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Reviews by: Oliver
The Macallan 10 Years Old Cask Strength Jan 2nd 2007
- Reviewer
- Oliver
- Color
- Slightly lighter in colour then the US 'no age' version; light amber.
- Nose
- What used to be classic Macallan. Fresh butter, sherry, cognac and sugar mixed together: Heaven! A muted whiff of alcohol. Oak. Banana's foster; vanilla bean in the background --slight citrus at the end. Candied orange peel? One of the most pleasant whisky from an olfactory perspective.
- Body
- Mouth coating and smooth as silk. You can feel the whisky undulate between your palate and tongue. It progresively takes over your palate. This one's hard to keep in check; a heavyweight bursting at the seams.
- Palate
- Smoke and sweetness at first. Intense development of flavours magnified by the alcohol. The citrus-orange note are in front. There is sweetness, then butter, sherry and tartness; citric acid perhaps? Beautiful balance!
- Finish
- Think nuclear cloud after the explosion. These echoes are deafening. The flavours reverbarate with intensity. Orange, Sherry, Malt.... And the the oak comes back. Palate is still coated with flavours.
This is Macallan how it used to be done: small spirit cut; 4 different kinds of yeast; golden promise barley and malt whisky "exclusively matured in sherry casks". Alas, this is no longer the case, since due to increasing price and scarcity, Macallan non longer insists on exclusive Sherry cask maturation... A Malt to cherish and savour, one of the original great speyside CS from the golden era of SMS.
The Macallan Cask Strength Jan 1st 2007
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- Reviewer
- Oliver
- Color
- Strong english tea.
- Nose
- Concentrated sherry; oak polish; leather; the smell upon entering an oak panelled library; alcohol; more polish and less wood as it progresses.
- Body
- A light-heavyweight. Not as viscous as the European market cask strength Macallan.
- Palate
- Rich at first, with sherry, red fruits and notes hint of marmalade and christmas pudding, then thinning.
- Finish
- the fruits fade quickly and give way to a rawboned hits of alcohol. Harsh; astringent.
A good cask strength malt, but a step down from the european market version aged (at least) 10 years. Seems like the vatting included some very young whiskyes as well as some perhaps past their prime. (This is the "red lable" version, being phased out in the U.S. for the "prefume bottle" expressions in white.
Bowmore Cask Strength Dec 29th 2006
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- Reviewer
- Oliver
- Color
- gloden caramel
- Nose
- Alcohol, faint pineapple and wet carboard. Muted "islay flavours"
- Body
- Slightly sticky, quickly thinning. A lightweight.
- Palate
- Mild echoes of peat, sea air, then flowers, pineapple, violets. Perfume?
- Finish
- The pineapple is resurgent. Alcohol, the rubbing kind. Flowery, sticky, light islay flavours... as though leaving islay on luxury yacht full of dancing (French?) ladies...
A real downer; at least now we know the motivation behind the many Bowmore "wine and fruit" expressions....
Laphroaig 40 Year Old Dec 28th 2006
- Reviewer
- Oliver
- Color
- lemon syrup a little hazy
- Nose
- sweet lemon syrup; sweet smoke --not "bbq like ardbeg, more elusive, more pleasant; lemons come on more strongly as thing progress; slight pepperiness; perhaps light pepper; lemon flavoured sweets; alcohol
- Body
- Thick but not oily (that would be the c/s), spicy
- Palate
- sweet then increasing spiciness, it gets more and more intense
- Finish
- It tingles, wet cloth marinated in smoke and sugar --faint citrus notes. Feeling of warmth reverbarates almost magically. Intense, smooth and lengthy. The higher proof was a good move.
This is unexpected. Is laphroaig quarter cask another brick in the wall which separates SMS from its previous standard, age? Perhaps, but it still tastes delightfull. And the finish never ends. Almost half as good as the Cask Strength. Better than any of the offerings from the hyppest islay distillery...