Teeling Blackpitts

I was keen on trying this as soon as I heard about. I’m also interested in peat, and a new Irish distillery exploring those waters is more than welcome in my book. The use of Sauternes casks in a regular release was also neat.

Teeling Blackpitts, Ireland Single Malt, 46% ABV

Minutia: Triple distilled and matured in a combination on bourbon and Sauternes casks. Enjoyed neat in a Tuath glass.

Color: Pale gold; 0.3.

Nose: Light smoke, a subtle sweetness, maybe like a grilled fruit. Some butter/cookie. Yogurt later.

Taste: Dry wine, oaky, light smoke, ash.

Finish: A bit spicy, tropical fruit yogurt (pineapple maybe), dry. Medium. Once the finish is mostly done, a chocolate flavor remains.

A surprisingly nice effort for a young release and a first crack at a style. I was expecting something more like Connemara and a whisky more like a Scotch, but this really drank more like an Irish. It’s really nice to see a triple distilled whisky that’s been peated. I’m looking forward to more in this vein.

Score: 81

Musical Evocation: Beast in Black – “Beast in Black”

Ardbeg 10 2008 SMWS 33.137 "Campfire marshmallows on singed sticks"

Names mean next to nothing when it comes to how enjoyable a whisky is, but this one caught my eye for sure. I wanted to try it and was sad I wouldn’t have the opportunity since I believe it was only sold at an event I was not attending. Fortunately it made it into a kit of samples that came up at an auction I was bidding in and it afforded me the opportunity to try a this and a few others as well.

Ardbeg 10, 2008 Vintage, Scotch Malt Whisky Society 33.137, Islay Single Malt, 59.9% ABV

Minutia: Distilled on November 27, 2008 and matured in a 1st fill bourbon barrel for 10 years yielding 231 bottles. This is part of the Peated flavor profile named “Campfire marshmallows on singed sticks”. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.

Color: Pale gold; 0.3.

Nose: This is one of those “smell the smoke ‘round the room” whiskies. Smoke, a sweetness that’s unsure of itself dances around there (banana, licorice, coconut, etc.). Salt flirts with the smokiness but mostly gives ground to the earthy quality of the smoke. A damn fine nose.

Taste: Woody smoke, quite hot. Compared to the tasting notes and other reviews, my mouth may have been a bit more sensitive than would have been ideal due to whatever circumstances preceded this tasting.

Finish: Singed wood, long. 

I think the palate would have been fine in a vacuum, but after that nose they felt like a letdown. That said, the nose still carries this one a good deal. It’s good, I’m not upset I wasn’t able to get a bottle, but I wouldn’t be disappointed had I managed to.

Score: 85

Musical Evocation: Gwen Stefani – “Early Winter”

Caol Ila Cask Strength

Picked this up as part of a set of three 200ml bottles at an auction. I had wanted to try this discontinued expression as well as revisit the 18 so it gave me a great opportunity to do that. Since I figure this is ostensibly meant to represent a cask strength version of the 12 year old (in that they each represent a different strength version of

Caol Ila Cask Strength, Islay Single Malt, 60.1% ABV

Minutia: Enjoyed neat in a glencairn. Compared to the standard 12 year.

Color: Deep gold; 0.8.

Nose: Peaty smoke. Citrusy, medicinal brine. After this, it brings out a creaminess in the 12 year, though this has it a bit more after returning to it.

Taste: Salty, medicinal peat with some pepper/spice. Earthy and ashy after a bit. The 12 has a bit of a doughier quality.

Finish: Spicy at first into ashy smoke. There’s a sweetness to the smoke, but it’s not obvious. Long. The 12 feels similar but not as long-lasting.

It’s pretty nice. It’s got a kick to it, and if you want that I think it’s preferable to the 12, but if you’re in the mood for something more subtle this is a bit punchy.

Score: 82

Ardbeg Traigh Bhan 19 Batch 1

Thanks to chutch02 over at speak-easy I was able to try this, as it's priced well above what I'm comfortable with at all, much less for a whisky of this age. I've recently thoroughly enjoyed a couple Ardbegs of similar age and/or involving a Sherry cask, so I'm still keen on trying it.

Ardbeg Traigh Bhan 19 Batch 1, Islay Single Malt, 46.2% ABV

Minutia: Matured for 19 years in a combination of American oak and Oloroso Sherry casks. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.

Color: Amber; 0.7.

Nose: Earthy, herbal. Salty wood smoke. Sherry-style fruit.

Taste: Shells, softly. Quickly spice comes in, smoke/tar, smoky fire/wood.

Finish: Bam, the wood/smoke/char jumps in and lingers. Long finish.

I quite like this, with the finish being the star. It's a shame this is produed in limited quantities and priced above what would allow the average person to try it, as if it were in the range of their apecial release MSRPs it would be a mainstay on many shelves, I'm sure.

Score: 87

Musical Evocation: Iron Maiden - "The Wicker Man"

Bowmore 23 1989 Port Cask Matured

The third of the five birth-year bottles I've acquired to have a dram of on my birthday (revisiting a sample every 5 years to compare that sample to what remains in the bottle. The first two were both Bunnahabhain IBs, so it's nice to move to a different distillery, as well as one bottled by the distiller. Fortunately I decided to include this as one of my birthday drams a while ago, when prices were a bit less high, though even then it was above what I would want to spend unless it were for a special bottle such as this. Hopefully it's worth the price.

Bowmore 23 1989 Port Cask Matured, Islay Single Malt, 50.8% ABV

Minutia: Distilled in 1989 and matured for 23 years in Port casks. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.

Color: Burnt umber; 1.7.

Nose: Big fruit (a distance away from the glass). Actually nosing, blueberry is prominent. Molasses, smoke/smoked potpourri, possibly smoked whiting.

Taste: Tannic/dry. Dark fruit, brown sugar. Smoked caramel.

Finish: Toffee. Coffee. Caramelized brown sugar. Smoky, as if the other notes were prepared over a campfire.

Really nice. Smokier than I expected (a plus) due to the age and Bowmores typically giving me a lower level of peat. It's not huge smoke, but exceeds expectations. It's a great birth-year bottle.

Score: 94

Musical Evocation: Gary Moore – “Over the Hills and Far Away”