Author Archives: Master Quill

Tobermory 32yo 1972/2005 (50.1%, OB, Green Label, Oloroso Sherry Finish, 912 bottles)

This is the first Tobermory on these pages and the Whisky itself comes from the Island of Mull. This distillery was founded already in 1798 and was originally called Tobermory. Tobermory closed in 1930 and was turned into a power station. It stayed closed as a distillery, untill it reopened in 1972, but this time as Ledaig. Ledaig’s history, from its reopening was a rocky one, with a lot of buying and selling of the distillery with production stops to match. The current owner is Burn Stewart (which itself is/was owned by an insurance company (since 2002), that again was rescued by the government of Trinidad & Tobago in 2010. You don’t want to know…)

Back to Tobermory (or Ledaig). Ledaig was sold to Burn Stewart in 1993, and they decided to give back its original name: Tobermory. In 2005 Tobermory issued three 32yo from 1972. These were Oloroso Sherry finished Whiskies. One with a black label, one with a red label and this green label reviewed here. Purists mention an additional brown labeled version for sale at the distillery. Also 32yo and 1972, but “put on bottle” in 2010, so it must have been kept in stainless steel tanks of on glass from 2005 to 2010 to stop further ageing. Not a lot is known about this bottle…

Color: Brown

Nose: Tarry with lots of red and black fruits. Peat, asphalt and lemonade. Honey. Very appetizing. Coal smoke and steam. This is a true vintage steam locomotive. A little bit of plum with a lot of burned sugar. Toasted wood, burned wood (when turned cold again) and burned paper. Cookie dough. Later it gets dryer and more dusty. Incense. There are a lot of associations with burned stuff, but still, all that doesn’t overpower the whisky. The fruityness makes for great balance. This is truly one of these malts that oozes the days of yesteryear and really they don’t make them like this anymore…

Taste: Strong and again steam locomotive. The taste matches the nose perfectly. Thick sherry with some licorice. It’s fruity, red fruit and the fruit part is fresh and lively. Over this fruit steam and coal again. Hard (red) candied fruit. Quite nice is that the finish is only a little bit bitter. Warming. Wood and tar. The only beef I have with this Green label as opposed to the other two is that the taste is not that balanced and coherent. It doesn’t gel completely and with time it sometimes seems thinner than the other two.

Of the three, this is the least interesting one. In my humble opinion, the Red label Tobermory 32yo is the best, but the black follows in its footsteps quite well. Between the two it’s a matter of taste. Still, if the other ones aren’t available, do get this one in stead, because you’re up for a nice journey, and this one is pretty good by itself! All three of these whiskies may not be perfect, but they are classics in their own right and they do deserve a place in the Whisky hall of Fame!

Points: 88

Ben Nevis 1986/2012 (58.2%, The House of MacDuff, The Golden Cask, CM 188, 111 bottles)

Here are a few firsts, and on paper a quite interesting one to boot. This is the first Ben Nevis on these pages. It’s also the first time I’m reviewing a Whisky that was bottled by The House of MacDuff. Now for the interesting part. Some of you might have read “Wort, worms & washbacks” The memoirs of John McDougall written by Gavin D. Smith. By the way, Gavin was “reviewed” once before, so he’s no first. The House of MacDuff is a venture of Jane MacDuff ánd John McDougall. John also picks the casks for bottling under the Golden Cask brand. For those of you who haven’t read this book, well it’s utterly entertaining and very funny. Recommended. John has worked at a lot of very interesting distilleries in all Scottish regions, so I’m assuming that all picks by John just have to be great. I got a few samples from the series, and I’ll start with this Ben Nevis from 1986.

Color: Pinkish gold

Nose: Fresh, sharp and fruity sweet. Black tea (dry leaves). Nice bourbon cask not dissimilar from the Cadenhead offerings (Bourbon Barrels). Warm apple sauce and quite thick. Condensed sweet apple. Not a lot of wood, but there seems to be enough vanillin going around in this. Sawdust. Slightly vegetal too. Hints only of ethanol.

Taste: Sweet, vegetal and slightly woody (multiplex). Quite full and round (sweet) mouthfeel. This is not bad, not very complex but very likeable. Taste is pretty balanced, for me it just goes a bit wrong in the finish. Slightly acidic and the vegetal part (fern) starts to play a larger role. Also, but very late, comes in some bitterness from the wood. Fern with the sweetness, and the slight bitterness, is maybe a strange combination, but hey it’s only part of the finish, so don’t worry.

The Golden Cask don’t disclose all the facts of the cask, but this is probably a Bourbon Barrel. This bottling has yielded 111 bottles, so I’m guessing the cask was shared and this is only half the output from the cask. The second half was probably bottled for the Whiskymesse Rüsselsheim. That bottling yielded 100 bottles. 100 bottles of whisky on the wall, was probably the original order with The Golden Cask buying the rest of barrel #133. Therefore this Ben Nevis should also be 26yo.

Points: 84

Partagás Serie D No. 5 Edición Limitada 2008

Partagas LogoReaders that like my occasional reviews of cigars will know by now that I don’t smoke inside the house. The sparsity of these cigar reviews are only caused by long stints of bad weather. It almost seems to me that the last five years, we didn’t even had one decent summer! It’s june, and here we had only a few whole days of Sunshine! You do not have to be a rocket-scientist to figure out when that happens, a cigar will be freed from its humidor. This time I chose a Partagás. Partagás usually are on the heavier side and I thought let’s start the season with a nice nicotine rush!

This is a beautiful day. Sunny not too hot and a little bit of wind. Even without the cigar I’m enjoying the silence, the rustling sound from bamboo in my garden and the sloshing sound of the water behind my house. Don’t worry, no flooding, it’s supposed to be there. So, sun, water, bamboo and hopefully an excellent smoke.

This is a  Cuban Edición Limitada 2008 version by Partagás (50 x 110mm, Petit Robusto, Box Code Unknown).Partagás Serie D No. 5 Edición Limitada 2008

This Edición Limitada from 2008 was made with Tobacco that already was aged for two years. First released in 2008 obviously it turned out to be an immediate success. Since 2011 it is added to the current series of Partagás cigars.

Color & Looks: Nice wrapper, tightly wound with small veins. Packed with a lot of tobacco and clearly well-built. Draw is good, especially for such a tightly packed thick cigar. Right from the start, this is a good smoke.

A cru: Chocolate, dusty old books with a nice creamy touch and with a slight hint of toffee.

Taste: I have just set fire to it, and already this tastes very good. Not as strong as I have come to expect from a Partagás. Very rich taste, fabulous spicy taste. I actually have smoked just 5 millimetres from this cigar, but it already is one of my favorites! How’s that for a bold statement! Soapy feel on the lips. The Tobacco was harvested in 2006 and aged for two years, after that it almost aged another 5 years in my humidor, but still the cigar shows some youth. Still, it is already very, very good, but consider the additional ageing potential!

My cigar burns a bit uneven, so I had to “correct” that a few times, but that’s no problem. Dark chocolate, woody, warming and a fabulous smelling smoke, even for the one sitting next to the smoker. The ash is almost white (another good sign). After 1/3, the cigar becomes more like a Partagás, a very good one. Spicy and full of character, woody and dry. I’m having a mild arabica coffee with this, but the cigar doesn’t overpower it. So it is full of Partagás character, but it doesn’t pack that Mr. T. punch Partagás so often have. Excellent. With water on the side the cigar tastes more sour, so I wouldn’t recommend drinking water with this cigar because it changes the fine constructed character of the cigar.

The cigar is very consistent. There is some minor development in the beginning, but after that the cigar is linear. The first ash fell of after the half way point. Taste wise the first half is the better half. The second half is drier and more woody. But the difference isn’t that great. As mentioned before, the ash of the cigar is almost white, and near the end, the cigar shows a caramel colored heart. More wood towards the end too.

Personally I find the 50 gauge a bit too much. It doesn’t look very elegant and it cramps the jaw, but that’s probably my european opinion. The cigar is quite mild altogether, no big nicotine rush. And no turning points. I enjoyed this cigar thoroughly. I smoked this as long as I could, and burned my fingers, but it is that good, all the way through. This will probably score even higher after some additional ageing.

Points: 86

Timmermans Framboise (4%, 25 cl)

The sun is out, and it finally starts to look like summer. Just the right day to pull out all of my beers from storage and have a look what is still around. Time to pick a nice refreshment for our short-lived summer. Between all those Catholic Beers I have, protruded this pink bottle. This is a Timmermans Framboise or Raspberry flavored beer. Had they used real raspberries, the beer would have been priceless, so Raspberry juice was used in stead. Also Sugar and artificial sweetener was added.

Timmermans FramboiseTimmermans is part of Anthony Martin. Those of you that read my beer reviews know that I like to age my beers, but beers like this (fruit), hardly gain anything from ageing. That doesn’t mean you can’t but why should you. The beer I used for this review was hardly aged.

Color: Red and murky, not a lot of (almost white) foam.

Nose: Heated raspberry compote. Very, very fruity and sweet-smelling. It almost overpowers the Lambic beer, but if you try hard it’s there. Probably too much fruit syrup is used.

Taste: Again a whole lot of sweet raspberry. Sweet it is! Fruit syrup but with a nice acidic touch, I guess comes from the Lambic. After the initial sweetness the beer is still quite refreshing. I love Lambic beers, but still this is quite a simple beer, to enjoy with an empty mind, not caring ’bout notin’.

To sum up, Raspberry syrup (too much used), added Sugar and artificial sweetener (why so much), simple yet enjoyable.

Points: 77

Okocim Premium Mocne (7.1%, 500 ml)

Here we have a beer from Poland. I visit the country on a regular basis, so it’s not that hard for me to come in contact with some of the Beers they’re making over there. Poland, of course, is better known for its Vodka, than for its Beers, but during the last few decades has seen a big shift away from the consumption of Vodka (even the tax on Vodka was lowered at some point) to Beer. A few moments later, brewers from the west saw this opportunity and quickly bought up all the large brands. Especially Heineken (f.i. Zywiec & Warka) and Carlsberg (f.i. Okocim & Harnas) were quick to snap up the Polish brewers. Lets have a look at this Okocim Premium Mocne then. I aged the Beer for an extra year (I love to do that), and this Beer can take some ageing. For me always a good sign.

Color: Amber (Orange)

Nose: Fresh, with lots of sugared orange skin. Hoppy, murky, dusty with lots of yeast. Deep sense of Sugar candy. Putty and leafy.

Taste: Again lot’s of orange skins, warming alcohol and it definitely tastes better than it smells. Sugar candy and yeasty. That’s it actually, but the aroma is there in large amounts. Leafy and slightly woody, although I don’t think the Beer came in contact with wood anywhere during the production process.

This is beer for drinking outside in the evening, watching people pass by. You might even want to call this a winter warmer, but that’s a completely different season. Pretty good beer. I have tried a lot of different Polish beers, and this is easily one of my favorites. Recommended!

Points: 83

Glen Keith 19yo 1992/2012 (53.8%, Kintra, Bourbon Hogshead #120587, 156 bottles)

Recently I reviewed a Glen Keith by Malts of Scotland (a german bottler) that one was also 19yo (1990) and was quite the surprise. This time another Glen Keith that is 19yo old (1992) and this time by the Dutch bottler Kintra. Glen Keith itself was mothballed for more than a decade (1999-2013), but has restarted recently, Probably the last one of the mothballed distilleries that could have been revived. The rest of the closed distilleries are demolished or used for warehousing or have been turned into apartments or warehouses. It is very unlikely that any other of the closed distilleries will reopen. As of now probably only new distilleries will see the light of day.

Color: Gold

Nose: The nose starts out rather sweetish and slightly soapy. Next up some fresh air and latex paint. This changes seamlessly into a perfect woody touch, that gets spicier with time. Vanilla and ice-cream with cherry bon-bon liquor (without the chocolate). Sometimes it even smells a bit as new wood. Those of you that think that something’s wrong because of the hints of soap and latex paint are mistaken. Pretty neat nose, one to be taken in vigorously, Smelled like this I also get a hint of sweetened yoghurt and some toffee. Later on some hints of dark chocolate and red fruit gello. In no way does is smell like a cask strength Whisky. No, this is a very laid back Glen Keith.

Taste: A perfect balance between the wood and the sweetness. There is a nice caramel like sweetness that underlies the whole experience. Nice and warming, and never bitter. Luckily it is not quite clean. Again some ice-cream, but after the sweet and the vanilla, the wood returns, which makes for nice balance. They play together well. Small hints of lemongrass and some lemon skins, but don’t get the wrong picture, these are only in here in hints, and make the whole even more interesting. It does develop a bit in the glass, more to the woody side and late in the taste a little bitterness does emerge, like walnut skin. That’s no problem.

Compared to the Glen Keith by Malts of Scotland, this is even a better example of a Bourbon matured Glen Keith. Again a bottle that will be finished rather quickly. Nice Pick by Erik Molenaar.

Points: 86

Thanks to Andre and Erik for providing the sample.

Tomatin Legacy (43%, OB, Bourbon & Virgin Oak Casks)

There is a new Tomatin in town, and they’ve called it Legacy. No age statement on this one. First of all what does legacy exactly mean? Searching on-line I find this: anything handed down from the past, as from an ancestor or predecessor. We know this “Legacy” is aged in Bourbon and Virgin oak casks, so is this the way Whisky was made in the past? I will have to ask, but surely my interest in this Legacy has been aroused. maybe it’s not about the casks, but the way the distillate shines through?

Second thing i noticed is that it’s 43% ABV, making the 12yo the only one in the standard range this is 40% ABV. The rest is higher with 43% and 46%. Having said that, Tomatin placed this Legacy before the 12yo, simply by making it cheaper. Pretty neat.

Recently The Glenlivet released the Alpha, of which in a weeks time the true contents will be released. The Glenlivet used a huge social media ad campaign to aid its sale, whereas Tomatin did not. By now we do know that is also is made using Bourbon casks (first fill) and new wood (second fill). Alpha is 50% ABV. and costs 4 times as much as this Legacy. Let’s have a look…

Color: Light gold.

Nose: Clean and youthful, hints of mocha, caramel, toffee, but the hints don’t smell sweet. Wet new wood, freshly cut-down tree. tree sap (not resin!) and some nuttiness. Very toned down, no sharpness and only some spiciness from the wood but no burning alcohol of very young distillate. Very honest. Some vanilla and warm butter. Not bad!

Taste: Malty and half sweet. Wood and cardboard. Again wet fresh wood and tree sap, and again a very toned down profile, laid back. A hint of licorice and even an even smaller hint of tar. Not a very long finish. The virgin oak isn’t omni-present in this one so it doesn’t dominate. It’s not very sweet, but the sweetness is sugary. Good balance.

In the nose very different and younger from the Alpha. Extremely drinkable. This would be the lemonade in my lectern. The last bottle opened, but also the first one finished.

Alpha has the same color and is higher in ABV, smells spicier (older) and definitely more mature, the wood on the Legacy smells like a freshly cut down tree. Tastewise the Alpha comes across as older, spicier and bigger bodied, aided by the ABV. Conclusion: incomparable, the Whiskies are quite different and aimed at different people. Legacy is one to give some time to and feel what and aged whisky distillate really is. One to analyze, but also the easiest drinkable malt around. And it costs next to nothing to boot!

Points: 82

Thanks go out to Jennifer for providing me with this sample!

Guinness Original (5%, 330 ml)

Guinness is good for youMoving on to a beer this time, and not just any beer, but a Guinness, you know the dry stout that is good for you! (especially for the heart, because the antioxidants found in the beer, battle cholesterol depositing in your body). Today it’s almost everywhere illegal to make such a medical claim.

I guess nobody will be actually interested in this review, because who knows anyone on the planet who drinks beer and hasn’t tried this beer yet? It should be next to impossible. My first encounter with Guinness was in a pub. That’s a good thing because of all the Guinnesses I have tried over the years, no bottled Guinness ever came close to Guinness draught (Around 4.2% ABV). There are a lot of variations on this theme for different markets, so plenty of Guinnesses to discover. If you want to know more about the beer, I have found the Wikipedia page to be extremely interesting.

Color: Brown-black cream with brown foam (that sets quickly)

Nose: Fresh hoppy foam and some fresh oak. Dark brooding nose. Fresh oak again and also a hint of  slightly toasted wood. Honey, caramel and slightly burned Sugar finish off the nose.

Taste: Bitter dark chocolate, woody yet retaining an unusual freshness for this type of beer. Slightly sour. Heavy, full-bodied and bitter aftertaste. Earwax and yeast. Yummie!

Actually it is pretty unique that a beer like this is so popular, well maybe not. It’s unique and heavy in taste. Quite bitter, but never the less enormously popular. For me this is especially a very nice beer to get from a pub and as a draught. Lovely stuff.

Points: 84

Weingärten Weissenkirchen Wachau Smaragd 2007 Grüner Veltliner

Asparagus season isn’t over yet, so we decided to do another round. Last time around I decided to accompany the asparagus with an Austrian Riesling, but there was another Austrian wine lying around, so I decided to open another Austrian white wine. This time a Grüner Veltliner from Wachau by Domäne Wachau.

Grüner Veltliner is a white wine grape variety that stems from Savagnin and further down the line, Rotgopfler and Pinot Noir. Despite of the name Veltliner, the grape isn’t related to Roter Veltliner and Frühroter Veltliner. Most Grüner Veltliners are planted in Austria and to a lesser extent, Slovakia and the Czech republic, but more recently also in the United States and Australia. One-third of all the grapes planted in Austria is Grüner Veltliner. In Slovakia one-fifth and in the Czech republic “only” one-ninth of the planted grape varieties is Grüner Veltliner. Most Grüner Veltliners age well and accompany food excellently.

LabelEspecially in the Wachau wine region on of the following terms can be found:

  • Steinfeder: lightest version with up to 11.5% alcohol,
  • Federspiel: a slightly more powerful version with 12.5% ​​alcohol,
  • Smaragd: the most rich and powerful Grüner Veltliner with 12.5% ​​alcohol and often more. (Smaragd can be compared with the german term Spätlese, the grapes are harvested late and often ripen for a prolonged time on stainless steel or large casks). (This Smaragd is 13% ABV).

Finally, Weissenkirchen is one of Domäne Wachau‘s village-bottlings. Besides Weissenkirchen itself, it comprises of the villages of Joching, Wösendorf and St. Michael. The wines are elegant, full-bodied, fruity and quite mineral.

Color: Straw

Nose: Lemony and acidic. Smells very fresh and refreshing with whiffs of alcohol. You can already smell the balance between the sweetness and the acidity. Nosed blind this could have easily been from Alsace. Nice yellow fruits. Hints of peach and dried apricots, but also some sweat! (No that’s not a bad thing, in this wine). All in all, light and fresh, but with body.

Taste: Definitively more spicy. Fruity syrupy sweetness (high iron content). Apple treacle, raisins, tree sap with the slightest hint of licorice. Green apple skin. Some hints of wood, although this probably never came in contact with wood. Some unbalance when near the finish. Short, slightly sugary, finish. The sweetness in the finish is a bit “strange”.

Of the two Austrian wines we recently had with Asparagus, we liked the Riesling Better. Having said that, on its own, this one isn’t bad either.

Points: 81

The Glenlivet Alpha (50%, OB, First Fill Bourbon & Second Fill New Wood, 3350 bottles)

Returning from my vacation, a blank white box was waiting for me. Inside this rather large sample (70cl !), wrapped in a black velvety cloth, of the new Glenlivet Alpha or α (being the first letter of the greek alphabet). Alpha is also used as a synonym for first (of a series) or simply meaning “the beginning”. If this Glenlivet is the first of a series, then there are 23 more letters in the greek alphabet. Bring on The Glenlivet Iota and Omega! (The 9th and the 24th letter of the greek alphabet).

One thing is clear though, the (Single Malt) Whisky world is rapidly changing. For starters new Whisky countries (like Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) are quickly becoming a sort of black hole for Whisky. Not a lot went there before and demand is now soaring, so anything still available is flowing there. Most older whiskies are therefore quickly sold out or offered at a premium price, and maybe there are not enough casks lying around to meet the demand. It therefore has become more common practice to bottle Whisky without an age statement (or NAS), and give it a name. Just have a look at a lot of recent Ardbeg’s or some of the newest Macallan’s, but also Tomatin Legacy and Talisker Storm to name but a few, almost all with extensive add-campaigns to explain what kind of Whisky it is and what’s inside the bottle.

Now The Glenlivet have their own NAS bottling and an even more elaborate marketing campaign to boot! Al lot is happening on the internet with extensive use of social media to promote this new α. Just have a look at the “Master your Senses” campaign on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube, all to help you decide for yourself what Alpha really is. Well, aficionado’s already know that blind tasting is fun, and sometimes pretty revealing about our (or the tasters) abilities. We have to wait for June 6th when all will be revealed. By then I fear that all bottles will be long gone. It’s already almost sold out, and prices are getting higher and higher already on Ebay. I guess we can already call this one a success. It looks great and it got people to part with quite some hard-earned money, without even knowing what’s inside. How about that!

So what dó we know? Already we know that it has distillates from at least two different kinds of casks. First fill Bourbon casks and second fill new wood casks were used. But what is second fill new wood? If it has been filled a second time, is it still new wood? What has been in there the first time around then? How old are the different components of the Whisky? Questions, questions, questions, but is that all? Maybe besides the two different kinds of casks, a subtle finish was done? Well, again the campaign works, after all this, who isn’t curious what will be revealed on june the 6th! The most important question of them all cán be answered right now: Is it any good?

Color: Light gold with tiny hints of sediment.

Nose: Fresh and soft dusty wood. Grass from Grasse, malt, hay and small hints of green apple skin at first, but quickly turns into something more like sweet vanilla ice-cream, more toffee than caramel and hints of “Haagsche Hopjes” (Dutch sweet coffee bon-bon). Sweet vanilla. Definitely (in part) “new” wood was used, due to the light wooded or sawdusty smell. Also some kitchen herbs (basil) and anise (from the wood) were thrown in. Smallest hint of toast, licorice and moss. Fruity it is, but all in small amounts, all the things mentioned above is where it’s about. Hints of unripe pear skins, banana and pineapple can be found. The nose is very nice and quite complex.

Taste: Sweet and fruity. Slightly tarry and slightly bitter (new and/or toasted)wood. Quite a full body. Again with some toast. Sweet like burned sugar, sweet with an edge. Also quite floral. Mocha and caramel. In part some young alcohol. For me the finish is slightly unbalanced (less sweet, more woody), the best part  for me is the more sweeter full body (and the nose). The taste is definitely less complex and more youthful than the nose.

Although up untill now only Bourbon and New wood casks were mentioned, I have a feeling there maybe more happening than only this. Still I guess some older or boulder Bourbon casks were used and the second fill new wood are there to give the Whisky an edge and might be younger (or the other way around). Not sure if any finish was used though. If any, it was done sparsely.

Thanks go out to Jacob-Jan for providing the rather large sample!

Points: 86