Tasting Notes: Bushmills 16 Year Old

First up, some information.  Bushmills is widely accepted as being the oldest licensed distillery in the known universe.  Sir Thomas Phillipps was granted license to distill in 1608 by King James I, albeit records show production to start around the 1784 era.  The distillery went through many owners, and the original buildings were destroyed by fire in 1885 and rebuilt 5 years later. In 1988 French giant Pernod Ricard took control of the distillery and continued production, until the 2005 Diageo buyout.  All that having been said, lets see what the northernmost Irish distillery has to offer in the line of single malts.

Well it has been a while since I've posted some tasting notes, so I'm gonna spill the beans on some random items found at the LCBO through this month or so and get some more information out there for you, the buyer.  This time around, a sweet and luxurious Irish single malt from the Diageo Irish repertoire.

The lineup features the two Irish default standards: the regular expression (the white bush), and the sherried expression (the black bush).  Then we step up to the premium range that features single malts in the 10, 16 and 21 year old range.  There are also still some antiquated bottlings of the Limited Edition 1608 and The Millennium (25 year old).  Having tasted the 10 (a double wood finish of Oloroso sherry and American bourbon casks), when the chance to sample the 16 arose I took my chances and grabbed a bottle.  I do enjoy the single malt Bushmills range as its such a light and delicate whiskey, it's very reminiscent of the Scottish Lowlands flavor profile.  I find a lot of gentle notes with a seemingly simple whisky that turns out to be deeper than initially expected.  The 16 is the oldest yet to arrive at the LCBO (since the Millennium which is out of stock), and comes in at a steep pricing of $80/bottle and only 40% ABV.  Finished in three woods (the aforementioned American bourbon oak and Spanish Oloroso Sherry), this dram is highlighted and steered by the Port pipes used to finish it.

Colour: Amber with hints of ruby and copper highlights.  ( i highly doubt there to be no colour added here, but the port does seem to show some ruby highlights through the electric marmalade background).

Body: Medium body, fat drops appear when the glass is rolled.  Legs run slowly back in.  Things are looking up in the flavor direction.

Nose: Ohh boy!  This is a big one, sweet tawny port, hints of plums and red & purple fruits (grapes, berries and the like), candied almonds and hints of Amaretto, heavy oak (like saturated oak [ie: oak that has held a lot of wine/spirit  in the past), vanilla and fudge, apricots.  The notes of interest I found here were slight hints of tobacco, worked leather and every now and again a slight note of tomato paste or fresh garden tomatoes.

Palate:  This is a very more-ish whiskey.  Almonds and sweet barley seem to be the first notes in my mouth right away.  Barley sugar and dry oak, hints at old wood or wood smoke, dried peaches and apricots.  Hints of raisins, cola, cocoa powder and coffee.  Way off in the background I get a slight hint of sulphur (like in pink erasers).

Finish: The finish is medium-long and seems to mirror the heavy nose.  Hints of old wood and herbal vanilla seem to be present here, rubber hoses and dark chocolate.  Oily mouth coverage fades and drying notes make your mouth water for more.

Empty Glass: The empty glass  almost seems to mirror the initial nose.  Honey and floral notes dominate, with hints of ruby port and wood smoke again.  Slight notes of sandalwood (as in cologne), herbs and ancient dry oak (like in an old trunk or cabinet).  There is a peppering of dry cocoa powder throughout the empty glass.

Well what we have here is a fantastic representation of what Irish whiskey can be with some careful management.  I will fault the mega-conglomerate of Diageo for my 2 usual marks: chill-filtration and colour added. But as I'm feeling generous (yeah, like I'm really in a position to criticize the world's largest distiller on their practices),  I'll let the 40% ABV slide this time.  All my whining aside, this is a deep and rich spirit.  Incredible depth and flavor can be found within this bottle.  I'm very partial to the 10 year old single malt, and I think that bias shows in the 16.  There is a lot to be had for $80, but a lot more could be had with higher proof and non-chillfilteration of the final spirit.  Final recommendation is to find and try this bottle, go to a pub or bar, or a friends house and sample it.  Or should you feel like putting $80 down on a great bottle of whiskey, check your local LCBO for Sku #260760.  Either way I don't think you'll be disappointed.  Until the next time; Keep your stick on the ice and the ice out of your glass.

LCBO Vintages Release for March 2012

Well it seems that every year around St. Patty's Day, the LCBO likes to delve into its Irish holdings and release a few special selections for the occasion.  Let's check out what they've released.

March 02/2012 release:

This is the big St. Pat's release, so there are quite a few re-releases and a couple of new bottles this time around.  First up, Inishowen.  Irish for Island of Eoghan, this whiskey is named for a small peninsula of land on the northernmost end of Ireland.  A blend of both standard and peated malts, and some grain whiskies for balance.  This creates a great balance of bright fruits, sweet grains and subtle peat, pepper the nose.  In the mouth; that fruitiness blooms with notes of red fruits (berries and such), floral vanilla, hints of pears, and the peat scatters through the mix.  The finish is strong but short lived; the grain builds the finish very quickly into a dry and short pop.  Check your local LCBO [Sku #656017], for a $35 bottle.

Next up is Kilbeggan's Finest blend.  This is one of my favorite Irish blends. Vanilla and caramel one the nose, with hints of wood in the background.  In the mouth notes of caramel and golden raisin mix with hints of pepper and spice.  The finish is medium and creamy with the wood notes coming through.  Check your local LCBO [Sku #657247], for a bottle.  Priced at only $35/bottle; it's hard to go wrong.

Locke's 8 Year Old is a pure pot still single malt.  There is a fantastic fruity sweetness on the nose, with hints of barley and malt syrup.  In the mouth big malty sweetness blooms and dominates, there is a slight hint of a metallic note that seems to precede the dry fruity notes.  The finish is excellent with vanilla, peat and more malty goodness.  An excellent bottle for $59, and a great introduction to Irish pot still sweetness. Check your local LCBO [Sku #913475], for your bottle.

The Irishman Single Malt is a 100% pot still Irish malt.  This 10 year old is made up from a bourbon sherry mix and features citrus, creamy notes and floral hints in the background.  The mouth reveals red fruits (passion fruit and berries), cereal grains, honey and almonds.  The finish is medium and very well balanced.  There are both drying notes and warming notes that blend with the sweetness which creates the balance.  Check your local LCBO for Sku #250159 for your $60 bottle.  I also see the Irishman 70 (70% pot still blend) under Sku #135186, but no stock; A future release?

Last but certainly not least is Writer's Tears Pot Still Blend.  This is a bit of an anomaly; rich honeyed notes seem to over shadow the traditional pot still fruitiness.  There are peppered throughout; bright notes of sharp fruit like starfruit or fresh passion fruit (very sharp and sour but sweet at the same time). In the mouth, this is a belter!  It mingles so well, soft sweet notes, hard brash malt, bright fruit.  I strongly suggest you check your local LCBO [Sku #271106], for you own bottle.  At only $48/bottle  this is the one I'm on the look out for.  There were none left where I tried it, but I think it will be an order in for sure.

March 17/2012 re-release:

Here is my single most favorite expression from The Balvenie distillery; 21 year old Portwood.  This is a fantastic expression, revealing notes of honeycomb, worked leather, almond brittle (salty sweetness), poached pears, canned peaches, and hints of spice cake or potpourri.  In the mouth, an explosion of red and black fruit notes.  Plums,cherries, currants, honey and spice notes permeate.  the finish is long, drawn out and fantastically smooth and silky.  This is my personal favorite Balvenie release (followed by the Carribean cask, and the 15 year old single cask),  but I have a real beef with the cost associated by the LCBO.  $216/bottle for a standard release served at 40%!  That's crazy, and I personally can't justify spending that much on it.  If we had the 47.6% ABV that the travel retail stores get; that's a little different.  I don't think the value is there at that price; but should you feel flush, check your local LCBO [Sku #500090], for your bottle.  All the pricing nonsense aside, should you see this on a menu somewhere, indulge yourself and enjoy some of the best that Balvenie has to offer.


March 31/2012 release:

Well here is an interesting one indeed!  Auchentoshan Valinch.  This is a limited expression of their Classic bottling, albeit unchillfiltered and served at 57.5% ABV.  All this for $64/bottle; I think you've got a heck of a good deal on your hands.  Auchentoshan is one of the last 3 remaining lowland distilleries, and one of the few to claim triple distillation (I hear they their triple is really 2.5 times but that's beside the point).  Nose is quite lively with notes of citrus, vanilla, candied ginger, crème brûlée and hints of rose water.  This is a pretty hot whisky in need of a drink to settle itself down.  In the mouth, there are lovely notes of sweets, creamy richness, bitter orange zest that blends so well with the creamy notes.  With water, it settles quite nicely and opens up with the more typical Auchentoshan floral honey notes.  Check you local LCBO for this bottle [Sku #266577] and grab one!

Wow!  That was a big one!  There are a lot of great items that came out this round, and quite a few that I never see listed in the flyers.  I'll have to soon start compiling a list of bottles that I find interesting, but then I'll let my secrets out of the bag.  If you follow my twitter feed <HERE>, maybe I'll let you in on some odd finds and interesting bottles that I see.  Until the next time, keep your stick on the ice, and the ice out of your glass.

Tasting Notes - Greenore 8 Year Old Single Grain

   So for my 8th Anniversary I received a bottle coincidentally 8 years in age.  Greenore (from Irish distillers Cooley), is a single grain spirit matured 8 years in bourbon casks.  Arriving in a fancy sharp shouldered bottle with a large fat cork and some glittery writing on the bottle, it's a sight to behold.  What's inside will be the judge of the quality though.

• Colour: Bright golden. (Rich gold colour) Appears to have colour added.
• Body: Thick and rich.  Oily in texture.  Large drops for very slowly when rolled, legs appear and run slowly down (lots of flavor here...)
• Nose: Very lively.  Typical Irish sweetness.  Thick and rich.  Corn sugar or corn syrup (much like fresh harvested sweet corn).  Floral like honeysuckle or clover.  Vanilla hints.  Notes of rubber or new motor oil (not unpleasant).  Wildflower honey.
• Palate: Soft intense start.  New motor oil turns quickly into corn syrup notes and flowers.  Honey is very present and soft hints of vanilla.  Softness, finishes on a sweet fruity note (like a berry, not citrus).
• Finish: Lingering and fantastic.  Oiliness coats the mouth pleasantly.  Balance between soft vanilla notes / corn syrup / wood/ floral.  Gently soft wood notes and caramels permeate the finish as it fades.
• Empty Glass: Oak sawdust.  Wood is present here, more than in the taste.  As glass dries sweet corn notes appear.  Sweet and sour shows up.  Nose smells like white wine if it were made from corn if that makes sense (I wrote it so it does to me).