A Trip Down the Spey

Our second tasting in January was based around the Speyside region whilst also taking into account the cashflow issue following the New Year. We lined up 5 bottles that all came in at under £50 each with some usually overlooked bottlers and distilleries for a bit of variety.

So without further ado..

Glen Elgin 18 Yr old - Signatory 46%

Glen Elgin is rarely found as a single malt bottling. This is one of Diageo's portfolio that has been deemed only worthy of supplying whisky for their blended ranges. Glen Elgin predominantly goes into the famous White Horse range where it plays its part as the backbone of the blend.

There is only 1 official recent bottling of Glen Elgin as a single malt by Diageo, a 12 year old. This particular 18 year old we have was matured for the full 18 years in 2 refill hogshead casks before being bottled in November 2013 by famous indy bottlers - Signatory and is non Chill filtered with no added colour.

The nose is very fresh, fruity and malty with pear and Bird's custard with slight elderflower cordial notes. The palate while very smooth is sweet and syrupy, like tinned peach with slight wood influence and sugared porridge. Simple in its own way but satisfying. A medium length finish again sweet, this time caramel and peanut brittle.

A good solid start and coming in at £45 for a NCF natural colour 18yr old Speysider, you might find it hard to turn this one down and makes a nice change to the usual suspects.




Glenlivet 16 Yr old - Signatory 46%


Glenlivet is the second best selling single malt whisky in the world. This is mainly thanks to the US market where it currently stands as the most popular malt.

It is not surprising that Glenlivet hold this title, you can now find the 12 year old in practically every major supermarket in the UK and a swathe of pub chains and bars. Glenlivet are vying for the title of most popular single malt with regional neighbours and current title holders of the most popular malt worldwide, Glenfiddich. Glenlivet are owned by Pernod Ricard who's portfolio also includes other major names such as Aberlour and Longmorn as well as Irish distillers, Midleton.

This particular Glenlivet has been matured for 16 years in a 1st fill Sherry Butt before being bottled in November 2013 by Signatory, our second of the night by this popular bottler. Again this is Non chill filtered and natural colour.

The colour is noticeably darker than the Glen Elgin due to the sherry butt maturation. The nose offers warm toffee and a good sherry balance, not overly rich or too overpowering. There are notes of green apple peel and dried cranberry. The palate was a luscious mix of the balanced sherry character, warm chocolate sponge, banana chips and toblerone. The finish was long and warming and a slowly sweetening baked apple pie note. Delicious, for £47 you can't go wrong with this one.


Miltonduff-Glenlivet 19 Yr old - Cadenheads 46%

What? Another Glenlivet? Really? This is a bit boring surely? You'd be forgiven for thinking that from the title - Miltonduff-Glenlivet, that we're looking at another of the Glenlivet distillery's range, but no. This is a 19yr old Miltonduff, traditionally there are many distilleries named with Glenlivet in the title, Aberlour again for example is traditionally called Aberlour-Glenlivet as Glenlivet is a catchment area, like a postcode in a sense.

This bottling of the often overlooked Miltonduff was bottled in 2013 by famous indy bottlers Cadenheads for their small batch range, again this is non chill filtered and natural colour. Miltonduff is again a blend focused malt with the majority of production going into Chivas blends such as Ballantine's and rarely seen as a single malt.

This appeared to have been matured in what seems to be a first fill bourbon cask with a rich golden colour.

The nose was fruity, very rich in blackberry, apple and raspberries with a malty underlyer, akin to a blackberry and apple crumble. The palate again was rich, fruity, tropical this time like a tropical fruit juice, almond biscuit and vanilla. The finish is long with more vanilla and lingering fruits. This one went down well and provided good value for £49.95 (the most expensive of the night).



Glenfarclas 105 - 60% 

Our first distillery bottling of the night and what better way to kick this off than with a famous, family owned Speyside distiller? We've already tried one Glenfarclas at the Whisky Shop, this however is a different kettle of fish. A 60% 'No Age Statement, or NAS, (although its a 10 yr old) sherry finished whisky famous for its value for money with single malt anoraks..

The colour on the 105 is a dark gold, akin to the Glenlivet earlier on.

The nose carries those typical Glenfarclas-esque sherry delights alongside macadamia nuts, bitter chocolate and coffee grinds. Not a note you often find in whisky but it plays its part very well alongside the sherry influence.

On the palate the whisky finally spreads its wings with its 60% strength with indonesian long pepper, the coffee from the nose, more nuts and fudge. This leads in to a long and heated finish carrying more of the pepper from the palate and oak.

£42 you say? For a 60% sherried whisky at natural colour, this is a great affordable Speysider to have in the house all the time. Bargain.



Aberlour A'bunadh - 60.7%  Batch 47

Aberlour A'bunadh is possibly one of the most famous and popular sherried whiskies of recent times. A'bunadh is a no age statement batch release range of 1st fill Olorosso sherry cask matured, cask strength Aberlour Whisky.

This particular bottling is from the most recent batch #47 bottled in January 2014! Each batch varies massively and we had the benefit of Adam bringing his remaining Batch #46 to test side by side.

Batch 46 (bottled 2013) 60.4% - A rich nose with blueberry, melted nutty fudge, brown sugar, sherry. The palate was relatively punchy with dry sherry, fried pineapple, burnt toast with marmalade and demerara sugar. Finish long and lingering.

Batch 47 (2014) 60.7% - A well balanced nose, sherry, Madagascan chocolate, orange rind in a still
unbaked Christmas cake mix and a mixed nut tin. The palate was a bit more in tune with itself again with the sherry leading the fore alongside red currant sauce, Nutella on toast and freshly baked ginger biscuits. The finish was similar to the 46, long, but mellowing to show the sherry's true deep character that really did last for a long time.

From memory it was a bit of a split between the 46 and 47 so was down to personal preference and taste which is one of the great things about whisky.

The 47 retails at around £39.99 which not only made it the cheapest of the night but the most popular, there's a reason that people say Ablerlour A'bunadh is possibly the best 'bang for buck' whisky out there.

Natural cask strength, matured in 1st fill Olorosso Sherry butts, what's not to like?


The night was a roaring success with a good even split between the Glenlivet, Miltonduff and Aberlour in terms of popularity. It just goes to show that if you take a step off the beaten path, you can find little gems like the Miltonduff and that you don't have to spend a fortune to go home with a high quality, well made and enjoyable single malt from this utterly fantastic whisky making region.

Happy New... Whisky

Bringing in the New Year is often filled with resolutions such as "I'll get fit" (you know who you are) and those utter lunatics that somehow give up drinking for the entirety of the month of January.

At the Manchester Whisky Club however, we brought in the New Year the only way we know how. With whisky. Lots of whisky. To help us do this was the newest branch of The Whisky Shop which has taken up residence on St Anne's Square in the city and has quickly embedded itself as part of Manchester's retail elite.

We took the opportunity for our first club 'away day' at the shop with both hands. Here Jo and Ed put on a tasting just for the club featuring the shop's ever growing range of exclusive bottlings.

First up...

Glenfarclas 9yr - The W Club Bottling 46%

Anyone that has started exploring malts and whisky veterans alike can only but admire Glenfarclas. Both in it's traditional approach as an independent and family owned distillery, a rare thing indeed nowadays, and in the sheer quality of the whisky that George Grant and the rest of the team produce.

Albeit on the younger end of the scale for what you normally see from Glenfarclas. This bottling had been matured in first fill Olorosso Sherry casks and bottled to mark the formation of the shop's W Club in 2012.

Initially there are notes of classic Glenfarclas sherry, carrot cake and frosting, vanilla, brown sugar and nuts. The palate followed suit with brandy raisins, malt, marmalade and christmas cake. Another good expression from the Farclas stable.

Glenrothes 9yr - Douglas of Drumlanrig - 46% 

A 9yr old Glenrothes matured in a sherry butt, that appeared to be 1st fill due to it's dark copper colour. Glenrothes is an interesting Speyside malt owned by Berry Bros. This particular bottling is another Whisky Shop exclusive, distilled in May 2004 and bottled in August 2013, one of 210 bottles.

Another young whisky here although the nose would suggest an older malt, maybe of around 13-15 years. A very rich and luscious nose with citrus peels, honey and warm sponge cake. The palate followed this through with a surprisingly dry and balanced oak character.

BenRiach 17 Single Cask - 53.1%

Our 3rd Speysider of the night and our 2nd bottle of BenRiach in the whisky club. This time a 17yr old cask strength beast matured in American oak and that unstoppable whisky industry fad, Virgin Oak. BenRiach are an often overlooked Speyside distillery that produces a very consistently high quality spirit and offers a vast range of affordable bottling's with many varying styles and finishes.

Without water this offered pine resin, vanilla custard, leaning towards a red rope liquorice note. The palate, as you'd expect from 53%, was full, warming and delicious. Again sweet and leading with a demerara syrup note, as mentioned by Adam on his own blog, this was very alike a good quality Rye in many a sense. A long and lingering finish was a great sign off for this great drop from BenRiach.

Laphroaig 8yr - Douglas of Drumlanrig -46%

The first time you see this whisky you'd be forgiven for thinking; "Okay, very funny, who's replaced my whisky with the weakest chamomile tea imaginable?". This is a young refill bourbon matured Laphroaig bottled by the Douglas of Drumlanrig range. It's incredibly light in colour, whisky buffs with an knack for noting a whisky's colour might even struggle to use the often found 'golden straw' on this one. But the colour lulls you into a false sense of security..

Nose, oh hello Laphroaig my old friend. Smoked herring, black pepper, liquorice root and that trademark sweet peaty TCP like goodness we've come to know and love from this distillery. The palate was treated to a sudden peat bomb, although not hugely powerful, this was a well balanced peated whisky for its age. A short but continuously sweetening finish provided a chorus of "Mmmnn" from the group.


Overall a fantastic night and huge thanks to Joe and Ed from The Whisky Shop in Manchester for putting this on for us. The winner on the night? Well the Laphroaig just managed to steal top spot with the Benriach close behind. A good example of the exclusives range available here and good to see that Manchester finally has the whisky shop it deserves and that it is doing so well.

Long may it continue.

Campbeltown Capers

At the end of November we held another one of our now legendary tastings dedicated to the small and often overlooked region of Campbeltown in Scotland. Campbeltown is one of if not the smallest whisky producing region in Scotland.

In the late 1800's and early 1900's Campbeltown was known as 'The Whisky Capital of the World' as over 20 active distilleries operated in a very small area. However, since the demand for Scotch whisky in the US was so high, the quality of the spirit produced by the majority of the distilleries was very low.

When Prohibition was implemented in the US, most of the distilleries in Campbeltown closed. They could no longer sell off their stock and for those distilleries that had kept the spirit quality high could sell to the UK market generally speaking.

We've covered whiskies from every area except this to date so now we jumped in with both feet to sample some of the delights from the Mull of Kintyre.

Kilkerran Work in Progress V - Bourbon Wood 46%

Kilkerran is the trading name of the recently opened Glengyle distillery operated by J&A Mitchell of Springbank fame. The distillery was one of those affected by a culmination of Prohibition and the great depression.

However, Glengyle has been operational now for over 9 years and have been releasing these 'Work In Progress' bottling's as a way  not only to introduce people to the brand but also as a way of contributing to keeping the distillery going.

A very spicy, creamy and punchy 9yr old whisky this. This year is the first time Kilkerran releases have come as a pair! One matured in bourbon casks and another in ex sherry casks. The bourbon caks dram offers not only the spice mentioned above but also fresh green apple notes and a lovely vanilla overlay.

This is a very good whisky indeed and you can easily see the quality of the spirit that J&A are putting into this. More official releases will be on their way when the stock matures. I can see great things coming through Glengyle's doors.

Hazelburn 12 - 46%

Hazelburn is actually distilled at the famous Springbank distillery. Whereas Springbank and its smokier brother Longrow pack a peaty punch, Hazelburn is the Distillery's un peated bottling. Hazelburn is named after another of the now defunct Campbeltown distilleries.

The spirit is distilled 2 and a half times, almost akin to triple distilled malts such as Auchentoshan and a lot of Irish whiskey. However, not quite. 

This malt carries a very fresh, salty sea air element reminiscent of an Islay or North Highland malt. There is also toffee, fresh porridge and honey on show.

Glen Scotia 21yr Bottled by Cadenheads - 52.2%

Originally founded in 1832, Glen Scotia has a bit of a patchy and unfortunate history. In 1930 the then owner of the distillery, Duncan Macallum, took his own life after losing a lot of money in a dodgy business deal by drowning himself in a local loch. Nice.

Glen Scotia has been mothballed several times and reopened. Most recently a stint in the 1980's.

This 21 yr old has been bottled by Cadenheads and comes from a single ex bourbon hogshead cask. It displays notes of haylege, cream and apple whilst retaining salty character and slight frames of smoke encasing the whole thing. A pleasant and interesting dram.

Springbank 12yr Cask Strength Batch 5 -  53.1%

There are 3 different Malts distilled at Springbank distillery. However tonight we looked at just the 1 to carry the Distillery's name on the label. This was Batch 5 of Springbank's 12yr old Cask Strength range.

Springbank malts its own barley on site, one of the few distilleries still to do so in Scotland, it also contains an element of peated malt providing a well rounded and chunky character.

This particular bottling was very up front in its intentions and exploded with pear, salt, chunky toffee, grilled toast, and with a long and lasting finish warming till the end yet retaining a surprising smoothness throughout.

Longrow Peated -  46%

Longrow is the third and final malt to be distilled at Springbank. This bottling is one of the newest additions to the range and is a heavily peated no age statement single malt.

There are other expressions of Longrow including a delectable 18yr old but with this particular bottling coming in at a very reasonable £35-£40 it would be very rude not to give it a go.

The Longrow was at first quite tight and only giving away hints of what was to come. There was woodsmoke on the nose alongside ginger snap baskets and fresh bread. Then surprisingly citrus fruit and nuts. The palate carried through with a good mouthfeel and charred naan, salt, white pepper and vanilla sponge.


Out of the lineup the Springbank CS Batch 5 was the standout winner closely followed by the Longrow and Kilkerran. A great example of what variety such a small region can bring whilst retaining character and recognisable characteristics.

Lighting the Beacons

On the 7th November we were excited to have Welsh distiller Penderyn at the club for an incredible tasting session.

Previous experiences including all previous tasting notes can be found here: http://manchesterwhiskyclub.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/rhyfeddod-cymru.html

Over the course of the evening we samples the Penderyn 41 madeira, Penderyn Madeira, Penderyn portwood, Penderyn Peated and a very special last dram..

Rather than type up a load of notes about what went on. Why not have a look at some of the videos below and see for yourself!

... MD Stephen and Chairman Neil also brought along with them a special bottling for us to try too. An Olorosso mature single cask Penderyn weighing in at 50% vol.

Penderyn Sherry Single Cask

 Nose - Wonderfully balanced sherry sweetness without overpowering the other notes of herbs, orange rind, medjool dates, raisins and home made chocolate brownie.

Palate - Surprisingly fresh and crisp, sherry very playful across the tongue. Notes of dark chocolate, butter fried boxing day christmas pudding, tinned fruits with cream and vanilla.

The colour of this dram is something in itself, it is not as dark as an older sherry whisky but it looks very fresh, ambient and sprightly in the glass.

A real treat and huge thanks to Stephen and Neil for coming up and taking the time to take us all through the history and styles of Penderyn. Later on I found out a fair few clubbers had gone out and bought bottles of Portwood and Peated after the tasting!

Smoke in the Water

Yet more fantastic work from Jack

On all hallows eve 2013, the Manchester Whisky Club met to take on an array of peaty whisky head
on.

This was our first fully peated lineup featuring 5 drams not only from peat's spiritual home of Islay but included a few surprises from elsewhere too. Where? Let's have a look...

Tomatin Cú Bócan- (Highlands) 46%

First up we started off with one of the new releases of 2013. Highland distiller Tomatin (whose core range we tasted back in February), have just released their first official peated release.

Named after a mysterious specter in the form of a large black dog that is described as being seen 'once in a generation', that was supposedly sighted one night by a distillery worker many years ago. He was relentlessly pursued by the beast when, in an inexplicable moment of madness he turned around and

faced the creature. He extended his hand and upon touching the large black tooth bearing hound, it vanished in a puff of smoke that then crept back along the peat moor... So, all that nonsense aside on to the whisky.

Nose - We had notes of vanilla, slight almond, and some mentioned citrus content.

Palate - Quite thin, a few honey and star anise notes alongside apple peel and golden syrup, finally opening to reveal a relatively thin smoke.

Finish - The finish is quite long and lingers. Some sugary and vanilla notes associated with the bourbon aspect of its maturation are present.

Peated at 15ppm this is light and delicate. In all honesty a few people commented more emphasis had been placed on the packaging and marketing than the spirit inside.


Millstone Peated - (Netherlands) 40%

After being revealed to the club after tasting. This one caused a bit of a stir as not only was this not an Islay whisky, but wasn't even from Scotland or the UK!

Zuidam's Millstone Peated is a 5 year old small batch pot still whisky bottled at 40%.

Nose - Quite spicy and close, a bit clunky if anything. Notes of blood orange, blackberry, pepper and a bit of cream. There is a constant burnt log background to it. A burnt oak log covered in blackberries and cream if you will...joking.

Palate - A rich peated note makes itself known immediately with honey and Tunnock's wafers and a spicy punch.

Finish - The peat lingers alongside cloves and plenty of wood influence thanks the the american oak barrels used for the malt's maturation.

Overall a pleasant surprise for everyone! From memory no-one in the room had tried any dutch malts previously and provided our first hint of peaty things to come!


Bunnahabhain Toiteach (Islay) 46%

Next up a very interesting bottle of whisky. Bunnahabhain is well known as being one of if not THE lightest peated spirit from Islay. However, here they have taken a different approach to their 'Gentle alt' approach and have released a heavily peated Bunnahabhain!

Nose - The nose was a tough one, everyone noted how musky and closed it was. Some notes of polished oak, a bit of dark chocolate and burning tyres..hmm

Palate - A completely different story here and this is where the Toiteach (Gaelic for smoky) came into
its own. Notes of burnt raisin, treacle toffee, cloves, and the punchy peat. Now when we say 'heavily peated Bunnahabhain' we're not talking Laphroaigian or Ardbegian levels here but for a Bunna it's got teeth. The peat worked wonderfully alongside notes of milk chocolate and roast chestnuts.

Finish - Long and rich, the peat starts to soften now with plumb crumble and black cherry.

An interesting Bunnahabhain for certain and whilst not throwing as many peat punches compared some of it's Islay counterparts, this 11yr old malt certainly stands up well. An interesting contrast between nose and palate as the nose certainly wasn't the best start.



BenRiach 17 Septendecim - (Speyside) 46%

Now. What's this? A peated Speyside whisky? Are you mad? Nope... well.. a bit. But peated whiskies have been leaving Speyside's green lands for many generations. In fact, it is aid that back in the late 1800's and early 1900's Speyside's staple style revolved around peated malts. Not the rich sherry monsters we know and love today.

BenRiach are one of the few independent distilleries still in operation and have in fact been so successful they have since bought GlenDronach and Glenglassaugh distilleries. The majority of Benriach's expressions are non peated with many sherry finishes, rum finishes and wine finishes. However, our of 2.3 million litres of spirit that the distillery produces, around 150,000 is peated and the distillery only runs peated spirit for 6 weeks of the year.

Nose - Playful and sprightly for a whisky of its age. Rich vanilla, orchard fruit and lots of heather honey with a lovely rounded peat note throughout. There are Speyside notes here that give hints to its location.

Palate - A thick oily mouthfeel (always a good sign) carries a fantastic spicy warm peat through onto the palate. The peatiest so far in fact and with it came cinnamon, lots of malt and cereal with yet more honey and salted caramel.

Finish -  The gift that keeps on giving. Pink peppercorns, and golden syrup with the peat slowly fading. Delicious.

A fantastic BenRiach which really shows off the distillery's diversity. The 17 offers a lot of bang for your buck and BenRiach can hold their heads up high with this release. Impressive.

Kilchoman 100% Islay 3rd Edition (Islay) - 50%

Kilchoman (pronounced Kill-ho-man) is Islay's smallest and most recently established distillery. The 100% Islay is named as such as the whisky is made from barley grown on the distillery's farm location, then malted, distilled, matured and bottled there too. So this whisky has been made form start to finish on site. Very impressive.

Bottled at a healthy 50% this is a 4 year old bottling matured in bourbon casks from Buffalo Trace and is actually a vatting of 4 & 5 year old whisky. Kilchoman's capacity currently stands at around 150,000 litres a year and was established in 2005.

Nose - Haylage, spiced pear tart, kelp, lemon syrup and slight vanilla alongside a savoury grilled meat note, with the peat only fleeting at this point. Merely a hint as to what is to come?

Palate - A very oily consistency and the peat makes itself known here with a smoky ensemble. Quite a dry smoke it is too with one note describing a cigar rolled on a ladies thigh by one person in the room (a lady herself). Besides the ladies thigh we also had mention of grain and cereals and crunchy green apple.

Finish - This all leads to a not insubstantial finish with the peat continuing through but giving way to light syrup notes, orange and habanero  pepper creating a lasting and warming impression.

The Kilchoman was received with mixed review with some feeling it was lacking in variety and overpriced for the contents inside.

Another night down for the club and as usual, and quite rightly, opinion was split. These varying bottlings went to show what different production methods, cask finishes, strength and even location can do to differentiate peated spirit. Great fun all round!

We're in for a treat in November with 2 brilliant tastings lined up. With our next post covering our recent tasting hosted by the lovely chaps at Penderyn, coming later this week, with our Campbeltown tasting coming at the end of the month!

We'd like to point out all opinions expressed through this blog are exactly that, our opinions!

Highland Fling

Our 9th club meeting was dedicated to Scotland's Highland region.

Some of the world's most popular brands stem from this large and picturesque area and quite rightly so. Highland malts often have a reputation for big chunky flavours but can also offer very delicate and rounded treats in some cases.

This time though we did things a bit differently. We were going to taste the malts blind so nobody knew what was being tasted until each had been finished and revealed. This is a great way to really get to grips with a whisky. Sometimes opinions and even the tastes themselves can be affected by previous experience or even prejudice with a brand.

So when everyone was assembled we cracked on.

#1

The first dram we looked at was light in colour, whisky boffins might refer to it as 'golden straw'

Nose - Strong malt, orange peel, bitter chocolate, lots of seasonal spices, Tom got apple and Adam picked up on some nutty notes.

Palate - Initially the malt from the nose dominates the palate, however as Matthew pointed out, some green fruits begin to make an appearance with toffee.

Finish - Quite long, more toffee with lingering notes of digestive biscuits and cream.

Suggestions for what distillery this might be from included Edradour (Adam), Old Pulteney (Katharine) and Glen Garioch (Anna), so, what was it?...

This was revealed as being an 11yr Dalmore! Bottled at 46% by by Douglas Laing & Co for their Provenance range with no added colour and being non chill filtered this is one Dalmore that shows what this distillery is capable of without adding bucket fulls of E150a colouring and keeping the spirit above 40%!

#2 

Onto the second dram. This was a very rich and playful golden colour in the glass.

Nose - We had lots of people mentioning various types of fruit, pears, orange, citrus, but quite a few claiming some tropical fruit notes including mango and pineapple. Interesting. Again, lots of spice content here alongside perhaps a slight wisp of smoke and honey? A very complex and satisfying nose.

Palate - More spice here, Stina noted the salty/brine notes and then came the fruit again, some still maintaining it's tropical edge. Again is that a slight hint of smoke in there? Not peat but smoke itself.
Hmm

Finish - Again, long and spicy with notes of nutmeg.

Suggestions for this distillery included - Balblair (Stina) Old Pulteney (Katharine), Clynelish (Matthew) among others..

The prize goes to Matthew! This was revealed as being a 15 yr old Clynelish single cask (#6470) from London Wine & Spirit Merchants Berry Bros & Rudd! Again bottled at 46% without added colour and no chill filtration.

Matthew (left) Partying like its 1899 after nailing the Clynelish

#3

After the delicious Clynelish everyone was looking forward to what appeared to be one of the darkest drams of the night. This appeared in the glass as a lovely deep copper.

Nose - Wow, Speyside alert! We had cries of raisins! (Tom), Brandy butter (Stina)! Nuts (Richard), Soreen, and lots of milk chocolate. 

Palate - Spicy, vanilla cream, again some comments of tropical fruit also oak and cinnamon.

Finish - Medium length, leading with a nutty undertone, Almonds (Richard)

Suggestions for this one.. Glen Garioch (Anna.. seeing a pattern here), Ben Nevis and Oban

This was revealed as the Glencadam 21 yr old. The distillery bottling and bottled at 46%, this displayed impressive depth and was very well rounded.

Chemist Corner after the ban on words ending in 'eyne' 'ite' 'thol' etc

Stina getting expressive about grain barns

#4

The next dram appeared a lot lighter in the glass so straight away raised a few eyebrows.. surely lighter means not as deep and flavoursome yes?..

Nose - Lots of pepper (various), spearmint/menthol,
milk chocolate, a grain barn aroma (Stina), cistrus peel and ginger.

Palate - Return of the pepper (various), also pepper similar to rocket leafs (Simeon) toffee (Clive), honey, peach syrup and became creamy over time

Finish - Quite long again with that slight cream note carrying a lot of lovely spice and a wave of fruit.

Nobody really had any ideas as to what this dram might be.. so this was revealed as being a 19 yr old Deanston from Master of Malt's single cask range. Bottled at 53.4% with no chill filtration or added colour. Yum


#5

Now came our final dram of the night. With a colour akin to the Glencadam this was still relatively light compared to most whiskies.

Nose - For a start there were lots of muffled noises of appreciation and 'hhmm' 'oof' and 'aah'. Honey, biscuits (Martin), a very savoury edge to it, some sort of gamey meat? An unusual quality ina  whisky. Herbal again, heather all the while a playful apple strudel note phasing in and out.

Palate - What's this, a partner in pepper crime? Pepper seemed to be the order of the day again here with rainbow peppercorns noted (Peter), a delightful deep rich fruityness akin to a black forest gateau and brandy soaked raisins.

Finish - Looooong, I can still almost taste it as I type this. Oak influence creeping in here but retains a lot of its fruity character pulling through with vanilla cream with apple & blackberry crumble.

Now again this one was a bit of a mystery.

Its a Glen Garioch (pronounced 'Glen-Geery') Another single cask offering from Master of Malt, this time a 20 yr old bottled at a whopping 58.8%. Nobody could believe its strength and all agreed that it can easily be sipped at its bottled strength.

Overall a fantastic and varied line up that really showed why Highland whisky is so popular. On another note it was great to see household names (such as the Dalmore) in a much more natural way without any chill filtration or added colouring! That's how things should be.

We'll be back with another blog post soon covering our Paul John whisky tasting back in September!

Tweet Tasting 2 - #TBWCwhisky That Boutique-y Whisky Co.

On Thursday the 6th September, 20 members of the Manchester Whisky Club flocked to Twitter to take part in it's second Tweet Tasting. We had been kindly supplied with a fantastic array of whisky from Master of Malt. However, this was no ordinary whisky, for here we had 5 drams from their fantastic 'That Boutique-y Whisky Company' range.

Each bottling release is a single cask release, making each bottling, even if from the same distillery, completely unique. The range is quickly becoming famous for its quirky cartoon based labels using whisky 'in jokes' and themes based on the distillery being featured. These provide a breath of fresh air compared to the usual boring beige or white we're used to seeing adorn our favourite spirit.

All bottlings are NAS (No Age Statement), NCF (Non Chill Filtered) and Cask Strength.

At 7.30pm the tasting began using the tag #TBWCwhisky.

Tomintoul Batch 1 - 47.8%

Only available here for £44.95

The first batch from Speyside distillery Tomintoul is very light in colour, possibly 2nd or 3rd fill bourbon cask and collectively everyone thought this was probably a young spirit.

The label shows the chaps from the Bramble bar in Edinburgh knocking up a signature Bramble cocktail. This bottling has a token on the back that can actually be redeemed for one of these cocktails at the bar! Genius!

Nose - 

@MCRWhiskyClub Tomintoul nose - Elderflower,slight hint of peach and malt, bakewell tart? #TBWCwhisky

@WhiskyTube Tomintoul Batch 1 - N - More floral notes coming through now with delicate honey suckle and fresh summer daisies #TBWCwhisky

@OfMustandMash Tomintoul - the malty grain come through mainly. A lovely roundness to it too #TBWCwhisky

@MCRWhiskyClub After water the nose for me transforms to green apple crumble and custard! and for some strange reason, the xmas decorations box #TBWCwhisky

Palate - 

@Elunslakedhyena Tomintoul tastes like candy with a floral, blossomy nose. #TBWCWhisky

@the_lady_sybil Palate spiky, peppery. Almonds are still there, but in towards the finish. Lingers centrally warm and sweet #TBWCwhisky #Tomintoul

@WhiskyTube Creamy summer fudge with a slight biscuity barley note #TBWCwhisky

@Tomm3h Taste is light, without being overly citrusy. Definitely needs water #TBWCwhisky

Finish - 

@Grahamyus To conclude. A small gingerbread man crossing a cauldron of apple cinnamon punch whilst eating peppery toffees #tbwcwhisky

@Tomm3h Aftertaste, root vegetables... Parsnips or swede. Quite different, in fact #TBWCwhisky

Arran Batch 2 - 49.4%

Available exclusively here for £39.95

Deeper in colour than the Tomintoul, probably 1st fill bourbon cask or a longer period spent in 2nd fill. The label shows the famous Eagles of Arran, palm trees (which do actually thrive on Arran due to its relatively temperate climate!) and the arran ferry.

Nose - 
@WhiskyTube This nose is almost erotic! Apple danish with lashings of maple syrup #TBWCwhisky

@GregHarding #TBWCwhisky - concur with saltiness. Hints of Pork Scratchings, drizzled in sherbet lit with a swan vesta match


@MCRWhiskyClub Again citrus on the nose, cinnamon, possibly a hint of fresh linen and subtle fruits. Not sure which ones yet.. #TBWCwhisky

Palate - 
@OfMustandMash oak well integrated, creamy cooked fruits...lovely complexity #TBWCwhisky

@msykesjones #TBWCwhisky Getting the fruits in the mouth, plums, pears maybe

@Elunslakedhyena It's like John Travolta doing Saturday night fever in tangerine boots. #TBWCWhisky

@RikGarner #TBWCwhisky a touch of brandy on the palette, matches the crisp apple nose

@MCRWhiskyClub AHA! I have you now.. fig rolls! #TBWCwhisky
Heather honey and pink peppercorn on arrival, juicy satsuma, pineapple!? & a melody of malt alongside. Lovely #TBWCwhisky

Finish - 
@MCRWhiskyClub Lovely and rounded, very malty in true Arran style. No water with this for me :) Cracker #TBWCwhisky

@Rlwjones This Arran is pretty sensational. Good job the place never sank into the sea, like David Icke predicted. #TBWCwhisky

@WhiskyTube Finish on the Arran is fantastic! Spiced coconut with all that honey/orange/wood smoke filling the mouth! #TBWCwhisky


Aultmore Batch 2 - 56.0%

Available exclusively here for £41.95

Diageo's Aultmore is normally blend fodder, so it's nice to see it as an indie release. Since there are, in all honesty, no interesting backstories or whisky folktales about Aultmore, Master of Malt went for the masterpiece below, yes, that's a whisky label. Possibly the best we've ever seen.

Nose - 
@Tomm3h Hmm.. A scent of fresh Barley straw coming through. #farmerchildhood #TBWCwhisky

@Elunslakedhyena Cocoa, plums, currents, bit of peach. Varnished wooden floors. #Aultmore #TBWCWhisky

@ChrisKnighting Aultmore has a magic nose, menthol, big cherries #tbwcwhisky

@msykesjones #TBWCwhisky with water, really opens up, spice, cloves quite complex

@OfMustandMash starting to get something now: stewed apple and a bit of apricot too and a layer of mint #TBWCwhisky

@MCRWhiskyClub Rhubarb, garden after a rain shower, oak, slight vanilla, treacle toffee, marmite glazed Cumberland sausage! #TBWCwhisky
Nose w/ water - Full of vanilla and butterscotch alongside juicy dark hedgerow fruits this is a lovely dram, so much change! #TBWCwhisky

Palate - 
@Himselfbyname salted caramel! #TBWCwhisky

@WhiskyTube Aultmore Palate! An tour de force of Cask strength rum like vanilla essence and muscavado sugars! Lots of banana there too! #TBWCwhisky

@MSykesJones #TBWCwhisky with water, really opens up, spice, cloves quite complex

@MCRWhiskyClub Palate no h20 - Intense spice and pepper notes incredible, like a depth-charge of spice. What an entrance! Palate w/ Water oily mouthfeel & still packs a punch, malt and charred oak this time, a subtle handover to raisin and honeycomb #TBWCwhisky

@ChrisKnighting Neat taste is nice, astringent but not abrasive, decent heat, long finish. Just lovely #tbwcwhisky

@the_lady_sybil Ohh fiery, but not unpleasant, juniper and mixed spices, juniper lingers on the palate with a touch of sweet spearmint. #TBWCwhisky

Finish - 
@MCRWhiskyClub Long, fruity and warming with delicious winter spice and dark bitter chocolate #TBWCwhisky

@WhiskyTube This finish just goes on forever and ever! RUMTASTIC!! #TBWCwhisky


Benrinnes Batch 2 - 49.4%

Available exclusively here for £36.95

Depicting a seemingly one sided whisky lecture featuring the MaltManiac's PeatMcPeat and Johnny Washback. Another Speysider here with an interesting Benrinnes offering


Nose - 
@The_lady_sybil Hmmm kind of an earthiness on the nose to this one...? #TBWCwhisky #Berinnes


@AndyD1701 The more I go back the more pickled notes I seem to be getting, raspberry vinegar, stewed apple and lemon tart #TBWCwhisky

@OfMustandMash Benriness - nose - Getting in love by the second with that one: there's some lovely fruity sweetness there too as it develops #TBWCwhisky

@StinaWillett Anyone getting Brussel sprouts on the nose? #TBWCwhisky #Benrinnes

@MSykesJones #TBWCwhisky yep sherry is there, fudge sweetness, reminds me of xmas

@Tomm3h @The_Lady_Sybil yeah, like the smell of a cove on a sea pier... Salty and stagnant, almost #TBWCwhisky

Palate - 
@WhiskyTube Benrinnes palate: Lots of redcurrants, cranberries and all those tart red fruits! Oh and did I mention sherry? #TBWCwhisky

@Elunslakedhyena Brian Blessed tumbling down a mountain of cinder toffee, bellowing all the way down. #TBWCWhisky

@Grahamyus I'm now getting chocolate orange #tbwcwhisky

@The_Lady_Sybil Touch of smoky honey lingering on this I think... odd, but lovely #TBWCwhisky

Finish - 

@Tomm3h So Benrinnes: rubbery flavour, but a lovely, lingering finish of strawberry syrup. #TBWCwhisky

@OfMustandMash this is really nice, salty and sweet at the same time #TBWCwhisky

Secret Distillery Batch 1 - 55.4% 

Available exclusively here for £41.95

This whisky hails from an undisclosed secret Speyside distillery, we're not going to give it away but needless to say to expect a wheelbarrow full of sherry character...

Nose - 
@AndyD1701 Nose w/o H2O Sherry intermingling with parkin cake, crunchie bars and christmas pudding mix - very subtle for 55.4%! #TBWCwhisky

@WhiskyTube Like a mulled wine spice bag! German markets at Christmas!! #TBWCwhisky

@MsykesJones #TBWCwhisky sweet, roasted nuts in spices

@OfMustandMash Secret W - nose - but also caramel and toffe and spice like cinammon and nutmeg, vanilla...sherry #TBWCwhisky

Palate - 
One of the most unique notes of the night..
@Shabby_road The taste of being struck, quickly by an expensive leather glove, in southern France. That afternote is shame.#TBWCwhisky

@AndyD1701 Palate no water - Butter in an iron pan, heavy oak and there's the sherry alongside nuts and chocolate truffle #TBWCwhisky

And another..
@Grahamyus An oversized walnut rollsdown Glastonbury Tor on a winters eve,smashes over bottles ofbordeaux and gathers up chocsand n vanilla #tbwcwhisky

@WhiskyTube Much more tannic now, loads more of those mulled wine spices! Lots of dry merlot and maybe some cabernet franc notes! #TBWCwhisky

Finish - 
@WhiskyTube Getting lots of parma violets on the finish, like an Argentinian Cabernet Franc #TBWCwhisky

@Tomm3h Feel like I've just drank a big bar of dark, tasty Bourneville chocolate. #Glenfarclas #TBWCwhisky


A fantastic tasting overall. In terms of popularity the Aultmore stole the show with the Arran coming in a close second.

A huge thanks must go to the chaps at Master of Malt for generously providing the club with such a fantastic range of samples for us to try.

We have also tried the Bowmore Batch 1 at our very first meeting back in January, read our write up for that here!