Posts Tagged ‘ 2/5 ’

SMWS 121.50 Arran

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“Xmas Cake and afghan coats”

9yo refill sherry butt from Arran tonight. I always have high expectations of these bottles from distillery 121, the very first SMWS bottle I ever tried was a stunning Arran and it convinced me to join.

Afghan coats eh? Nope, no idea where that’s coming from!

Dark and beguiling this, heavily spiced, meaty, chewy and full bodied. Wonderful nose of sherry oak, molasses and moss.

Treacle sponge certainly. Struck matches? Funnily enough, I sort of get that vaguely sulphuric, slightly acrid, slightly smoky hint but I doubt I’d have identified it ad s struck match, to be honest I still wouldn’t.

It’s a decent dram but it’s not as well balanced as some arrans I’ve tried. A wee bit of a letdown.

2/5

2012
03/22
CATEGORY
Arran
Island
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22/01/12 Feckin Spiced

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Something really different tonight. Whisky snobs had better click away now…

It’s flavoured Irish whiskey, a blend I suspect. Obviously from Eire rather than Norn’Irn, otherwise it would be called Fockin’ Whiskey.

Orange peel, huge amounts of vanilla, pretty damn sweet. Toffee, some sweetened cinnamon (like a danish pastry).

It’s bottled at 35%, even at 40% it might have been better balanced. It really needs a bit more alcohol to try and counter some of the syrupy sweetness.

Straight, it’s quite palatable, very smooth and very easy to drink. You could certainly make some feckin decent cocktails with it.

2/5

2012
01/22
CATEGORY
Ireland
Other
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23/12/11 Compass Box Hedonism

The grain is hard and stony, there’s some vanilla cream and sour grapefruit. Smoked cheese, toast, some creamy toffee.

Long sweet finish.

Interesting…but that’s all. I know this dram has a really enthusiastic following but I really don’t get it.

Not a bad dram but I’ve had plenty of vatted grains (and blends for that matter) that I prefer.

2/5

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2011
12/23
CATEGORY
Other
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18/12/11 Penderyn Sherrywood

I popped this bottle open for the first time tonight and thought: “hmmm, doesn’t even smell like whisky!”

My long-suffering whisky widow had a sniff and declared that “it smells like bad perfume!”

Hardly an auspicious start.

Anyway, yes, the nose is a bit odd. Tart fruit, raw spirit, shortbread. Quite herbal and flowery. There’s certainly a lot going on.

On the palate, it’s still…unusual. Cherry pie and vanilla ice cream. Great. Some sherry spices. Tinned fruit cocktail. Very oaky, but not like European oak, it’s sweeter and more honey like, more sugary. Definite American influence here.

Not bad at all, I like it.

2/5

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2011
12/18
CATEGORY
Penderyn
Wales
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16/12/11 Ardmore 1991

A single cask by Gordon Macphail tonight, a 15yo.

Toffee Apples
Cinnamon
Wood smoke
Very oaky (green oak sap), wet branches
Black pepper

Tasty…but a bit lacking in depth or complexity.

2/5

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2011
12/16
CATEGORY
Ardmore
Highland
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