Author Archives: Master Quill

Grappa Week – Day 2: Duca di Vigliano Grappa di Prosecco Riserva (42%, Roberto Dellavalle, 50 cl)

Grappa Week LogoYesterday was a bit of a false start for me. I didn’t really like the Paesanella Amarone. It probably had nothing to do with the Grappa itself, but it seemed to have an enormous amount of added sugar that put me off. Today we’ll have a look at this Grappa di Prosecco. Prosecco is a totally different wine from yesterday’s Amarone, so I’m expecting something completely different.

Prosecco is a sparkling dry White Wine, mostly made from the Glera grape variety that used to be called Prosecco. It is made in the Veneto and Friuli Venezia Giulia regions. Amarone is a still Red Wine mostly made from the Corvina grape variety in the Valpolicella region.

Duca di Vigliano Grappa di Prosecco ReservaColor: Almost colorless, with a slight green haze.

Nose: Obviously some hay and dry grassy notes. Sugary sweet (oh no!) and also floral. I would almost would call this cute. Good balance. The alcohol is only noticeable when spinning the glass a bit. If you let it breathe for a while the nose becomes more fruity. Tiny hints of lavas and licorice. With breathing the Grappa becomes more dry and dusty too. With even more air the alcoholic note becomes spicy. Nice, just fear for the sugary note in the nose though.

Taste: Sweetness first. Just like the Paesanella Grappa Amarone Barrique this is pretty sweet, so my guess is that sugar was added for a more “accessible” taste profile. It’s sugary sweet and not fruity sweet. Again the sugar is able to mask a lot of aroma in the taste, or I can’t get past the sugar. The sweetness ruins the finish and leaves a bad aftertaste in my mouth. Yep a potentially reasonable Grappa ruined by sugar. Too much sugar and with that sugar a bad finish…

Dear Grappa producers, please market this as a Grappa liqueur. In my opinion taking the sugar route is a bad way to get around the Grappa crappa feeling of the past where Grappa was considered a hot and inferior distillate. Don’t make Grappa friendlier by adding heaps of sugar, because you’ll be ruining the reputation of the distillate yet again! Just use fresh pomace and make the best Grappa you can!

Points: 59

Grappa Week – Day 1: Paesanella Grappa Amarone Barrique (41%, 50 cl)

Grappa Week LogoNothing nicer than writing about things you’re passionate about, so that’s why you’ll find mostly reviews about Single Malt Whiskies on these pages. Once in a while it is also nice to be able to broaden ones horizon and dive deep into another distilled world. Nothing better than a Master Quill Week to check something out intensively.

This time we’ll have a look at Italy’s famous, or should I say, notorious distillate: Grappa. For a long time Grappa had quite a reputation, and still today. When you talk to people about distillates, Grappa is thought of as a not-so-nice distillate. However, Grappa is starting to become noticed and sometimes even fashionable. Primary reason for this is the move towards high quality. I picked seven Grappa’s randomly, and all are Grappa’s I’ve never tasted before. The first Grappa we will try is a barrel aged Amarone Grappa by Grappa Paesanella. Not a lot of information is available about this brand, so we’ll have to dive in rather blind into this Grappa. What is Grappa actually?

Grappa is a grape pomace brandy from Italy, San Marino or the Italian speaking part of Switzerland. Pomace are the left overs you get after pressing, when making wine: stems, skins, pulp and seeds of the grape. f.i. an Eau de Vie from grapes is made from the must, the freshly pressed grape juice, so it includes the juice. Grappa is made from the solid left overs and water is not allowed in its production. So steam distillation or au-bain-marie is the way to go when making Grappa.

Paesanella Grappa Amarone BarriqueColor: Light copper gold, with a slight pink hue

Nose: Sweet and winey. Very fruity. Extremely grassy. Hay. Creamy and slightly oaky. Grape seed. I’m not a connoisseur of Grappa’s yet  (I’d like to be), but having smelled quite a few Grappa’s before I have to say this has a typical grappa smell for me, and the finer points lie within the details that can be picked up besides the obvious. Although creamy (ice-cream), I do not pick up any vanilla, so I’m guessing French or Slovenian oak barriques were used. Probably a few from new oak, although not much if any. Full aroma. Nice developement in the glass with air. Keeps changing and changing in a subtle way. Grappa is interesting stuff.

Taste: Sugary sweet, almost like a Rum. Of all the Grappa’s I’ve tasted I never tasted something as sweet as this. I hardly would call this a Grappa, but more a Grappa based liqueur. I think I understand the (heavy) usage of sugar, it probably masks something, and makes the Grappa itself more accessible. Grappa can be hefty stuff you know. Understand, si, like it, no. It really tastes like a (dry) Grappa with a lot of sugar dissolved into it, like someone did this at home. Pity. It’s so sugary it’s almost difficult to try to detect something else here. Its like Grappa trying to be a 7yo Abuelo Rum. Slightly bitter and warming finish. This would also do nicely as a Jägertee.

I really dislike the added sugar flavour of this. The sweetness alone sets off my alarm and ruins this grappa for me. As a Liqueur, not really, as a Grappa: well, I can’t recommend it. I hope tomorrows expression will be better.

Points: 53

Karuizawa 30yo 1983/2013 (55.8%, OB, Geisha Label, for The Whisky Exchange, Bourbon Cask #8606, 350 bottles)

Every time someone in the world dares to open a bottle like this, an earthquake occurs amongst collectors. Up ’till now lots of old bottles of Scottish Whiskies, particularly from closed or classic Speyside or Islay distilleries, fetched the highest prices. Today it may very well be Karuizawa, a Japanese Whisky, which is delicious and becoming extremely rare. These bottles are bottled, and hardly anyone opens them anymore. Well not Master Quill! I’m very happy to open my less than-half sample of this Karuizawa and share my thoughts with the world!

Karuizawa 30yo 1983/2013 (55.8%, OB, Geisha Label, for The Whisky Exchange, Bourbon Cask #8606, 350 bottles)Color: Vibrant full gold.

Nose: Wow, this emits heaps of aroma. Nice rubbery notes and extremely waxy. Fresh and vibrant and highly aromatic. It oozes a typical Japanese nutty kind of smell and cask toast. Fragrant green tea combined with the more obvious creamy vanilla note we know from casks made of American oak that once held Bourbon (or Tennessee Whiskey). There is some kind of sweet sensation underneath that reminds me a bit of hot sugar-water. The wood emits fresh oak and fresh tree sap, with whiffs of powdered coffee creamer. Quite floral and fruity. The fruity part are hints of fresh (thus not over-ripe) plums. The floral part is more about fruit trees in bloom rather than any kind of flowers. Elegant stuff.

Taste: Quite hot with ashes and an old oaky bitterness. Pencil shavings and some sort of hidden fruitiness. Lovely dusty nuttiness comes to the forefront too, making this a woody Whisky. Dark bitter chocolate and (ear) wax. If you can get past all the furniture and dark chocolate, there is some candied fruit behind all that.

Never owning a bottle myself I had some kind of luck having tried this one several times. Once from a freshly opened bottle, but also the last few drops from a bottle that had some time to let the Whisky breathe. I have to say that this particular Karuizawa is stellar when freshly opened, but with that the oxidation starts. Usually oxidation is not a bad this in Whisky, but sometimes oxidation changes or even ruins the Whisky. Here we have an example where oxidation really can change the Whisky. When this Karuizawa oxidizes the focus shifts more towards the (especially in the taste), whereas the freshly opened bottle is way more fruity. I don’t have a freshly opened bottle at hand, so this review is written tasting the last drops of the bottle, but I do remember the Whisky well when it was freshly opened. The score is for the freshly opened bottle. The last drops would score around 87 points so beware!

Points: 95

Chichibu 3yo 2009/2013 (53.5%, OB, Ichiro’s Malt, Chibidaru, Quarter Cask, 3900 bottles)

Chichibu is the first new Japanese distillery since the seventies, built near the city of the same name by Ichiro Akuto. Akuto started building the distillery in 2005 and in 2008 the first spirit ran off the stills. But 2005 is not the start of this story. No, this story starts in Chichibu in 1626 when the Akuto family started brewing Sake. In 1941 Ichiro’s grandfather, Isouji Akuto, built another distillery near the town of Hanyu, for making Sake and Shochu. Five years later a licence was obtained for distilling Whisky, initially a continuous still essentially making Grain Whisky. This still was eventually replaced by a copper still.

In 1980 Ichiro’s father, Yutaka Akuto, started to make Single Malt Whisky instead of the more common Blended Japanese Whisky (Scottish Malt Whisky blended with Japanese Grain Whisky). In 1983 the first spirit became Whisky but by 2000 Hanyu stopped making Whisky due to the severe lack of profitability. Ichiro, who worked at Suntory at the time, was brought in to save the company. He had to sell Hanyu to do just that. Hanyu was dismantled in 2004, but Ichiro bought the remaining Whisky stock as well as the distilling equipment. The equipment is still stored at Chichibu, but was never used since Ichiro´s new distillery was fitted with new equipment.

Chichibu Chibidaru 2009/2013Color: Full gold.

Nose: Fresh entry, elegant and flowery. Toned down, dried Jasmin leaves (tea and soap). Slight hint of powdery and spicy oak, alcohol and quite fruity. Pear and a hint of menthol and red fruit jello. Old dried ginger and sawdust. It smells pretty mature and complex for a 3yo Single Malt.

Taste: Quite woody, good aroma and even a bit sweet. Vegetal and much less fruity than the nose. It tastes even less complex than the nose, and with this it shows its youth. It’s easy to “see” that this one does needs its higher strength. Creamy vanilla, some candied yellow fruits enter the mix after (a lot of) air. Fabulous creamy custard paper pudding aftertaste with proper length. Lovely stuff especially considering its age.

This is an excellent 3yo Japanese Whisky, but it will only show its full potential if you let it breathe a lot. This is the kind of bottle you open and leave in the closet for a week or two without its cork. In the glass just let it sit around for half an hour before you even nose it. This needs air.

Now all the Karuizawa’s and Yamazakis are gone and Nikka struggles to release even a Whisky with an age statement I give you a glimpse of the future of Japanese Whisky. This is high quality stuff with massive potential, but as long as Ichiro is releasing Malts at barely the minimum age, that taste as well as this, it will tie us over as we wait for the Japanese Whisky to mature. My only fear will be that when a Whisky will reach its adulthood, it will be extremely expensive as the Karuizawa’s and the Yamazaki’s of today.

Points: 87

Benromach 1976/2012 (46%, OB, First Fill & Refill Sherry Hogsheads)

This is a 1976 Benromach, bottled in 2012. So it’s either 35 or 36 years old. Said to be from First fill and refill Sherry hogsheads. Just compare it to the 1969 vintage, which is from refill Sherry hogsheads only. The 1969 is much darker in color. So what kind of Sherry was this from? Sherries exist in lots of different styles, and just like a “normal” wine, Sherry has lots of different colors, and aroma’s, too.

Benromach 1976-2012Color: Gold with a slight reddish glow.

Nose: Oak and vanilla. Spicy, dry and vegetal. The smell you get when you break a fresh twig. Slightly burnt wood and a tiny hint of peppermint. It smells younger than it actually is and despite the 100% Sherry statement it is not far away from an older Bourbon matured Whisky (at first). The isolated oak flavour is there, but when this is not from American oak, there is less vanilla to go around. That seems to be the case. So European oak it is. Lovely wood notes, elegant and fine. The wood seems to hold some bitter orange skins in its aroma. Also noticeable is a slight (white) winey note, but also some nuttiness which leads me to believe these casks also held some Fino’s and/or oxidized white Sherries. Not a lot of fruitiness which sets it apart from the famous Tomatin’s from the same vintage.

Taste: Well hello there. This starts with the fruits the nose lacks, but also the wood plays a nice role in here too. Even at 46% ABV, this is quite hot and peppery. Dark chocolate. Nice. The initial fruits quickly disperse which leaves more room for the wood. Not a lot of sweetness, and the wood brings a slight bitterness that suits this exercise in wood (and the nuttiness of dry white Sherries) well.  The finish carries hidden notes of flor. This one needs lots of air to settle and to get the balance right (Depeche Mode), but when it does, it shows you its high quality. Still not an easy one and this one will only reward you if you keep an open mind and work at it a bit.

The contrast between this lighter Sherry bottling and the darker 1969 Sherry bottling probably isn’t a coincidence. They go together like the Glengoyne Summer (dark) and Winter (light). Sure this is high quality stuff, and you have moments in your life when you really need a Whisky like this. The aforementioned Glengoyne Winter is a similar Whisky. (The only differences being that the Winter is more funky and less elegant, but slightly sweeter and much higher in ABV). Having said that, in my case, there just aren’t a lot of days like that, so a Whisky like this lasts very long. Every time I need it, I thoroughly enjoy it, but when I have it at the wrong moment, it’s a difficult Whisky. So choose wisely, first when you buy it, it’s quite expensive, and second when to sip it. One thing for sure, or actually two, its great stuff and it will last long.

Points: 87

Pusser’s British Navy Rum “Nelson’s Blood” 15yo (40%, 2013, British Virgin Islands)

To make it a trio of Navy Rums over here at Master Quill is easy. At arm’s length I have the wonderful Pusser’s 15yo, a small batch Rum. Yes a Rum that has actually matured for at least 15 years in Bourbon Barrels. Or so they say. Pusser’s make the claim that (part of this Rum for sure) comes from century-old wooden stills and that the Rums are sourced from Guyana (Port Mourant is made with wooden stills), but also Rums from Barbados, Jamaica and Trinidad (all three not from wooden stills). Another claim made by Pusser’s is that some of the Rums were fermented in open vats where naturally occurring yeasts ferment the sugars in around 72 hours. Pusser’s 15yo contains added sugar.

Pusser's British Navy Rum 15yoColor: Orange Brown.

Nose: Thick fatty nose. High ester Rum from Jamaica meets Demerara Rum from Guyana. Add to that some brown sugar. Those two are pretty obvious. Just like the Red Label I reviewed the day before yesterday, both heavy types of Rum  don’t stay around too much. They just popped in to say hi and sort of left. Caramel, dark chocolate with sugared mint. (After Eight). Vanilla powder, raisins and slightly herbal. Sweet smelling and well-balanced. Brown sugar and milk chocolate. Definitely from the same family as the Pusser’s Red Label, but heavier and overall even “better” smelling. Again farmy notes. Elegant wood, old shop interior. Charred wood. Great complexity, this keeps on giving and giving. Wonderful.

Taste: Sweet and syrupy at first, followed by a dry Jamaican style high ester Rum. Hints of vanilla and do I detect some cola and ahorn syrup? Here we don’t have a heavy Demerara note. This is just too easily drinkable and just a bit too smooth. This really needs a higher ABV sister version. It’s also quite sweet, maybe they’ve added a bit too much extra sugar. Demerara and Jamaica should bring enough sweetness (or aroma) to the mix. This somehow almost seems like an addictive taste to me. It’s hard to put down, despite its sweetness. There is something about this Rum. I still can’t quite put my finger on it, but I like it very much. If a gun was put to my head and I had to think of something I would say its the Jamaican bit in this Rum…

I adore this 15yo, it’s an amazing blend. When I start with a Rum like this, it’s hard to put down. Everything seems right, everything is well-integrated, and even the bottle it comes from looks great. It’s just a wee bit too smooth and a wee bit too sweet. This should have been bottled at a higher strength. Even the simpler version I just reviewed is bottled at 42%. There even exists a higher strength version, bottled at 54.5% ABV. Please make a higher strength version of this blend too, please!

Points: 87

Pusser’s Red Label British Navy Rum (42%, 2010, British Virgin Islands)

For those of you who have read the previous post about Lamb’s Navy Rum, will know about the daily ration of Rum that was issued to its sailors by the British Navy. The person that was doing the issuing was the Purser a.k.a. the Pusser.

In 1979, Charles Tobias bought the rights and the blending information from the Navy, and founded Pusser’s Ltd. on Tortola in the British Virgin Islands. The first bottle of Pusser’s saw the light of day just one year later. Pusser’s British Navy Rum is still the same blend of five West Indian Rums, a majority of which is pot-still distilled Rum. As far as I know this Red Label has been replaced by a similar looking Blue Label version also 42% ABV. Some markets have a Blue Label bottled at 40% ABV.

Pusser's Rum Red LabelColor: Copper orange.

Nose: Sweet Demerara, but above all Jamaican high ester Rum. Right on top, fresh orange juice with oils from the skins. It instantaneously reminds me of the Pusser’s 15yo I know pretty well. I love that one, so this nose is making me smile already. Give it some time to breath and the influence of the Jamaican Rum’s in the blend wear off a bit to give way for toffee and milk chocolate and the occasional whiff of cow-droppings (in a good way). Underneath there is also some dryness and some funky wood to balance things out. Black tea, paper, pencil shavings and some sugared or over ripe tropical fruits.

Taste: Yeah that’s more like it. This starts out with a thin version of Demerara Rum. That quickly turns into a more sugar-water note, with the Demerara shoved into the back seat. Wood and a fruity acidity. Raspberry and white chocolate. Every aroma passes by in quick succession and after the rather short finish, you just want your next sip of this. Quick, quick!

Where the Lamb’s was disappointing and gloomy, this Pusser’s makes the sun shine and leaves you wanting more, not only more Pusser’s but also a bite to eat. Appetizing. This is a light Pusser’s that can be used as a mixer. It’s affordable and why should you get a less interesting Rum to mix with when it costs exactly the same? For the time being, if I needed a Rum for a Coke, this would be it, especially when at this price it’s also a worthy sipping Rum. It’s also quite nice as an aperitif Rum, whereas the Pusser’s 15yo is a thicker and heavier Rum (at twice the price of this Red Label), which is a true after dinner Rum, a digestif. I will forget about Lamb’s, and will get Pusser’s instead.

Points: 83

Lamb’s Navy Rum (40%, UK)

In the olden days, sailors liked to drink French Brandy. When Jamaica was taken away from Spain in 1655, Rum quickly replaced Brandy as the drink of choice. In 1731 however, The British navy started giving their sailors a daily ration of Rum, a tradition that lasted until 1970. Hey, let’s not get ahead of ourselves with that giant leap in time. First let’s get back to 1849.

In 1849, Alfred Lamb, the son of William Lamb, a spirits and wine merchant from London, blended 18 Caribbean Rums together and formed a company called: Alfred Lamb & Son. Amongst others, Rums from Jamaica, Barbados, Trinidad and Guyana were used in the blend. During the second world war, Alfred Lamb & Son were bombed. Also their competitors, White Keeling Rum Merchants were bombed and both firms were accommodated by Portal, Dingwall & Norris. All involved must have liked each other, because by 1946 these three companies merged. The new firm was called: United Rum Merchants. After a few changes of hands along the way, today Lamb’s is part of Pernod Ricard.

Lamb's Navy RumColor: Orange brown, dark amber.

Nose: Fatty and sweet with fresh oranges. Not particularly the oil from the skins just the smell you get from a lot of oranges at a grocers shop. Very obvious notes of Demerara Rum with added dustiness. However, the “thick” Demerara aroma quickly dissipates and turns into a more dry and dusty note. The sweetness becomes more sugary and coffee-like (Haagsche Hopjes), yes still writing about the nose. Dryer and more woody now. Wood, with the old paint just stripped off. Hints of oak and vanilla. Aroma of slightly rotting leaves. Quite and unexpected turn of events.

Taste: Much thinner than I initially thought. Not as sweet as the nose promised. Actually a pretty strange overall taste. Thin, some wood, toffee and burned sugar, the Haagsche Hopjes are here too. No friendly sweetness and even some hints of mint. Sugared black tea and raw alcohol. Woody bitterness takes over the body of the Rum and disturbs the finish. Disturbs? Yes, it ruins the balance of the Rum completely. The aftertaste is quite bitter, and in this case it’s not what you want. Short finish (luckily). Quite disappointing actually.

The nose is quite nice and typical for Rum. The taste is a short string of disappointments. I don’t really understand why this is quite a popular brand and sells a lot of cases. I guess this is not meant for sipping, but you are expected to do something with it. I for one, will drink the rest in a coke. I’m no authority on Rum & Cola mixtures, but if I needed a Rum for a coke I would go for the simplest of Abuelo’s.

Points:  69

The Benriach 18yo “Dunder” (46%, OB, Limited Production, Peated, Dark Rum Finish. 1888 bottles, 2015)

After the Irish Teeling Blend and the Old Malt Cask Clynelish, why not make it a trio and try this new release from Benriach, wich was also finished in Rum casks. Out of the closet it came and onto my lectern, where I popped the cork of this Benriach “Dunder”. Dunder is the name of the residue left behind in the still after distilling Rum in Jamaica. The Dark Rum finish was done in casks that once held Jamaican Rum. I love Jamaican Rum, so I’m very interested what the Rum casks did for this peated Whisky! Yes you’ve read this right, peated Benriach, finished in dark Rum.

This is the second release in Benriachs new series called “Limited Production”. The first release was another peated 18yo, finished in PX casks, which was called “Albariza”.

Benriach DunderColor: Full gold with a slight green tint.

Nose: Nicely vegetal, soft and peat, reminding me of black coal. Niiiiice. Good peat. Lots of depth and quite juicy. Smoke, earthy and full of spices. Meaty smoke and a minty/menthol note. Not a lot of Dark Rum is noticeable though. The peat is simply the main marker here. If anything, the Rum brings balance to the nose. The peat aroma is quite strong without being hit in the face with it. Its strong and laid back at the same time. Balanced. Behind the peat is a sweeter, more creamy note that acts as a vehicle for the peat. Big peat, small vehicle. Like an elephant on the roof of a mini (the original mini, not the BMW giant mini). This needs a lot of air, and I just opened the bottle. This will get better over time. Over time the peat retreats a bit, letting through more smoke and a more buttery, creamy smell as well as some fruity acidity. Citrus (but not the skins). This is getting better and better (but still no high ester Jamaican dark Rum).

Taste: Estery sweetness, thick, you can cut it with a knife, but it’s not as sweet as those sugary Rums, since the overall taste is pretty dry and smoky. Spicy. Hints of paper. Lots of smoke, licorice and a not completely integrated acidity (like drops of lemon juice on fresh butter). All of this is combined with hints of banana. Intriguing. Extremely well-balanced. Warming. The right amount of time was used for finishing this, although it may have benefitted from a little bit more Jamaican Rum (and sweetness) in the mix. Maybe it should have aged a little while longer. Vanilla and Demerara sugar are present, still not very sweet. The Rum does show itself, especially in the finish, without it being typically Jamaican, apart from the high ester entry mentioned above. Hints of red berries with vanilla and smoked almonds (without the salt). What a nice surprise this is.

Points: 88

Clynelish 14yo 1989/2003 (50%, Douglas Laing, Old Malt Cask, 6 Month Rum Finish, DL REF 3850, 312 bottles)

I’ve been reviewing more Rums lately, which is fun to do. back to Whisky for now, but I won’t have to let go of Rum altogether. To continue the Rum theme, my previous review was of a Teeling Blended Whiskey, finished in Rum casks. The Rum completely took over the Whiskey. Here is another Whisky, Scottish this time, that was finished in a Rum cask. Alas we don’t know where the Rum cask came from, nor do we know what kind of Rum it once held.

The title is correct, the picture is wrong. I found an old sample of this Clynelish on my attic, but it seems Whiskies were drunk in 2003 and not collected. I couldn’t even find one in an auction. No picture to be found of this particular 14yo rum finished Clynelish. All I could find was this picture of its 13yo sister bottling, also finished for 6 months in a Rum cask. For a brief time Fred Laing reserved the red lettering on OMC bottles for younger Whiskies in a time when  Douglas Laing was bottling almost only stellar and old bottlings. For one reason or another the red lettering, and the red tube, was soon abandoned. The bottle in the picture was bottled in February 2003, and the 14yo, I’ll be reviewing soon, later in that same year. It is therefore entirely possible the 14yo doesn’t even have red lettering.

Clynelish 14yo 1989/2003 (50%, Douglas Laing, Old Malt Cask, 6 Month Rum Finish, DL REF 3850, 312 bottles)Color: Light citrussy gold.

Nose: Wood and yes, it has some light golden Rum on the nose. This time the Rum didn’t overshadow the Whisky. You still can recognize a Single Malt Whisky in this. Flowery and soapy and hints of rhubarb. Soft young wood, leafy and fruity. Papaya, maracuja and a tiny hint of banana. In a blind tasting I would have said this was a Tomatin. Typical Bourbon cask notes and with tropical fruits, what else could it have been? Nice nose. Floral and fruity, but also damp earth and raisins. Hot butter. Sometimes whiffs of a Pinot Gris fly by. I like this. Well balanced and even though a lot can be picked up, the balance is so great and the aroma’s are so well-integrated it doesn’t even seem complex. The aroma’s show themselves in layers, but when an aroma is replaced by the next, it isn’t gone for good, everything comes back as a boomerang. Given some time a more burned note appears that wasn’t there before. I have always liked Rum finishes, maybe that’s where the interest in Rum comes from.

Taste: Recognizable as a Clynelish, with added yellow, tropical and red fruits. Quite hot, it bites back a bit. Sweet and more yellow fruits. Pineapple and white grapes, hints of unripe peach and unripe banana. After the initial sweetness, notes of paper and wood. Cheap wood, plywood maybe. This is less balanced than the nose is and the finish leaves a slightly bitter taste in your mouth. Burned wood and grape seeds. Nice stuff, just don’t expect a sweet Rum in this one.

Back in those times, it seems that Rum finishes were more common than today. Wine finishes were hardly available, and those that were around were not particularly good. Look around today, lots of finishes in casks that previously contained a Wine in all its guises. Rum finishes are still not done very often, apart from some Benriachs I guess. Speaking of which…

Points: 86