Glenfiddich Bourbon Barrel Reserve, 14yo

Glenfiddich Bourbon Barrel Reserve, 14yo
Rating27.5/40
OriginScotland, Speyside, Dufftown
DistilleryGlenfiddich
OwnerWilliam Grant & Sons
EditionBourbon Barrel Reserve
StyleSingle Malt
CaskEx-Bourbon Casks, Charred New American Oak Barrels
Strength43% (86 Proof)
WhiskybaseWhiskybase
Wine SearcherWine Searcher

Glenfiddich’s Speyside single malt is first matured in Ex-Bourbon casks for 14 years and then finished for a few months in charred new American Oak barrels sourced from the Kelvin Cooperage in Louisville, Kentucky.

Nose: Pleasant but… small? This one just refuses to expand beyond a small bubble that terminates about one half inch from the top of the glass. But if you stick your nose into that little pocket then what you find in there is actually quite pretty. (7/10)

Palate: Smooth with watery fringes. And by smooth I mean vague. It doesn’t seem to have any memorable characteristics. Sort of what one might consider the average flavor of a non-peaty single malt with no special maturation or finish to be. Boring but not exactly bad as such. (5/10)

Finish: This is where this thing finally comes to life. Dark but sparkly notes rise from the very back of the palate. It’s almost like drinking a really nice, freshly carbonated single malt flavored craft cola. But in the end it just doesn’t have the power to really light up the old fireplace in my chest. There’s a nice bit of warmth developing eventually but it never reaches beyond the throat. Still, this part of the whisky is quite enjoyable. (8/10)

Balance: Perfectly suited to start off an evening of tasting whisky. The palate is a rather nondescript and uninteresting but it’s short-lived anyway and serves as a quick transition from a pretty nose to a solid finish. (7.5/10)

Glengyle Kilkerran, 12yo.

Glengyle Kilkerran 12yo., close-up
Rating28/40
OriginScotland, Campbeltown
DistilleryGlengyle
OwnerMitchell Family
StyleSingle Malt
PeatedYes
Strength46% (92 Proof)
WhiskybaseWhiskybase
Wine SearcherWine-Searcher

The 12 year old Kilkerran is the baseline single male release of the youngest Campbeltown distillery, Glengyle. The name Kilkerran was chosen to avoid confusion with an existing Highland blend bottled under the same name of Glengyle.

Nose: Wood sticking out of a roll of wet felt that’s been drying since someone spilled some lightly peated whisky on it a little while ago. Later some wine notes making a non-committal showing in the background. (6.5/10)

Palate: A bright flash of an initial hit infused with mildly sour plums spreading out from a high center splashing outwards towards the edges of my mouth. Almost seems to float a millimeter or two above the tongue refusing to make contact. Geometrically interesting but not a ton of flavor. (7.5/10)

Finish: The splash from the palate leaves a ring of residual flavor around the fringes of the mouth that is quite pleasant. But there’s not a lot happening in the back. There’s bits alive in slow waves on my breath but overall it sort of just peters out. (7/10)

Balance: The dynamics of the palate is the most interesting part but I wish there was just a little more of a constant deep finish to enjoy afterwards. The nose is… a bit meh. (7/10)

Tomatin, 12yo, 2018

Rating26/40
OriginScotland, Northern Highlands
DistilleryTomatin
OwnerTaKaRa Holdings via Takara Shuzo
StyleSingle Malt Whisky
CasksBourbon, Sherry
Bottled2018
Strength43% (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)

Aultmore Foggie Moss, 12yo

Rating27/40
OriginScotland, Central Speyside
DistilleryAultmore
OwnerBacardi via John Dewar & Sons
StyleSingle Malt Whisky
Strength46% (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)

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

Mortlach Faultline 1995/2017, 22yo, close-up
Rating30/40
OriginScotland, Speyside, Dufftown
DistilleryMortlach
OwnerDiageo
Distilled1995
BottlerAlexander Murray & Co
SeriesFaultline
StyleSingle Barrel Single Malt Whisky
CaskFirst Fill Sherry Butt #7301
BottledDecember 4th, 2017
Strength53.3% (106.6 proof)
RetailerK&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)

Bowmore Sovereign K&L Excl., 22yo, 1995/2017

Bowmore Sovereign K&L Exclusive, 1995/2017, 22yo, close-up
Rating30/40
OriginScotland, Islay, Loch Indaal
DistilleryBowmore
Owner Suntory Holdings via Beam Suntory via Morrison Bowmore Distillers
DistilledMay 1995
BottlerHunter Laing & Co.
SeriesSovereign
StyleSingle Barrel Single Malt Whisky
CaskRefill Hogshead #HL13035
BottledAugust 2017
Bottles256
Strength51.8% (103.6 proof)
RetailerK&L Wine Merchants

Nose: Fresh cut plums polished with shoe wax. Someone is eating milk chocolate in the distance. (8/10)

Palate: Bowmore-ish right off the start. Hot. Someone said “coffee” while I was tasting it and, boom!, there it is. (8/10)

Finish: Waiting for the finish… surely it must be coming soon!… but so far all I got is just a bit of a burn on the tongue. Hey! Moving my tongue hither and to does kick up a few splashes of nice flavors. But if I stop moving they instantly disappear again. Strange one, this one. (7/10)

Balance: Not too shabby in the front but just a bit weird in the back. (7/10)

GlenDronach Revival, 15yo, 2019

Glendronach Revival 15yo
Rating29/40
OriginScotland, Speyside, Deveron
DistilleryGlenDronach
OwnerBrown Forman via BenRiach Distillery Co. Ltd.
StyleSingle Malt Whisky
CasksPedro Ximénez, Oloroso Sherry
BottledAugust 1st, 2019
Strength46% (92 Proof)
WhiskybaseWhiskybase
Wine SearcherWine Searcher

Nose: Grapes and blood oranges. Grassy notes hit fresh out of the bottle and then fade away to make room for the Sherry to stick its head out. (7/10)

Palate: Rich but, oddly, also slightly thin and somewhat dry. (7/10)

Finish: Truly the best part! (8/10)

Balance: (7/10)