Ardmore 17yo 1993-2010 56.2% Gordon & Macphail Reserve cask#5747

I have no former experience with this "Reserve" series from G&M. It looks like a copy of the Cask-series, but maybe there's some distinguishing differences I'm not aware of. Anyhow, Ardmore is one of my favourite malts, frankly because it carries peat well and rarely loose its barley origin flavour. This one comes from a first fill bourbon barrel. The color is amber orange. It smells peaty, coffee beans, oregano, vanilla, ashes, garlic, raw onions, dried white wine, citron tea, black pepper. This is just what I'd expect from a great Ardmore, time to taste! The taste is vanilla, honey, ginger, ashes, pear juice, smoked caviar, menthol, grainy, white wine, aged white wine vinegar. I mean, this sure isn't the most complex whisky you'll find, but it's a clear winner if you compare the alcohol level with the clean flavours. The story of a good cask. The finish is peaty and peppery with longlasting notes of dry licorice.

Simply a great Ardmore, the alternative to coastal peat, for sure: 8

Next tasting: Knockdhu Distillery

Talisker NAS 45.8% OB Port Ruighe

I'm a bit terrified of this one. It seems to like wine finishing is not so "hot" anymore. High strengths, natural cask, young whisky mixed with small amount of older stocks, high peat levels, young whiskies from wine casks and so on. Even Bruichladdich don't seem to do much wine finishing anymore. So why have Talisker started now all of a sudden? I thought that the Classic Malts editions were enough from Diageo. The color is amber/reddish. It smells caramel, tannic, dry port, vinegar, rusty nails, licorice, perfumy, lavender, kirsch. Difficult one, it's rather unbalanced it seems. The taste is mustard seeds, red wine vinegar, leather, cinnamon, some herbal notes, caramel sauce. This is right between overly sweet and harsh vinegary. Yet it still seems unbalanced. Lets add some water. Now it turns much milder and gentler, some tannins and heather, clover and sweet red wine. The finish is on white pepper and spirity notes. Molasses too. A frustrating one that shows very little sign of Talisker, cask doped to the fullest.

Nonetheless, a good reminder of why Talisker should stick to what they do best: 4



Next tasting: Ardmore Distillery

The Fat Trout NAS 40% Blend

The Fat Trout first hit the Norwegian whisky market aka Vinmonopolet as a 12yo single malt I think. Now its a NAS blend. Particularly constructed to lure whiskydrinking flyfishers. The color is amber, adjusted that is. It smells grassy, light, citron peel, wool, soap, soften fabric, clean and neutral malt, with a hint of lowland-ish flair. The taste is sweet, caramel, honey, cinnamon, syrupy, sweet mint, cumin and turmeric. I can't see how this should fit more for a fishing trip than for any other recreational activity, aside from the label. But its a nicely done blend. The finish, if I can find any, must be some sour notes, lemon peel, lime peel and a touch of hickory smoke. Adding water to this seems like adding starch to a potato. All in all its a light whisky made to satisfy a broad segment of whisky drinkers, but then again marketed for just a narrow few with a certain hobby. The taste is what counts anyway, and it's rather MOTR however I put it.

A waiting dram, but when you got that trout, please celebrate a notch or two up: 4.5



Next tasting: Talisker Distillery

Rob Roy NAS 40% blend Stanley P Morrison Ltd.

One in a while I love to try these old 80's, early 90's blends that really can be anything from stellar to crap. Many Morrison blends includes some Bowmore, and hopefully this one also does. The color is golden, with that adjusted shine. It smells very little, some mushrooms and a tad oily, but that's about it. Maybe it needs to breath a bit more, or the evaporation you see in the picture has gotten the best of it. After about 15 minutes of breathing, no changes. The taste is sweet, marcipan, peppermint, peat, salmi, licorice, white peppers. I can definitively see some Bowmore in this one, but it isn't very complex. The finish is peppery with quite some dry licorice/salmi again. 

A pretty sleepy dram, not much going on, but its not boring thanks to the peat and salmi notes: 6

Next tasting: More blend, but this time a recent one...

Jura NAS 40% OB

I've had many a Jura, 8yo, 10yo, 12yo, but never this one. I don't think it was a long running edition. Although the NAS Statement is pretty modern, the 40%abv and lack of gaelic names sure aren't. Jura Distillery is now in the portfolio of Whyte & MacKay, and I think they've done quite some changes within its range to reinvigorate peoples interest for this distillery. The color is golden. It smells cabbage, earthy, mustard, boiled brown rice, ground coffee beans, peat, leather, earthy, mouldy in a good way. The taste is peppery, pumpkin seeds, mustardy, earthy, licorice and wasabi paste. Also there's a taste of blue toothpaste, like pepsodent if you ever heard of it, the one that suited children that couldn't handle mint flavor. With water added this turns into a sweet mess of palm sugar and caramel. Too sweet for me.

The toothpaste flavor nearly killed me, but don't add water, I beg you: 3.5



Next tasting: An old blend with Bowmore in it.