...where distraction is the main attraction.

Friday, October 22, 2021

Ursa Major III 13 year old 2006 Scotch Universe

The full name of this one is Ursa Major III - 158° U.2.1 1843.1" TS, which is kind of dorky and a pain in the ass, but I also adore it. Scotch Universe has gone Full Fuck It Mode and named all of its 110+ whiskies after celestial bodies. Then they added in some coding to out-nonsense the SMWS, while also disclosing whisky info.

In this instance:
158 = Months of maturation
U = Unpeated
2 = Sherry cask (allegedly)
1 = First Fill
1843 = the year Morangie distillery's license was obtained
1 = Highlands (allegedly)
TS = tough shit Teaspooned

Here's the label from the official site:

And here's my sample bottle, obtained via a bottle split:

Distillery: Glenmorangie
Ownership: LVMH
Region: Northern Highlands
Bottler: Scotch Universe
Age: 13 years (2006 - 2020)
Maturation: first-fill Oloroso hogshead
Cask #: 158° U.2.1 1843.1" TS
Alcohol by Volume: 61.5%
(from a bottle split)

NOTES

The nose leads with apricot jam, cardamom, cookie dough and a dab of Elmer's glue. Then some maple fudge, and more plums than prunes. It gets even louder when reduced to 50%abv. Dates, dates and more dates in the foreground, with red bean paste and maple syrup in the background.

Cherry Coke and a whiff of earthy smoke. That's how the palate begins. It's also grapey, but in an armagnac way, as opposed to sherry. It's sweet, but never too sticky, and has plenty of lemons in the backgound. It's also very easy to drink considering its poison level. At 50%abv, its sweetness (cherry cola and dates), bitterness (raw cacao) and tartness (lemon zest) stay well aligned.

Sweet citrus and semisweet chocolate highlight the warm finish. My written notes for the diluted 50%abv version start with "sherry bomb-ish", which......I'm sorry. But I do also mention bitter coffee, PX and a hint of dates.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

This was so much more enjoyable than I had expected. If it is "sherry bomb-ish" (sorry, again), it's not of the generic sort, but is instead a mix of fruits and sweets (gotta love those dates!), with an occasional grungy touch. It certainly beats the tar out of most of the official limited editions.

Availability - Alemania (which is either Germany or beer craziness or both)
Pricing - €85
Rating - 87