Category Archives: Beyond Scotland

Penderyn Madeira 46%

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It has been several years since I sampled a Penderyn… We simply don’t often come across a Welsh whisky in Mumbai, India.

After deciding on a trio of miniatures – Glencadam 15, Auchroisk and Glen Keith – my sampling companion pulled out an open bottle of Penderyn Madeira. Seemed a perfect chance to revisit!

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Penderyn Madeira NAS 46%

What did we find?

  • Nose – Initially lots of wood varnish then tropical fruits – particularly bananas almost like the synthetic banana flavouring, demerara sugar, quite a sharp quality too
  • Palate – First quaff was a bit peculiar, old musty wooden cupboard, medicinal, forced wine… but then it began to mellow and shift into custard, granny candies,
  • Finish – First impression was quite tart then sweetened – cranberries shifting into vanilla flavouring

This was one of those whiskies that took some time to get used to… Our 1st  thought was “you can have a conversation about this whisky” but that didn’t necessarily translate into enthusiastic appreciation.

Yet at some point that shifted – about the time the nose took on a distinctive “banana cream pie” we found ourselves rather enjoying it. Funny how that happens sometimes…

For kicks, I pulled out my tasting notes from more than four years ago… sampled as a trio of Penderyn Sherrywood, Madeira, Peated

  • Nose – Varnish, bit of caramel, lots of flowery perfumed notes and quite sweet, fruity with banana and melons?
  • Palate – Some body, a little bolder, woody, more character than the Sherrywood
  • Finish – Short, bit of fruit yet also bitter

As for the Pendryn official tasting notes? Here is what they have to say:

  • Nose – It has a classic freshness with aromas of cream toffee, rich fruit and raisins.
  • Palate… is crisp and finely rounded, with the sweetness to balance an appetising dryness.
  • Finish – Notes of tropical fruit, raisins and vanilla persist in the finish.

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Nikka Taketsuru Pure Malt 21 year 43%

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Friends in Canada picked up this bottle years ago in Tokyo… It was opened during my visit to Winnipeg in June 2016 and a small sample made its way back to India to be tasted again.

Nikka‘s vatted malt or “pure malt” marries single malts from Yoichi and Miyagikyo without any grain whisky. This particular Taketsuru 21 won World’s Best Blended Malt Whisky at the World Whiskies Awards – 2007, 2009, 2010 and 2011. Given this, we had high hopes of a superlative whisky of exceptional quality, complexity and balance.

Nikka Pure Malt 21

Nikka Taketsuru Pure Malt 21 year 43%

  • Nose – Prunes, a sour quality like soya sauce or a rich winey vinegar, sweet resin, tart, sweet spices, basil, a hint of dark bitter chocolate, acai, tight dry cranberries, vanilla essence
  • Palate – Very tart, cinnamon bark, dry ginger, oak, haldi (tumeric), slightly soapy quality
  • Finish – Long, very dry, both bitter and sweet at the same time with sweet spices like cloves and cinnamon with a surprising kick that sneaks up on you then lingers…

Overall, when first sampled in Winnipeg, I found vanilla honey warm into caramel, it was clearly rich, a bit bitter with a distinctly dry finish, but I missed many of the elements that burst forth when given a chance to sample solo.

Back in Mumbai I sat with it for some time, really giving it an opportunity to open up. It has a number of fairly unusual qualities – I’ve never had a whisky that is quite so ‘tart’ or with soya sauce – but unmistakably its there.

In short – it has character. And to be honest – much as I appreciate a whisky that has character – this goes into the category of “so glad I tried, but did not have to buy.” I actually don’t think I could handle a lot of it – a good example where a little goes a long way.

Like many Japanese whiskies, finding a 21 year old today may prove challenging – both in terms of accessibility and affordability. I last found this online for approx $700. Crazy, eh?

Here’s what the folks at Nikka have to say:

This pure malt whisky is characterized by a deep and flavorful richness and excellent balance unique to whisky matured for 21 years. You’re sure to enjoy the nose, which blends the richness of ripe fruit with the elegance of the aged cask, and the complex changes in character that appear as the finish approaches.

Other Nikka blends sampled include:

I couldn’t help but be amused at how well travelled this bottle has been… Born in Japan, purchased in Tokyo, traversed the globe primarily around Asia to then reach Winnipeg, Canada where it was first opened. Then a sample continued its journey to London before carrying on to Mumbai, India where it was re-tasted. Thus goes the world of whisky and its whisky fabric!

Thanks again Doug & George for this sample – I’m delighted you “don’t collect stamps!”

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The mighty Karuizawa 12 year (1999/2011) 58.9%

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Another highlight at Whisky Live Singapore‘s Collector’s Room was the increasingly rare Japanese discontinued distillery – Karuizawa.

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Karuizawa 1999 12 year 58.9%

Bottled 24 Oct 2011, Single Cask #867 with 204 bottles

What did I find?

  • Nose – Lots of dark fruits, dusty
  • Palate – Spice, gorgeous complex character
  • Finish – Long yet quite subtle, lots of figs, dry and bitter

The challenge with dark, rich, intense whiskies is they can become a little too overpowering. This was not the case here… it held back from overwhelming. While it had a lovely nose, it was the taste and finish that really stood out.

While I doubt I will have a chance to try something like this again, am glad I had this opportunity.

Other rare Japanese whiskies sampled:

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Whisky Live Singapore – Collectors Room

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Whisky Live Singapore has a special ‘Collector’s Room’ where the unique, rare and exclusive whiskies reside.

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Which ones did we chose?

Then had a bonus Bruichladdich 10 year 58%.

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Whisky Live Singapore – King Kavalan

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Kavalan has been sweeping global awards – garnering top World Whiskies Awards,  dominated the Malt Maniacs Annual Awards 2016 and many more.

So what did I have the pleasure of perusing in Singapore?

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Kavalan Classic Single Malt 40%

  • Light, fresh nose, smooth on the palate with a slightly sour bitter quality
  • Was like sipping a blend of bourbon, sherry and wine

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Kavalan Concertmaster 40%

  • What can I say about this one? Tried it many times… nothing wrong but also nothing exceptional… reminded me that while pleasant, simply doesn’t float my boat whisky wise
  • Ex-bourbon cask, matured for 2-3 years with a Port finish

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Kavalan ex-Bourbon Oak 46%

  • Nose was sweet honey delight, bright, uncomplicated
  • While clearly not sophisticated, I was surprised how much I enjoyed the ‘watered down’ version… having previously only been exposed to the ex-Bourbon’s cask strength cousin

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Kavalan Sherry Oak 46%

  • Lots of sherry berry nose, round soft on the palate with a bitter, dry finish that stays
  • Surprisingly enjoyable, nice long finish – much more than anticipated

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Kavalan Solist ex-Bourbon B100924087A Bottle 008/200 59.4%

  • Sweet and sassy on the nose, tipping to the softer bourbon notes, palate has substance and the finish is well rounded

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Kavalan Solist Sherry Cask S1001290048 Bottle 102/489 57.8%

  • Familiar territory with this one! Rich, sherry, berry, bursting with flavours, lots of liquorice in this one with a great big sweeping finish

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Kavalan Solist Fino Sherry Cask FI1007070264 Bottle 441/575 57%

  • I wanted to go “Wow!” but found this almost too dry and bitter for my taste, an interesting experiment and quite distinctive but not an easy dram

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Kavalan Solist Vinho Barrique W120727102A Bottle 213/231 57.1%

  • Much more my style – some of the rich fruity elements yet more subtle than the sherry, a nice spice, dash of nuts, even a puff of smoke

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There is little doubt that in many circles Kavalan is indeed ‘King’ of whiskies at the moment. Even better – it remains accessible and even in the more affordable category versus others who have reached such heights.

Related Kavalan posts:

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Whisky Live Singapore – Nikka

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Next up after the Teeling trio at the Whisky Live Singapore was Nikka. It was such a treat to try their whiskies side by side in this way… my previous experiences were all separated by months or years, in quite different contexts where it would be impossible to make a connect between the different whisky characters.

With the exception of the Nikka 12 year, all were NAS – a trend that cannot be helped with the popularity of Nikka Japanese whiskies over the years.

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Miyagikyo NAS 45%

  • Miyagikyo has always struck me as a charming whisky… I last had a Miyagikyo 15 year 45% however had not sampled the new NAS
  • What did I find? Simply too young for my taste and not the nuanced delight I hoped for… must admit it was a bit disappointing

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Yoichi NAS 45%

  • By contrast, Yoichi has singularly impressed me with its bold character – particularly the Yoichi 10 year 45%
  • In my ‘speed dating’ revisit of the NAS Yoichi, what did I find? It still had character however I confess I’m looking forward to a return (hopefully) of a more mature avatar

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Pure Malt NAS 43%

  • I’ve had a few Pure Malt whiskies over the years, most of which have not made it to our proper tastings – most recently the venerable Pure Malt 21 year in Winnipeg which did make it into my stash to revisit
  • As for this NAS Pure Malt? It was more sherry berry than I remembered, also much more spice… certainly moving in the right direction

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The Nikka 12 year 43%

  • No stranger to this dram, The Nikka 12 year featured in a ‘Far East’ themed evening earlier in 2016
  • What was the fleeting impression in my revisit? Fruity spice – an easy drinking dram, nicely balanced

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Nikka Whisky from The Barrel 51.4%

  • Similarly, this wasn’t my first sample of ‘From the Barrel’ – it first found its way into our tasting sessions in 2014
  • No doubt this was intended to be the flourishing finish with its contrasting character of ripe plums, wood, sweet and spice… however equally this is a whisky best given time and a mere nip simply doesn’t do it justice

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No regrets stopping by to sample the Nikka whiskies however I hope their popularity does not eclipse the possibility of giving a bit more time to let their single malts mature…

For more details on earlier Nikka tasting experiences, check out:

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Whisky Live Singapore – Teeling Trio Tasting

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My Whisky Live Singapore tasting experience kicked off with a decided Irish air with a trio of whiskies from Dublin’s new Teeling distillery established near Walter Teeling’s old distillery from 1782.

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Tasting notes are sparse as my approach was to sniff, sip and spit… then move on to the next dram. A sacrilege to many, but worked for me. Hence most of my scribbles are more impressions than proper tasting notes, providing more of a teaser of what is in store than proper evaluation.

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Teeling Single Grain Wine Casks (08/2015) 46%

  • A sweet light fruity breakfast dram with a nice viscous mouthfeel, though soft has substance with a dry finish
  • The Teeling gent shared that the wine cask in question was a Californian Cabernet Sauvignon

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Teeling Small Batch Rum Casks (11/2015) 46%

  • Another sweet easy going dram, vanilla spice on the nose, a bit sweet spice sour on the palate, with a finish that is there and gone
  • Matured in ex-Nicaraguan Rum barrels

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Teeling Single Malt (09/2015) 46%

  • Lots of dry fruits, toffee, citrus, sweet spices, dry finish
  • A vatting of 5 wine casks – Sherry, Port, Madeira, White Burgundy, Cabernet Sauvignon

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A light, sprightly start to tasting adventures…

Wanna read about more Irish whiskies? Check out:

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Winnipeg stash – Pure Malt 21, Bowmore 12, Macallan 15, Tomatin 12

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It is finally time to sit down before the year comes to a close and share tasting notes from whiskies acquired from the 2016 Winnipeg stash. These four come from a friend’s whisky collection – in his own words “I don’t collect stamps.”

Pure Malt 21, Bowmore 12, Macallan 15, Tomatin 12

Naturally I selected an eclectic range of whiskies not yet sampled…

I then added to this mix, a score from Winnipeg’s Cabinet:

Curious about the 2015 Canadian sampling ‘score’? Read more here…

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Whisky Archives – Oban 14 year, Deanston 12 year, The Six Isles and Yellow Spot

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Another from the archives… from June 2013 and my 1st whisky post on EverydayAsia. Hope you enjoy!

Tasting Notes from 20 June 2013

Following our standard format, we blind tasted before revealing the whisky. This month featured: Oban 14 year, Deanston 12 year, The Six Isles and Yellow Spot.

“Oh us fortunate few! What an evening it was!”

Oban 14 year – Golden amber colour. A light fruity sweet nose. Unexpectedly oily, chewy body with a spicy bite yet smooth. Short finish. Felt familiar, nice yet not exceptional.

Oban 14 year (photo: Carissa Hickling)

Deanston 12 year – A little ‘extra’ brought out by our host for those who missed trying it in an earlier meeting. Nuanced nose with over ripe fruit, sweet and spicy on the palate, lovely finish with a hint of spice that slowly dissipated. Delightful!

Deanston (Photo: Carissa Hickling)

The Six Isles – A vatted malt with single malts from the Scottish Islands: Islay, Jura, Mull, Arran, Skye and Orkney, this one kept us guessing! Quite peaty on the nose with hints of spice and other elements. Burnt ash, rich, oily on the palate yet with only a drop or two of water transformed into an exquisite smooth sweet whisky that would even pair well with desert. A lovely mellow finish. What a wonderful surprise!

The Six Isles (Photo: Carissa Hickling)

Yellow Spot 12 year – From Ireland, a single pot still Irish whisky produced for Mitchell & Son of Dublin, matured in bourbon, sherry and Malaga casks. The nose was fresh and sweet with hints of a complexity to come. On the palate, initially a blend of sea salt and honey, it rounded out with chocolate to fruit, supported by a woody robustness. The finish was particularly superb! Complex, with a gorgeous flavour that lingered…

It has garnered some very well deserved praise from Jim Murray (and us)! An exceptional whisky that hit all our favourite counts for a wonderful malt.

Yellow Spot (Photo: Carissa Hickling)

Any different opinions? Any recommendations along the lines of Yellow Spot?

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Whisky archives – Kavalan Concertmaster + Solist Sherry Cask, Ardbeg Galileo, Dutch All Rye

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I was clearing through some old drafts and happened to find one from an evening I hosted in February 2013 – a few months before I started chronicling our monthly tasting adventures on Everyday Asia.

It was from an email that contained no tasting notes, merely a thank you for the whiskies contributed and the two guests who joined our session.

The evening featured:

  • Nameless Indian single malt (later confirmed as McDowell’s Single Malt)
  • First encounter with Kavalan Concertmaster
  • Contrasted with Kavalan Solist Sherry Cask
  • Dipped into the latest (then!) Ardbeg release – the Galileo (1999/2012) 49%
  • Closed with the Dutch All Rye

Years later I couldn’t remember the Indian single malt we tried… just that it was neither Amrut nor Paul John. Surprisingly, I recently found a note that it was McDowell’s Single Malt?

Concertmaster (Whisky Lady)

However, I distinctly remember being soooooo excited to try the Kavalan Concertmaster – given my efforts to track it down during a trip to Taipei. And being equally disappointed til we contrasted it with the Kavalan Solist… an experiment that was repeated years later with the Whisky Ladies.

I also remember the story behind Ardbeg’s Galileo… a whisky released in ‘celebration’ of Ardbeg’s space experiment yet not actually containing a drop of galactic wandering whisky. Instead a mix matured in ex-Marsala wine and ex-Bourbon casks leaving a smoky sweet impression.

It was also one of our early encounters with European whiskies and one of our few samplings of a Rye whisky.

Our guests were two well-known figures in the Indian spirits industry who added more merriment to the mix… Overall leaving an impression of world whisky fellowship of great people and good drams!

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