I actually had a sample of this a year and a half or so ago when I bought two by mistake. I didn’t take any notes then and found it ok. I’ve been more appreciative of unpeated malt lately, so let’s see if my perception changed.
Minutia: Distilled on June 26, 2006 and matured in a 1st fill Sherry butt, cask number 2127, until bottling on June 4, 2015. Reviewed blind, neat in a glencairn.
Color: Chestnut Oloroso Sherry, 1.2.
Nose: Fruity malt. Subtle red apple.
Taste: Similar to nose, more emphasis on the malt.
Finish: Malt continues, some woody spice. Buttery after a while.
Guess: I’m near certain it’s a Bunnahabhain from the beginning, with a tiny chance it’s an off-profile Bruichladdich. My initial gut was a Sherry cask IB, with a possibility of Stiùireadair or less likely one of the other NAS OBs. The low proof feeling made me lean NAS OB with some Sherry.
Well, my gut was right and the low proof threw me off. I too often assume all IBs are cask strength. Still, I’m happy with the guess based on my thought process. I definitely appreciated this more than I did the last time. Even though the score isn’t super high numerically, it’s a nice whisky. Not a ton going on, but that one thing it does it’s doing real well. It’s got that nutty malt quality that is just there from start to finish with a bit of some other notes now and again. Even though the An Cladach from a few days ago told me it’s time to revisit the 12 and 18, this just cements that.
Score: 79
Here are links to the other posts from this calendar:
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