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May 20, 2026 |
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A new Talisker mini-verticale
This time we’ll have the new official release from the ‘Rare Series’, a 1992 vintage (there’s also a 1970 Glenury Royal amongst them!!!), followed by an older, and therefore younger, 1989, and finally, the last one in every sense of the term: a 1987 from Gordon & MacPhail. Because it was their last cask!
The new Talisker Rare Series in its natural environment, by the sea. (Diageo) |
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Talisker 33 yo 1992/2026 (60.1%, OB, Rare Series, 331 bottles) 
This version is said to be ‘experimental’ insofar as it spent the last twenty years, and therefore most of its life, in amoroso cask, another name for ‘cream’ sherry, therefore a blend of dry sherry and very sweet sherry, which we imagine may originally have been a batch of ‘Distiller’s Edition’, seeing as Taliskers are finished in amoroso in this series. But we have no proof of that… In any case, it worked extremely well in the ‘DE’ versions, so there is no reason why it should not have worked here. Colour: full gold. Nose: we immediately think of a kougelhopf or a panettone that may have spent a little too long in the oven, with the raisins having become slightly… charred. The thing is, it works perfectly, there is absolutely zero clash between the very coastal side of the distillate and the sweetness of the amoroso, quite the opposite in fact. But at this strength, we shall quickly add water… With water: it becomes drier, more ‘sherried’, more on walnuts and smoked fish, although those very grilled raisins are still there. Mouth (neat): this sweet sherry maturation really does work remarkably well; I am almost surprised. We find the grilled raisins again, the proverbial pepper, seawater, and even hoisin sauce, or ‘sweet sushi sauce’ to put it crudely. On the palate, the high alcohol strength goes down astonishingly well. With water: this time, the water brings out the sherry even more, yet it combines rather perfectly, with menthol and a touch of mustard now emerging. Finish: long, and truth be told, we would gladly dip a few very high-grade sushi into it. We really ought to try that… Bitter chocolate in the aftertaste, and that is even more perfect. Comments: a splendid success indeed but let us not forget that 20 years out of 33 is really not just finishing.
SGP:655 - 91 points. |
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Talisker 27 yo 1989/2016 (51.6%, Whisky Lovers Hong Kong, for Rex Tong, hogshead, cask #912, 138 bottles)
Here is the sort of beast one may come across at the wonderful Hong Kong Whisky Festival which took place last weekend at the superb InterContinental Grand Stanford hotel, which we warmly recommend. Colour: white wine. Nose: this is Talisker in its natural state, sharp, smoky, mineral, coastal and rather vibratory. Almost a little simple perhaps, but here simplicity pays back a hundredfold. With water: much the same, neither better nor worse. A few touches of sourdough bread. Mouth (neat): seawater, lemon juice and green pepper, all in perfect symbiosis. This goes very fast indeed… With water: lovely slightly fatty oysters with a little Tabasco and lemon juice. And perhaps zero-dosage champagne. Finish: long, a little oilier and more on lemon liqueur at first, before the slightly peppery oysters come back and settle the matter for everyone. Comments: more or less the finest batches of the 10-year-old, with 17 extra years on top. What else did you expect to happen? A magnificent blade.
SGP:566 - 91 points. |
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Talisker 39 yo 1987/2026 (51.4%, Gordon & MacPhail, Connoisseurs Choice Heritage Collection, refill sherry butt, cask # 22601101, 300 bottles)
It is rather splendid to see the old black CC labels again, the ones in use during the 1970s, before the ‘brown banner labels’ which themselves preceded the ‘old map labels’. It is true that this series once sheltered many wonderful Taliskers, especially those from the 1950s. I also find, as I believe I may already have written, that there is something exceedingly chic about releasing malts at 39 years of age, rather than waiting a few more months in order to display ‘40’. In any case, this is the last Talisker cask from the honourable house of G&M, so there should not be any more after this. Colour: full gold. Nose: to be honest, we are once again in the upper spheres here, and one immediately feels that it would be inelegant to award a markedly different score. We also notice the finesse of G&M’s refill casks, at no point do you feel any excess wood, it remains as fresh as a daisy despite the 40 years. I mean, the 39 years. We therefore find oysters again, bergamots, rather green pepper here, along with touches of toasted sesame oil, and perhaps a peat that is just slightly less forward than in its two companions. With water: a walk along the seashore in rainy weather, kumquats in the pockets of your oilskin jacket. Mouth (neat): sublime soft pepper over a base of smoked oil, with small citrus fruits. With water: it is the sheer ‘oneness’ that impresses, along with the preserved and smoky side. Finish: not enormous, but clear, fresh, still preserved, smoky, and guarded by oysters. Only the pepper is a little less forward than in the two previous ones, while there may also be a slight medicinal and camphory side in addition. Comments: at the risk of contradicting myself, I would still add one extra point, though this is obviously anecdotal and highly personal. Yet another marvel.
SGP:555 - 92 points. |
What a trio! In any case, everyone knows that Talisker ages exceptionally well, while the really young ones are often superb too. Unless when damped in crazy casks, I say it’s always pure class. |
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May 19, 2026 |
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The Time Warp Sessions,
today indie Bruichladdich 2010 versus 1969
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We have a great many Bruichladdichs in the pipeline, and we shall try to organise another remote Feis Ile this year, during which we shall taste plenty of Islay whiskies from all the distilleries, Jura included, but in the meantime, let us indulge in another little Time Warp of sorts… 1969 versus 2010, shall we?
Typical Feis Ile view (WF) |
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Bruichladdich 13 yo 2010/2024 ‘release 9.1’ (63%, Dramfool’s Jim McEwan Signature Collection, premier grand cru supérieur Sauternes barrique, cask #2339, 236 bottles) 
Back once again into the world of Bruichladdich wineskies. It should be noted that there is only one premier grand cru supérieur in Sauternes, and that is Yquem. The funniest part is that I happened to be at the distillery when these casks arrived empty, and I could talk about it for hours. Quite an adventure! Colour: gold. Nose: apricot, peach, honey, mirabelle, all turned up to ten. With water: banana cake drenched in honey and… Sauternes. Mouth (neat): sweet, liqueur-like, on plum paste, quince paste, peaches and apricots in syrup… With water: Williams pear bursts in with force and conviction. Finish: long and as fruity as one could wish for. Comments: that said, the Bruichladdichs from the 1990s, such as those bottled by Cadenhead, already displayed this fruity side, although more on melon back then. Still, this remains fruit eau-de-vie at heart, and very good fruit eau-de-vie at that.
SGP:641 - 85 points. |
Truth be told, over the years we have never really managed to establish any direct relationship between the quality of the wines used for finishing in Scotland and the eventual quality of the whiskies themselves. In other words, great crus, Margaux and Yquem included, have never automatically produced great whiskies in my opinion. Nor the opposite, for that matter… Anyway, let us move on to an older Bruichladdich of similar age, although distilled 41 years earlier… |
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Bruichladdich 15 yo 1969/1985 (54%, Gordon & MacPhail for Intertrade & Turatello)
Not entirely convinced by this mention on the label, ‘Oldest Islay malt Scotch whisky’, given that Bruichladdich, much like its cousin Bunnahabhain, was founded in 1881. Nadi? That said, the Intertrade/Turatello 24 yo 1965 was an absolute marvel (WF 93). Colour: gold. Nose: of incredible gentleness, simplicity and finesse. We were speaking of great Sauternes earlier, this is great Sauternes by analogy rather than impregnation, if you see what I mean. Sublime apricots, vanilla, quinces, pumpkins, red kuri squash and yellow melons. With water: that very great white wine character remains. Fresh barley comes through once more, alongside bread and freshly made pancakes… It never lost its connection with the raw materials! Mouth (neat): oh but this is glorious! Mint, eucalyptus, angelica, verbena, quince, mirabelle, thyme honey, grapefruit… With water: exceptional herbal infusions, honeys, waxes… Finish: anecdotal and disappointing, given that it means the end. Seriously though, this is magical. Comments: the Italians, infuriating as ever in the way they instinctively understand everything they put into their mouths, were the true promoters of Bruichladdich. Everything that followed was merely froth and opportunism.
SGP:651 - 93 points. |
The seminal question remains the same as it has for the past thirty years: why can nobody seem capable of continuing to produce the same level of quality as back then? At least when it comes to the stars, mind you, we are not speaking about average quality levels, which, in our opinion, have rather improved… |
(Many thanks indeed to the Absolutely Nuts.) |
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May 18, 2026 |
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The Time Warp Sessions,
today Mortlach with 45 years between them
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Mortlach is an ideal malt for this sort of exercise. This time we shall begin with the more recent one, as it also happens to be the one with the more, let us say, reasonable strength. |
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Mortlach 13 yo 2013/2026 (56.5%, Lady of the Glen, oloroso finish, cask #5753, 248 bottles)
Colour: golden amber. Nose: rose essence, oranges, prickly pears, apricot liqueur and fig jam. Is there anything to throw away in all this? Certainly not, even if it is not terribly Mortlachian. With water: magnificent profile on fig vinegar. Mouth (neat): fortified wine, Madeiran sercial, orange wine, pepper liqueur… This is really not very Mortlachian, although I do find it very good in its own right. Quite a concoction, and if one is going to do finishings, one may as well do them like this. With water: careful now, not too much water or it becomes drying. Finish: long, on zests, leather, pepper and increasingly dry elements. Comments: I find that certain houses, and Lady of the Glen / Hannah Whisky Merchants is certainly among them, have genuinely improved their finishing methods. Ten years ago, these sorts of profiles wandered around the low-80s, whereas they have gained six or seven points since then. And no, it is not my tastes that have changed.
SGP:651 - 87 points. |
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Mortlach 15 yo (57%, The Wine Society, twist cap, 1980s)
The Wine Society is a UK-based, member-owned wine co-operative founded in 1874 and, it would appear, still very much active. Often described as the world’s oldest wine club! Colour: deep gold. Nose: and here comes the full Mortlach attitude, that sulphury distillate character, green walnuts, shoe polish, then figs and English cigarette tobacco, which we keep mentioning for as long as nobody decides to sue us. Let us say old unfiltered Benson & Hedges, those red metal tins. We no longer smoke them, needless to say, although we still adore sniffing old packets and tins, it is every bit as complex as pre-Trump Cuban cigars. With water: more on waxes, putty and propolis. Mouth (neat): honeys and waxes running riot, joined by peppers of all kinds. OBE galore here, rather like in a great old wine, one rather thinks of an ancient white Graves. With water: a proper brawl between waxes, shoe polishes, oils and fruity ointments, all drifting towards the herbal. Finish: fairly long, drier now, on herbal teas, leather and tobaccos. Magnificent saline signature. Comments: it has preserved the distillery’s DNA throughout all these years. Can one still join The Wine Society? And do they still happen to have old bottles like this lying around in stock?
SGP:462 - 91 points. |
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May 17, 2026 |
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A word of caution
Let me please remind you that my humble assessments of any spirits are done from the point of view of a malt whisky enthusiast who, what's more, is aboslutely not an expert in rum, brandy, tequila, vodka, gin or any other spirits. Thank you – and peace! |
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The Rum Sessions,
just a few more rums
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Going a bit faster than usual because of a packed schedule. Yep… apéro please… |
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Trinidad 3 yo (40%, Rum Bullion, Jean Boyer, +/-2025)
A tiny little beast without any airs and graces, but they really do know what they’re doing at Jean Boyer. The art of the proper liquoriste! Colour: almost white. Nose: wonderfully fresh, with grated lemon zest, angelica, fresh cane juice, citron, fresh turmeric, plus a tiny touch of shoe polish. There’s also a faint agricole side to it, all on straw and dry grass. Mouth: a lovely combination of aniseed, lemon and angelica. Careful now, this slips down dangerously easily. Finish: not that short after all, very fresh, with turmeric and ginger coming back in the aftertaste. Comments: we can just imagine sipping this nicely chilled at the table, alongside some acras or a proper rougail saucisse. I absolutely adore this wee baby.
SGP:562 - 86 points. |
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Black Tot ‘Master Blender’s Reserve 2025 Edition’ (54.5%, Elixir Distillers, blended rum) 
Guyana, Jamaica, Barbados. The 2024 had been excellent (WF 84) and we’ve been following these every year since, I believe, the beginnings. Despite a name that remains rather terrifying for German speakers… Colour: full gold. Nose: we’re getting that earthy, fermentary side, esters though kept nicely in check, the softer sweetness of Barbados rum, and plenty of candied orange tying everything together rather elegantly. With water: moving a little closer towards nougat, softer and cakier things emerging, although a superb note of shoe polish also appears. Mouth (neat): punchier on the palate, tighter, more liquorice-driven and zesty at the same time, with little flashes of menthol. Very lovely indeed. With water: notes of gentian, could that really be possible? Finish: long, classy, deep, slightly petroly and varnishy, though never excessively so. Liquorice keeps hold of the aftertaste. Comments: I do get the feeling this one is a little more estery than previous batches. I absolutely adore this very harmless version of the black death.
SGP:562 - 88 points. |
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MariGold II (57.5%, Art Malts, rum series, blended Caribbean rum, +/-2025) 
It would seem this blend combines HD with rums from Panama, the Dominican Republic, Barbados, Guyana and Trinidad. That’s the charming thing with blended rums, they happily marry different countries together, something that only very rarely happens with whisky. Well, at least for now, ha… Colour: pale gold. Nose: rather refined, elegant and well-balanced, herbal though with restraint, faintly petroly, and tending steadily towards aniseed-y things. We do like this style. With water: fennel and earth. Mouth (neat): Jamaica speaks a little louder here, it’s very young indeed but that hardly matters, fresh, vigorous, taut, citrusy, saline, slightly varnishy… With water: no real change after reduction. Finish: no more than medium. Comments: nothing to add really, a very lovely blend, it simply suffers a little after the Black Tot.
SGP:561 - 84 points. |
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T.D.L. 2009/2025 (61.3%, The Roots & The Antelope, Trinidad)
These batches can be magical, we know that already… Colour: gold. Nose: Formica and lino, but above all masses of ethanol. Only one remedy for that… With water: wood glue and vinegar, plus this uncanny feeling of ‘Saturday morning at Ikea’. Mouth (neat): who on earth mixed together mango, liquorice, tar, seawater and pepper? With water: sublime fruitiness now, blood oranges, mango, guava, pear… Finish: same again. Magnificent little vinegary touches coming back in the aftertaste. Comments: it’s rare to find a nose and palate so completely unrelated to one another. It only adds to the interest and pleasure of this rather loco little Trinidadian. Which I absolutely adore.
SGP:642 - 90 points. |
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Trinidad 25 yo 2000/2025 (56.4%, Planteray, LMDW Itinéraires)
Nine years in a cognac cask in… Cognac. Very ‘Ferrand’, this one. Colour: gold. Nose: softer, leaning towards cabbage, asparagus and lentils at first, then peach and melon skins. Water ought to turn it completely upside down. With water: not quite to that extent, it remains rather discreet though nicely complex and full of legumes, although liquorice and mango are quietly dancing the tango in the background. Mouth (neat): much more directly in the TDL style this time, so mango, papaya, tar, liquorice, pink grapefruit… With water: woof, a huge burst of fruit and phenols, somewhere between seawater, tar, mango juice and lime. It’s fully unlocked now. Finish: long, though with a slight strategic retreat towards green pepper, while the citrus fruits take care of the aftertaste. Comments: excellent, even if a little less ‘clear line’ than some other Trinidadians.
SGP:562 - 87 points. |
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Vieux Le Rocher 9 yo 2017/2026 (51.4%, Velier, Haiti, ex-Mount Gay cask)
Strictly between us, I fail to see what influence an ex-Mount Gay cask could possibly have on a quality clairin. And you? Still, needless to say, we do have the utmost respect for Mount Gay. Colour: light gold. Nose: admirably acetic, acidic, fermentary and downright cheesy. It rather brings to mind a three-year-old Comté or an even older Gouda. With water: it barely calms down at all. Superb acids, bacterial fermentation at its absolute pinnacle. Mouth (neat): astonishingly fermentary and vinegary. Which means extreme, and therefore utterly lovable, especially as huge bundles of liquorice wood come along to polish everything up. With water: arrival of those fruits that are almost consubstantial with these acids, especially ultra-ripe strawberries. Finish: long, incredible, different and salty. Not saline, salty. Comments: there’s almost as much to eat as there is to drink in this fantastically brilliant clairin.
SGP:362 - 90 points. |
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JMWP 18 yo 2006/2025 (54.3%, The Whisky Blues and Screwdriver, Jamaica, cask #28, 222 bottles)
It’s rather mad that some brands refuse to let their names appear on bottlings which, quite often, represent the absolute summit of their style. True across many spirits, really. It’s a bit like Porsche forbidding independents from using their name at Le Mans, as though that would somehow diminish the official factory versions. Surely quite the opposite, it only improves their chances of winning. Anyway, this is of course Worthy Park. Colour: gold. Nose: papaya smoked over beechwood, and overall a fruitier profile than usual. Most likely a low-ester marque. With water: more varnish, glue, petrol and fresh bark. Slight touches of formic acid. Mouth (neat): extremely lovely, very elegant, saline and fruity in perfect balance. Most impressive on the palate. With water: very vegetal now, tomatoes, fern, rubber, tar, bitter almonds. Finish: fairly long, more balanced again, though the tail of the comet grows increasingly salty. Comments: it may have suffered ever so slightly from comparison with the wildly extreme clairin, but this remains something of a marvel all the same.
SGP:352 - 88 points. |
One last one, and of course, a Hampden… |
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HD Distillery 42 yo 1983/2026 (48.7%, Distilia & Robert Bauer, The Virtues, Chastity, Jamaica)
Some will eventually start believing, after so many independents are more or less forced into using acronyms, that Harley-Davidson has entered the rum business. Anyway, this is probably a maturation in Northern Europe, and therefore a profile where the esters haven’t been too flattened by high temperatures. Colour: gold. Nose: Hampden is immune to time; the number of years matters very little when the environment is right. In short, this is extremely lovely, saline and resinous, tarry, acetic and ‘just chemical enough’. Brand-new 1980s car, stuffed with plastics, phthalates, bisphenol and all the rest… Love that, believe or not. With water: I’m hesitating between Renault and Volkswagen. Diesel of course. Mouth (neat): magnificent, acetone, wine vinegar, lime, seawater, oysters, chervil… With water: even more chemical now, edging towards ammonia and carbon. We absolutely adore these ‘industrial’ extremes. Finish: long, saline, tarry, acidic, fermentary, and yet with a marked softness throughout. Concentrated lemon juice, a very salty margarita… Comments: indeed, you really did have the 1980s in your glass, in every possible dimension. I think this is a Hampden best reserved for slightly mad enthusiasts, though certainly not insecure ones.
SGP:362 - 91 points. |
 Check the index of all rums we've tasted
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May 14, 2026 |
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WF's Little Duos,
today Strathmill 1988
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There used to be quite a lot of independent Strathmill around at one point, although to our great regret that seems to have calmed down somewhat. In any case, today we shall be trying two mature versions, both distilled in 1988 (indeed, 1988 now counts as mature) and both from ex-hogsheads. And so, we shall begin with the lower-strength one.
Some advertisements are better than others. Strathmill has been under the J&B umbrella since the 1960s and the creation of IDV, now Diageo. (J&B) |
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Strathmill 37 yo 1988/2026 (45.1%, Sansibar & The Whisky Agency, hogshead)
A two-penny anecdote about this sample, it had ‘JB’ written on it, and of course Strathmill is J&B territory, Justerini & Brooks. So we naturally thought this was a direct cask from Diageo, before realising that in this case, ‘JB’ simply meant ‘joint bottling’. Such is the daily lot of the unfortunate whisky blogger… Colour: northern chardonnay. Nose: magnificent fruitiness, initially on peach and melon, then papaya and mango, before blood orange and Williams pear arrive. This is what we would call an elegantly exuberant nose and, dare I add, a slightly unexpected one. Lovely stuff, only long maturation in very discreet and well-behaved casks can bring about this sort of profile. Mouth: fatter than the nose suggested, more marked by barley, brioche dough, praline, clay, malt… Yet the fruits from the nose remain quietly congregated in the background, with the whole feeling perfectly balanced. In short, this is an old malt of astonishing ease, without the usual cavalcade of tobacco, leather, spice or walnuts that we so often encounter at this age. Finish: not especially long, yet blessed with a magnificent fruity freshness, circling back towards vineyard peach and blood orange. And honey. Comments: care required, the drinkability index is alarmingly high. One day they really ought to print warnings on the bottles.
SGP:651 - 90 points. |
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Strathmill 36 yo 1988/2024 (46.6%, Anchor & The Elysian 8th Anniversary, hogshead, cask #795)
A bottling for Melbourne, Australia. We are of course expecting something rather similar here, especially since the colours are more or less identical. Colour: southern chardonnay. Bur naturally. Nose: it is always pleasing to taste highly coherent duos, although the danger is that the two spirits may turn out identical or near-identical, which is absolutely the case here. This one perhaps seems a millihair more earthy, although that impression may simply come from the extra 1.5%. Everything else could quite literally be copied and pasted from the previous note, which we shall refrain from doing. Mouth: perhaps a shade more on yellow citrus fruits, or perhaps not. Maybe very slightly sharper, although once again that may simply stem from the marginally higher strength. Finish: same again. Comments: as we often say, in cases like this we would really require a double magnum of each in order to uncover any notable differences, and the consequences would be catastrophic. It still rather seems to us that this Australian bottling leans ever so slightly more towards grapefruit. Or perhaps not.
SGP:651 - 90 points. |
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May 13, 2026 |
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The Time Warp Sessions,
today Rosebank and some maths
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Alas, no Rosebank yet from the new distillery rebuilt by Ian Macleod, rather some recently bottled old Rosebank and very old young Rosebank. Sounds fair enough from the famous double-distilled Lowlander, doesn’t it? So let us go hunting for citrus notes, beginning with the youngest, which also happens to be the oldest in terms of vintage. And by pure serendipity, the oldest one was distilled in the very year the youngest was bottled. You are following me, are you not? |
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Rosebank 1979/1991 (58.5%, Scotch Malt Whisky Society, #25.3)
The third Rosebank from the honourable SMWS. It is always a joy to taste these old distilleries at a young age, we remember a 9-year-old Rosebank by Adelphi that had been almost cataclysmic in its violent citrusness. Colour: amber. Nose: a sherry very much on walnut cake and pipe tobacco to begin with, but the bitter oranges are quick to poke their noses through, leading us towards some kind of Andalusian cordial that simply remains to be invented. With water: it is the oloroso, or was it amontillado, that rather dominates the proceedings after all. Walnuts and a little assorted wood smoke. Mouth (neat): powerful and exactly on the same duo of walnuts and bitter oranges, merely enhanced by grey pepper. With water: this time it is the peppered oranges that take over, bringing plenty of vivacity. Smoked beef, chocolate and coffee arrive afterwards. Finish: long, in the continuation of the palate. The aftertaste turns to eucalyptus and a camphory aspect. Comments: magnificently simple, we merely slightly regret not being even closer to the distillate. Mighty sherry!
SGP:562 - 89 points. |
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Rosebank 34 yo 1991/2025 (53.1%, Gordon & MacPhail, Connoisseurs Choice Heritage Collection, First-Fill Bourbon Barrel)
Gordon & MacPhail are reviving their old Connoisseurs Choice labels in this very recent Heritage series, here the label we used to call the ‘old map label’. For there was later a ‘new map label’, was there not. Colour: gold. Nose: clearly, this oldest one is also the freshest, the fruitiest, almost the one that feels most like a large family bag of fruit sweets and coconut snowballs, with a tiny touch of crème de menthe. All this is cheerful and lively, and we are in any case much closer to the original Rosebank style here, especially those famous ‘Zenith’ bottlings. With water: a few flowers and herbs come along to garnish the whole rather discreetly. Mouth (neat): the citrus fruits strike first, and they are all there, coated in pepper and a little honey. Grapefruits are especially prominent. With water: this is where it becomes both the zestiest and the most complex. We could draw up a list of every variety of lemon, but that would be a little superfluous. Finish: long, very lovely, pure, lemony, almost refreshing. Comments: merely a little expensive for a ‘refreshment’, but what a beautiful bottle, very purely ‘Rosebank’, never straying a single inch from the distillate’s style despite its 34 years of age. Absolutely splendid and uplifting.
SGP:641 - 92 points. |
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May 12, 2026 |
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WF's Little Duos,
today, two not-so-secret Speysiders in sherry |
Let’s just say the chances that these are malts which, despite having possibly been teaspooned, come from a distillery whose name begins like the surname of a famous Beatle and ends like the start of the first name of a singer whose surname is Del Rey are rather high. Sorry for the bargain-bin riddle… |
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Blended Malt 25 yo 2000/2025 (51.2%, C. Dully Selection, sherry butt, cask #12, 200 bottles)
Colour: dark amber, this is very Macallan. Only joking. Nose: walnut wine and brown toast to begin, then milk chocolate and kougelhopf. A touch of malt extract and a drop of stout, then roasted raisins and prunes, with a faint armagnacqy side. With water: beef jerky, fruitcake, a little pipe tobacco. Mouth (neat): rather oily, reminding us of the 10 yo cask strength from some twenty years ago. Back come the slightly burnt raisins, prunes, cakes that are themselves a tad overdone, malt, nocino, then cracked pepper. With water: the pepper tends to take the upper hand, the walnuts become more bitter, the beer too, all this works rather well if you enjoy bitterness. Finish: long, bitter, dry, very oloroso. Salty touch in the aftertaste, combining perfectly with the walnuts. Comments: if we wanted to provoke a little, we might say this is more “M” than the official “Ms”, except naturally the older official versions from the days when the house kept insisting on the exclusive use of sherry casks (unlike the other distilleries, etc etc etc).
SGP:461 - 89 points. |
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Marketing Malt 20 yo 2005/2025 (57.1%, Decadent Drams, Speyside single malt, 1st fill European oak sherry butts, 612 bottles)
Colour: amber. Nose: I believe it is indeed the European oak that’s brought all these varnishy and acetone-like notes, almost in the style of a young bourbon. I know, what I write is not terribly coherent, but all that vaguely American oakiness gradually fades away, making room instead for massive kirsch, the sort of kirsch that might have been matured in wood. Quite a lot of balsamic vinegar too. With water: the varnishes and vinegars return to centre stage. Mouth (neat): much more classic now, on peppery sherry, sour cherries, pipe tobacco, slivovitz, young armagnac… It’s almost the United Nations in your glass. With water: there we are, it has landed at last, on pepper, Corinth raisins, chocolate and slightly acidic coffee. Finish: long, drier now, herbaceous, with cooked green peppers and leather. Comments: very slight preference for the increased classicism of the 2000, but we remain broadly in the same territory. In truth it is entertaining and excellent.
SGP:461 - 88 points. |
In any case, they’re very old-school. In some respects, they also brings to mind Signatory’s ‘M’ series. |
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May 11, 2026 |
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The Time Warp Sessions,
today Glenmorangie
new 15 vs old 25 |
We could have slipped in a Westport, the trade name used for Glenmorangie, but we’ll stick to official bottlings and compare a rather old 25-year-old with the latest Lasanta 15-year-old. |
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Glenmorangie 15 yo ‘The Lasanta’ (43%, OB, bourbon & sherry, +/-2026)
These brands that insist on sticking ‘The’ in front of any names, à la Glenlivet many moons ago, and here even before the name of an expression, have always amused us somewhat. There is always a faintly, shall we say, presumptuous side to it. After all, this is hardly The Cullinan or The Koh-I-Noor, is it. But let’s not dwell on that… Mind you, the old 15 yo from the 2000s was splendid. Colour: deep gold. Nose: this starts straight away on cognac and bourbon, with ultra-ripe fruits, sultanas, then strawberry jam and orange marmalade, alongside little wafts of peony and, quite precisely, orange blossom. A very pretty nose indeed, undoubtedly, and rather aromatic. Mouth: rather more winey now, alas, without quite falling into winesky territory, but we do lose the freshness and lovely fruitiness of the nose, drifting instead towards raisins and a faint stalky side. A wee shame, really. Cinnamon and orange cake, though, that works rather well. Finish: rather anecdotal, fairly winey again, with a wee touch of honeyed sangria, but don’t get me wrong, this remains a very good malt, simply one that has been strongly marked by what was probably just a sherry finishing. Comments: a tiny little bit disappointed, I must admit.
SGP:551 - The 83 points. Ha. |
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Glenmorangie 25 yo ‘Quarter Century’ (43%, OB, +/-2012)
We have already tasted several batches of this 25 yo, though never the latest ‘The (of course) Altus’, finished in Madeira, which I rather suspect we shall happily do without, for we always adored the ‘Quarter Century’, and any opportunity to taste a yet unfamiliar batch is one to seize. Colour: full gold. Nose: floral and honeyed, very classic, very lovely, both pastoral and refined. Orange blossom, acacia, honeysuckle, overripe apples, service fruits, jujubes… This is genuinely subtle and rather magnificent. Mouth: just a little wine, both white and red, though of good quality, without actual vinosity as such, and with impeccable integration this time. Citrus cakes, Jaffa cakes, meadow honey… Finish: medium in length, with herbal teas softened by honey and a touch of cinnamon. Comments: the only regret is the 43% vol., which still feels a little miserly, but then again, that was nearly fifteen years ago now.
SGP:641 - 89 points. |
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May 10, 2026 |
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A word of caution
Let me please remind you that my humble assessments of any spirits are done from the point of view of a malt whisky enthusiast who, what's more, is aboslutely not an expert in rum, brandy, tequila, vodka, gin or any other spirits. Thank you – and peace! |
Quite a bit of Ténarèze and a few other Armagnacs |
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And we’re going to start straight away with a little aperitif that you can generally find here in supermarkets. It’s inexpensive and, I think, mainly used in cooking, in desserts and so on. But we’re not afraid of anything!... |
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Saint-Vivant (40%, OB, armagnac, +/-2025) 
It says on the packaging that this is a blend of Ténarèze and Bas-Armagnac, which makes sense given that the brand is based in Condom. There are also dessert recipes, such as ‘vanilla panna cotta with armagnac jelly’. What was I telling you? The house belongs to La Martiniquaise (Glen Moray, Saint James, J.Bally…). Colour: gold. Nose: rather pleasant, with liquorice caramel, vanilla, fresh hay, little touches of aniseed… It remains fairly fresh and certainly not a ‘caramel bomb’. Mouth: plenty of pear eau-de-vie at first, which rather suggests youthfulness, then vanilla fudge and nougat, although things tend to fade a little as the caramel starts taking centre stage. Finish: rather like caramelised pears, really. Not very long, but it does not quite vanish either. Comments: for an armagnac that feels more destined for the kitchen, this baby is more than respectable.
SGP:431 - 78 points. |
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Domaine d’Espérance 18 yo (48.2%, OB, Bas-armagnac, lot No.4, +/-2024)
A blend of baco and folle blanche drawn from eight casks, ranging from the 1992 vintage for the oldest to 2005 for the youngest. Colour: deep gold. Nose: rather firm yet floral at the same time, a little bit town meeting country, or perhaps the other way round. Dandelion flowers and oranges to begin with, then sultanas and Earl Grey tea, before some nicely aged beeswax starts creeping in. Jaffa Cakes. Mouth: very good, very lively, very heavily marked by citrus fruits, right down to orange marmalade with honey. Little touches of tobacco and earth add an extra layer of sturdiness. Finish: long, with even more tobacco and earthiness. A slight peppery and salty edge right at the end. Comments: we are already entering elevated territory here, though from Espérance this hardly comes as a surprise.
SGP:551 - 88 points. |
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Couzard-Lasalle 20 yo 2005/2025 (49%, Chais de Darroze, Bas-armagnac, 400 bottles)
Things do become rather complicated at times with successive batches from the same lot, and sometimes we are not even entirely sure this is the correct outfit. In any case, this appears to be the latest vintage from Couzard-Lasalle, aka Lous Pibous it would seem, from the cellars of the house of Darroze. Colour: full gold. Nose: straight away on dried fruits, especially apricots, then honey-roasted fruits, again apricots, followed by Iberian ham and old plum spirit (vieille prune). A wonderfully pronounced tertiary side. Mouth: lively, greatly rustic, pleasingly raspy and rugged, with oak very much to the fore in the way the old armagnac makers used to enjoy, but that is simply part of the DNA. Slightly peppery heather honey arrives after a few moments. Finish: long, this time more dominated by bitter orange and bergamot. We do like this style. The peppers go absolutely wild in the aftertaste. Comments: not entirely far removed stylistically from the Espérance. Truly excellent.
SGP:561 - 88 points. |
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LaRoche-Vacquié 23 yo 2001/2026 ‘LRV’ (51.8% Grape of the Art, Haut-armagnac, cask #82, 150 bottles)
From the 2000 harvest, distilled in January 2001 from Colombard and Ugni Blanc. Haut-Armagnacs are not often encountered on their own like this, and in this case it comes from an old vineyard that had fallen into disuse before being replanted some thirty years ago. Colour: amber. Nose: popcorn, caramel, fudge, fresh praline, triple sec and even, hold on, rye? What kind of sorcery is this? With water: asparagus, artichoke and wood glue! Mouth (neat): pepper and orange liqueur, varnish, American rye whiskey, speculoos… This really is most unusual. With water: tasted blind, would we have said ‘armagnac’? Honestly, I do not think so. The varnish, the orange and a little turmeric dominate the proceedings now. Finish: long, and more peppery. Comments: the question remains whether one ought to take typicity into account when scoring a spirit, in which case this would not fare especially highly, or whether it is better simply to consider the overall impressions. We shall go with the latter option, especially since this is a whisky blog after all, is it not.
SGP:462 - 88 points. |
Well, we’re taking the opportunity to try some young pot still Armagnac, whose high strength rather prevented us from tasting it first, despite its very young age. Call this a “vertical tasting with exceptions”, if you like. |
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Lascabanes 2019/2026 (70.7%, Le Passeur, Ténarèze, #4)
This is ugni blanc double distilled in pot stills. We rather doubt you could ever coax these strengths out of a little armagnacais column. Right then, let us hold tightly onto our seats… Colour: chardonnay. Nose: pear tart and custard cake, drizzled with a little acacia honey and served alongside a glass of very fine southern Burgundy chardonnay, indeed. It is gentle and quite astonishingly easy to nose at this strength. With water: a little touch of saponification at first, which is perfectly normal. We wait five minutes… There we go, the ripe pear has returned to centre stage. Pear tart from every grandmother in the world, with just a little pineapple and papaya in the background. Mouth (neat): buttery pear, vineyard peach and white pepper, in a trio that is simple yet perfect. We shall not insist on trying to extract anything more, and we suspect you will understand why. With water: things become rootier, very ‘pot still’, very ‘malternative’, saline, on carrots and celery, though the pear has certainly not had its final word. Nor have the little pineapple sweets. Finish: long and surprisingly balanced, really not solely about pears as one might have expected. Comments: excellent and highly coherent, rather in the manner of a very great ‘paille’ rum.
SGP:741 - 87 points. |
Right then, a little independent bottler, there are more and more of them these days, and I think that’s a good sign…
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Château de Bordeneuve 25 yo 2000 (48.6%, Dràm Mor, Bas-armagnac, cask #146, 300 bottles)
We had already tasted another Bordeneuve selected by Dràm Mor, very much to our liking. Colour: full gold. Nose: this is a gentle and highly aromatic armagnac, on sugared almonds, sweets, even rose petals and wild strawberries. At times there is almost a viognier and/or muscat side to it, with patchouli, lychees and violets… Yet behind this rather spectacular façade lies a firmer, more traditional backbone. Mouth: we find that same soft floral and fruity character again, though this time with more vanilla and soft liquorice, then honey and green tea, followed by pink peppercorns. Finish: fairly long yet very gentle, on white chocolate with lavender, if you happen to know such things. Peppery strawberries in the aftertaste. Comments: a true confectionery shop, a genuine sin. Excellent.
SGP:641 - 87 points. |
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Pouchégu 28 yo 1998/2026 (51.1%, Hontambère, Ténarèze, cask #D5, 100 bottles)
In theory, this ought to have been rustic… Colour: amber. Nose: quite the opposite in fact, with lovely furniture polish, banana cake and even proper agricole rum from a good house, before things drift a little towards conifer wood, the whole becoming increasingly dry and even terpene-like. With water: lanolin, even liquid detergent… This is becoming genuinely unusual now. Mouth (neat): very earthy and above all extremely resinous. Salmiak and fir buds, with a little orange chocolate lurking in the background. With water: bitter chocolate and fir completely take control. And when we say fir, we really mean all forms of conifers and related species. Finish: fairly long, austere and resinous. Cedarwood. Comments: this is a highly spectacular armagnac, for friends who enjoy these woody and austere styles. And we know there are quite a few of them about!
SGP:371 - 85 points. |
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Pinole 1986/2026 (45.4%, Authentic Spirits, Bas-armagnac)
Pure baco this time, from a very small producer in Hontanx. A little bird told me that there is a little insider joke going around claiming that this lovely armagnac is missing a letter in its name, but do not go looking for it, it is rather inelegant anyway and entirely untranslatable. Phew, probably for the best. Colour: deep amber. Nose: and here come the varnishes, the glues, the coffee beans, the chocolate, the pine needles, the damp earth, the mushrooms, all things we adore enormously and that make you vibrate in tune with Mother Earth (eh?) Mouth: there you are, you can feel the wood and the passing of time, in a balance that is rather rare. Fir bud liqueur, morels, bitter orange, prunes forgotten in a tin jar since the last century, same story with Corinth raisins… Finish: long, resinous, yet balanced. Mint chocolate, After Eights… Comments: always hovering slightly near the edge but staying on the right side all the way through, and for that alone this is superb.
SGP:561 - 89 points. |
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Bourdilet 46 yo 1979/2026 (49.5%, Amateur Spirit, Ténarèze)
Ugni blanc once again, this time again from an estate in Condom in the Gers. This range is selected by several enthusiasts and while one individual, let us say ourselves, may occasionally get things wrong, it is far less common when a whole group of genuinely educated amateurs is involved. Besides, we have just noticed that our friend Steve U. from the USA was part of the panel, and for us that is more than enough. Cheers Steve. Colour: orange amber. Nose: bitter oranges and kumquats are enthroned here, wrapped in beeswax and nutmeg. Spice blends follow, ras el hanout, allspice and so forth, yet always with softness. It is still a 46-year-old after all. Mouth: tremendous vigour yet a perfect balance between resins, woods and citrus fruits. The three elements keep each other perfectly poised, rather like acrobats in the Peking Circus. Well, you see what we mean. Finish: long, with a dominance of slightly spicy wax that goes on and on and on and on… before eventually fanning out towards coffee, chocolate, fir and bark. Comments: tremendous balance, we really must insist upon that, though that only makes the selectors all the more deserving of praise. It is not often that such equilibrium survives at these ages. And this was not partially matured in demijohns either, was it.
SGP:461 - 90 points. |
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La Poste 1976/2026 (47.4%, Le Passeur, Ténarèze, cask #157)
Ugni blanc here. We shall have had quite a lot of Ténarèze this time around, and we are certainly not complaining about that. Domaine de la Poste was an old coaching inn where the owner produced armagnac between 1970 and 1990 without ever selling a single litre. These are the stocks now emerging little by little, thanks to true enthusiasts such as Romain ‘Le Passeur’. Such a typically armagnacqy story! Just imagine this happening on, say, Islay? Colour: red amber. Nose: a secretive nose, on some cake made to a secret recipe involving honey, candied and dried fruits, especially dried pears, alongside floral syrups and liqueurs. A little pear-and-absinthe duo tap-dances away in the background. There is also a highly amusing amontillado side, though naturally there is not a drop of sherry involved. Mouth: livelier and even brighter than expected, almost lemony at times, but above all with utterly divine notes of verbena and angelica. Tremendous freshness, especially considering this was distilled back in the days of Fleetwood Mac Mark II’s glory. Or was it Mark III? Mostly Stevie Nicks anyway, okay. Finish: long, lively, even fresher still, frankly this was unexpected. Superb citrus fruits, followed by peppery tobacco as a signature. Comments: it simply keeps rising higher and higher, and that is what the very best spirits tend to do.
SGP:651 - 91 points. |
One last little one, because we simply couldn’t overlook the 1960s, could we? |
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Castex 1969/2025 (43.1%, Malternative Belgium, Bas-armagnac, 60 bottles)
According to the label, this came from a demijohn. That said, the transfer from cask to demijohn only took place in 2023, so we shall let you work out the age yourselves… Indeed, at least fifty-three years old. In short, a youngster. Right then, let us put some Jeff Beck on the stereo… While not forgetting that Castex was also the surname of one of the innumerable prime ministers we have had in France over recent years. A decent fellow, though he did not exactly leave an indelible mark, being far too honest for that. Colour: mahogany. Nose: a soup of stewed fruits dominated by fermented prunes, rather in the style of umeshu, and varnishes, before resinous notes and cigars begin to emerge. It is extremely beautiful, somewhere in the realm of a very great old Port or Madeira. Mouth: oh, this has become entirely tertiary now, with dried meats, malt, malt indeed, tar, forgotten herbal liqueurs, and quite simply an unmistakably glutamate-like side. We seem to recall having tasted some very, very old Cuban rums that had drifted in a similar direction. Finish: long, candied, tertiary, curiously fermentary, somewhere between hoisin sauce and Maggi, perhaps even sauce Périgourdine. Chocolate truffles. Comments: the exact opposite of Le Passeur’s La Poste ’76, yet opposites attract, as Paula Abdul once revealed. Though we are not entirely certain you would identify this as armagnac in a blind tasting.
SGP:651 - 91 points. |
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May 9, 2026 |
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Angus's Corner
From our correspondent and
skilled taster Angus MacRaild in Scotland
Three Strathisla
Long time no Strathisla for me! Mind you, that could be said about most distilleries, given that I am far too guilty of just publishing a carousel of Glen Grant, Laphroaig, Port Ellen notes etc here on Whiskyfun. |
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Anyway, Strathisla is a distillery it's hard not to be fond of, is it not? One that has been well served over the decades by G&M, so we've been fortunate enough to taste many examples over the years. We'll have three 'relatively' recent mature examples today. |
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Strathisla 27 yo 1992/2020 (55.1%, OB 'Distillery Reserve Collection', cask #84667, 2nd fill hogshead, 300 bottles) 
This series shelters some excellent, usually pretty under the radar drams, I'm just not a fan of the whole 50cl thing I'm afraid. Colour: gold. Nose: slightly dusty, like old wooden malt bins, also some fuzzy peach skin, dried apricot and very light beeswax. With a little time it really develops along milk chocolate and honeycomb lines: a proper Crunchie bar! This 'aromatic dustiness' remains in the background in the form of talcum powder. With water: peaches and cream! Brandy snaps, pure caramel, tinned fruit salad syrups. Mouth: much more classically on flower nectars, baked apples slathered in custard, Australian muscat wines, limoncello and lime cordial. Fairly emblematic, luscious modern Speyside at maturity. With water: extremely easy, full of assorted honey and mead impressions, vanilla custard, glazed pastries, pistachio ice cream etc. Finish: good length, on chamois leather, cedar wood, tiny notes of varnish and pine resin, and also quite a lot of crystalised fruits. Comments: as we often declare in relation to such Speyside malts: how could anyone be against such a profile! SGP: 641 - 88 points. |
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Strathisla 28 yo 1997/2025 (51%, OB 'Distillery Exclusive', 1st fill barrel, 174 bottles)
Colour: bright straw. Nose: extremely luscious, an immediate beehive with associated mead, lillies full of pollen, nectars, fruit salad juices and then more delicate notes of bergamot, lemon oil, vanilla panna cotta and gorse flower. A beautiful profile. With water: pumpkinseed oil, sun lotion and meadow flowers. Also a touch of green pepper and pine sap. Mouth: the same feeling of lusciousness and sweetness comes upon arrival, although with it just a tiny nibble of American oak giving a tingle of peppery quality to the mouth. Same as the nose but just a little warmer, spicier and with more things like earthy turmeric and dark grained breads. With water: becomes a little greener, more herbal, more on verbena, camphor, pinecones and spiced creme brulée. Finish: long, perfectly balanced between crystalised honey, wee earthy and peppery notes, hardwood resins and tea tree oil. Comments: gorgeous start, then the wood started to assert itself a little more forcefully. Yet, I feel balance just about remained struck throughout I was around 89/98 to begin, but in the end I feel it's the equal of the 1992. SGP: 661 - 88 points. |
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Strathisla 40 yo 1977/2017 'Book of Kells' (46.6%, Gordon & MacPhail for Japan Import System, cask #389, refill hogshead, 163 bottles) 
As has been observed many times before on the pages of wee WF: we love the Book of Kells labels! Colour: another level up! A broader spectrum fruitiness that is both much softer but also much more complex and finely detailed. Immediate notes of dried banana chips, green banana, star fruit, yellow plums, waxy green apple, eucalyptus, passionflower, heather honey and delicate impressions of mint tea, bergamot, dried parsley and lovage. Graceful, elegant and beautiful, everything we love about the aroma profiles of older, refill matured malts. Mouth: many teas of the fruit and herbal varieties, along with fennel seed, kumquat, many dried and crystalised fruits and emergent hints of herbal liqueurs, aniseed, woodruff and cheng pi dried citrus rinds. Also a little liquorice root, wormwood and old honey liqueur such as Drambuie. The lower ABV feels a tad on the soft side at times, but overall the pleasure factor is extremely high. Finish: medium, gently waxy, on dried fruits and flowers, some feelings of fruity muesli and flapjacks with honey and oatmeal qualities. Comments: certainly not without its fragilities, and probably captured in the nick of time, but it's undoubtedly a gorgeous, extremely quaffable and pleasurable old malt. The nose alone was 91/92, but in the end a solid... SGP: 651 - 90 points. |
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May 8, 2026 |
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The Time Warp Sessions,
today two Auchentoshan thirty years apart |
Today we are, so to speak, going to compare two Auchentoshans distilled roughly thirty years apart, beginning with the older one: an official 43% bottling with an excellent reputation, which we have never yet tasted. |
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Auchentoshan 18 yo (43%, OB, Soffiantino, 75cl, +/-1990) 
These were still the old rectangular bottles, long before the round ones with the kind of diamond-shaped labels. Colour: deep gold. Nose: these older Auchentoshans used to be fatter, deeper, almost more phenolic than more recent distillates, though you’ll tell me that’s true of many old malts. Lovely wafts of pistachio liqueur, bitter almond, but also school glue and orgeat, then come rather old-fashioned notes of fir bud liqueur, even a touch of ancient Chartreuse. That said, there’s very little fruitiness and it really wouldn’t come across as a triple-distilled malt. No doubt the thirty-five years spent in bottle have played some part in this curious transformation. Mouth: some highly amusing touches of rum to start with, rather in the style of Foursquare. Perhaps triple distillation creates an effect somewhat akin to a blend of column and pot still? Well well well… Even the citrus fruits that slowly join the party recall those rums, before a few metallic notes begin to emerge. Let’s say the aromatic precision may no longer be entirely intact after all these years. Finish: fairly long, rather oily, though more herbal and somewhat more disorderly than one would expect from Auchentoshan. A little salted butter caramel in the aftertaste. Comments: we can well imagine this lovely bottle’s glory days are already quite far behind it, yet it still retains plenty of charm.
SGP:351 - 80 points. |
This should be a piece of cake for the next dram, we imagine… |
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Auchentoshan 26 yo 1999/2025 (50.6%, The Whisky Agency, for East Village, Birthday United, barrel)
These 1999s are generally excellent, nothing whatsoever to worry about… Colour: gold. Nose: the expected fruity explosion, oranges, mangoes, guava, then honey, cane syrup, and a little bitterness. Altogether this takes us straight towards a rather splendid negroni-like cocktail. With water: mango, passion fruits and a touch of peppermint. Mouth (neat): no negroni on the palate, although… surely some Campari and orange. It’s genuinely lovely and we can almost picture ourselves sipping it ice-cold this summer, beneath the parasols, in very fine company. But hush, don’t tell The Whisky Agency. With water: a citrus fruit salad, pink grapefruits, oranges, mandarins… The whole thing displays a remarkably pure, zesty sharpness. Finish: along the very same lines, even the aftertaste doesn’t shift by an inch, save perhaps for a few touches of vanilla and camomile. And a little sweet yet acidic wine, say a Jurançon. Comments: absolutely excellent, with tremendous cheerfulness about it, I can hardly wait for summer.
SGP:651 - 89 points. |
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May 7, 2026 |
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Some Japanese whiskies, part 3 and final
Well, here we are again. It’s true that the recent big names are still holding their own, but we are noticing a slight decline among the long-established old malts, just as in Scotland, for that matter. It is, in fact, quite a curious phenomenon, this sort of strategic withdrawal, and the way they seem perfectly happy to leave the spotlight, or at least the conversation, to the newcomers. Is it simply a matter of stock levels?
Thomas Blake Glover, the Scottish Samurai (1838-1911) |
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Ichiro’s Malt & Grain ‘Kintsugi Edition’ (60.8%, OB, for The Spirit of Salud, Japan, blend, ex-2nd fill peated bourbon, batch #B0064, 259 bottles, 2025)
We’re generally less keen on blends, it has to be said, especially when they’re standing next to pure Chichibu. Or worse, ex-bourbon Chichibu. That’s precisely why we should rather taste these M&G first, my bad. Not terribly fond either of peated cask finishing, it always feels a bit over-engineered, there, said it. Colour: gold. Nose: actually rather good, rich and oily, full of maize and vanilla cream, with little touches of charcoal ashes, then freshly grated carrots. With water: much the same, more or less. Earthy. Mouth (neat) rather austere and herbal, not entirely sure this was meant to be tasted without water. With water: the peat and lemon emerge, then rather take over the whole affair. Pepper steps in afterwards. Finish: long, still austere, not the easiest, rugged and rustic. Comments: we’ve never entirely understood the fascination with these I’s M&G, although we’re fairly sure the problem lies with us. Still, it remains very good indeed, and that Delft-style label is absolutely splendid.
SGP:554 - 82 points. |
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Ichiro’s Malt & Grain ‘Delfts Blauw Edition’ (61.8%, OB, for The Spirit of Salud, Japan, blend, 2nd fill bourbon, batch #B0054, 239 bottles, 2025)
No peat this time, which could change everything. Colour: light gold. Nose: indeed, this is more elegant, indeedy, on fresh bread, cornbread, a touch of maple syrup, a little grapefruit… With water: pistachio oil and a few drops of an extremely light tequila. Mouth (neat): this is lovely, a superb blend, rather lively, lemony… With water: corn syrup comes through, lemon syrup too, no problem there. Finish: fairly long, fairly soft, still on lemon syrup and a faintly vodka-ish side, a very high quality vodka that is. If such a thing exists (they say it does). Comments: really charming, although the grain does remove some structure, which just so happens to be one of Chichibu’s great strengths in our humble opinion. A little bit like a four-cylinder Porsche, if you see what we mean, though there have been some very fine ones indeed.
SGP:551 - 84 points. |
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Kanosuke 2010/2024 ‘Nouveau Beginnings’ (59%, OB, for Whisky Abbey, cask #24270, sherry)
Perhaps we ought to point out that in French you’d say ‘Nouveau Départ’, but as fully certified specialists in the highest grade of globish, we’ve absolutely nothing against mixing languages, quite the opposite in fact. Colour: gold. Nose: honey-glazed orange cake drenched in caramel sauce. A pack of Camel cigarettes on the side, plus a tiny touch of malt extract. With water: dried and smoked meats, flints, lighter stone… Mouth (neat) quite a lot of gunflints to start with, you may use the ‘S’ word if you wish, then baked artichokes and coffee that’s both slightly bitter and slightly sour. This does not seem to have been the easiest sherry cask. Also a feeling of walnut stain. With water: there we are, it finally settles down, thanks to the citrus fruits, although aubergines, artichokes and simply bitter walnuts continue to dominate the proceedings. Finish: long, and now very peppery. Comments: still rather extreme, if you ask us, in the bitter department… Very ‘S.’
SGP:272 - 83 points. |
After that little monster, let’s try to find a more civilised Japanese malt. We know there are plenty of them… |
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Mars Komagatake 2017/2025 (59%, OB, for OBE, 1st fill cream sherry hogshead, cask #BT3671, 256 bottles)
A cream sherry hogshead, now who’s ever seen one of those in real life? Colour: full gold. Nose: this is lovely, on mirabelle jam, apricot jam, and just a little very soft muscat. Add a touch of beef stock over the top and presto, it works beautifully. With water: a floral side emerges, largely driven by freshly blossomed honeysuckle. We adore this, it’s gloriously fragrant. Mouth (neat): tasted blind, we might have said Amrut or perhaps Omar. Mangoes, muscat, apricot liqueur, orange blossom honey, white pepper… With water: the barley tries to regain control, bringing aniseed, sesame seeds, sourdough bread and oat crackers… Finish: everything falls into place, fruity and floral, yet without tipping into excess. For us, the limit would be gros grain muscat, just a little too worldly, if you see what we mean. Comments: cream sherry, wasn’t that supposed to be for elderly English ladies? Only joking.
SGP:651 - 85 points. |
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Mars Komagate 2016/2025 ‘Tsuki Otoshi - Yakushima Aging’ (58.4%, OB, for LMDW Itinéraires, oloroso sherry hogshead, cask #2067, 204 bottles)
Colour: deep reddish amber. Nose: this is bigger, meatier, more on flints, old walnuts, fig leaves, brown tobacco, Noilly Prat… With water: coffee fudge and simply latte. The more bitter and herbal notes retreat somewhat. Mouth (neat) magnificent this time, on walnut liqueur, crushed pepper and Seville oranges. All this is classic and dry as a donkey’s truncheon across a mule’s back, as they say… in French. Right. With water: the bitterness and green walnuts return, and frankly, we adore that sort of thing. Even if we suspect the distillate itself has absolutely nothing to do with any of it. Finish: indeed, a lovely sherry cask, bitter, dry, and even pleasingly acidic. Comments: if you enjoy bitterness, this is for you. Just avoid pouring it over ice cubes, it would dismantle your entire spine. As you know, cold brings out bitterness and acidity while muting sweetness.
SGP:471 - 88 points. |
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Mars Komagate 2018/2025 ‘Yori-Kiri - Komagate Aging’ (62.8%, OB, for LMDW Itinéraires, American white oak barrel, cask #1964)
There we are, we’ve finally understood, all these curious names are to do with sumo! Why on earth did we not realise that earlier? Colour: gold. Nose: pure vanilla, banana, ripe apples, mangoes, acacia honey, barley syrup, toasted hazelnuts… With water: coconut, macarons, marzipan… Mouth (neat) essentially Williams pear eau-de-vie at more than 60% vol. Quite brutal, believe us. With water: the banana returns, along with herbal infusions and green teas. Not easy to find the right strength, this changes quickly, moving from fruit to lawn clippings in no time while you’re adding drops of H2O. You see what we mean. Chlorophyll. Finish: the artisanal pear spirit rules the roost, and does entirely as it pleases, emboldened by so much power. Comments: we’re struggling slightly to rediscover the clarity of the Tsunukis, although perhaps that’s just us…
SGP:461 - 84 points. |
One last try, then adios Japan — for now… Next session: Macallan versus Dalmore, official bottlings only. Just joking ;-)… |
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Mars Komagate 2018/2025 ‘Oshi-Dashi - Tsunuki Aging’ (58.4%, OB, for LMDW Itinéraires, bourbon barrel, cask #5458, 180 bottles)
Colour: light gold. Nose: smoked ham, new rubber, barbecued herbs de Provence, grilled bacon… With water: not that much change really, this is ultra-rustic. Soaked grains, virgin wool under the rain. Mouth (neat) lively peat, peppery, powerful, almost violent. With water: bitter, dry, herbal, austere, rather difficult. Finish: bitter. Small tart apples. A thimbleful of strawberry syrup in the aftertaste. Comments: this one rather escaped us; we readily plead guilty.
SGP:261 - 82 points. |
Tsunuki over Komagatake any day this time. Right then, one very, very, very last one, which is also ‘rather’ Japanese… |
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The Glover 8 yo ‘Batch 7’ (56.4%, Adelphi, blended malt, Ardnamurchan & Chichibu, 482 bottles, 2024)
A cheerful marriage of Chichibu and Ardnamurchan, so in a way a sort of self-blend, as there are clearly similarities between the two distillates. That said, we do not know the proportions within this world blend. Next time they could push things even further and do the blending exactly halfway between the two distilleries, although that would probably land somewhere near Novosibirsk, and we’re not entirely sure this would be the ideal moment. Colour: gold. Nose: never has a blend of two distillates so geographically distant felt quite so coherent. In truth, this could easily have passed for pure Ardnamurchan or pure Chichibu, and frankly nobody would have argued otherwise blind. Small apples, chalk, virgin wool, grist, baker’s dough trough, bière de garde… With water: touches of camphor, eucalyptus and fresh mint begin to emerge… All this feels absolutely perfect to us. Mouth (neat): same impressions here, lively, taut, very close to the nose though more lemony and herbal, really excellent. With water: the little tropical notes arrive at last, passion fruits, air-freighted mangoes… Forget Novosibirsk! Finish: long, lively, more saline now, ultra-coherent. Comments: a blended malt that entirely behaves like a single malt, now that’s clever! We love this. Watch out, there do seem to have been one or two more recent batches of this Glover.
SGP:461 - 89 points. |
We were having a few more but that'll be for another time. |
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May 6, 2026 |
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Japanese whiskies Part 2: some great and rare ones
(Nikka)
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After the beautiful Chichibu and Shindo yesterday, we’re continuing our exploration of Japan in its malty, liquid form, also trying to track down more Chichibu, and likely heading over to Mars (but in a different way from that of the ultra-wealthy tech tycoons), and of course Kanosuke as well. But we’ll start with one of the pioneers rather than a Japanese new kid on the block… |
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Nikka Whisky ‘From the Barrel Extra Marriage’ (51.4%, OB, Japan, blend, 2025)
A version to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the famous NAS ‘From The Barrel’ from Nikka, created in 1985. This brings together malt from Yoichi and Miyagikyo, with grain from Miyagikyo distilled in the former Scottish Coffey still previously installed at Nishinomiya, an assemblage ‘married’ for twice as long as the regular versions. Colour: gold. Nose: we find touches of freshly sawn oak and vanillin at first, then little by little yellow fruits join in, apples, quinces, yellow peaches, alongside fudge and a little corn syrup. With water: arrival of fresh bread, popcorn, green tea, liquorice wood… Mouth (neat): once again a sensation of fresh wood, a little bitter. It really needs water. With water: it remains powerful, woody, rather gripping, like a marriage that may have lasted a little too long. Only joking, it is very good, but we hope Mrs Whiskyfun never reads these lines. Finish: like certain malts we tasted yesterday, the fruits and sweetness only truly arrive in the finish. The aftertaste is spicier, with some tannicity. Comments: a little woodier than the ‘base’ version, which I prefer slightly, actually.
SGP:451 - 85 points. |
So long as we’re talking about the old guard… |
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Suntory 17 yo ‘Hibiki’ (43%, OB, Japan, blend, +/-1992)
One of the earliest versions of the 17-year-old, with the number 17 in black. Hibiki had been launched in 1989, also to mark an anniversary. We had never been the greatest admirers of Hibiki, let us be frank, the 17-year-old had always hovered around WF 80, yet we had never tasted this version. Let us proceed swiftly… Colour: gold. Nose: soft, beautifully fruity and floral, then come lovely notes of fresh plaster and a light peat. A thousand times better than we had expected. Mouth: similar on the palate, with a discreet grain and thus a rather present malt, still with fruits and those honeyed and mineral touches which, frankly, here rather evoke Highland Park. It is even more beautiful on the palate than on the nose. Lovely earthy and saline peat at once. Finish: not very long but perfectly balanced and rather very ‘northern Scottish coast’. There is no mention of Japanese origin on the label in any case. Comments: excellent, even if it has closed up a little. It would seem that even whiskies open and close according to lunar cycles, I swear.
SGP:552 - 87 points. |
Wait, can one really imagine a proper Japanese session without any Karuizawa? There’s still plenty we’ve never had the chance to taste. Yeah, it’s good to have goals in life, isn’t it. |
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Karuizawa ‘Ambassadors' Collection’ (59.1%, OB, Japan, sherry, 2019)
A marriage of various vintages ranging from 1972 to 1999 and possibly the rarest Karuizawa ever because you can count the number of bottles on the fingers of the right hand of an English archer during the 100 Years’ War (according to a legend disputed by historians). Colour: amber. Nose: sumptuous, which was not entirely obvious given that there are some ‘young’ vintages within. A crazy wild mango and heather and fir honeys, then camphor and eucalyptus in a rather wild duet. We shall say no more for now. With water: shoe polish, beeswax polish, fresh mint, gentleman’s pipe tobacco, potting soil, morels… All this is so very Karuizawa… Mouth (neat): the power of a small aircraft carrier, even if that analogy has become a little unfashionable of late, we grant you that. Water is absolutely required, otherwise it smothers you like a famished boa constrictor. Or like an old Ténarèze at cask strength. With water: there we are, it relaxes, with returning honeys, prunes, very damp tobacco, waxes… Finish: truly very long, rich, almost thick, it is almost a miracle that it does not cling to your palate. Tannins of excellent quality in the aftertaste, around a very fine Darjeeling, chocolate and a saline touch. Comments: it is this alliance of complexity and coherence that impresses. Among other things… You see, we could have gone overboard, yet we tried to keep a low profile.
SGP:662 - 93 points. |
A break is in order… Right, we’re back… let’s look for the opposite of K: something young, light and fresh… or at least, that’s the hope. |
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Mars Tsunuki 4 yo 2020/2025 (56%, OB, Japan, for Rudder, bourbon barrel, cask #5392)
They have used liquid ale yeast here, which is interesting. Colour: white wine. Nose: exactly what we had expected, a Chablis-malt, on chalk, yellow flowers and no less yellow fruits, with a slight preference for grapefruit. It is rather elementary, yet that is precisely its charm. Chablis at least premier cru in any case, perhaps on the smaller side of the Serein, opposite the grands crus, let us say Côte de Léchet, which we adore. With water: very small and wonderful tarry touches appearing. Linoleum. Mouth (neat): superb lemony and chalky purity. Have we already mentioned Chablis today? Chablis at 56%, that does speak… With water: superb, this time with little preserved lemons. Finish: it merely prolongs the beginning, straight as an I. Comments: we are very fond of this very streamlined style, of perfectly clear line. Well, we shall have spoken as much about Chablis as about Tsunuki, apologies…
SGP:551 - 89 points. |
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Mars Tsunuki 7 yo 2017/2025 ‘Uwate Nage - Komagate Aging’ (59.8%, OB, for LMDW Itinéraires, Japan, bourbon barrel, cask #3518)
Colour: white wine. Nose: well, you take the previous one, you add peat smoke and ashes, you give it all a good shake and there you are. It feels a little like a two-headed eagle, yet it works. With water: it has come together into a mix of soaked charcoal, ashes and limestone, with a slightly volcanic, basaltic side. Mouth (neat): more coherent on the palate from the first drop, yet as they say in certain sports, it rather hits hard. An extremely medicinal side before adding water. With water: and there we are, a fresh, lemony peat, almost gentle and now rather rounded. Finish: long, on lemon marmalade and ashes. A little eucalyptus in the aftertaste. Comments: we just find the unpeated version a tiny bit ‘purer’. More ‘design’, if you like, yet this peated one remains splendid.
SGP:567 - 88 points. |
You know what, we never e.v.e.r. have enough Chichibu… |
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Chichibu ‘Casa de Vinos 15th Anniversary’ (64%, OB, Japan, for Australia, American white oak refill sherry, cask #7535, 267 bottles, 2025)
Colour: light gold. Nose: well this is a very gentle yet very characterful olive oil. The rest is probably hidden by the 64% vol. With water: fresh farmhouse bread with a few small candied fruits within. Mouth (neat): sublime, even at these lethal strengths. Orange peel, olives, green walnuts, angelica, lemongrass. With water: when the sherry simply punctuates a great malt in this way, it is magnificent. Oranges in full majesty. Finish: long, almost fresh, characterful, yet oily. Those touches of green walnuts are sublime. Comments: fabulous. We take this opportunity to offer our most sincere apologies for yesterday’s rather stoopid joke about our Australian friends who live upside down yet still manage to keep their whisky in their glass. Yesterday, we were operating at nursery level on this slightly wretched ‘blog’.
SGP:651 - 91 points. |
“Never enough Chichibu,” he said… As for the 64%, that was nothing… |
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Chichibu 8 yo 2017/2025 (64.3%, OB, for LMDW Itinéraires, collection In the Wake of Silence, 1st fill bourbon barrel, cask #7492, 171 bottles)
Everything is aligned, every box is ticked here, and we rather know in advance what is going to happen… Colour: light gold. Nose: we immediately find the oils, certainly olive, but also grape seed, peanut, sesame… while someone has just added, with an almost distracted gesture, a touch of lime. But do mind, 64.3%, so… With water: this time we move a little away from the realm of great Chablis towards that of great white Graves/Pessac. We shall not however, no cheque having arrived thus far, mention any specific Château. Mouth (neat): rich, yet lemony, oily, yet taut. There, we have kept it brief. With water: it is almost a karate bout on your palate. Have no hope, you are going to lose, because of those bitter and acidic citrus peels, those magnificent waxes and oils, and that heap of clay, chalk, slate, oyster shells… Finish: one might call this an eternal citrus-led minerality. Comments: we forgot to mention the barley, which punctuated the whole from beginning to end.
SGP:561 - 91 points. |
Shall we finish with a Kanosuke, what do you reckon? And we’ll be back tomorrow with more Japanese whisky. |
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Kanosuke 2018/2025 (57%, OB for Kirsch Import, Awakening series, Japan, sherry, cask #19466, 108 bottles)
Colour: dark amber. Nose: prunes and damson tart, plus soy sauce and even miso. It makes for a rather surprising ensemble, yet extremely coherent, all the more so as Iberian ham and marrow broth quickly join in, while never letting go of the prunes, nor indeed of the ultra-ripe guava. Ultra-ripe guava, that is quite something. With water: the meaty and fermentary side remains. Maggi, Bovril, and even Marmite. Do they have Marmite yeast extract in Japan? Mouth (neat): it almost feels like a rather crazy rye aged in PX, in the style of Millstone. Borderline genever, indeed. Some curious notes of rose and lychee as well. With water: it has become incredibly saline, yet also more chocolatey. All this is a little unusual and rather extreme, and what works quite perfectly is to taste it after the Chichibu, as they are the exact opposite in style, though not in quality. Finish: long, now increasingly peppery. Comments: it may not be the most delicate, yet what a spectacle it is.
SGP:662 - 88 points. |
So, we’re changing tack and adding a ‘clean’ Kanosuke, at least judging by its colour… |
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Kanosuke 2019/2025 ‘The Heart Cut’ (54%, OB for The Whisky Exchange, for the Whisky Show 2025, bourbon quarter cask, 150 bottles)
We are not entirely sure what The Heart Cut is, but we shall look it up, promised. Colour: gold. Nose: a handful of Haribo little bears, another of jelly crocodiles from Marks & Spencer, and a glass of viognier, since we were speaking of wine. All this is delicately coated in custard. With water: an avalanche of fennel seeds, poppy seeds, cumin, caraway, and even absinthe. How amusing, how charming. Mouth (neat): the explosive fruitiness of Kanosuke… explodes. Truth be told, orange sweets rule the roost here and now. With water: it no longer changes, which is rather unexpected, although it then does shift more and more towards simple bread, focaccia, sourdough bread… What a turnaround! Finish: barley, vanilla, herbal infusions, everything has been tamed. Comments: in the end, we had remained close to the raw materials all along. Excellent.
SGP:651 - 87 points. |
We’ll pick things up again tomorrow for a third, and perhaps the final, Japanese session this week. |
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May 5, 2026 |
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Japanese whiskies: from the very top tier to the more average ones
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| Shindo Distillery (Shindo) |
We probably won’t be tasting only genuine Japanese whiskies, meaning whiskies actually distilled in Japan. Matters may seem obvious to 90% of people, and yet… That said, the situation does seem to have become clearer over the past three or four years, though you still come across horrors here and there whose only Japanese credentials are the samurai or Mount Fuji on the label. I know, we’re repeating ourselves, but the millions of bottles of ‘fake’ Japanese whisky have still been the biggest scandal of the past fifteen years in the whisky world. What’s that, rum? Who mentioned rum? … In any case, we’ll proceed at random; we shouldn’t, at any rate, reach the heights of the thirteen Chichibus we tasted on 20 April. |
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Kiyokawa ‘The Cask’ (61.1%, OB, Japan, PX, 398 bottles, 2026)
Here we are in Nagano, and this is their first single malt, brand new and rather handsome, made ‘from farm to bottle’ entirely in Japan. Except for the PX, of course, but perhaps they have planted some ‘Pedro’ in Japan? Moreover, it would seem they are using ‘wet casks’, so not rinsed as is done elsewhere. In theory at least. Colour: gold. Nose: powerful, youthful but we rather like that, close to the grain yet also to sherry, in a fresh and elegant manner, with no raisiny effect. Speculoos, amber ale, flint, marzipan and fruitcake that is not overly sweet. With water: gingerbread! The PX is doing its job and doing it well in this instance. Mouth (neat): oily, very good, on pepper and speculoos, bitter orange, and a mix of peppers, coriander seeds and juniper. With water: it becomes honeyed, also on prunes and currants. The PX keeps playing its part. Finish: long, rich, candied. Comments: it is always rather odd to put farm-to-bottle malt into PX or other wines from the far ends of the earth when you are not, say, in Andalusia, to me that slightly contradicts the chosen approach, but in the glass, here, it worked very well for me. But do not ask me to tell you about Kiyokawa’s distillate. We hope to avoid ruby Port in mizunara next time, if indeed there is a next time. And if there is ruby Port in mizunara, may God preserve us.
SGP:671 - 84 points. |
If we’re going to make comparisons, we might as well try to do it properly… |
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Chichibu ‘Australia Edition 2024’ (52.5%, OB, Japan, 480 bottles)
Hey it is not because we tasted quite a few Chichibu last month that we are going to deprive ourselves today. Here is a vatting of peated and unpeated matured in several different kinds of casks. Colour: pale gold. Nose: I find myself thinking that the main marker of Chichibu on the nose, across all styles and cask types combined (and there have been some oddish ones), is as much the fattiness as the minerality. Am I mistaken? Here is a fine example, combining a rapeseed oil side with a little basalt, ginger, sweet pepper, toasted hazelnuts, wood ash, and even tomato sauce, although these were very fruity tomatoes. Tomato is a fruit after all. Behind all that, a few drops of orange juice and oyster juice. I love this nose, one just needs to take one’s time. Tomato, that is something! With water: herbs, cut flowers, dried flowers, tomato bush. Mouth (neat): that oily side again. A slight cabernet edge, the rest revolves around peppers and ashes. And tomato, I swear, like a slightly spicy Tuscan sauce (and lengthened with grappa, ahem). With water: still a little mad and with such an unusual side that we already like it for that alone. Finish: long and fatty, yet a little tighter on more classic flavours, peat, seafood… Comments: in theory, I ought not to like this too much, but I am already admiring the Australians simply for the fact they manage to keep their whiskies in their glass while walking around upside down (rest assured, all is well at WF HQ)…
SGP:465 - 90 points. |
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The Daisen ‘Red Wine Cask’ (40%, OB, blend, Japan, The Matsui, Kurayoshi, Japan, +/-2025) 
At least it was Japanese red wine, apparently, that was used for this quick finishing. The wine may well have been more Japanese than the whiskies used in this blend… Colour: straw. No pinkish hue whatsoever. Nose: light, pleasant, without fault, without rough edges, on apple juice and yellow plum juice, barley syrup, scones… Mouth: not too bad at first, malty, but it then drifts into cardboard and sawdust, with nevertheless a few agreeable citrus notes. Finish: short. No sign of red wine and we are not going to complain about that. Perhaps a hidden raspberry right at the very end? Comments: what were we talking about? Seriously, it is not bad.
SGP:341 - 75 points. |
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The Daisen ‘Sakura Cask’ (40%, OB, blend, Japan, The Matsui, Kurayoshi, Japan, +/-2025)
But of course, cherry wood cask used for a quick finishing. Likely staves, heads, or perhaps chips? Frankly, I had quite liked those ‘Matsui’ in pure malt form at 48% vol., but here it is different, it would seem. Colour: pale white wine. Nose: close to a floral eau-de-vie, mullein, woodruff… I rather like it, but alas, no notes of cherry stalks, which I had hoped for. Nor any kirsch… Mouth: we are not very far from the ‘Red Wine’ (which red wine was anecdotal in any case), on the palate it loses a little freshness and clarity. The floral or cherry eaux-de-vie seem to have vanished… But there is pear! Finish: short but those pear notes do work. Comments: cherry that smells of pear, why not? I quite like it.
SGP:441 - 78 points. |
We’re certainly no longer up in the Chichibu heights, but we shall press on… Like Confucius, we hope for the best, prepare for the worst, and take what comes… |
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Maen ‘The Perfect Circle’ (43%, OB, Japan, blend, bourbon barrel, +/-2025) For me, a ‘perfect circle’ is a very old 45 rpm record by Zappa, Miles or Coltrane, but let us move on… If this is 100% Japanese, I am Céline Dion’s guitarist. May God preserve her from that. Colour: gold. Nose: well it is not bad, it is a bit like Chivas, there is barley, overripe apple, nougat, barley, overripe apple, nougat, barley, overripe apple, nougat, barley, overripe apple, nou… Mouth: I shall not do the same trick again, but it is rather good, a little less rounded, perhaps a little rougher. Finish: fairly short, a little indistinct, cardboardy and on tea. Comments: we are back in the territory of the two previous ones. Nothing to cry wolf about either.
SGP:431 - 75 points. |
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The Daisen ‘Mizunara Cask’ (40%, OB, blend, Japan, The Matsui, Kurayoshi, Japan, +/-2025)
Oops, I nearly forgot the mizunara, even if there is probably less mizunara here than lark in lark pâté. But do you know a whisky brand that does not use mizunara these days? The forests must be getting devastated! Colour: pale white wine. Nose: hey, not bad at all, on asparagus, artichoke and hyacinth which softens it all a little, then a few drops of fir bud liqueur. Light aniseed and fennel. For now, it is my favourite… I mean of the blends. Mouth: not bad indeed, there is less of that ‘beer’ effect than in most of these blends, but we are not quite reaching the heights either. Curious touches of ham with lemon and fir. Really. Finish: quite good, fairly fresh, less scattered than the other. Touches of lime, aniseed and mint, that is rather pleasant. Comments: my favourite of the three. We do joke a lot about mizunara, but if they use it so much, there must be a reason after all.
SGP:441 - 79 points. |
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The Tottori ‘Bourbon Barrel’ (43%, OB, Japan, blend, +/-2025)
It is ‘aged a minimum of three years’, can you imagine! I rather fear we may be scraping the bottom of the drawer here, but do not worry, we shall quickly set things straight afterwards… Well, we hope so. Colour: pale gold. Nose: no, it is perfectly decent, on vanilla cake and a few root vegetables. Carrot tart. I do quite like these cake batter notes here, truth be told. Mouth: indeed, not bad at all, carrots, honey yoghurt, turnips cooked in syrup, all that I rather enjoy, one has to be honest. Finish: and even a few saline touches. It really is rather good, this little Tottori, especially as a little fennel then appears. The aftertaste is a touch rougher, but that is only to be expected. Comments: a pleasant surprise, I was expecting nothing. And as usual, 43% makes an enormous difference compared with the rather stingy 40%.
SGP:351 - 79 points. |
The Daisen Mizunara would probably come in at WF 81–82 if it were bottled at 43%. Right then, let’s raise our game, but we’ll stop after the next one and pick things up again tomorrow, all being well, or very soon depending on our schedule… |
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Shindo 3 yo 2022/2025 (59%, OB for AF Trade & The Antelope, bourbon barrel, cask #10332)
Straight from Fukuoka Prefecture, on the northern coast of Kyushu. We had literally a-do-red cask #10254 (WF 90). Colour: white wine. Nose: Shindo, this is grand, it is rich, it is textured, it is almost thick, even on the nose. Lemon cake and, since we are in Japan, mochis with green bean paste and whipped cream. And a scoop of toasted sesame ice cream, hoppla. With water: white soils soaked by the rain, focaccia dough, clay, slate… Mouth (neat): what class! Lemon green tea with a pinch of salt, that is more or less all there is, but it is so high-definition that it carries everything. With water: it inevitably remains focused at this age, but those little lemons and those clays are magnificent. Finish: enough natural beauty. Comments: one of the names that already matter, but we knew that. Just imagine, we have now already tasted three Shindos. Three!
SGP:551 - 90 points. |
Just to be clear, we don’t want older whiskies all the time, we simply don’t want the age of our whiskies to be hidden from us.
Right then, we’ll add one last of the last ones, as we often do (S., there’s always a last one, no?). We’re sometimes a bit like one of those dreadful Tesla Cybertrucks, we find it hard to stop… |
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Kanosuke 2021/2025 (60%, OB, for Casa de Vinos, 15th Anniversary, Japan, bourbon, 198 bottles)
Here we are back in Australia. There is something rather amusing on the label, it says ‘Founded in 1833, established in 2017’. Feels a bit like ‘a Bushmills’, does it not? Colour: light gold. Nose: this is tough against the Shindo, as we are a little in the same league, except that this Kanosuke is far more extroverted, with more exotic fruits dressed in mint and honey. Philosophically, we prefer the elegant austerity of the Shindo, yet we are still human, and this magnificent fruitiness cannot leave us indifferent. Who mentioned Bushmills? With water: it folds back a little towards bread dough and earth, plus lemon zest. Mouth (neat): the two come closer on the palate, but the 60% prevents us from exploring further without adding water. With water: boom! Citrons, kumquats, limes, bergamots, yuzu, finger lime… Right, we shall not list them all, but it is a magnificent cavalcade of sharp citrus fruits. Finish: and it rolls on and keeps going… Comments: in the end, the two arrive very close in terms of level, and in styles that are ultimately kind of similar on your palate. They are much more different on the nose than on the palate.
SGP:651 - 90 points. |
Unless they start extreme tinkering with yeasts, and with a few exceptions, the new Japanese producers (and I do mean new genuinely Japanese malt whiskies distilled entirely in Japan) don’t seem to be taking the shortcuts sometimes used elsewhere, including in Scotland. Perhaps it’s a question of purity of concept, something we fully subscribe to. Many more Japanese whiskies in the coming days on WF... |
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May 4, 2026 |
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WF's Little Duos,
today two Imperial for Asia and two horses |
Let’s sample two more malts from the Imperial distillery, which was demolished and replaced by Dalmunach, which began production in 2014, at a time when the whisky tide was rising. We’re also starting to see more and more young Dalmunach expressions from independent bottlers, incidentally, but let’s focus on these two Imperials, which appear quite similar… |
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Imperial 27 yo 1998/2025 (52/5%, The WhiskyFind, for CYD Taiwan, bourbon barrel, cask #11, 125 bottles)
Colour: light gold. Nose: fresh apple juice, chalk and limestone, grist and leaven, greengages and green tea, then touches of angelica. Nothing to fault in all this naturalness. With water: it becomes softer, more refined, more on candied citrus and, above all, on pure barley, sweet and majestic. Mouth (neat): fairly explosive on the palate, with even more chalk mixed with grey pepper, small green pear, apple and pomelo. It is rather taut like a wee bow and continues frankly onto grass. With water: it quite likes water, and it is green pepper that steals the show, if you enjoy that as much as we do here at WF HQ. Very fine austerity in the end. Finish: long and still peppery, with basil, nettle, or grass juice, you know those herb reductions that starred chefs and others have been making for some years now. Tropical fruits appear in the final signature. Comments: very fine, even if this sort of profile slices you up a little. Or perhaps because of that?
SGP:461 - 88 points. |
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Imperial 27 yo 1998/2025 (52.6%, Lucky Choice for 2nd Anniversary Anchor, bourbon barrel, cask #119, 175 bottles)
Another flamboyant horse, of course for the year of the horse. Or is it the Cavallino Rampante of a certain Italian car brand? Colour: light gold. Nose: we rather expected this, we are extremely close, it may well be the same malt in the end, the tiny little nuances could stem from a warehouseman having changed his aftershave during the maturation of this barrel. Or perhaps they changed the cat’s kibble? Or was one barrel two rows closer to the door? With water: the same. Mouth (neat): a hair’s breadth fruitier on the arrival, or perhaps not. With water: no real difference, beyond what our imaginations may… imagine. Finish: the same. I do rather like this finish on green tea and not quite ripe kiwi. Comments: truly very fine whiskies. We shall see what Dalmunach will deliver in twenty years, if our planet has not completely exploded by then…
SGP:461 - 88 points. |
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May 3, 2026 |
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The Rum Sessions,
today a new journey through rum, from France to Trinidad |
After that stunning headline, so bold that even David Ogilvy wouldn’t have dared to write it and that is bound to revolutionise the way tasting notes are written (all you adorable newborn recyclers/regurgitators on YouTube or elsewhere, do take note!) let’s get straight to it… For once, in any case, we’ll be setting off from France, as we usually do with ‘world’ whiskies.
Old vintage bottles of Trois Rivières, such as this 1953, can still be found fairly easily in France for a few hundred euros. However, be cautious when buying any oldies online from unknown sellers: AI now makes it very easy to artificially raise the fill levels or refresh the labels in photos. |
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Trois rivières ‘VO Cuvée du Moulin’ (40%, OB, Martinique, agricole, +/-2025)
On the label they specify ‘French plantation rhum’, and I who thought the word plantation rather recalled our colonial past and smelt a bit too much of Tarantino’s Django. Here the bottle is at €18.92 at E. Leclerc at the time of writing, as part of the ‘French Days’ (don’t ask), I have just seen that. Colour: light gold. Nose: a rather lovely agricole nose, quite aromatic, floral (hyacinth, slightly spicy) and lightly on aniseed and liquorice. Also touches of blood orange and cumin. For now, it is well worth its price (good one, S.). Mouth: entirely consistent with the nose but less precise, a little more on stewed fruits of all kinds and candied sugar. But it remains typical and the liquorice and mint duo at the end is rather charming. Finish: light saline touches. It holds its 40% vol. well. Comments: I find it clearly better than the brown-liveried version from some fifteen years ago (WF 80).
SGP:562 - 84 points. |
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El Supremo 5 yo (38%, OB, Paraguay, +/-2025)
All these slightly inflated cuvée names in South or Central America. Have you noticed that the more basic the cuvées, the more grandiloquent their names? Here it is a cane honey rum, whose 8-year-old version had nevertheless pleased us quite a bit two years ago (WF 80). Colour: gold. Nose: I remember, the style of the agricoles of Madeira, with that earthy side, on tobacco, pepper, old walnuts, caraway, leather, and even ashes, then pink pepper and touches of patchouli. Mouth: a little oily, probably slightly ‘darkened/obscured’, but we find aniseed, liquorice, caraway, peppermint, and quite simply sugar cane, very lightly peppery. It is really rather lovely, what a shame it is bottled at 38% vol. Finish: not very long of course, but this one too is fairly saline. Some sweetness in the aftertaste. Comments: a lovely little beast. If only it were at 40%, like the eight-year-old.
SGP:551 - 79 points. |
Come on then, another little five-year-old… |
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Doorly’s 5 yo (40%, OB, Barbados, +/-2025)
We had quite liked it some ten years ago (already!), but it had been eclipsed by the excellent 12-year-old. Time to revisit it. It is rather an entry-level version (the distillers generally say ‘core range’) from Foursquare Distillery, as everyone knows, even if it seems that Doorly’s is pure column still, and not a blend of column and pot still. But as usual, the sources of information diverge in this post-truth era. Colour: gold. Nose: vanilla, coconut, light varnish, mashed banana, orange cake, acacia syrup, marzipan, orgeat. A certain gentleness but no naivety (what?). Mouth: the sugar cane is more present than in the others, while the structure is light, a little more herbaceous. Touches of sherry, nuts, but all in great discretion. Finish: rather short, soft, very lightly spiced. A touch of tobacco in the aftertaste. Comments: a jolly little Foursquare in a lighter style. We shall have Doorly’s of greater calibre shortly.
SGP:441 - 80 points. |
Right, purely for scientific purposes, we need a Foursquare here and now, let’s pick one entirely at random… |
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Foursquare 22 yo 1998/2021 (58.8%, The Colours of Rum, No.8, ex-bourbon, cask #25, 227 bottles)
I believe this one too was pure column. Colour: gold. Nose: it is amusing how we remain close to the Doorly’s, but with, naturally, more power and a more chiselled combination of mango, orange, coconut and vanilla. With water: we move closer to sugar cane but also to a bag of entirely unrefined brown sugar. Mouth (neat): those oranges spiced with pink pepper and light ginger are magnificent. A very fine freshness on the citrus fruits. With water: are we convinced there is not a small proportion of pot still? Or is it the maturation mainly in northern Europe that has preserved the esters? Light tar and petrol, even a little seawater, even a touch of varnish. Gently… Finish: rather long, with a pleasing texture and a style that is at once more earthy and coastal. Comments: if it was column, it was short column, and the plates were mostly raised. Whether that is possible at FS, I have absolutely no idea, I am not a rum blogger.
SGP:541 - 87 points. |
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Venezuela Rum 20 yo (57.2%, Roaming Road, ex-bourbon, 2024)
A ‘single column rum’. Ah, now that is a concept! As long as there is that magic word ‘single’, it can only be excellent, right. Probably rum by Corporacion Alcoholes Del Caribe (CADC). Colour: mahogany/coffee. Nose: it is rather lighter than the ABV suggests, we are somewhat on very strongly infused black tea to which fennel and liquorice have been added, along with fir honey. For now, it does not feel like its 57%. With water: it changes very little, except that cedarwood and fir emerge. Mouth (neat): it is very good, on orange zest dipped in dark chocolate, with a present but pleasant woodiness. With water: again it changes little, let us say we are on a very lovely combination of orange, chocolate and liquorice, always underlined by those pleasing woody notes (dark chocolate, fir, cedar, black tea). Finish: fairly long and a little fruitier, dominated by orange zests. Crushed pepper and tobacco arrive right at the end. Comments: a very pretty bottle, great Venezuelan rums are not so common. Will they be serving this in the new White House ballroom? An absolute miracle of refinement and the ultimate culmination of 5,000 years of architectural history; Ramses II and Julius Caesar themselves would be jealous. We now await a new Colosseum and to find out whether they’ll use tigers or lions.
SGP:551 - 86 points. |
Right, a word from the American empire… |
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Mainland Rum 11 yo 2014/2026 (65.2%, Superlative Spirits, USA, Louisiana, ex-rye cask, 64 bottles)
Another micro-batch of Mainland Rum, we had very much enjoyed their ‘Barrel Number 01’ last Sunday (WF 88), but it was Californian, whereas this one comes from Louisiana, where many speak French by the way, sorry dear Charles III. Colour: apricot amber. Nose: this is café latte, garnished with triple sec and ground cinnamon, but let us not forget we are at 65.2%. With water: high-class bourbon. Mouth (neat): oh that magnificent young high-pedigree bourbon side! Everything is there, black pepper, acetone touches, varnish, candied zests, spruce… Are we quite sure this is not bourbon? Or does it all come from the ex-rye cask? With water: the same! One of the best ‘bourbons’ it has been given to us to taste in recent months. Finish: long, on wood, varnish, pepper and rye. Comments: excellent. I imagine it is technically rum but believe me it tastes like bourbon. Perhaps does a country as liberal as the good old US of A allow bourbon to be bottled under a name such as ‘Mainland Rum’?
SGP:561 - 89 points. |
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TDL 25 yo 2001/2026 (57.2%, Compagnie des Indes, Asia Exclusive, Trinidad)
TDL has truly been the discovery of recent years, thanks to the independents. Who would have said, when we were tasting rather simple, let us say not terribly complicated Angosturas, that such distillates were lurking behind them? Colour: red amber. Nose: oh my, what fruity beauty, it feels like a blend of a Benriach 1971 or 1976 with a pre-war grande champagne cognac. Everything is sublime here, peaches, mangoes, cranberry, guava and honeys of every kind. Sublimely beautiful, truly, and we have not even mentioned the flowers. With water: we shall not even dwell on it. Let us say it is the same after reduction, only a little softer. Also astonishing notes of honeysuckle and hibiscus. There we are, we have mentioned the flowers. A light fresh mastic, more good news. Mouth (neat): utterly exceptional, between fir bud and mango, and everything that may lie between those two markers. All the dials are at maximum. This is it, turned up to 11 (forget, boomer stuff). Quite a lot of propolis too, both dark and green. With water: it moves towards mints, resins, and indeed propolis. A touch of salmiak as well. Finish: it is superb to the point of becoming almost tiring, we begin to run short of adjectives. Comments: this will do nicely!... Was expected, that said.
SGP:752 - 92 points. |
Right, to try to counter such a beast, and also to bring this wild session to an end, perhaps we might call upon a… blend. A blend? |
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The Duo Chapter 4 (54.2%, The Whisky Jury, Long Pond & HD, Jamaica, refill bourbon, 183 bottles)
Well then, our friends at The Whisky Jury (love it that they have never created The Rum Jury, that is class) have decided to assemble 60% Long Pond 1998 and 40% Hampden 2014 <>H, which must be the same as <H>, or conversely, therefore +/- one kilo of esters per hectolitre of pure alcohol. It is probably time to drink a large glass of water… there, that is done. Colour: white wine. Nose: incredible how the molecules have combined, it feels like a single distillery hitherto unknown. Smoked bananas, soft liquorice, flambéed oysters, brake dust, salted butter caramel… With water: indeed, Paris metro brake dust, new rubber boots, oysters… Mouth (neat): the HD seems to have the upper hand, it is very saline, briny, the oysters are back, with tar and new rubber, but also lemon balm, wakame, olives, capers… With water: magnificent, on olive oil with lemon and a dash of seawater. Salmiak then takes back the lead, in the company of its friend lemon juice. Finish: very long and even more saline. You almost feel as if you are tasting the Atlantic Ocean. Comments: magnificent, it is simply not that easy to follow the incredible fruity bomb that was the TDL.
SGP:462 - 90 points. |
Right then, let’s try a triple backflip to properly wrap things up… |
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TDL 8 yo 2016/2025 ‘Trinidad Xmas 2025’ (53.6%, The Colours of Rum, #8, 132 bottles)
Well, let us just say it, when you are tasting a Christmas spirit in May, you frankly look a bit of a fool. This will not do much for our self-esteem, especially as it is far from the first time… Colour: pale gold. Nose: nothing like the splendid Compagnie des Indes, this is very pleasant but more on geraniums, prickly pear, rye, buckwheat, bananas… There are, as you know, various TDL styles. With water: hay and herbal infusions. It is not ultra-distinctive, but it does the job. Mouth (neat): artisanal pear eau-de-vie and grain vodka from ex-pot still. With water: some saline elements return, alongside the artisanal pear spirit. Finish: long, with a few bitter touches. Comments: thoroughly good, to be enjoyed with a Savoyard or Swiss fondue, at Christmas indeed. Or to be poured into the fondue.
SGP:641 - 82 points. |
Check the index of all rums we've tasted |
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May 2, 2026 |
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April 2026
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Serge's favourite recent bottling this month:
Talisker 47 yo ‘Magma’ (48.8%, OB, 622 bottles, 2026) - WF 93
Serge's favourite older bottling this month:
Ardbeg 1973/1988 (57%, R.W. Duthie & Co., Samaroli, 20th Anniversary, 540 bottles) - WF 94
Serge's favourite bang for your buck this month:
Malt Mill 17 yo 1959/1976 (80° proof UK, Cadenhead, Black Dumpy, green glass) - WF 94 (OK, that was our rather pathetic April Fools’ joke for 2026).
Serge's favourite malternative this month:
François Voyer ‘Lot 19.60’ (48%, Malternative Belgium, private bottling, 42 bottles, 2026) - WF 93
Serge's thumbs up this month:
Kimchangsoo 2021/2025 (50.8%, OB, Korea, travel exclusive, 1st fill European oloroso sherry quarter cask, 138 bottles) - WF 90
Serge's Lemon Prize this month:
TER 5 yo ‘Lignum’ (40%, OB, Italy, triple wood cask aged, 2025) - WF 56 |
We would like to remind you
that we do not take prices
into account, except for the
“bang for your buck” category. |
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May 1, 2026 |
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Who remembers the first official Benriach releases from the Billy Walker era, true fruit bombs? The 1971s, the 1976s… Before that, the poor official 10-year-old from the previous owners had gone completely unnoticed, its character being… somewhat non-existent. But a lot of water has passed under the bridge since then, and independent bottlers now seem to provide most of the interesting expressions, at least to our mind. Let’s try a few to test that theory, at random, for a bit more fun…
Today's winner. Sort of. (Christ enthroned, The Book of Kells, Codex Cenannensis, Trinity College Library, Dublin.) |
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Benriach 31 yo (53.1%, Elixir Distillers 'Macbeth Act I - The Thanes', bourbon barrels, 650 bottles, 2023)
Colour: gold. Nose: nothing but on beeswax and stewed apple and quince, with a light touch of honey and a little almond milk. it is pretty, but without the extravagant fruitiness we had been expecting. With water: we stay on the same aromas. Mouth (neat): rather taut, fresh, on small apples and pears, with a chardonnay side from the south of Burgundy, Pouilly-Fuissé and all that. With water: the same, a little softer, barley syrup. Finish: medium length, a little more on marzipan, with a touch of anise in the aftertaste. Comments: we know some who would have re-racked this into 1st fill or even virgin oak to bring out the mango, but that might have been deemed a bit inelegant, I suppose. A very pretty bottle in any case, but without any major asperities, to my humble opinion.
SGP:551 - 85 points. |
Come on then, another 31-year-old… |
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Benriach 31 yo 1995/2026 (49.6%, Maltbarn, sherry cask, 130 bottles)
Does Benriach need relatively active wood? Colour: gold. Nose: more on wax, pistachio syrup, orgeat, and a box of brand-new rubber bands. Mouth: ah here it speaks more, there is even a Guyanese rum side, low-mark, walnut cream, marzipan, green tea with lemon… Finish: medium length, more herbaceous, cider apples, a very light smokiness in the aftertaste. Comments: despite the sherry, we are rather close to the Macbeth, it is very pleasant, but perhaps not entirely extremely distinctive enough for 31 years of age. But no, it’s a great whisky, no questions.
SGP:451 - 85 points. |
All right, we’ll press the point a little and bring out some heavier weapon. Sorry for that silly rhetoric which, alas, is rather in vogue these days. |
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Benriach 55 yo 1966/2021 (51.2%, Gordon & MacPhail, The Dram Takers, refill American hogshead, cask #607, 52 bottles)
With the wonderful ‘Book of Kells’ label, the most beautiful of all time. To think it dates from the year 800, therefore from the time of Charlemagne! Well, almost… Colour: full gold. Nose: we enter an old library, with old papers, old leather, polishes, rose water, orange blossom, jasmine, incense, a basket of old apples abandoned in a corner and a stack of fir logs sawn during the week. And a little thuja wood… With water: the resinous woods are more to the fore, fir buds, thyme infusion… Mouth (neat): absolutely, obviously, fresh strawberries with mint leaves, peach yoghurt, reminiscences of menthol cigarettes, gentle olive oil, and a marked tannicity but centred on resinous woods, therefore elegant and not too drying. With water: the water relaxes all that, dissolves part of the tannicity at the start (for once!), but the resinous woods reply immediately. Very, very infused mint herbal tea. Finish: long, on black teas, without sugar or honey. That said citrus fruits come rushing in the aftertaste. Comments: we have somewhat flirted with the limits of tannicity, all the more so as the distillate itself was already rather light, but it remains a wonderful bottle.
SGP:471 - 89 points. |
Right then, let’s try the younger ones… |
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Benriach 17 yo 2007/2024 (53.7%, Timeless & Tasty, 90 bottles)
A new version of Manet’s Déjeuner sur l’Herbe, it would seem judging by the lovely label. Colour: gold. Nose: on gentle beer, cider, fudge and a bag of caramel and eucalyptus sweets. A light vanilla varnish. All is well. With water: a little damp earth and flint join the ensemble. Mouth (neat): a copy of the nose, very malty beer, instant chicory, calvados. With water: the same, very much on fudge and coffee toffee. It is very malty. Finish: long, more on fir bud liqueur and still plenty of malt. Comments: timeless, we are not so sure, tasty that is certain. Bravo.
SGP:451 - 85 points. |
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Benriach 18 yo 2007/2025 (49.8%, Fadandel, refill bourbon hogshead, cask #700193, 109 bottles)
Colour: straw. Nose: once again that very malty side, with quite a lot of beers, some rather hoppy, then fern, fresh cheese with garlic and parsley, and even some… raclette. Seriously, and what is more we do like that. Mouth: ah this is lovely, malty and earthy, then moving towards ripe apples baked in the oven and drizzled with bitter caramel. Finish: long, herbaceous and caramelised. Aftertaste: very malty, with a hint of pear. Comments: a very pretty little bottle, not necessarily hugely marked by the original distillate, yet very attractively malty all the same.
SGP:451 - 86 points. |
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Benriach 13 yo 2010/2023 (63.4%, Milroy’s Soho Selection, American oak hogshead)
Milroy’s have released quite a few superb bottles of late, so we are rather curious here. Let us expect a few oddities… Colour: white wine. Nose: this is a peated one, there is some slightly warm smoked ham, petrol, tequila… and 63% alcohol. So, with water: ah this is much better, above all very earthy and fermentary, with some lovely touches of cumin. Mouth (neat): oily, smoky, saline, brutal. In short, it is simply not drinkable as it stands, even half a drop, didn’t we accidentally pick up a wee bottle of white spirit instead?. With water: touches of caraway, ideas of black soap, rye bread, shoe polish… Finish: very long, ultra rustic, a tad soapy indeed, fairly peppery, increasingly saline. Comments: truth be told, this is a monster. Nothing is in place, nothing is coherent, yet in the end, it is great fun. That said, we are just not quite sure that our dear descendants will manage to finish even half a bottle before the end of this century. Utterly mad stuff.
SGP:367 - 83 points. |
Perhaps one last, as Benriach is starting to test our patience a little… |
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Benriach 13 yo (58.6%, Adelphi for The Whisky Exchange Whisky Show, first fill PX, cask #38, 234 bottles, 2025)
Colour: copper amber. Nose: varnish and roasted peanuts, shoe polish. With water: earthy, on pecans and peanut butter. Very light menthol and liquorice. Mouth (neat): very good, molasses, maple syrup and pepper. The roasted peanuts are not far away (with a thought for Jimmy Carter). With water: a fine development on sorrel, lemon zest, cardamom and pepper. A touch of shoe polish. Finish: long and more peppery. Much more peppery, and bitter. Comments: of course it is good, it is Adelphi, the official partner of Scottish opticians, as I think we’ve already said. Between ourselves, if you are over fifty and you can read an Adelphi label without a magnifying glass or without using your miserable iPhone, you have the eyesight of a well-fed grey wolf or a golden eagle at the height of its powers. Congratulations!
SGP: 362 - 85 points. |
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