JS has had two drams by the time MS and I join her. I eat my steak prior to any dram.
35.128 11yo d.2002 A tropical tango of taste (60.5%, SMWS Society Single Cask, 2nd Fill ex-Bourbon Barrel, 239b): nose: fudge and custard, roasted barley, overly-baked bread, then grape juice and a lot of alcohol. Mouth: tickling, with the bitterness of green plants and a sweet-and-sour touch of pomelo juice. Finish: warming, with soda bread and sourdough. Average. 6/10
72.43 10yo d.2004 Bunsen burner and burnt capacitors (59.8%, SMWS Society Single Cask, 1st Fill White Wine Hogshead, 262b): nose: very meaty, this. It smells of sherry and wine-marinated meat. Mouth: wine and wine-marinated meat. Not very subtle, nor complex. Finish: dark-chocolate liqueur pralines. The finish is slightly redeeming, yet it is not my weapon of choice. Water does not change it much. 5/10
73.69 22yo d.1992 Dark side eclipsed by sweet joys (52.9%, SMWS Society Single Cask, Refill ex-Sherry Butt, 620b): nose: wood varnish and marinated meat again -- this one is not my thing. Maybe some damp earth too. After a while, it turns to saddle and beef skin. Mouth: varnish, game casserole with too much wine. Finish: more action, at last, with notes of plant sap. It is mostly mulled wine, vermouth and sangria, however. 4/10
46.30 14yo d.2000 Flowers and chocolate for Churchill (58.6%, SMWS Society Single Cask, Refill ex-Bourbon Hogshead, 267b): nose: dairy smells (boiling milk, melting butter), the cheap seats of a car parked in the sun, hyacinth leaves. Mouth: bitter. Not pleasant. Finish: long, invading, with a mix of plant juice and lemon detergent. Not my thing. 4/10
50.63 24yo d. 1990 Boozy buccaneers! (58.3%, SMWS Society Single Cask, Refill ex-Bourbon Barrel, 126b): nose: brioche, vanilla-flavoured dough and lots of hot spices. Mouth: warm and herbaceous, almost metallic -- that will be the verbena. Finish: warm and metallic, with notes of verbena. 7/10
123.14 9yo d.2005 Playful spices buzz the mouth (57.4%, SMWS Society Single Cask, 1st Fill ex-Bourbon Barrel, 225b): nose: ethereal, with just a drop of flower sap. Mouth: discreet, with notes of flowers and orchard fruit. Finish: it becomes bitter, for a second, then lets orchard fruit emerge -- sweet apples, pears and peaches. This is probably the best 123 we have had at the Society, for the last few years. 7/10
3.206 15yo d.1997 Dark and mysterious (56.9%, SMWS Society Single Cask, Refill Sherry Butt, 445b): not sure where this one comes from -- we had 2.239, last month! Nose: gouache. crayons, all sorts of paint thinners and brushes. Farmyard action then starts taking place -- ploughed fields, manure and all. Mouth: rather gentle and balanced, though still big and drying. Lichen and moss. Finish: a cowboy in a ranch, wearing leather chaps. Lots of earth and ash, with a faint splash of raspberry jam. 7/10
7.113 24yo d.1989 'Takes you to another place' (51.7%, SMWS Society Single Cask, 2nd Fill ex-Port Barrique, 147b): this one is not part of the outturn, but we spot it on the shelf and decide to try it all the same. Turns out it is a bottling for Denmark. Nose: perfume, rosewater, orange rinds. Mouth: easygoing, pulpy orange juice. Finish: caramel at first, then waves of fruit radiate, one after the other. Good, this. 8/10
129.6 6yo d.2008 Peated candy (58.9%, SMWS Society Single Cask, 1st Fill ex-Bourbon Barrel, 243b): nose: pungent peat, hay stacks and powerful alcohol. Mouth: diced, dried pineapple, muesli-style, with loads of peat, of course. Finish: peat smoke, dried pineapple cubes and barley. Best Kilchoman in a while, this. "I like that it's not one extreme or the other, it's a marriage. It's like a Loyd Grossman sauce," says JS. 7/10
Not a particularly good day for me. It seemed like the poorest outturn in many months and I was not very available, mentally. The steaks were better cooked than last time, yet I think the Saturday formula suits me better.
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