Age 12 Years Archives - Page 2 of 2

Tag: Age 12 Years

Springbank 2014 12 year Cask Strength Batch 9 54.3%

Nose: Grilled peaches, old rubber tires, honey, dusty library, teddy grahams, clove hard tack

Palate: Wax dustings spray, envelope glue, salted anchovies, mouthful of patented Springbank bandaids, peach skins.

Rating: 7 (Shane) 4 (Ryan) / 10 – some drams you just have to be in the mood for. I was wanting springbank dirty tonight and Ryan was not. It’s true to form and an honest to god springbank true and true. I rarely feel the need to disagree with someones score, but ryan, you are wrong.

Tasting Note

Glenallachie 12 Year 2007 Sherry Butt 61.7% For Cadenhead’s Cask Series

Nose: Freshly baked banana bread, sweet plantains, subtle hints of peaches and apricots jam. Warm butter. A tannin vibe that makes my nose wrinkle.

Palate: This was definitely a dry sherry, on the red wine spectrum. I would have guessed a rioja cask. Drying on the palate with strong tannins. A good lick of oak. Sour red plums.

Rating: 3 (Ryan) 5 (Shane) / 10 – “this is awful” come on Cadenheads, you can do better than this. Ryan didn’t want to swallow, but he is a good boy. He’s overreacting but I’ll admit, this is only alright.

Tasting Note

Glenallachie 12 Year 2008 PX Puncheon Cask #669 56.8% For Tara Spirits Germany

Nose: All the lovely classic px sherry notes

Palate: Eucalyptus with cherry simple syrup. Benefits from a large sip. The long finish on this is nice, the herbal wears off becomes a bit more nutty, coffee, and cacao nibs. Raw almonds.

Rating: 5 (Ryan) 6 (Shane) / 10 – I personally struggle with eucalyptus, and it’s extra odd mixed with px syrupyness. But if you stick with the ride, this is a solid pour.

Tasting Note

Glenallachie 12 Year 2008 Sherry Butt 57.8% For First Cask Whisky Import Netherlands

Nose: Burnt coffee ice cream, prune juice, dates, raisins. Shaved my body today and smelled my armpits at the end. Under all that sweetness are some rough notes… like my armpit and julie’s fingernail polish. I can’t tell if the palate will be amazing or awful. Kinda scared. Going in.

Palate: I am in a complicated relationship with this palate. I love sour. It reminds me of the funky fermented side of belgians sours. And the industrial side of jamaican rum. All spice, steel cut oats,, horse milk. We all have a little bit of genghis khan in us. We’re talking Injera, sour fermented funky ass … ethiopian pancakes.

Rating: 5 (Ryan) 6 (Shane) / 10 – it is weird and neurotic and I like it. But I can’t imagine anyone else vibing it. So this rating should not carry any weight.

Tasting Note

Glenallachie 2007 12 Year 1st Fill Sherry Butt Cask #900510 64.3% for Signatory Cask Strength Collection

Nose: Chicken satay peanut sauce, peanut brittle. FRESHLY CRACKED DENTAL DAM. We sure he logged this right? Smells like a madeira. So savory. Rosemary. Mince and apple pie. Curried apples. Golden raisins. Lebanese rice pilaf with dried cranberries and almonds. Wet hay and clovers.

Palate: Usually when the palate matches the nose, that is a plus. But noooope. Nope nope nope. This goes onto the cheap street food that keeps you up all night and industrial rubber spectrum. Then it shifts into a kinda pleasing apple pie vibe. But it doesn’t save it.

Rating: 4 / 10 – Friends don’t let friends drink this alone. Hold my hand Ryan. This juice is for savages. The dry sherry vibe is so darn overwhelming.

Tasting Note

Glenallachie-Glenlivet 1970s 12 Year 43%

Nose: A summer alpine meadow. Honeycomb and chamomile. Waxy and polish. Sugar pea vines in bloom.

Palate: A subtle entrance that blossoms with time. White tea, orange peel and a spoonful of honey. Rose hips with a gentle non-cloying sweetness. A pimm’s cup.

Rating: 6 (Shane) 7 (Ryan) / 10 – this should be served in a garden cafe. With little cakes and cucumber sandwiches. The perfect summer bottle.

Tasting Note

Shane

Macallan 12 Year 90s Italian export 43%

Nose: Strawberry jam, honeysuckle, cinnamon

Palate: Unique cabinet spices: cinnamon bear crackers, chalkiness / mustiness, tiny hint of soapiness

Rating: 6 / 10 – lovely and rounded with a bunch of sherry notes – incredible finish – but has an old bottle vibe that is a bit musty. I wonder if the original would have been a buy.

Tasting Note

Glenallachie 2010 12 Year Oloroso #5139 56.6% for Kirsch Germany

Nose: Sherry vinegar, apples, nice subtle sherried notes of dates and figs

Palate: Fig vinegar, dark soil, cecina, sour grass

Rating: 6 / 10 – a nice sour balanced with oloroso

Tasting Note

Shane

Savanna Rhum Grande Arôme 12 Year Cask #415 56.5%

Nose: It’s dark out but still hot tonight. The clouds just rolled in to cover the stars. I keep putting a shirt on for zoom meetings and then taking it off between. This bottle needs a cicada soundtrack. It smells like indian summer. Pineapple on a stick. Fresh strawberry mint lemonade popsicles. Damn I need to make those again. Old spice aftershave. Big wood and a spice hit of cloves and cinnamon…

Palate: Lightly fermented pineapple kombucha. Brazil nuts. Turron leaning into the nougat side. Nutmeg. I loved dried spiced lemon and orange peel my buddy Eddy Fei used to share with me. I think they were from china. Spiced with chili and star of anise. Probably other spices. Wish I could try them again. A light aspirin vibe underneath, but it’s not bothering me this time.

Rating: 7 / 10 – now we are talking. Big bold palate. yum.

Tasting Note

Shane

Octomore 12 Year 2010/2022 Journey’s End 3 First Fill Cask #4525 Bourbon 96.9PPM 58.6%

Nose: I’ve been somewhat obsessed with sweet spicy salsas. My neighborhood burrito shop chef has been trying all kinds of things. A tamarindo habanero (win). A smokey tropical guava with earthy notes, perhaps guajillo? I’ve been wondering if there is some way to bring in a leather / tobacco / cedar vibe into his next experiment. This almost tiptoes into rancio, with a dollop of blue cheese.

Palate: Dirty peat alert. Cast iron pan burnt bits. Charred green bell pepper Crispy baked broccoli. Over steeped green tea, nearly metallic. And yet among all these astringent flavors is a sweet hug.

Rating: 7 / 10 you know this is good when I spilled my glass, and decided to lick it off the table. =)