Archive For The “Whisky Tasting Notes” Category
Truth be told, Brora was never meant to be anything more than a stopgap for DCL (the heart of today’s Diageo), to produce peated whisky for Johnny Walker due to a drought on Islay in 1968 causing Port Ellen to run dry. Thus, to alley fears that peated whisky production would fall short by some…
Yesterday I reviewed a sherry matured 1998 Laphroaig, and today I review a same vintage Laphroaig matured in a bourbon cask, bottled for Aquavitae in 2011. It’s interesting to note that while the sherry matured Laphroaig has no vinegary notes, this one has them in abundance. This being the first Malts of Scotland bottling that I’m…
Going through my tasting notes I just realized that yesterday’s 39.99 and the 39.92 are both ex bourbon hogsheads distilled in 1990. The 39.99 was distilled in April 1990 and the 39.92 was distilled in October 1990 and was exclusive to the Canadian market. Linkwood is a distillery that plays a part in many of Diageo’s…
Yamazaki is Japan’s oldest distillery, but Nikka’s Yoichi is the most “Scottish” distillery in Japan. It’s located near the sea on the west coast of the northern island of Hokkaido, in conditions that are close to those of the western coastal Highlands (think Oban or Adelphi’s new Ardnamurchan) or even Islay, and still use direct…
Torben is a close friend of mine. Yes, we have yet to meet in personam, but we’re Facebook whisky friends, and share similar professional backgrounds. And he’s a great guy! We have a pretty constant exchange of samples going back and forth, and at any given time there’s usually a package en route from one of us…