Scotch – Page 5 – DramWorlds

December 4, 2019September 3, 2021

Bunnahabhain K&L Excl. SVUC “Staoisha” Heavily Peated, 4yo, 2014/2019

*Rating*	31/40
*Origin*	Scotland, Islay, North Shore
*Distillery*	Bunnahabhain
*Owner*	Distell Group
*Distilled*	October 23rd, 2014
*Bottler*	Signatory Vintage
*Series*	Un-Chillfiltered Collection
*Style*	Single Barrel Single Malt Whisky
*Peated*	yes
*Cask*	Dechar/rechar Hogshead #10723
*Bottled*	Jun 10th, 2019
*Bottles*	284
*Strength*	60.6% (121.2 proof)
*Retailer*	K&L Wine Merchants
Price	$70

Nose: The peat appears in the form of compressed chocolate harvested from ancient bogs. The best such chocolate is often apparently somewhat fuzzy. (8/10)

Palate: The fuzzy chocolate from the nose melts into some mild Oolong tea served alongside it. Also, the table legs appear to be on fire. (7/10)

Finish: Heat stings the flanks of my tongue. These peripheral sensations meet up like the arms of a rather strangely shaped tuning fork back down in my esophagus. A hamster appears to have stored chocolate pudding in my cheeks. For the winter one assumes. (8/10)

Balance: A bit bumpy as a ride perhaps, which is not at all surprising for a 4 year old. Nevertheless absolutely enjoyable and well in line with Bunna’s recent push into bolder and peatier territory. (8/10)

December 4, 2019January 23, 2020

Aberlour A’Bunadh Batch #64, 2019

*Rating*	31/40
*Origin*	Scotland, Central Speyside
*Distillery*	Aberlour
*Owner*	Pernod Ricard via Chivas Brothers
*Style*	Single Malt Whisky
*Cask*	Spanish Oloroso Sherry Butts
*Bottled*	January 30th, 2019
*Strength*	59.9% (119.8 proof)
Price	$56-179

Nose: A bottomless, silent, dark pool of brooding sherry. (9/10)

Palate: Astringent planar blast from a globe of that quiet, dark brooding sherry leads to fireworks sparkling around the edges. (9/10)

Finish: Warmth and comfort after the sparkles around the edges fade away. (9/10)

Balance: Just wonderful. One of the best batches since the recovery from the dreaded 30s. (9/10)

August 23, 2019September 22, 2021

Old Pulteney K&L Exclusive Cask #231, 13yo, 2004/2018

*Rating*	33.6/40
*Origin*	Scotland, Northern Highlands
*Distillery*	Old Pulteney
*Owner*	ThaiBev via Inver House Distillers
*Distilled*	2004
*Style*	Single Barrel Single Malt Whisky
*Bottled*	2018
*Bottles*	242
*Strength*	55.2% (110.4 proof)
*Retailer*	K&L Wine Merchants

Nose: Effervescent earthy orange candy. Rises from the glass like a dew sprinkled mushroom cap, gently glittering in the soft forest light. Don’t get me wrong… there is nothing woodlandish about this. It’s just an image that arose when I was thinking about the movement and character of the nose. Everything is rich and deep, yet gentle like the colors of moss and fern in the soft light under quiet trees. Quite beautiful. Later it drifts towards something resembling a faint BBQ savoriness. (8.8/10)

Palate: Crawling fire spreads here and there. Spots of burning shoe polish emit puffs of smoke wafting about. And yet, as a whole, this palate is bright with almost metallic notes shimmering on top of the subtly smouldering depths. (9.4/10)

Finish: Life is too short. So is this whisky. It never reaches the throat or chest. The finish floats near the roof of the mouth with some lovely orange-flavored smokiness and some decent initial heat that disintegrates into hollow echoes of itself. Sigh. I can’t emphasize enough how enamoured I am by this whisky and how much it hurts to be let down by its finish in this way. (7.5/10)

Balance: If it wasn’t for the short reach and, compared to nose and palate, lacking heft of the finish this whisky would be quite amazing. But that finish fails to live up to everything else and because the finish is, well, the finish it colors the whole experience. Such a bummer. But the rest is still absolutely worth it for early experience. (7.9/10)

July 17, 2019January 23, 2020

Tomatin, 12yo, 2018

*Rating*	26/40
*Origin*	Scotland, Northern Highlands
*Distillery*	Tomatin
*Owner*	TaKaRa Holdings via Takara Shuzo
*Style*	Single Malt Whisky
*Casks*	Bourbon, Sherry
*Bottled*	2018
*Strength*	43% (86 proof)
Price	$25-80

Nose: Slightly sour and otherwise there is simply not much there. (5/10)

Palate: Nice! After the largely absent nose the rich and butter flavors comes as a pleasant surprise. (8/10)

Finish: This one lingers pleasantly but ultimately fades out into astringent wood notes. (7/10)

Balance: Overall not shabby but I really wish the nose was living up to the rest of the whisky. (6/10)

July 17, 2019January 23, 2020

Aultmore Foggie Moss, 12yo

*Rating*	27/40
*Origin*	Scotland, Central Speyside
*Distillery*	Aultmore
*Owner*	Bacardi via John Dewar & Sons
*Style*	Single Malt Whisky
*Strength*	46% (92 proof)
Price	$39-125

Nose: Clean wood, some hints of licorice. Water flattens it. (6/10)

Palate: Citrussy, leans toward grapefruit. Water opens things up wide. (7/10)

Finish: Burnt sugar, nice warmth, hints of lemon around the edges. Water teases out some darker notes. (7/10)

Balance: Decent dram but what is gained from water on the back end comes with a hefty price at the front. (7/10)

July 17, 2019May 28, 2021

Mortlach Faultline K&L Exclusive, 22yo, 1995/2017

Mortlach Faultline 1995/2017, 22yo, close-up

*Rating*	30/40
*Origin*	Scotland, Speyside, Dufftown
*Distillery*	Mortlach
*Owner*	Diageo
*Distilled*	1995
*Bottler*	Alexander Murray & Co
*Series*	Faultline
*Style*	Single Barrel Single Malt Whisky
*Cask*	First Fill Sherry Butt #7301
*Bottled*	December 4th, 2017
*Strength*	53.3% (106.6 proof)
*Retailer*	K&L Wine Merchants
Price	$120 (Sold Out)

Nose: Oranges, flowers mingle in minty heat. Water drops it to faint notes of a wet leaf-covered ground. (8/10)

Palate: Hot orange-flavored hard candy. Water dials fruitiness up to 11 and spreads everything out wide. (7/10)

Finish: Astringent wood and unripe, acidic oranges. (8/10)

Balance: Somewhat unbalanced. Adding water, while nicely boosting the palate, messes with the bookends in rather disappointing ways. The heat on this one definitely requires warming up ones palate with something else first. (7/10)

May 31, 2019January 22, 2020

Ardbeg Drum Ardbeg Day 2019 Committee Release

*Rating*	31/40
*Origin*	Scotland, Islay, South Shore
*Distillery*	Ardbeg
*Owner*	LVMH Moët Hennessy – Louis Vuitton SE via Glenmorangie
*Series*	Ardbeg Day Committee Release
*Style*	Single Malt Whisky
*Peated*	Yes
*Cask*	Bourbon Cask Maturation, Rum Cask Finish
*Bottled*	November 2018
*Strength*	52% (104 proof)
Price	$145-250

Nose: Smoke drifts past freshly ground metal shavings used to season a barrel of mackerels. Right after the bottle was cracked open there was some mild sour fruit rising out of and above the smoke but that element was quickly aired out. (9/10)

Palate: A slightly bitter and tangy kernel hides out in a fluffy cloud of smoke. (7/10)

Finish: Smoke tentatively probes the back of my mouth but is too scared to jump off the ledge down into my throat even though there is a cushy pile of embers to land on at the bottom. (8/10)

Balance: Just a bit off in the middle but otherwise very nice. We have not yet returned to the level of the grand old Ardbeg Day releases such as the original Supernova or the stupendous Rollercoaster. (8/10)

July 27, 2018January 22, 2020

Ardbeg Grooves Ardbeg Day 2018 Committee Release

Ardbeg Grooves Committee Release 2018 Close-up

*Rating*	36/40
*Origin*	Scotland, Islay, South Shore
*Distillery*	Ardbeg
*Owner*	LVMH Moët Hennessy – Louis Vuitton SE via Glenmorangie
*Series*	Ardbeg Day Committee Release
*Style*	Single Malt Whisky
*Peated*	Yes
*Cask*	Recharred Red Wine Casks
*Bottled*	November 23rd, 2017
*Strength*	51.5% (103.2 proof)
Price	$115-300

Nose: Dark smoke, earth and coarse bark mulch. (9/10)

Palate: Broad, root-y, a little like licking rough bark but without the stabbiness and cuttiness of it. (8/10)

Finish: Deep and broad, wild mushrooms. Porcini? (10/10)

Balance: Just… lovely. (9/10)

June 1, 2018January 23, 2020

Bunnahbhain Pedro Ximénez Finish Ltd. Release, 14yo, 2003/2017

Bunnahabhain PX Finish Ltd. Release, 2003/2017, 14yo., close-up

*Rating*	32/40
*Origin*	Scotland, Islay, North Shore
*Distillery*	Bunnahabhain
*Owner*	Distell Group
*Distilled*	March 24th, 2003
*Style*	Small Batch Single Malt Whisky
*Cask*	2nd fill Sherry casks followed by 3 years in Pedro Ximénez casks
*Bottled*	June 21st, 2017
*Bottles*	6768
*Strength*	54.3% (108.6 proof)
Price	$100-200

Nose: A little funky. Some unripe fruit and perhaps blue cheese? (7/10)

Palate: More fruit. (8/10)

Finish: The fruit them continues but with fruit gums. (9/10)

Balance: Odd stuff, this one, but nice. (8/10)

March 14, 2018September 3, 2021

Aultmore Sovereign K&L Excl., 9yo, 2008/2017

Aultmore Sovereign K&L Excl., 2008/2017, 9yo., close-up

*Rating*	31/40
*Origin*	Scotland, Central Speyside
*Distillery*	Aultmore
*Owner*	Bacardi via John Dewar & Sons
*Distilled*	June 2008
*Bottler*	Hunter Laing & Co.
*Series*	Sovereign
*Style*	Single Barrel Single Malt Whisky
*Cask*	Sherry Butt #HL13138
*Bottled*	August 2017
*Bottles*	631
*Strength*	59,8% (119.6 proof)
*Retailer*	K&L Wine Merchants

Nose: The mummified corpses of licorice candies melted under the Saharan sun and shriveled up to a state of utterly desiccated, dark tightness. (8/10)

Palate: Beastly and rough but full of beauty and power in its hot, raging magnificence. (9/10)

Finish: Bitter, medicinal flavors slowly build and layer in the back. (9/10)

Balance: And what rough ~~beast~~ dram, its hour come round at last, slouches towards ~~Bethlehem~~ my mouth to be ~~born~~ drunk. (9/10)