Whiskybase Glenrothes 1997
$244.99
Scotch Malt Whisky Society 96.12
$124.99
SWEET LEMONS AND SOUR GRAPES
This is SMWS Canada's first-ever release of distillery number 96! At 9 years old, this Speysider was matured in a refill barrel and is 58.8%
Flavour profile: Sweet, fruity & mellow
Outturn: 193 bottles
Panel's tasting note: "We had a fascinating mix of unusual Middle Eastern aromas at first; Persian sweet lemons and unripe sour grapes called Ghooreh, beside more familiar notes of balsamic vinegar, honeycomb and orange blossom and a rose garden following the rain. The taste neat had the tangy, without being tart, sweetness of a rhubarb raspberry custard pie, Spanish membrillo paste (quince jelly) and green tea with sweet mint. Water released herbal, slightly sweet earthy notes of freshly crushed sugar cane and on the palate the fresh sweet minty flavour of peppermint creams, chocolate salted caramel ice cream and lychee & passion fruit panna cotta."
MacKinlay's Shackleton The Journey
$224.99
MacKinlay's Shackleton The Journey
$224.99
Tullibardine The Murray 2005 56.3%
$87.99
Two Brewers Yukon Single Malt Release 08
$99.99
Hot of their win in the Canadian whisky awards for Micro-Distillery of the Year, the 8th release of Two Brewers Single Malt from Yukon Brewing & Distilling is here. The whisky has been hopped and is bottled at 43%, Only 920 bottles have been released in the Yukon and Alberta.
Distiller's Tasting Note
"Delicate aromas of light coriander and the hop’s honeyed citrus foretell the silky, light touch of this malt. With a brandy-like core, the slightly citrus notes of hop tickle high on the palate. Honey and butter show briefly with a wisp of spice in the short finish."
Cooper's Choice Kilnaughton Sherry Finis
$89.99
This curious Cooper's Choice single cask bottling is bottled at 55.5% after maturing in Ameican Oak and finishing in a Sherry Butt. Only 30 bottles coming to KWM!
Andrew's Tasting Note
Nose: massively malty, briny and subtly peated; big orange and new carpets; dried kelp an seaweed crisps; dark chocolate and soft leather.
Palate: very medicinal, briny and seaweedy; more dried kelp and seaweed; creamy with some vanilla and leather and spices; orange with fennel, licorice and clove; cigar ash and cedar smoke.
Finish: dry, medicinal and smoky; soft peat, dried orange and leather with firm spices.
Comment: the is a firm, youthful, but surprisingly smooth probably "Ardbeg"; the profile is very Ardbeggian, so there I said it, I am confident this is Ardbeg!
Cooper's Choice Laggan Mill 2009 8 Year
$74.24
This 2009 bottling of Cooper's Choice Laggan Mill "The Secret Islay", was matured 8 years in a single Refill Sherry Butt. It was bottled at 52.5%. There is no Laggan Mill distillery, but the profile is reminiscent of young Lagavulin. And curiously, the name Lagavulin translates to "hollow of the mill". There may not be much mystery here at all!
Andrew's Tasting Note
Nose: grassy, malty and oily; a touch of diesel exhaust, soft leather and bright sugars; lemon and lime with chunky sea salt.
Palate: oily, grassy and savoury with soft but firm peat and medicinal maritime notes; oily, more diesel smoke, juicy malt and tangy citrus; some leather, muted Wine Gums and liquorice Jujubes.
Finish: long, coating and tangy; the peat oils, diesel and maritime notes tingle and warm the palate through a long finish.
Comment: this is a reminder of how good young Lagavulin is... as with the 8 year old 200th Anniversary bottling, there is a lot to love here; and some good complexity for the age!
Cooper's Choice Skara Brae 2005 12 Year
$93.49
A mystery Orcadian malt with gentle peat, wonder which distillery it is from? The Cooper's Choice Skara Brae is exclusive to KWM, bottled at 46% after maturing 12 years in a Bourbon cask. We think it is Highland Park, but that is speculation... Skara Brae is the name given to an ancient archeological site on the Orkney mainland, famous for the 8 stone dwellings found there which date back to before 3000 BCE.
Andrew's Tasting Note
Nose: malt, honey and soft oily peat; very buttery, bright lemon, Manuka honey and sliced waxy honeycomb; very maritime, sea breeze and gentle beach fire smoke.
Palate: creamy, honeyed and waxy, very waxy; honeycomb, clotted cream and white chocolate fudge; juicy malt, becomes savoury and salty with gentle oily peat and more clean wood smoke from a beach fire; still citrusy, fresh and fruity.
Finish: sweet and savoury all rolled into one; medium length it cotes the palate with the honey, malt and gentle peat fading last.
Comment: delicious, sweet and savoury; this feels a little sinful, a naked Highland Park stripped of its cloak of sherry.