Teaninich 1983/2003 (46%, Gordon & MacPhail, Connoisseurs Choice)

Teaninich isn’t amongst those superstars of Single Malt Whiskies around, but it has a fanatical following with certain enthusiasts. Well I’m one of them. Almost every time I taste a Teaninich, blind or not, this always tickles my fancy. I connect with it. It suits my palate. Dare we say: “For reasons not even science can wholly explain…”

Teaninich was founded in 1817. In 1970, yes a small jump in time, a whole new six still ‘distillery’ was built alongside the current one, consisting of four stills. The new one was called the A-side (The old stuff was therefore called the B-Side). They worked together as one distillery. In 1984 the old distillery was mothballed, and 15 years later, demolished.

Not a lot of officials around. A 10yo Flora & Fauna bottling, three and a half Rare Malts editions, one 17yo Manager’s Dram, and one 1996 Manager’s Choice. That’s it. Luckily there are a lot more independents, which brings us to our whisky of the day: A Gordon & MacPhail Teaninich from 1983, which can be from The A or B-side.

Color: Copper Gold.

Nose: Fresh, citrussy, and toffee. Vegetal, woody spiciness. Perfumy and hints of smoke and licorice. Great balance. The nose has body. I’m bonding with my Teaninich again.

Taste: Sweet, fruity, cherries and apricots. Nice body, luckily not reduced to death. Fantastic, that in 2003 it’s already 46% ABV and not less. It has wood, but without the sourness. Lots of esters. Great!

A long time ago I gave this 88 points. Not being a fan of ‘modern’ Connoisseurs Choice bottlings, since they could be all the same, and having the same color, and so on, but this one is great and deserves at least 88 points.

Points: 88

P.S. the picture is for the 2004 version. I tasted the 2003 version, but both look the same.

Laphroaig 30yo (43%, OB, Circa 2006)

Time for a nice old Laphroaig. The last one being so young, let’s do an oldie (but goldie).

Color: Copper

Nose: Sweet clay with seaweed. Old distinguished peat. Sourness from the oak. Gravy. Old wood. Bonfire and smoke. Grilled sausage. Cold bonfire remnants. (the day after). Distant freshness and sweetness.

Taste: Sweet, slightly warming. mouth-watering and chewy peat. Black and white powder, but not as salty. This has great balance. Late fruit (peach). Although there is peach on the palate it doesn’t have it on the nose. And last but not least, there is wood here, some added spice to complement the rest.

Laphroaig is just great. Just look at a part of their series and compare the 10yo at cask strength, the 15yo and the 30yo. Just beware the oxidation. Don’t keep this bottle open for too long. It will get weaker and ruin the balance, and that would be a shame…

Points: 90

Macduff 38yo 1967/2005 (50.8%, Jack Wiebers Whisky World, Old Train Line Collection, Sherry Cask #619, 204 bottles)

The Old Train Line series is probably the series with the most beautiful labels I know. The series is bottled by German bottler Jack Wieber based in Berlin.

Macduff itself is not thát old, just founded in 1962, with production starting just one year later. Macduff started out with only two stills. Sometimes a still was added, and today, Macduff has five. Since Martini was once an owner of Macduff, the malt is popular in Italy and the rest of southern Europe.

Color: Brown

Nose: Meaty and minty. Gravy with tar and old wood. Very perfumy too. It’s a meaty tea, that shifts a bit into coffee territory. Hard pressed powder candies. Very distinct, not to say unique. Also the wood plays a very unique role here. Mens cologne.

Taste: Minty wood. laurel licorice combined with the powder from the candies. Not sweet, but there is a lot of sourness from the oak. Mocha coffee with honeylike wood spice and black coal. Wow, this has a very heavy beerlike finish. After giving it some time, some black fruits emerge in the finish. Dry.

Try to imagine a Macduff with a lot of color from a sherry cask. Now try to imagine how it would smell and taste like. Do you have it? Well, this is nothing like that! This will surprise you. That’s nice. Still the balance isn’t quite there. And the finish is strange, soap, spice and a lot of beer, and rather short too. It’s definitively not a big sherry monster, but it does come across as a very old whisky. Dying to know what kind of Sherry this cask held before.

It does need a lot of time to open up, tastewise, for the nose the oxidations does nothing. Give it time and you’ll be rewarded.

Points: 88

Glenmorangie 30yo 1972/2004 (44.3%, OB, Oloroso Cask Finish, 4548 bottles)

Founded in 1843 by William Mathesen, but whisky was distilled on site as early as 1703 (or 1738). Glenmorangie is now known for their stills with very tall necks that ensure a very light and clean spirit that had to reach incredible heights. Glenmorangie are also known for their Dr. Bill Lumsden, a man who doesn’t fear innovation and experimentation with his grains and woods.

This particular bottling consists of whisky that aged from 1972 to 1989 in Bourbon Barrels and was finished from 1989 to 2004 in Oloroso Casks. We only don’t know what casks they were. Butts or Puncheons, American of European oak.

Color: Orange Gold.

Nose: Waxy and cherry liqueur and black fruits. Nice old whisky smell, old wood. The combination of casks worked quite well for the nose. Perfumy. Butter on toast. Bakery shop. Hints of mint. Fades into something plant like, sweet rhubarb with raisins. Great nose.

Taste: Wood and spice, with clay and chocolate. The taste of clean white sugar. Sourness from the oak. Tastes thin. cappuccino, mocha with cream. Toast from the cask in the finish, and again some light esters and sourness. Pastry, hint of tar and dry altogether. Red lemonade and almonds.

The whole is pretty balanced. It’s easy noticeable that this is from light spirit. The nose is great, and the taste is very nice. The only two things that let this down is its lightness. And a Glenmorangie should be light, that’s one of their pillars. Personally I like a bit of body to it, like yesterdays Glenkinchie which also has a higher proof. The second thing that lets this whisky down is it’s slightly unbalanced finish. It breaks down a bit.

Points: 86

P.S. This comes in a very nice wooden box.

Glenkinchie 21yo 1987/2009 (56.6%, Signatory Vintage, Hogshead #2837, 147 bottles)

Glenkinchie, a rarely seen Lowland distillery within the ranges of independent bottlers. Founded in 1837, Glenkinchie is foremost known for the closure of Rosebank. When Diageo set up their range of classic malts they chose Glenkinchie over Rosebank. As you might know, Rosebank is known to have a huge following, so this decision wasn’t welcomed at all. Now Rosebank is no more, we’ll have to see if this Glenkinchie is worth your money. Instead of a regular Diageo bottling, let’s try an independent one.

Color: Gold

Nose: From a distance it already smells smoky. Close by, its not that smoky and the smoke dissipates very quickly. Syrupy, estery and announces a big bold body. Pineapple on syrup. Ever so slight hints of oak, toast, salty lemongrass and mocha. Very elegant and balanced. Nice.

Taste: Sweet and big bodied Lowlander. Again some smoke and a nice sourness from the wood that’s nicely counterparted by the initial sweetness. This also has some pepper and licorice. Yet it all balances out in a nice meaty, coffee like and dry finish. Also lightly roasted nuts and caramel in the finish.

To be frank, I’m a bit surprised by this Glenkinchie. I didn’t expect this to be so…ehhh good. I expected this much lighter, but its bold and the coffee and pepper are a great addition to what was already very nice. Yes there is some coffee in the middle part and in the finish and I read somewhere that the regular 12yo does well with coffee, worth to check this out. Brilliant Glenkinchie.

Points: 88

Corsendonk Agnus – Tripel (7.5%, 33 cl)

Let’s try another Tripel. Yesterday I was a bit harsh for a beer from one of my favorite categories, The Tripel. So let’s try another Tripel, but this time from Corsendonk. Corsendonk Agnus – Tripel ís an Abbey beer. The Abbey brewed beer themselves in the 17th century. Today the Corsendonk beers are brewed under license elsewhere. The Agnus is brewed by Du Bocq in Purnode Belgium.

As you know life is hard. For this review I had to drink three bottles of the Corsendonk Agnus. I bought a couple of bottles a long time ago that were brewed in august 2006. I tried one of those earlier when it was around three years old, and this time I’m trying two, of the same batch, that are now six years old. Yes you can drink Tripels well past their dont-drink-or-you’ll-die-of-food-poisoning-date. Finally I also bought a new one that was brewed in february 2012. Following notes are for the aged ones:

Color: Orange. Gold with Copper

Nose: Fresh and refreshing. Peaches and lemons. Apricots, very fruity and estery. Lateron spicy and very balanced. Yeast and somewhat perfumed.

Taste: Fruity. Slightly bitter and hoppy. Velvety texture, very smooth. Very drinkable! Elegant, warming alcohol with peels from orange and red grapefruit.

The new bottle was full gold with nice cream foam. A lot of bubbles are surfacing, and no yeast visible. It’s fresher and more appetizing. Fruits are more in the range of apples, lemons, and hints of orange skin, than the estery peach and apricots in the aged bottles. Obviously the new one is far less complex and ‘lighter’ in style. Typical ‘beer’ finish, and aftertaste. Too young!

Well first of all, after the prolonged ageing period, the beer turned a lot darker, than the same batch at a younger age. Originally it was radiant gold, now it turned a lot more copper. The meaty part on the nose disappeared, but it gained a lot of fruity esters. With this it gained a lot of complexity. The three-year old one was more refreshing (more lemon), but this still is refreshing. It gained more depth, but it didn’t even change that much, tastewise. It is easily recognizable as a Corsendonk Tripel. Personally, I find six years of ageing a bit too long. I think it is at it’s best, around three years old. The new batch was, in comparison, very light and really easy to drink, with an aftertaste you only know of your standard beers. After seeing it’s potential I would recommend ageing your bottles for three years. But if you’re interested, longer can be quite fun too. Drinking this right after you bought it is a waste of your money. Put it in your cellar and be patient!

Points: 83

P.S. The cheese from Corsendonk is lovely too!

Petrus Gouden Tripel (7.5%, 33 cl)

After the fabulous Aged Pale, lets see if this Golden Tripel is any good. Personally I like Tripels a lot, so I have good hopes for this. What’s a “Tripel”? Well fermentation takes place in three stages. Main fermentation and second fermentation we all know, and the third stage is fermentation in the bottle. Tripel, means three, but there are a lot more explanations for the word.

So there you have it. Tripels are usually part of the Abbey and Trappist beers. Petrus is brewed by Bavik in Bavikhove Belgium. Bavik started out in 1894. Even though the range is named after Saint Peter, Bavik isn’t an Abbey or even a Trappist beer. This Tripel is just made in an Abbey style. It also isn’t a coincidence that this Tripel is reminiscent of the heavy blond ales like Duvel, because it once was one of those (Cuvée de St. Armand).

Color: Beautiful gold, like a nectar of the gods.

Nose: Fresh. Typical Tripel. High in alcohol, warming. Citrussy and malty, but that’s it, there isn’t any more.

Taste: Fresh and citrussy as in lemons and limes. Yeast and a slightly bitter and drying finish. But again not very complex.

It’s all right. An example of a typical Tripel. I prefer other Tripels, which will be reviewed eventually. After the Pale Ale this is a bit disappointing. Maybe I had too high expectations for this? It reminds me a bit of a Duvel, but Duvel is better (for me). Don’t get me wrong, this still is a pretty decent beer, but for me it doesn’t add anything to the world of the Tripel. Actually, maybe this isn’t even an Abbey-style Tripel. But a heavy Blond Ale with a third fermentation in the bottle (which a lot of people call a Tripel). It just has to decide which one of the two it really is.

Points: 77

Partagás de Luxe

…some sunshine, and another chance to finally review another cigar that is with me for quite some time, and thus had the chance to age properly.

Don Jaime Partagás y Ravelo, from Spain, started his own cigar factory named Partagás in 1845. Not much later he was murdered, over… a woman. You’ve guessed it. Partagás was also the first place to have the famous lector. A lector is the person who reads to the workers, from newspapers to good novels. Usually the workers themselves take turns in reading. Partagás is a very big and popular Cuban brand, know to be quite heavy, so not a brand you’ll start with when you are a novice. Note: The Partagás de Luxe was a machine-made cigar up to 2002. Now its a hand-made cigar.

Cuban Partágas de Luxe (40 x 140 mm, Crema, Corona, Box Code LWI SEP 05)

Color and Looks: Colorado, no big veins and rustic looking. The wrapper is ultra thin almost translucent (when warm) and fragile. The one I smoked had some frays at its foot, but it was the only one in the box, so no worries. When holding it, it seems to me it has no weight.

A cru: Woody, soapy and grassy. The foot smells more like hay and leather. Draw just ok, a bit heavy, which I didn’t expect, since its light weight.

Taste: Burns well, good rich smoke. Lots of wood that stings on the palate. It also has all the traits of wood. The spiciness, the sourness, like oak has in some whiskies. The build quality is very high. The ash from the wrapper and binder is white, the filler is gray and black. The ash has millions of tiny dots, that weren’t to visible in it’s a cru state. The wood also shows some cedar now. The taste is very simple and seems to evolve hardly.

Although its woody and dry, it doesn’t seem as strong as I thought, but when combined with double roasted coffee, the coffee seems watery! After 3 centimetres it does get better, some grass is added to the taste. Still very uncomplex but a good friend nevertheless. Ash is firm and fell off three times.

The soapyness gets more and more “there” and is something you’ll want to “away”. Fortunately since this didn’t go well with coffee, it goes well with carbonized water. (This time I had some de-ironed mineral water from France). I won’t be running out to buy a new box of these. There isn’t a lot happening, but what’s there is nice. The build is very good and the draw turned out to be very easy. It didn’t weigh a lot and therefore it burned pretty quick. The black band was glued to the cigar and can’t be removed without ruining the cigar. Unfortunately this band sat quite high, so the end came even sooner. Short spicy, woody and alas soapy smoke.

Points: 71

Gouden Carolus Classic (8.5%, 33 cl)

Gouden Carolus, once, only one beer, but since then a lot more versions of Gouden Caroli hit the market. Actually there was an emperor’s beer before 1960, but this is the year the name Gouden Carolus was given to it.

The brewery is called “Het Anker” (The Anchor), and was originally founded in 1471, but it was called Het Anker since 1904. There are also document that showed there was a brewery on site as early as 1369. Het Anker brews several different beers, of which Gouden Carolus is probably the best known.

This review will be of the ‘original’ Gouden Carolus now named “classic”. A Gouden Carolus was a coin with the head of emperor Charles V on it, who spent his childhood in Mechelen. This beer is also from Mechelen, what a coincidence!  It is even a protected regional product from Mechelen.

Color: Reddish brown with cream foam.

Nose: Meaty and musty a bit like a ditch, not very dirty ditch, let’s say: clean ditch. Seems aged in oak.

Taste: Sweet, sugar, candy sugar (the hard brown stuff). Fruity also: Oranges and some banana. Although it has a lot of notes that suggest sweetness, it’s not thát sweet, as you might think right now. It has a depth like you get with roasted malt, although I don’t think this has any. It has a slightly bitter and spicy finish with some dark chocolate, and a hint of burn caramel.

This is definitively a speciality that fits in no Belgian beer group. The brewery itself calls it a brown beer to enjoy. (‘Degustatiebier’ doesn’t translate that well). Also “Dubbel” is sometimes used. It uses one pale and two dark malts. 10 to 15% corn is used nowadays, which made the body lighter, and probably sweeter. This beer can be stored for three years, or maybe more.

Points: 81

Springbank 10yo ‘100 Proof’ (57%, OB, Circa 2004)

Springbank, the strongest survivor of Campbeltown, and one of the few family owned distilleries. Once a great center for whisky, and once a region of its own, it still is, but barely. The people behind Springbank do their utmost best to let Campbeltown survive as a region. Glen Scotia is intermittently operated by the crew of Springbank, and of course Springbank themselves are responsible for Longrow, Hazelburn and Kilkerran (Glengyle Distillery). All names from a distant Campbeltown past. Founded in 1828 by the Reid family, who were married into the Mitchells. In 1837 the Mitchell’s bought the distillery. In 1897 J. & A. Mitchell Company Ltd. is founded, the company that is still on the label today. Since 1969 J. & A. Mitchell is also owner of Cadenhead’s. Between 1979 and 1987, Springbank was closed. And since 1989, production is again as it should be. Almost nobody malts themselves these days, but Springbank take the remarkable step to reopen the maltings in 1992. Springbank is a cult malt has a great following, and is by far the most popular malt on Wall Street.

Color: Gold.

Nose: Strong, buttery, oily. Sparkling lemon curd. Clean and a bit closed at first. Grassy and smells of wet plants and earth. Cow dung in wet grass, and some “young” peat. Coastal fresh, malty and spicy, but not from wood. It has hints of popcorn and milk chocolate. Very rural, gritty and bold.

Taste: Sweet like toffee. Creamy and spicy, this time definitively from wood, and seems a bit winey, although no wine casks, even sherry, were used. It is supposed to be all Bourbon. Mocha, chocolate and peanuts. Yes it’s “Snickers” in a bottle. Slightly unbalanced by the soury woody, and peaty, finish. The finish also leaves a minty sensation on the tongue. Sweet mint as in “After Eight”.

Long live Springbank, very nice and drinkable, with a fine full body. This version is quite peaty and oily, when you think of it. Now I’m curious how a more recent bottle would taste like…

Points: 86