Last month, we had a remarkable experience “Speed Tasting” experience and rated five different drams in just 15 minutes, giving us just a few minutes each. No discussion, just a solo activity recording our numerical assessment of aroma, palate, finish, character & complexity….

Photo: Keshav Prakash

What were my hasty impressions?

Hyde No 5 The Aras Cask 6 year old Single Grain 1860 Burgandy Finish 46%

• Nose – For the 1st dram, came across as slightly astringent, then smoke or roasted wood, softening into sweet fruits
• Palate – Spice, clean, fruity
• Finish – Very spicy finish, holds but not complex
• Character & Complexity – While not complex, it had a few interesting elements and not a bad way to start the set

The next part of our “Speeding Tasting” was a quick discussion. For one, this was his favourite of the five. Another called it a bit of a ‘dessert’  whisky.

Then the reveal… it wasn’t specifically pegged as Irish or having a Burgundy cask finish. So was clearly a surprise!

What else do we know about this whisky? Well… this instagram from Hyde provides some ideas…

Hyde Instragram

Like all the whiskies we zipped through, I’m quite confident more would be revealed with a different approach but it was a great way to quickly crystallize a few impressions in three minutes or less!

The focus on rating the whisky is something I’m inherently averse to doing and honestly lost time dithering about translating what my senses were saying into numbers! So didn’t have time to come back and revisit for a more rounded impression.

What were the other whiskies “Speed Tasted“?

• B – Crown Royal Northern Harvest Rye 45% – Jim Murray’s #1
• C – Pikesville 110 Proof Straight Rye 55% – Jim Murray’s #2
• D – House blend using left-over Glendronach 15 year as the base with Islay malts added
• E – Midleton Dair Ghaelach 58.7% – Jim Murray’s #3