Nose: Almond croissant, walnuts, marzipan in fruit shapes, touch of maple syrup, candied raisins.
Palate: Old stale milk duds, marzipan, getting better as its sits, biscoff cookies, graham cracker crust for a pie, layer of floral, I say begonia and ryan leans rose hips.
Rating: 4 / 10 – there is something to be enjoyed here, but I’m not impressed.
Nose: Pencil shavings and graphite, canned pineapple rings, lychee syrup, cloves, champagne vinegar, oatmeal, green beans.
Palate: Tangerine marshmallows, tums fruity antiacids – in particular the chalky mouthfeel, angel food cake, dominant note of mirabel after some rest, brown sugar on oatmeal, and an ephemeral woody note that is warmth but not distinct enough to give a specific reference. The a very quiet baseline on a song.
Rating: 5 / 10 – a completely and totally acceptable pour.
Nose: Smells softer than the 1982, touch more fruity. Bubble gum. Cotton candy grapes. Lavender laundry soap… going deeper into floral cleaners
Palate: woody vegetal bitter, mouth cleaning soap. This is what I would punish my kids with after they use the lord’s name in vain.
Rating: 2 / 10 – I’m baffled at how potent it is at 40%, and yet it hits all the wrong notes just right. Only the penitent man shall pass.
Nose: stone fruit, violet, orange marmalade, dark chocolate orange, hershey kisses, nutmeg and ginger cookie spice mix, intermittent moments of umami on the Worcestershire
Palate: wood forward, herbal black licorice candies. Powerful and viscous and coating. Dandelion. Bitter green. Graham crackers.
Rating: 4 / 10 – the nose is damn good, but the palate became all wood and lost its fruit mojo.
Nose: this reminds me of Gautier’s cigar blend cognac on first sniff, which is a bottling I haven’t thought of in years and I want to revisit. The nose flares with an initial burst of sweet grape candy which then quickly expands with rich earthy mahogany notes. Leather and smokey tea, a brush of dark chocolate, and the longer I sit with it, the more prevalent menthol and eucalyptus become. This reminds me of my dad’s machineshop, where he used to build planes. It always blew my mind that the first plane I flew in had a fabric exterior.
Palate: walnut and mahogany to build upon. Camphor. Leather shoe polish and old books. Strong mentholated licorice drop with traces of iodine. Black tar. This is quite medicinal. Reminds me just a bit of catnip. Unfortunately, the armagnac character I still got from the nose on this has been smushed.
Rating: 6 / 10 – half uni and half colombar 12 year armagnac finished 6 months in a Caol Ila whisky cask. Frankly this really works and for the medicinal caol ila fans out there, this is a really great pairing – an easy 7+ for those folks. I respect the hell out of it. I just don’t like gnarly tar / medicinal peat in general, as I’m more of a bbq peat kinda lad.
Nose: Cola with prickly pear simple syrup. You are probably thinking, what a pretentious asshole, just say pomegranate or cherry like everyone else. But my hands are stained red and swollen, as we spent Saturday tiptoeing through cacti picking the fruit and making both syrup and juice, from which I have an EDV fermenting. The kids and I used the syrup with sparkling water to make sodas. And I can’t wait to add it to my coke. The pure fruit syrup has both a deep acidity, warmth that strongly rings of cinnamon, and a light molasses funk. Take the potent dark fruit vibe and layer a full oak embrace and a touch of esters.
Palate: Yes and. Tart pie cherries. The kind where if you don’t layer in nearly equal weight in sugar all you get is puckerface. A generous application of madagascar bourbon vanilla extract. A touch of cloves. With a bigger sip the juiciness fills my mouth with sourness. Pink grapefruit lemonade. Or those japanese extra sour cola hard candy. Two minutes later my tongue puckers a touch and has a strong drying tannin effect.
Rating: 6 / 10 – I’m truly struggling between a 6 and 7. It’s a solid pour. Right up my alley stylistically. But the drying pucker sour is just a bit too pronounced for me to pour this on the regular. My lips are tingling as I write this. Definitely happy I got a bottle when Afish released it. That cork is legend.
Nose: Whole wheat pasta shells fresh from the pot before I pour on the flavor. Fragrant blueberries. Flan. A piquant french oak lick. A&W Cream soda. Or perhaps birch beer. Shag carpet in an old folks home. Perhaps not the most complimentary description but hot damn its spot on. The nose has a feeling that its oomph has faded, guessing this has been long in the bottle. Unfortunately, the sample has been in my cupboard for quite some time and I don’t know the bottling date.
Palate: dusty at first, but quickly hits full blown maple syrup notes with a surprisingly thick gourmand mouthfeel for the abv. The wood plays a central role, with minimal impact from the uni blanc. The lightest moment of cinnamon and nutmeg and the bite of old timey sodas from the nose was legit. Old and slightly stale walnuts, maybe heading towards dried boletes but missing the umami. Perhaps that is optimistic. A thick yet somehow ephemeral palate.
Rating: 5 / 10 – Somehow this managed to be easily drinkable and yet I can’t shake the feeling that its prime years are long behind it. The flavours have all blended together and lost their character, with a pervasive dustiness that doesn’t do it any favors. I’ve had many great Laberdolive, and this wasn’t one of them. But perhaps it’s just the injustice of time passing.
Nose: flash fried sage leaves, pomegranate arils and orange supremes on a fresh bed of arugula. Toss in Nasturtiums. Such a powerful interplay of floral and fruit. And the wood kicks in, tobacco leaves and nutmeg. Such a dynamic nose.
Palate: ohhhh it’s so juicy. Tangerines and pink peppercorn. Perhaps closer to grapefruit and endives. I brought home these haribos in the shape of gems for my son from Germany this weekend. Turns out they taste like salted licorice. Sad son. But score for me as I love that shit. Good thing as it plays a strong role in this spirit. And then wood towards the finish, a hint of german rye cracker and unsweetened cacao nibs. And when I stopped thinking about it and kept drinking it while working, the warmth from the spices, nutmeg and allspice play a much larger role. The odd thing is that the mouthfeel is both perfectly balanced and yet for some reason, the slightest touch too thin and fades after a few seconds. Ideal for a summer pour.
Rating: 8 / 10 – new domain for me from Tenereze. Excellent nuance.
Nose: Brie cheese, black tea, graham crackers, apricots, rhubarb, black pepper pan sauce
Palate: Black pepper, sichuan pepper burn, tape, black tea, ube and boba tea, sweet bean buns, roasted turnips, cedar
Rating: 6 / 10
Nose: Cherries, cranberry, ocean spray cranberry-raspberry. Cabinet spices and peppercorn
Palate: Explosion of tart fruit, cranberry all the way, orange concentrate / peel, spice cabinet, drying on the palate, nice cinnamon
Rating: 6 (Ryan) 7 (Shane) / 10 – a delicious and tart juicy explosion …. Feel the flavor.
Nose: Figs, plums, sugar cookies, cashews, really nice subtle floral layer (rose hip, violet) and perfume, olive, pickled pepper, tomato vine.
Palate: All spice and nutmeg, combo of wood tannin and intense apple vinegar notes, pink peppercorn; much better on a big sip
Rating: 6 / 10 – what a beast. The nose is bonkers lovely and on its own I would gladly own a bottle just to enjoy the bouquet, but once you sip, KAPOW, like 1950s batman, it kicks your ass. In a really good way.
Nose: Honeycrisp apples, high tannin and acidity fresh pressed cider, cedar closet.
Palate: Brown sugar and tannins, toasted pecans, ryan, being a touch more glencairnes half full, thinks it’s piquant. Fresh blueberry, Apple cider vinegar, licking an envelope.
Rating: 6 / 10 – one elegant pour
Nose: This is a complicated nosebeast. A scoop of Rum-raisin ice cream and an espresso gelato, cuddled in a bowl of charred oak. It could be a great pairing, and I keep coming back to it as I am working. 10 minutes later and I still haven’t sipped it. Just smells great… with a rich yet dry umami note, nearly cecina or biltong. It could be a seasonal special old spice blend. I took responsibility for a company today and I viscerally feel the dual sides of both a new adventure, and the weight and pressure that comes with it. I don’t have to look far to see an ocean of conflicting complexities. Just hoping the palate, and my new team con find harmony.
Palate: Oh.. huh. The first impression is that it is a touch thin, but slow the duck down man and give it space to speak. Probably the best advice I’ve been given when stepping into a new role. It’s hard to just listen when my body and soul are powered for perpetual motion. I’m listening Hourtica. The palate really blooms with patience. This is quite lovely and coats the tongue with oak, leather, coffee beans and pomegranate. Cloves, nutmeg, and a dusting of dark chocolate. This is an armchair pour.
Rating: 7 / 10 – I’m genuinely surprised by the 7. It was a 6, but then I got to the bottom, and started googling to see how much a bottle costs. And if that isn’t a 7.. Well what is.
Nose: It’s like getting hugged by maple syrup. creme brulee with an apricot reduction, right at the end of the aroma there is something with a bit more character, a hint of white pepper. The nose is gourmand.
Palate: Maple syrup indeed. Fluffy pancakes with a dusting of brown sugar. Oatmeal cookies. All the goodness from long aging with none of the heavy tannins. The white pepper wasn’t a figment of my imagination.
Rating: 6 / 10 – elegant and quite lovely, but misses some depth. Wish I knew which year it was bottled. I’d love to try a higher ABV from this domain.
Nose: Star of anise, grapefruit, fabric bandaid, overripe banana peel, brown sugar, clove
Palate: Holy concentration batman, coffee creme brulee, tangerine peel, balsamic, licorice root, caramelized goat cheese, cloves and star of anise.
Rating: 7 / 10 – just so damn intense. I’m a bit overwhelmed and totally delighted. Full metal armagnac.
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