anCnoc (12 year)
This first sample of the entry-level 12 year expression was generally approved-of, with tasters noting many fruits ranging from fresh spring berries to tropical fruits and flowers.
Cardhu (12 year)
Those Spaniards know what they’re talking about: a lovely dram – very gentle. Bright and sweet without being cloying in the least. With so many fruits, it’s like drinking a summer fruit punch with vanilla ice cream floating in it. Yum.
Bunnahabhain (12 year) (Old Presentation)
Caramel and vanilla, full body, almost no smoke or earthiness at all. Salted caramels. This is a good middle-of-the-road dram, mostly notable for its diversion from traditional Islay peat character. Worth a try, although there are better non-peated, non-sherried malts (Speyside, Lowlands) in this price range.
Springbank (10 year)
Springbank is a composite of rarities. It is one of the very few distilleries which performs the entire distillation process from malting on-site (its own floor maltings) to bottling in its private bottling plant. This is eccentric and nuanced, challenging and satisfying. Great stuff – I can’t wait to come back and discover more!
Auchentoshan Classic
What a satisfying dram. It is delicate and subtle, sweet and crisp. Like a sugary glass of lemonade on a hot day. A little rough and undefined around the edges, no doubt due to its youth, which is also responsible for this whisky’s delightful crispness.
Comparative Review: Jameson vs. Powers
In terms of quality, Jameson wins by virtue of its smooth, crisp dryness against Powers’ rough edges. Powers, however, has more interesting and lip-smacking flavors.
ScotchNoob Goes Scoreless
After much deliberation, I have decided to remove numeric scores from my tasting notes. I am a noob, after all, and as my numeric scores cannot be as consistent or reliable as someone who has tasted thousands of whiskies, I’d rather not embarrass myself. Instead, I’d like to focus on my tasting notes, which reveal …
At-Cost Pours in Redwood City!
If you live anywhere near Redwood City, CA, head over to Martins West Gastropub every Tuesday evening for at-cost pours of celebrated whiskies with David Driscoll from K&L Wines (my favorite local whisky retailer!). He’s doing $3 pours of Glendfiddich’s limited-release Snow Phoenix this coming Tuesday (February 1st at 6:00 PM). Original event posting is …
The Whisky Shelf: Covering the Bases
When your liquor cabinet is bursting at the seams, maybe consider winnowing your bottle count down by “covering the bases” of all the major types of malt whisky, and keeping just one bottle in each category: Peated, Sherried, Lowlander, Wine Finish, Talisker (Skye), Cask Strength, Heathery, World (Irish).
Now on Twitter!
That’s right! For what it’s worth, ScotchNoob.com is now on Twitter: http://twitter.com/ScotchNoob/. Feel free to follow me or drop me a Mention at @ScotchNoob