Talisker 25 on 25 December

After some delay, I'm finally getting down to write about this. This is, to date, the most expensive bottle I've paid for with my own money. Talisker is among my top 3 favourite distilleries, though its NAS bottlings don't quite live up to the legacy of the name. The Port Ruighe was nice enough, as was Dark Storm, but nothing that screams Talisker, like the 10 or 18. And now, this - the Talisker 25 from a bygone era.

Nothing screams Christmas like a peaty, smoky, peppery, spicy dram of whisky, even if you are living in sunny Singapore, right?

Image from the Whisky Exchange

Talisker used to bottle the 25 year old and the 30 year old at cask strength. Not single cask, just cask strength. This one's bottled at 58.1% abv. That's several notches above the standard 45.8% that Talisker bottles things at nowadays. The upside is that you can now get the Talisker 25 as a regular bottling. The downside is that you'll probably not hit the same highs that the older bottlings were able to achieve. 

This bottle is a mix of various cask types, with some sherry influence on top of the usual refill and bourbon casks. At 58.1%, I'm guessing that this will need some water, but let's do it neat first.

Talisker 25, bottled 2007 (58.1%)

Colour - Well, the bottle is slightly tinted, so the liquid isn't as dark as it might appear to be. Gold, instead of something approaching amber.

Nose - This is intense. Big pepper, sea spray. Let my nose get used to it a little, and more subtle notes appear - honey, really. Light peat and smoke, with suggestions of red fruit. There seems to be a bit of vanilla, and toffee too. Sea salt taffy, perhaps. Fairly oaky undertones, that help to hold the rest of the nose together. What I enjoyed most about this nose is its intensity - the big pepper and sea salt don't go away. It stays and powers through the nose. The other scents come out subtly against the pepper and sea, but the intensity of the usual Talisker profile doesn't become more muted - your nose just gets used to it. The gripping pepper and salt are on one pole, and the gentle oak on the other, gives this Talisker 25 a nose that develops in depth, with different tones appearing the more you nose it, yet staying within the boundaries created by the space between Talisker's wild side and the calming influence of the wood.

Palate - It's like you chewed some black peppercorns, with some red peppers thrown in. It's unmistakably Talisker. The intensity of the pepper really strikes you, just like on the nose. With some time on the tongue, you get...honey, some vanilla, almost bourbon-y sweetness, which adds to the smoothness of this dram, despite the high strength. There's cloves and maybe a touch of something bitter and citrusy, like parsley or coriander. Maybe lemon zest. Butterscotch, or maybe that's just the salt, vanilla and honey coming together. What I probably mean is that this is sweet, savoury and smooth, at the same time. There's smoke and light peat - the smoke is fairly clean, like an unsooty charcoal flame, and the peat is light. Not sure what they burn there on Talisker. I really should visit someday.

Finish - Mmm. The pepper lasts the longest. Cloves and nutmeg spiced finish, which is probably the influence of the sherry cask. Slightly peaty, a little bitter, and a fair whack of oak and wood tannins. Then there's pepper again. A hint of sweetness to round off. 

Ok, that was great, but maybe a little too intense. Let's see what water does to it.

With water - about 5 drops to the dram

Nose - this is immediately more gentle, more open, but still distinctly Talisker. The pepper takes a bit more of a backseat, allowing the oak and honey sweetness to come to the front. There's more fruit too - I'm getting some figs and dried cherries. So...sweet, red, and slightly sour at the same time. Unless the dried cherries I've had are spoilt. Hope not. A little hint of nuttiness - or was that just a different tone to the wood? Same ballpark as having it neat, but slightly more nuanced and round, less brutal on the pepper spray

Palate - Butterscotch, definitely butterscotch. Butterscotch, honey, vanilla, and ripe fruits - I'm thinking of something yellow, like syrup soaked pineapple, or nearly overripe mangoes. Maybe rock melon. But water doesn't water down the intensity, simply drags out other flavours into prominence, without really drowning the kick that the pepper gives. In this case, the pepper has its say later. This is richer than the Talisker 18, definitely.

Finish - shorter, but same profile. Though I think the pepper feels more heaty here.

Overall - I'm impressed and very satisfied. DW says this is not as good as the Kilchoman 2008 vintage - I obviously disagree. I don't think the Kilchoman hits this level of intensity on the pepper, nor the richness of the liquid. But then, the Kilchoman is a about 1/3 the age. And 1/4 the price. Maybe Kilchoman is more value for money, and maybe it'll age better. Who knows? In any case, the Talisker 25 is great stuff, and a style of whisky that made many whisky fans fall in love with the spirit in the first place - intense and rich, smooth and fiery, peppery and sweet. The power of the spirit really stands out here, despite the 25 years in wood. 

And with that, merry Christmas! God is with us! And if you need an artificial fire to add to the mood...

Norse Gods and Kings

Recently read The Gospel of Loki, by Joanne Harris. It's fairly fun, and retells the main storyline of the Norse gods from Loki's perspective. This Loki is rather perceptive and self-aware, with recognition of his own role in why he came to be known as the trickster, and the role he plays in bringing on Ragnarok, or, the Norse version of the end times.

The premise is a fairly interesting twist, and it helps when you can imagine Hiddleston as the protagonist in the story. What grates, unfortunately, is the writing style. Loki, the narrator, seems to speak like a slimy American businessman, or someone running for President. The slyness comes out in bits and pieces, and half the time, he's just out to have fun. What I felt was missing was the bit of malice behind the tricks, and the sense of chaos. While Loki represents chaos in the story world, he doesn't really upset the apple cart much, and doesn't do much to reverse power relations either. Loki ends up being a little too rational and, well, normal. I dunno. Maybe I'm missing the point through my unfamiliarity with Norse legends, but the book's style and characterization of Loki left me wondering if the Trickster could be amped up a little bit more.

Which, coincidentally, is what I think about the whisky I'm writing about today: Highland Park's Harald, released for the Travail Travel Retail market. Harald is part of a series of other whiskies named after Viking/Norse warriors of old. Those cheaper than Harald were sold in 1 litre bottles, while Harald and above were sold in the standard 700ml bottles. Which perhaps suggests that Harald is about where things start to get serious. Unfortunately, I think Harald doesn't get serious enough, which is a shame. King Harald sounds like a pretty badass.

Highland Park Harald (40% abv)

Colour - Gold

Nose - Pretty nice, really. Classic Highland Park with sherry and smoke. The sherry comes across in raisins and the spices you usually associate with sherried whiskies - cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg. Honey, and fairly obvious orange notes, I thought. With a bit of time, there's a faint floral note as well as some light peat instead of smoke. This is balanced, and pretty characteristic of Highland Park.

Palate - Oranges and cinnamon apple dessert. Sweet, with smoke. Honey remains. The smoke is pretty nicely balanced against the sherry influence. Spices remain, but not as strong as it felt on the nose. Mouth feel is a little...watery, despite the heavier flavours. I guess this was chill-filtered? Lacking a little fatness and minerality that would have added more edge to this rounded whisky. Balance and round, but I think it lacks a little depth. Everything is there on the palate on first tasting, without the development of chocolate, tea, or whatever else that I got from the HP 18. A little drying.

Finish - Short-ish, unlike the reign of King Harald. Spicy (more reminiscent of ginger now), oaky dryness. Mm. Lingering smoke and some caramelized apples.

Overall - This is easy and pleasant drinking! Smooth with little burn. Good balance of flavours between the various classic Highland Park flavours. However, this doesn't quite live up to the Warrior billing. Many reviewers of the series have noted this, and I share their opinion, that if you're going to name your whiskies after kings and warriors, could you make your whiskies a little stronger? Perhaps 46% abv? And un-chill filtered would be good too, to give the whisky a little more fat to survive the cold seas. Maybe a stronger concentration would help the whisky display more depth, but alas, it's easier to add water than to take it out.

So, good, but not quite strong enough, both for the book, and the whisky. Hard to live up to the Norse legends of old eh?

Break from Talisker - for a good reason - Taiwan and Kavalan

Ok, sorry for the radio silence. I was in Taiwan for a week, and thus, did not write notes for the Talisker 25, as I had intended to. But, I still have 90% of the bottle left, and I'm sure I'll get down to writing the tasting notes some day. Probably after I give it another tasting.

In the mean time, I just want to say that Taiwan is an amazing place for whisky. My gosh. I didn't go to any whisky bar, but dropped by a couple of whisky retail shops. Prices are bloody affordable. Springbank 10 for under SGD$80. Comes with 2 Springbank glasses if you're a member of the shop. Assorted other whiskies at prices that are, more or less, what you can get online from sites like Whisky Exchange. Without the delivery charges. Where do these people get their profits from? Do thy even have to pay rent??

I was initially not intending to buy anything despite the prices, due to the need to pay for baggage just to transport whiskies. But, I found these:

Glendronach 15, which I have reviewed recently. And the Laddie Ten. Both are whiskies that are out of production, and which have received good to great reviews. And for the combined price of SGD$150 (slightly lower, actually). Basically, the guy was selling these as if they have never gone out of production, and demand has never affected his stocks. This good guy's shop is at Tamshui. Near the MRT station, just about 400m away along the Tamshui Old Street. Fairly cramped space. But big on value for money. There's quite a lot of good stuff from a few years ago - Ardbeg Supernova, for example. Glendronach 15, Laddie Ten, Highland Parks, Laphroaig's cask experiments, and other stuff like that. 

Please do support the guy. He told me that alcohol business is hard. 

In any case, I thought that I would regret not buying it. And so it is done.

The other shops I saw were in more central areas - one was near Ximending, the other was along Nanjing East Street in Taipei. All good prices. Seems to me that Arran and Tomintoul are more popular in Taiwan than in Singapore. Wow.

Apart from these shops, I also, of course, visited Kavalan Distillery.

Customary shot of the distillery

 One of their famous casks

 A display case showing the influence of various casks on the distillate over time

 Of course, a picture of the stills

A small, cute bottle of the brandy oak Solist Kavalan whisky, which I've yet to try.

The tour is fairly self-explanatory, with displays that guide the visitor through the distillery and explain what's happening each step of the way. Pretty fun and easy to walk through, but perhaps lacking a little of the human touch. The tour feels fairly corporate, and it begins with a corporate video, not of the distillery itself, but of the King Car conglomerate. So, yea. Very corporate. But still, it was nice to just walk through and take in the sights and smells of a distillery, albeit from a very curated perspective. No direct interaction with the casks, the warehouse, everything at a safe distance behind the glass. So, maybe it's a good experience for a noob like myself, but not the best distillery visit for someone who's perhaps been to a couple of other distilleries. Unless you can get personal attention from a brand ambassador or something.

I did try the Solist bourbon cask though, from a similar bottle design. So, I'll give some thoughts on it here.

Kavalan Solist Bourbon Cask (54% abv)

Colour - Gold

Nose - Coconuts and pineapples - so that's the promised tropical fruits. Notes of oak come through, along with a fair whack of vanilla. Sweet custard, but a fairly big dose of alcohol too. Smells creamy, with a faint hint of spice.

Palate - Slightly spicy - nutmeg and pepper. Pineapples and mangoes - that's the Kavalan distillery profile, I believe? Coconut and...peanuts, I think. So, that's fairly nutty. The bourbon cask has played its role, I think. Vanilla and wood sweetness. Honeyed too.

With water, there's additional notes of something like baby puke - malty and slightly sulphury, bordering on being too strong. Maybe a little too close to baby puke. With slightly less water in the next glass, I got less puke, but more barley malt and maybe a touch of liquorice.

Finish - Medium length, spicy, pineapple sweetness and citrus. Rather oaky.

Water doesn't affect the nose and finish as much.

Overall - Compared to its sherry cousin in the Solist series, this is simpler and the distillate speaks a little louder. But as a result, the whisky is less complex. But, it is still very good bourbon cask whisky, given the age and aging environment. 

Pre-Christmas Party and New Beginnings - Peater vs Peater

Christmas comes early as all of us would be in various states of overseas-ness over the Christmas period. So, early drinks, and finally opening the Talisker 25 from 2007. I've been waiting ages for this grand opening. So exciting. It's older than I actually am! Amazing that The Whisky Distillery was selling this for the price of 2/3 a Yamazaki 18. They probably bought it at a much lower price several years ago, but frankly, $600 for a 25 year old whisky from 10 years ago, still great.

There were other drinks on the table too, and I'm actually going to review the Kilchoman 2008 vintage first, and save the best for last. I've also not reviewed the Highland Park Harald, but that's easily done some time later. It's a much less exciting dram anyway.

In any case, a young, new Kilchoman and an old Talisker. The Kilchoman was probably still malting when the Talisker was bottled. So that's some nice continuity there. Nothing screams Christmas like peat and chimney smoke, with songs of white Christmases and snow. Never mind Jesus, we'll let the Church celebrate that. Those who're not Christians, let's just spend and drink yourselves silly. Or something more classy than that please. And, of course, never mind the fact that we don't have chimneys nor snow in Singapore.

Let's start with the young upstart.

Kilchoman 2008 Vintage (45% abv)

Colour - Gold

Nose - Peat. Fairly intense peat, but always kept in balance by a great depth of fruits. Citrus, peaches, vanilla, a healthy dose of American oak. Apples and honey. Wood smoke.

Palate - Peaty, but more smoke than peat. Fantastic. Soft peach and apple, and some coconut shavings. Vanilla and oak. Mmm. Figs, and even slightly spicy - clove and nutmeg, with a suggestion of parsley.

Finish - Not very long, though the peat does linger a bit. Smoke too. Spicy at the finish on light pepper, and maybe one teaspoon of malty sweetness and one shred of coconut.

Overall - Some people call this the best Kilchoman to date. I've not had the limited edition releases, so am unable to verify this, but this Kilchoman is pretty top-notch. Better than the Sanaig and the Machir Bay and Loch Gorm and 100% Islay...you get the picture. DW rated this higher than the Talisker 25 (heresy!!), and I can sort of see why. This has a good depth and intensity, great development (without the age caveat), balance, poise, character, etc. I think the Talisker 25 edges this slightly (personal preference for the clarity of the T25, but the Kilchoman is actually more flavourful up until the finish), but frankly, for a 7 year old to take the contest with a 25 year old classic down to the wire is astounding. This goes onto the favourites list. Very reasonably priced too, at about $170 or so at LMDW. Reasonable for its quality, that is.

So, what's the competition like? I'll put it up next week. Gonna head to the airport soon to travel to Taiwan. The day that I'm planning to visit Kavalan distillery in Yilan county, Master Distiller Ian Chang is actually here in Singapore on some promotional event with whisky/food pairings. Such terrible timing. Shall try everything at the distillery cafe to make up for it.

A Dying Revival - Glendronach 15 'Revival'

Given the reputation of Glendronach as a fruity sherry bomb, I often categorise it as a Speysider in my head, and thus, have to frequently correct my pre-conceptions when approaching a Glendronach. Glendronach is, in fact, a Highlander, though it does produce very well-sherried whiskies. The Highland characteristic is more obvious in the less-sherried offerings, such as the 8 year old 'Hielan', and the 12 year old. However, it is the sherry bomb that makes the Glendronach, and I was able to try the whisky that relaunched Glendronach original bottlings some years back - the 15 year old 'Revival'.

The 'Revival' came out circa 2009, and immediately was received with much acclaim. It was excellent whisky, garnering a score of 92 from Serge Valentin of whiskyfun.com (this review is written independently, in case you were wondering). That's massive for a regular OB. What cemented its cult status was its pricing - it was available for between $130 to 160 in Singapore, which translates to...roughly...50 sterling pounds or so, back in the day. Great price for great stuff.

Naturally, it flew off the shelves, and became discontinued. Probably due to the drying up of old stocks that go into the Revival. So, the Revival is dead, and we await what the new owners will do to Glendronach distillery.

This dram was tasted at, where else, the Auld Alliance. They had previously ran out of Glendronach 15, but it's suddenly back on the menu. I checked the bottle, and found a Japanese label on the back. Did they buy this from Japan? Wow. Such dedication. It's sold out in Singapore already.

The whisky itself!

Glendronach 15 'Revival' (46% abv)

Colour - Almost mahogany. A rich darkness that immediately reveals its sherry influence.

Nose - Rich sherry notes. Give it some time to breath, and it reveals a stunning depth. There's a light wood influence, a hint of saltiness and toffee notes. Raisins, as expected. Light spice...cinnamon. And slightly herby too. Think...cumin? Malty and slightly sulphurous as well. How do you pack so much into a 15 year old nosing? This is astounding. It develops and grows and opens up, and floors you with great complexity, depth, development, variation...I could sniff this all day.

Palate - Rich sherry notes flood the senses. Give it some time...it's a little spicy and sulphurous. Cinnamon...and a little peppery. Parsley and cumin stay around too. The spices keep the whisky fresh. That's important in a heavily sherried whisky, as they can become too thick and brooding. Rich raisins and prunes. Reminders of dark chocolate. Light wafts of orange zest, and a little charred wood.

Finish - Big fruitiness on a long finish - raisins and jam. Pretty sweet. Spices grow - same profile of spices as on the palate. Finishes on a light smokiness.

Overall - This is great. While the stated age is 15, I think the average age is much higher - closer to 20, if I were to hazard a guess. The use of old stock would partially explain why it's no longer in production, a conjecture proposed by EP which I agree with. Such a pity. Thank goodness I got to try this at least once. Great whisky that used to be at a great price.