Category Archives: Scotland

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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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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Aberlour 16 year (1995/2011) Cask No 2303 57.2%

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I will admit to having a weakness for a sherry bomb or two. While not my ‘everyday dram’, when in the mood for something robust and very berry good, nothing beats it.

Aberlour‘s A’bunadh is a particularly good example of a full cask strength sherry bomb that remains in the affordable category.

No surprise then that this 1st fill sherry cask Aberlour was a hit!

Last in our special “filled by hand” distillery trio, it was quite the whisky.

Hand filled Abelour 16 year

Hand filled Abelour 16 year

Aberlour 16 year (10 June 1995 / 6 Sept 2011) Cask No 2303 (1st fill sherry), Bottle No 180, 57.2%

Here is what we found:

  • Nose – Gorgeous sherry! Figs, plums, juicy dark fruit, nuts, christmas cake, chocolate, dates, orange peel, vanilla
  • Palate – Woodsy dry edge, bit bitter, light balsa then softened to settle into a balanced sweet, bursting with raisins
  • Finish – Rich plums
  • Water – Not necessary but doesn’t hurt. The little extra spice adds something, rounds it out further and opens up to reveal ginger

Overall – a very palatable, rich, sherry bomb that goes down beautifully well.

While thoroughly enjoyable, when it came time to chose my preferred dram to accompany my panatela cigar, I will admit reaching for the Glenmorangie as the Aberlour was fabulous to sample but almost too much ‘Christmas’ for the March heat in Mumbai.

Also part of our remarkable Cask Strength hand-filled whiskies evening:

Other Abelour’s sampled previously:

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Glenfiddich 15 year Batch 15 (2012) 55%

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After the remarkable Glenmorangie, next up in our exceptional evening of hand-filled cask strength whiskies was this Glenfiddich 15 year.

Glenfiddich is one of the classic single malts… a standard most have encountered and consumed at some point. Our host is particularly partial to the 15 year, hence this was his choice when selecting a whisky to hand fill at their distillery in Dufftown.

Glenfiddich 15 year

Glenfiddich 15 year (19 April 2012) Batch No 15, Bottle No 11/15, 55%

Here is what we found:

  • Nose – Honey, light fruit, black pepper, a little spice, wood, musty, floral, dash of vanilla
  • Palate – Plum, cherry sour, spice, warm, wood, sawdust, light sherry
  • Finish – Tart sour cherry that sweetens out
  • Water – Absolutely add it! Takes the acidity out and smoothes it.

This cask strength whisky is known as the “Distillery Edition” and we anticipated it to be “more” with greater complexity and character than the standard 15 year. It has been a long time since I had a Glenfiddich 15 year, so couldn’t add much to the debate on how they differ… however indeed felt privileged to sample a dram straight from the distillery.

The Glenfiddich tastings notes for this whisky:

  • Colour – Rich and golden
  • Nose – A complex aroma with sweet, fruity notes and delicate vanilla oakness. Addition of a little water releases a beautiful combination of heathery spiciness and rich fruit cake.
  • Taste – Silky smooth and warming when tasted at full strength. With the addition of water it produces intriguing layers of spice, sherry oak, marzipan, dark chocolate and ginger.
  • Finish – Long lasting with a lingering vanilla sweetness.

Also part of our cask strength hand-filled whisky evening:

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A very different Glenmorangie 10 year (1995/2006) Cask No 13038 59.3%

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Known as the ‘Speakeasy’ bottle, this particular Glenmorangie 10 year can only be purchased at the distillery in the ‘Speakeasy’ room which revives the alleged early practice of the workers setting aside casks of the finest malt for their own consumption, hidden from the prying eyes of the ‘Guagers’.

In this case, our host hand-filled this bottle nearly a decade ago at the distillery!

Let me repeat that… yes our host waited nearly 10 years to open this special cask strength Glenmorangie.

They say patience is a virtue. And no way could I ever have been so virtuous to hold on for ten years…

Lucky us, we merely had to enjoy… and enjoy we did!

Speakeasy Glenmorangie 10 year

Speakeasy Glenmorangie 10 year

Glenmorangie 10 year (1995 / 9 Nov 2006) Cask No 13038, Bottle No 45, 59.3%

Here is what we found:

  • Nose – Sherry! Citrus, honey, light cereals, vanilla, fresh yet toasted, a dash of perfume, more and more cinnamon. As it opened further out peeked banana cream and much more!
  • Palate – A gorgeous kick of character, lovely cinnamon, puff of smoke, a little oak, sawdust, kept shifting between sweet and spice and all things nice
  • Finish – Initially faint yet as the whisky opened further became a light sprightly spice then as it further evolved a long spicy cinnamon
  • Water – Not recommended. Dampened the complexity without bringing any significant advantage. Best had neat – all it needs is a little time to soften and settle into a very approachable yet sophisticated character.

What was particularly fabulous about this Glenmorangie is the shifts in character. It was like a book that slowly flipped to a new page, revealing something more as the evening unfolded.

While it started with a kick, it mellowed out completely, nice, smooth and well-rounded. The finish was another interesting element… at first light it grew into a very long beautiful finish.

It was my choice of the evening.

Glenmorangie Speakeasy

Another whisky afficianado shared:

On the 8th May, 2007 I bottled my own at the Glenmorangie Distillery. The cask No. 13038 which was filled in 1995. My bottle No. was 157 and and strength was 59.3%. 

I decided to keep it for a special occasion which was this week-end 30/9/12. Without doubt the best whiskey I have ever tasted and hope some day I can bottle another one.

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Bombay Malt + Cigar – Bragging rights!

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The latest edition of Mumbai based whisky sampling adventures has (un)officially been dubbed the BMC aka Bombay Malt & Cigar club (play on the ubiquitous Bombay Municipal Corporation)… and it is insane the levels these gents achieve.

Our 1st session featured ‘Adult’ whiskies… all 21 years or older.

Our 2nd session featured cask strength whiskies each personally filled by our host during various visits to Scotland between 2006 to 2011.

Are you kidding me?! How on earth are us mere mortals to top that???

Our host duly wins bragging rights for offering us three such unique whiskies.

What did we sample?

What on earth will top this for our next session?

Hand filled whisky

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Smokehead “The Rock Edition” – style over substance?

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We get it. Its a gimmick. But gimmicks do get attention.

Sure its brash, testosterone fuelled and meant to be fun. But is it any good?

Smokehead

Smokehead “The Rock Edition” NAS 44.2%

So what did the Whisky Ladies of Mumbai think?

  • Nose: Smoked bacon, beef jerky, gorging on Montreal smoked meat (think Schwartz Deli!), pastrami on rye, hickory, popped out back for a summer BBQ, if you dig deep a hint of honey sweetness, ashtray
  • Palate: Pungent, peaty “not as bad as it smells” 
  • Finish: I’m sorry… was there a finish? It was like all the punch just suddenly fizzled out. Nada.
  • Water: Some thought 6 drops ‘salvaged’ it… yes there was a debate on the exact number of drops required! Consensus was six drops smoothes out the dram without overly dampening the smokey spirit. As one put it, can now taste the whisky and “I no longer feel like I’ve just smoked a pack of cigarettes!”

This Smokehead certainly sparked a lot of commentary…

  • Whisky to get trashed to…
  • College guys, sitting around playing cards, smoking and getting drunk
  • All bravado and no brains

Let’s be very clear, a number of our whisky ladies have no patience for wimpy whiskies. Peat scores high on their preferred elements in a good dram. However this one was all over the top flash without the substance.

There were several comments along the lines of it being a brash guy coming on really strong but in reality a limp noodle. Ahem… You get the picture.

When compared with other openly peat pushing drams like Compass Box’s Peat Monster or Bruichladdich’s Octomore, regret to say this Smokehead is outclassed. Now… it could be the Rock Edition specifically as it is meant to be no frills, just straight-on rock thrills. A couple lasses had sampled a different Smokehead and recalled more character and less clobber over the head with an ashtray experience.

So what more do we know about Smokehead?

  • Do they disclose the Islay distillery? Nope! All we know is its part of Ian McLeod distillers….
  • Do they use colouring? Yup!
  • What else? Not a whole heck of a lot.

What did the Ian Weir, Marketing Director for McLeod have to say when launching this edition?

 “The new limited edition presentation not only celebrates Smokehead’s close affinity to rock music, but reaffirms the brand’s unique position within the Single Malt category. Smokehead is vigorous and unapologetic about its big and intense peaty flavours. Like rock and roll, people must accept it for what it is or not at all. The brand is an enthusiastic supporter of rock music and we have some exciting plans underway to take this even further in 2012.”

And their official tasting notes?

Nose: Heavy smoke and peat.   Amazing richness.   Lemon, fresh ginger, plum jam.   Salty and spicy.
Body: Like a cannonball – hits the palate at once with cocoa, peat and some honey sweetness then explodes with peppery spice and more earthy peat.   Spreads to all the areas of your mouth with more peat and light sweetness.
Finish: Even more peat, spice, mandarin – then dries up.   When you think it’s all over the peat comes back to hit you again.
Impression A rollercoaster of peat and spice with some delicate sweetness.

Well… did we accept it ‘as is’? Meh… Not gonna run out and buy another bottle. However for a sociable drinking evening, makes for a great conversation piece!

Other whiskies sampled before the Smokehead included:

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Embracing the Dalmore 15 year 40%

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What a terrific start to our March Whisky Ladies evening!

We dove straight into the Dalmore 15 year… with its robust sherry character and distinctive 12 pointed Royal Stag emblem.

Dalmore 15 year

  • Nose – Ooh sherry! Raisins, figs, plum cake, caramel, coconut, fruity like sweet oranges, burst of prunes… With those sweet spices of cinnamon… Did we say sherry? Please let’s say it yet again!
  • Taste – Very even, smooth and sweet, raisins, spicy coconut, a quality like Amarula, a bit syrupy, faintest puff of smoke
  • Finish – Nice linger, warm spice, all Christmasy nice!
  • With water? Please don’t. Not needed at all. But if you do, just a few drops brings out the oaky element quite strongly

Overall it was greeted with happy moans of pleasure and comments like :

  • “It is like nector!”
  • “I’ve found my ‘happy’ spot!”

In short, it was a perfect way to kick-off the evening. Hit all the ‘tick’ boxes for a warm, comfy, sherry dram… certainly going an several notches above merely being ‘pleasant’.

Such a whisky begs to be the start of a relaxed evening, curled up at home, nibbling on cheese and crackers while listening to good music, perhaps with friends or perhaps alone.

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

This delicate and approachable vintage is initially matured for 12 years in American white oak ex-bourbon casks. The character of The Dalmore 15 is achieved by then splitting the whisky equally between three different sherry woods; Amoroso, Apostoles and Matusalem oloroso for a further three years. The spirit is finally married together in an upstanding sherry butt, allowing the flavours to infuse.

  • Aroma: Orange marmalade, cinnamon and nutmeg.
  • Palate: Mandarin, vanilla, ginger.
  • Finish: Christmas spice and oak.

Do we agree? Yes

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Whisky ladies go sweetly smokey – Dalmore 15, Mackmyra Svensk Rök, Smokehead ‘Rock’

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Our whisky ladies are a diverse lot and each bring something a bit different to the equation. We are also quite international – most travel regularly and lived in different parts of the world than the land of their birth at some point in their lives.

What this means for us in whisky terms, there is a certain pride in discovering something interesting to share from diverse corners!

Hence the Sheringham William’s White double distilled grain whisky was introduced by a fellow Canadian. Or an offering chocolates designed for pairing with whiskies from a recent European jaunt.

We revel in such treats! March featured one specific whisky that would ordinarily be rather tricky to track down… instead came courtesy of a Christmas trip ‘home’ to Sweden.

March featured whiskies ranging from sherry sweet, to refreshing smoke to in your face peat! Here’s what we sampled:

Notes to follow in the next few days…

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