Monthly Archives: April 2016

Kilchoman peat pairing dinner!

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To say it was a special evening was an understatement! We began with three whiskies from Kilchoman having exactly the same peat level (50 ppm) yet each remarkably different.

Then after the initial blind sampling, the whiskies were revealed then move on to the real fun – whisky & food pairing!

KilchomanPeat2

1st course – Machir Bay

Machir Bay with salad:  A delightful salad with smoked cheese, smoked olive oil, smoked almond, smoked salt, light greens offset with bursts of cherry tomatoes.

Pairing experience? 

Whisky was very smooth, softened all the peat, some speculated that the salad surprisingly conquered the whisky making it delicate and dainty which was a complete contrast to the character we found sampling alone. Like gelding a stallion.

 Kilchoman Smoked Salad

2nd course – Sanaig

Sanaig with main:  Choice between a smoked winter vegetable ratatouille & smoked applewood chicken with an almond mash potato.

Pairing experience? 

Brilliant match with both veg & non-veg options! The food brought out the sherry elements in the whisky with the nose taking on a gorgeous sweet raisin, plum almost port like quality that balanced the smoked flavours beautifully. The cracked black pepper in the potato mash added just the right heat. An excellent combination! Some attempted with the 3rd whisky but that simply did not work.

 Kilchoman Sherry Cask Chocolate Ganache

3rd course – Sherry Cask Strength

Sherry cask strength with desert:  A lovely chocolate cake with a Sherry Cask Strength whisky ganache.

Pairing experience? 

While sherry with such a chocolate desert is a perfect combination, cask strength with peat is a tough combination to pull off. Suggestion of a Glendronach or something with a little less ‘kick’ may have been a better compliment. In this pairing, the whisky spice dominated however the whisky spiked sauce? A fabulous luscious indulgence!

How did the whisky-food pairing fare overall?

  • Machir Bay and salad pairing was absolutely on the right track, though curious how the smokey salad flavours conquered the whisky
  • Sanaig and main course pairing was perfection. Absolute balance between the elements, complimenting beautifully
  • Sherry Cask Strength and chocolate pairing was a gamble…. In this case, the whisky spice was more pronounced than the delicious chocolate however no one was really complaining 🙂

Overall a marvellous evening – three unique expressions from Kilchoman paired with delightful dishes.

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Kilchoman Sherry Single Cask 60.6%

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Last in our Kilchoman peat explorations was the Kilchoman Sherry Single Cask matured completely in a sherry butt and bottled at cask strength.

Kilchoman Machir Bay, Sanaig, Sherry Cask

Kilchoman Machir Bay, Sanaig, Sherry Cask

  • Colour: Deep copper
  • Nose: Again such a contrast from the previous whiskies! Initial punch of blue stilton cheese, curd, then a hint of peat, some spice, buttery leather… as it opened a tight ball of citrus gradually opened
  • Taste: Spice, strength, boot leather, sits on the tongue
  • Finish: Waves of beautiful sherry peat
  • Water: Hmm… kicked up the spice even more when that was already a powerful element
Speculation: All thought it must be cask strength however none could imagine over 60%.
Reveal: This time, the Kilchoman was matured 100% in Oloroso Sherry butts. A powerful whisky and part of a special La Maison du Whisky “Trilogy” series. We sampled the:
Cask # 199/2010. Distilled 8 April 2010 & Bottled 31 August 2015. Bottle #204 of 642.

For those tuning in now, our Kilchoman evening featured:

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Kilchoman Sanaig 46%

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We were on a Kilchoman roll! After Machir Bay‘s predominantly ex-bourbon cask influence, we moved on to the new Sanaig whisky which significantly increases the sherry influence.

As usual, we sampled blind. Usually, we sampled all three blind before revealing the whiskies and re-sampling as a sit down three course meal with whisky pairing. Here is what we found with the Sanaig…

 KilchomanPeat2
  • Colour: Light copper
  • Nose: What a contrast from Machir Bay! Started off sour, acetone, rubber, like a hospital hallway en route to the ICU, then out came an interplay between sweet and peat, lots of soft over-ripe fruits, plums and prunes, hint of coffee, like a port wine reduction, as it continued to open up more jackfruit, hint of vanilla…
  • Taste: Extremely well balanced, peat and sweet in perfect harmony, exceedingly well crafted
  • Finish: Quite subtle
  • Water: Awesome! Absolutely must try! Until we added water, we didn’t realise that spice was the missing element in the equation. Like adding the last member of trio for perfect balance.

Speculation: Sense of being in the 43% range, wondered with the attention to balance and detail if it was from Japan. One member found the quality akin to a Kavalan he is currently enjoying – similar in approach though obviously with peat. Very difficult to guess and considered by several their clear favourite of the evening.

Reveal: Vatting of 5-6 year single malts with an estimated 20% ex-bourbon & 80% Oloroso Sherry butts – exact opposite of Machir Bay. One of Kilchoman’s latest releases, they have truly achieved a beautiful whisky.

Must say this is a superlative whisky and noted its price in the UK is quite reasonable. If you haven’t yet had a chance to sample this whisky and enjoy a good interplay between peat, sherry with terrific balance? This just might be the dram for you!

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Kilchoman Machir Bay 46% – Peat pairing evening

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This was not the 1st time our merry Mumbai malt group sampled Machir Bay. I suspect it will not be the last either.

As usual, we sampled blind. However this time, after revealing the whiskies, we re-sampled as part of a proper sit-down three course meal with whisky pairing.
Kilchoman Machir Bay, Sanaig, Sherry Cask

Kilchoman Machir Bay, Sanaig, Sherry Cask

  • Colour: Light
  • Nose: Peat and sweet in waves – initially a very strong peat, rolls of smoke, then mellowed into sweet fruit, aroma of pineapple on a grill, pomelo, then soot came back with an edge of temple ash
  • Taste: Just like the nose – strong peat then sweet, cigar, a bit oily and viscous, sea salt, dry fruits, hazelnuts
  • Finish: Like puffing pipe tobacco, extremely dry, ash
  • Water: On the nose cinnamon bark and palate a spice explosion with a strong paprika spice burn. Let’s just say that when water was added, we all unconsciously grabbed a cucumber stick to help cut the spice.

Speculation: Sense of being in the 46% range, tough to pinpoint age however considered older simply as it managed to achieve a palate that lived up to the nose.

Reveal: Vatting of 5-6 year single malts with 80% ex-bourbon & 20% Oloroso Sherry butts. The palate phenomenally follows the nose, including the vacillation between smoke and sweet.

Typically we’ve found that those whiskies where the palate fulfils the promise of the nose tend to be older… Somehow the folks at Kilchoman have pulled that off in a NAS younger whisky. Superb!

This now makes four opportunities for a focused sampling of Machir Bay!

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200 whisky posts…. with thanks!

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Six months ago, I celebrated a remarkable milestone – 100 whisk(e)y posts with 100 whiskies!

I enthusiastically listed all 100 whiskies reviewed and couldn’t stop doing a jig of celebration!

Fast forward and today marks 200 whisky posts… a double accomplishment!

However nothing is achieved without help! So I thought it high time to recognise all the fabulous folks that made it possible….

Most importantly, our Mumbai based whisky groups! Our shared journey and tasting sessions gave birth to this blog:

Plus very special tastings thanks to:

Most importantly, many anonymous friends and fellow bloggers who bravely court liver failure in the quest to find that special dram! Be it sending a sample or sharing an evening… an amusing quip or shared opinion, you know who you are!!

I raise a dram to you all in salut!

post-milestone-200-2x

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Kilchoman Peat Pairing Evening

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Our original Mumbai based whisky tasting group consistently pushes the bar when conceptualising evenings.
We rotate hosts with each responsible to curate the experience – both whiskies and food to follow.
Over the years, we’ve had whisky and food pairings before.

Some of us even enjoyed a delightful dinner years ago with Anthony and Kathy Willis featuring Kilchoman Machir Bay and 100% Islay paired with a multi-course north Indian meal at Neel, Mahalaxmi Race Course in Mumbai.

None of this could prepare us for the unique experience in store for our March 2016 whisky tasting evening.

Our host began with a fabulous concept to explore the nuances of peat. Three different expressions from Kilchoman at identical 50 ppm which demonstrated the effect of the casks on the character with increasing percentage of sherry.

To then take this a step further, she then wanted us to explore how the peaty whiskies paired with three courses weaving in elements of smoke.

We first sampled in rapid succession the trio of whiskies blind. Then they were revealed to re-visit each paired with  carefully planned, beautifully presented courses.

Here is what we enjoyed from Kilchoman:

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Feminist twist to whisky?

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Around International Women’s Day there is suddenly an explosion of media hype (and advertising) aimed at and about women.

As if women around the world haven’t been doing remarkable things all along.

Which is where initiatives like SheThePeople.TV come in… calling itself a ‘storytelling platform for women’ sharing stories women from all walks of life.

They don’t need one day a year when they have 365 days…

ScotchAge

So what does this have to do with whisky?

A funny little pernicious perception that whisky isn’t a woman’s drink.

The first time I was interviewed for the mere combination of gender and alcohol preferences, I admit I thought it all rather absurd. After all, what’s the big deal?

That the little ladies in the corner should get wine or something ‘softer’??

I beg to differ.

I’m proud to be a woman whisky drinker.

And I have terrific company!

So when SheThePeople.TV asked for an interview? Thought what the heck! I’d be joining very impressive group of women of substance simply for sharing a common interest.

You can read it here: Interview – Whisky Lady in India, Carissa Hickling (Pssst – you may be asked to sign in as a ‘guest’ or ‘register’)

Whisky selection

There are even more fabulous blogs of women whisky drinkers out there to enjoy!

If you know more to add? Just let me know in the comments or [info @ everydayasia.com].

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