Monthly Archives: February 2016

Highland wildcat Clynelish 14 year 46%

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After an Irish racehorse – Tyrconnell – our palates turned to the coastal highlands with the Clynelish wild cat.

As a tasting group, this was our first foray to the Clynelish distillery, near Brora, Sutherland in the Highlands. Much relied upon for blends – particularly Johnnie Walker Gold – the distillery was bought by United Distillers (aka now part of Diageo) in the mid 80s.

The official bottling of the Clynelish 14 year was only introduced in 2003 and marketed as part of Diego’s Classic Malt Selection.

And the wild cat mark? It was inspired by the Sutherland family coat of arms.

We sampled it blind before revealing the whisky.

Clynelish 14

Clynelish 14 year 46%
  • Nose – Sweet yet stronger than the Tyrconnell, bright, perfume, some sweet citrus, micro greens, tickle of pepper, orchids?
  • Taste – Delicate and sits nicely, sweet spice, subtle orange, pronounced “very nice”, as it opens, more sweet spice, a little tumeric, both capsicum and cayenne pepper
  • Finish – Sweet spice, surprisingly long
  • With water – REALLY kicks up the spice – a mini explosion, sizzler
  • Speculation – Likely from the Highlands with the sweet, light spice without any heavy peat notes
  • Overall – Easy drink when you want.
After the unveiling, we were surprised with the distiller notes on the bottle as we completely missed the smoke, though would certainly agree about the fruit!

Here’s what the Clynelish folks say:

  • Offers sweet floral fragrances and maritime flavours with a light, dry finish.

And what others say:

My final verdict? I passed over purchasing the Clynelish when trying different whiskies as was looking for a bit more substance for an upcoming tasting session. However I appreciated the opportunity to revisit it properly. Of the trio we sampled in January, this was my favourite – neat.

PS I got bragging rights for guessing the distillery, though had an advantage having briefly ‘met’ a Clynelish before!

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Irish standard – Tyrconnell Single Malt 40%

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A few nights ago was up on the 42nd floor of one of Mumbai’s few truly ‘high rise’ residential buildings to sample… what else? Whiskies.

Our host admitted to enjoying an Irish whiskey or two, however the other gents dismissed drams from this land completely. There were decidedly STRONG views in favour or against whiskies from Ireland. Sure the country is known for pot still whiskies, for triple distilling (or 2 1/2 depending on who you ask!), and using less or no peat. Once upon a time, Irish whiskey was the most popular spirit in the world!

What I’ve found is it all depends on what you expect. If you are looking for a sociable dram, a whisky that may not be massively complex but eminently approachable and, let’s be honest here, also more in the affordable category, then some Irish offerings may be right up your alley!

The January host for our original tasting group’s spouse travels to Ireland quite often. So I’ll admit I was expecting a purely Irish night! As this group strictly samples blind, we had no idea what we were in for… and this Cooley distillery offering kicked off our tasting.

Tyrconnell 10 yrs

Tyrconnell Single Malt 40%
  • Nose – Very sweet, floral, some fruit, light clover honey – all a clear sign matured in ex bourbon cask. As it aired, light banana and coconut, vanilla and toffee emerged. Caught of a whiff something softly sour like hung yoghurt, then citrus spice – like sweet cinnamon. Has a beautiful nose that keeps opening and evolving.
  • Taste – Initially a bit of cardboard, slightly chewy, bitter, astringent… realised it actually is quite smooth and not in the least bit harsh
  • Finish – Has some capsicum, melons, a bit bitter then simply peters away
  • With water? A bit dry, doesn’t do much and wouldn’t recommend adding
  • Overall – Light, elegant whisky with a dry finish

However did it really DO it for us? To be honest the nose was far more promising than the palate. While pleasant, simple and straight forward, there wasn’t much substance and none of the complexity most of our merry malt group prefer.

What do the distillery folks have to say about their whisky?

  • Nose: Full and fruity aroma with a citrus – spiciness taste
  • Taste: Well structured with honey notes hanging from the nose. A tang of oranges and lemons, a strong malt presence that balances well with the oily sweetness
  • Finish: A long finish with the malt becoming more dominant to the end without the soft fruits and honey, which helped make up the middle.

It would be interesting to sample this flagship Tyrconnell NAS 40% with the 10 year Madiera Cask we tasted nearly a year ago. After properly recalibrating expectations for something simple, light and above all – affordable, wonder how the two would compare?

For me though, I must admit that of the Beam Suntory Irish stable under the overall Kilbeggan family, my preference leans more to the peated Connemara…

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On a lighter note… Tyrconnell, Clynelish, Speyburn

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Most whisky aficionados have a ‘preferred’ profile. It could be bold peaty or sweet sherry or a craving for complexity where nothing else will do!

One of our original malt group members is partial to lighter more delicate whiskies. He seeks a little nuance and elegance in his dram.

So when it came time to host our 1st tasting session for 2016, he selected whiskies that he hoped would achieve such an approach.

2016-01-27 Oak League

Our evening had a decidedly light sprightly feel with:

However don’t be fooled! Just when pegged into a particular ‘type’, purely for contrast, our host shared that when he’s had a hard day at work, only something a bit rougher, tougher and robust will do.

That’s when a Wasmund’s 12 month 48% was pulled out! Because we all need a little ‘bad boy’ to spice things up once and a awhile.

Me? I’m terribly mood dependant. Some could say I can’t make up my mind, but it is simply that I enjoy the range of profiles.

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Whisky archives – Penderyn, Glenfiddich, Yamazaki, Wemyss + Glenglassaug

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I was digging through some old emails and stumbled across notes from one of our early sessions from 2011!

Alas I missed the tasting however it was unique as it was joined by India‘s own Malt Maniac, Krishna Nakula, who travelled from Hyderabad for the evening to share his passion and stories.

For those, like myself, who missed another member shared a brief summary of what was sampled. The approach was Blind Tastings as usual, in no particular order. (NAS – No age statement. R – ratings out of 100 by Krishna).

Penderyn Peated. 46% NAS. R- 78

A little Welsh whisky

Penderyn Peated (http://www.welsh-whisky.co.uk/Our-Whiskies/Penderyn-Peated.aspx)

Penderyn Peated (www.welsh-whisky.co.uk)

Glenfiddich Rich Oak 14 year, 40%. R-80

First fill Bourbon and First Fill Sherry finish (understand these are actually filled only for 12 weeks in first fills)

Glenfiddich Rich Oak 14 year (GQ 15 Dec 2011)

Glenfiddich Rich Oak 14 year (GQ 15 Dec 2011)

Yamazaki 12 year, 43%. NAS. R-82

This was an early entry point into Japanese whisky years ago.

Yamazaki 12 year (Master of Malt)

Yamazaki 12 year (Master of Malt)

Wemyss ‘The Hive’ 12 year, 40% NAS R-81

A vatted malt… with the honeyed sweetness of a bee hive!

Wemyss 12 year (WhiskyExchange)

Wemyss 12 year (WhiskyExchange)

Glenglassaug New Make Spirit

The highlight of the evening was a ‘blind’ tasting with a twist. Everyone had to close their eyes and taste something that none of them (except Krishna) had tried before – A new Make Spirit!

Finished on the 23rd March 2009, this middle cut was bottled at 50% abv. by the Glenglassaug Distillery. Tasting this was a remarkable way to understand the contribution of the mash and fermentation to a whisky’s bouquet.

Since then, I’ve had the pleasure of more than one delightful evening with Krishna.

Whisky evenings with Krishna:

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