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Hi, you're in the Archives, August 2008 - Part 2 |
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August
30, 2008 |
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| Michael
Jackson left us one year ago. We'll
always miss him. |
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August
29, 2008 |
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| PETE
McPEAT AND JACK WASHBACK
in Saint-Tropez
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TASTING
– TWO OLD 8yo SCAPA by G&M |
Scapa
8 yo (57%, G&M for Meregalli,
longship label, late 1980’s,
75cl) 
Colour: pale gold. Nose: powerful
and even a tad spirity at first nosing,
with a rather ‘maritime’
background (see air). Quite some smoke
as well, even peat smoke as such,
and then a development all on apples
(compote, overripe) and honey. As
heathery as some Highland Parks. Actually,
this could be mistaken for HP. With
water: a lot of smoke now, and a lot
of stones, mint and wax as well. Very
‘old Highlands’, a style
that just cannot be found in recent
bottlings from any distillery these
days in our opinion. Mouth (neat):
punchy, starting more on coffee flavoured
liqueur (Kahlua) and fruit drops (strawberries)
with also something meaty (more ham
than beef). Really characterful, even
if it’s a little rough around
the edges (a tad bitter and tannic).
With water: more drinkable but maybe
a little simpler than expected. Fruitier
(simply apples and pears.) Water almost
killed the meaty notes here. Finish:
long and compact. Comments: bizarrely,
water worked great on the nose but
not quite on the palate. Prepare two
glasses… SGP:434 –
84 points. |
Scapa
8 yo (100°proof, G&M, White/Black
Label, Pure Malt, 1980's, 75cl)
Colour: amber with reddish hues. Nose:
more smoke, more peat and more sherry.
Gunflints, coal oven, walnuts, pepper,
honey, chicken bouillon, hints of
chives… Even a little tar and
hints of spearmint. Unexpectedly complex.
With water: it got quite exceptional,
blending the ‘longship’s’
Highlands style with much more meaty
notes than when undiluted. Various
herbs (parsley first.) Superb. Mouth
(neat): very thick, very creamy, almost
‘spoonable’. Also punchier
than the latter batch. Peppered orange
marmalade, blackcurrant jelly, a little
pine resin (or cough medicine) and
a very obvious smokiness. Very good,
with a huge presence. With water:
once again, water didn’t quite
work on the palate, as the Scapa got
rather oddly fruity, almost bubblegummy.
Fruit drops. Finish: without water,
it’s still smoky and peppery,
whilst with water, it’s much
fruitier and a little too tannic.
Comments: a truly wonderful whisky
but tasting it is a bit complicated.
Just like with the Meregalli, prepare
one glass for the nose and another
glass for the palate. SGP:444
– 88 points. |
 |
And
also Scapa
1960 (40%, Gordon & MacPhail,
1980’s, 75cl)
Nose: maybe a tad too soft and slightly
papery at first nosing but doesn’t
stop developing after that. Honey
and brown sugar. Mouth: more powerful
and expressive. Acacia honey, nougat
and butterscotch. SGP:441
– 87 points (and
thanks, Jean-Michel) |
| MUSIC
– Recommended
listening: a beautiful old rag by
Al Bowlly (hi RT!), sung by the wonderful
and underrated Rose
Murphy, called Is
I in Love, I Is.mp3. Please buy
Rose Murphy's music. |
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August
28, 2008 |
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TASTING
– VARIOUS BENRINNES |
| Benrinnes
12 yo 1992/2004 (43%, Jean Boyer,
Best Casks of Scotland)
From a sherry cask. Colour: gold –
bronze. Nose: quite some sherry (bitter
oranges) and notes of vanilla fudge
and butter toffee plus a little wood
smoke. Gets then rather meatier and
earthier, a little Mortlachian so
to speak. Whiffs of fresh mint as
well, sandalwood… Quite a lot
happening, Benrinnes isn’t boring
malt for sure and this one is no exception.
Mouth: sweet and round, orangey, chocolaty
and minty. Notes of toffee and caramel
fudge, Demerara sugar, malt…
A little less assertive in the middle
but the whole stays the course. Finish:
medium long, maltier, with a slight
smokiness. Comments: very drinkable
but not just that. Interesting version
to try next to a deluxe blend to show
your friends what more malt can do
to Scotch whisky. SGP:432
– 83 points. |
Benrinnes
1988/2006 (53.7%, Scotch Single Malt
Circle, cask #891)
 Colour:
white wine. Nose: starts on similar
smoky and beefy notes but there’s
also more green apple, as if this
one was much younger than the 1992.
Whiffs of soot and coal behind the
fruity notes. Gets more phenolic with
time but also slightly plastic-like.
Paraffin. With water: less ‘plastic’
and more organic. Wet hay and wet
wool. Mouth (neat): a little pungent,
bitterish and even prickly (ginger
tonic) at the attack. Quite some pepper
as well plus hints of apple liqueur
(manzana verde). With water: gets
much grassier and still sort of fizzy.
Ginger tonic indeed. Finish: long,
gingery and peppery, with hints of
lemonade. Comments: not an easy/sexy
version of Benrinnes for sure. SGP:262
- 74 points. |
| Benrinnes
1975/2006 (55.5%, Gordon & MacPhail
for Holland, cask #3444, 204 bottles)
Colour: deep mahogany. Nose: this
is a pleasantly sulphury kind of sherry
it seems, with heavy notes of beef
bouillon mixed with gunflints and
used matches. Also quite some rubber
(bicycle inner tube) and blackcurrant
jelly as well as very unusual notes
of Bolognese sauce (tomato and beef)
plus a little mint. Rather spectacular.
With water: all on old walnuts, beef
bouillon and chocolate now. Very,
very nice. Mouth (neat): very spectacular
indeed but it may be too much here,
with heavy tannins, both from the
wood and from the wine it seems (grape
skin, apple peeling). Blackcurrant
and cloves jelly – should that
exist. With water: it got better again,
more in line with the nose, even if
there’s still something tannic.
More gingery as well. Finish: long,
gingery, peppery and even mustardy.
Comments: a rather spectacular evolution.
Very dry on the palate. SGP:462
- 84 points. |
| And
also Benrinnes
1975/2006 (46%, Gordon & MacPhail
for Juuls, cask #3443, 250
bottles)
A sister cask. Nose: starts right
on bicycle inner tube and barbecue.
Then classic, very big sherry, very
spectacular. Mouth: punchy, very chocolaty
and rummy. For lovers of sherry monsters,
a smoother, easier and better integrated
version than the C/S one in my book.
Wondering what would have happened,
had they switched both (#3443 at C/S
and #3444 at 46%). 88 points. |
And
also
Benrinnes 19 yo 1968/1987 (57.1%,
Sestante) 
Nose: roasted nuts and Provence herbs,
unusual whisky again. Also olive oil,
oranges, chocolate, then chalk and
wet stones. Mouth: powerful but elegant,
rounded and sweet. Herbs liqueur,
ginger, crystallised lemons and a
little pear. Quite some peat. Perfect
balance, truly multidimensional. Long
and still punchy finish on pepper
and ginger. SGP:462 –
90 points. |
| MUSIC
– Recommended
listening: wanna go Celtic again?
Okay but with a Breton singer this
time. He's the wonderful Gilles
Servat and he's singing
La
route de Kemper.mp3. Live! Please
buy Gilles Servat's music! |
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August
27, 2008 |
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TASTING
– TWO GLEN ELGIN |
Glen
Elgin 1980/2007 (44.4%, Scott’s
Selection) 
Colour: very pale gold. Nose: elegant
and slightly smoky (fir smoke, toasted
bread) at first nosing, developing
on more fragrant notes of cedar wood,
old roses, fresh orange juice and
light honey. Rather delicate and very
elegant. Maybe just a tad yeasty in
the background, with also whiffs of
barnyard after the rain (oh well…).
Mouth: very sweet and very fruity,
with these yeasty notes again. Belgian
Gueuze Lambic? Gets then more honeyed,
but there’s still a lot of strawberries
and ripe pears. A tad tannic as well.
Finish: rather long, with the wood
coming through now. Slight bitterness.
Comments: the nose is much more elegant
– albeit shier – than
the palate. Good whisky altogether.
SGP:541 – 82 points. |
| Glen
Elgin 16 yo ‘Manager’s
Dram’ (60%, OB, bottled 1993)
Colour: mahogany/brownish. Nose: chocolate
galore! Really, it’s just like
when you open a chocolate bar. Also
hints of mocha and ganache…
Not much else, that is – yet?
With water: yes, that works. It got
rather earthy, leafy (Havana cigar,
tea box) and even a tad peaty. Slight
beefiness, hints of patchouli, walnuts…
A very dry sherry it seems, and that’s
pretty beautiful – should you
not forget to add water. Mouth (neat):
rather explosive and heavily concentrated,
with a lot of sherry it seems (of
the fruity kind) but it’s also
a little too hot if you still need
your palate before going to bed. So,
with water again: it’s the best
part. Crystallised oranges, gingerbread,
plain ginger, liquorice and mint sweets,
‘spicy’ wine (mourvèdre,
syrah)… Finish: long, even spicier.
Superb tannins. Comments: water is
obligatory here but then we have a
beautiful whisky. As almost often
with this series, we can’t say
anything but ‘lucky DCL/UDV/Diageo
managers!’ SGP:463 –
90 points. |
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And
also Glen
Elgin 1975/2007 (46%, Berry Bros &
Rudd, casks 5167/5170)
Nose: very appealing, compact yet
elegant, on pollen and lemon tree
honey. Mouth: similar, with added
hints of verbena and yellow Chartreuse
(herbs liqueur). Slightly waxy. A
very excellent dram. 90 points. |
| MUSIC
– Recommended
listening: Scott
Hamilton's velvety tenor
sax does marvels in the very standard
Crazy
Rythms.mp3. Too mainstream? Come
on! And please buy Scott Hamilton's
music! |
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August
26, 2008 |
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TASTING
– THREE NEW LAPHROAIG |
| Laphroaig
1990/2008 (46%, Berry Bros & Rudd,
cask #2246)
Colour: white wine. Nose: this Laphroaig
starts rather more aromatic and fragrant
than most ‘regular’ Laphroaigs,
with even notes of lily of the valley.
Then goes the muesli and the porridge
(with bananas), then the expected
peat blast, the whole getting finally
hugely smoky. As smoky as, well, smoke.
Also notes of wet dogs… Like
wet dogs that would have walked through
a kiln (I’m really sorry, dogs.)
Mouth: maybe a tad buttery right at
first sip (cooked butter with a little
lemon) but it gets rather straighter
after that, even if we do have this
faintly flowery notes again (lavender
sweets.) Then lemon drops, pepper
and peat, with a very faint sourness.
Finish: long, more on lemon juice
and pepper. Slightly fizzy. Comments:
good Laphroaig, with these pleasant
lemony notes in the finish. Not a
peat monster as such. SGP:436
– 83 points. |
| Aloha
Grip 16 yo 1992/2008 (58%, The Nectar,
Daily Dram, 180 bottles)
Surely Laphroaig. Colour: gold. Nose:
this is much smoother, rounder and
more polished, as if it was from first
fill bourbon. Huge notes of vanilla,
custard, butter cream, crème
brûlée… And then
comes the peat, but it’s sort
of polished again here. As if this
one was made at Glenmorangie’s,
if you see what I mean. Very interesting
because it’s rather unusual.
With water: as expected, it got much
wilder, much more organic and much
less ‘rounded’, even when
down to 45%. Dry kelp on the beach,
seashells, brine and cold green tea.
Mouth (neat): we’re rather close
to the well-known 10yo C/S OB, but
with a little more oomph (more lemony
notes like in the BBR.) Less ‘polished’
than on the nose when neat, and very
drinkable, even when unreduced. Lemon
pie, nutmeg, coriander and a lot of
peat. Still, with water: it got very,
very salty now. Finish: long, clean
and immensely zesty. Comments: from
‘quasi-roundness’ to almost
extreme ‘salty peatiness’,
here are two Laphroaigs in one! Excellent
variations, exactly what we’d
expect from an IB’s.
SGP:447 – 89 points. |
| Laphroaig
10 yo 1998/2008 (61.2%, Jean Boyer
for the whisky-distilleries.info forum)
This one will soon be available. Colour:
white wine. Nose: this is the wham-bam
kind of young Laphroaig, with truckloads
of peat smoke, iodine, kelp and hints
of antiseptic and fresh mint. Certainly
the most ‘traditional’
of the three, maybe more traditional
than all OB’s actually. With
water: even more smoke, more iodine
and more rooty/earthy notes. Prototypical.
Mouth (neat): huge sweetness from
the alcohol and then plain peat, a
lot of lemon juice, apple peeling
(very clean and pleasantly sharp bitterness)
and a pinch of salt. Extremely compact
and exactly ‘Laphroaig’
again. With water: it’s totally
liberated now, displaying the perfect
peat+lemon+spices+salt combo. Finish:
goes on in the same vein for a long
time. Comments: absolutely perfect
young Laphroaig, extremely peaty and
ultra-clean. SGP:338 - 91
points. (please note
that I’m a member of the excellent
whisky-distilleries.info forum, but
I swear to Hueesskee, goddess of whisky,
that these notes were totally impartial.
- S.) |
| PETE
McPEAT AND JACK WASHBACK in
Saint-Tropez
|
| MUSIC
– Recommended
listening: the very excellent French
bluesman Benoit
Blue Boy does Tu
parles trop.mp3 (you're talking
too much.) Right, I'm writing too
much. Please buy Benoit Blue Boy's
music! |
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August
25, 2008 |
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TASTING
– TWO INDIE CLYNELISH |
| Clynelish
14 yo 1993/2008 (57%, Adelphi, cask
#7541, 282 bottles)
It’s getting harder and harder
for me to read what’s written
on Adelphi’s bottles (yes we’re
getting old) and that’s too
bad. Although thanks to my camera’s
zoom, I could still read this piece
of wit that’s written somewhere
on it: “Malt does more than
Milton can to justify god’s
ways to man – A.E. Housman.”
Fair enough! Ah, yes, in case you’re
not into English literature, it’s
John
Milton, not Milton
Duff (man that was pathetic.).
Colour: white wine. Nose: powerful
and idiosyncratic, albeit a tad less
waxy and mineral than usual it seems.
Rather ‘green’, very grassy
and very austere, and no fruits that
I can smell. This one does not try
to entice you – at least not
when naked (will you stop it!) With
water: more ‘Clynelish’
but still quite austere. Rubbed orange
peel, hay, wet stones, beeswax. Very
pleasant young Clynelish on the nose.
Mouth: (neat): powerful, starting
on coffee (which often happens with
high-strength whiskies I think) and
much more fruit than on the nose (when
neat). A little burning and a tad
rubbery as well, but that’s
probably the alcohol. With water:
it’s the best part it seems.
Still quite grassy but better balanced,
waxy, fruity, spicy and resinous.
Finish: rather long, in the same vein
but also with a little salt on the
tongue. Comments: good, obviously,
but not the best Clynelish in my book,
including from Adelphi’s (they
had a 1989 that was truly great a
few years ago.) SGP:353 –
81 points. |
| Clynelish
35 yo 1972/2008 (53.7%, The Single
Malts of Scotland, cask #12651, 273
bottles)
From a hogshead. We loved a sister
cask bottled last year (91) so we
have deep hopes here. Colour: pale
gold. Nose: yes. The expected winning
combo of beeswax and dried/fresh fruits.
Ripe pears, plums, blood oranges (really,
and there are loads of them)…
And more blood oranges and pink grapefruits.
Orange squash. Hints of nutmeg and
ginger as well (and ginger tonic),
most probably from the wood. With
water: even fruitier. Orange blossom
water and strawberry jam. Lychee liqueur
and fresh mint. Almost extravagant.
Mouth (neat): an avalanche of fruity
and waxy notes. At random: oranges
(just any kind), grapefruits (ditto),
quinces, dried ginger, fir honey,
nougat… Quite some oak in the
background (green tannins –
okay here.) Faint hints of wasabi
and quite some pepper. Paprika. With
water: keeps developing but doesn’t
change directions. Dates and figs,
a little salt, cardamom, green pepper…
Finish: rather long, more on waxy
spices – or spicy wax –
and a little mustard. Comments: almost
all 1972 Clynelishes – and Broras
of course - are great whiskies and
this is no exception. Extremely typical.
SGP:642 – 91 points. |
| MUSIC
– Recommended
listening: shabadabada, shabadabada,
shabadabada... Remember? Let's have
Claudine
Longet's somewhat unlikely
version of A
man and a woman.mp3 today and
then... WAKE UP! Please buy Claudine
Longet's music... |
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August
21, 2008 |
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FESTIVAL
SPECIAL by Nick Morgan
FAIRPORT'S CROPREDY
Cropredy,
Oxfordshire, August 8th and 9th 2008 |
| Ok
Serge, let me start by explaining
about the new Whiskyfun Festival Van,
although I have to say I’m still
at a bit of a loss to understand exactly
what happened. We were testing out
the kitchen gear, and what better
way, I thought, than by turning out
my Signature Festival Dish, Pork Pie
Flambe avec Chips? It was going pretty
well, and I honestly do believe that
the recipe (I used to have one somewhere)
said use a cupful of cask strength
whisky for the flambé (I’d
chosen a lovely 22-year-old Rare Malt
Mortlach, which at 65.3% looked as
though it would do the job). It certainly
did, and by the time the flames hit
the chip pan I knew that perhaps I’d
been a bit heavy-handed with the whisky
(next time I might try a Willie Dixon
spoonful). Anyway, the long and short
of it is that the van’s getting
what you might call a bit of a facelift,
and that we headed off to Cropredy
sans luxury accommodation, with the
emergency Whiskyfun tent in the back
of the car, to spend a couple of days
with the hoi polloi at ‘Britain’s
Friendliest Music Festival”. |
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| We
passed on Thursday – just as
well as it rained very heavily meaning
that the site was already pretty wet
and muddy when we turned up and pitched
tent on Friday, just in time for lunch.
That meant that we missed Supergrass,
who had headlined the night before.
“Who?” asked on my on
site informant, who we’ll simply
call Muddy B, when I quizzed him about
the previous night’s performance,
“Who were they?” he persisted,
which I think speaks for itself. Of
course like many fellow festival-goers
he spent much of the three days sheltering
from the weather in Cropredy’s
Brasenose Arms and Red Lion. Thankfully,
muddy though it was, Friday evening
was rain-free. So we avoided the pub,
and after a delicious Cornish
Goan Fish Curry (a wonderful newcomer
to the food purveyors here) got stuck
to a spot in the muddy mosh, and enjoyed
the company of some largely entertaining
Cropredy veterans, many of whom had
(of course) brought their beer with
them in weather-proof containers. |
| I
have to say I often think that for
all the gate money they must take
(this year’s close to another
sell out, that’s twenty thousand
people at something like eighty quids
each, which adds up to, well, a lot
of dosh) the organisers are a trifle
stingy when it comes to booking bands.
I know a huge amount must be invested
in the infrastructure which is pretty
good, but there’s a vast over-reliance
on local acts of sometimes questionable
talents and abilities. Anyway, Friday
night is pretty good. We catch the
end of Stackridge’s
set – remember Stackridge? They’re
famous for opening the first ever
Glastonbury Festival in 1970, and
the original line-up has reformed
for the first time since the mid-seventies.
Their style was an eccentric west-country
melange of progressive rock, folk
and end-of-the-pier music-hall. It
still sounds the same and I have to
say it’s very dated stuff, but
good enough for the folks madly waving
sticks of rhubarb at the front (I
did say eccentric didn’t I?).
|
| After
some lengthy chit-chat from compere
Whispering Bob
Harris (the one-time Old Grey
Whistle Test presenter and radio DJ),
Paul
Brady takes the stage.
Brady emerged from the Dublin folk
scene in the 1970s, and had a spell
with Planxty and a while in a duo
with Andy Irvine before launching
into a solo career, marked by some
outstanding albums of which Back to
the Centre, which provides at least
three of the evening’s songs,
is perhaps the best known. He has
also developed something of a reputation
as a prized collaborator, partly due
to his outstanding vocal performances.
And his singing is on top form here
– he’s got a very good
band, and an outstanding guitarist
in Bill
Shanley (I’ll ignore the
fact that Bill also plays in Gilbert
O’Sullivan’s backing band),
particularly when he gets going on
his Gretsch Tennessee Rose. |
Paul
Brady |
|
But for all that I have to observe
that Brady’s new songs (like
‘Say what you feel’. ‘Oh
what a world’ and ‘The
long goodbye’) are weak compared
with tunes like ‘Follow on’
and of course his very famous ‘The
island’. It’s almost like
his been back pedalling since I last
saw him over ten years ago. But it’s
a good set, finishing with a moving
‘Homes of Donegal’. |
 |
Dave
Edmunds (L) and Joe Brown (R) |
| Readers
may remember that when we last saw
Joe
Brown he literally had
the power cut on him in Bermondsey
Park. Tonight he’s here with
his band (yes – it’s the
Bruvvers) – who have recently
earned quite a reputation after barnstorming
Glastonbury a few years ago with his
charming and very good-humoured mixture
of Americana, roots and rockabilly.
At the start of their set the band
seem a little unsure of how they’ll
be received, but I can tell you that
everyone loved every minute of it.
Brown showed unexpected dexterity
on guitars, mandolin and fiddle, and
his band (featuring his son on guitars
and mandolin) were equally accomplished
both in their playing and their delicate
backing vocals and harmonies. Brown,
you may recall, was one of the UK’s
earliest rock and rollers, who then
made a name as a novelty act ("I'm
Henry The Eighth"), performing
in TV light entertainment shows and
pantomimes. But he’s reearned
his spurs, to the extent that his
special guest is one of the UK’s
greatest unreformed rock and rollers,
the rather reclusive (he doesn’t
even have a website) Dave Edmunds.
Edmunds joined Brown for a couple
of tunes (‘The winner loses
all’) and then finger-picked
his way with adroitness through ‘Lady
Madonna’ ‘Cut across shorty’
and ‘Classical gas’ before
being joined by the band for an energetic
run-through of some of his hits, including
‘Queen of hearts’, ‘I
knew the bride’, and ‘I
hear you knocking’. Believe
me, no one plays a bashed up customised
Fender Telecaster quite like Mr Edmunds.
Later he joined Brown again for songs
like ‘Yellow dog blues’
and ‘Girl’s talk’.
But it’s Brown’s show,
which he ends strumming his ukulele
with ‘I’ll see you in
my dreams’. He also had one
of the best jokes of the night. “I
expect you’re wondering what
I’m doing here surrounded by
all of these guitars. Well you lot
paid for ‘em so I though you
might like to take a look’.
Great stuff. |
| Following
Brown were the
Levellers, much more
powerful and effective in this setting
than in a two-thirds empty Brixton
Academy a few months ago. They played
with verve and vigour (and a very
effective light and projection show),
and were it not for the fact that
after about six tunes all the songs
sounded exactly the same (and were
played at the same relentless frenetic
tempo – hang on, am I showing
my age?), and that the crowd around
us were going beery-bonkers, we might
have stayed to the end. As it was
we navigated our way through the mud
and back to base camp for a drop of
Scotland’s midnight wine, to
wait for whatever the weather would
throw at us. |
 |
| And
sadly that was it. It rained so much
the following morning, and the forecast
was so bad, that we cut our losses,
raised camp, left the soggy tent in
the barn of a local friendly farmer
to dry, and headed back to the Smoke,
leaving the more hardy to the sea
of mud that beckoned. We’ve
done it before – you don’t
really need to earn your medals twice
do you? |
| Muddy
B stayed, and here are his brief views
on what we missed. Zappa tribute band
the Muffin
Men, “enjoyable” and
Julie
Fowlis (whom we saw singing a
couple of songs in the Rogue’s
Gallery show) “superb - despite
singing exclusively in the Gaelic”.
Muddy missed Midge
Ure (who anyway frankly, like
Vienna, means nothing to me) because
it was raining so hard he went back
to the Brasenose, and had this to
say about Fairport
Convention: “some good stuff
here, but found the Sandy Denny obsession
a bit of a drag. She's been dead for
30 years, and to devote a five-song
session to her, reliving some of her
songs (without any great signs of
having re-worked them to reflect where
the band is at now) was a bit like
an audio mausoleum”. Muddy also
seemed to miss out the fact that Robert
Plant joined them for ‘Battle
of Evermore’. And here is his
rather sad conclusion on the whole
weekend – “last year was
special, this year less so. It almost
felt as though the whole idea had
got tired, and they didn't even allow
an unaccompanied crowd-only chorus
in ‘Meet on the ledge”,
a pity as it's a genuinely moving
moment”. Well I have to say
we did, sitting in the warm, on a
dry sofa singing it down the ‘phone
to Jozzer and his doll, which was
a genuinely moving moment for us,
if not them. And next year –
who knows? It depends if we can get
the van fixed. - Nick Morgan (photographs
by Kate and Nick's iPhone) |
 |
STEPHANE
THE MAD MALT MIXOLOGIST
proposes
his last Summer malt cocktail
Cocktail
#8:
"My
Sherry Riviera"
|
Pour
into a shaker:
- 6 cl Aberlour 10 yo sherry cask
- 4 cl Marc de Provence (e.g. from
Bormes Les Mimosas)
- 2 cl chestnut liqueur (ideally from
Collobrieres)
- 1 cl crème de mûre
(blackberry liqueur)
Add ice, shake and strain into a cocktail
glass decorated with 3 blackberries
lying upon a bay leaf.
Variants: Use other
sherry typed malts instead of the
Aberlour (Glenfarclas,
Macallan, etc...).
For a "Deluxe Sherry Riviera"
use an aged sherry malt (e.g. Glenfarclas
17 or 21 yo) and an aged marc de Provence
(e.g. Pibarnon Marc de mourvèdre
1990).
A very good and original after-dinner,
where the "grape" makes
the link between the whisky and the
marc.
Good companion of a habano too. |
 |
 |
TASTING
– TWO INDIE CRAIGELLACHIE |
| Craigellachie
1994/2007 (56.4%, Berry Bros &
Rudd, cask #1057)
Colour: white wine. Nose: very, very
typical young Speysider, as fruity
and mashy as it can get. Granny Smith,
muesli and mashed potatoes galore!
Hints of kirsch, pears, tinned pineapples
and green bananas (and plantains).
With water: more of the same, plus
plain grass. Even more porridge. Hints
of aniseed. Not unpleasant but not
really interesting. Mouth (neat):
hot and uber-fruity. Big, big notes
of apple liqueur, pineapple liqueur
and vanilla fudge. Little oak and
not much ageing it seems, despite
hints of nutmeg. With water: more
drinkable (of course) but still rather
‘neutrally fruity’ if
you see what I mean. A little bubblegummy.
Finish: long but without any significant
aromatic development. Comments: not
bad at all but maybe not what we could
call ‘a cask deserving bottling
as single cask.’ Exactly a 75-malt
in my book. For summer cocktails?
SGP:640 – 75 points. |
Craigellachie
16 yo 1991/2007 (60.7%, Dewar Rattray,
bourbon, cask #6924, 267 bottles)
Colour: straw. Nose: punchy, with
more wood influence than in the BBR.
Granny Smith (riper), vanilla, cut
grass, ginger and cinnamon. Not overly
expressive, I’d say. With water:
rounder and balanced. More vanilla
and coconut, resembling good grain
whisky I must say. Liquorice allsorts.
Mouth (neat): very, very strong at
the attack. Apple juice, apple peelings,
grape pips and a lot of alcohol. Ouch!
Now, these notes of grape pips may
help us fight the dreadful free radicals…
With water: grain whisky again! A
good one, that is. Turkish delights,
strawberry sweets (Haribo’s
stuff), coconut milk, vanilla fudge…
And much less tannins than I thought
(and no more antioxidants, alas).
Finish: long, a tad grassier. Comments:
a little more mature than the 1994,
which makes sense. Pleasant and drinkable
but don’t forget water. SGP:550
– 79 points. |
| |
August
20, 2008 |
|
|
CONCERT
REVIEW by Nick Morgan
JIM WHITE AND HIS BAND
The Roundhouse, August 5th
2008 |
| You
could easily get the impression that
Jim
White doesn’t want
to be here. He wants to go home. He’s
been in Europe ducking and diving
between festivals, and he’s
missing his little girls, accompanying
guitarist and Fender maestro Patrick
Hargon is also yearning for the
company of his family back in the
USofA. But the boys are back on a
plane in the morning, leaving stand-in
bass player, the Australian Christian
Merry (well I think that’s what
they called him) in London. Apparently,
like most Australian bass players,
he’s only missing getting to
the pub for a few pints after the
show. |
 |
| We’re
in the Roundhouse, and as it’s
summer time and London’s mostly
deserted (the rich folk having gone
off to their Mediterranean gites and
villas in search of the sun, and the
less rich folks having headed off
to hang out in Gatwick Airport for
a fortnight) they’ve turned
the main performance space into an
intimate venue by hanging long black
curtains (or drapes, for any of our
North American readers) from the old
cast iron pillars that form an enclosed
circle in the middle of the space.
But it’s hard to make this place
intimate, especially when there’s
a cavernous dome above your head,
the crowning glory of this compact
cathedral to nineteenth-century capitalism.
But they’ve tried, and we’re
sitting at round tables ordering rose
wine from helpful waitresses as if
there’s no tomorrow, which sadly
it turns out there is. |
| It
looks full. White looks over the audience
and says, “I had a big crowd
once before … and I screwed
that one up too”. When he’s
not reminding us of his homesickness
White’s in expansive mood, and
only just manages to squeeze thirteen
songs in between his narratives and
story-telling. Strangely, given just
how engrossing White can be if you’re
prepared to step into his world for
a little while, this seems to grate
with some of the audience. “More
music” called out someone (according
to a contribution on Mr White’s
Forum the complainee was a “fat
loud-mouth idiot at the back of the
room”, but I couldn’t
possibly comment), about half-way
through the performance, as Jim is
explaining the finer points of ”sceptimysticism”.
|
 |
This
follows quite a lengthy discussion
on “pessimistic optimism”,
a “pre-emptive strike against
fate” as Hargon describes it.
We’ve also had a long story
about Jim explaining to a girl in
his cab that astral projecting was
not a sin, some reflections on the
condition of the United States (“people
pay me to sing derisive songs about
my country and I love it”),
and perhaps inevitably some thoughts
on evangelical Christianity in the
southern states, prompted by an incident
in a ice-cream (or was it snow-cone?)
queue. “More talk” comes
the riposte from others, gearing up
for an edgy pantomime-style exchange.
Before things get too heated, White
calls time – “Sir, are
you familiar with my oeuvre?”
|
| The
music’s good too. White plays
an artful selection from his new album,
Transnormal Skiperoo, mixed in with
his hits. Merry’s bass-playing
and singing is excellent, but Hargon’s
understated guitar is quite excellent,
adding both texture and depth to White’s
music and lyrics. It’s hard
to pick out the really good ones,
but I might go for ‘Chasing
Tornadoes’, about a youthful
acid-fuelled encounter with an, err…
tornado, ‘A town called Amen’,
and the very funny and mildly topical
‘If Jesus drove a motor home’
(“Honking horns at the drive
thru. Double-parking at the mall.
Midnight at the Waffle House - Jesus
eating eggs with ya'll”). ‘Take
me away’ is a beautifully-crafted
but most disturbing song about a suicide
(where White deploys his vocal tape
loops to great effect), and ‘Handcuffed
to a fence in Mississippi’ is
the song that still apparently has
him banned from the State. ‘Still
waters’ is just simply beautiful,
and his final song, played solo on
his banjo guitar after the band had
left the stage and the curfew was
over, was a spooky and chilling ‘Alabama
chrome’. |
|
I did say Jim White was going home,
didn’t I? Well, to prove it
he auctions off the bass amp just
before the end of the show, and then
walks off to meet his audience at
the merchandise stall with bags of
dirty laundry. It’s all up for
sale. It’s then that I briefly
lose sight of the Photographer, only
to find her ten minutes later clutching
a pair of Mr White’s jeans.
Watch out e-bay – superstar
trousers are coming your way soon.
But just watch out for fakes. -
Nick Morgan (photographs by Kate) |
 |
TASTING
– TWO KINCLAITH |
Kinclaith
16 yo 1966 (40%, G&M Connoisseurs
Choice, Old brown label, +/- 1982)
Built in 1957, Kinclaith was the last
Glaswegian distillery when it was
dismantled in 1975. No need to say
that it’s not that often that
one have the opportunity to try it.
Colour: deep gold. Nose: it’s
rather amazing how this is spirity
at only 40% ABV. Starts on rather
huge notes of plum spirit (slivovitz)
and even sorb eau-de-vie (or serviceberry),
then apple pie and shortbread, praline,
caramel and chicory and getting finally
rather buttery and vanilled, with
a good oakiness. Surprising and different,
as pleasant as the more recent ‘old
map label’ versions. Mouth:
very punchy again considering the
low strength! Quite some salt and
quite some fudge (which should make
for salted fudge I guess) but alas,
there’s also a rather big soapiness
that we didn’t get in more recent
versions. Lavender sweets. Finish:
long, still quite soapy, with quite
some tannins and pepper. Cinnamon.
Comments: it all started almost excellently
on the nose but these soapy notes
are a problem on the palate. Too bad.
SGP:340 – 69 points. |
| Kinclaith
35 yo 1969/2004 (51.3%, Signatory,
cask #301446)
This one isn’t from the same
cask as the more ‘common’
(well) version at 54%. Colour: gold.
Nose: extremely oaky, almost like
newly sawn oak, with quite some varnish
and liquorice roots. Much more mint
coming through then, hints of tinned
pineapples, orange juice, hay, pears,
green apples… Fresh oak stays
very dominant but once again, it’s
far from being unpleasant. The whole
is pretty fresh at such old age, but
it’s the palate that’ll
determine the outcome here, as often
with old whiskies. Mouth: sweet, fruity
and oaky, and as young as it can get.
Orange fizz, oak (cheap new world
Chardonnay), mastic, bubblegum…
And all the spices from plain oak,
white pepper first. Finish: long but
gets a little bitterish. Comments:
better than it sounds in my notes,
and more than just a curiosity, as
the very heavy oakiness isn’t
as repulsive as it could have been.
Plus, it’s a curiosity! Well,
at 1,000+ Euros a flask, one is meant
to get curious, but as they say, for
that price... SGP:470 –
80 points (including maybe
two or three emotional extra-points.) |
|
STEPHANE
THE MAD MALT MIXOLOGIST
proposes
a new Summer malt cocktail
Cocktail
#7:
"Sea,
Malt and Sun"
|
Pour
into a tumbler with ice:
- 6 cl Glenmorangie Original
- 2 cl liqueur d'abricot du Roussillon
(or another apricot brandy)
- 2 cl liqueur de mandarine de Menton
(or another tangerine liqueur)
- 1/2 lime juice
- finish with orange juice
Stir and serve decorated with one
lime slice and a blackberry.
Variants: Substitute
the Glenmorangie with another young,
fresh, fruity and spicy malt of your
choice. Watch out: this cocktail is
"almost too easyly drinkable"!
|
 |
| |
August
19, 2008 |
|
|
 |
TASTING
– FOUR 25+ YO CAOL ILAS |
| Caol
Ila 25 yo 1979/2005 (50%, Douglas
Laing OMC, DL REF 2001, 323 bottles)
Colour: very white
wine. Nose: a very clean and very
zesty Caol Ila. Lemon, oysters, kelp,
wet chalk and a rather grassy peat.
Gets a tad more medicinal after a
while (iodine, antiseptic.) Very,
very clean. Mouth: punchy, salty and
very, very ‘fishy’. Maybe
one of the most ‘fishmongeriest’
(!! – at least I’m sure
you see what I mean.) whiskies I ever
tried. Kippers and smoked salmon plus
a lot of gentian, roots, dill…
Spectacular whisky. Finish: very long
and still very clean and hugely maritime,
with a very, very peaty aftertaste.
Comments: as I wrote, impressively
maritime. If you like that, you’ll
love this. SGP:257 –
90 points. |
| Caol
Ila 27 yo 1981/2008 (53.8%, Duncan
Taylor, Rare Auld, cask #2932)
Colour: pale gold. Nose: extremely
different from the 1979. Much more
vanilla and butter but there’s
quite some iodine again. Seashells.
With water: clean but maybe a tad
simple. A round Caol Ila, without
the 1979’s fabulous sharpness.
Notes of wet clay and very nice notes
of pine resin arising after a while.
Mouth (neat): powerful, less maritime
than the 1979 and more candied/fruity,
even if there’s a lot of peat
again. Gentian, lemon zests and liquorice.
Lime juice and icing sugar (gets zestier
over time.) With water: now it got
very ‘fishy’ (kippers.)
Lemon marmalade, ginger. Finish: long
and actually, it’s at the finish
that more things happen. More crystallised
fruits (oranges, lemons), fudge, bitter
oranges… Comments: one of these
funny whiskies that get better once
you’ve swallowed them ;-). SGP:366
- 87 points. |
| Caol
Ila 26 yo 1982/2008 (54.3%, Duncan
Taylor for The Nectar, 269 bottles)
Colour: straw. Nose: this is
another story, and a rather unusual
old Caol Ila. More complex but also
a tad ‘dirtier’ –
not that it’s a flaw, mind you.
Quite some liquorice, buttered caramel,
mead (unusually big notes), pine resin,
a little camphor, fisherman’s
boat (diesel oil included), cut grass…
With water: now, this got really spectacular.
It smells just like an excellent green
tea! Plus quite some peat of course.
Mouth (neat): oily mouth feel and
once again, an unusual profile. Very
liquoricy and very earthy/leafy. Various
herbal teas (cherry stem, hawthorn),
notes of fresh mushrooms - ‘peppered
boletus’ – don’t
know if you can find that where you
live, more liquorice in all its forms
(including salty)… Quite a monster,
very, very concentrated. With water:
gets a little more ‘normal’
but still with something pleasantly
dirty. We get hints of thyme and lavender
(not he dreadful, perfumy kind of
lavender.) Finish: long, more on liquorice
roots, resin (and mastic) and salt.
Comments: very interesting variant
on Caol Ila. Maybe not one to buy
if you don’t have any 20+yo
Caol Ila in your cupboard, but if
you’ve already got one or two
‘regular’ ones –
or if you are rather a blasé
kind of whisky freak -, you should
really add this version to your line-up.
SGP:456 – 90 points. |
| Caol
Ila 25 yo 1982/2007 (60.8%, First
Cask, cask #741, 220 bottles)
Colour: straw. Nose: we’re in
the same league as the ‘26yo’,
only bigger and more powerful. And
maybe a tad more buttery. Huge notes
of spearmint. With water: we’re
close to the 26 again. Maybe a tad
more on the ‘coastal’
side (kelp, seawater.) Mint, dill.
Mouth (neat): explosive, ‘cleaner’
than the DT for TN but also a tad
less complex. Straightforward powerful
Caol Ila. With water: excellent now,
and way more typical. Salt, smoked
fish, liquorice roots, peat, mastic,
dried ginger, seashells (queen scallops)
and lemon. Archetypical on the palate.
Finish: rather long and a tad more
resinous now. Comments: simply very,
very good, and good evidence that
Caol Ila is the most ‘drinkable’
of all peated Islayers – should
you have water on the side. SGP:356
– 89 points. |
| MUSIC
– Recommended
listening: a fairly new band from
Montreal named The
Stills. With a name like
that, it just couldn't remain outside
WF's radar, coud it! Listen to Eastern
Europe.mp3... Not bad at all!
And please buy The Stills' music... |
 |
| |
August
18, 2008 |
|
|
 |
TASTING
A
QUICK LINKWOOD VERTICALE |
| Wild
Nook 11 yo 1997/2008 (46%, The Nectar,
Daily Dram, 300 bottles, Linkwood)
Colour: straw. Nose: starts on a lot
of apple juice and candy sugar as
well as hints of cinnamon cake and
soda water and gets then a little
minty and even a tad medicinal (iodine).
Pack of sweets, orangeade, cranberry
juice and Turkish delights. Gets more
and more orangey over time (orange
squash). Also hints of hay. Pleasant
freshness. Mouth: pretty much in the
same vein, very ‘natural’
but not ‘neutral’ at all.
Ripe apples and cinnamon, white pepper,
butter pears and dried ginger. Finish:
rather long, more on dried apples
this time. Hints of chlorophyll. Comments:
again, a very natural malt that’s
already well matured but that’s
as fresh as a baby’s mouth.
SGP:541 – 85 points. |
| Linkwood
1973/2003 (53%, James MacArthur, cask
#14078)
Colour: gold. Nose: what’s interesting
here is that we have the same big
freshness as in the 1997, and the
same kinds of orangey notes. Fresher
oranges than, say, in Dalmore. To
tell you the truth, both are very
similar whiskies, except for a bigger
oakiness in the 1973, which makes
sense I guess. Also slightly bigger
notes of old roses and Turkish delights,
orange blossom water. Mouth: more
candied now, almost jammy. Apricot
jam with brown sugar, vanilla fudge,
kumquats, Seville oranges… Loads
of spices from the wood get through
after a while, such as cinnamon (a
lot), white pepper, ginger, nutmeg…
Finish: long but maybe just a tad
too oaky now (something varnishy).
Comments: very good old spirit from
a cask that had quite a huge influence.
Good news that they didn’t wait
any longer… SGP:551
– 86 points. |
| Linkwood
12yo 1957 (56.9%, OB, for Eduardo
Giaccone, Samaroli Import, Black Label,
Screw Cap, 75cl)
Colour: gold. Nose: less fruits here
it seems, but a much bigger minerality,
with also more smoke and sweet herbs.
Unusual notes of radish (and even
horseradish), wet newspaper (ink),
graphite oil… As always, it’s
hard to guess which aromas were there
in the first place, when this was
bottled, and which ones were brought
by bottle ageing. Wot, do you still
believe that whisky stops maturing
once bottled? Funnily, we also have
the same medicinal notes as in the
youngster, that is to say hints of
iodine and bandages. Dried flowers.
Superb nose, very, very straight and
kind of austere in a beautiful way.
Mineral like some old Rieslings. With
water: wonderfully fresh and almost
maritime now. Call the antimaltoporn
brigade! Mouth (neat): oh yeah! One
would have imagined that a Samaroli/Giaccone
tandem would have selected something
great, and one would have been right.
Even more magnificent than on the
nose, with exceptional notes of all
kinds of crystallised and dried fruits,
the most precious spices and again
something beautifully phenolic and
smoky. The best cough medicine, no
doubt. With water: absolute perfection.
Finish: ditto. Superb pepper. Comments:
I’m sorry but ‘wow!’
Exceptional whisky, with an incredible
complexity. SGP:574 –
94 points (and heartfelt
thanks, Konstantin.) |
| PETE
McPEAT AND JACK WASHBACK
in Saint-Tropez
|
| MUSIC
– Recommended
listening: this delicious old version
of Irving Berlin's Be
careful, it's my heart.mp3 by
Bola
de Nieve (aka Snowball,
aka Ignacio Jacinto Villa). It's a
remastering with extra bass by the
wonderful Omar Hernandez. Better than
Sinatra? Please buy Bola de Nieve's
music... |
 |
| |
August
17, 2008 |
|
|
|
STEPHANE
THE MAD MALT MIXOLOGIST
proposes
a new Summer malt cocktail
Cocktail
#6:
"Pete
& Jack have fun in St Trop!"
Pour into a shaker:
- 6 cl Macallan 12 yo sherry
- 2 cl liqueur de mandarine de Menton
(or another tangerine liqueur)
- 1 cl crème de cassis (blackcurrant
liqueur) |
Add ice, shake and strain into a champagne
flute. Then finish with Pamp' Rosé
(sparkling wine from St Tropez /Pampelonne).
Variants : substitute
the Macallan with other young sherry-typed
malts. Substitute the Pamp' Rosé
with other sparkling wines, in order
to change the holidays' location of
Pete & Jack. |
 |
 |
TASTING
– VERY YOUNG AND VERY OLD
NEW MILTONDUFFS BY DUNCAN TAYLOR |
| Miltonduff
8 yo 1999/2008 (46%, Duncan Taylor,
Whisky Galore)
Colour: white wine. Nose: a very malty
and very fresh start, on cereals,
mashed potatoes, fried semolina and
freshly cut apples. Toasted and roasted,
with also hints of yellow flowers
and café latte. A rather perfect
youngster I must say, love this toastiness.
Mouth: fruitier now, all on apples
and pears plus various spices such
as white pepper and nutmeg. Orange
squash, ‘pure’ malt, liquorice.
A little smoky. Finish: medium long
and coherent. Comments: a good young
malt, fresh and clean (a bit more
so on the nose than on the palate)
but certainly not simple. SGP:441
– 83 points. |
| Miltonduff
1966/2008 (40.0%, Duncan Taylor, Lonach)
Colour: gold. Nose: one might have
thought that this is a tired old malt
that’s barely ‘whisky’
anymore at 40%. Well, one is quite
mistaken, this is fresh and lively,
with rather beautiful notes of wild
flowers, hay, quinces and good tea
(good Darjeeling). Excellent maltiness,
notes of roasted hazelnuts, wood smoke,
warm cake, milk chocolate… And
extremely pleasant nose, let’s
just hope the palate will last the
course. Mouth: well, it does despite
all the wood that’s behind.
A true pina colada, actually, with
ultra-huge notes of coconut. Seriously,
it’s like pina colada, only
better! Finish: the longest pina colada
ever. Comments: spectacularly coconutty.
If you like that, try this! SGP:640
– 88 points. |
|
MUSIC
– Recommended
listening: she's from Damascus (Syria,
yeah) and she sings a fantastic
Seher.mp3.
Her name is Lena
Chamamyan, and you
should really buy her music if you
can find it! (She really reminds
me of Aziza Mustapha Zadeh).
|
 |
| |
August
15, 2008 |
|
|
TASTING
– FOUR GLENCADAMS (or when
the youngster wins) |
 |
| Mad
Glance 12 yo 1995/2008 (46%, The Nectar,
Daily Dram, 348 bottles, Glencadam)
Colour: pale gold. Nose: this is rather
fiery and almost a tad spirity at
first nosing, with rather big notes
of plum spirit and Williams pears
and quite some vanilla and oak on
top of that. Butterscotch and fresh
almonds. The fruitiness grows even
bigger then, with some apples, dried
longans and dates (somewhat reminding
us of a very good arrak). Bottom line:
oak matured pear eau de vie –
which we like, mind you! (Alsatians
distil the best pear spirit in da
world, yeah, yeah). Mouth: now we
aren’t very far from the official
15yo in style, with a rather big maltiness
and notes of roasted nuts and vanilla
fudge. Hints of bubblegum behind all
that. Also a little coffee, caramel
and burnt bread crust. The wood’s
spices take part of the control after
a moment, which gives one more dimension
when compared with the 15yo OB. Finish:
long and a little more on oak, even
a tad prickly (tannins, pepper.) Comments:
a very malty/fruity spirit (as almost
often with Glencadam) that was matured
in a very active cask it seems. Very
good whisky but maybe not a blue chip,
but we never had any Glencadam that
really blew our socks off… SGP:551
– 84 points. |
| Glencadam
21 yo (46%, Cadenhead, black dumpy,
late 1980’s)
This was probably distilled in the
mid-60’s. Colour: gold. Nose:
starts on a typical OBE, blending
whiffs of metal pipes and camphor.
Gets then more jammy than plainly
fruity, with notes of apricots and
Mirabelle plums, whiffs of spearmint
and then a rather big oakiness (tannins,
sawdust) that slightly disturb the
whole after a few minutes. Gets somewhat
plankish but the camphor behind is
pleasant. Mouth: punchy but sort of
indefinite at the attack. Bitterish
and dry, with quite some mint and,
well, lettuce. Sorrel? Very dry development.
Too bitter I must say, let’s
stop it. Finish: long but even more
bitter. Comments: one of the very
few “black dumpies” that
I don’t like at all. Too bad,
parts of the nose were interesting.
Please note that it’s no stale
whisky at all, this kind of ‘harsh
bitterness’ can’t come
from ‘bottle deteroriation’.
SGP:271 – 68 points. |
| Glencadam
28 yo 1971/2000 (50%, Douglas Laing
OMC, 246 bottles)
Colour: gold. Nose: strange, there’s
almost only oak in there for a while.
Pencil shavings and fresh sawdust.
Starts then to resemble the 1995 in
style (less pears, that is, and more
plums), only with much more oak, varnish
and tannins. Carpenter’s workshop.
Nicer than it sounds but certainly
not very entertaining. Mouth: less
oak this time, and more fruits, especially
tropical ones (guavas and papayas
here), with also apricots. Gets then
a bit indefinite, alas, and rather
malty/nutty/grassy. The fruitiness
disappeared. Finish: long, with more
liquorice now, but disappointing in
style. Comments: three oaky whiskies
in a row – even if the 1995
wasn’t too oaky at all. Does
Glencadam stand oak? SGP:471
- 79 points. |
| Glencadam
13 yo 1974/1988 (61.1%, Gordon &
MacPhail for Intertrade)
Colour: pale gold. Nose: very almondy
this time, and not too overpowering
in spite of the very high strength.
Less oak this time, but still some
sort of sharpness and austerity. Almost
grassy. Wet dust (first rain in a
city after long dry days). Rather
big notes of pears arising after a
long while, making it closer to the
1995. With water: even more pears,
and even bubblegum and strawberry
sweets (newly opened pack.) Also plain
tea and cake, peppermint. Mildly pleasant
in fact. Mouth (neat): Jesus! This
is strong! Once again, there’s
much less oak but the rest isn’t
too expressive. Must be the high alcohol.
With water: more malt, apple juice
and these sorts of flavours that simply
mean, well, ‘whisky’.
Not much personality. Finish: medium
long, mildly malty and with more pears
again. Comments: no bad whisky at
all but it’s a bit bizarre that
Intertrade did select this at the
time, as most of their other bottlings
were top notch. SGP:441 -
78 points. |
| MUSIC
– Recommended
listening: this funny little piece
by bluesman/folkman Alvin
'Little Pink' Anderson
(son of the legendary Pink Andersion
- of course), called Cook
good salad.mp3. Please buy Little
Pink Anderson's music! |
 |
Check
the index of all entries:
Whisky
Music
Nick's Concert
Reviews
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Best
malts I had these weeks - 90+
points only - alphabetical:
Benrinnes
19 yo 1968/1987 (57.1%,
Sestante)
Benrinnes
1975/2006 (46%, Gordon & MacPhail
for Juuls, cask #3443, 250 bottles)
Caol
Ila 26 yo 1982/2008 (54.3%,
Duncan Taylor for The Nectar, 269 bottles)
Caol
Ila 25 yo 1979/2005 (50%, Douglas Laing
OMC, DL REF 2001, 323 bottles)
Clynelish
35 yo 1972/2008 (53.7%, The Single
Malts of Scotland, cask #12651, 273 bottles)
Glen
Elgin 16 yo ‘Manager’s Dram’
(60%, OB, bottled 1993)
Glen
Elgin 1975/2007 (46%, Berry Bros &
Rudd, casks 5167/5170)
Laphroaig
10 yo 1998/2008 (61.2%, Jean Boyer
for the whisky-distilleries.info forum)
Linkwood
12yo 1957 (56.9%, OB, for
Eduardo Giaccone, Samaroli Import, Black Label,
Screw Cap, 75cl)
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