Highland Park Mjolner Australian Exclusive Whisky Review!

An Australian-exclusive 14-year old cask strength Highland Park that was 'hand selected for' the Norse-themed Mjolner bars (named after Thor's hammer) in Sydney and Melbourne by the Australian importers. 

A cask strength Highland Park official bottling is a rare thing on this side of the planet. At least until the recently-announced NAS Cask Strength lands in Australia - and it's bottled at a whopping 63%! This one uses the same packaging and design as the Single Cask Series, which is nicely understated compared to most of their core range and limited editions or travel exclusive bottlings - of which there are very, very many. The single cask range tends to be bottled for specific European and American bottle shops, bars and duty-free stores, and they only make the trip down under if someone buys one at auction or imports one privately. But despite that similar packaging it's not a single cask bottling, and there were a relatively large number of bottles released for an Australian exclusive single malt - which can be slow-burners as far as sales go, and this one is still readily available. The Mjolner bars are rustic, meat-heavy Norse- and Viking-inspired bars/restaurants located in Sydney and Melbourne, so it was probably inevitable that they would wind up doing something with Orkney's Viking-obsessed Highland Park. Before you ask, yes they do have a Mjolner hammer, but it's actually a custom-made whisky decanter! I believe it was given to them by Balvenie a few years ago now, but that's still a very cool thing. Since I'm not in Sydney or Melbourne I'm yet to visit either of their venues, but the concept does sound good - it could've easily become overdone, even chintzy or cringeworthy, but from what I've seen they have a more 'authentic' and high-end feel to them. Also, yes it should be spelled Mjolnir, but I'm assuming they've replaced the 'i' with an 'e' to avoid any potential legal issues.   

I've already said plenty about my dislike for most of Highland Park's ladled-on Viking marketing. In my experience so far it actually seems that their less Viking-heavy whiskies - the likes of Full Volume, Dark Origins and some of the age-stated core range - are often the hidden gems of their extensive (overcrowded) arsenal of bottlings. Likewise the two examples of their Single Cask Series that I mentioned above were also quite impressive, although I've seen mixed reports on some of the other examples - but that's both the beauty and the curse of single cask whiskies after all. Thankfully these bottlings are much more simple in their presentation - a simple canvas / jute sacking-type bag, and an understated bottle with small labelling and the bare essentials of the details. Which is great to see, especially on the limited edition bottlings that are properly limited since they could've gone the other way. I do have one complaint though, if you'll indulge me. This bottling, and also those of the Single Cask Series, do not mention chill filtration anywhere. They all appear to be cask strength and most have age statements, most also give cask details, and Highland Park do not use e150a colouring as a rule - although it'd be nice if they'd state that on the packaging & label, too - so this is a rather glaring admission. There have been a few official bottlings that do actually declare that they're non-chill filtered - Dark Origins and the recently announced Cask Strength, for example - so it's not a blanket rule for them to not mention it. The distillery has made plenty of mentions of the fact that they chill filter at higher temperatures (which means less aggressive filtration) than most who still use this practice, but they're still chill filtering the vast majority of their whisky. Whether that still applies to these limited cask strength bottlings or the single cask series I can't say, but you'd certainly hope that it doesn't. 

This particular limited cask strength Highland Park has been matured for 14-years in 'predominantly' European oak sherry casks, plus some American oak sherry casks and refill casks, and 1,731 bottles were released which is quite the number for an Australian exclusive. Many of those will have been allocated to the two Mjolner bars of course, and probably also many of the parent company's other whisky-focussed venues like Eau de Vie and Boilermaker House. It was bottled in mid-2019 at a cask strength of 56.5% ABV, retails for $210-220 AUD which I would say is reasonable, and as mentioned above it's still readily available. This bottling is back to the standard mix of roughly 20% Highland Park's own floor-malted lightly-peated barley and 80% unpeated commercially malted barley sourced from the mainland - which used to come from the Saladin box maltings at Tamdhu, but that won't be the case anymore. The end result is a very light peat influence, particularly with Orkney's famously light, floral and heathery peat. Highland Park has always been a suitable introductory whisky for those who are new to peat, but don't go expecting anything close to Islay or the other peated Hebridean malts. The sample for this review came from a generous mate who decided to take a punt on a bottle. Time to put the hammer down and see if we're worthy, then?

Highland Park Mjolner 14-year old, 56.5%. Orkney, Scotland.

Bottled for Mjolner bar/restaurants, Australian exclusive. Matured in European and American oak sherry casks and refill casks. 1,731 bottles. Unknown chill filtration, assumed natural colour.

Colour: Amber. Darker than the above photo appears. 

Nose: Spiced fruit mince - stone fruit, raisins, red apple, orange peel. Old leather and orange schnapps, very Christmas-y. A little nippy (alcohol nip) if you get too close. Some furniture polish, dark caramel fudge and baking spices - clove in particular and some five-spice. A bit of dried sage too (woody savoury herb). Touch of dried raspberry and heathery smoke in the background. 

Texture: Medium weight, rich & warming, but with some definite aggressive spirit heat to it, heading towards harsh. 

Taste: More leather and dried fruit - more red apple here too. That raw alcohol heat is a shame, it's distracting and is killing off some of the other more subtle flavours. Dark caramel fudge with a touch of honey and boozy plum pudding - before it's set alight. 

Finish: Medium-long length. Vanilla fudge this time, and the drying alcohol heat leaves wood spices and a flash of savoury honey-roasted nuts. Soft, dry peat smoke which is floral and heathery as expected. A touch of almost-rubbery bitterness before the dried fruit, apple, and orange schnapps return. 

Score: 3 out of 5. 

Notes: Undoubtedly would've scored higher without that distracting raw spirit heat. It's hinted at on the nose, but then really shows itself on the palate and overstays its welcome through most of the finish. Yes, this is a cask strength whisky, but it's also 14-years old which is not exactly young, and the 'predominant' first-fill casks should've helped as well. I've tasted whiskies half this age and at higher strength that are far less aggressive. So the nose is certainly the highlight of this Mjolner bottling, but this is still a tasty whisky with some great flavours and plenty of character. It's a darker, slightly "dank" and more aggressive style of Highland Park that I'm not sure I've come across before. This whisky would certainly go well after a Christmas dinner - just have the air conditioning pumping if you're in the southern hemisphere, and a have big glass of water on the side regardless of climate - adding a couple of drops to the dram doesn't have much of an impact either. 

There's decent value for money on offer here too, provided you don't mind a more aggressive whisky with some raw heat to it. If you can get past that, this is a rewarding and tasty dram that shows a different side of Orkney with plenty of punch. I can see it working well during a meat-heavy meal as well, or even in a boilermaker with the accompanying beer helping to cool things down. Which would probably make it ideal for Mjolner, then. 

Cheers!

Clynelish 8 Year Old Single Malts of Scotland Whisky Review!

My first bottling from Single Malts of Scotland, and one of only a few independent bottlings of Clynelish that I've tried. This should be interesting!

Single Malts of Scotland is one of three independent bottler whisky brands put forth by Elixir Distillers (formerly Specialty Drinks), the London-based company owned by Sukhinder Singh and his brother Rabjir, the owners of founders of The Whisky Exchange, one of the world's greatest liquor retailers - if not the outright greatest. Single Malts of Scotland, or SMoS for short, was the first of those brands when it was first launched in 2002, followed by Elements of Islay and later Port Askaig, and now Black Tot rum. While SMoS has typically bottled single cask, cask strength Scotch whiskies, more recently they've dabbled in 'small batch' bottlings drawn from handfuls of casks that are known in the trade as 'parcels'. While still limited bottlings, they're obviously much more widely available and more budget-friendly than their single cask cousins, with simplistic packaging and with the 'Reserve Casks' range also being bottled at 48% ABV rather than full cask strength. There have been three 'parcels' of these Reserve Casks bottlings so far, each drawn from 'a maximum of eight casks', being mostly on the younger side, and largely coming from the usual suspects for independent bottlings: the likes of Diageo's Caol Ila & Clynelish, plus the usual 'unnamed Orkney', and a few others. Single Malts of Scotland is not imported into Australia, so the bottle that I'm reviewing today came from 'across the ditch' in New Zealand, from Christchurch's Whisky Galore - which would have to be another of the world's greatest liquor retailers. Before you ask, yes, it was intercepted by Customs on the way over, and yes, there was a relatively hefty excise and duty bill to pay - in comparison to the original purchase price at least, which was a ridiculously cheap $105 NZD, or around $97 AUD. I can't say what the final landed cost was since it was combined with another bottle, but at a guesstimate it would've been around $160-170 including its half of the shipping. So not terrible, but not quite the bargain that it would've been. But that's the price we pay for importing spirits into Australia, and it's not likely to change any time soon!

This particular Reserve Casks bottling is from their second parcel / second lot of bottlings, and was distilled at Diageo's Clynelish Distillery in the Northern Highlands - specifically in the village of Brora (yes, that Brora), around 90-minutes drive north of Inverness. One of Diageo's 'Classic Malts', Clynelish is known and loved for its fruity, waxy style of spirit, which is believed to stem from an oily build-up in their feints receiver - they discovered that after a thorough deep clean, then found that the waxy characteristics had been removed from the spirit! They now empty the receiver for cleaning, and then tip the contents back in before the stills are fired up again to keep that distinctive character intact. There are only a few official bottlings of Clynelish single malt out there, with the 'flagship' bottling being the very enjoyable 14-year old that is the most accessible, and the distillery is also a major contributor to the Johnnie Walker blends - particularly the Gold Label variant. Independent bottlings are plentiful from the likes of Signatory Vintage and Gordon & MacPhail, and can sometimes be found in sherry casks which is something that the distillery owners don't generally offer. 

That's not the case here though, because this Single Malts of Scotland example was matured in five ex-bourbon casks, and based on the smell & taste I'm guessing they were first-fill. At 8-years of age this is the youngest Clynelish that I've tasted - well, depending on the age of the rather lacklustre Game of Thrones NAS bottling that probably isn't/wasn't much older. That was the one that some Australian collectors & flippers went nuts over (we're talking $600 nuts), and ended up with a lot of egg on their face when it eventually landed here for as little as $80 - and it turned out to be a bit of a flop. I must admit that this SMoS bottling was something of an impulse buy for me, since it suddenly became available when I was ordering that second bottle, but I'm a fan of Clynelish, and pretty much anything that Elixir release is a reasonably safe bet - some are better than others of course, but I'm yet to taste anything of theirs that has disappointed. As mentioned above, this one was bottled at 48%, without chill filtration or added colouring. Let's see if this bottling keeps that streak alive, shall we?

Clynelish 8-year old, Single Malts of Scotland, 48%. Highlands, Scotland.

Distilled 2010 & 2011, drawn from five ex-bourbon casks - presumably some first-fill. Non-chill filtered, natural colour. 

Colour: Pale gold. 

Nose: Fresh, waxy and floral-sweet. Beeswax, fresh banana peels, lemon balm (e.g. lip balm) with extra lemon, and fresh floral sweetness. White (honeydew) melon and crisp pear, and some dry spices - sandalwood - with more time. Dry malty-ness in the background. Lovely summery nose. 

Texture: Medium-weight. Warm, bright & fruity, not as sweet or floral as the nose suggested. No heat. 

Taste: Dry spice again, sandalwood and some ground black pepper. Whole (unpeeled) under-ripe bananas, and more waxy lemon balm with extra lemon. A little dry herbal honey, a couple of vanilla malt biscuits, and a tiny hint of earthy peat heading in to the finish. 

Finish: Medium length. Crisp pear and honeydew melon, and a refreshing drying salinity. Sandalwood again - woody aftershave / eau de toilette. Candlewax, a hint of that dry biscuit-y malt again, and some dried apricot. 

Score: 3.5 out of 5. 

Notes: Not the most complex whisky out there, but a very tasty easy-drinker that showcases the distillery style well, while being distinctly different from the official bottlings - which is one of the hallmarks of a good independent bottling, if you ask me. It's interesting to see a younger, fresher style of Clynelish here, but it still has most of the classic notes that we expect from the distillery - the wax, the floral & fruit, and the very subtle salt & tiny puff of peat to dry things out. There are shades of younger modern Bruichladdich here, and that's certainly a good thing! 

Was it worth those extra duties & taxes and the higher landed cost? I'd say so. Mainly because once you've tried (and enjoyed) the 14-year old official Clynelish, then there's a large gap in price before you hit most of the cask strength independent bottlings - and then there's another very large gap in price before you hit the higher-strength official bottlings. So this is something of a mid-way point, and it's a refreshing experience to try this youthful, bright & fresh expression of Clynelish. Some will probably baulk at the idea of paying more for a younger whisky at a similar strength, but when you want to get to know a distillery you need to try different examples at different ages, to see it from different angles. That's just part of the fun, and in many cases the younger whiskies will actually come out on top! 

Cheers!

Bruichladdich 1990/25 Whisky Review!

A travel-exclusive 25-year old sherry-finished Bruichladdich that was bottled back in 2016, but is still readily available. Unlike many of these 'travel exclusive' bottlings, it's a bit of a hidden gem!

Unlike most of the Scottish distilleries, Bruichladdich seem to actually put some effort in to their travel retail / duty-free exclusive offerings. In fact I'd say they're well & truly leading the curve. From the excellent Port Charlotte CC01, to the expensive but generally-delicious _.2 Octomore releases (particularly 7.2 and 10.2 if you ask me), and the fantastic and underrated Laddie Eight, Bruichladdich's releases stand out in the sea of glitzy packaging containing very forgettable whiskies that can be found in most of the world's airports. As frustrating as it can be for those of us who don't often travel internationally (which is probably most of the world this year!), these releases do give us something to look forward to when those rare occasions come along, or when a friend or family member is willing to play 'mule' with their duty-free allowance. At the moment there'll be plenty of whisky gathering dust in near-empty airport terminals, and a sizeable portion of it won't be missed, but in a few cases that's a bit of a tragedy! It'll be interesting to see how 2020 affects the emphasis that many brands put on this market, particularly those that work on exclusive releases that will have stopped on a dime with the current and recent restrictions on international travel and post-travel quarantine requirements. Maybe in the interim distributors can do some lateral thinking and release some of that stock to the general market. Bruichladdich's Australian distributor has done that with the aforementioned Laddie Eight, using it to fill the hole in their line-up when they sold through their entry-level Laddie Classic. The Eight actually comes in slightly cheaper than the Classic, and it's also the better whisky if you ask me, so get on to that one if you're a 'laddie fan! Let's hope that starts to happen with some more of these currently-neglected bottlings. 

Back to today's subject, a 1990 vintage, 25-year old sherried Bruichladdich! 1990s Bruichladdich is becoming more scarce, last seen in 2013's Black Art 4.1 and now only in one of the extremely expensive 'Rare Cask Series'. The now much-loved Islay distillery was owned by Invergordon at the time, which became part of Whyte & Mackay a few years later, and it had suffered under their ownership, to the point where the distillery had been thoroughly neglected and production had slowed to a crawl before it was canned altogether in 1995 with the distillery's closure. Bruichladdich was famously rescued six years later by Mark Reynier's consortium, and the purchase included a significant amount of dormant maturing stock, although it had also been neglected by the previous owners. A huge amount of cask finishings (particularly wine casks) and limited editions were spearheaded by Mark, Jim McEwan and team, and the bottling that we're looking at here was no different. There are two separate parts to its maturation; Part one consisted of 17-year old refill bourbon casks that were transferred to first-fill French red wine casks for five years, before being transferred into first-fill PX sherry casks for a further four years. The second part consisted of 18-year old refill sherry casks that were then transferred into first-fill Oloroso sherry casks for seven years. So like many of its ilk this old Bruichladdich has had a typically complicated upbringing! The proportions of each part haven't been declared, but regardless it's certainly worked in this whisky's favour! Those final sherry casks were sourced from Bruichladdich's preferred sherry bodega, the widely-acclaimed Fernando de Castilla that is situated right in the heart of Jerez in southern Spain. 

Properly sherry-influenced Bruichladdich official bottlings are few & far between, since the distillery tends to prefer wine casks and different types of fortified wine casks. But when you do find an example, they can be utterly brilliant - for example, this Friends of Bruichladdich single cask bottling, and Elements of Islay Br7 from the independent bottlers, which were both outstanding. Both of those were fully-matured in Oloroso casks though, so this 1990/25 will be very interesting, being finished in both PX and Oloroso casks, and for substantial lengths of time - more of an extra-maturation rather than a finishing really. This whisky was limited to 6,000 bottles and was bottled back in 2016, but is still readily available from the usual duty-free outlets - at least in Australia. Bottling strength for this one was 48.1% ABV, and there's no mention of whether that was the full natural cask strength, but it could well be given the age and the number of casks it's been through. Naturally (pun intended) it's non-chill filtered and naturally coloured, as is the case with everything Bruichladdich bottle. Pricing is quite reasonable at $590 AUD, which is significantly lower than many similar aged single malts - at decent bottling strengths - these days, but you'll obviously need to travel internationally to get the chance to pick one up - which is a real shame. The sample for this review came from a generous mate who brought this bottle along to a session to help celebrate his own birthday, and it went down a treat!

Bruichladdich 1990/25, 25-year old, 48.1%. Islay, Scotland.

Distilled 1990, part one matured in refill bourbon casks for 17 years, then first-fill red wine casks for 5 years, then first-fill PX sherry casks for 4 years. Part two matured in refill sherry casks for 18 years, then first-fill Oloroso sherry casks for 7 years. Non-chill filtered, natural colour. Travel exclusive, 6,000 bottles. 

Colour: Dark bronze. 

Nose: Deep, fruity & dank. Thick grape must, roasted hazelnuts and rich dark chocolate mousse. Baked red apples, brown sugar crystals and orange zest. A little vinegary, sour rancio mustiness (cured pork), some dank old oak and dark toffee. Hints of chewy mint lollies, sour lemon boiled sweets and sea salt in the background. Dried tea leaves and old soft leather further in. Takes time to unfold (even after a 15-minute wait), but it's absolutely worth the time & effort. 

Texture: Rich, fruity & decadent. Medium weight, gentle silky texture, no heat at all. 

Taste: A little aged balsamic vinegar to start, then rich sweet rancio (almost dirty) sherry, orange peel and roasted hazelnut. Loads of dark chocolate mousse, sour dried fruit (think plum, black cherry & apricot with a couple of bits of lemon & orange peel) and a little vanilla cream. Tobacco, soft leather and bitter tea leaves. A little sugared (vienna) almond and a little soft ginger heading into the finish. 

Finish: Medium-long length. Chocolate orange, rich vanilla cream, more aged balsamic vinegar and dark grape must. A little sea salt drying things out, some dark chewy toffee - from brown sugar, with a couple of dried sour raspberries and roasted nuts thrown in to the mix. Turning slightly herbal (dried herbs) and earthy. 

Score: 4.5 out of 5. 

Notes: Delicious dram! It's a musty, dank and deep Bruichladdich, but that sweet, floral and citrus-y spirit is still there in parts, so the sherry casks haven't completely stolen the show. There's a lovely decadent richness to this 'laddie that makes for an excellent dessert dram, or maybe a cigar malt if you're that way inclined, and it demands that you take your time with it. This is not a whisky to be rushed! And it's worth every bit of that time and effort - particularly on the nose. Just goes to show how different a sherry-driven older Bruichladdich can be, and how well it can work! This one is going on my list for the next duty-free / travel retail shopping opportunity. 

It offers very good value compared to a lot of the more recent 25-year old single malts too that have skyrocketed in price over the last year or two. But since this is a 'duty-free' bottling maybe that's not a fair comparison. Still, it's saddening to think of these 25-year old Bruichladdichs that are gathering dust in the quiet, shadowy corners of the nation's duty-free stores at the moment. Let's hope some of them see the light of day before long!

Cheers!

Laphroaig 10 Cask Strength Batch 007 Whisky Review!

The famous 'James Bond' batch of Laphroaig 10 Cask Strength, one of the best recent batches, and in my opinion, a future classic. 

Well, recent-ish. Batch 007 was bottled back in 2015, and the world has certainly changed in the half-decade since! 2015 was Laphroaig's 200th anniversary, and a number of special bottlings were released in celebration of that major milestone. There was the re-release of the 15-year old, the absolutely epic 32-year old sherry matured, and a very special and very brilliant Cairdeas (the annual Friends of Laphroaig bottling) that was distilled only from the distillery's own floor-malted barley, distilled only in their older & smaller stills, and matured in their famous No.1 warehouse right by the sea. 2015 was also when Australia last played host to Distillery Manager John Campbell, who I was lucky enough to interview here thanks to the efforts of former National Brand Ambassador Dan Woolley - who has since launched his own Australian whisky brand Highwayman. So in the midst of all of that activity it would've been easy to forget the poor-old 10-year old Cask Strength that was released in that same year. In fact this particular expression of Laphroaig, along with the awesome and much easier to find 12-year old Cask Strength Lagavulin, does generally tend to sit in the shadows compared to some more noisy releases - that situation is not helped by its availability, though. Batch 007 followed the same cask recipe as the previous batches, being fully matured in first-fill ex-bourbon casks, as is tradition for this expression. It was bottled at a relatively low 56.3% ABV, and aside from a small change on the cardboard outer tube where it carried a small '200 Years of Laphroaig' badge, the packaging was unchanged from the rest of the releases. But this whisky was certainly not easy to forget once you had tasted it - I think Batch 007 will go down as one of the best releases of the 10-year old Cask Strength in the series of numbered batches that kicked off back in 2009. If you're a fan of this style of big, bold Islay whisky, it'll leave you stirred; while if you're not, it'll certainly leave you shaken!

Despite tasting it a few times since release it's taken me a while to get around to reviewing this one, although on reflection that five years has gone by quite quickly - maybe with the exception of the last six months! The opportunity came around again when a mate brought his bottle along to a recent session, and I wasn't going to argue when he suggested that I take a sample to review and plug that little gap - maybe we do 'only' live twice? Now, I know I've said it before, in fact I think I've more-than mentioned it every time I've reviewed one of these cask strength Laphroaigs, but I may as well reiterate while we're here: it's a crying shame that this whisky is not officially imported into Australia. The only official way to get it over the oceans is to either order it directly from the distillery shop - which then incurs a 50-pound shipping charge, and then the local customs charges, duty, GST, and courier fees. That all adds up to one expensive bottle of whisky, since thanks to our excise rates that are some of the highest in the world you'll seldom get change from $250 AUD when it finally lands on your doorstep. And that's for a whisky that costs just $110 from the distillery shop itself, including the local VAT. And to reiterate again, those in the United States are spoiled with large amounts of this liquid, in 750ml bottles no less, often selling for even less than that. The other way of course is to buy yourself a bottle from overseas auction, where you can combine the shipping with multiple other bottles, but you'll still be hit with the same customs charges and courier fees, along with a buyer's premium. So it's still not a cheap proposition. 

If Laphroaig / Coca Cola / Beam Suntory could get this whisky on the Australian shelves for anywhere south of $200 AUD, even in small quantities, it would sell like hotcakes - as the aforementioned Lagavulin does every year it's imported. They could even save some of the often-unappreciated bottles, that are destined to sit on American shelves for years, from their purgatorial fate. So why don't they do it? I can't answer that, and we can't expect them to talk, either. Maybe Dr. No is hiding it all in a cave somewhere, but the chances of this happening are dwindling away as each year's release continues to tragically pass us by. Unfortunately, the same goes for the annual Cairdeas release, which was last officially imported way back in 2014. Please hear me, higher-ups - we want and need these higher strength Laphroaigs imported into Australia. You're being left behind by your competitors, and it's about time you caught up! 

Right, time to live & let die, let's drown our tears in a dram of Batch 007. As mentioned above it followed the so far-unbroken tradition of being matured in ex-bourbon casks, and was bottled at a cask strength of 56.3% in January 2015. It's also non-chill filtered and is barrier-filtered only, so if we ignore the fact that there is no mention of colouring on these releases - I'll resist the temptation to add a Goldfinger reference there - it's just about as unadulterated as official bottlings can get. Let's see what Q has rustled up this time...

Laphroaig 10 Cask Strength Batch 007, 56.3%. Islay, Scotland.

Matured in ex-bourbon casks, bottled 2015, the year of Laphroaig's 200th anniversary. Non-chill filtered, colouring unknown.

Colour: Amber. Possibly natural. 

Nose: Clean (well, relatively), sweet and coastal. Tar, sweet tobacco & liquorice, cold brine and damp volcanic rock. Lots of cold ash and a few pine needles, plus a couple of old bandages. Soft & dry earthy peat, chewy vanilla fudge and dried citrus - lemon and grapefruit. 

Texture: Medium weight, but builds quickly. Rich & oily, but gentle and inviting (again, relatively!). Sweet, peaty and mineralic. No heat. 

Taste: Sweet and chewy vanilla fudge, dry, soft earthy peat and some red chilli oil. More piles of cold ash and chilled brine. If I was going to wax lyrical, I'd say a burnt-out bonfire on a cold, windy beach... A little salted slightly bitter liquorice, dried grapefruit and lemon peel. A few old bandages and a touch of iodine. 

Finish: Long length. Warming with more chilli oil, cold ash and brine, a little drying kelp (seaweed) and salted honeycomb. Lemon again, dry earthy peat, and drying salt. Some damp rock-like minerality again, like oily whetstones (sharpening stones). 

Score: 4.5 out of 5. 

Notes: Beautiful. It's a softer, sweeter style of Laphroaig 10 Cask Strength, but it's no less rich and certainly no less delicious. It could be less divisive than some of the more aggressive higher-strength Laphroaigs can be, but again, it's lost nothing in the process. Many of the more senior whisky geeks talk fondly about the Laphroaig of yesteryear that was sweeter, less peaty and more fruity, and this Batch 007 would have to be close to that style. And if it is, then I get it! It's a citrusy, sweeter and less aggressive Laphroaig that is difficult to put down once poured. 

These yearly batches of '10CS' Laphroaig do vary quite a bit, and quite dramatically in some cases, but this 007 would have to be one of the better of the softer style - and it's almost a polar opposite of its predecessor, 006, and is closer to the most recent batch that I've tried, 2019's batch 011, although it's still more gentle and less aggressive, less "in your face" and less 'dirty' in style. I still say this one is a future classic, and I'm glad to have one squirreled away for future enjoyment!

Cheers!

Lark Sherry Aged & Sherry Finished Whisky Review!

A Lark official bottling with quite an usual name, and quite an unusual cask regimen, that will hopefully help to quell some recent controversy.  

It's been quite a while since I last tasted an official bottling from Lark Distillery - probably a few years, in fact. I must admit that the 'brand' has lost some of its lustre to me of late, in fact probably since AWH - now 'Lark Distilling Co', which is a better name than Australian Whisky Holdings - took ownership. Their handling of the Nant debacle has caused quite the stir, and with good reason, and it seemed like their intentions with the Overeem brand were also a little questionable - although the latter has now been resolved by the sale of the distillery back to the founding family - by way of Jane Overeem and her husband Mark Sawford. As for their clean-up of the Nant devastation, and a couple of very questionable (and in one case, potentially misleading) naming, labelling and branding decisions that have been made recently, the Lark brand and the name itself have been somewhat tarnished in the eyes of many Australian enthusiasts - myself included. Note that I've mentioned 'the name' separately from 'the brand' there, because in my view they're two different things - while AWH does own the legal rights to the Lark name, the name itself stems from the distillery founder and the godfather of Australian whisky, Bill Lark, and his family - all of whom are highly valued contributors to the Australian whisky industry. And I would argue that lately that name has not been given the level of respect and reverence that it deserves. These sore points are really a discussion for another day, but if you'd like more information take a glance at Andrew Derbidge's thoughts on these matters here on his blog, Whisky & Wisdom. I must admit this particular whisky we're looking at today has gone some way to restoring my faith in Lark Distillery itself. It's important to remember that a distillery's ownership and the sometimes misguided - or in Nant's history, outright fraudulent - decisions and practices of those owners do not necessarily reflect the hard work of the distillery staff, or even the quality of the product itself. And Lark is no exception to that.

Lark Distillery has always been a relatively quiet achiever, at least when compared with fellow-Tasmanian Sullivan's Cove and some of the more vocal mainland Australian distilleries. But there's no denying that the distillery itself has released some very good whiskies over it's 28-year history, many of which may not have received the attention that they deserved. I do have to point out though that many of the more recent examples, particularly the limited releases, have been priced very highly, and often the bottling strength is not as high as you'd expect. The 500ml bottle size also needs to be taken into account. I must admit though that their two core range bottlings, the entry-level "Classic Cask" and the "Cask Strength" are generally more reasonably priced at around $140 and $200 AUD respectively, although in my experience the quality of those two bottlings has varied wildly in their history. But compared to the likes of a past bottling of a 9-year old single ex-bourbon cask for example, that was bottled at just 43% and sold for a ridiculous $450 AUD, that's quite reasonable! Most of my remaining affection for this distillery has been driven by three points that are still going strong - number one, the work of independent bottler Tim Duckett's Heartwood, who in many cases has used Lark-origin spirit to incredible effect; number two, the outstanding tours of the distillery when in Tasmania (covered here in detail), and number three, witnessing the passion, enthusiasm, and humility of both the Lark family themselves and the members of the Lark distillery team that I've had the pleasure of meeting either during those tours (e.g. now-distillery manager Craig Johnstone and head distiller Chris Thomson), or on many visits to their Cellar Door (bar) in Hobart. 

The Lark that we're looking at today, official name "Sherry Aged & Sherry Finished 2020", is a limited release that was relatively reasonably priced for what is on offer - $239 AUD for the 500ml bottle at 50.8% ABV. I'm sure the eyebrows of many overseas readers just shot towards their hairlines, but unfortunately, that is the going rate for a higher strength, limited release Tasmanian whisky these days. In fact there are plenty of examples that are priced much, much higher. As you can probably guess, the name refers to a rather unusual maturation regimen, where two 100-litre (Lark Distillery's preferred cask size) ex-sherry casks were tipped into a single "extremely old" 500-litre ex-sherry butt sourced from the excellent Seppeltsfield winery in South Australia. Whether or not this is a single cask bottling will be controversial, and that has been a hot topic recently, since it hasn't been fully-matured in a single cask, and is the result of two casks being combined/vatted into one larger cask for finishing. Personally, I don't think it really matters! Technically, both of those cask types should probably be named Apera (the official name for sherry-style fortified wines produced in Australia) rather than sherry, although it's entirely possible that they pre-dated the Apera ruling, which only happened in 2011. This method of maturing in smaller first-fill casks and then finishing in a larger and older cask is not unheard of, but is quite unusual and is the opposite of what would usually happen in the whisky world, where larger and less active cask/s would be re-racked in to smaller and more active cask/s. That larger tired cask is still technically a first-fill cask though, since it last held fortified wine and hadn't yet been used for whisky maturation, but its age will mean that the oak itself will have had much less impact, while the previous contents, the 'sherry' or Apera itself, will have thoroughly soaked into the wood, and will have plenty of influence on the spirit. This whisky will have some large shoes to fill for me, since this style of maturation would usually be more of the realm of the independent bottlers - so competition from the likes of Heartwood's excellent Market Correction and @#$%^&* 4 for example, which were both distilled at Lark, will be heavy. Should make for a great comparison!

Lark Sherry Aged & Sherry Finished 2020, NAS, 50.8%. Tasmania, Australia.

Matured in two 100-litre ex-sherry casks, finished in one "very old" sherry butt from Seppeltsfield winery. 

Colour: Very dark red-amber. 

Nose: Big, rich and powerful. Sherry monster. Loads of spiced dried fruit, flambéed plum pudding with extra orange peel. Rum & raisin dark chocolate, and some dank and damp old wood. Then some spearmint, more orange peel, and roasted hazelnuts dusted with brown sugar. Great nose! 

Texture: Heavy weight. Big, warming and rich. Oily and relatively soft, but still a slight touch of heat. 

Taste: Sherry bomb, of course! Sweet juicy raisins, more orange peel, Christmas plum pudding and mixed dried fruit. A little black cherry syrup too. A touch of heat, turning into black pepper and an earthy drying astringency. 

Finish: Long length. More black cherry syrup and bitter dark chocolate, orange peel again, and sticky date pudding with brown sugar toffee and some fresh dates on the side. Some wood spices - cinnamon and nutmeg, slight touch of clove - and a slight earthy note drying things out towards the end. 

Score: 4 out of 5. 

Notes: The quintessential Australian sherry bomb. Does what it says on the tin really, and lovers of 'sherry'-led Australian whiskies, plus the likes of Heartwood, Highwayman et al will of course find this Lark to be right up their alley. This would make for a fantastic Christmas day dram, even in the 30+ degree Australian version of Christmas - OK, maybe once the air con has kicked in! Normally our Australian sherry bombs of this style would be higher in strength, but this Lark doesn't suffer from that reduction at all - in fact it I'd say it actually works in its favour. There's plenty of flavour, and obviously a huge sherry influence - anti-sherry drammers need not apply. The nose on this Lark is fantastic, and the palate and finish don't really disappoint either. I must admit that considering the quality on offer here, the original pricing was really quite reasonable compared to some (most) of the competition, and they could've priced it significantly higher and gotten away with it - it still would've sold out, and if you're on the hunt for one of these now, you may have some trouble!

I'm sure if it was up to the distillery team we'd be seeing much more of this sort of release, forgetting the controversy of the last couple of "Lark Distilling Co." bottlings that seemed to be aimed towards the blissfully ignorant and naïve. Nothing like that to worry about with this release though, this is a faith restoring dram from the team at Lark Distillery. More of these please team!

Cheers!

Port Ellen 30 Year Old Douglas Laing Whisky Review!

An independent bottling of 'ghost distillery' Port Ellen from Douglas Laing's beautifully presented Old & Rare series. Not something you see everyday!

Tasting Port Ellen is never something to take lightly. This is one of the most lusted-after distilleries in the whisky world, and it's certainly the most lusted-after closed distillery in the whisky world. The official bottlings are now ridiculously expensive, to the point where they're well out of the reach of most whisky fans - for example, the latest 40-year old release retails for a whopping $12,500 AUD. That sort of money could buy you three bottles of 40-year old Bunnahabhain, or two bottles of 41-year old Talisker if you prefer, both with enough change leftover to buy a couple of cases of some very good whisky. These official Port Ellens are now more of a showpiece, something to be collected, traded, and admired from a safe distance, more like rare art than bottles of whisky. A few years back, if one wanted to actually taste a piece of this whisky history, they could look to the independent bottlers for more reasonably priced examples, but those are becoming very hard to get a hold of - this whisky is a finite thing, there are only so many casks left in existence, and no doubt Diageo have been hard at work buying back as many of them as they can, destined to join the ranks of the aforementioned showpieces. This situation will have been amplified and accelerated by the news that this long-dead & demolished Islay distillery is being rebuilt - in fact it was due to re-open next year, after the initial announcement back in 2017. It's behind schedule though, in fact I believe planning permission for building was only granted this year, and everything will have been put on hold and further delayed by the global crisis. That reopening - or more accurately, rebuilding, has brought new attention to this now almost-mythical distillery that sounded its death knell back in 1983, and this renewed attention will only place more demand on the remaining stock, which will of course result in more price increases. 

Closed distilleries are an interesting subject. While many are now more widely appreciated, lauded and respected than they were when they were last operational - with Diageo's Port Ellen and Brora and ex-Diageo Rosebank all being great examples - it's important to remember that these sites were not put out to pasture without reason. In Port Ellen's case, in the midst of the whisky slump and British recession of the early-1980s, owners DCL (which would later become Diageo) had to choose one of their three Islay distilleries to send to the guillotine. Caol Ila had recently been rebuilt and upgraded, and was much larger and more versatile - an important factor when its main purpose was and still is pumping out stock for the blenders. Lagavulin was a more realistic option, but it had already amassed quite the cult following at the time, and was of crucial import to the likes of White Horse blended whisky, among others. Port Ellen on the other hand had only been operating for 15 years after a 37-year mothballing, and needed substantial investment for it to meet looming changes in environmental regulations. It also was not in high demand from blenders - possibly due to its austere nature and unpredictability. Blenders want readily-available consistent spirit, and it's important to remember that single malt was still a fledgling thing at this point in time, so a change in demand from blenders could easily make or break a distillery. Between the three siblings, the smallest distillery, with an already-chequered past, and in dire need of investment was never going to come out on top. Don't think the neighbouring Port Ellen Maltings facility had anything to do with the situation either - they had already been operating for nearly a decade by then. But now, nearly 40-years later with the current whisky boom continuing, the laws of supply & demand have thrust Port Ellen back into the spotlight, along with growing 'exclusivity' thanks to its finite nature.  

Rewind a decade though, and the situation was far less drastic. While the official bottlings were already attracting serious price levels at the time, independent bottlings were still around, and were far more reasonably priced in comparison. On a personal note, I have to admit that the (admittedly only two or three) examples of official bottlings of Port Ellen that I've been able to try have actually paled in comparison to the excellent independent bottlings that I've come across from the likes of Signatory Vintage, Gordon & MacPhail and The Whisky Exchange - particularly when you factor in pricing. And the Port Ellen that we're looking at today seems well-positioned to keep that tradition going! This example is from family-owned independent bottler Douglas Laing's 'Old & Rare' series - which unlike many contemporary uses of those terms, featured whiskies that were actually old and rare. This is a single cask bottling of Port Ellen that was distilled in September 1978 when the distillery was going (relatively) strong, and it has been fully-matured in what I would guesstimate was a refill sherry butt - since when bottled thirty-years later in January 2009 it yielded 370 bottles, at a cask strength of 52.5% ABV. It's also non-chill filtered and naturally coloured. 

The sample for this review came from a generous friend who decided to open and share this very special bottle in honour of his father, who unfortunately passed away earlier this year. A fitting and somewhat-sobering tribute, and a great way of remembering and celebrating his life among mates. My sincere thanks to that particular friend for sharing that moment with myself and the rest of the group - needless to say we were all blown away, and the gravity of the occasion was palpable. Afterwards, he actually handed out sample bottles filled with the same special liquid, so we could re-visit that moment later. And with today being Father's Day in Australia, it seemed like the perfect time to raise a glass!

Port Ellen 30-year old, Douglas Laing 'Old & Rare', 52.5%. Islay, Scotland.

Distilled September 1978, single cask matured (most likely refill sherry butt), bottled January 2009. Non-chill filtered, natural colour. 370 bottles. 

Colour: Gold. 

Nose: Surprisingly bright, clean and fruity. Honey, salted potato chips (crisps), crisp red apples & clean brine. Then a drying coastal ozone-y minerality - think drying sea salt, damp volcanic rock and warm sand. Then salted lemons, a very light earthy peat, and a little warm, damp oak. 

Texture: Light-medium weight, but quite oily and builds quickly. Warming, no heat at all. 

Taste: Starts with that honey & apple again before a beautiful salt-crusted sweet earthy peat builds and becomes quite bold. Drying and astringent salted lemons again, but they're also a little sweet this time. A little green peppercorn, thick clean brine, and hints of burning leafy herbs around the edges. 

Finish: Long length. Sweeter here initially with some syrup and more honey, and candied lemon slices. Then more brine, and that astringency turns things dry with damp sea salt, a chunky, crumbly dry earthy peat and a subtle touch of aniseed. More green peppercorns, maybe even a slight menthol hint? Then the apple and salted potato chips return alongside that earthy peat. 

Score: 4.5 out of 5. 

Notes: What a whisky, and what an occasion! The nose on this Port Ellen is almost confusingly soft to start with, very unlike the other examples of the distillery that I've tried previously (again, admittedly not many), it was so inviting, but also so intriguing - no way would I have guessed the distillery based on the nose! But the palate puts the true coastal colours on show with an almost Campbeltown-like brininess and earthiness, but in a more refined and more integrated way - and with evident maturity. Although the peat influence on the palate remains surprisingly substantial - I've actually come across this before in a similarly-aged Laphroaig and Ardbeg, so I don't think the 'peat fades with maturation' rule is always the case, sometimes you can have your cake and eat it too!

I'm actually going to guess that this cask originally held a lighter style of sherry - there's nothing like a modern Oloroso or PX (duh) cask influence here, even refill - it's far more soft and subtle, more of a balanced, joint effort between spirit and cask rather than a competition or even a fight for the spotlight. Aside from the nose perhaps, there's no lack of character or lack of assertiveness, even at this age. 

What a dram, and what a momentous occasion to be tasting this Port Ellen to help honour the late Fred's memory through his son's generosity. This sort of whisky has a way of reminding us enthusiasts of our mortality, or at least it does me - probably because we know that we'll only enjoy a handful of these experiences in our lifetimes. The gravity of the occasion is not lost on me, nor was it on the rest of our group during our toast. Here's to Fred, and happy Father's Day folks.

Cheers!

Talisker 15 Year Old Cask Strength Whisky Review!

Another cask strength Talisker, that makes two years in a row - and a third has just been announced! Well aren't we spoiled!

I absolutely loved the 8-year old Talisker from 2018's Special Releases (full review here). It ticked every one of the boxes on my Talisker wishlist - cask strength, natural colour, non-chill filtered, and it was matured in first-fill bourbon casks while still showing the distillery character beautifully. I also scored it very highly at 4.5 out of 5, and it absolutely deserved that praise. So when the 15-year old Talisker was announced in 2019, I had to get one, and like the previous year it was once again the Special Release that I was most excited about. Again, those same Talisker boxes have been ticked - cask strength, natural colour, non-chill filtered, and matured in ex-bourbon casks - which is something that needs to be addressed. Due to the slightly vague wording used on the packaging and associated press which states "Matured only in freshly charred American oak hogsheads", quite a few people took this to mean virgin oak casks. Which never sat properly with me, I couldn't see anyone maturing a Talisker in virgin oak for 15 years, let alone freshly-charred virgin oak: the normally-robust and characterful spirit would likely have been ruined by excessive wood influence, and would be devoid of distillery character, and I knew that Diageo wouldn't be that silly. So I reached out via social media to Colin Dunn, Diageo's Whisky Ambassador based in Britain, and asked him to clarify. He helpfully confirmed what I had suspected, that those American oak hogsheads were refill ex-bourbon casks, not virgin oak. So we're talking 15 years in re-charred refill ex-bourbon hogsheads (250-litre casks that are re-coopered / up-sized from barrels). Which if you ask me is a much more exciting proposition than 15 years in virgin oak could ever hope to be!

That re-charring of refill casks, plus the extra seven years of maturation, meant that this new addition would present a very interesting comparison to the previous year's 8-year old release, which was matured in 'deep-charred' first-fill bourbon casks. Using refill casks will of course reduce the cask influence, but it's not that simple, since those refill casks were re-charred prior to filling, and also since this whisky spent nearly twice as long in those casks. This is also the first time that an official bottling of Talisker has been bottled at 15-years of age, which will add another point of difference. It's important to remember though that the vast majority of Talisker is not matured at the distillery on the Isle of Skye, but rather on the mainland of Scotland in Diageo's centralised warehouses, both because there isn't a great deal of warehouse space at the distillery itself, and also because it's easier and logistically cheaper to do so. But there's no denying that the better Talisker single malts do have a distinct maritime influence, with salt & pepper, seaweed and other coastal notes presenting to various degrees. And Talisker isn't alone here, with many other coastal distilleries in similar situations. So where does that influence come from if the majority of their spirit is transported off the island in stainless steel tanks? That's a point of contention, and it's where the alchemy and mystery of whisky comes into play - essentially, there's no straight answer. But it certainly adds to the magic of whisky!

This 2019 release weighed in at a natural cask strength of 57.3% ABV, and is non-chill filtered and naturally coloured. There seems to have been more of this one released than there was of its 8-year old predecessor, and while understandably more expensive it is priced at around $180 AUD, which is quite a good deal for a whisky of this level. It's still widely available down under at the time of writing, so get on it people! A cask strength bottling of Talisker, either official or independent, is quite a rare thing. And that's a shame, because the 8-year old and this 15-year old have shown how fantastic such things they can be. Even the distillery's '57 North' bottling, while not full cask strength and lacking age statement, shows a vastly different side of the distillery to the standard 10-year old. Even more so the non-age statement lukewarm likes of Storm, Dark Storm, Skye and the massively disappointing Game of Thrones release (reviewed here). So let's hope that Diageo keep these Special Release Taliskers coming! Speaking of which, remember that announcement that I mentioned at the start of this post? Yes, the 2020 Special Releases will give us another cask strength Talisker, and this time around it's back to 8-years of age, but with a difference - this one has been finished in Carribean rum casks! If memory serves that's a first for Diageo's single malts, and is definitely a first for Talisker, so that's extremely exciting. Let's hope it gets over the water to Australia in a hurry! But for now, let's take a look at the 2019 release and see how it fares!

Talisker 15-year old Cask Strength, 57.3%. Isle of Skye, Scotland. 
2019 Special Releases. Matured in freshly re-charred refill ex-bourbon American oak hogsheads. Non-chill filtered, natural colour.

Colour: Gold.

Nose: Sweet, rich & very Talisker - sea salted and cracked black pepper, a mild & fruity green chilli, and rich, buttery salted caramel fudge. Some warm spicy & nutty charred oak, dried lemon and a little toasted coconut around the edges. Some sweet stone fruit with more time - nectarine and peach, with a little cream on the side.

Texture: Medium weight, rich, salty & oily. No heat at all.

Taste: Delicious. Salted caramel dessert sauce with extra sea salt flakes. Black pepper and that mild, fruity green chilli again. Not as sweet as the nose suggested, but not quite dry either. Charred wood spices and a little seaside musty-ness behind - think wet sand and drying seashells.

Finish: Long. Black pepper carries through, as does the salted caramel sauce, but it's more buttery here. That slightly muddy & musty wet sand again too. Some charred wood dries things out, along with some brine and crystallised ginger. More sea salt, some dried lemon & lime, and a little more of the salted caramel to finish.

Score: 4 out of 5.

Notes: Another delicious cask strength Talisker, and another really great example of what they can do, showing loads of character. Yes, I do prefer the 8-year old, but there really isn't much of a gap here. The 15 is a little sweeter and a little cleaner with less peat and less cask influence (which all makes sense), and it shows a more refined version of the same distillery character, perhaps with a little less complexity, but that's nitpicking. The 15-years has helped it hide its ABV extremely well too, this is a very easy drinking single malt at over 57%. The fresh charring is evident too, but it does work very well, drying things out at the right times, and seeming to boost the salt & pepper as well.

Imagining that the 8-year old was still available, is the 15-year old worth the extra money over the 8? Yes, yes it is. But if you're a Talisker fan, or even just an Island whisky fan, you'll be wanting both. They're different drams, but both have the same delicious distillery DNA on show. This one is highly recommended - get it before it's gone. Now bring on the 2020 release please!

Cheers!