The first I ever bought - Kavalan Single Malt

The Kavalan Single Malt was the first whisky I ever bought. It was purchased from the Taoyuan International Airport in Taiwan, when I was there for a holiday about a year ago. The sales assistant was trying to persuade me to buy the Sherry Oak instead. On hindsight, I should have got that. But, as it was my first ever purchase, I decided to go for the more basic option. This Single Malt came in a 1 litre bottle, and cost about $100 SGD, after converting from Taiwan dollars. Not too bad, fairly value for money. It's available in Changi Airport for slightly over a hundred, I think.

Kavalan is a relatively new distillery, but it has churned out many heavyweights already. Most prominent are the Solist range of single cask malts. The Solist Vinho Barrique was awarded the best single malt by the World Whisky Awards a year back, while the Solist Sherry casks have regularly struck gold in the Malt Maniacs awards. This single malt whisky is their basic staple, and is NAS.

Colour - Gold. Colouring has been added, and it can be tasted in the finish. Still, a beautiful colour

Nose - A little alcoholic, probably due to a young composition. Green fruits mostly. I got notes of green papayas, and some coconut shavings. Green bananas and green mangoes too.

Palate - Largely consistent with the nose. When chilled (I stuck the entire bottle in the fridge because I found it nicer when chilled), this is a fairly relaxing whisky. It's simple and fruity enough to just sip and calm down after a long day. Green fruits were the main tastes that I got, with a little bit of vanilla. Just a little bit.

Finish - This is where the green fruits and the caramel colouring come together to leave a slight drying feeling that Hokkiens call "siap". It's a bit like tea tannins. Not just drying, but makes your throat clam up a little. But this isn't very pronounced, just a little bit. Not too bad, on the whole. The finish is simple, straightforward on green fruit, a bit of drying colouring/tannin, and just a bit of oak.

Overall - This one showcases the basic spirit of the Kavalan - green fruits, without becoming too light. I've not seen an aged expression from Kavalan yet, so that's something to look forward to. This young, fruity whisky appears to be a good canvas for the various single casks that Kavalan has been producing. Perhaps I will get to try one of the Kavalan blends some day.

Sale at La Maison du Whisky (Singapore)

There was a good sale at La Maison this weekend, so I popped by the shop twice: first time with PY, and second time with CO, and a few other friends. CO's husband was thoroughly bored though. But the rest of us all had fun.

Bottles bought:

Teeling Single Malt
Teeling Single Grain
Great King Street Glasgow Blend
Gordon and Macphail Connoisseur's Choice Caol Ila (2001)
Gordon and Macphail Connoisseur's Choice Ledaig (1999)
Amorik Single Malt
Douglas Laing Provenance Auchentoshan 12
A single grain whisky from England that I forgot the name of
Kilchoman Sanaig
Woodford Reserve Kentucky Straight Bourbon

So, that's 10 bottles bought by 6 people. Total cost of the 10 bottles, bought over 2 days, worked out to just over SGD$700. This is a great sale.

Of the 10, I bought the Great King Street and the Ledaig, so the reviews will be up when I get around to opening them.

The sale ends tonight at 1030pm, if you're reading this and discover that there's time yet.

Lagavulin 16

Picture from Master of Malt

The Lagavulin 16 was, I think, the first Islay's I've ever tasted. It came as part of a tasting flight of Islay's at the Auld Alliance. Other whiskies in the flight included Bowmore 12, Caol Ila 12, Ardbeg 10, and Laphroaig 10. Of the 5, the Lagavulin 16 was my favourite.

One of the amazing things about the Lagavulin is that the 16 year expression is actually its standard release. The 12 is limited edition, as is the 8 that was recently released as part of an anniversary celebration. Not many distilleries have a 16 year old standard release.

I think it was the Lagavulin 16 that got JP hooked on peat and Islay's malt. It was also one of the first few bottles that I ever bought for myself (I think the first ever was...the Kavalan Single Malt, then the Taketsuru 12, then this one. The order gets a little hazy after that).




Colour: Dark gold, bordering on amber.

Nose: My first impression of this was a very meaty nose. It smelt like a barbecue, with lots of cooking and slightly charred meat upfront.  The barbecue makes way to unveil the usual Islay's flavours. Peat is very present without dominating everything else. There's a nice saltiness in the nose too. Then, something fruity. Oranges? Orange/Lemon zest? More citrusy than sweet. Some nuts as well, but I     don't think I can pin it down.

Palate: This is sooo good. Basically, the Lagavulin Distiller's Edition (previously tasted), minus the additional wine/sherry influence. Peaty, but more charcoal than ash. Rather smoky too. Then, meaty and savoury, with a dash of salt. Not really spicy. Just a little bit of...pepper? Chilli? Or saffron? This one brings out some citrus fruits if you let it hang around. A very well-rounded whisky.

Finish: Smoke, peat, a bit of vanilla from the wood, and smooth. A little bit of zest, some leftover savouriness. The finish lasts quite a bit, and dries the back of the throat a little. But on the whole, this is smooth.

Overall: Good stuff. Probably my favourite affordable Islay. This one is obtainable from Duty Free at about $83, and at some shops for about $120. Really good value for money.