The Malt Cask

  Back to Islay today with a recent release from Morrison Distillers, the Mac-Talla Mara. After a bit of a revamp in their range, Morrison distillers portfolio grew with the introduction of the Mac-Talla brand with three releases so far in the range, the Terra (‘earth’) bottled at 46%, the Mara (‘sea’) bottled at the cask strength of 58.2%, and the brand new Strata (15 years old, 46% with a mix of bourbon and sherry casks)  Mac-Talla means ‘echo’ in Scottish Gaelic and it focuses on Islay single malts, renewing the link the Morrison family have had with the island for generations. The shape of the label used on both the Terra and the Mara also echo the old ferry tickets on the way to Islay. But for now, let’s focus on the bottle of Mara. From what I know about the whisky, it is between 4 and 15 years old with mainly 6/7/8 years old at its core. It is peated to 23/25 ppm and was aged exclusively in ex-bourbon cask. Like with the rest of the range, it is uncoloured and unchillfi...

  Today we've got a bit of a treat: the Yamazaki 12 years old, 43%, from the 1980’s, courtesy of @mark_littler_ltd #roundrobinwhisky part II This is probably one of the first ever releases of Yamazaki Single Malt (or Pure Malt at the time) as Suntory started releasing it in 1984 and this bottle dates back to the 1980’s. I’m definitely ready for a taste of this little piece of Japanese whisky history! My tasting notes Nose: Very fruity with some peach, passion fruit, pear, melon and lemon. Lots of honey and barley sweetness too. A little toffee, pear drops, quite waxy and musty nose. After a couple of minutes in the glass, you get more oak coming through. What a start! Palate: The palate is richer than the nose and less fruit-forward in my opinion. It’s quite mouth-coating and earthy. I get some woody vanilla notes, a little spice, some toffee and near-burnt caramel (bitter notes), barley sugar, oak spice, hints of dried fruit and slight cough syrup (at least the one I used to have ...

  Today, I am looking at a bottle of Macallan Edition 6 with a twist... The whisky itself does not have a twist, it is more the way I came across this bottle. It was actually sent to me already opened by Mark Littler. Mark is a whisky consultants/broker who runs  https://www.marklittler.com/  as well as a YouTube channel:  Mark Littler With this bottle, Mark has focused on the idea that ‘whisky is for sharing’ and decided to send this bottle to Vin @nononsensewhisky for him to open it, pour a dram and review it, before sending it to someone else, and to someone else... until there’s only one dram left for Mark to enjoy! What a cool idea!!! After @nononsensewhisky the bottle went to @newdramdrinker, to @matts_cigars_and_whisky and now to me. So I shall pour a glass and review it before the bottle makes it’s way to somebody else! So what about the whisky? Highly sought after, these Macallan Editions are probably not opened as much as they used to. A quick look at aucti...

  Journée des Spiritueux Français Je retrouve un peu de français et ce pour la première journée des spiritueux français à l’initiative de @franck.napoly ! Et oui, quand on pense aux spiritueux français, on pense souvent aux alcools de nos grand-parents, Pastis, eau-de-vie ou Cognac, mais depuis quelques années les choses ont bien changé! En effet, la France produit toujours du Pastis, Cognac et autres Armagnac mais pas seulement! Ainsi on peut boire de la vodka, du gin, du rhum, du whisky et bien d’autres encore, tous produits en France! Nombreux sont ceux qui ont été remis au goût du jour avec bien des idées de dégustation novatrices! Et les amateurs de spiritueux français sont de plus en plus jeunes aussi, alors qu’attendez-vous pour y goûter? Santé à tous et bonne journée des spiritueux français! English version French Spirits day! Today is the first day dedicated to French spirits. Thank you @franck.napoly for making it possible! When we think about French spirits, we often thi...

Distillery : Longmorn Bottler : Distillery Age : 25 years old Distilled : n/a Bottled : 23/07/2020 Cask : American oak barrels, hogsheads and butts Abv : 53.0% Unchillfiltered : Yes Natural Colour : Yes Nb of bottles : n/a Extra : Part of The Secret Speyside Collection Price : ~£400 Price paid : £0 (gifted as part of a promotion) Nose : Fruity & spicy, peaches & apricots, red apples and hints of fresh figs, sultanas, vanilla, oak spice, cinnamon, creamy caramel, orange marmalade and lemon oil. Such a mesmerising fragrance!   Palate : Sweet & spicy, rich & chewy too. Mouth-coating with oranges, fresh oak, a little ginger, apples and sultanas, ripe cherries, vanilla, caramel and pears. Despite the high abv the alcohol is so well integrated. Delicious! Finish : Long & drying, warning too, spicy, ginger, oak, sultanas and black cherries, barley sugar and dark chocolate. With water : Creamier nose, less spice, more fruit, pear jam, fig jam, Scottish tablet, vanilla f...

Photo courtesy of www.peg-whisky.com This is the second single cask release from Peg Whisky. I am trying a sample sent to me by the guys at Peg Whisky. Distillery :  Port Dundas Bottler : Peg Whisky Age : 11 years old Distilled : 16/11/2009 Bottled : 18/11/2020 Cask : Hogshead Abv : 59.1% Unchillfiltered : Yes Natural Colour : Yes Nb of bottles : 274 Extra : Second limited release from Peg Whisky, Port Dundas was demolished in 2011   Nose : Fresh cereal, grain, vanilla, digestive biscuits, hints of dried dates and nuts, green pears, citrus elements too and also an earthier side heading towards some peat notes. Palate : I still get that peat vibe alongside some caramel, vanilla, oak spice, green under-ripe fruit (apples and pears) and some fresh thyme. Finish : Quite spicy, warming, oak, slight smoke, grain, and some thyme still kicking around. With water : The nose becomes creamier, the palate is rounder, creamier too with some citrus and malty notes heading into the fini...

Since I started my whisky journey about 6 years ago, my main focus has been Scotch. I have of course ventured out of Scotland with some Irish, French or Asian whiskies but I could still explore further. America is another one I need to spend more time with, being Bourbon, American whisky, rye, Tennessee or any other variants. I think I have managed to try most of the 'entry' bottles so far from Woodford, to Makers, to Jack Daniels, to Rittenhouse, Wild Turkey or Buffalo Trace. I have also pushed a little further with Blanton's Gold, Few Rye and some Balcones, but there is definitely a long way still to go. Today, I am still on a more 'everyday' Bourbon, with Eagle Rare 10 years old, 45%, from the Buffalo Trace distillery. Compared with the standard bottle of Buffalo Trace, Eagle Rare has been aged for at least 10 years. Both product come from the same mash bill #1 which is low in rye (less than 10%) with potentially a small amount of malted barley (around 5% from wh...