I woke up at 4:45am this morning in order to nab my flight home and have now just completed bedtime for two little girls. My exhaustion is complete, and will spare you from longer introductions. If I rate one of these whiskies a 347 or Ol' Dirty Bastard you'll have to pardon me.

Here are three Arrans from a recent Taste Off:

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Arran 8 year old 100º Proof, 57%abv, bottled in 2006
(from a purchased mini)

Though I'm an Arran enthusiast, I've never been able to keep up with their zillions of early releases. When I'd bid on this mini at an auction, I hadn't previously heard of the 100º Proof bottling. Apparently no one else did either. I wound up paying an embarrassingly tiny sum for it, something I can't say for any other auction win ever. From the notes below, my guess is this whisky was all from refill bourbon casks.

NEAT
The nose starts with malt, apples, oranges, earth and umeboshi. Small notes of clay and oats drift underneath. With time it gets prettier, more floral. The palate is loaded with white fruits: apples, pears and green grapes. Then there's barley, citrus candy and a curious mustiness. The finish has as a good length considering the whisky's age. There's citrus candy, barley and a slight pepperiness.

DILUTED TO ~46%abv, or ½ tbl of water per 30mL whisky
The nose of a good floral, fruity newmake. No heat, lots of lemon peel. The palate gets very tart, and picks up the neat nose's musty note. It gradually gets viciously sweet while a wonky bitterness comes crashing in from a different direction. A tooth-rottingly sweet finish with hints of cayenne pepper and tart lemons.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
This feels very close to newmake, and I sort of wish Arran still bottled this because it's BS-free. They'd sell like 5 bottles of the thing, but I'd get one if the price was right. I do not recommend adding water to it, though, which is fine because the neat version does not burn the mouth. Here are the usual disclaimers: it's not complex, there's little depth, etc. But — the usual claimer — it's very educational and barley-forward.

Availability - Auctions / secondary market
Pricing - ???, though the minis can be had for single digits

Rating - 86 (neat only)

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Arran 12 year old Cask Strength batch 3, 53.9%abv, bottled in 2013
(thank you to Florin for the sample!)

Several years after the short-lived 100º Proof experiment, Arran started its Cask Strength series. Batch 3 is made up of 5 first-fill sherry butts, 13 second-fill sherry hogsheads and 31 bourbon barrels resulting in an outturn of 15,000 bottles.

NEAT
The nose seems very closed when neat. There are grains, yeast, flowers and (again) umeboshi. Quiet sherry cask-ish notes of roasted meat and nuts show up occasionally. It picks up more sugary notes with time. A mix of stone and citrus fruits highlight the more expressive palate. The malt note rings louder the toasted oak note. There's a good sweetness to it. There's a surprising amount of heat to it, which continues on into the finish. Otherwise it's sugar, barley, nuts and black pepper.

DILUTED TO ~46%abv, or 1 tsp of water per 30mL whisky
Yeast, cocoa powder, almond cookies and a lighter floral note on the nose. The palate is very simple but approachable and drinkable. There's more oak and less spirit, yet notes of lemons, limes and red plums remain. The shorter finish is less sweet, and much more tart.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
Another simple but decent Arran malt. I was surprised by the lack of sherry cask notes, as well as the considerable burn which registers much hotter than one anticipates from the ABV. The high quality Arran spirit ensures a good drink, even if better casks were saved for single cask releases. Still, I like the 10yo and 14yo better.

Availability - Auctions / secondary market (for this batch)
Pricing - ???

Rating - 85

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Arran 12 year old Cask Strength batch 6, 52.4%abv, bottled in 2016

(from a purchased sample)

From what I've seen online, this was the last batch of the 12 year old Cask Strength series. If anyone knows more info or why they ended these batches, please share in the comment section. Batch 6, fashioned from first fill sherry butts, refill sherry hoggies and first fill bourbon barrels, had an outturn of 13,800 bottles and is still being sold by some European and American retailers.

NOSE
Another closed nose. I'm getting grapefruit, brine, yeast and lemon. A hint of plum wine. With time, there are notes of apples, cocoa powder and watermelon candy. The palate has a hell of a citric bite, and is very very sweet. A little bit of grapefruit. A little bit of barley. A big bit of toasted oak. Oranges, grapefruit and toasted oak in rush of sweetness in the finish.

DILUTED TO ~46%abv, or ¾ tsp of water per 30mL whisky
Flowers, earth and grass on the nose. Some more grapefruit. Not much oak. But the palate does have plenty of oak spice to go with the grapefruit and lemons. A little bit of grassiness here too. Lots of caramel sweetness. It's very drinkable, but feels hotter than the neat version. The finish has an easier sweetness than the neat version. More fruit essences, and just a whiff of oak spice.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
I enjoyed the palate better than then nose, which a rare thing. And to cloud things further, I liked the palate better when diluted, and the nose better when neat. Perhaps it requires more experimentation with water? This seems to have even less sherry cask influence than batch 3, and it could have used a honey butt or two to give it more dimension(s). But for a 12 year old cask strength whisky, it's priced pretty well in the current market conditions. Still the 10 and the 14...

Availability - Many European whisky specialist retailers, fewer retailers in the US
Pricing - $70ish in the USA; €45-€65 in Europe (w/VAT)

Rating - 83

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The discontinued — well, these are all discontinued — 100º Proof wins the day, though they're very close in quality, enough so that their ratings could switch around depending on the setting and/or further dilution. I'm glad I was able to try them all, but I'm in no rush to buy a full 700/750mL bottle of any of them.

Bunnahabhain 20 year old 1997 Palo Cortado Finish

I'm a fan of the Bunnahabhain's 1997 experimental peated distillations. It's big and dirty whisky. Or at least it was when it was younger. I'm more used to the 13-15 year old range of the stuff. But suddenly...it's over 20 years old?! That's terrifying. What happened? What are all these gray hairs in my beard?

above the boat captain...in the reflection...there's a crooked old man...

I had thought all that spirit was sold off to blenders and independent companies. Or maybe it had and now the distillery has bought some back? I think this is the first official release of that distillate. There was a 2017 Feis Ile bottling (finished in virgin oak, WTF) but the tasting notes I've read show no peat.

The distillery opted to give this small batch a finish, or secondary maturation, of "almost" two years in Palo Cortado casks. Palo Cortado is an unusual and interesting sort of sherry, and I'm going to direct you to SherryNotes for a deeper dive. Style-wise it sits between Amontillado and Oloroso, and should not be very sweet.

Distillery: Bunnahabhain
Distilled by: Highland Distilleries Company Ltd.
Current Ownership: Distell Group Ltd.
Region: Islay, but not the Sexy South





Age: 20 years (22 Nov 1997 - 26 Apr 2018)
Maturation: 19 years in "traditional oak whisky casks", then less than two years in Palo Cortado casks (size not specified)
Alcohol by Volume: 54.9%
Outturn: 1620 bottles
Chillfiltered? No
Caramel Colorant? No
(Thank you to Matt W for the sample! Additional note: after being a bit quirky upon opening, this bottle was left to sit for three months before this sample was poured)

NEAT
No smoke on the nose, instead it's more organic, like moss and seaweed. Delicate sherry notes. Walnuts, brine and a hint of prunes. Orange blossoms. The expressive palate starts with smoked meats and little bit of red curry. Then lime juice and very dry cheese. Marijuana and marzipan in the background. Dried berries show up later on. Smoked meat and smoked nuts in the finish. Ginger, chile oil and limes.

Going to take this down to regular Bunny strength.

DILUTED TO ~46.3%abv, or about 1 tsp of water per 30mL whisky
The nose starts with moss, earth and flowers. Then sticky candy and ground mustard seed. Hints of wood smoke and gunpowder. The palate has become much sweeter with a hint savoriness. Think brown sugar and bacon. Lemon candy, salt and a little bit of moss. The finish is sweeter too. A little tangy and salty and mossy.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
It's almost two whiskies for the YOOOOGE price of one. The diluted version is simpler but a real joy to drink. The neat version would be a thinker more than a drinker were it not so thunderous. But it's not really peat that causes the (entertaining) ruckus. Instead it's the bold spirit and a reserved parcel of casks causing mischief. In fact my notes have me doubting how many of these casks held the 50ppm-peated-malt spirit. (Or 30ppm, as per Jordan, who is probably right.) This reads less phenolic than many similarly aged Springbanks and Ardmores. Could they have blended a couple unpeated casks into the vatting? No matter what's in the mix, this is another great official Bunnahabhain. If it were one-third the price, I'd buy a bottle!

Availability - A couple dozen retailers worldwide
Pricing - Europe: €350-€550 w/VAT; USA: $500-$600

Rating - 89

Arran 22 year old 1996 Old and Wise

On March 1st, after my regrettable full February of Glenfiddich 12, I wanted to drink something remarkable. As I window-shopped my favored online whisky shops, I began to wonder if I could afford "remarkable". Gradually a conclusion was formed. While I may be able to afford "remarkable", blindly buying countless three-figure-priced whiskies in the search for "remarkable" was a poor idea.

Even better, I have a heavily curated, but expansive, whisky stash that has a respectable remarkable-to-acceptable ratio. And that made me happy.

But I did buy a few samples of whiskies that looked mighty fine, in the hopes of finding a real gem. This twenty-two year-old Arran is one of those samples. I put my feet up on a lovely evening and tried the first half of the sample without notes. The second ounce of the sample was saved for today's review.

Distillery: Isle of Arran

Ownership: Isle of Arran Distillers

Age: 22 years (7 Feb 1996 - 5 July 2018)

Maturation: sherry hogshead

Cask number: 055

Outturn: 305

Alcohol by Volume: 50.9%

Chillfiltered? No

Caramel Colorant? No

(from a purchased sample)

The very pretty but very quiet nose leads with nutty sherry, apricots, plums and orange peels. Then Sprite, creamsicles, citronella and a candy shop note. It's lightly floral, with a slight oakiness. The palate is also fruity and soft, without ever being too sweet. Fresh stone and citrus fruits (more citrus with time). A bite of mango, hints of vanilla and flower kiss candy. A dose of oak spice and toasty notes, like nuts and coconut. The finish is the least woody part. No drying tannins, plenty of the palate's fruit notes (citrus, stone and mango) and a gently floral+sweet note reminiscent of Junmai Ginjo sake.

"Old and Wise"? I don't know. "Fruity and Fragile"? Yeah. And that's not a bad thing. Not every whisky has to be "Sturm und Drang". This is a pretty whisky, and possibly as light as 51% alcohol can be, which is why I didn't add water. One can appreciate its restrained measures of sherry and oak. I'm not prepared to part with $150+ to bring a whole bottle home, but it was a quiet pleasure and now it's time to move on.

Availability - A couple dozen European retailers
Pricing - Europe: €140-€160 w/VAT

Rating - 88

GlenAllachie 18 year old

On Monday I found Glenallachie's cask strength 10 year old to be problematic. On Tuesday, the 12 year old was just fine. Today, I'm reviewing the last of the trio of GlenAs, the 18 year old.

This Taste Off did not go as planned. Despite my commentary about Walker & Co's past doings and the weird branding choices, I do (or did) appreciate the good stuff Walker brought out of Allied's warehouses at Glendronach and Benriach. So I was hoping for, or even expecting, something fun from at least one of these whiskies. SPOILER ALERT: It wasn't to be.

Distillery: Glenallachie
Ownership: The Glenallachie Consortium
Region: Speyside (Aberlour)
Age: minimum 18 years old
Maturation: Oloroso, Pedro Ximenez and virgin oak casks
Alcohol by Volume: 46%
Chillfiltered: No
Colorant added: No
(from a purchased sample)

NEAT
All kinds of wood going on in the nose. At first there's pine sap, butter, caramel and eucalyptus. Then there are flowers, grapefruits and vanilla. And lumber. After 30+ minutes, it's roses, apricots and charred oak. The palate goes the opposite direction. It's loud and raw, feeling younger than the 12yo. It's herbal and grassy, loaded with white peppercorns and heat. Vanilla and marshmallows in the background. Pepper, vanilla, oranges and dried herbs in the hot finish.

DILUTED TO ~43%abv, or < ½ tsp of water per 30mL whisky
The nose calms down a little. Apple peels and cider, lemons and lumber. The palate becomes aggressively sweet. It also remains sharp and pepper and tart. The finish is sweet and herbal with a hint of pine sap.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
I agree with Serge and Ruben, the 12 beats the 18. What's worse is that the 12 is "just fine". And the 18 is $125+. Regarding the whisky itself, the 18 year old has Craft Whisky written all over it. Loads of oak, rough spirit, nothing in balance. I'm having a hard time finding the inspiration to finish my sample. (Editor's note: Into a highball it went!)

As always, I encourage you to read other reviews by writers whose palates are similar to your own. Perhaps you may find better luck with these Glenallachies. I have zero interest in trying another of their standard range again.

Availability - Many specialty whisky retailers
Pricing - Europe: €90-€110 (w/VAT); USA $125-$150

Rating - 77 (neat only)

GlenAllachie 12 year old

I'm reviewing three of the new GlenAllachie single malts this week. Yesterday, there was the 10yo CS batch 1 review. Today, it's the 12 year old. There was one BIG issue with that 10 year old. Let's see if it reoccurs with the 12.

I won't expand upon yesterday's Billy Walker riff. I do wish him and his company well because the scotch industry can always use some good new products. They have brought along the quirky capitalization practice as they had with GlenDronach and BenRiach, highlighting the Glens and the Bens. The "The" they've added to Glenallachie seems silly and way-1990s. But really, what's up with the Harry Potter font?

Onto the whisky:

Distillery: Glenallachie
Ownership: The Glenallachie Consortium
Region: Speyside (Aberlour)
Age: minimum 10 years old
Maturation: Oloroso, Pedro Ximenez and virgin oak casks
Alcohol by Volume: 46%
Chillfiltered: No
Colorant added: No
(from a purchased sample)

NEAT
The nose's top layer is a mix of malt, vanilla and wasabi. Beneath that are hints of honey, clementines, jellybeans, burlap and nutritional yeast. It picks up a slight dirty hay note with time. While there are malt, herbs and peppercorns in the palate, the biggest note, by far, is marshmallow. Hints of frosted shredded wheat, limes and fresh ginger show up now and then. The marshmallow note fades out before the finish, pushing the frosted shredded wheat, limes and fresh ginger notes to the fore.

DILUTED TO ~43%abv, or < ½ tsp of water per 30mL whisky
Even with just this little bit of water, the nose has changed. It's all apples, lemons, Riesling and sharp cheddar. The palate is a jumble of wood and grain. Barley and raw spirit. Toasted oak and bitter green oak. Moments of tart limes and hay. The finish matches the palate.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
The virgin oak issue is much less pronounced in the 12yo when compared to the 10yo CS, until one adds water. To stay positive-ish in this paragraph, I'll focus on the neat edition. The marshmallow note is curious, but there's a lot of barley, herbs and lime present, and the sweetness never spills over the top. It's simple, but very drinkable.

Yet again, the sherry casks are nearly invisible, which really isn't a problem until a few drops of water are added. And is "simple, but very drinkable" worth $50-$60? Not only does Glendronach's and Benriach's 12 year olds beat this whisky, but it loses to the new Loch Lomond 12 year old (I tried 'em side-by-side) as well. Still, I'd take GlenAllachie 12 over its more expensive, but younger, cask strength sibling.

Availability - Many specialty whisky retailers
Pricing - Europe: €40-€55 (w/VAT); USA $50-$60

Rating - 81 (neat only)

GlenAllachie 10 year old Cask Strength, batch 1

I have mixed feelings about Billy Walker's whisky work.

On one hand he did a masterful job building his GlenDronach brand by bottling high quality whisky made by a different owner (Allied). His team also bottled a modern classic, GlenDronach 15 year old Revival, until the old whisky ran out. He also created my favorite range of alternative cask finished peated whiskies over at Benriach. As far as the whisky actually made under his command, the GlenDronach Hielan is pretty good.

On the other hand, once the Glendronach honey casks started running low, lower quality casks were re-racked (or finished) in fresh sherry casks and that was never disclosed to consumers. The cask strength Benriach whiskies distilled by his team, and his peated Glendronach are multiple levels below the quality of the whiskies distilled by previous owners.

Also note this timeframe:
2014 - Glendronach's re-racking and unreliable labelling became widely known thanks to great work by My Annoying Opinions and Ralfy.
2015 - Glendronach 15 year old Revival is removed from the range. Whiskies distilled by Billy Walker's team see their first release.
2016 - Glendronach and Benriach are sold to Brown-Forman.

This was a wise business move, selling high before risking any further damage to the brands. At the same time, it would be understandable of current or former Glendronach and Benriach enthusiasts are less enthusiastic about this series of events.

A year after the big sale, a consortium that included Billy Walker purchased Glenallachie distillery (and a whole lotta stock) from Pernod Ricard. In 2018, Walker-era single malts, branded as The GlenAllachie, appeared on the market. I will be reviewing three of these standard range whiskies this week. Let's see what been done with Pernod's Glenallachie casks.

Distillery: Glenallachie
Ownership: The Glenallachie Consortium (seriously?)
Region: Speyside (Aberlour)
Age: minimum 10 years old
Maturation: Oloroso, Pedro Ximenez and virgin oak casks
Outturn: 12,000 bottles
Alcohol by Volume: 57.1%
Chillfiltered: No
Colorant added: No
(from a purchased sample)

NEAT
The nose is a virgin oak candyland, all taffy, vanilla, caramel and coconut. There's also grapefruit, eucalyptus, orange popsicles and gummy bears. The palate starts out hot and tangy. Beneath the heat is A LOT of sugar with bits of bitterness and barley. Plenty of vanilla, specifically vanilla marshmallows. It finishes sweet and hot. Vanilla and barley with hints of limes and bitterness.

DILUTED TO ~46%abv, or ½ tbl of water per 30mL whiskey
The nose becomes simpler and more focused. It's just vanilla, flowers and tropical fruit candy. The palate is still very sweet. There's also tart citrus, toasty oak and a hint of woody bitterness in the mix. The tart, peppery finish has more woody bitterness and vanilla than the palate.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
I could tell you that the nose was so-so and the palate never really worked, but I'd rather focus on the cask issues here. The PX casks are nowhere to be found and the Oloroso casks are smothered. There's just so much new or recharred American oak in the glass that I'm left wondering, "How crummy were the Pernod casks?" Mark Reynier & Co went with wine casks when they inherited questionable Bruichladdich stock. Walker & Co are going with new oak? I hope this is not seen as a permanent solution. Will the other two GlenAllachies fare better?

Availability - Many specialty whisky retailers
Pricing - Europe: €55-€70 (w/VAT); USA $60-$80

Rating - 76

The Rum Dummy drinks 2 Foursquare rums

Randy Brandy isn't the only funny writer on this site. The Rum Dummy has jokes!

Hey look, I am drinking two Foursquares, or should I say......Sixteen?

No wait, there's two. I'll start again.

Hey look, I am drinking two Foursquares, or should I say......Thirty-two?

But what if it's two times four to the second power. I'll start again.

Hey look, I am drinking two Foursquares, or should I say......Sixty-four?

Wait wait that doesn't work because it's Foursquares not Foursquared. I'll start again.

Hey look, I am drinking two Foursquares, or should I say......Eightsquares?

So?

Pretty good, huh?

Yeah, just wait until I review some Uitvlugt. Uitvlugt. Hilarious, right?

The first rum today is:

Foursquare 10 year old Criterion (bourbon & Madeira casks) blended rum 56%abv

Richard Seale of Foursquare distillery uses big words like "Criterion" and "Exceptional" on the bottle label, which are weird words to see on a rum label. But I also see "Blended" and "Rum", and I know what those words mean. People who sold these bottles said the rum was aged in bourbon casks for 3 years, then Madeira casks for seven years. They could be right, I don't know.

Nose - Bourbon, dusty old shoes, cocoa, caramel, cloves, pinot noir, honey mustard and vanilla. Putting water in the rum makes the rum smell spicier.
Palate - It's hot on my palate and also tannic. Also lemons, sweet oranges, cinnamon and little bit of almost-Jamaican funk. Putting water in the rum makes the rum taste mostly the same, maybe sweeter.
Finish - Long, hot, tangy, sweet, bitter oak and baking spices. Putting water in the rum cools down the finish, leaving it very tannic.

It smells very very good. Tastes mostly good. Lots and lots of woodiness though. I don't know how much this matters because no one's selling this rum anymore.

NOT WHISKY RATING: B-

Hey, I also know some funny limericks!

Oh, yeah, there's another rum here. Stick around for my funny limericks after the second rum.

The second rum is:

Foursquare 12 year old 2005 (bourbon casks) blended rum, 59%abv

This is kinda like a sequel to the 11 year old I reviewed last year. Just bourbon casks. The 12 year old rum's label says "full proof" just like 11 year old's and is the same exact ABV as the 11 year old. Is that magic? I'm so confused.

Nose - It smells medicinal. And there's caramel, vanilla, milk chocolate, plastic toys, citrus and root beer. Putting water in the rum doesn't change it much.
Palate - Softer than the nose. Smaller medicinal note. Toasted almonds, caramel sauce, bourbon and bourbony cherry note. Putting water in the rum makes it tannic and sweet.
Finish - Sugar, hotness, vanilla, caramel, a little bit of funk. Very long. Putting water in the rum makes it tannic and sweet.

This is like a bourbon from an ex-Islay cask. Sort of. Better wood notes than the Criterion. Better finish too. I like it better.

NOT WHISKY RATING: B

Okay, so here's my first funny limerick.

There once was a girl from Enmore
Who dressed like--

THOSE RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS POST HAVE BEEN SACKED