83

Aberlour a'bunadh

Review by: Rich
Nose: Too much alcohol to enjoy its nose without water. So I add a bit. Wow, this IS a sherry monster. Sherry and something almost of the sea. Or even meaty? Not at all in a bad way. After a few seconds it almost smells like a rye.
Body: Some guts.
Palate: Big sherry, reminds me of an old school Macallan. Some vanilla and pepper which carry through to the finish and intensify. Bring it down enough and you can almost taste Rye, which I know there is not. Something in the sherry wood perhaps?
Finish: Lingering sweetness.

Batch 15. I think perhaps I am liking the proverbial "sherry monsters" less than I did when I started with malt, a few years ago. Wish there was more complexity, more balance here. I want some malt in my malt, if you know what I mean. That being said, it is still nice. Note: I am going to give it two extra points for how wonderful the glass smells after it was finished. A bit more complextiy would have helped, perhaps, but this is the price a malt pays for intense sherry, at times.

89

Lagavulin 16 Year Old

Review by: Rich
Nose: Here is the smoke, and the gentle malt underneath. Powerful, even at a low alcohol percentage it is hard to breath in too deeply without being overwhelmed.
Palate: Dry at points, smoke, the malty sweetness comes and goes.
Finish: Long and rolling peat, but perhaps shorter than I remmember it.

This was the 2005 version, which scored a couple of points less than before. A bit thinner than in the past few years, or is it me? Still wonderful.

94

Laphroaig 30 Year Old

Review by: Rich
Color: Deep orange
Nose: Orange, Burnt tangerines, deep smoke, integrated
Body: Heavy, bold.
Palate: Congruent with nose. Wonderful complexity. Citrus, peat and malt in harmony, sweat peat and sherry notes? Wow.
Finish: Sit back and let the waves take you over

My third highest ranked malt. Fantastic.

60

Aberlour 10 Year Old

Review by: Rich
Nose: The best part of the malt.Sweet toffee, butterscotch, slightly spicy with sweet malt undertones. Mouth: Slightly spicy, some gentle sweetness
Palate: Artificial tasting. No complexity. The sweatness comes and goes quickly.I don't "trust" the authenticity of this malt, maybe caramel, maybe bad casks, whatever. I don't enjoy this
Finish: A hint of spice overtaken by "dullness." My tongue is left with a odd, numb coating.

Others like this one; it is one of my least favorite singles.

78

The Glenlivet 12 Years Old

Review by: Rich
Nose: Floral, gentle maltiness. Dry not sweet malt. Mild spice.
Body: Firm, more weight than it might seem.
Palate: This seems a bit more "intense" than other years of this malt, or again, perhaps it is my changing palate. There is a spiciness here that gives some additional balance to the normal gentle floral quality. It seems more assertive and direct as well.
Finish: Finishes as well as it starts.

Do not overlook; a slightly better than average malt.