Top 10 Whiskies of 2021

It's a bit late in the game, but I forgot to post it earlier this year. This post is about the Top 10 Whiskies I tried over the course of 2021. It is all about when I took the notes, not when the whiskies were released, and they are in no particular order.

1. Talisker 8 Special Release 2018
2. Ledaig 13 2005 Single Cask Nation
3. Bowmore 23 1989 Port Cask Matured
4. SMWS 129.1 Kilchoman
5. Caol Ila 18
6. Port Charlotte MC:01
7. Longrow 18 2020
8. Caol Ila 7 2009 Signatory Vintage
9. Laphroaig Cairdeas 2018 Fino
10. Springbank 21 2020

Advent 2021 #17 - Caol Ila 7 2009 Signatory Vintage

This is another of those I picked up mostly just because it was available when placing an order. And it turned up to start the final third of this year’s calendar.

Caol Ila 7, 2009 Vintage, Signatory Vintage, Islay Single Malt, 57.2% ABV

Minutia: Distilled on October 13, 2009 and matured in a hogshead for 7 years and bottled on August 31, 2007 yielding 335 bottles. Reviewed blind, neat in an opaque glencairn.

Color: White wine; 0.1.

Nose: Smoky, funky, tarry. Smoked seafood.

Taste: Creamy, smoky vanilla, bit of spice, smoked shellfish. A sweetness tries to peek in.

Finish: Leathery smoke, white grape. Medium. After the more present part of the finish is gone, there’s a very long smoky note left over.

Guess: Octomore, X.1 or X.3 since I don’t really detect any wine influence.

Wow, this hit some notes I really associate with Octomore. Though, a young, cask strength Islay isn’t all that far off. I enjoyed this a lot, and after my last Caol Ila with a disappointing nose, it’s a relief. This reminds me of another Caol Ila from Signatory which I enjoyed so much I ended up getting two bottles. This, however, is sadly not as available as that was. It felt nice to be reminded of that Caol Ila. I’ll keep it short so as not to overshare, but lately I’ve not been terribly motivated to keep this up, but this reminded me of what I love about whisky, and I’m hoping it brings back that enthusiasm.

Score: 92

Musical Evocation: Heart – “Alone”

Here are links to the other posts from this calendar:

Laphroaig Cairdeas 2018 Fino Cask Finish

The second of the Cairdeas releases I’ve tried after the 2017 Cask Strength Quarter Cask which I enjoyed a ton. That seems to be one of the less appreciated of them and people told me that if I liked that I’d really like some of the other releases so I picked this up at a shop when I saw it there.. I’ve seen mixed reviews on this between OK and great, and my familiarity with Fino casks is limited only to the Oban Distillers Edition which was a pour at a bar so I didn’t know entirely what to expect.

Laphroaig Cairdeas 2018 Fino Cask Finish, Islay Single Malt, 51.8% ABV

Minutia: Matured in 1st fill ex-bourbon casks and finished in ex-Fino casks, bottled at 51.8% to commemorate its release in 2018. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.

Color: Chestnut, Oloroso Sherry; 1.2.

Nose: Starts oaky vanilla into medicinal smoke. The medicinal element is slight, at least for Laphroaig. You have to find it a bit rather than it’s usual boisterous presence. The smoke is far more in the leather/tobacco/vegetation family. Coastal air, not on the beach, or even adjacent, but a mile or so inland. Stone fruit syrup and creamy citrus notes come in revisiting after having had a sip.

Taste: Woody, light wine. Iodine. That’s really all I could pick out, but it’s bigger than just those notes suggest.

Finish: Musty, dry, then smoke. Big, tarry, ashy smoke. Not a complete explosion of it, but it really announces itself after a few seconds. An indiscriminate sweetness, perhaps a roasted nut which is sweet. Just shy of medium length.

Damn, I really like this. I was in love from the first whiff. I really regret not trying this sooner so I could have gotten a few more at MSRP. Based on how much people enjoyed it, I’m grateful took some user’s advice here about the Triple Wood Cairdeas to buy two if a shop had it. I have so much whisky to try I expect to have caught up with the Cairdeas releases at or around the time next year’s gets released so hopefully this doesn’t happen again.

Score: 90

Musical Evocation: Guns N’ Roses – “So Fine”

Longrow 18 2020

The 2018 release was just wonderful, so it wouldn’t take much convincing to try this one, but at my current budget and bottle-storage limits there was no compulsion to try every batch. The less-than-usual cask make intrigued me enough to try this one, however.

Longrow 18 (2020), Campbeltown Single Malt, 46% ABV

Minutia: Matured in 25% bourbon, 20% rum, and 55% Sherry casks for 18 years and bottled on August 12, 2020 yielding a batch of 4,300 bottles. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.

Color: Burnished; 1.1.

Nose: Pleasant smoke, a humid but dusty storage area, toffee/caramel, Russian rye. There’s really a lot going on here, and those are the only notes I can put to words.

Taste: Fruit gives way to cardboard, to bitter chocolate and back again.

Finish: Sweet, metallic, slight smoke with medicinal touch, sweet citrus. A bit of bitterness. An overall ‘mechanical’ feel.

Man, a real treat. Nothing wrong in the mouth, but the nose is just more interesting. This is a dram you could have over a course of an entire evening and barely take a sip. It’s complex, but there’s a subtlety to the complexity that is quite nice. There’s an overall sweeter tone to each of the elements noted above that don’t intrinsically sound sweet, I suspect this is the rum influence. This distillery continues to impress, and this is no exception. I didn’t enjoy it quite as much as the 2018 release, but I did enjoy it quite a lot.

Score: 90

Musical Evocation: Beast in Black – “Blind and Frozen”

Port Charlotte MC:01

I’m always interested in at least trying these experimental releases from Port Charlotte. If I could I’d have them all, but not many (if any) make it over here to the States (around me, anyway), so when I see a sample available I go for it.

Port Charlotte MC:01, Islay Single Malt, 56.3% ABV

Minutia: Distilled in 2009, 48% matured in French oak casks for 6 years, 52% in American whiskey casks, then put together and matured in Sicilian Marsala casks for 2 years, bottled ultimately after 9 years of maturation on January 16, 2019. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.

Color: Tawny; 1.4.

Nose: Hammy, smoky. A sweetness trying to break through. After a bit in the glass it does in the form of some vanilla/cream and red fruit with spices.

Taste: Thick. Heat/spice. Orange.

Finish: Warm smoke. Salt. Intensity is short-lived, but the more subtle salt and smoke linger long.

A really strong whisky. Hopefully they continue to make it. If I find myself in a travel shop that has it I’ll definitely be getting a bottle. Between this and CC:01 I am really enjoying this Exploratory Cask series, and I’m looking forward to getting whatever ones I can.

Score: 91

Musical Evocation: Lana Del Rey – “Gods and Monsters”

Kilchoman 5 2006 SMWS 129.1 "A Smoky, Peachy, Yoghurt of Loveliness"

I was bidding in an auction a few months ago and this happened to come up. Kilchoman IBs are rather rare (as far as I know only a handful of casks have been released by other bottlers, and about half of them were SMWS casks from about ten years ago) so I bid on it, and while it cost a pretty penny, I ended up getting it for much less than what X.1 bottles can go for, particularly from favored distilleries. Anyway, while it tanks the value of the bottle, that’s not why whisky is made so I opened it up and here are my notes.

Kilchoman 5, 2006 Vintage, Scotch Malt Whisky Society 129.1, Islay Single Malt, 60.2% ABV

Minutia: Distilled on June 28, 2006 and matured in a 1st-fill bourbon barrel for 5 years yielding 235 bottles. This bottle predates the creation of their flavor profiles and was named “A Smoky, Peachy, Yoghurt of Loveliness”. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.

Color: Deep gold; 0.8.

Nose: Damn. A minty, stingy (related to stinging, not cheap), salty, medicinal smoke. Snuff. Some kind of candy, maybe mixed up with incense. Could smell this forever.

Taste: Intense. Spice (cayenne), vanilla, medicinal/anise (like one of those lozenges that reminds me of a Rollo or whatever that disc candy is that nobody wanted on Halloween). You can find some peach in there.

Finish: Long. Oaky smoke, a floral note. Tobacco on the back end.

Damn, what a shame this was the first Kilchoman cask the SMWS released. It’s one of the more enjoyable whiskies I’ve had the pleasure of tasting and a lot of the X.1s end up unopened as collector’s items. It’s one of those drams that remind you what made you fall for whisky in the first place. Way more going on than a 5 year old should have.

Score: 93

Musical Evocation: Meat Loaf feat. Marion Raven – “It’s All Coming Back to Me Now”

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”

Springbank 21

This expression, particularly here in the States, is well above what I like to spend on a bottle. Fortunately, before whiskysite stopped shipping to the US and before it ran out of stock, I was able to order a sample. I was particularly interested in this one given the rather unique makeup of casks and to see whether that worked out nicely or was an attempt to salvage an overly aggressive handful of casks.

Springbank 21 (2020 Release), Campbeltown Single Malt, 46% ABV

Minutia: Matured for 21 years in casks with a makeup of 30% ex-bourbon, 30% ex-rum, 25% ex-Sherry, and 15% ex-Port. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.

Color: Brown Sherry, 1.9.

Nose: Fruity, malty, nutty. Rust, orange, leather, damp wood. Custard later.

Taste: Intense fruit, chocolate (kind of like a jelly-filled chocolate when they combine). Oak, dried fruit. Dirty, earthy.

Finish: Nutty, sweet/syrupy. Coffee. Long.

This was really quite nice. When I get these 60ml samples I split them over two pours to have one where I just experience it and one where I really focus on it. It was much better the second time around. Not bad the first one, but not terribly impressive. This does better as it spends more time in the glass, so possibly a day or two in a half-filled sample bottle had a similar effect as time in the glass. Definitely not something to pour if you’ll finish the dram in short order, but if you’ll be working on it for a while, it’s a great choice. 

Score: 91

Ledaig 13 2005 Single Cask Nation

Finally getting to my first ever swap to review. Thanks to robbentheking over at speak-easy for the swap on this one. I haven’t had the chance to try an SCN bottle yet and they seem to be on the better received end of bottlers from what I’ve seen online. I couldn’t pass up and opportunity to try this Ledaig I had already wanted to purchase but could find available for shipping to me.

Ledaig 13 2005 Vintage, Single Cask Nation, Island (Mull) Single Malt, 57.1% ABV

Minutia: Distilled in October 2005 and matured in 2nd fill Sherry but #900165 for 13 years and bottled in March 2019 yielding 575 bottles. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.

Color: Tawny, 1.4.

Nose: Dirty, earthy, woody smoke, with a tinge of fruit. After a while it smells like a pepper/coffee-rubbed steak.

Taste: Dirty/earthy. Spicy, woody. Char/smoky.

Finish: Earthy, smoky, maillard flavor. Medium-long.

Man, this was excellent. It was almost like falling in love with Ledaig all over again as I felt similarly to the first time I ever had it. A lovely dirtiness to this dram that makes me thing of the Alexander Murray 20 I had, but whatever that was missing to bring it over the edge to loving it, this has (or whatever this has, that lost).

Score: 91

Talisker 8 Special Release 2018

I started getting into whisky shortly before this was released, but I wasn’t into it enough to know that Diageo did an annual set of special releases, nor had I dipped my toe into ordering from overseas as that was the only way to get this in the US I believe. When I read about this, liking Talisker it was something I felt determined to try, particularly based on it being highly regarded. Eventually I did start ordering from Europe but this was nowhere to be found until I saw this available at an auction, so I started bidding and ended up winning it, and my bank account hasn’t forgiven me since.

Talisker 8 Special Release 2018, Island (Skye) Single Malt, 59.4% ABV

Minutia: Matured for 8 years in first fill bourbon casks, the label says they are deep charred.

Color: Russet muscat, 1.3.

Nose: Fresh, earthy smoke. Medicinal must. Leathery tobacco. Fruit struggles to break through.

Taste: Malty, honey, pepper, herbal.

Finish: Charred meat, black pepper, salt. A sweetness becomes known eventually, like a honey that tastes a bit like something else, or kind of like chocolate that isn’t Hershey’s. Medium, though most on the shorter side. A subtle linger extends to long. That sweetness is the most resilient part, but it gets less good as the other notes fade away and no longer compliment it.

A nice dram, and to me a pretty novel one as Talisker usually hits a bit more lightly. That sweetness left in the finish isn’t altogether unpleasant, but without the other notes still present it’s just a flavor that’s kind of there. I like this a lot, and while I didn’t record any notes with water here, I recall a nice chocolate coming out in the finish. It’s a good addition, and a bit is also lost, and I’d say it’s a net-zero gain with water. The secondary market prices are probably a bit too high for this, but the price at release of what converted to about $90 is not a steal but a fair price. I also have a bottle of the 15 year old from 2019 and the 8 year old rum finish from 2020 I’m even more keen on getting opened after having this one.

Score: 90

Musical Evocation: Alestorm – “Treasure Chest Party Quest”

Caol Ila 18

This will always have a special place in my heart. I went to an Irish bar in Guatemala and ordered a Scottish whisky for which just shy of a pour remained so the Austrian bartender gave it to me at no charge. I enjoyed it, but it was well before I started taking notes, and I’ve finally gotten a bottle from which I can drink and take appropriate notes.

Caol Ila 18, Islay Single Malt, 43% ABV

Minutia: Based on the pack the came in it was bottled in 2005. Ex-bourbon casks. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.

Color: Russet muscat, 1.3.

Nose: Smoke, vegetation, tangy BBQ, dried dark fruit, snuff.

Taste: Oak, pepper, smoky (ash).

Finish: Earthy peat smoke, musty wood/dunnage. Medium-long.

This is really nice, and better than I remember likely due to significant inexperience at the time. The jump up from the 12 has me super eager to try the 25 and older expressions, and has me particularly salty that the 30 year old special release wasn’t available at the bar of the restaurant where I spent my 30th birthday because the online menu wasn’t up to date..

Score: 92

Musical Evocation: Animetal – “Laputa: Castle in the Sky”

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

2020 Advent #11 - Octomore 10.3

I loved the 10.4, my only experience from that series, and I also loved 9.3, thus far my only X.3. Does it hold up to the past?

Octomore 10.3, Islay Single Malt, 61.3% ABV

Minutia: Malted to 114 PPM, distilled in 2013 from the 2012 harvest of concerto barley from Octomore Farm. Matured for 6 years in American oak from Jim Beam, Heaven Hill, Buffalo Trace, and Jack Daniels producing 24,000 bottles.

Color: Amber, 0.7.

Nose: Dirty peat. Filthy. Smoke. Meat. Perfect.

Taste: Dry, smoky, oaky.

Finish: Subtle into big smoke, some brine, hint of green fruit.

Guess: Octomore, maybe some wine involved.

I thought the dry taste may have come from a dry white wine cask, but it’s all Bourbon here. Otherwise nailed it, it was just to obviously Octomore on the nose. Which, by the way, I could smell for days. This is my first perfect score in one of the three categories, and it got that in the nose. Good as the taste is, that’s the part I liked the least, as the finish was just shy of the nose, the taste just behind that. I’m hard pressed to think of how this could have been made more appealing to me. Add this to the list of bottles I’m buying after I finish this calendar.

Score: 95

Musical Evocation: Cellar Darling – “Insomnia”

Here are links to the other posts from this calendar:

Springbank 15

After not finding the 12 Cask Strength all that appealing, a number suggested the 15. As much as I enjoyed the 10 I had intended to eventually, but on that explicit recommendation and seeing it available as a 60ml sample when placing an order, I went for it and put it right toward the top of my list of samples.

Springbank 15, Campbeltown Single Malt, 46% ABV

Minutia: Enjoyed neat in a glencairn. It rested maybe 10 or 15 minutes but not deliberately.

Color: Russet muscat, 1.3.

Nose: Rich fruit, smoke, earthy, seaweed. Nutty/molasses later.

Taste: Honey, bready, clove, smoky. Gets creamy feeling after a bit, sweetens, spices. Nuttiness comes through on taste after it appears in the nose.

Finish: Spiced fruit, smoke, oak, dry. Long.

Oh boy. This is terribly expensive in the US relative to European sites. It’s a home run at the European price, and honestly worth considering at the exorbitant price here in the states (for context, from Europe this would cost me as much as the 10 would locally). If I’m placing an order and this is in stock, I’m adding it to the cart. For you Europeans, I’m not sure it’s quite worth twice as much as the 10, but it’s a major step up. It’s very strange as I wasn’t completely blown away, but it is an absolute delight to drink. I’ve got a rum wood sample of the same age in my advent calendar box, I really hope that makes it into this year’s batch because I’m very keen on having more like this. Springbank (/Longrow/Kilkerran) continues to give Ledaig a run for its money as my favorite distillery (/brand), and with this I think it might have pulled even, where I suspect they will remain in each other’s company for so long as I enjoy whisky.

Score: 91

Musical Evocation: Bathory – “The Woodwoman”

Octomore 10.4

I’m glad I found a sample of this, I was interested in trying something so young and that only saw virgin casks, particularly the cask bit. 

Octomore 10.4, Islay Single Malt, 63.5% ABV

Minutia: Distilled in 2016, matured for 3 years in heavy toast French Linousin virgin oak casks until bottling on July 18, 2019. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.

Color: Burnt umber, 1.7.

Nose: Funky Octomore peat, intensely meaty/barbecue smoke. Much heavier on meat/barbecue spice than the smoke.

Taste: Woody, smoky, spicy. Reminds a lot of a kangaroo jerky.

Finish: Dry, peaty/earthy, as spices fade over a long finish.

Amazing nose, incredibly savory and mouthwatering. I’m going to be trying real hard to justify getting a bottle shipped to me. This is right up my alley.

Score: 94

Musical Evocation: Led Zeppelin – “Achilles Last Stand”

Springbank 24 Sherry Single Cask

I was placing an order when this sample happened to be in stock so I ordered one. I quite enjoyed the 10, but found it a bit hard to come around on the 12 Cask Strength (the batch I had, anyway). Still, I was very excited for this and finally had some time to sit down with it.

Springbank 24 Sherry Single Cask, Campbeltown Single Malt, 46.2% ABV

Minutia: I’m not sure if this is cask strength as the label doesn’t seem to say that, but with an outturn of 294 bottles it doesn’t really seem like they stretched out the spirit with water. Also, the .2% difference relative to their usual is odd. It is a single cask, however, and that cask was a Sherry hogshead. It spent 24 years in that cask after distillation in December 1994 and was bottled in April 2019. The sample was expensive for a sample and the bottle quite expensive, even for a single cask. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.

Color: Mahogany, 1.6.

Nose: Wow, rich, deep, winey aroma, a bit smoky, strawberry, honey.

Taste: Thick, classic Springbank, very ramped up fruit quality.

Finish: Ashy Springbank malt, dry, long. It’s a finish that makes you unsure of whether to have another sip because you either can’t wait to have more or don’t want to interrupt the finish.

Absolutely delightful. This reminded of the 12 minus whatever stopped me from adoring it. This might have actually been worth the high price (depending on what it was sold for). The only price I’ve seen recently is for just shy of $1,000, which is insane, but it is good enough where I can see someone thinking it’s practical and listing it for that. I’m sad this is gone.

Score: 93

Musical Evocation: Eyþór Ingi Gunnlaugsson - "Ég á líf"