Bring a few whisky folks together with no rules on what bottle to bring beyond “Surprise me!“…. let’s just say there are bound to be some “hits” along with a “miss” or two! We tasted blind and, curiously, ended up with a pair from Ireland!

First up was a fabulous opportunity to revisit Green Spot!

Green Spot 40%

• Nose – Fruity! Mostly banana, sunshine on apples and pears, friendly and warm.. as it opened it shifted from ripe bananas to green banana peel, then was replaced by a crisp granny smith, waxy then finally floral – lovely!
• Palate – Apple custard, mangosteens, very smooth, sweet, quite light yet still had substance – think vanilla cake with pudding chased by light spice, some toast, and oak
• Finish – Light yet long, a hint of nuts
• Return – After trying the others, we came back – a delightful perfume danced around the near-empty glass!

We really liked this one! Teasingly before the reveal, small insights were shared, Such as though without an age statement, it is generally known to be 7-10 years. Then it was matured in a mix of new and refilled bourbon casks and then finished in Sherry casks.

My initial guess was Green Spot but was confused as it sounded like this was a new player… With the reveal, we could clarify this is far from the case as the Mitchel family has been in the bonding business since the 1800s. As for the “Spots“, the story goes:

The Mitchells matured their whiskey in casks under the streets of Dublin in their network of underground cellars. When their fortified wine casks were filled exclusively with Jameson spirit from the old Bow St. Distillery, they were marked with a daub or ‘spot’ of paint which identified how long the barrels would be matured for. Blue for 7 years, Green for 10 years, Yellow for 12 years and Red for 15 years—hence the name Spot Whiskey.

For my part, it was truly a delight to revisit the Green Spot. An unexpected treat!

We moved on to the next mystery dram – another Irish whisky – this time from Tullamore D.E.W.

Tullamore D.E.W. 40% 

• Nose – Harsh, sour apple juice or apple sauce… we waited to see if a bit of time in the glass would help reveal more – nope! At best, maybe some honey and cinnamon joined the sour mash, with a hint of salt
• Palate – Burning when it hits, yet at the same time thin and weak, perhaps some plum?
• Finish – Bitter nuts
• Water – Added just in case it made a difference…. nope!

Yikes! What a contrast from the Green Spot! It was not complex… not terribly appealing. Truth be told, we didn’t know what to make of it. With our water experiment, I learned a new German word “schlimmbesserung” roughly explained as an attempt to improve which actually makes it worse!

With the reveal, we learned it was the Tullamore D.E.W. core expression – which is a blend of grain, malt, and pot still whisky. Produced by Grant & Sons, it is reputed to be the 2nd largest-selling Irish whisky in the world – behind Jameson. One has to wonder if the popularity has more to do with affordability (only Eur 14) than other factors…

Like many Irish whiskies, it was once a distillery but then, for many years it was a brand – with the liquid coming from Middleton. However, in 2014, The Grant & Sons folks built a new distillery near the old Tullamore distillery. So presumably some of the whiskey we tried came from the Tullamore distillery.

Can’t say they won any new fans with us. We were reminded that sometimes you win, and sometimes not!

So what did we try in our “Surprise Me” evening?

• Auchentoshan 12 year 40%
• Glendronach 12 year (2018) 43%
• Glen Scotia 10 year (2013-2023) 1st fill Ruby Port 46% (Whisky.de Clubflasche)

If you are curious to join one of our Nurnberg Whisky Explorer events – just find us on Meetup!

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