Whisky, Video Games, and Things I Fancy
| Name: | Bowmore Legend |
| Spirit Type: | Single Malt |
| Age: | Not Specified |
| Region: | Islay |
| Year Distilled: | N/A |
| Year Bottled: | N/A |
| Cask Maturation: | Bourbon |
| Alcohol %: | 40% |
| Color: | Amber + 1 |
| Chill-Filtered and Colored | |
| Date Purchased: | 2013.01 |
| Price: | ~$25 |
“Legend” is the entry-level whisky in the Bowmore core line. A great introduction to Bowmore, but probably not completely representative if their quality. Fun and very attractive at the price! (more…)
My goal with this series of “Whisky Review Preamble” posts is to paint a clear picture of me and my whisky tasting process so you can decide on how much value to place on my whisky marks. A rating of 95 can only be useful if you trust the reviewer!
I like to experience everything a whisky has to offer. This includes packaging, the distillery website, and other people’s experiences of the whisky (including tasting notes, but also by sharing the whisky with others when I can). My experience with a specific whisky usually starts before I buy it. I’ll hear about it from a friend, from Ralfy, or on a blog somewhere. I will sometimes look at the distillery website before buying the whisky, but I usually end up exploring the website after purchase (I am usually a bit frustrated with the heavyweight marketing on distillery websites).
I will rarely buy a whisky on impulse. If I do, it is usually a cheap blended whisky that is on sale.
My tasting notes are the result of two sets of steps. The first is the “bottle break in” where I get to know the whisky, and the second is the creation of tasting notes and a rating. (more…)
| Name: | Lagavulin 16 Year Old |
| Spirit Type: | Single Malt |
| Age: | 16 years |
| Region: | Islay |
| Year Distilled: | 1995 |
| Year Bottled: | 2011 |
| Cask Maturation: | Primarily American Oak(bourbon)Probably finished in Sherry |
| Alcohol %: | 43% |
| Color: | Amber + 2 |
| Date Purchased: | 2012.09 |
| Price: | ~$60 |
Lagavulin is a Diageo-owned distillery and part of Diageo’s “Classic Malts” collection, which seeks to represent various regions of Scotland. Lagavulin whisky is rich, heavy, and full-bodied, but could do with a little bit better presentation in my opinon (make it 46% and get rid of the color/chill-filtration!). Nevertheless, Lagavulin is a favorite of many malt lovers. Its quality has not gone unnoticed! (more…)
| Name: | Caol Ila 12 Year Old |
| Spirit Type: | Single Malt |
| Age: | 12 Years |
| Region: | Islay |
| Year Distilled: | Not Specified (probably 2000) |
| Year Bottled: | Not Specified (probably 2012) |
| Cask Maturation: | Ex-boubon Hogsheads* |
| Alcohol %: | 43% |
| Color: | Amber – 1 |
| Chill-Filtered, Colored | |
| Date Purchased: | 2013.01 |
| Price: | $49 |
| *according to Whiskypedia, Charles Maclean | |
Caol Ila is primarily a blending whisky, being used in Johnnie Walker, Bells, and Black Bottle, among others. Considered one of the “Lighter” Islay whiskies, in actuality it has quite a bit of flavor! (more…)
| Name: | Ardbeg Corryvreckan |
| Spirit Type: | Single Malt |
| Age: | Not Specified |
| Region: | Islay |
| Year Distilled: | Not Specified |
| Year Bottled: | 2011 |
| Cask Maturation: | Bourbon and French Oak Casks |
| Alcohol %: | 57.1% |
| Color: | Amber + 0.5 |
| Date Purchased: | 2012.11 |
| Price: | ~$75 |
Currently one of the core expressions from Ardbeg. Corryvreckan is bottled at 57.1%, similar to Uigeadail’s 54.2%. You can enjoy this one neat, but with a little water you’ll get a some additional earthy notes. (more…)
My goal with this series of “Whisky Review Preamble” posts is to paint a clear picture of me and my whisky tasting process so you can decide on how much value to place on my whisky marks. A rating of 95 can only be useful if you trust the reviewer!
I have been seriously enjoying whisky since early 2012. I had tried Glenlivet before that (in think the year was 2005) but did not enjoy it. I probably drank it too fast, as a young twenty-something might do. When I revisited whisky in early 2012, it was a very different experience. A friend ordered me a glass of Macallan 18 at a wedding – a place where I was already a bit out of my element. Circumstances made me approach it without my earlier expectations, and I found it pretty tasty.
The next day I did a bit of research on the internet and found Ralfystuff and his blog at ralfy.com. I spent the day watching whisky videos, and I started researching which whiskies to buy first. I chose Glenmorangie 10, Laphroaig 10, and Talisker 10. That was the start of my journey. Incidentally, if you are just starting out with whisky tasting, I highly recommend Glenmorangie 10 and Laphroaig 10 – but I’ll save the details of that for another blog post. (more…)
| Name: | Ardbeg Uigeadail |
| Spirit Type: | Single Malt |
| Age: | Not specified |
| Region: | Islay |
| Year Distilled: | Not specified |
| Year Bottled: | Not specified (probably 2011) |
| Cask Maturation: | Bourbon and Sherry |
| Alcohol %: | 54.1% |
| Color: | Amber + 2 (No color added!) |
| Date Purchased: | 2012.03 |
| Price: | $60 |
| No color added, non-chillfiltered | |
Part of the core Ardbeg range, Uigeadail is a powerhouse at 54.1% alcohol. Perfect for lovers of peat, sherry, and cask strength whiskies, it is a favorite of many Ardbeg lovers. (more…)
| Name: | Auchentoshan Classic |
| Spirit Type: | Single Malt |
| Age: | Not Specified (my guess is 5-8 years) |
| Region: | Lowland (one of only three!) |
| Year Distilled: | Not Specified |
| Year Bottled: | Not Specified |
| Cask Maturation: | All Bourbon |
| Alcohol %: | 40% |
| Color: | Amber – 1 |
| Date Purchased: | 2012.12 |
| Price: | $30 |
The Classic is matured exclusively in ex-bourbon casks, which is relatively uncommon (most whiskies will have some sherry influence for balance).
Gaelic for ‘corner of the field’, Auchentoshan is the only triple distilled scotch whisky. It’s probable that Auchentoshan was founded by Irish distillers, thus the triple distillation (which is more common for Irish distilleries). (more…)
| Name: | Glenmoreangie 10 Year “The Original” |
| Spirit Type: | Single Malt |
| Age: | 10 |
| Region: | Highland |
| Year Distilled: | 2001 |
| Year Bottled: | 2011 |
| Cask Maturation: | first and second-fill bourbon |
| Alcohol %: | 43% |
| Color: | Amber |
| Date Purchased: | 2013.03 |
| Price: | $40 |
Made using “the tallest stills in scotland”, Glenmorangie is a delicate spirit and a great whisky for starters because of it’s price and approach-ability. The tall stills means the heavier flavors don’t make it into the distillate (they are unable to escape the still!). Glenmorangie has a lot of depth if you want to spend time with it, but is a great standard whisky for when you just feel like a dram. (more…)
| Name: | Ardbeg Ten Year Old |
| Spirit Type: | Single Malt |
| Age: | 10 years |
| Region: | Islay |
| Year Distilled: | 2001 |
| Year Bottled: | 2011 |
| Cask Maturation: | 10 years in Bourbon casks |
| Alcohol %: | 46% |
| Color: | Amber – 4 (very pale) |
| Date Purchased: | 2012.07 |
| Price: | $45 |
This is one of the core Ardbeg expressions. The other two are Uigeadail and Corryvreckan. The only source I can find states that Ardbeg is matured exclusively in ex-bourbon casks. This is a bit of a rarity, as usually some sherry casks are also used (Remember – a single expression of whisky is a combination of many casks of whisky, unless of course it is a “single cask” expression). (more…)