Talisker "Tactical" 26 year old 1974 Old Malt Cask

Like the whisky from yesterday's review, today's Talisker is a low-abv release from an independent bottler who couldn't use the distillery's name. I tried the two whiskies side-by-side. Yesterday's Talimburg was like a funky herbal liqueur, lessee what today's Tactical turns out to be.

Name: Tactical
Actual Distillery: Talisker

Independent Bottler: Douglas Laing
Range: Old Malt Cask

Age: 26 years (May 1974 - August 2000)

Maturation: an old malt cask?
Bottles: 292

Alcohol by Volume: 44.7%
Chillfiltered? No
Colored? No
Thanks to Cobo for providing the sample!

Its color is gold, darker than yesterday's 19yo. The nose is full of minerals and earth. Chalk, clay and salt. Apples and almonds. Dunnage funk. After 20ish minutes in the glass, the nose trends towards white grapes and peaches. After 30 minutes, vanilla bean and honey appear. The palate starts with lots of baking spice: cloves, cinnamon and nutmeg. More pepper than smoke. Briney, with some horseradish. After 20ish minutes, it picks up mint leaves. The brine and horseradish turns into a zesty herbal bitterness. After 30 minutes, it gets toasty, with a gentle toffee sweetness. The finish stays fruity throughout. Sometimes fruit cocktail, sometimes tart limes. Toffee, mint and a light bitterness.

Though I do like the 19yo Talimburg's herbal liqueur style, this 26yo Tactical is more my jam. The herbal notes are there, but so is an impressive amount of minerality (on the nose), sweets and spice (on the palate) and fruit (in the finish). The complexity dazzles considering the low abv, so thankfully the angels didn't steal all the good stuff. If you have a bottle of this release stashed away, Mazel Tov. It's a great one.

Availability - Happy Hunting!
Pricing - ???
Rating - 90

Talisker "Talimburg" 19 year old 1986 The Whisky Fair, cask 1485

I'm going to stay with the whole Indie Talisker theme this week. Today's item is a bit of a dusty dram bottled by The Whisky Fair (from Deutschland) back in 2005. At 45.9%abv, it may have been diluted to approximately 0.1% more alcohol by volume than the official Taliskers. Or the angels snorted nothing but C₂H₅OH out of this cask. Because Diaego/DCL/SMD often did not allow 3rd parties to use Talisker's name on bottlings, The Whisky Fair put a little German twist on the name, calling it Talimburg.

Name: Talimburg
Actual Distillery: Talisker

Independent Bottler: The Whisky Fair

Age: 19 years (May 1986 - June 2005)

Maturation: bourbon hogshead
Cask number: 1485
Bottles: 252

Alcohol by Volume: 46%
Chillfiltered: No
Colored: No

Thank you to Cobo-san for providing this sample!

Just to note, I tried this whisky alongside the whisky I'm reviewing tomorrow.

The color is a nice simple amber. Oooh, lots of old dunnage funk, hot tar and burnt plastic on the nose. That somehow totally grooves with the golden raisin and dried apricot notes. Then lemongrass/citronella. With 30+ minutes in the glass, the whisky issues a barley/bran cereal note, as well as some butter. Like the nose, the palate starts with aggressive dirty funky stuff. Then mint leaves and Fernet-Branca. Brown sugar and cinnamon. Ink. It's herbal as all hellfire. It's like a bitter herbal liqueur with a little bit of tar and cinnamon blended in. It finishes very herbal as well, with ink, salt, and tart and tangy lemons.

Whew, this is a brisk, crisp, sharp thing, unlike any whisky being produced now. It'll put hair on your ears. Or, in some cases, MORE hair on your ears. The palate is devoid of oak, yet is not immature; it feels like it was actually aged instead of having more wood thrust into it.

Phrasing!

I don't know if there are any unopened bottles of this stuff left on the planet. If you do have one, or one pops up in an auction, you can also take a look at Serge's review and the Whisky Monitor. My opinion is this is a whisky for a very specific palate. If you like funky, salty, herbal bombs then this Talimburg is for you.

Availability - Happy Hunting!
Pricing - ???
Rating - 86

Taste Off: A pair of 5 year old Taliskers bottled by the Laings

Let's go down to Tiny Talisker Town.

What I have here are a pair of whiskies with the following aspects in common:

• Distillery: Talisker
• Indie Bottler: The Laing family (Langside Distillers / The Laing Whisky Company)
• Age: 5 years old
• Cask: refill hogshead
• Exclusive to: K&L Wine & Spirits

Long time readers may remember that I have reviewed The Speakeasy Talisker before. I've grumped a number of times about indie bottlers rushing to bottle immature whiskies, but I found the five year old Speakeasy to be quite good. So I decided to give another try, alongside the next baby Talisker cask selected by K&L, a 5yo 2009 from the Hepburn's Choice label.

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Distillery: Talisker

Independent Bottler: The Laing Whisky Company

Age: 5 years (April 2008 - November 2013)

Maturation: refill hogshead
Cask number: 8
Bottles:  345

Alcohol by Volume: 58.2%
Exclusive to: K&L Wines
Chillfiltered: No
Colored: No
(Sample taken from my bottle)

NEAT
Its color is a very light amber. The nose begins with mezcal, lemons, oranges and wood ash. With some time it transitions to mint leaves, burnt barley and lemon cake. The palate is peppery as heck. Chili powder. Smoky cocoa powder. Lemon candy and clover honey. It finishes with honey pepper hot sauce, lemons and mossy peat.

WITH WATER (~45.8%abv)
The nose gets very floral (blossoms, not perfume). There's a ham, honey, saltines and yeast. It fades pretty quickly though, leaving behind a single broad smoke note. The palate is sweet and spicy. Simple but balanced. Mezcal, barley and honey. The finish balances light sweetness, pepper and smoke, getting sweeter with time.

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Distillery: Talisker

Independent Bottler: Langside Distillers
Range: Hepburn's Choice

Age: 5 years (2009 - 2015)

Maturation: refill hogshead
Bottles: 281

Alcohol by Volume: 59.5%
Exclusive to: K&L Wines
Chillfiltered: No
Colored: No
(Sample taken from a whisky event bottle)

NEAT
It may have the lightest color I've ever seen on a whisky. It's almost clear. The nose is super vegetal with plastic and rubber band notes. But it also has molasses, mesquite chips, tequila and apricots. The palate has a spritely balance of veg, pepper and white fruit sweetness. Some mint and mossy smoke as well. Plenty of heat in the finish, along with peat smoke, black pepper, pretzels and charred veggies.

WITH WATER (~45.8%abv)
The nose picks up some grilled meat notes, more moss and more rubber. It gets coastal and farmy too. The palate is minty, salty, peppery, sweet and charred. The finish is very peppery with lighter smoke and sweetness. Cigarette smoke.

---

WORDS WORDS WORDS

My opinion of The Speakeasy remains unchanged. It's a brash young whisky that will appeal to mezcal fans and peatheads. In addition to its fiery character, the whisky makes for a decent drink. It's one of the better low-oak super-young whiskies I've had. That being said, I'm glad I split this bottle with friends because I don't think I could have kept up the enthusiasm for an entire 750mL.

The 2009 Hepburn's Choice comes across even rawer and younger than The Speakeasy. In fact its color gives a pretty good hint as to what one should expect. It's probably as close to Talisker new make as a non-Diageo employee will be able to try. Even though it blitzes the palate, it's less abusive than the 46%abv 6yo Ardmore I reviewed two weeks ago. And it's more complex and enjoyable, compared to that Ardmore.

But, The Speakeasy wins the day here. It feels more like a mostly-complete product than immature spirit chosen for bottling because......well, I don't know why the 5yo cask was selected for a retailer by Langside. I don't understand why it couldn't have been left to cook for another 5-7 years. As referenced above, it's absolutely NOT bad whisky, but it still feels a bit like a stunt. Perhaps the hope was Speakeasy the Sequel. It's not, though it does provide a quick peek into Talisker's spirit.

Talisker 5yo 2008 The Speakeasy
Availability - sold out
Pricing - $60
Rating - 84

Talisker 5yo 2009 Hepburn's Choice
Availability - sold out
Pricing - $50
Rating - 78

Bourbon and Rye Day Friday: Forgotten Roses (Four Roses) Bourbon

BARD Friday returns with......a thing.

First, the story! I will protect the names of certain individuals and companies because I don't want to get anyone in trouble. Though one company's name is clearly in the post's title. And the anonymous's identities may be easily deduced with some research, but I'm going to roll with the secrecy because it's like midnight here and my brane is tyred.

My brother in-law's brother in-law (no not me, the other one) knows a girl who knows a guy who works at a well-regarded well-distributed independent brewery. Said brewery does the occasional barrel-aged stout. Sometimes they get their barrels fresh from Four Roses distillery. Recently, as per my source, "some of the barrels had some whiskey still in them which had secreted out of the wood after they were emptied." The fellas at the brewery siphoned out the leftovers and got at least a full bottle of whiskey out of it.

This resulting bourbon was 142 proof. Just a liiiiiiiiitle higher than 4R tends to go. I imagine that crazy levels of oxidation and absorption were the factors behind the super proof.

Anyway, my sources, let's call them Awdoo and The Money Man, sent me 2.5 ounces of this forgotten fire nectar for gits and shiggles. Thank you very much, Awdoo and The Money Man. Time to review the barrel juice.

"Forgotten Roses" 71.0% alcohol by volume

As you can see above, I separated this sample into two glasses. One remained at full strength, the other was reduced to 50% abv (BIB strength, 4R Single Barrel strength, etc.).

Full Power:

NOSE -- It smells like bourbon. Lots of charred oak and caramel. A little bit of corn and marzipan. A combination of cinnamon and orange candies. It can be on the perfumy side at times, but that note keeps transforming into honey. With a lot of air, sugar and leather are outted.

PALATE -- Minty with lots of spicy woodstuff. Brown sugar and barrel char. It's hot, but nowhere near as hot as anticipated. Here the perfumy side drifts into tangy fruit. Air brings out bitter oak.

FINISH -- Lots of barrel action. Think char and wet cardboard. Pinches of spice, bitterness and soap. It does have a good mild sweetness though.

And then:

Diluted to 50%abv:

NOSE -- Sherry and shoe polish. But mostly shoe polish. Butt sweat. I'll let you figure out if that's sherry shipping "butt" or not. Raspberries and vanilla.

PALATE -- Nutrasweet. Earthy, grassy, sooooooooooooooooooapy. Spicy burnt socks.

FINISH -- Fruity and sooooooooooooooooooapy. Carpet vomit.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

As with Mogwai, don't get this whiskey wet. Somehow in all its unusual oxidation, it may be at peak form as is. At 71%abv, it's perfectly recognizable, drinkable, enjoyable, a bourbon I'd be happy to consume again. Its finish is the trouble spot that keeps it earthbound. But because I had expected the finish be like the receiving end of Hacksaw Jim Duggan's 2x4, I'd say this was a reasonable success, overall.

And then I added water. And then I died. And then I was arisen. And then I drank it all. And then I didn't sleep because the air was bleeding.

Thanks again to Awdoo and The Money Man. And hopefully everyone is alive and well at the beer-making place after consuming the bottle's contents. Happy Friday!

RATING: Gone but definitely not forgotten

Single Malt Report: Talisker 2006 Distillers Edition (2016 bottling)

Yesterday I reviewed the 2009 chapter of Talisker's Distillers Edition and it was.....eh. Especially when compared to the current (2016) version. Which I did. Good sentences on this post.

See below for the second half of the Talisker DE Taste Off. The 2016 Edition doesn't have an age statement as usual, but this time it's entirely possible the whisky isn't a full ten years old. Nonetheless, it's not bad.

Distillery: Talisker

Ownership: Diageo

Type: Single Malt
Region: Isle of Skye

Age: 10 years or less (2006-2016)
Maturation: refill ex-bourbon casks for ??? years, then a brief finish in ex-Amoroso casks
Alcohol by Volume: 45.8%

Chill-filtration? Yep
Caramel colored? Also Yep
(Review from purchased sample)

Its color is DiageoGold™. The nose starts off with the same soap note as the 1998, but it fades quicker, thank goodness. There's more char and vegetal notes in this one. Burnt nuts, mesquite chips, BBQ ribs, tar and band-aids. It also has a sugary side to it, with caramel and buttery dough. In fact, one nostril picks up more sugar, the other gets more smoky stuff. After 30+ minutes there are some dry sherry cigarette notes as well. The palate is big on savory. Roast beef, Vegemite and smokiness that grows with time. There's also a bit of sweetness that stays in balance with the savoriness. Candied stone fruits, black licorice and a cherry + BBQ combo. Some zippy moments of fresh ginger and wood spice show up after some time. Its finish delivers a bigger bite than the '98. Wood smoke, fresh ginger and black licorice. Gumdrops, though at 1/10th the sweetness. A little bit of savory and salt.

Well, not everything used to be better than it is now. This current version of Talisker DE is more complex and well rounded, while delivering a bigger punch, than the 1998-2009 version. Though, to be honest the 1993-2007 Edition remains my favorite so far. One kinda forgets this one almost immediately after the finish fades. Anyway...

If you're standing at the whisky store, looking at the different blue Talisker boxes, I'd recommend this over Storm and Skye. It may even top some recent batches of the 10 year old. On the other hand, it's not worth $75+ IMHO. It's a B-grade whisky that's neither old or scarce. You can find it for a (comparable) song at some Netherlands retailers, though.

Availability - (this edition) Many speciality liquor retailers
Pricing - (this edition) $65-$95 in the US, $45-$80 in Europe
Rating - (this edition) 86

Single Malt Report: Talisker 1998 Distillers Edition (2009 bottling)

I'm starting off Taliskravaganza 2017 with a pair of Talisker DEs. Happily I was able to try the 2009 bottling alongside the current 2016 version and I'll be sharing my thoughts on them today and tomorrow.

Here's a quick recap for those unfamiliar with these whiskies: Diageo releases annual Distillers Editions for many of its Classic Malts, including Oban, Lagavulin, Talisker, Glenkinchie, Cragganmore, Dalwhinnie, Caol Ila and Royal Lochnagar. Each single malt has been finished in a specific type of fortified wine cask for an unspecified period of time. For instance, Lagavulin is finished in Pedro Ximenez casks, Caol Ila in Moscatel, Oban in Montilla Fino Sherry, and Talisker in Amoroso. Oh, and there's no apostrophe in "Distillers" for some reason.

To quote a post from Taliskravaganza 2014:

...the age of the Talisker Distillers Editions has lessened over the years.  From 2000 - 2007 (vintages 1987-1993), they were 13 years or older.  In 2008 (the 1996 vintage), it was 12 years old.  Then from 2009 until the current version, it's 11 years or younger.  I'm going to guess that age reduction is due to demand.  Or it's possibly due to a level of production efficiency; over the last four years they may just take the regular 10 year old casks and give them the sherry finish....

Indeed today's 2009 bottling is around 11 years old, while the 2016 edition (like the 2015) is at most 10 years old.

Distillery: Talisker

Ownership: Diageo

Type: Single Malt
Region: Isle of Skye

Age: between 10 and 11 years (1998-2009)
Maturation: refill ex-bourbon casks for 10-ish years, then a brief finish in ex-Amoroso casks
Alcohol by Volume: 45.8%

Chill-filtration? Yessiree
Caramel colored? Yes'm
(Review from purchased sample)

Its color is DiageoGold™. The nose starts out a little quirky, mixing tar, Dove soap and orange candy. After a few minutes it straightens out a bit, bringing smoke and butterscotch to the fore as the soap and tar fade back. It takes 20-30 minutes for it to really shine, at which point black raisins, dried cherries, plums and toffee take over. The palate is more savory than sweet, though it does start off with ginger ale, limes and toasted oak spice. Then almonds, salt and fresh ginger leap forward. It's a simple thing, though it does have a good mouthfeel, making one wonder how much better it would have been without chill filtration. The finish is quiet for the first few sips, gradually taking on the palate's almonds, salt and fresh ginger, along with a nice inky bitterness.

This one takes a long time to wake up. Once it airs out, the nose is the best part, showcasing the some of the better characteristics from the spirit and wine cask. The palate and finish are both fine. Nothing offends (except perhaps that early soap note), but there's little in the way of highlights. This is certainly a full step down in quality compared to the Talisker 10 that was being produced at the time.

Availability - (this edition) Happy Hunting!
Pricing - (current edition) $65-$95 in the US, $45-$80 in Europe
Rating - (this edition) 82

Single Malt Report: anCnoc 18 year old (2016)

There are a pair of Scottish distilleries called Knockando and Knockdhu. Both were built in the 1890s. Both have been owned by the companies that later became Diageo. Both have Gaelic names that refer to 'the dark hillock'. Though I've reviewed a number of Knockandos, today's review marks my first for a single malt from Knockdhu.

Knockdhu was built by DCL in 1893, a century before the company became part of Diageo. After 89 years of production, the distillery was amongst those closed in 1983. In 1988 the distillery became one of the very few to be sold off, rather than destroyed, by DCL. The new owners, Inver House Distillers restarted production in 1989. In 1990 they released a Knockdhu single malt that had been distilled by DCL. In 1993, they changed the name of their single malt brand to anCnoc "following a gentleman's agreement ... in order to avoid any possible confusion with Knockando," as per Charlie MacLean's Whiskypedia.

anCnoc ('a hill', pronounced a-nock) has been putting out well-received (see here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, etc.) whiskies for a number of years now, but really hasn't garnered any sexy cachet amongst whisky fans in the process. And I can be counted amongst that number. As of four weeks ago, I had never tried one of their US bottlings.

[DISCLOSURE: Today's bottle was sent to me by Amy from Ten27 Communications, a PR firm for InterBev, AnCnoc's parent company. Thank you, Amy.]

Distillery: Knockdhu

Owner: Inver House Distillers (via Thai Beverages plc via International Beverage Holdings Ltd.)
Type: Single Malt
Region: border of Speyside and Western Highlands

Age: minimum 18 years
Maturation: "Spanish oak ex-sherry casks and American oak ex-bourbon barrels"
Bottling year: 2016
Alcohol by Volume: 46%

Chill-filtration? No
Caramel colored? No
Review taken from just above mid-bottle.

NEAT
Its color is a medium gold. The nose begins with a toasty, spicy fruitiness that I imagine comes from the Spanish oak. There are orange peels and honeydew. Toffee and fudge. Candied ginger and cherry lollipops. A hint of vanilla gives it a little bit of shortbread note too. A dusty maltiness lingers in the back. More straight up sherry in the palate, though never prune-y or raisin-ed. Toffee, citrus peels and mint. It has a mineral edge to it and solid herbal presence that almost feels peaty. A spicy white pepper note mingles with some thick malt. It finishes sweetly and full of citrus. Woody spices, candy corn and Nutella.

WITH WATER (~40%abv)
Thought the liquid doesn't cloud, it does get very oily. The nose is minty and chocolatey. Cherry candy, caramel and some musty cask notes. The palate gets creamier, fragrant. It's simple, but sturdy and spicy. Citrus and nuts. The finish picks up some pepper and earth, and quite a bit of tannins.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
This is a very solid, textured malt, with a more interesting European oak angle than most sherried (and much more expensive) 18 year olds. It won't knock (hee) you off your seat, but it's very reliable and tasty. As a totally random comparison, it reminds me more of Arran 14 than Arran 18, which is a good thing because the 14 is my favorite of Arran's range.

The first few pours from the bottle were a bit tight, as I've found with most whiskies. But right here at the bottle's midpoint, it has opened up well. The finish gets too sugary for me at times, but I don't have much of a sweet tooth. On the other hand the whisky swims pretty well, which may be partly due to its good presentation. And that good presentation (46%abv, no chill filtration nor added colorant) demonstrates a company's respect of its products and its customers. I'm glad InterBev understands that. It's too bad that most of the other conglomerates do not.

Availability - Many spirits specialists in the US and Europe
Pricing - $90-$120, can also be had for less than $100 in a European shipment
Rating - 87