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Reviews by: sideburns
Laphroaig Quarter Cask Jun 27th 2011
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- Reviewer
- sideburns
- Color
- Golden sunset.
- Nose
- Smoke and alcohol. Intense smoke. I mean like a delicious smokey barbecue using Hawaiian keawe wood. It fills the room.
- Body
- Oily thick full bodied.
- Palate
- It's a peat/smoke heaven with wood. Smooth with a tinge of sweet maltiness.
- Finish
- Nice long finish that leaves you smacking your lips long after it goes down. Afterwhich, you are just compelled to do it all over again.
Wow. This a peat monster. I love Islay single malts and this is on the top of my list. I'm sure there are more layers of flavor in it but they get over powered by the intense peat/smoke/wood taste. Very delicious. Laphroaig rules! It saddens me a little bit because all my other favorites (Ardbeg 10, Uigeadail, Lagavulin 16, Talisker 10) just pales against it as far as intensity is concerned.
The Balvenie Doublewood 12 Year Old May 21st 2011
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- Reviewer
- sideburns
- Color
- Apple cider.
- Nose
- Creamy vanilla. Sweet. Strong alcohol.
- Body
- Medium body.
- Palate
- Some spicyness. Sweet like bourbon.
- Finish
- Short dry finish.
Smells and tastes too much like bourbon for my liking. Kinda like Highland Park 12 yo. I prefer Aberlour 12 yo or Abunadh over this. Lacks complexity. Boring. In case 'for peat' sake' posts this on another dram (which they do sometimes); this review is for The Balvenie Doublewood 12 yo.
Ardbeg Uigeadail Apr 29th 2011
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- Reviewer
- sideburns
- Color
- Pale caramel. Darker than the 10 yo.
- Nose
- Hello. How are you? Quite well. Thank you very much. The smell of the ocean harbor in the early sunny morning. Like the 10 yo, that marvelous peat and smoke is there but I also smell buttery vanilla. I smell flowers. Is that the heather smell that people talk about? Such a refreshing nose to this. I can smell the alcohol but it's not offensively strong considering it's 54.2 ABV.
- Body
- Syrupy thick.
- Palate
- How do I say this without sounding contradicting? Hmmmmmmm. It's sweet and salty. It starts off with a malty sweetness then comes the briny/peaty/smokey saltiness. A bit of dark chocolate in between. The wonderful complex taste lingers for a long time.
- Finish
- Long finish.
I am in love. This is the best whisky that I have ever tasted. If this bottle was a woman, I would leave my wife for it. And let me tell you, my wife is hot! This is the only whisky that I will drink for awhile. Ardbeg Uigeadail is my new current favorite single malt. Islay rules!
Johnnie Walker Black Label 12 Years Old Apr 26th 2011
- Reviewer
- sideburns
- Color
- Caramel. I wonder if it's natural.
- Nose
- Some vanilla and oak. A little smoke.
- Body
- Medium body. Not syrupy.
- Palate
- Peppery. Reminds me a bit of Talisker. As it goes down, I can sense a bit of raisin and vanilla. Also a bit of smoke/peat. I like the dryness (again). I'm grateful that it's not too sweet.
- Finish
- Medium finish. The pepper and malt lingers for a short while.
So I'm doing JW Black right now. Not bad really. I wish it was peatier. I can taste Talisker. That peppery character. I like the dryness. Just more peat and I wouldn't drink anything else. It's a good "go to" dram. I'll drink this to prep for my Islays. Affordable.
Ardbeg 10 Years Old Apr 6th 2011
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- Reviewer
- sideburns
- Color
- Light amber. Cloudy especially with a few drops of water.
- Nose
- Leather peat smoke. My favorite smell. Phenolic like a hospital smell. And finally fish scales. Do this: After finishing a glass don't rinse it. Just leave it for 30 minutes or so. Now smell the glass...... Fish scales!!
- Body
- Oily medium thick.
- Palate
- So it's like grilling a parrot fish (scales on) using mesquite wood in a hospital with open doors located on a bluff by the ocean. Ahhh, yes it just takes me there.
- Finish
- Long finish. The kind where you just can't help smacking your tongue against the roof of your mouth after each sip. Briny malty sweet.
So I've been nursing this bottle for the past 2 weeks. Just trying to make it last. Drinking others in between (Red Breast, Lagavulin 16, Caol Ila 12, Taliker 10, Abunadh, Glenlivet 12). Tonight 1/4 bottle left and I finished it! So sad. I miss it already. If I had not given some to Papa Whisky I would still have a little more. Damn it.
Red Breast 12 Year Old Mar 29th 2011
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- Reviewer
- sideburns
- Color
- Medium amber.
- Nose
- Fresh apples with vanilla. Alcohol smell.
- Body
- Medium bodied. Smooth and sweet but not like a bourbon with that evident cloying alcohol taste.
- Palate
- No offending taste. Fruity, vanilla, light maple. A little smoke/oak. No peat. Malty sweet at the end.
- Finish
- Short finish. No burn going down. Friendly.
It's like a friendly bloke who is up for anything. But poor conversation. Too simple. Easy. I like it. I come to it when I need a break from my beloved Islay.
Ballantine's 12 Year Old Mar 24th 2011
- Reviewer
- sideburns
- Color
- Medium amber.
- Nose
- Light friendly sweet maple like smell.
- Body
- Very light. Harmless. Smooth.
- Palate
- Not too much going on here. No layers of flavor coming out. Just a light sweet maple taste. Very simple.
- Finish
- Short finish. It does not transform to anything else from start to end.
It's really an unexceptional dram. If at a bar and I order for scotch without being specific this the taste of scotch I would be served. I don't like but I don't hate. Someone who is new to whisky should start with this.
Talisker 10 Year Old Mar 21st 2011
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- Reviewer
- sideburns
- Color
- Amber.
- Nose
- Strong rich wet leather smell. I wanna wear sometimes as a cologne. Wonderful!
- Body
- Full bodied. Complex / heavy. Not for the faint-hearted. It's a punch in the face.
- Palate
- Layers of flavors starting with pepper, seaweed, savory as oppose to sweet. The peat is there but not as overpowering as an Ardbeg 10.
- Finish
- Long finish. Numbs the palate in a wonderful way.
My first introduction to peated single malt scotch. It was love at first taste. It's like a favorite mistress that I keep coming back to.