As The Spirit Moves Me

Nose: Malt, pine tar, vanilla, spiced apples, dry wood smoke, lemon pith. Weirdly reminds me of lemon filled jelly donuts. Palate: Lemon meringue pie, bright clean wood smoke, parker house rolls, vanilla, coconut, custard. Finish: Vanilla, black pepper, smoke, lemon, slate. Final thoughts: Very nice. Balanced, delicious, bright and sprightly. Not much of an after dinner dram, honestly. It's bright and exciting. Would I buy this: I would, as long as it wasn't too dear. Would I order this in a bar: It would be a fantastic aperitif! Would I drink this if someone gave me a glass: Definitely. Verdict: Thumbs up!

  The last of the 'Lost reviews' where I can't find the picture from the day I noted down the review. Nose: Green apple, raw malt, brown sugar, buttered biscuit, honey, cream, lavender, a hint of grassy smoke like a far off prairie fire.  Palate: Flamed orange peel, buttered toast with honey, burnt almonds.  Finish: Pepper, cardamom, oak, bitter orange, burnt flowers.  Final Thoughts: I still feel HP12 is the perfect starter single malt Scotch for anyone to try. There's enough going on it's not boring, but not so much it's overwhelming. There's peat, but not smack you in the face peat. There's a little of everything, and while it's not a stand out, it's nice and solid. Would I buy this: I would! I like HP. If you can't tell by my hat. Would I order this in a bar: It's a solid go-to if the bar doesn't have anything I would prefer. Would I drink this if someone gave me a glass: Why not? Cheers! Verdict: Thumbs up.

  First, apologies for the terrible picture. I guess I was just overwhelmed by how amazing this was? Nose: Roasted nuts, marzipan, peanuts, red plums, dark chocolate, leather. Just a hint of something like old mint. Palate: Caramel, black pepper, sour cherry, cacao nibs, dark chocolate. Currants, sultanas, ginger and figs. Toffee, clotted cream. Finish: Really long. Spicy pepper, then sweet. Caramel, burnt sugar, chocolate covered cherries, a hint of oak. Fading into pipe tobacco and leather. Good lord, this is a delicious whisky. Would I buy this: Yes. Under $200 USD, yes. Would I order this in a bar:  Absolutely. Would I drink this if someone gave me a glass: Thank you, may I have another if it's not too dear? Verdict: Delicious. Big thumbs up.

Nose: Yesterday's campfire, clean maritime salt, smoke, toffee, canned peaches, yellow cake, vanilla frosting. Palate: Smoked apples, orange rind, soot, nectarines, vanilla buttercream frosting. Finish: Long. Simmering smoky vanilla. Sweet and warming. Verdict: I like this a lot. It's like a sweeter, fruitier Springbank. Would I buy this: I would, it's a shame it's limited edition. Would I order this in a bar: Yes, depending on price. Would I drink this if someone gave me a glass: Absolutely! Thank you! Rating: ★★★

Nose: Candied orange peel, sultanas, plums, cocoa, figs. Palate: Raw barley, plum, citron, sloes, allspice. A hint of chocolate. Finish: Long. Baking spices, milk chocolate, oak. Verdict: Not quite as complex as the 18 Allardice, but still damned good. I'd love a bottle of this. Quite nice. Would I buy this: I would! I wonder if the newer releases are this good. Would I order this in a bar: Definitely, if I wanted a nice sherried dram. Would I drink this if someone gave me a glass: Please, and thank you! Rating: ★★★★

Nose: Figs and dates. Bovril. Hazelnuts. Cocoa. Light molasses. Palate: Christmas cake. Rum. Milk chocolate. Allspice. Finish: Medium in length. Blackcurrants. Clotted Cream. Resinous wood. Black tea. Cocoa powder. Verdict: Pretty complex. All the sherry notes are there, but it's balanced by wood and the malt as well. A fantastic dram. I wish it had just a little something more going on. Would I buy this: I would! I wish it were a bit cheaper here in the US, though. Would I order this in a bar: Definitely, if I wanted a nice sherried dram. Would I drink this if someone gave me a glass: Please, and thank you! Rating: ★★★★

This was mystery dram #2 of my 2018 Secret Santa swap. It's light as hell. Let's see what Santa has for me Nose: Lemon peel, ashy smoke, green apple, pastry crust, milk caramel, seaweed Palate: Hot ashy peat, nori, sea salt, cereal grain, vanilla, honeydew melon, green grape, butter caramel. Finish: Long and full. Round. Light smoke, caramel sweetness, sea salt, a little woodiness. Verdict: This is weird. It's like Caol Ila, but it's also like Bunnahabhain. The nose is light and lemony and smoky. There's some of that in the Palate too. But there all that Bunna-like caramel. And the peat is somehow light and hot but also like a long banked fire. It's weird. I'm going to guess it's an IB Bunna that's just off profile. It's sure as hell good. I'd buy this if it weren't too pricy. Would I buy this: I would! It's honestly pretty good. Would I order this in a bar: Yes! Would I drink this if someone gave me a glass: Defin...

This dram was a mystery included in my 2018 Secret Santa swap. It was tasted and reviewed blind. Nose: Stewed plums, cocoa, toasted nuts, clove, Virginia pipe tobacco, honey, vanilla, raspberries. Palate: Sweet red berries, vanilla, oak, rich cocoa, figs, dark cherries, caramel, black pepper, honey. Finish: Finish is long. Dry and tannic, but with a little caramel and clove at the tail. Verdict: Definitely some heat. Like 100-110 proof, maybe? It's very rich. I think it's port finished, based on what I'm tasting. Would I buy this: Depending on price, I would. Given it's from Astor, maybe not. But it's awfully good. Would I order this in a bar: I would, definitely. Delicious dram. Would I drink this if someone gave me a glass: Oh, yes please! Rating: ★★★★

Nose : Light grain, butter, toffee, brown sugar, a bit of oak. Palate : Toasted Barley, brown bread, floral honey, a touch of salt. Hints of dry mineral earth, black pepper, orange peel, and the lightest kiss of something smoky. Finish : Medium long. White pepper and fresh cut hay. Verdict : I've had Ledaig before, but realized I'd never had Tobermory, the same distillery's unpeated whisky. Thankfully a friend gave me a mini for Christmas this year, so I made it my Christmas night dram! How tasty! Lots of little subtle notes, they all come together in harmony. I like this, quite a bit. Would I buy this: I would! There's a lot of nice things going on here. None of them crank the volume up, but they're balanced in a great way. Would I order this in a bar: Definitely. If I wanted a nicely balanced dram at the bar I could see myself going for this. Would I drink this if someone gave me a glass: Absolutely. Rating : ★★★★

Nose: Far off wood smoke. Faint seaweed. Dried cereal grains. Grainy sweetness predominates. Palate: Very malt forward. Lots of grains, a little citrus. Touches of smoke. A bit of salt and tar. Finish: Middling length. Malty and fruity, with some light spiciness. A graininess runs along as a backbone to the whole thing. Verdict: I like Oban 14. The malt shows through well, it's got some complexity, but not as much as I'd like. It's easy to drink, I just feel that the amount they charge for it is too much. A scotch at this price should have more going on. Would I buy this: No, not unless it was on sale. Would I order this in a bar: Maybe? If they have Talisker 10 available, that's a negative. And they likely do. Would I drink this if someone gave me a glass: I would! There's absolutely nothing wrong with it. It's a nice dram. Rating: ★★★

Nose: Old apples, yesterday's oatmeal, orange peel, oxidized sherry. Palate: Sherry, raisins, old fruitcake, allspice, sweetness. Finish: Glace fruit, mace, raisins, oak. Verdict: As I recall from past experience in bars, this dram always seemed like it was slightly off. This tasting bears that out. All the flavors are slightly oxidized seeming, and not just because this is from a sample bottle. I don't know if it's part of their 'solera' process, but it's simply not great. The sherry is quite forward, the malt seems tired and in the background. When the spice comes out to play it almost roars over everything, but only for a second, and then it's gone. Would I buy this: No. Would I order this in a bar: Not really. They'd have to have a fairly abysmal selection. Would I drink this if someone gave me a glass: I would, but just to be polite. iI's not terrible. But it's not great either. Rating: ★★

Nose : Smoke, seaweed, caramel, iodine, oily roasted nuts, old fermenting fruit, cocoa,  taffy. Palate : Malt, smoke, toffee, dirty ash, peat, seaweed, custard, butterscotch, lemon curd. Finish : Yesterday's fire, allspice, lingering caramel, bready malt, grilled plums. Verdict : Just plain fantastic. Seriously the best Cairdeas I've had. The balance is superb, the smoke and sweetness and complexity are all so nicely put together. The proof is perfect. I have one more bottle of this, and it's staying on the shelf for a bit. Delicious. Would I buy this: Yes. Would I order this in a bar: Absolutely, yes. Would I drink this if someone gave me a glass: Yes, yes, yes! Rating: ★★★★★

Nose : Honey, vanilla, oak, toasted oat, vienna malt Palate : Cocoa dusted almonds, mint, sea salt, white pepper, citron peel Finish : Salted toffee, lemon, toasted oak, nutmeg Verdict : This is simply delicious. Fantastically balanced. It's not perfect, but it's a must have to keep on the shelf, especially for the price to me. Would I buy this: I would! Would I order this in a bar: Absolutely! Would I drink this if someone gave me a glass: Yes, please! Rating : ★★★★