Waterford Ballykilcavan 1.1

While getting a bottle of every harvest/vintage they released is too impractical, I did manage to get a number of samples of Waterford, including this from their inaugural set of releases. I’m very interested in how each farm changes over time, but also how the farms differ with the same process. Not a proper side by side, but I will be mentally comparing this to Bannow Island 1.1.

Waterford Ballykilcavan, Ireland Single Malt, 50% ABV

Minutia: Distilled on February 9, 2016 from Taberna barley from Ballykilcavan farm - sown on March 19, 2015 and harvested August 17, 2015 - fermented with Mauri distiller’s yeast for 150.5 hours and matured in American oak, French oak, and Vin Doux Naturel casks for 3 years, 11 months, and 18 days before bottling in June 2020 producing 8,640 bottles. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.

Color: Old gold, 0.6.

Nose: Butter cookie, fried dough, fruit tries to sneak in.

Taste: Malty. Green fruit, honey. Off note under it all.

Finish: Off malt, grass, honey.

I’ve read that some of their wine casks early on had issues with sulphur, and I wonder if that is that off note I got. It diminished/I got acclimated before the end of the dram, and toward the end that note in the finish almost became pleasant, but it was still prevalent enough to knock it down a peg for me. Without that it would have been quite enjoyable, though young. Nose-wise it was pretty similar to the Bannow Island 1.1, with a bit of difference, but this also had a different cask makeup as virgin oak wasn’t available at the time this went into casks. That off note (by the way, totally not present in the nose) did stop me from being able to do any real comparisons on the palate. I still think this will be a great distillery once the spirit has had time to age more. I’m also pleased that the nose was really very similar, so even though they’re doing a lot with terroir and trying to demonstrate the differences between the barley type, farms, harvests, etc., there does seem to be a “house style” so I’m expecting a fair amount of consistency going forward without every single expression being drastically unique. In short, if you find you do or don’t like one Waterford release, you can probably expect the same on others (though that could change if more aging brings it around, or they do something wildly different with one batch, such as peating the barley).

Score: 74

Musical Evocation: Haggard – “Awaking the Centuries”

Laphroaig 10 Cask Strength - Batch 007

I love the 10 year old, and the way people raved about this it put it on my list so it was a no brainer when a local liquor store happened to have some. 

Laphroaig 10 Cask Strength Batch 007, Islay Single Malt, 56.3% ABV

Minutia: Bottled at cask strength in January 2015 after 10 years of maturation, the 7th batch of this expression. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.

Color: Tawny, 1.4.

Nose: Molasses, campfire, musty fruit, smoky butterscotch, tobacco.

Taste: Smoke, pepper, dunnage.

Finish: Oaky spice, smoke, seaweed. Long.

This is powerful and flavorful. Like so many drams for me of late, the nose is the star of the show. I’d say I enjoyed all the elements about the same, but something about the nose is more compelling. The 10 will always hold the whisky equivalent of a place in my heart held by my first love but this – without getting vulgar with specifics – is akin to an improved version of that person in all ways. I have too many bottles at the present time to begin following through with this, but once the amount of bottles is under control/amount of space can handle the bottles I’ll be getting at least one bottle of every batch for as long as they make this.

Score: 92

Musical Evocation: Bathory – “Lake of Fire”

Top 10 Whiskies of 2020

This post is about the Top 10 Whiskies I tried over the course of 2020. It is all about when I took the notes, not when the whiskies were released, and they are in no particular order.

1. Lagavulin 12
2. Laphroaig 28
3. Talisker 25
4. Talisker 30
5. Ardbeg Alligator
6. Longrow 18
7. Octomore 10.3
8. Octomore 10.4
9. Springbank 15
10. Springbank 24 Single Cask

Advent 2020 #24 - Kilchoman UK Small Batch Release 1

The final day, not as exciting as finishing with Ar11 would have been, but let’s see if it was a strong finish anyway.

Kilchoman UK Small Batch Release 1, Islay Single Malt, 48.3% ABV

Minutia: Matured in bourbon, Sherry, and Madeira casks and bottled in 2019 yielding 1,260 bottles.

Color: Burnished, 1.1.

Nose: Big banana, funk, dough, hand rub yields snuff. That banana and funk are really more a single aroma of banana taffy.

Taste: Banana taffy, burnt molasses, light smoke.

Finish: Smoke, green wood, apple, spices.

Guess: Springbank 15 Rum.

Hmm, other than a Bushmills, I haven’t had anything using Madeira casks before, I have to guess that’s where that prominent banana flavor came from. Overall this was quite interesting, but that banana bit is a touch too much for me

Score: 89

Musical Evocation: Johnny Cash & Joe Strummer – “Redemption Song”

Here are links to the other posts from this calendar:

Advent 2020 #23 - Elements of Islay Ar11

One of the more intriguing drams in the lineup given the age and cask makeup. Ardbeg from a Sherry cask is insanely popular and pretty hard to come by. Any Ardebg that turns up in the SMWS store, particularly Sherried ones, regardless of the price, sell out even more quickly than other desirable casks and go for silly prices at auctions. Coming across a sample of this felt like a great opportunity and I’m glad it turned up in the Advent calendar this year, particularly toward the end to finish with a bang.

Elements of Islay Ar11, Islay Single Malt, 56.8% ABV

Minutia: Distilled in 2000 and matured for 12 years in American oak casks and 7 years in a 1st fill PX butt before bottling in 2019 yielding 840 bottles. 

Color: Brown Sherry, 1.9.

Nose: Dry winey fruit, smoke, must, molasses. 

Taste: Peppery, smoky fruit, cola.

Finish: Woody, musty, pecan pie but not sweet. Long

Guess: Laphroaig, either the 15 or more likely an older IB. I’d be stunned if Sherry wasn’t involved somehow.

Pretty close, generally speaking. I feel like I should have got this as after the reveal it does remind of Alligator and Day in some respects. Holy smokes is this good. I must say I’m very disappointed this isn’t readily available (where I am, anyway). If this was stocked by sites I can order from, barring an obscene price this would easily be included in my “post Advent calendar drams I liked enough to buy a bottle” order. I’ve had interest in the Sherried Ardbegs from the SMWS I mentioned above, but have thus far pulled out of the bidding when it got above what I felt it was worth. I might stick around a bit longer after having this one (or better yet check if any of these are up for bidding). Easily the darkest whisky I’ve reviewed thus far, and it’s all natural. I’ve got a sample of Traigh Bhan on the way from a swap and I’m super eager to try that given the similarities to this, but if I have expectations of this I think I’ll be let down so I’ll be trying my best to keep that mindset away.

Score: 92

Musical Evocation: Ennio Morricone – “The Ecstasy of Gold”

Here are links to the other posts from this calendar:

Advent 2020 #22 - Laphroaig An Cuan Mòr

I like Laphroaig enough where I’d buy a sample of anything for the opportunity to try it, but the “Big Ocean” name implying emphasis on maritime elements would be appealing enough to attract me even if I wouldn’t buy it no matter what.

Laphroaig An Cuan Mòr, Islay Single Malt, 48% ABV

Minutia: Matured in ex-bourbon casks and then European oak casks. Reviewed blind, neat in a glencairn.

Color: Tawny, 1.4.

Nose: Sharp rich fruit, earthy smoke, bit medicinal. Rubbing on hands gives chocolate and an absolutely delightful snuff. The nose gets better as time goes on.

Taste: Musty, leather, pepper. Thinner than nose would suggest.

Finish: Smoke, something savory (never had a fig but maybe that? The bottle says burnt apricot so maybe that’s this?), salty. Medium-long.

Guess: My gut was saying Octomore, but I’ve been fooled by too many Laphroaigs this Advent calendar not to guess Laphroaig.

I was expecting this to be one of the well aged OBs or maybe an older Elements of Islay release rather than a travel retail NAS based on how good it was, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. The taste was a step down from the truly excellent nose. I almost didn’t want to sip it at all and just keep smelling it, easily the star of the show. I had a plan to place an order after trying the 24 samples in the calendar if I liked any enough to buy a bottle, and this would make the cut if I wasn’t already getting 2 bottles each just under $200. Could easily see myself tacking a bottle onto an order in the future, though.

Score: 91

Musical Evocation: Alestorm – “Wolves of the Sea”

Here are links to the other posts from this calendar:

Advent 2020 #21 - Bunnahabhain Ceòbanach

So far peated Bunnahabhain has been mostly a hit for me. Never a miss, but the weakest have just been a less strong hit. How does the “Smoky Mist” tickle me?

Bunnahabhain Ceòbanach, Islay Single Malt, 46.3% ABV

Minutia: Matured in ex-Bourbon casks, while this has no age statement, the website says it matured for more than 10 years. Whether that’s a parcel of casks in a batch or all of them is unclear. I suspect it is all of them, but batch to batch would be different if given an age statement so they went NAS with it. Reviewed blind, neat in a glencairn.

Color: Old gold amber, 0.6.5.

Nose: Medicinal smoke, brine, white wine tries to peek through. Awesome must after a short while in the glass. That bumps the nose up an entire tier.

Taste: Salty, oaky, dusty.

Finish: Bright, big smoke, herbal/vegetal.

Guess: The color suggests some youth but not extreme youth, potency of the nose suggests a high ABV. With both of those, plus some similar characteristics, I’m guessing Octomore, possibly even an X.2, though I don’t think I have any of those in the pool.

It’s pretty high praise to get confused with an Octomore. It wasn’t based just on color and that sharp ethanol presence on the nose without giving it time to evaporate. It genuinely has the musty, meaty/almost-meaty notes I associate with Octomore, and the smoke was similar. The taste was a bit simple and that held this back from being a fantastic dram, but the taste is bookended by a really nice smoky quality. Not to say I didn’t enjoy it – I very much did – but the taste is the difference that keeps me from seeking out a bottle. If I came across one I might pick it up for a good price, but that seems unlikely.

Score: 86

Musical Evocation: Ghost – “Square Hammer”

Here are links to the other posts from this calendar:

2020 Advent #20 - Kilchoman STR Cask Matured

Been looking forward to this one for a while. I’ve quite liked Kilchoman’s spirit, and have come to know wine casks seem to be my preferred wood. Not much experience with STR (if any), but still something I’ve been excited to try.

Kilchoman STR Cask Matured, Islay Single Malt, 50% ABV

Minutia: Put into 43 STR red wine casks in 2012 and bottled in 2019. Reviewed blind, neat in a glencairn.

Color: Tawny, 1.4.

Nose: Earthy peat smoke, dunnage/must, sweet tone to smoke. Meaty.

Taste: Oaky, smoke, spices, feels like dry wine.

Finish: Big musty smoke into citric quality into a citric smoke blend. Meat grilled and drizzled with lemon juice. Medium long.

Guess: Octomore. Maybe Ardbeg or wine Kilchoman.

Kinda got it, the ABV felt too low for me to commit to Octomore, but it did have a lot of the flavors there. The taste was a bit lackluster (still good) and held this back from an even higher score. A whisky I very much enjoyed. The nose and finish are just super.

Score: 88

Musical Evocation: White Zombie – "Super-Charger Heaven"

Here are links to the other posts from this calendar:

2020 Advent #19 - Elements of Islay Ar1

A fairly old bottling from a pretty respectable IB from a distillery I quite like. I’ve been looking forward to this one for a while, so I’m glad it turned up in this calendar.

Elements of Islay Ar1, Islay Single Malt, 58.7% ABV

Minutia: Distillates from the 1990s and 2000s matured in hogsheads. Reviewed blind, neat in a glencairn.

Color: Old gold, 0.5.

Nose: Smokiness, feels medicinal. Also feels a bit like dried fruit.

Taste: Smoke, spicy fruit, dry musty fruit, oak.

Finish: Vegetal smoke (pronounced), heat, a weird bit. Feels musty at the tail in a really nice way. Maybe bump this up a point or two if you like that.

Guess: Fire and Cane? Talisker? Springbank 15 Rum? Nothing distinctive enough for me here. All I can venture is a respectable ABV.

And the ABV is all I got close on. This was an ok dram. The finish was the preferred part for me, and I think the memory of the dram is more fond than the dram itself. Over the course of this glass, a feeling grew that this is a dram that a sample is really entirely incomparable for a proper judgement. It’s never great, but often a sample gives you at least the big picture. This evolved a good deal, and the finish improved the longer it was left to develop without a sip. This would benefit a lot from having many opportunities to lest for various times after pouring, as well as between sips, and see what comes out of it after those intervals. A weird and neat dram, and neater for its weirdness, but short of a revelation.

Score: 83

Here are links to the other posts from this calendar:

2020 Advent #18 - Ledaig 8 v2010 Signatory Vintage

I’ve loved Ledaig since the moment I tried it. After that point I was eager to get my hands on as much as I can. Finally one turned up in the calendar. How was it?

Ledaig 8 v2010, Signatory Vintage, Island (Mull) Single Malt, 60% ABV

Minutia: Distilled on June 12, 2010 and matured for 8 years in a 1st fill bourbon barrel, cask #700389, until bottling in April 2019. Bottled for The 20th anniversary of The Whisky Exchange, resulting in 2019 bottles.

Color: Pale gold, 0.3.

Nose: Peat, green smoke, some medicinal/maritime astringency. Vegetal. Chalky (texture, not a smell of chalk). White wine fruit (reminiscent of a dryer Chardonnay), very subtle white chocolate later. 

Taste: Maritime smoke, sharp. Pepper (black mostly, hints of cayenne).

Finish: Smoke, wood, dry must, salty. Beach late. Medium.

Guess: Laphroaig, maybe Kilchoman, Caol Ila or Lagavulin or Ardbeg could be. Leaning Bourbon cask, Lagavulin, maybe Elements of Islay.

As I was writing down my guess, I got a slight sense of funk that had me thinking “Maybe Ledaig?”, but nothing else brought me enough in that direction to formally include it. The ABV was a bit higher than I thought (probably low 50s) but makes sense with that astringent quality in the nose and a pretty strong heat on the palate. This was nice but not spectacular. A young peater, more akin to Islay for me than Ledaig. Despite me getting more notes than usual this felt simpler than others, but not in a bad way. The nose was a bit better than the rest, otherwise all elements were pretty much in line with each other enjoyment-wise. If that white chocolate hint developed into something more than a fleeting hint, the nose would have been quite remarkable.

Score: 81

Here are links to the other posts from this calendar:

2020 Advent #17 - Laphroaig The 1815 Legacy Edition

Another day, another Laphroaig. Lots of these turning up in the Advent calendar this year, not that I’m complaining. How was this one?

Laphroaig The 1815 Legacy Edition, Islay Single Malt, 48% ABV

Minutia: Reviewed blind, neat in a glencairn.

Color: Auburn, 1.5.

Nose: Red fruit, smoke (saline and medicinal in quality, but not these aromas on their own), sweet.

Taste: Dry, wood, smoke.

Finish: Musty, fruit, smoke, wood.

Guess: Kilchoman Red Wine Cask Matured.

I continue to be thwarted on Laphroaigs that taste much fruitier than I expect. I know I got a bunch of fruit on the very old ones, but I don’t recall that ever before. Then during these blind reviews I seem to be getting it a ton. Looks like bias of the hospital peat punch that is Laphroaig may have gotten in my way of identifying anything that isn’t peat-related. Gonna have to come at my next Laphroaig 10 from an open perspective. Anyway, this was and overall excellent dram. The nose started out almost blah, but then I just couldn’t stop sniffing it. It evolved and the different aromas danced around each other wonderfully. The taste is strong, but not much is going on. It’s mostly dry and woody, the smoke is an afterthought. The finish brings everything back to form, though. This was a real trip I’m glad I took.

Score: 90

Musical Evocation: Wintersun – “Time”

Here are links to the other posts from this calendar: