Bruichladdich: Octomore 7.2

Bruichladdich Octomore 7.2

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Nose:  Peat, salty beach water, bran flakes, and mixed berry sorbet.  Also a hint of a wine glass that has been left overnight. Palate:  Quite maritime for an Octomore; salty and hints of iodine.  Quite smoky, and spicy.  Burnt ANZAC biscuits and mixed berry jam. Slight traces of vanilla. Mouthfeel:  Reasonably thick and slightly oily, with a bit of warmth. Finish:  Decent length on the finish.  Dry and spicy, with lots of dried berries - strawberries, raspberries, red currant.  Also a slight hint of chocolate and hazelnuts. [divider] Octomore 7.2 is a 5 year old single malt from Bruichladdich on…
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Bruichladdich: Octomore 7.3

Bruichladdich Octomore 7.3

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Nose:  Creamy caramel fudge, vanilla sponge cake with a dusting of icing sugar, uncooked cookie dough, fresh malt, and lemon lollies.  Also a slight note of what you get at the back of your nose when you get dumped by the surf.  Quite the summer holiday at the beach on the nose of this one.  Barely any peat coming though, despite knowing full well what is in the glass. Palate:  Both peat and caramel hit first - quite a soft and sweet peat; trundling alongside a rich dark caramel toffee.  There's also some buttercake drizzled with honey, a bit of…
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Christmas 2016 – A Ninja’s Very Peaty Countdown

12 Weeks To Christmas - A Very Peaty Countdown

It might only be October, but as the song goes – “it’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas, with toys in every store“.

There’s also Christmas cake and pudding in the supermarkets, which over the last couple of years seeing those at this time of the year would annoy the crap out of me – it’s not even my birthday yet, let alone Melbourne Cup, or halloween.

This year I decided to do things differently – I’ve decided to countdown the twelve weeks to Christmas with whisky.  Either that or it sounded like a good excuse to try every Octomore that I could get my hands on – the jury is still out on the real reason.  😀

A Christmas whisky countdown is one thing – but don’t expect me to string up the tinsle, wear a Santa hat, or stock up on prawns just yet!

 

Introducing 12 Weeks To Christmas – a Ninja’s Very Peaty Countdown

Every week for the next twelve weeks I will be reviewing a different Bruichladdich Octomore whisky starting with Octomore 7.4 and working backwards.  I’ll update the list below as I publish more reviews.

  1. Octomore 7.4 – Virgin Oak | 61.2% | 167ppm
  2. Octomore 7.3 – Islay Barley | 63% | 169ppm
  3. Octomore 7.2 – Cask Evolution | 58.5% | 208ppm
  4. Octomore 7.1 – Scottish Barley | 59.5% | 208ppm
  5. Octomore 6.3 – Islay Barley | 64% | 258ppm
  6. Octomore 6.2 – Cask Evolution | 58.2% | 167ppm
  7. Octomore 6.1 – Scottish Barley | 57% | 167ppm
  8. Octomore 5.1 – 59.5% | 169ppm
  9. Octomore 4.2 – “Comus” | 61% | 167ppm
  10. Octomore 4.1 – 62.5% | 167ppm
  11. Octomore 3.1 – 59% | 152ppm
  12. Octomore 2.2 – “Orpheus” | 61% | 140ppm
  13. Octomore 2.1 – 62.5% | 140ppm
  14. Octomore 1.1 – 63.5% | 131ppm

Bruichladdich: Octomore 7.4

Bruichladdich Octomore 7.4

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Nose:  The nose on this is unmistakeably Octomore - the malty, sweet, cured meats, and damp vegetation notes that are prominent on the nose of just about every x.1 Octomore release.  This one also brings in some lighter fruity notes, as well as an undercurrent of sweet white wine.  There's also just a slight touch of the dying gasps of a wood-fired barbeque. Palate:  Up front this whisky is a battle between the raw oak flavours and the peat - both the smoky burnt peat as well as a dark vegetation note.  It's quite a sweet peat - nothing like…

The Ninja's numbers - A completely subjective score.

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Heartwood: Any Port In A Storm

Heartwood Any Port In A Storm

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Nose:  Fudge, caramel toffee, golden syrup, brown sugar, caramel popcorn, and oat biscuits. Palate:  Jam on burnt toast, cinnamon, a little bit spicy.  Also some grandfather tawny, cloves, and some nutmeg. Mouthfeel:  Although fairly lightweight in comparison to the palate and nose; it has a medium weight.  It's also quite dry, and has a slight alcohol tingle. Finish:  Spicy, yet sweet.  The finish is super long, and my mouth jut can't stop watering for a really long time. [divider] This bottling is 95% 15 year old Sulivan's Cove (cask HH593), and 5% 7 year old Lark (cask #644).  It has…
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Warenghem: Amorik Classic

Warenghem Amorik Classic

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Nose:  Light & sweet.  Lemons and limes.  Quite malty. Palate:  Lots of malt, lots of oak spices, traces of vanilla and honeyed breakfast cereal.  Also a slight lemon hint. Mouthfeel:  Thin, warm, quite sharp.  There's a decent amount of alcohol on the tongue for a whisky of its strength. Finish:  Short-medium length.  Heavy on the malt with traces of vanilla and honey. [divider]   This is a decent-enough whisky with fairly basic notes on the palate - it doesn't really distinguish itself in any way, but likewise is not obnoxious at all.  A completely drinkable whisky, but not one that…

The Ninja's numbers - A completely subjective score.

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Glen Grant 1960 Gordon & MacPhail

Glen Grant 1960 Gordon MacPhail

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Nose:  Charred oak, old grapes, celery, and sweet spices.  Quite an unusually sweet nose considering the notes. Palate:  White wine, stewed berries, oak spices, and burnt hot mocha.  Slight traces of fruit lollies and aniseed as it heads to the back of the tongue. Mouthfeel:  Thick and chewy.  Very smooth, and also quite dry.  No burn. Finish:  Dry, very dry.  Grape, and a touch of soot are present; also a slight trace of ethanol - which is a bit odd considering the age. [divider] An earlier release of this bottling got 96 points in Jim Murray's 2014 Bible.  This one…

The Ninja's numbers - A completely subjective score.

I wrote tasting notes for this one a while ago, and never wrote down any marks for it - and at the cost of a bottle of this whisky, I doubt I'll ever drink it again to do so.

Black Gate: BG005

Black Gate BG005

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Nose:  Burnt golden syrup and honey jumbles make up the bulk of the nose.  Crepes with brown sugar and lemon juice are also present.  Quite a strong nose; both sweet and sour.  The longer you let it breath, the more the crepes show up. Palate:  The golden syrup from the nose comes through thick and heavy, without being burnt this time.  The crepes with brown sugar and lemon juice are also still lurking in the back, although with much less lemon juice, and now with a trace of dark honey and a dollop of rich orange marmalade.  Also the lightest…

The Ninja's numbers - A completely subjective score.

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Glenfiddich: Rich Oak 14

Glenfiddich Rich Oak 14

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Nose:  Vanilla, canned fruit salad, sweet spices - cloves and a bit of cinnamon, sultanas,  and fresh wood.  Quite spicy and vapoury on the nose. Palate:  Dried fruits, oak spices, fresh vanilla pods, malt, and notes of old wood.  Quite mellow - too mellow really.  Tiny traces of something really sweet and dark such as golden syrup. Mouthfeel:  Really light, almost watery thin.  Extremely smooth, and absolutely no burn. Finish:  Not a particularly long finish.  Lots of wood notes, with traces of vanilla.  A little bit spicy, but just a little bit. [divider] I can't say I'm a big fan…

The Ninja's numbers - A completely subjective score.

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