Tag Archives: Peated

Lagavulin “Jazz Festival 2013”

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Let’s keep the peat and smoke going in September. My first two whisky reviews this month were of two Laphroaigs: this 9 year old from the SMWS, and this 14 yo bottled by Signatory for Binny’s in Chicago. This week’s whisky is also from Islay, and from the south coast, but we’ll move over one distillery from Laphroaig to Lagavulin. This is an official release from 2013. It was distilled in 1995 and bottled for the Islay Jazz Festival that year—so 17 or 18 years old.

I’ve previously reviewed two other Jazz Festival releases, from 2015 and 2017. Those were both put together from a mix of refill American oak hogsheads and refill European oak butts. The label for this one says only “sherry butts”. As per Whiskybase, there were 1500 bottles released—so maybe from three butts at 51.9%, no matter what the exact cask type. What matters most is the whisky—let’s see what it’s like. Continue reading →

Laphroaig 9, 2001, Again(SMWS 29.88)

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So my planned schedule for the second half of last week fell apart completely. What I’d failed to account for when I made those best-laid plans was that my new term and school year starts today and that while getting ready to write syllabi, meet with new advisees etc. I would suddenly receive some urgent and unmissable deadlines on a project I’ve been trying to bring to a close for a while (more on this later, if you don’t know what it is, or even if you do). The good news is I still have a booze review for you this week. The bad news is that it is a return to a whisky I have reviewed once before: a 9 yo Laphroaig bottled by the Scotch Malt Whisky Society under the name “What a Magnificent and Handsome Nose”.

My previous review was posted in late-February 2020 (just before you-know-what hit). That review was from a sample swap with someone whose identity I had failed to log in my spreadsheet. I’d noted then that I had a bottle of my own of the whisky (and that I had also failed to log where I’d acquired it from and for how much). Well, my memory is no better now but I am glad anyway to have opened the bottle; and I’m curious to see what I make of it now. Continue reading →

Laphroaig 14, 1998 (Signatory for Binny’s)

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Back to whisky for the first booze review of the month. I have for you today a bit of a throwback. This Laphroaig 14, 1998, bottled from a single bourbon hogshead, was one of Binny’s barrel picks back in 2012. This was right around the time that I had begun to purchase whisky in a big way. Back then shipping from liquor stores around the US to Minnesota was not a complicated affair and I purchased many a bottle from Binny’s (in Chicago) in that era. Indeed, one of my favourite Laphroaigs in that phase of my whisky exploration had been another Laphroaig bottled by Signatory and selected by Binny’s. That one was 19 years old and was also from a single bourbon cask. My guess is that is what led me to purchase this 14 yo; that and the fact that in those days prices were extremely reasonable and Brett Pontoni and his crew’s single barrel picks were extremely reliable. I can’t actually tell you how much I paid for this as, unusually, I didn’t record any of the purchase information in my otherwise detailed whisky spreadsheet. The 19 yo had been $110 in 2010, and so I imagine this was a fair bit cheaper. I have no idea what Binny’s prices and selection of single malts are like these days—I’ve not kept up with Binny’s in recent years, as shipping became complicated and then impossible a while ago. Anyway, let’s get to it. Continue reading →

Caol Ila 30, 1982 (Archives)

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Do not be alarmed: this is a whisky review. This used to be a whisky blog once, you know. That was before I began to lose interest in the whisky world (though not in drinking whisky itself) and before my whisky readership—never large—lost interest in me. The former, as I’ve noted before, had to do with a rapidly accelerating disenchantment with the state of the industry. Key drivers of this disenchantment were the drop in the quality of whisky available on the market—especially as many indies began to be squeezed out—and the simultaneous rise in prices for what would once have been considered very young whisky. I more or less stopped buying whisky several years ago now. By that I mean that I stopped buying whisky in my frenzied manner of old; I still purchase the occasional bottle of an old favourite or three. Mostly, I am now drinking down my stores of good whisky purchased in that time of frenzy at very good prices. Such, for example, is this Caol Ila 30 that was released by Whiskybase under their Archives label in 2012. How much did I pay for it then? My spreadsheet tells me it was $148. Those of you who are still active buyers of single malt whisky can tell me what kind of whisky that would get me in today’s market (I don’t even keep track of those things anymore). Alright, enough melancholy talk: let’s get to the notes! Continue reading →

Ardbeg 10, 2008 Release

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The eagle-eyed among you will have noticed that this is the first post on the blog in almost three weeks. I’m sorry to say that I had a death in the family. This meant a return to Delhi at the end of the month to join my family in the mourning period. And since getting back to Minnesota last week I have been submerged in both jet lag and work, not having been able to get anything done for quite some time. It will probably take some time to return to the normal blog posting schedule but I did have this review done a while ago and so here it is. This is a review of a standard release, a classic: the Ardbeg 10. But it’s not a recent release. This is from 2008 (the L8 bottle code), which was from the first release of the 10 yo made from spirit distilled under the Glenmorangie ownership which had begun in 1997. The “Very Young”, the “Still Young”, the “Almost There” and the “Renaissance” were the special releases that had led up to this first regular release of the new 10 yo. Despite having consumed a few bottles of this over the years, I’ve never reviewed it. I guess I must have assumed I already had. Anyway, I’m glad to have caught the omission now that I’ve opened my last bottle. This review will slot in between my reviews of the 2007 and 2009 releases. Continue reading →

Talisker 30, 2017 Release

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My first whisky release of the month was of a 3 yo American craft malt whiskey, the Zeppelin Bend from New Holland Distillers in Michigan. For the second, let’s go across the Atlantic to Skye for a much older single malt whisky. This is the Talisker 30 that was released in 2017. It’s been a while since I’ve reviewed a Talisker 30. The last was a bottle from the 2015 release, which I quite liked. Before that I’d reviewed the 2006 and 2012 releases. Of those three only the 2006 was at cask strength. The last of the cask strength releases of the Talisker 30 came out in 2010, I think (I have a bottle of that in reserve). After that, all the releases have been at Talisker’s standard 45.8%. Despite the lowered strength, I had quite enjoyed my bottle of the 2015 release and I’d hoped this will be in a similar vein. Early pours were promising and now that the bottle has been open for a week or so, here are my notes. Continue reading →

Laphroaig Cairdeas 2025, Lore Cask Strength

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I finally got my hands on a bottle of the 2025 Laphroaig Cairdeas. Just the one bottle though. Which means my collection of Cairdeas since 2011 might end in 2024 with the Cask Favorites. You see, I’ve been buying two bottles of the Cairdeas every year, one to drink and one to keep. (Well, in some excellent years—see the 2015 200th anniversary release— I bought more than two.) I fully acknowledge that this is a very silly enterprise. The Cairdeas has been up and down over the last 7-8 years; pretty good in some years; ho hum in others; nothing to really get me going since that 2015 release. Laphroaig’s approach to Cairdeas in recent years has something to do with that as they’ve either released wacky wine cask finishes or cask strength iterations of releases from their regular line. Last year’s release was particularly heavy on the “we’ve run out of ideas” subtext, being composed of casks from the previous two years. Which brings us to this year’s release, which the distillery says is a cask strength version of the Lore (yes, a whisky from their regular line). As to whether this truly is a cask strength version of the regular Lore is not clear: I’ve seen reports of people being told at the distillery that it was only made in the same way as the Lore, i.e with the same mix of cask types. If you know more about this, please write in below. In any case, I thought the Lore was fine when I reviewed it on release in 2017 but was never moved to go back and try more recent versions of it. However, this was made, I’m hoping it’s better. Let’s see. Continue reading →

Laphroaig 17, 1995 (The Whisky Agency)

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I haven’t reviewed a Laphroaig in a while (this 21 yo bourbon cask, back in February). I was hoping to set that right this month with a review of the 2025 Cairdeas, but I haven’t yet come across it in Minnesota. That’s not to say it’s not here; I’ve not looked very hard: just on a few stores’ websites. If any of my local readers have a line on where it’s available, please let me know. In the meantime, here’s a review of another bourbon cask Laphroaig. Like February’s 21 yo, this is also an indie release from a while ago—from The Whisky Agency—but it’s a bit younger at 17 years of age. It’s also from a slightly smaller cask: a barrel to the 21 yo’s refill hogshead. I do prefer hogsheads and refill hogsheads in particular to the smaller barrels, as they have less oak contact—and in the case of the refill casks, that contact is with less active oak. But I’ve had some very nice bourbon barrel Laphroaig before (this 19 yo, for example) and so have no reason to think that this one will be anything but good. Let’s see if my positivity will be rewarded. Continue reading →

Ellenstown 12

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Back when I started this blog in 2013, Ellenstown was a not uncommon sight in American liquor stores with non-standard whisky selections. In case you’re more recently arrived at the pursuit of single malt whisky, Ellenstown is not the name of a defunct distillery but a name used for two Islay whiskies brought to the US by CVI Brands, an importer from San Carlos, CA. (I’m not sure if these were released elsewhere in the world as well or if there were releases elsewhere with other age statements.) There were two of these: a 10 yo and a 12 yo. The 10 yo was said to be an Ardbeg and I recall both Ardbeg and Caol Ila being named as likely candidates for the 12 yo. Whether any of this speculation was based on actual knowledge, I don’t know; I would expect that the Ellenstown name would imply one of the distilleries closer to Port Ellen—so Ardbeg, more likely than Caol Ila, but also no reason why it couldn’t be Laphroaig (Lagavulin not being made available usually to indies). At any rate, I remember thinking it likely that the 10 yo was Ardbeg. I certainly saw it more frequently in MN and went through a couple of bottles before the blog got going. My spreadsheet tells me I also tried the 12 yo back in the day but I have no memory of it. Luckily, I did have a bottle on my shelves (along with two of the 10 yo) and so can now open it and take some proper notes. I notice now that the label says it was a single cask release. Was there more than one cask? If you still have a bottle lying around let me know if the rear label has the same barcode number as mine: 7 91774 10388 1. Okay, let’s get to it. Continue reading →

Caol Ila 12, for Feis Ile 2016

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Back in January of this year, I reviewed Caol Ila’s bottling for the 2017 iteration of Feis Ile, the Islay whisky festival. Now that I’m on the verge of finishing that bottle, it’s time to open another Caol Ila, and it may as well be another one bottled for Feis Ile. We’ll go back one year in time to 2016. Like the 2017 after it, the 2016 release was also 12 years old and without a vintage statement. While the 2017 release was to be double-mature in ex-amoroso sherry casks (I think previously used for the Talisker Distillers Edition), the 2016 was put together from a refill American oak hogsheads and European bodega sherry butts. Now as to whether the second type refers to European oak butts or merely specifies that these were butts actually used in sherry bodegas (as opposed to being reconstructed and “seasoned” with sherry expressly for the purpose of whisky maturation), I don’t know. I’m sure somebody else does—and if you’re that somebody, please write in below. Okay, let’s get to it. Continue reading →

Ardbeg Corryvreckan, 2011 Release (Again)

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Here is a review of a whisky that I have already reviewed, albeit five years ago. I don’t mean just that it’s another Ardbeg Corryvreckan review: it’s a review of a bottle released in the same year as that previous bottle: 2011. The Corryvreckan was then just a couple of years old. I had loved my first taste of it in 2009 or 2010 or whenever it was and I quite liked the 2011 release when I first reviewed it in 2020. I’m curious to see what I’ll make of it now (I’m not re-reading my previous notes until I get done with my notes on this one). I’m also curious about the status of current Corryvreckan. It’s still part of Ardbeg’s core lineup, along with other mainstays, the 10 yo and the Uigeadail—and also the newer An Oa and Wee Beastie—but I don’t think I’ve had any Corryvreckan released in the last decade. Those of you who have: do you find it to be still more or less as it was? The makeup seems to be the same, with ex-bourbon and ex-French oak casks in the vatting. Do let me know your thoughts on more recent releases. Okay, let’s get to this one. Continue reading →

Lagavulin 16, Feis Ile 2017

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June’s whisky reviews began with a 22 yo Littlemill from a boutique German independent bottler. The second review of a month is of an official release from one of Scotland’s most iconic distilleries, Lagavulin. This is a 16 yo but it’s not the well-known and much-loved standard Lagavulin 16. This is a cask strength 16 yo that was released for Feis Ile, the annual Islay whisky festival, in 2017 (almost exactly eight years ago). And, no, it ‘s not a cask strength version of the regular 16 yo either. This was double-matured in casks that had previously held moscatel, a sweet wine. In case the name sounds familiar in a whisky context, the Caol Ila Distiller’s Edition is also double-matured in moscatel casks. I assume there are a number of these casks lying around in Diageo’s warehouses and so this was probably a convenient way to come up with a Feis Ile release in 2017. (I may be misremembering but I think there may also have been a Diageo special release slate one year that featured malts from iconic distilleries being double matured in the casks used for other distilleries’ Distillers Editions.). Anyway, I’ve had this bottle sitting around for a while and am glad to finally have it open. This review joins my reviews of the 2013, 2014, 2015, 2018 and 2020 Lagavulin Feis Ile releases. I have a bottle of the 2016 release on my shelf but I don’t have the 2019—so I’m afraid I’m probably never going to complete that sequence. Anyway, let’s see what this is like. Continue reading →

Ardmore 1977-2003 (Scott’s Selection)

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After a month that featured no whisky reviews—instead, I reviewed a rum, an Armagnac, a Calvados, and a mezcal—let’s do a month of nothing but whisky reviews. Don’t get too excited now—it’s still just going to be one whisky review a week.

First up, is an Ardmore bottled by Scott’s Selection in 2003. It was distilled in 1977 and so would have been either 25 or 26 years old. Scott’s Selection was always reticent with detail on the label. Though in this case they somewhat unusually specify that the cask type was “sherry wood”. They don’t say it’s a single cask, mind you. In fact, I can’t remember if Scott’s Selection ever released any single casks from this era. Or at least any that they marked as such. There was another 1977-2003 “sherry wood” Ardmore, by the way, that was released in Europe at a different strength; this is the one that was released in the US. 15 odd years ago, you could still find bottles of this—and several other Scott’s Selection releases of whiskies distilled in the 1960s and 1970s—hanging around in whisky stores for prices that now seem like they must have been out of a fantasy. Those days are long gone. But at least I have a bottle of this left and now it’s open. Continue reading →

Bowmore Tempest, Batch 2

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Today is the 12th anniversary of the blog. My first-ever booze review—posted on March 24, 2013—was of the Bowmore Legend. I’ve since marked every anniversary of the blog with a review of a Bowmore. Accordingly, here is a review of a Bowmore. This is in keeping as well with this month’s “young whisky” theme, being 10 years old. The secondary theme of the month’s reviews has turned out to be “throwback whisky”, as they’ve also all been reviews of whiskies released in or before 2013 (the year the blog launched—I note this in case you are even worse than me at arithmetic). Already reviewed this month: a 2013 release of the Ardbeg 10; the first release of the Kilkerran Work in Progress; and the Springbank 11, 1997, Madeira Cask. Here now is a review of the second release of the Bowmore Tempest (see here for my review of the first release). It was bottled in 2010 and, like the first batch, comprised whisky matured in first-fill bourbon casks. I can’t remember now how many batches followed this one but I do recall that the second batch was the last one to bear the name “Tempest” in the US. This on account of some brand infringement issue with an American wine. Subsequent batches were put out in the US under the name “Dorus Mor”. Anyway, I quite liked the first batch and am glad to finally be tasting this one. Continue reading →

Ardbeg 10, 2013 Release

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My previous review of the venerable Ardbeg 10 was an unusually timely review. That was back in 2017 and I was reviewing the 2016 release. Today I have a review for you of the 2013 release. (I’ve previously also reviewed the 2007 and 2009 releases.) I’m not sure if I’ve had any Ardbeg 10 released since 2016 and I don’t have any sitting on my shelves. After this bottle is done, the only Ardbeg 10 I’ll have left is a bottle from the 2008 release. And so my reviews are going further back in time. That’s a bit of a shame as this is one of the great classic malts; along with the Lagavulin 16 and the Laphroaig 10, it used to be the cornerstone of the collection of every lover of peated whisky from Islay. I really should seek it out again—and I should probably check in on more recent releases of the Laphroaig 10 and Lagavulin 16 as well. I’m not buying much whisky any more these days—can’t remember which the last bottle I purchased was, or when I purchased it—but these are easily available in bars. Okay, let’s see what this one is like. Continue reading →

Laphroaig 21, 1990 (Whisky Import Nederland)

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For my last whisky review of the month I have an older Laphroaig. This is a 21 yo distilled in 1990 and bottled in 2012 from a single refill hogshead by Whisky Import Nederland. I don’t think I’ve ever had an older bourbon cask Laphroaig that I’ve not liked a lot and this one is no exception. I opened it a few days ago and have been enjoying it greatly. I purchased this bottle a long time ago and had it sitting around ever since for no good reason. Now that it’s open, I don’t expect it will make it to the end of March. Here are my notes.

Laphroaig 21, 1990 (52.6%; Whisky Import Nederland; refill hogshead 5936; from my own bottle)

Nose: Bright, carbolic peat (Dettol) with a big dose of lemon. On the second sniff there’s some cereals in there too. A little sweeter here too with time with just a bit of vanilla emerging. With more time there’s salt here as well. A few drops of water emphasize the sweetness but everything else is still here. Continue reading →

Caol Ila 30, 1983 (Wilson & Morgan)

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I reviewed a 12 yo sherried Caol Ila last month. Here now is a much older one. While the 12 yo—bottled for Feis Ile in 2017—had been double-matured in sherry casks (in casks that had previously been used to make the Talisker Distiller’s Edition), this one came out of a single sherry butt. It was distilled in 1983 and bottled in 2013 by the Italian indie, Wilson & Morgan (yes, it’s not a very Italian name). I quite liked the only other Caol Ila I’ve had from Wilson & Morgan, but that was much younger and from a second-fill bourbon cask (this 16 yo). Indeed, I’ve generally liked almost all the Wilson & Morgan releases I’ve tried (not very many). And I can tell you—spoiler alert—that I quite like this one too. I opened this bottle, which I’ve had sitting on a shelf for a long time now, a few days ago and have been dipping into it ever since. These notes are being taken from the fourth pour from the bottle. The bottle was more than a bit hot when opened and I am hopeful that it may have mellowed a bit. Let’s see. Continue reading →