17/03/2025 St. Padraig

Midleton d.2014 (unknown ABV, Duty Paid Samples, Double Charred Bourbon Cask): nose: slightly cork-y dunnage warehouse, a combination of musty, dusty clay floors and dried raspberry slices. That latest note expands to become fruit yoghurt, and, if the earthy impression stubbornly sticks around, it becomes so intense it is borderline gingery -- a ginger touch that lets one glimpse juicy passion fruits. As is to be expected, the more this breathes, the more those passion fruits reach the nostrils. We also find an oilcloth tablecloth, warmed by the spring sun. The second nose has candied angelica, fresh and green, which promises a soft bitterness. It moves more and more-clearly towards candied fruits and mixed peels. Perhaps it has lovage seeds, in the long run -- just a couple of them. Mouth: it is immediately fruity on the tongue, with mango, papaya and jackfruit, served on a wooden stave. Baked pineapple and baked Mirabelle plums rise and deliver, and the wood becomes a mere accessory. It is all very pot still, as cavalier66 put it last month. It has a faint metallic touch too, a clean knife blade. The second sip adds a drying, almost-mineral touch; Verdigris, then a growing sense of dust, or lichen on limestone. It is not long before lovely fruits catch up: Ugli fruit, cherimoya, pomelo and mouldy mango dusted in cinnamon powder. It ends up being a softly-drying number, after all, with lichen and green bitterness, yet the fruits keep the upper hand. Finish: what a beauty! A parade of delicate tropical fruits here too, with baked banana, cut mango, diced papaya, and pineapple juice. Only via retro-nasal olfaction does wood provide a comforting warmth. The second sip offers warm mango (perhaps the skin comes out most), papaya cubes sizzling in a copper pan green with Verdigris, and lichen grated off of limestone, and subsequently dry-roasted. But then, bergamot and kumquat take over with their foliage balancing the juicy bits with a subtle, leafy bitterness. Magnificent. 8/10 (Thanks for the sample, SW)