Clynelish 1997 Distillers Edition (2012 bottling)

Diageo's Clynelish Distillers Edition had a brief seven-year run, ending in 2012. Until now I didn't understand why they chose to end that one, but continue, say, Glenkinchie's DE. But I just realized Diageo also retired Green Label in 2012. Could they really have been facing a Clynelish shortage? Should I give them the benefit of the doubt?

No? Okay.

This final batch (Cl-Br: 175-7l) was brought out for a Columbus Scotch Night last year. It was a hit. People liked it better than Johnnie Walker Blue, because people have taste buds.

Distillery: Clynelish
Region: Highlands (North)

Ownership: Diageo

Range: Distillers Edition

Maturation: ??? years in ??? casks, then a brief finish in Oloroso Seco casks 

Age: 14-15 years

Alcohol by Volume: 46%
Chillfiltered: Probably
Colored: Probably

NEAT
The sherry cask keeps out of trouble in the nose. Brine, beachy kelp and miso lead the way. Then honey mustard and nuts. Small notes of cocoa and dried fruit round it out. More sherry cask in the palate. Dried stone fruits, buttery caramel and fresh ginger float in a mellow sweetness. Hints of flowers and limes. The edges feel sanded down. A lightly warm and sweet finish. Ginger candy, flowers, pepper, salt and a hint of drying tannins.

DILUTED TO ~40%abv, or < 1 tsp of water per 30mL whisky
The nose shifts to raisins, molasses, brine, vanilla bean and apple skins. No raisins in the palate, but there are plenty of nutty notes. Mint candy, a few peppercorns. A good earthy note leaps out of nowhere. It finishes with cayenne pepper, salt and mint candy.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
Though the spirit is much shier than in yesterday's Clynelish, it's not completely drowned out by the casks. This is a simpler, cuddlier Clynelish than the regular 14 year old, but it hasn't slipped into the long line of multi-cask somnambulant Speysides. Its Highland roots are still showing, and its shoes are scuffed. I don't actually know what that means, but this is still Clynelish albeit very approachable.

Availability - maybe a few European retailers
Pricing - ???
Rating - 85

Clynelish 12 year old 1997 James Macarthur, cask 11828

When arranging this week's Clynelish lineup, I found a sample of this whisky:

I bought the bottle at the recommendation of the very wise Todd, just before I left California. After moving to Ohio, I promptly drank it all. Had I not left a sample in my now-defunct archive the whisky would never have been reviewed! And as we all know, a whisky not publicly opined upon does not actually exist.

So here's the first of this week's three Clynelish. It's a 1997 from an independent bottler I never see or hear from anymore. Anyone know if James Macarthur is still in business?

Distillery: Clynelish
Region: Highlands (Northern)

Independent Bottler: James MacArthur & Co.
Series: Fine Malt Selection

Age: 12 years (1997-2010)

Maturation: bourbon cask, possibly re-fill
Cask number: 11828

Alcohol by Volume: 45%
Chillfiltered: No
Colored: No

NEAT
Two bold elements play together well in the nose. There's an earthy-aquatic side: ground mustard seed, brine, dried leaves and seaweed in extra virgin olive oil. Then there's barley with apple and cucumber skins. Good stuff. The palate also keeps a duality in balance. Soil, salt, herbs and grass. Fresh peaches and apricots and a few flower blossoms. I guess it's all earthbound. Grass, earth, salt and pepper in the finish, with some apples lending color.

DILUTED TO ~40%abv, or ⅔ tsp of water per 30mL whisky
The nose is all barley, lemon zest and ground mustard. The palate: barley, burlap, apples, salt and ginger candy. The finish has surprising length and warmth. Baking spices, canned pears and a little bit of sugar.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
First, the airing of grievances.

The official tasting notes:

No, there's no vanilla or bourbon on the palate. And that's a good thing. Had I gone by the bottle's notes, I wouldn't have bought it. What Clyne fan wants vanilla and bourbon in his 'lish?

It's the distillate that sings here. And it is right and good. (Actually, a whisky buddy thought this was a refill sherry cask.) There's been enough maturation time to calm the whisky a bit, and let the potentially dueling sides merge.

No wonder this bottle went fast. I wish I had another. Todd probably told me to buy two.

Availability - I don't know
Pricing - was $50-$60 earlier in the decade, likely 50% more expensive now
Rating - 88

The Crown Royale -- 4 Crowns, 1 Noggin

Our lives have been incomplete, until now:

You ask, "No Northern Harvest Rye?" No, no artsy-fartsy crap. Jim Murray's Weird Payoff will get its own post someday. Maybe.

It's Crown Royal vs. Crown Royal Black vs. Crown Royal Regal Apple vs. Crown Royal Vanilla. I received Black, Apple and Vanilla as Secret Santa gifts last year, then I bought the 200mL of Fin De Luxe myself. May that put your mind at ease about the sourcing of these Canadians.

Before I continue, two clarifications:

1. As one of the most popular whisky brands in the world, Crown has been enjoyed by millions of people for multiple generations. Hell, it sells more cases than Jameson. So this is not an April fool's joke. It's a legit Taste Off.
2. I will grade Regal Apple and Vanilla as whiskies. If the major whisky industries insist on flooding their markets with artificially-flavored products with the word "whisky" attached, then these drinks should be judged as whiskies.

These four Crowns were first tried neatly via nosing glasses, then they were all served on the rocks and compared again. Here are the results.

NEAT

Crown Royal (Fin De Luxe), 40%abv
Nose - Sugary and floral with a mild acetone note. Sawdust, vanilla and apples, with hints of malt and rye.
Palate - Grainy Irish whiskey + Johnnie Walker Red + pears. It gets very sweet after a while, all sugar and apples and flowers.
Finish - Warm, short and cloying.

Crown Royal Black, 45%abv
Nose - Sturdier and bolder than the classic Crown. Rye and orange peel. Vanilla bean, cinnamon and clove with a hint of glue.
Palate - Again, burlier and bigger. More American oak, but also more rye. Some good bitterness and dark dried fruits.
Finish - Simple. Sweeter than the palate. Has some of the dried fruits.

Crown Royal Regal Apple, 35%abv
Nose - Oh. Need to sniff from at least 3 inches away, because gross. Spoiled spiced cider, Children's Cherry Tylenol and nail polish remover. Or as I like to call it, Sunday night.
Palate - Chemicals. Cologne. Not apples. Watermelon candy. Candy canes. Children's medicine.
Finish - Aspartame and acetone and candy canes.

Crown Royal Vanilla, 35%abv
Nose - Nilla wafers, bottom shelf Irish whiskey, cinnamon, cherry pie and simple syrup.
Palate - Cream soda, confectioner's sugar and honey.
Finish - Same as palate. Brutal sweetness, but not full of chemicals.

Then...

ON THE ROCKS

Crown Royal (Fin De Luxe)
Vanilla and apples – how curious. There's also a honey note, but it's not too sweet. Just a slight bitterness.

Crown Royal Black
Its strengths have been neutralized. It's just vanilla and banana pudding. It's better when neat.

Crown Royal Regal Apple
I can still smell the chemical spill. The palate is less stomach churning. Perhaps there's some apple candy, but no whisky can be found. Tooth-rottingly aspartame sweet.

Crown Royal Vanilla
It smells like dog's breath. How does that happen? Then the palate goes all wrong. It's not vanilla. Something woody and not food.

CONCLUSIONS

Crown Royal (Fin De Luxe) - I was surprised to find this a full step better than modern day Canadian Club and Black Velvet and Seagram's. It works quite well on the rocks as notes of vanilla and apples come naturally(?) from the whisky. I'm going to keep what's left of my bottle for summer highballs, but I doubt I'll ever buy this again.
Rating - 71

Crown Royal Black - With its shocking 45%abv and use of new American oak, this comes across as actual whisky. It tops all standard Canadian blends I've had. And most standard Irish blends too. But in the $30 price range there are still many bourbons, a few ryes and and an occasional scotch with which it can't compete. Again, I'll keep the rest of my bottle, but I won't be pouring it onto ice.
Rating - 78

Crown Royal Regal Apple - This made me physically ill. Just looking at the bottle photo makes me nauseous. Sub-calvados, sub-applejack, sub-schnapps, sub-apple pucker, sub-Malort Regal Apple is bound to ruin many a cocktail. And everything else. Recommended!
Rating - 36

Crown Royal Vanilla - You know, it wasn't horrible before I put it on ice. I could see how it would work in dessert cocktails. And it was digestible. But if anyone is going to sip this, I'd assume they'd be doing so with it on the rocks, and that's when it goes wrong. Very wrong. But unlike Regal Ipecac, Vanilla can be used for things.
Rating - 59

The April Advance

WELCOME TO APRIL'S GIMMICK!

Yes, indeed. I have a plan for this upcoming month.

Ready for it???

...

...

Okay, here it is...

...

I'm going to post a lot of reviews.

Brilliant, right?

There's a new crop of recently purchased samples awaiting consumption here, thus many of April's reviews will be somewhat relevant. Amazing!

Normally, there are a dozen spirits reviewed here each month. I'm going for three dozen in April. Randy Brandy and Rum Dummy will each make an appearance, and there's a Killing Whisky History episode in production.

Beatrice finds this idea dubious...

...but I'm determined to make her proud of her father. So I'm going to drink more.

Stay tuned!

Ardmore 13 year old 1998 SMWS 66.32

And then there was this thing.

Those comedians at SMWS named this concoction 'Roly-Poly Pudding'. More thoughts about this after the tasting notes including...NAME THAT WHISKY!

Distillery: Ardmore
Region: Highlands (Eastern)
Independent bottler: Scotch Malt Whisky Society

Age: 13 years (March 1998 to January 2012)

Maturation: refill sherry gorda
"Poetic" name: ← nope
Cask number: 66.32
Outturn: 752

Alcohol by Volume: 58.6%
(from a purchased sample)

NEAT
The nose has no coherence. Element 1: Salted caramels and hot ghee. Element 2: Urine. Element 3: Car exhaust and smoked fish. Element 4: Grape juice and cheap plastic toys. Element 5: Urine. Lather, rinse, repeat. The palate is a little more focused? Grape candy, grape juice, Manischewitz Concord, black raisins, peppercorns, lemons, gunpowder and an unceasing sourness. Grape candy, raisins, pepper, caramel candy and lots of heat in the finish.

Shall we?

DILUTED to ~46%abv, or 1⅔ tsp of water per 30mL whisky
Butter, urine, soot, gunpowder, grape juice and peat on the nose. I likes me some bitterness, but the palate is almost unpalatably bitter at first. Beneath the violence is some chocolate, grape jelly and ash. The bitterness backs off as a similarly aggressive sweetness takes over. Lemon candy, grape candy, peppercorns and ash in the finish.

Um, more?

DILUTED to ~40%abv, or 2¾ tsp of water per 30mL whisky
The nose: gunpowder and hot urine in a peat kiln. The palate: Sugar water with ash and woody bitterness. The finish: Grape bubblegum, ash and lemon juice.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
Recently I've been enjoying sherry cask whisky more than I used to but this stuff is no sherry bomb. This is

GUNPOWDER AND PISS IN GRAPE CANDYLAND.

I felt kinda sad experiencing Ardless so directly. And everything about this whisky got worse as I added water. It's close to gross. But I guess it gets points for insanity. And it wasn't horrible when it was neat, I suppose.

Seriously, I'm talking myself out of failing an Ardmore. But it's not the distillery's fault here.

Perhaps there's no way to salvage a cask like this. You just dump it ASAP, slap a £125 price tag on each of the 752 bottles, and then hope that once everyone who vomits money for anything sherried clears out the outturn you walk away with more than $125,000 in revenue.

Enough. Go enjoy something better. This week is over.

Availability - mercifully gone
Pricing - £125
Rating - 68

Ardmore 16 year old 1997 Cadenhead Small Batch

Weekends with two wee critters are chaos, free time is scarce right now. There are some quiet moments in the middle of Saturday and Sunday that are generally free. On Sunday I took a nap (WORD!). On Saturday I tried all three of this week's Ardmores.

This week's first Ardmore was a success. How about the Wednesday Ardmore? Like the Asta Morris bottling, this Cadenhead (the oldest of the trio) was aged in US oak. As part of the very Small Batch range, the 16yo was aged in a pair of bourbon hogsheads. Likely refill hogheads...

The writing of whisky posts usually occurs late at night, as do the bottle photos, unless I want some actual natural light to show up. Daylight photos present challenges, especially if I want to include someone's toys in the background. That was deemed unacceptable here again.

Distillery: Ardmore
Region: Highlands (Eastern)

Independent Bottler: Cadenhead
Range: Small Batch

Age: 16 years old (21 August 1997 - December 2013)

Maturation: two bourbon hogsheads
Outturn: 552

Alcohol by Volume: 55.2%
(from a purchased sample)

NEAT
The nose is slow to wake, starting up with just dirty stones and hay. It gets farmier with time, and picks up notes of black smoke and cruciferous veg. The palate comes pretty close to matching the nose. It is grassy and cruciferous. Stones, fabric, salt and heat. It's like licking soot-covered bricks. It finishes with pepper, salt, soil, soot and heat.

This might need water.

DILUTED TO ~46%abv, or 1¼ teaspoons of water per 30mL whisky
The nose is now all grass, cilantro, celery and notebook paper. Bricks, barley and grass lead the palate. It's slightly sweeter now, but also hotter, somehow. The finish hasn't changed one iota.

More water?

DILUTED TO ~37%abv, or 1 tablespoon of water per 30mL whisky
Grass, black pepper, rocks and lemon peel in the nose. The palate gets tangier, sweeter and earthier, but it's also getting sharp and bitter, and the finish mirrors this.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
There are two types of austere whiskies. Those that provide subtle, rigid, direct, thoughtful experiences for palates weary of affectation. And those that are meh. The smell of this whisky suggests the former, the taste plants its ass firmly in the latter.

Yes, the whisky is absent vanilla and coconut and sawdust and grape juice and parades. And it will satisfy your desire to sip hot salty bricks. But Monday's Asta Morris Ardmore was a lean, calm, sturdy thing that delivered intellectual satisfaction while allowing for brief stirrings of indulgence. This Cadenhead Ardmore does not. 30mL was just enough.

Availability - still floating around Europe and Asia
Pricing - $80 - $125
Rating - 80

Ardmore 14 year old 2000 Asta Morris, cask AM042

Once upon a time, it was a dream of mine to turn this blog into Diving for Ardmore, but reality has since set in. Though many indie bottlers are now pricing single cask Ardmores towards the upper tier of Highland malts, there are plenty of sub-par Ardmores (or Ardlesses, if I'm going to be hilarious) out there. But I'm hoping none of this week's trio falls into that category.

This first Ardmore is a single cask, former bourbon barrel, released by Belgian bottler Asta Morris. I had some issues photographing the sample bottle.

Distillery: Ardmore
Region: Highlands (Eastern)

Independent Bottler: Asta Morris

Age: 14 years old (2000 - 2015)

Maturation: bourbon barrel
Cask: AM042
Outturn: 181
Exclusive to: Belgium

Alcohol by Volume: 51.3%
(from a purchased sample)

NEAT
Antiseptic-dipped peaches and bandaged pears in the nose. Grilled pork and barn hay. Hints of chalk, cocoa powder and cut grass. A gentle brown sugar sweetness in the palate is joined by Ceylon cinnamon and clementines. Then cayenne pepper, honey, subtle smoke and barley husks. VERY moreish. The long, warm finish holds cinnamon and cayenne heat, toasted barley, salt and mildly sweet peat.

I'm reluctantly adding water...

DILUTED TO ~46%abv, or ¾ tsp of water per 30mL water
There are lemons, pears, bandages, ocean air and pastry dough in the nose. The palate has gotten peatier. It's grassy and herbal. Cinnamon, pepper, tart apples and a similar soft sweetness. The finish still has a good length. Tangy lemons and tart apples. Wood smoke and cinnamon.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
If not for the bottle's price, the nose, reminiscent of age-stated Yoichi (remember those? 💔), would have sold me in an instant. The palate and finish are much simpler, though very appealing. The ABV, though low for the age, is at a great spot, and the oak stays out of the way. It's comforting knowing one doesn't have to go back to the early '90s to find a good Ardmore.

Availability - A few Belgian retailers
Pricing - $100+ with shipping
Rating - 88