Nose: Green apple, anise seed, saw dust
Palate: Subtle, honeysuckle, werther’s original.
Rating: 6 / 10 – blend of all 2009 dramfool bottlings blair athol 12, Caol Ila 18, Highland park 16, Invergordon 37 bladnoch forum, rosebank 12.
Nose: Raspberry licorice ropes, red currant jam, plum butter.
Palate: Raspberry shortbread, rooibos.
Rating: 6 / 10 – lovely nose. Off the hook. Palate is fun and fruity but not quite as standout.
Nose: Fresh cut grass, cinnamon honey stick, clove cigs.
Palate: Green pepper, cloves.
Rating: 7 / 10 – damn this is great. 133 phenol
Nose: Leather, dark chocolate cherries, dark chocolate sorbet, smokey mesquite briquets
Palate: Leather, warm thick as a spoon smokey dark hot chocolate, even going to cocoa nibs and raw coffee beans. With a dusting of powered chiles. Freeze dried cherries and Turkish apricots. The earthy n oak flavors taper off and menthol & figs.
Rating: 9 / 10 – rich, luxurious, powerful and amazing
Nose: I poured this blind and it smells of cranberries and rose hips. Feeling kind of tickled… pink. A very sweet nose, confectioners powdered sugar. A pot de creme with a crackling candied crust. Pink peppercorn simple syrup. I’m really enjoying the smell, as I work on 2024 budgets. It’s an uplifting counterpoint to the crass realities of finance.
Palate: Oh … OH. a sugar bomb but not in the classic bourbon or thick syrup sherry vain. Not even the Sauternes or Tokaj as those come with a touch of funk (that I also enjoy). Reminds me of cultivating honeysuckles on the fence out behind verve. And the smell of passion flowers. Penny ice creamery would be making fresh waffle cones. It was a heady combo. Sweet vanilla notes and while I rarely gravitate to young grains, this complements those cereal notes so well. Like the first time I tried Life cereal.
Rating: 7 / 10 – I would easily reach for this on a day where I want a sweetie.
Nose: Christmas fruitcake. Which for whatever reason I haven’t dove into yet this year. I love those things, and need to get my act together. Nutmeg and cloves. Date nuggets. Noooo .. raisin nut bran. Those little nut covered raisins had such a distinctive profile. And while I like all the notes, the smell feels forced. Which is a bit unusual for Dunsville for me. There is a notable young base smell.
Palate: Yeaaah… the nose called it. Burney on the approach. A fun bran vibe. Good rich fruit notes – unripe figs, medjool dates. Brings me to Turkish sweets which isn’t necessarily a PC but more PX note? A bigger sip rounds it out. I’d write more but Julie calls. There is a bitter underlayer, somewhat abrasive, that fights with the sweetness.
Rating: 5 / 10 – a fine pour, but was expecting more. Maybe I’ll try again another night with more time
Nose: Butterscotch, lemon pith. unripe peaches, grape skin, dried mango, maple bark, white tea
Palate: Tart and dry, aspirin, asparagus, barley cake, furniture spray, old beeswax.
Rating: 4 (Shane) 6 (Ryan) / 10 – It’s such a different style than I am used to drinking. Can’t say I love it, but also could see getting used to it eventually and it growing on me. So this score feels more of how I feel today than a reflection on the spirit.
Nose: Green grapes, bubblegum, pineapple
Palate: Old bandaid, clay, touch medicinal, waxy, mint toothpaste, lightest bit soapy, lightly fruity, honey wax, incense, tape
Rating: 4 (Shane) 5 (Ryan) / 10 – while I love the nose, the palate is kind of off putting
Nose: Fresh cut branches, peach white tea, brown sugar and cinnamon, mustard seeds and coriander
Palate: Very quiet palate, lightly fruity, nuts, muted, butter, white tea, stevia
Rating: ? (Shane) 5 (Ryan) / 10 – not rating it – too quiet to form much of an opinion. A nice simple bourbon casked spirit. Ryan shrugged his shoulders and gave it a 5.
Nose: Gentle oak, honey on beer bread, graham crackers.
Palate: Raspberry ropes, brown sugar, oak cabinet spices, remnants of sweet tea watered down, tobacco
Rating: 7 (Shane) 6 (Ryan) / 10 – vibrant, full bodied, lovely
Nose: Subtle apricot, honey, tangerine, sweet cream
Palate: Licorice root, honeydew melon, cucumber in sweet brine, lemon peel, white peach tea, sugar cookie
Rating: 6 / 10 – pleasant, but don’t totally recognize the Brora character
Nose: I pushed my bike down pacific coast highway one for months. Was moping in my parents house post “breakup”, although I guess that is the wrong term as I am the only one who truly considered it any form of relationship. Dad ever so gently suggested I needed to get out of the house, and agreed to go halvsies on my muscle powered steed. So, in the spirit of Forrest Gump, I just started pedaling. Camping each night, worn out. First night I slept in months was in a field of chamomile. Sweet fresh smell mixed with cut grass. Small curls of wet firewood, it was northern Washington after all, and that part of the olympic peninsula rarely dried out. Everything carries the weight of water out past Forks. Pond water with lily pads and wet straw. Marsh grasses bent in the winds. And yet as the heart lightened, subtle orange peel, and the warmth of oak spices. Melted gouda with thin slices of jamon cocido. With a flirt of fig vinegar.
Palate: Oh dang what a lovely palate. Big smokey sweetness. Wild honey. Cinnamon tea brewing on the first morning campfire when it’s still cold out. Part of me wants to get going, but I’m stiff. But waiting for the tent to dry a touch before strapping it to my bike. I pack an orange (this was before I knew I was allergic), and freeze dried raspberries and apples. Need the fructose sugar shot. And picked up the afternoon before, a tonic, which I waited to drink until morning because, warm tonic, no bueno. I’ve always loved that tart kick and this pour brings me right there without going into the dark side. I like how sherry and peat dance.
Rating: 8 / 10 – oh damn this is good. Singularly good and weird. I tried it at the end of a 6 pour blind tasting and instantly clicked, but needed to come back on a fresh palate. Second time pouring it, and mad respect. adjusted the rating upwards again. This is such a good match for my palate.
Nose: Dusty, leeks, willow bark, soldering, grains
Palate: Chalk, kale, turkey broth, copper penny.
Rating: 5 / 10 – interesting but not yummy. What a difference between the older bottles. Those were so sweet and is so different
Nose: Ovaltine, beef flavored chips, yeast cake when pouring out the beer fermenter, cream soda, sawdust
Palate: Creme brulee, old timey rootbeer barrel, orange peel, green grapes, cheerios, slightly medicinal
Rating: 6 / 10 – a very fun sweet and savory blend
Nose: Leather, molasses, balsamic reduction, nutty, prunes and dates, brown sugar oatmeal, carrot greens
Palate: Coffee grounds, cherry vinegar, cola cubes, licorice root, rootbeer, veers towards herbal on the finish
Rating: 7 (Shane) 6 (Ryan) / 10 – Love me a good PX bomb
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