An Apple a Day

In the time before COVID, my much-better-half and I would routinely spend a weekend afternoon meandering around Disney Springs. The lap would start at Rick Bayless's Frontera Cocina for lunch and concoctions of an agave nature. Following lunch would be the traditional attempt to secure a Gideon's Bakehouse cookie, something that we had a ~50% success rate through the years as the sole place to procure the said cookie was the Polite Pig BBQ restaurant. So popular were these cookies, that staff at the Polite Pig took to randomly putting out trays of the cookies sporadically through the day as well as strictly limiting sales - one cookie per person. Despite these measures, the cookies routinely sold out within an hour of being displayed. Happily, I've read that Gideon's Bakehouse is opening a dedicated store for their baked goods at the Springs in the near future which should address the short supply of the cookies nicely.

Following the cookie hunt, but before concluding our day with the traditional late-afternoon dinner at Morimoto Asia, we always found ourselves swinging by both Raglan Road Irish Pub and Jock Lindsey's Hanger Bar for more libations, particularly their seasonal offerings. One such offering in the fall at Raglan Road was called Samhain Sangria - a punch made with Jameson's Black Barrel Irish whisky, apple cider, sauvignon blanc white wine, cinnamon syrup, and seltzer water. On paper, an interesting combination and one that I was reminded of when I saw the first jugs of apple cider appear in my local grocery store's cooler recently.

The cider sighting inspired a desire to not only reverse engineer the sangria, but to also devise a bourbon-based cider-cinnamon cocktail. After numerous weekends of trial and error, tinkering and sipping, I am proud to present not one, but two Fall-inspired libations. Quarantine does indeed provide ample time for self-improvement

Because both require a cinnamon syrup, let's start there. Thanks to the power of the Internet, I stumbled across a recipe that I felt worked well from Mr. Donkey Sauce himself (halved for my purposes):

Cinnamon Syrup
Ingredients

• 1 cup of water
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 3/4 cup of sugar

Composition

Place the water and cinnamon sticks in a saucepan and bring the water to a boil. Simmer for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, remove the cinnamon sticks and stir in sugar. Continue to stir until sugar is fully dissolved. Allow to cool before using and strain as needed.

Now onto the drinks, first up Raglan Road's Samhain Sangria. Note, I only have the ingredient list of this drink from the restaurant's menu. The proportions you see below are to our tastes and most reminiscent of how we remembered the drink tasting. A happy consequence of this recipe was the discovery of Jameson's Black Barrel whiskey. Initially I purchased this whiskey because Raglan Road specifically calls for it, but after tasting a few pours of the whiskey neat, I am happy to report that I found the product quite tasty. Yes, it is still a 40% ABV blended Irish whiskey, so it will not be competing with a Redbreast, but it is an order of magnitude step-up from the standard Jameson's in terms of character and depth; a whiskey that is wonderful in cocktails but is also not entirely out of place in a snifter.

Samhain Sangria

Ingredients

• 2.0 oz Jameson Black Barrel Irish Whiskey
• 3.0 oz sauvignon blanc
• 2.0 oz apple cider
• 0.5 oz cinnamon syrup
• seltzer (one to two ounces)
• fresh cranberries, apple and orange - for garnish (optional)

Composition

In a cocktail shaker combine the whisky, wine, cider, and syrup. Add ice to shaker and stir well. You can pop the top on and shake as well, but I found the drink was better without any froth, so I preferred the stirring. Strain the shaker into an ice-filled glass of choice and top with seltzer, at least an ounce, but two is twice as nice.

Next up, the bourbon-based cider cocktail that I have been enjoying lately. I have yet to settle on a specific name for the drink, it has been called Quarantine Quencher, Falling into Self-Isolation, and the woefully uninspired Bourbon Cider; feel free to call it whatever you please.

Bourbon Cider

Ingredients

• 2.0 oz Bourbon whiskey
• 2.0 oz apple cider
• 0.75 oz fresh lemon juice
• 0.5 oz cinnamon syrup
• 4 dashes orange bitters

Composition

In a cocktail shaker combine all the ingredients, stir and taste. Adjust the balance of the drink to your tastes, personally I liked a bit more lemon acidity than sugar sweetness. Also, the orange bitters can help cut the sweetness and introduce a lovely herbal citrus vibe, so feel free to add more or less to taste. Once the drink tickles your fancy, add ice to the shaker and stir well. Strain into a glass containing fresh ice and enjoy.

Bourbon Cider with a #SpoilerAlert for an upcoming post

Spontaneous Writeup - Lagavulin 9-Year

Lagavulin 9 Year (Game of Thrones House Lannister)
Classification: Single Malt Whisky
Country: Scotland
Region: Islay (Islay: 55.636°N -6.126°W)
Mash Bill: 100% Malted Barley
Strength: 46.0% ABV (92.0° Proof)
Color: Unknown (suspect artificial coloring)
Filtration: Unknown (suspect chill-filtration)
Maturation: 9 Years in ex-bourbon barrels
Price: $29.99 (Lueken's Liquors)

Well well well, the bargains keep coming. First the Scapa 10 year for $32.00 and now this. Originally released to huge fanfare in the build-up to the final season of Game of Thrones, Diageo flexed its Scotch whisky portfolio depth by releasing a different malt for each of the show's major factions:

House Stark - Dalwhinnie Winter’s Frost

House Tully - Singleton of Glendullan Select

House Targaryen - Cardhu Gold Reserve

House Lannister - Lagavulin 9 Year Old

House Greyjoy - Talisker Select Reserve

House Baratheon - Royal Lochnagar 12 Year Old

House Tyrell - Clynelish Reserve

The Night’s Watch - Oban Bay Reserve

I am rather curious about the supply of these Game of Thrones whiskies, at least in my neck of the woods. In late 2018 through early 2019, store shelves were bombarded with the malts. Hailed as a one-time release, it was not surprising that as stores sold their stock, the shelves were not replenished. By the fall of 2019, most stores had cleared their inventory and life moved on. Then, suddenly and with no explanation, the Game of Thrones whiskies began popping back up in my local stores in the summer of 2020. Offering pure speculation, I'd say this was not due to Diageo releasing a second wave, rather it was distributors and/or the stores themselves holding back some of their stock on the off-chance the malts became 'collectible'. When the champagne wishes and caviar dreams of collectibility didn't pan out, the storage rooms were cleared out and the shelves repopulated (again, this is pure opinion and speculation).

Many of the Game of Thrones releases were well received by the various whisky critics, blogs, vlogs, and InstaTubers. Fans of Lagavulin particularly enjoyed this 9-year expression as it offered an interesting comparison to the distillery's standard 16-year version. Of the eight entries in the series, I personally found all but the Talisker version quite easy to come by and noticed prices remained stable through their initial run and into their reemergence this summer. This meant the Lagavulin's debut price in the $80ish dollar range remained consistent and a bit too rich for my blood. For me, I found it impossible to justify the $80 purchase of a 9-year old Islay malt when I typically score a bottle of 10-year Ardbeg for $50. Recently however, things changed drastically when a local retailer marked their remaining bottles of House Stark and House Lannister down to clearance prices. With the Lagavulin marked down to $30, resistance was futile, there was simply no reason not to bring this malt home. Impression time.

Nose

Peat, peat, peat. Once the nose acclimates to the peat, other aromas emerge - spearmint, vanilla, green apple.

Taste

Well the nose didn't lie - peat, peat and more peat. Not exactly shocking as one would expect peat to be front and center in a whisky from an Islay distillery. This is a damp campfire vibe in terms of smoke. Mild black pepper, a bit of salt/brine, gentle caramel sweetness. On occasional sips, a taste entirely reminiscent of peanut butter. There is a surprisingly dense/oily texture to this whisky; for perhaps misguided reasons, I was expecting this whisky to be severely filtered and stripped of a lot of its texture.

Finish

Medium to long. Unsurprisingly the peat continues, but the damp campfire transforms to a dry, smokey campfire. Zero astringency and near-zero tannic drying. Gentle sweetness accompanies the smoke. A subtle pine needle vibe as well. Slight bitterness on the tail-end of the finish, certainly not the dominant note, but it is present.

Overall

Simply impossible not to recommend at $30 for fans of Lagavulin or peated Islay malts. I'd go as far as to say this Lagavulin is worth picking up at a price-point in the $50-$60 range. To my tastes, the malt needed a few splashes of water to help tame a bit of alcohol prickle. The addition of water has no impact on the peat level, but it does open up some interesting fruit and spice notes.

Back in January of this year, I tasted both of Lagavulin's neighbors in a side-by-side comparison. It would be a dereliction of duty not to repeat that tasting, this time with the 9-year old Lagavulin joining the party. Look for that in the coming winter months.... (did I just imply winter is coming??) 

Scapa 10 Year - An Impromptu Tasting

Scapa 10-Year (Gordon & MacPhail)
Classification: Single Malt Whisky
Country: Scotland
Region: Highlands (Orkney: 58.964°N -2.985°W)
Mash Bill: 100% Malted Barley
Strength: 43.0% ABV (86.0° Proof)
Color: Natural Color
Filtration: Non-chill filtered
Maturation: 10 Years in unknown casks
Price: $32.00 (ABC Fine Wine & Spirits)

tl;dr summary - A thoroughly enjoyable malt whose positive impression might have been exaggerated by the low expectations I entered the experience with. Fruit, gentle oak, pepper spice, and an unexpectedly long and enjoyable finish from a whisky whose proof would have you expecting the exact opposite. A malt that holds its own with others at its retail price point, but exponentially outperforms at its clearance-sale price point.

In a previous professional lifetime, I spent a significant chunk of time in the great northern state of Alaska. Due to the nature of the work, my colleagues and I were dispatched to distant corners of that wild state for long stretches of time, each trip typically lasting three to six weeks. While Anchorage is certainly a modern city by any measure, it only served as a layover point for our travels - a place where the large 757 or 767s that shepherded us from the 'Lower 48' deposited us and where the small Dash-8s then whisked us off to our remote final destinations.

A colleague and dear friend of mine once remarked that the parts of Alaska we were visiting were as close to going back in time as is possible. Indeed, during my years of travel up north, departing Anchorage also meant a departure from cellphone service and broadband Internet connectivity. So secluded were our final destinations, that our typical living accommodations were only connected to the civilized world by a dirt road and an emergency-use-only satellite phone. 

It is a staggeringly beautiful state; huge mountain ranges running straight to the sea - as though Colorado was situated directly on the Pacific Ocean. While my colleagues and I deployed to one of three possible regions in Alaska, I spent the lion's share of my time in two of the three. One was south of Anchorage and coastal. The other was north of Anchorage and a bit more tundra. 

It should be noted that we typically visited in the winter months - when the sun would rise at 11ish in the morning and set a few hours later by 2ish in the afternoon. Weather-wise, the coastal location was capable of wildly variant conditions, but the overwhelming majority of days were cold, windy, and rainy. Often times, the rain was more horizontal than vertical and you had a coin flip's chance of the rain crossing over to snow and sticking to the ground. The tundra location on the other hand was more stable in terms of weather, but it was an order of magnitude colder than the coastal location. It was here that I experienced what double-digit negative temperatures, ambient, not wind-chill adjusted, feel like (spoiler alert - <expletive> cold). There was no coin-flip in the tundra - if precipitation was in the forecast, it was automatically snow that not only stuck to the ground, but piled high and wide. 

The work in Alaska was typically stressful - ambitious goals were typically accompanied by even more ambitious deadlines. One of the Big Dogs (I'd say the biggest dog at one point in time) of the whole Alaska project used to tell all the worker bees how lucky we were to be working where we were. "Y'all should be thanking me, one day you'll be sitting around a fireplace telling your grand children all about your wild Alaskan adventures" he'd proclaim, particularly when we'd begin to gripe about time away from home. 

With hindsight, I can say the Big Dog was indeed correct on that count. I often find myself reflecting back on those Alaskan days and nights with fond memories. Granted, memories tend to filter out a lot of the stress and angst one actually felt at the time, but the work was particularly satisfying. Meeting those ambitious goals (not necessarily the deadlines) always resulted in a tremendous sense of satisfaction for the whole team. And speaking of the team, many of my colleagues became far more than just co-workers, they are people I developed a great deal of personal and professional respect for. Despite most of us now being scattered across different projects and companies, we remain in contact, we remain friends, often gathering to share a meal, a frosty libation, and talk about what's both new and old in our respective lives. 

I take this reminiscent detour because the whisky I am currently enjoying comes from the second-most northern distillery in Scotland - Scapa. A half-mile to the north of Scapa lies Scotland's northern-most distillery - Highland Park. Both distilleries call Orkney home and the Scapa distillery is located at a whopping 58.964 degrees of north latitude. For comparison, the most northerly Alaskan location I worked from, the tundra location, was 58.740 degrees North, a mere ~15.5 miles difference (spherical distance in latitude only). Researching and digging into Scapa, pictures of both the distillery as well as Orkney have stirred plenty of nostalgic feelings in me - from a terrain perspective, Orkney looks damn near identical to what I experienced in Alaska.

Established in 1885, Scapa remained in operation until 1994. For ten years, the distillery sat unused and and appeared to be heading for demolition. Instead, in 2004 then-owners Pernod Ricard decided to rebuild and reopen the distillery and whisky began to flow again shortly thereafter. By production output standards, Scapa is a small distillery - just two stills (one wash, one spirit) and ~1 million liters of annual output. For comparison, Glenfiddich operates 32 stills yielding ~13 million liters of output. All of this to say it's not surprising that Scapa only offers one official label, a non-age stated expression named 'Skiren'. 

What I am enjoying is not officially offered by Scapa. Instead it is offered by the independent bottling company Gordon & MacPhail. The label for this particular malt indicates the whisky in my possession was bottled in 2015, which means it was distilled in 2005, shortly after Scapa's reopening. My understanding is that Gordon & MacPhail purchased this whisky as new-make spirit and had it barreled into a barrel of their choosing. From here, the details are a bit murky as Gordon & MacPhail claim their barrels can be aged either at the source distillery or in warehouses owned by Gordon & MacPhail in the UK.

Regardless, it is important to note that while this is certainly Scapa whisky, it might, and most likely does, taste different than the official bottling of Scapa. This is the allure of independently bottled whisky - unique twists on well-established favorites can often be found. There is a risk of course that the independent offering falls short of the official offering, but this in my experience is rare. To date, for me, independently bottled malts have been whiskies that are comparable to their official counterparts in terms of quality but different in overall experience, think a bit more herbal or a bit sweeter. If you are a fan of a particular distillery, I'd recommend giving an independent offering from that distillery a shot, especially if the independent is bottled at a higher proof than the official offering.

As for this specific bottle, it's a bottle that I have seen sitting on the shelf of a local store for at least two years. My personal curiosity was piqued when I first saw the bottle, knowing the malt hailed from a remote distillery that not only happened to be in close geographical proximity to a personal favorite distillery, but whose location tapped into a strong sense of personal nostalgic lore. Two critiques kept me from purchasing through the years: 1) it was bottled at a standard 43% ABV and 2) the retail price was a lofty $63.99. On a recent Oktoberfest beer hunting trip however I noticed the bottle had been placed on the clearance table with a too-good-to-pass-up price of $32.00; there was no saying 'no' at that price. So how did the bargain-basement find fare? Impression time.

Nose

Green Apple, white grapes, vanilla, peach, watermelon candies. An A+ nose - definitely not a mega-aged malt, its youthfulness is apparent, but so too is a myriad of delightfully pleasant aromas. If only other 'younger' malts had this aroma.

Taste

Crisp, clean, gentle chili spice. Fruit and grain, mild sweetness. Gentle oak, zero char. No prickle or alcohol harshness. Unlike its Orkney neighbor (Highland Park), not a trace of peat to be found. There are no rough edges here, I'd feel safe in saying this malt spent ten years in a quality barrel with minimal shortcuts taken during its maturation. 

Finish

Medium length finish nudging towards long. Zero astringency/tannic drying. Warm chili spice tingle. Gentle oak, more oak on the finish than the smell/taste. Shocking how long this finish is given its 43% strength.

Overall

Straight away, I'll say this is far more tasty and enjoyable than I was expecting for a 10-year 43% malt. I find very little to complain about here - it is a quintessential Scotch whisky experience to me - barley, grain, a bit of sweetness, gentle oak, and a crisp, clean, straightforward taste. Offering up a pure guess, I'd say this whisky was matured in an ex-bourbon cask as there are zero traces of sherry notes or that 'twang' I get from European/French oak. This whisky is proof that long maturation periods are not mandatory for a quality experience. I get the sense that both the distillate and the barrel were produced in accordance to lofty quality standards. This whisky left me profusely wondering why other 43% whiskies cannot deliver such an outstanding experience in smell, taste, and finish... Well done Scapa and Gordon & MacPhail!

Redbreast Lustau Edition

Redbreast Lustau Edition
Classification: Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey
Country: Ireland
Region: County Cork (Midleton: 51.913°N 8.170°W)
Mash Bill: 100% Barley (mixture of malted and un-malted barley)
Strength: 46.0% ABV (92.0° Proof)
Color: Unknown (Internet speculation claims natural color)
Filtration: Unknown (Internet speculation claims non-chill filtered)
Maturation: No Age Statement (distillery claims 9-12 years in ex-bourbon and ex-sherry then 1 full year in first-fill Oloroso sherry from Bodegas Lustau in Jerez, Spain)
Price: $79.99 (Total Wine)

Overview

Well friends, I'm afraid I have used you as pawns. As I've mentioned a few times in various entries, I generally have four requirements when deciding to purchase a new/unknown whiskey - 1) strength greater than 43%, 2) non-chill filtered, 3) natural color, and 4) feature an age statement. While none of these are absolutely mandatory, I do try to avoid betraying these criteria as doing so in the past has yielded some disappointing duds.

But here's the rub - for the past year I've genuinely enjoyed Redbreast's 12-year cask strength whiskey. Outstanding pour after outstanding pour led me to purchase their 15-year variant which also proved to be utterly delicious (and expectedly featured a bit more oak than the 12-year). And so, totally enamored with the 12 and 15 year variants, I began to wonder about Redbreast's Lustau Edition. Technically, Redbreast's Lustau Edition only satisfies one of my four requirements (strength > 43% ABV) and so time and again I resisted the urge to purchase. Granted, very reliable and trustworthy Internet sources indicate the whiskey is indeed natural color and non-chill filtered, but since there is nothing on the label, box, or producer's website confirming this, I cannot proclaim conclusively either. 

Regardless, the striking orange box of the Lustau Edition beckoned and seduced me trip after trip to my favorite bottle shops over the previous six months. Many times I would grab a box only to return it to the shelf.

"It has no age statement"

"Why don't they say if it's non-chill filtered"

"It costs almost as much as the 12-year cask strength version, just stick with that"

Oh how i tormented myself. But then a moment of genius - what better way to honestly assess and experience a whiskey of mysterious pedigree than to send blind samples to the whiskey tasting group. And because I would be purchasing the whiskey on behalf of the group, not solely for personal consumption, those four pesky criteria can justifiably be shelved! Of course facilitating such a tasting implies I too would get to play along, but that's neither here nor there, especially when you are grasping for any remotely applicable rationale to break your self-imposed rules.

So thank you malt mates - your presence on my mental chessboard provided the check and mate in bringing home a whiskey that I have long wanted to try. Now the question is - was Redbreast Lustau Edition worth all the mental gymnastics....

Officially the youngest offering from Redbreast, the Lustau Edition begins life just as all Redbreast whiskeys do - single pot still Irish whiskey that is sent to both ex-bourbon and ex-sherry barrels for maturation. According to Redbreast's website, the Lustau Edition is created by taking 9-12 year old barrels of each ex-bourbon and ex-sherry, blending them together, then transferring the blend to first-fill ex-Oloroso sherry barrels from the Bodegas Lustau to mature for one additional year.

Tasting Impressions

https://www.redbreastwhiskey.com/en-en/the-range/redbreast-lustau-whiskey

 In Midleton’s Words: Redbreast Lustau

“The newest addition to the Redbreast family, Redbreast Sherry Finish Lustau Edition offers fans a new way to experience our signature sherry taste, thanks to an old friendship. Born of a unique collaboration between the Bodegas Lustau and the Midleton Distillery, Redbreast Sherry Finish Lustau Edition is initially matured in traditional bourbon and sherry casks for a period of 9-12 years. It is then finished for 1 additional year in first fill hand selected sherry butts that have been seasoned with the finest Oloroso sherry from the prestigious Bodegas Lustau in Jerez. We are confident Redbreast fans will enjoy this new angle on Redbreast’s beloved sherry character.”

Group Impressions

A mighty thank you to all who played along for this tasting. Each and every time, I am continually amazed and delighted by the group's impressions of all the whiskeys we have tried together. Yet again, the group zeroed in on a consensus regarding many aspects of this whiskey - alcohol prickle (to a surprising degree), wood, caramel, and two tasters even picked up on the same candy apple vibe. In addition there was nearly a complete consensus that water added to the enjoyment of this whiskey but at the cost of reducing the whiskey's vibrancy. 

Interestingly, many thought this whiskey was American - bourbon or blended. Wagering a guess, I'd suspect this was due to the large oak influence on this whiskey, typically a safe indication of American origin. Bravo to Carol Baldwin though - while she thought it might be a bourbon, she also tossed out the possibility that it was an Irish whiskey and an Irish whiskey it was indeed. 

Michael Doheny

First sample was taken straight. The pour had a bright, inviting smell and a soft amber color. The taste was reminiscent of the air at a carnival, with wisps of angry candy apples and earth rolling about the tongue. The flavor was light and airy, with a slight numbing of the tongue, triggering my mouth to water, as I finished off the sample.

The second tasting was taken with ice. The smell was sharper, with more prominent notes of honey, but more fleeting than the previous sample. There was virtually no burn at all with the introduction of the ice. The flavor was muted, but distinct.

I would guess low to medium strength well crafted Blended American Whiskey

Zeus

Appearance: Light amber. Seemed very wet on the glass, took a while for the legs to form.

Smell: BURN! Very woodsy smell. Cedar. Maple. Cinnamon? A hangover if I drank this in excess. Getting ready for a wallop on this due to the high alcohol smell.

Taste: SMOOTH! Damn it nose, you failed me again! Sweet. Not overpowering, light on taste.

Finish: No major after burn. Maple aftertaste. Stays warm in my throat so it's definitely high proof.

General Thoughts: This is really nice. I'm thinking this is a bourbon. Adding ice smoothed this out even more. Despite its apparent high proof the flavor is not overwhelming. I can drink a lot of this in a sitting and not feel the need to move on to something else.

Oh whiskey, if I find out who you are and buy a bottle I might be drinking too much of you in a night. Then again I say that to all the sexy whiskey's. My liver is such a tease.

Guess: bourbon whiskey

Apollo

This one had the look of a decent whiskey. It was somewhat dark and had long legs. Taking a sniff revealed some alcohol smell, but also a hint of fruitiness and caramel.

The taste was not bad at all. It was hard to pick out individual flavors but I thought it tasted pretty close to how it smelled. It had a little bit of a caramel taste. There was a fairly long tongue-tingle but the flavor didn't really change much during this phase. So there was not a particularly distinctive finish.

My overall feeling is that this is a pretty good whiskey that I wouldn't mind drinking regularly. I still prefer my old standby (Glenfiddich 12 year), but this was not bad at all. It didn't really make a big impression on me, but it was perfectly fine.

Jonathan Quayle Higgins

Nose

Brown sugar, vanilla, barley sugar, green grass, candy apple, hazelnuts

A sharp alcohol prickle if you smell too deeply or for too long

Water calms the alcohol prickle/punch significantly. Post-water, I start to detect red fruit, cocoa powder, vanilla syrup, almond syrup

Taste

Barley, fig, gentle clove/ginger spice, almonds. A bit of that ‘twang’ I associate with French oak influence. Occasionally I get an iodine/bandaid vibe, perhaps a bit of pencil shavings/graphite. This is not a consistent impression for me though, so I am not convinced it is an actual component of the whiskey’s experience. 

Sipped neat there is a far larger youthful ethanol punch than I’d expect. Adding water helps tame the fire but use caution here - you can easily add too much water which washes out what comes next, the finish.

Finish

Oak, mild fruit (plum/apricot) sweetness, almond, spice (clove). The finish is medium length when sipped neat, but frustratingly short when too much water is added. Neither finish, neat or with water, is drying.

Overall

Hmmmmm, I am not all that enamored with this whiskey. For me, the aroma is far and away the best part of the experience with this whiskey. It has appealing characteristics, but I feel I set the bar too high due to my unbounded enjoyment of other Redbreast offerings. 

In my opinion, this whiskey tastes a bit too young. I know Redbreast say this is 9-12 years old plus another year on top of that in the Lustau barrels, but this whiskey tastes younger, hotter, feistier than its standard 12-year counterpart. Water helps tame the prickle, but care must be taken, adding too much water diminishes the vibrancy of the flavors and also radically shortens the finish.

Through pure happenstance, I did stumble upon a weird compromise with this whiskey - splitting a pour into two parts. The first part I’d enjoy with water, the second part I’d enjoy neat. Acclimating my palate to the prickle with a slightly diluted pour really led to a far greater enjoyment of a neat second pour. Of course, the idea of splitting a nightly pour into two parts is a bit annoying. Personally, there are many nights, I just want to pour, sip, enjoy, and not worry about ratios and adjustments.

In the end though, regardless of ratios and adjustments, I just don’t enjoy the Lustau Edition of Redbreast as much as I enjoy their 12-year old version. I still have yet to try Redbreast’s 21 or 27 year old expressions, but for now, the 12-year will remain a staple on my shelf and a constant go-to whiskey.

My negatives for this whiskey:

- Punchier than expected alcohol prickle. It tastes younger than Redbreast’s 12 year offering despite purportedly being very close in terms of age.

- Nose promises a better taste and finish than what is actually delivered

- Finish could be longer

My positives for this whiskey:

- Delightful nose - barley and fruit sweetness accentuated by that classic fresh green grass smell of single pot still Irish whiskey. With time and water, cocoa, almonds/hazelnuts, and vanilla appear, what an aroma!

Carol Baldwin

Appearance: Golden honey color; thin legs quickly appeared.

Smell: Sharp, alcohol. Resin. Warm Oak. Soft butter caramel.

Taste: Sharp alcohol, very sharp. Woody and tannic. Hints of soft caramel. Numbs the tongue so that it's hard to taste the flavors after a few sips.

Finish: Lingering Alcohol finish. Tannic. Tingles on the tongue and warms the throat.

General Thoughts: Straight up the experience was very sharp, the alcohol flavor is forefront and the tannic qualities tingle and numb the tongue. The warm wood still comes through slightly however. Using a proper whiskey glass that allows you to experience the nose along with the taste is ideal for this whiskey; for some of the nuances, the soft caramel and the complexity of the woods are best experienced through the nose. Adding a splash of water did open up the scent a bit more.

Guess: leaning towards bourbon, but also could be an Irish whiskey

Glen Scotia 15 - The Details

An off-kilter malt

Glen Scotia 15 Year
Classification: Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Country: Scotland
Region: Campbeltown (Campbeltown: 55.430N, -5.604W)
Mash Bill: 100% Malted Barley
Strength: 46.0% ABV (92.0° Proof)
Color: Unknown (reliable sources indicate artificial color)
Filtration: Non-chill Filtered
Maturation: 15 Years in American Oak
Price: $69.99 (Luekens Wine & Spirits)

Well friends, I've ended my Internet embargo on Glen Scotia and decided to see what both the distillery and various whisky sites have to say about this whisky that I've spent the past month with. One historical nugget I came across while digging into Glen Scotia was in regard to the distillery's region - Campbeltown. In the early 1900s, Campbeltown was considered the whisky capital of the world, home to over 20 distilleries. By 1934 however, only two remained - Glen Scotia and Springbank, the rest shuttered, never to return due to the impacts of Prohibition in the United States and the Great Depression across the globe. Today, Glengyle joins Glen Scotia and Springbank as the three distilleries operating in Campbeltown, a mere wisp of its former glory in terms of quantity, but the region's legacy is preserved by being recognized as an official Scotch producing region by the Scotch Whisky Association.

Jumping into the whisky itself, Glen Scotia's official site describes the 15-year as such:

Flaviar describes Glen Scotia 15 as:

Reviewing my four sets of tasting notes, I definitely concur with the spice notes. What's interesting is many characterize Glen Scotia's spice as ginger-based whereas I was more along the lines of black and white pepper. Vanilla and oak were fairly obvious to me as well, but many noting fruits, particularly apricot caught my attention. I adore apricots, sometimes to an explosive degree (apricots like prunes promote 'healthy digestion', I'll leave the rest to your imagination), yet I failed to detect any apricot in Glen Scotia. As promised, I plan on leaving the Glen Scotia on the shelf for at least a month, perhaps sitting for that long with the extra air now in the bottle will help reveal those mysterious fruity notes that others have reported. I did catch a passing whiff of some in my later tastings, but nothing that I'd consider close to dominant.

As far as Glen Scotia's reviews on the Internet - they range from sub-par to excellent, which is to say that whisky reviews always, ALWAYS need to be taken for exactly what they are - subjective opinions. 

Personally, I am more interested in reading tasting notes and much less interested in reading a score; scoring a whisky always seems rather arbitrary to me. Along with tasting notes, I also like to quantify my enjoyment of any given whisky as whether I'd buy another bottle of that whisky or not (more on that below). 

Some Internet sleuthing uncovered a few interesting tidbits, folks who have toured the Glen Scotia distillery relay that Glen Scotia's 15-year is overwhelmingly matured in first-fill ex-Bourbon casks with a smidgen of ex-sherry American oak as well. I must say, if this is true, if Glen Scotia really is predominately using first-fill ex-Bourbon casks for 15 years of aging, then why oh why would they color the whisky!? Perhaps their branding/marketing team desires a color uniformity that cannot be guaranteed without artificial enhancement, but to that I say - boo! If you (rightfully) bottle the 15-year without chill filtration then it makes sense (in my opinion) to also bottle the malt in its natural color. It just seems woefully counter-intuitive to go to the expense of using first-fill ex-Bourbon only to mask the beautiful color that those barrels impart. Oh well.

So this almost concludes my time with Glen Scotia 15-year. As stated, i do plan on leaving this bottle alone, safely tucked away on the shelf until this Fall or Winter. When I do revisit this whisky, I promise to post a follow-up to record my impressions. That being said, I do applaud the evolution of Glen Scotia over the past month. When I first opened the bottle I was rather ho-hum regarding the whisky, but each successive night yielded a better experience. Sitting here tonight with yet another pour, I'd recommend this whisky to anyone who enjoys a malt whisky heavily influenced by ex-bourbon barrels, a spicy rather than a sweet dram, and someone not afraid to tinker with water to dial in the whisky to personal preferences.

Finally, would I purchase a second bottle of Glen Scotia 15-year? Eventually, yes, however not until I've finished my current bottle, and even then, it would not be an immediate priority. It is a good, enjoyable, and ultimately unique whisky, particularly when tasted alongside other single malts matured almost exclusively in ex-Bourbon casks. The label on the back of the Glen Scotia's box proclaims "Campbeltown whiskies are intriguing - appealing to those consumers looking for something a little off the beaten track." To that I say mission accomplished and job well done Glen Scotia - your predominately ex-Bourbon cask matured single malt is definitely intriguing and quite different than the beaten path of your Scottish counterparts also matured in ex-Bourbon casks.

Until next time malt mates - stay healthy, stay positive, and most of all, stay frothy.

Glen Scotia - Night Four

Another night, another tasting of this Glen Scotia. As I approached the shelf to grab the bottle, I saw the Japanese-imposter that I procured not too long ago and was reminded that it, like this Glen Scotia, is also fifteen years of age. Finding the numeric coincidence interesting, I decided to pour a bit of the Shin to accompany tonight's dram.

Same rules as before - capture my impressions in real-time and post at the conclusion with minimal editing. No TV viewing companion this evening, instead the heavenly sounds of Oscar Peterson and his Trio are gently wafting through the room.

The Smell

Holy moly.... this is genuinely mind-blowing. These two whiskies smell *very* similar to each other. I'll admit, I poured the Shin as a bit of a goof, thinking it would be nothing like the Glen Scotia, but alas, the joke is on me. These are so close in aroma, I'm wondering if the Shin's mystery distillery of origin is a Campbeltown distillery? Statistically unlikely of course, but these two really do smell similar. As an aside, smelling these two side-by-side really brings into focus how little Mizunara influence there is in the Shin.

As for specific smells in the Glen Scotia, caramel, faint vanilla, not-so-faint oak, toasted oak though, not charred/burnt oak. A bit of leather furniture and white pepper. There is a grassy, fresh grass vibe just lingering in the far reaches of the nose. 

The Taste

Neat from the bottle, the Glen Scotia still has too much of an alcohol punch. The electricity running over my tongue blocks out most of the flavors. I definitely feel the Glen Scotia needs some water to be totally enjoyable. As for the Shin - these two are similar in taste, but not as similar as they were on the nose. Not only does the Shin have a good bit more oak than the Glen Scotia, but the oak is of a different variety - more charred than toasted. I am going to put the Shin to the side for the moment and continue on with the Glen Scotia.

The peppery spice remains front and center on the taste. That impression has remained consistent from the beginning. Barley sugar, a molasses sweetness rather than a brown-sugar caramel sweetness, think a savory, not overly sweet dessert. After the sweetness fades, a rush of more spice and oak and then slightly drying tannins lead into the finish. The drying finish is reminiscent of a very gentle black tea.

I know this sounds wackadoo, but there is a rye-bread impression to the tail-end of a sip tonight. I am flashing back to visiting some of my favorite Jewish or German delis and having a pastrami/corned beef on rye. There is a distinctive pungent spice that rye bread can deposit on the back of your tongue/throat and that is precisely the impression I am getting tonight. That is a first for this whisky.

The Finish

The finish remains medium-length for me. We start off with a nice mouth-coating of pepper, then toasted oak, a bit of lightly-sweetened black tea, and then the spice reemerges and remains until the finish fades away into the ether. All in all, a very pleasant finish that is totally consistent with the nose and taste of the whisky.

Fourth Pour Overall

I've tossed around plenty of flip-flopping speculation on whether the Glen Scotia is artificially colored or not. Tonight, alongside the Shin, I am less positive that the Glen Scotia is artificially colored. The Shin proclaims on its label that it is indeed natural color, yet it is darker than the Glen Scotia. Both are the same age, both were aged in American oak (though the Shin had a finishing in Mizunara oak), and yet the Shin is darker. Of course, this could be due to a number of variables, but taking the Shin at its word that it is natural color, I am still leaning that the Glen Scotia is artificially colored due to its mild orange glow compared to the Shin's reddish-brown hue.

As for night four, I'd say a comparable level of enjoyment to night three. I feel like this whisky has plateaued for me in terms of improvement. It has been a solid improvement however - after night one, I was not all that impressed by the malt and was not convinced there would be a night two. Yet night two marked such an improvement that I eagerly anticipated a night three with Glen Scotia. This whisky has gone from meh on night one to a pretty good on night four. While I don't plan on always keeping a bottle of this malt on the shelf, it has proven itself to be a solid, respectable whisky.

In the coming days, I'll plan on having a fifth tasting where I share reviews and tasting notes that I find on Glen Scotia. I will at some point, a handful of months down the road, crack the bottle again to see if an extended period of rest with a good chunk of air in the bottle changes the experience to any degree, perhaps even revealing new smells and tastes.

Until August my good friends. Cheers and salutations. Oh and OP, you sir are a piano player for the ages.

Group Tasting - Pandemic Edition

No refunds, consider your refund escaping this death trap with your lives!

It's been six months since we've had a group tasting and heck, we're enduring a pandemic, so what better excuse to raise a glass and dilute our concerns. While this tasting won't be as grand as the taste-off spectacular between some of Ireland's most affordable whiskeys, I suspect all will find something to enjoy in these samples. Look for the reveal sometime in August.

All samples guaranteed COVID-free*!

*At the time of shipping. No one can guarantee what happens to them once you filthy animals get your grubby paws on them.