosie’
in Leicester’s De Montfort Hall
with a bucket full of cigarette ends
on his head?”) has been dulled
by a vast plateful of Rock Salmon
and Chips at the you-know-where, washed
down with a handy bottle of something
blanc from the hugely un-customer-centered
Budgens store down the road (just
past the famous Hope and Anchor).
So he’s perched on his church
pew, gently dozing with head resting
on Trizza’s shoulder, while
I’m left taking notes nowhere
near as copious or detailed as those
of almost everyone else in the place.
But
I simply recorded a few facts. The
show was opened by the unlikely pairing
of Steeleye Span guitarist Ken
Nicol and comedian Phil
Cool. Nicol, says the notebook,
delivered some great guitar playing,
and Cool a truly wonderful Paul McCartney
impersonation – his George Bush
wasn’t bad either.
The Fairports joined them on stage
for their last song, and then began
their set with ‘Ye Mariners
all’. Notable in this first
set was Ric Sanders’ fiddle
playing on ‘The Fossil Hunter’,
his soaring notes seeming to fill
every corner of the Union Chapel’s
great high ceiling. Leslie sang a
haunting ‘Reynardine’
from Liege and Lief, accompanied by
the sirens of police cars charging
round Highbury Corner while Nicol
provoked a short debate on blood sports
in his introduction to ‘Reynard
the fox’ (to his disgust but
Leslie’s delight, the fox lived
to fight another day). And my notes
noted, as they have before, that even
if I can’t describe how irritated
I’m made by Dave Pegg’s
face-pulling, thumbs-up blokiness,
his bass playing really is very good.
In
the second half – and this was
a real curiosity for the collectors
– they played a pleasing mini-version
of their often disregarded 1971 ‘folk-opera’
Babbacombe Lee telling the story of
the man they couldn’t hang,
convicted murderer John ‘Babbacombe’
Lee. Interesting, if not a bit 1960s.
This was followed by a rather strained
‘Who knows where the time goes’,
and the inevitable ‘Matty Groves’
(at which point Jozzer nodded off
for good). For encore, before the
mad rush to the merchandising store
for the T-shirts and trinkets there
was a weak ‘Ukulele central’,
(involving lots of ukuleles and larking
about) and finale ‘Meet on the
ledge’ which was notable for
guitar playing by Ken Nicol who’d
joined the band on stage along with
Cool.
As
the collectors compared notes and
swapped facts, we rudely stirred
Jozzer from his slumbers and crept
out into the cold snowy night. Did
I mention that we’ve had snow
in London? - Nick Morgan (photographs
by Kate)
Listen:
Fairport
Convention on MySpace Ken
Nicol on MySpace
TASTING
TWO
1992 HIGHLAND PARK
Highland
Park 1992/2002 (46%, Wilson &
Morgan, sherry wood)
Colour: white wine. Nose: it’s
one of these rather waxy/smoky/yeasty
indie HPs, with a good smokiness and
something faintly mineral, the whole
getting then rather grassy and even
more porridgy as well. Hints of vulcanised
rubber and fresh butter. Mouth: sweet
and very ‘natural’, more
on apple liqueur this time but with
always a little rubber and these grassy
notes. Slight smokiness and more and
more apples and hints of green tea.
Finish: medium long, grassy (apple
peelings). Comments: good young grassy
Highland Park with quite some character
but it’s maybe not particularly
sexy. SGP:372 – 80 points.
Highland
Park 15 yo 1992/2008 (46%, Murray
McDavid, Voignier finish, 2,475 bottles)
Of course it was meant to be ‘viognier’
and not ‘voignier’. Viognier
is a spicy and sometimes slightly
muscatty grape variety that’s
quite fashionable in the Rhone valley.
Colour: amber. Nose: we have pretty
much the same spirit as the W&M
here, only with a rather huge coating
of winey/spicy notes that, well, go
rather well with it. It also gives
it kind of an extra-smokiness and
finally big notes of mirabelle plum
pie. Works well. Mouth: the same thing
happens on the palate, with a big
spicy fruitiness (ripe plums, cinnamon,
sultanas) and an enjoyable roundness.
Tarte tatin, brown sugar, hints of
cloves and liquorice. Finish: rather
long, a little more on the whisky
now (grassy wax.) Comments: a finishing
that worked in my view. SGP:561
– 83 points.
March
4, 2009
TASTING
OLD
YOUNG AND OLD OLD GLENDRONACH (+
a bonus)
Glendronach
12 yo ‘Original’ (43%,
OB, 75cl, +/-1985)
Many Glendronachs are or were very
sherried so it’s always interesting
to try ‘naked’ versions.
Colour: gold. Nose: rather exceptional
I must say, starting on a winning
combination of olive oil, fresh orange
juice and light honey and developing
more on soot, wax polish and very
appealing whiffs of kerosene. Gets
then drier and drier, not unlike an
old Riesling wine. Also hints of bacon
and used matches. Very, very beautiful
and complex! Mouth: amazingly powerful
at only 43% vol. and almost as dry
as on the nose, starting on old walnuts,
apple peelings and candy sugar and
developing more on ‘light’
orange marmalade (not much sugar)
and green tea as well as almond milk
and eucalyptus/pine resin drops. Great
whisky, and easily obtainable at that.
Finish: surprisingly long, more on
crystallised lemon now. Lemon balm
sweets. Comments: old style malt of
the highest grade, still easy to find
(hint, hint.) SGP:452 - 91
points. (and thank you
Konstantin)
Glendronach
12 yo (43%, OB, Italy, bulky green
bottle, pale vatting, 75cl, 1970's)
Colour: straw. Nose: this is
completely different from the younger
12, much, much fruitier and even sort
of sugary, on tinned pineapples, marshmallows
and, well, ‘a newly opened box
of Turkish delights’. Also a
faint mouldiness and finally the same
kind of smokiness as in the other
12 (used matches, smoked tea.) The
two oldies converge after a good fifteen
minutes but this one never gets as
majestic as the ‘Original’.
Very nice, still. Mouth: starts excellently,
on various fruit jams (quinces, plums)
and orange marmalade, with quite some
spices coming to the front after that
(cinnamon, white pepper.) It does
not really get any more complex and
stays on these notes after that, which
isn’t a problem as it’s
beautiful whisky. Maybe more ripe
apples and juts a little mint. Finish:
medium long, on ripe apples and cinnamon.
Comments: once again, this is very
good but a little less complex than
the ‘Original’. SGP:441
– 87 points.
Glendronach
33 yo (40%, OB, Oloroso Sherry, +/-2008)
Colour: dark amber. Nose: oloroso
galore! Huge notes of maraschino cherries,
strawberry jam and nougat at first
nosing, with more chocolate (ganache)
and quince jelly after that. It’s
finally beefy/oaky touches (old furniture)
that have the last word, as well as
a little parsley and sage. Even hints
of oregano. Rather rich but maybe
not totally explosive. After twenty
minutes: it got a little more leathery/rubbery.
Mouth: mellow and rounded, less big
than both old 12s and, I must say,
very, very close to an old Armagnac.
Cherry liqueur, prunes, almond milk
(or orgeat), chocolate, rancio (a
lot) and black tea. The old oak is
well there but tamed and just a little
‘cinnamonny’ (excuse me).
Finish: medium long and… even
more like an old Armagnac. Comments:
one to sip in your club, in an old
Chesterfield armchair and maybe with
a good Habano in hand, while discussing
the depress… I mean, recession
(and the prices of whisky) with a
bunch of broke friends. SGP:531
– 88points.
But wait, old Armagnacs… Let’s
rummage through our sample library,
maybe we’ll find one to try
now and see if how it compares with
this old Glendronach… one avec
panache if possible… ah, yes,
why not this…
MALTERNATIVE
BONUS – Château de Laubade
1900 (40%, OB, Armagnac, bottled 1983)
The Château de Laubade is located
in Sorbets in the Gers region of France.
It seems that this ‘expression’
spent more than 80 years in wood,
hence that it was never poured into
demijohns and never saw ‘le
Paradis’. Newer versions of
this emblematic vintage are rather
easy to find and probably five times
cheaper than what any fake malt whisky
from 1900 would cost. Colour: brown/chestnut.
Nose: starts extremely empyreumatic
and, I must say, very beautiful even
if it’s rather extreme in its
woodiness. Tons of mint, leather (horse
saddle), eucalyptus, old turpentine,
oil paint and pure pine resin ‘from
the tree’, all at first nosing.
Calms down a bit after that, getting
rounder and smoother, much more on
bitter chocolate, marron glacé,
beef stock, very old balsamic vinegar
from Modena and yellow Chartreuse.
Keeps developing for a very long time
but gets back to eucalyptus/mint,
with also a little camphor but much
less than in, say an old Islayer.
Speaking of which, there’s a
little smoke coming through after
a while, hints of gunflints, dark
toffee… This is hugely complex
and in no way just an oddity. And
yes, it could also have been a very,
very old Macallan! Mouth: well, it
is kind of a wood decoction I must
say, and as expected it’s far
less interesting and complex than
on the nose, but it is drinkable and,
above all, very moving. As for descriptors,
let’s say bitter chocolate with
mint and cough drops plus ‘old’
cloves. Finish: a little short but
still clean and pleasantly dry and
chocolaty, reminding me of a very
old cherry (palo cortado.) Comments:
I would not have imagined that this
1900 would have stood time in such
beautiful manner on the nose, especially
after more than 80 years in some of
Armagnac’s typical 400 litres
casks. SGP:272 – 90
points.
PETE
McPEAT AND JACK WASHBACK
MUSIC
– Recommended
listening: simply beautiful, Tom
Brosseau singing Here
comes the water (from the CD
Cavalier). What a voice! Please
buy Tom Brosseau's music...
March
3, 2009
FUNNY
FOR SURE (but it would
be illegal in many countries including
France): here's Mickey the Irish Virtual
Drinking Buddy (be patient while
it loads!) After Red Bowler's morons
and the Fecking Irish, The Knot calls
you an idiot... Do we spot a damn new trend
in f****g whisky advertising? (via thewhiskychannel.com)
TASTING
– TWO TAMDHU
Tamdhu
39 yo 1968/2008 (40%, Duncan Taylor,
Lonach)
Colour: gold. Nose: starts very fresh
and flowery (dandelions), with also
notes of yellow plums and apricots.
Gets then slightly resinous (pine
needles) and vanilled (custard), with
traces of plain oak in the background.
Doesn’t really develop any further
after that. Nice but pretty simple.
Mouth: not the biggest attack we’ve
even seen for sure, with a faint fruitiness
(peaches) and notes of ice tea and
tapioca/flour. Gets then rather drying
and quite cardboardy and tea-ish.
Just hints of marshmallows. Finish:
a little short and rather woody. Comments:
this oldie seems to have gone over
the hill, but it’s still pretty
drinkable. SGP:260 –
76 points.
Tamdhu
18 yo 1989/2008 (50%, Douglas Laing,
Old Malt Cask, Sherry Hogshead DL
Ref 4608)
Colour: dark amber/brown. Nose: this
one starts like plain chocolate and
cocoa powder, getting then more on
prunes and beef stock and jerky, although
it’s moderately expressive.
Hints of gun metal and used matches.
With water: more beefy notes and quite
some mint and leather as well as kind
of a farminess, which often happens
after you’ve added water to
some whisky. Very nice nose nonetheless.
Mouth (neat): smooth and round and
really full of sherry, to the point
where it does rather taste like Armagnac-soaked
prunes with quite some strong liquorice
and a little pepper. Heavy toffee
too, and chestnut liqueur, and Viennese
coffee (I know what I’m talking
about!) Concentrated and good. With
water: a rather unusual development
on mint sauce and even more liquorice
mixed with chocolate and earl grey
tea. Very good once again. Finish:
medium long but still concentrated
and liquorice-infused. Comments: a
very good heavily sherried Tamdhu,
unusually liquoricy. Recommended.
SGP:451 - 88 points(and thank you, Tomislav).
MUSIC
– Recommended
listening: a totally wonderful song
by Canada's Fred
Eaglesmith called Worked
up field. Spirited and soulful.
Please, please buy Fred Eaglesmith's
music.
March
2, 2009
TASTING
– TWO LAPHROAIGS
Laphroaig
‘Triple Wood’ (48%, OB,
1l, 2009)
This one is the well-known (and very
good) ‘Quarter Cask’ that’s
been finished in sherry casks. In
other words, it’s double-finishing.
Colour: gold. Nose: it’s interesting
that the rather heavy (okay, elaborate)
wood treatment (okay, technology)
seems to have pushed Laphroaig’s
medicinal side even more to the front,
whilst the peat smoke got seemingly
more subdued, and certainly less ‘big
and obvious’ than in other young
bottlings. Indeed, this baby smells
much older than it probably is (7-9
years?) and we’ve had 20yos
that were more pungent and raw, even
at similar strength. To sum up, there’s
vanilla, camphor, eucalyptus, antiseptics,
tincture of iodine, light white pepper,
smoked tea, wet hay, a little butter
and dairy cream, roots, wet earth
and then more vanilla – even
if this is anything but a vanilla
bomb. In short, very nice. Mouth:
thick mouth feel, starts unusually
sweet for a Laphroaig and very liquoricy,
which may not please all Laphroaig
lovers in our opinion. Much more vanilla
than on the nose and something that
shouts ‘new world chardonnay’
(whatever that means). Buttered toffee,
cardamom, orange liqueur (peated Cointreau!)
Finish: rather long, a tad closer
to an ‘average’ Laphroaig
but leaving kind of a greasy sweetness
on your palate. Comments: very, very
good but very modern and ‘engineered’,
especially on the palate that is kind
of liqueurish. A Laphroaig liqueur?
We like the regular Quarter Cask a
little better and our good old 10yo
CS much better. SGP:547 -
86 points. (and thank
you Christophe)
Laphroaig
16 yo 1991/2007 (57.0%, Scotch Malt
Whisky Society, #29.62)
This one was nicknamed “Danger
warning!”, which means either
that they got rather lazy in finding
names at the honourable Society, or
that’s it’s a scary Laphroaig
indeed. Colour: straw. Nose: this
is a good example of a Laphroaig that’s
almost ten years older but that does
not noses older than the 3W at all.
That said, it’s extremely clean,
zesty, mineral, ashy and flinty, getting
then very slightly nougatty/candied
but also much more maritime than the
3W. With water: ah yes, this is an
excellent swimmer. Seashells, wet
wool, raw peated barley, cough syrup
and an unusual meatiness (game). Superb.
Mouth (neat): to paraphrase the good
old Stooges, this is raw power indeed.
Extremely rich, thick, peaty, medicinal
and salty, with this particular Laphroaig
fruitiness that combines lemons with
apples. A bit simple, though. With
water: once again, water made wonders.
Gentian, liquorice wood and pu-erh
tea. Very classy. Finish: long and
even more peaty, maritime and salty.
Comments: classic untouched Laphroaig
for Laphroaig lovers – but needs
water. SGP:358 - 90 points.
(and thank you Marcel)
MUSIC
– Recommended
listening: Ornette
Coleman going commercial
in 1982? Not quite but it's true
that funky harmolodics work well
methinks. More than just a curiosity
(and yes it's Tacuma on bass), here's
Sleep
talk. Please buy Ornette's music!
March
1, 2009
THANK
YOU ! Yes, thank you
because these humble pages have just
been visited for the 2,000,000th time
since Whiskyfun became a ‘tasting
diary’ five years ago. Our cruising
speed lies above 100,000 visits/30,000
single visitors per month these days,
which isn’t too bad in our opinion.
Alexa.com, which ranks websites by
categories, puts us at rank #15 of
all web sites about whisky (brand
sites included), which isn’t
too bad either even if their data
do not seem to be very complete (here’s
a PDF
of their current Top 100). I’d
add that if you added up the figures
of the Malt Maniacs’ infernal
trilogy of web sites (Johannes’
maltmadness.com, maltmaniacs.org,
whiskyfun.com) all that would be much
higher of course.
Now,
do all these figures really matter?
Yes and no… Yes because it’s
always great to check that quite a
few people seem to have fun visiting
our pages (and read the 5,000+ tasting
notes), and no because we’ll
keep refusing to translate your kind
visits into money (read paid advertising,
edvertising, jobs, consultancies,
masterclasses, email list broking,
whatever – even whisky, mind
you) in the foreseeable future. Not
that all that would be wrong, of course,
and we certainly won’t “throw
stones” at all the nice guys
who play it that way these days, but
we really want to keep all this 100%
fun and 100% independent. This isn’t
our job, but simply one of our (sometimes
invading) hobbies!
While
I’m at it, let me add that if
you spot some of our tasting notes/scores
on commercial web sites, leaflets
or shops, they’re always used
for free. What’s more, yes we
get whisky samples from some bottlers,
but we also buy a lot of whisky and
we have great friends! And before
this gets really too long and maudlin,
I’d like to thank these friends
without whom Whiskyfun wouldn’t
be, well, fun:
Nick
Morgan and Kate Kavanagh for their
totally fabulous concert reviews and
photographs (remember, whisky and
music go together!); Konstantin, the
absolute Kaiser of rare whisky samples
(and generosity); many Malt Maniacs
and friends who are happy to give
a hand whenever they can (Johannes,
Olivier, Davin, Dave, Tomislav, Marcel,
Chris, Bert… and many others);
and of course our dear liver –
even if we actually drink much less
than what you may think.
Remember,
“whisky is serious matter
only to the people who make it, sell
it or drink way too much of it.”
Keep it fun!
A rare blend by the now defunct Lammerlaw
Distillery in Dunedin. I’ve
read that 45 South was never successful
and that new owners Seagram had discontinued
it… even before they closed
down the distillery. Colour: pale
gold. Nose: extremely unusual with
its huge whiffs of pine resin, Ricola
lozenges and wet paint coating notes
of cranberry juice and tamarind (I’m
not joking, why would I?) Even more
unusual: notes of tomato sauce! And
what’s even funnier is that
all that is rather nice, but as often,
the devil may hide on the palate…
Mouth: no, this is not bad at all,
just totally unusual again. These
very resinous notes are well there,
but the fruitiness is different from
the nose, that is to say much more
on orange squash. Hints of ginger
and maraschino, going well with the
pine resin. It’s not bad stuff!
Finish: rather long, still half-fruity,
half-resinous. Like if you put orange
drops and cough drops at the same
time into your mouth. Comments: a
good surprise considering it’s
a blend but alas, this is now totally
unobtainable. Hey, could it be that
this was the All Blacks’ secret
weapon?… SGP:731 - 78
points. 
TBA means Trockenbeerenauslese (not
To Be Absorbed.) This is a bottle
of single malt whisky that I bought
in Vienna, under the abashed look
of some Austrian friends. It seems
that Reisetbauer make some great eau-de-vie,
but also that they used their eau-de-vie
stills to make this whisky. Vorsicht,
that NEVER really works, it would
be too easy… Colour: straw.
Nose: a rather feinty spirit, all
on porridge, muesli and baker’s
yeast premixed with sweet wine. Maybe
noble rot, maybe not – let’s
not try to be smart. Very discreet
hints of baby puke (not the kind of
baby one would spot in Sturgis during
the Harley-Davidson gathering!) Actually,
this isn’t unpleasant at all
but very far from ‘malt whisky’
as we know it, especially from Scotland
(having said that, at the rate things
are going over there…) Mouth:
once again, this isn’t bad at
all but we’re even farer from
whisky. Actually, this tastes like
a grappa – and a rather good
one. Now, this isn’t Grappafun.com,
is it? Finish: indeed, this is heavily
finished. Long, on sweet wine and
grappa (something muscatty.) I remember
having had a chardonnay grappa in
Italy that tasted exactly like this.
Comments: not bad at all, but wrong
labelling, hence wrong shelves. This
isn’t whisky. SGP:620
– 65 points. 
Finished for ten months in rum casks
from Monymusk Distillery. Colour:
pale gold. Nose: powerful and rather
spirity, with the rummy notes to the
front but also quite some kirsch and
plum spirit plus hints of ginger and
faint notes of rubber (rather bands
than tyres). Slightly buttery as well.
We’re rather far from ‘malt
whisky’ here, not that it’s
unpleasant mind you. With water: a
little more rubber (but we’re
below the limit) plus added notes
of cider as well as a little liquorice.
Mouth (neat): punchy, with even more
rum and a pleasant sweetness (cane
sugar syrup). I like this palate better
than the nose, even if the kirschy
notes remain. With water: even sweeter
and sugary (brown sugar) with hints
of coffee liqueur. Not complicated
but pleasant. Finish: medium long,
more on cane sugar again. Comments:
the rum does not dominate here, and
brings a nice sweetness to the whisky.
SGP:531 - 80 points.
Colour: mahogany with shades of bronze.
Nose: a heavy sherry it seems but
the profile is rather different from
the usual sherry monsters. Starts
on a lot of chocolate, leather and
game (well-hung pheasant ;-)) and
develops on huge notes of balsamic
vinegar and old pu-erh tea plus thyme
and rosemary. Superbly dry and very
aromatic – no fruits! With water:
huge notes of leather and mega-huge
notes of smoked bacon, pretty impressive!
Mouth (neat): very rich and a little
fruitier than on the nose (a lot of
orange marmalade), with also much
more old oak and hints of ‘dirty
peat’ that remind me of some
Ledaigs (quirkiness included.) Gets
then very meaty/sweet and sour (beef
jerky.) Very good and entertaining.
With water: more nice bitterness and
dryness, with a great rancio and notes
of yellow/flor. Finish: long and still
very meaty and leathery. Comments:
if you like ultra-dry sherry you’ll
adore this. SGP:263 –
90 points. 
Colour: gold. Nose:
all I can say is that I never nosed
a whisky that came even close to this
one. It’s big and extremely
almondy and grassy at first nosing,
with even whiffs of exhaust pipes
(a motorcycle’s of course) and
fresh putty. Gets then a little closer
to the OB, with the same kind of meaty/organic
notes and then we finally get tons
of lemons and tangerines. Unusual
for sure. With water: wowie! That
worked beautifully, as we now have
a full basket of various citrus fruits
under our nose. You don’t need
a list, do you! Mouth (neat): it’s
got a bit of the OB’s strangeness
but it’s rather straighter this
time, fruity and candied (orange marmalade)
but with the same kind of spirity
notes when undiluted (raw eau-de-vie,
kirsch). With water: it’s not
quite as big a miracle as on the nose
with water but the added spicy and
herbal notes go very well with the
orangey notes. Finish: long, cleaner,
on fresh oranges and a little pepper
and cardamom. Comments: another unusual
whisky, a tad hard to assess, but
it really gets great with water. SGP:551
- 88 points. 
As you may imagine, this one was already
the subject of many questions within
maniacal circles! Can it be ‘whisky’
at only 12% vol.? Was it designed
to compete with wine? Sake? We’ve
also seen a clear version at 25%...
Anyway, this is/was only available
in Japan. Colour: pale gold. Nose:
almost none, not unlike plain tap
water. Distant whiffs of new plastic,
cooked asparagus and metal polish.
New polyester sweater? Very, very
discreet, this was probably never
designed to be ‘nosed’.
After a few minutes: hints of cider,
getting a little nicer. Mouth: highly
diluted whisky and that’s all.
It’s not bad at all, mind you,
but much lighter than wine and maybe
even than most beers (okay, not American
Budweiser). Very little flavours.
Finish: pardon? Comments: right, this
isn’t bad actually, just not
something for whisky drinkers (nor
beer drinkers, wine drinkers, sake/
Nihonshu drinkers…) Probably
quite drinkable on a lot of ice in
the middle of Japanese summer. SGP:120
- 50 points (not to be taken
seriously). Update:
you may also read Johannes' comments
in his latest edition of his 
From a refill sherry hogshead.
Colour: straw. Nose: starts fresh
and clean but gets soon a tad buttery
and porridgy, albeit not excessively
so. Hints of lemon drops and tonic
water, seawater and sour fruits (apples).
Mouth: good sweet attack with a little
salt upfront, then more overripe apples,
pepper and a faint yeastiness. Still
clean and compact, nicer than on the
nose in our opinion. Finish: long,
sweet, peaty and peppery. Comments:
good Caol Ila - that won’t make
you scratch your head - but there
are so many excellent Caol Ilas around
these days! Rather an easy drinking
one. SGP:446 – 83 points.
Colour: straw. Nose: we’re rather
more in the SMOS’ style again
here, with more vanilla and nougat
but also the same kind of buttery
notes as in the G&M. Sour cream
and apples. The farmier of them all
in fact (wet hay.) With water: it
did not change, unlike all the other
ones. Maybe a little camphor? The
shiest so far. Mouth (neat): just
as big s the others, maybe a tad more
citric. Lime juice. With water: oh
no, once again, this is almost the
same whisky on the palate, whether
reduced or not. Maybe a tad spicier.
Finish: indeed, a little longer and
spicier ala Talisker. Comments: excellent
on the palate but this one lost points
on the nose. SGP:347 –
86 points. 
Colour: gold. Nose: starts very fresh
and flowery (dandelions), with also
notes of yellow plums and apricots.
Gets then slightly resinous (pine
needles) and vanilled (custard), with
traces of plain oak in the background.
Doesn’t really develop any further
after that. Nice but pretty simple.
Mouth: not the biggest attack we’ve
even seen for sure, with a faint fruitiness
(peaches) and notes of ice tea and
tapioca/flour. Gets then rather drying
and quite cardboardy and tea-ish.
Just hints of marshmallows. Finish:
a little short and rather woody. Comments:
this oldie seems to have gone over
the hill, but it’s still pretty
drinkable. SGP:260 –
76 points.
