27/04/2025 The Whisky Fair (Day 2 -- Part 2)

Across the hall we go, to TM's stand. JS pours her Glenlivet 26yo 1968/1995 (52.1%, Signatory Vintage selected by, bottled for and imported by Whyte & Whyte for The Spirits Library, Barrel, 95/137)

TM: "Tasty!"

Classic TM. Cracks me up.

Ichiro's Malt & Grain 20th Anniversary (48%, Venture Whisky distributed by Japan Import System, B#8)

Nose: custard, shortbread, pineapple.
Mouth: stroopwafel, pouring honey, cured-peach juice. It is also fairly hot.
Finish: long, bright, it dies in a puff of dried pineapple slices.
Comment: very good. 8/10

Oishii Wisukii 43yo 1980/2024 (46.9%, The Highlander Inn)

Nose: oily nuts and roasted bananas.
Mouth: oily and fruity, we have fruit jellies, a little ground almond shells.
Finish: long and bold, it is at once fruity and drying.
Comment: yup, another good one. 8/10

Glen Garioch 22yo 2003/2025 (57.8%, Highlander Inn Maggie's Collection bottled for 9th Anniversary of The Whisky List, C#165, 219b)

Nose: this bursts with pineapple and dried mango.
Mouth: bright and yellow, grapefruit segments and the bitter dryness of its peels.
Finish: this is terribly fruity, mostly grapefruit and pineapple, with a sprinkle of ginger powder.
Comment: excellent. 8/10

Chichibu 2016/2023 (63%, Highlander Inn, Mizunara Heads Hogshead, C#5824, 191b, b#130)

Nose: creamy, custard-y, it has confectionary sugar.
Mouth: apricot through and through, but also Mirabelle plums.
Finish: what!? It is a fruit explosion, with grapefruit, pineapple, Mirabelle plum and apricot.
Comment: just how good is this? 9/10

Auchentoshan 26yo 1997/2023 (49.2%, Highlander Inn, C#101747, 187b, b#45)

Nose: fresh, fruity, it has minty custard and squashed peach.
Mouth: fruity and a tad earthy.
Finish: delicate, fruity.
Comment: terrible notes. I love this. 8/10

TM: "I am not sexist, but the flavours appeal to ladies."
tOMoH: "TM got a lot of action since he bottled this."

On my way to "say goodbye" to EG, I bump into pat gva. Like last year, it is a chance encounter late in the day.

Glen Grant-Glenlivet 23yo 1964/1988 (46%, Cadenhead)

Nose: fuckin' ay! pat gva done it again. Lychee, fresh peach slices, milk chocolate and coffee beans, then mocha chocolate.
Mouth: phwoar! Milk chocolate filled with a lychee paste. This is incredibly balanced too.
Finish: lychee shavings (!) stuffed into a slice of tiramisù.
Comment: a work of art. 10/10 (Thanks for the dram, pat gva)

Chichibu 2012/2025 (65%, Venture Whisky Ichiro's Malt cask sample for Germany distributed by Japan Import System, 1st Fill ex-Bourbon American Oak Barrel, C#2264)

Nose: grapefruit yoghurt with a dollop of butterscotch.
Mouth: a tad metallic, it is also powerful.
Finish: floral (meaning a smidge bitter), hot, marked by heated metal, that yoghurt, and baked grapefruit segments.
Comment: this is amazing. It also drinks very well at that monstrous ABV. 9/10

There is one more person I have not yet spent time with: OC. Upon seeing me, he tells his interlocutor he now wants to talk to me instead. The bloke takes it in good spirits, turns around and greets me, after OC tells him he has known me for twenty years, long before the other became an influencer -- or discovered whisky, probably. Ha! Ha!

Tormore 10yo (48%, OB Blueprint Cask Program Official Pre-Release, Bourbon Barrels, 1500b)

Nose: lemon-y, custard-y, and a little minty.
Mouth: it feels very mellow (but, of course, we have been ingesting cask-strength whisky for a long while, now), milky, with just a smidge of vanilla.
Finish: more vanilla-ed custard, pandoro, βανίλια.
Comment: perfect sipper. 7/10 (Thanks for the dram, OC)

Final sprint. A mad dash to The Whisky Jury to try their rums. We promised them to, yesterday.

TDL 21yo 2002/2024 (55.7%, The Whisky Jury The Many Faces Of Rum bottled for The Antelope Macau, Refill Barrel, C#10, 238b, b#236)

Nose: fruity glue.
Mouth: strong, glue-y and ridiculously fruity, without reaching 1964 Bowmore territory.
Finish: sweet, sugary, it peddles Lyle's Golden Syrup and honey-glazed banana slices in a plastic tub.
Comment: pretty good. 7/10

The Ester Hunter Catch 2 (52%, The Whisky Jury)

Nose: metal glue.
Mouth: grapefruit juice poured on earth. Chewing releases drying glue and plastic.
Finish: roasted pineapple starting to caramelise, melded plastic pipes.
Comment: another good one. 7/10

It is over. Exhibitors are packing up, and crowds are pouring out of the venue. There is no security service to round us up and push us out, but it is clear there is little left to do indoors.

MD somehow finds us: we are dining together, along with the Swissky Mafia bosses and their henchmen. One of them harvested all the bottles of Daftmill for the Nectar that were available. JS is subjected to fomo, who did not even know there was a Daftmill on offer, this weekend. The story has a happy ending, mind: the owner will let her have one bottle for what he paid for it, provided we help him carry his bottles to his car. It being Limburg, nothing is ever far away. Soon, his bottles are in his boot.

It is another brief walk before we reach the Gasthof Schwarzer Adler, where we meet the rest of the gang.

Tomatin 34yo 1976/2011 (51.2%, Liquid Sun, Sherry Butt, 272b)

Comment: phwoar! 9/10 (Thanks for the dram, MD)

Spargelcreme-Suppe

My Schwarze Tortelloni mit Lachsfüllung in Hummerbutter und frischem Parmesan

JS's Lachs-Filet Spargel dazu Sauce Hollandaise und Salzkartoffeln

CD: "Truffle on my pasta and pork belly..."
PG: "Is that a euphemism?"
CD: "I'm truffling high!"

Caperdonich 32yo 1966/1998 (53.1%, Signatory Vintage selected by Velier, Dark Sherry Hogshead, C#134, 250b)

Comment: jammy, yet more peppery than expected. 9/10 (Thanks for the dram, MD -- I think?)

PG: "Have you seen my Blair Arsehole?"

PG [about EG's shindig in Bologna]: "On the Saturday, if you know Italy and EG, it was okay. Almost on time."

From the restaurant, we head to Villa Konthor. I am whiskied out, but it seems daft to come here and not go to the Villa. Plus, it is a last chance to say goodbye to all our friends who are bound to be there. Case in point, we bump into KCF at last, whom I pour JS's Glenlivet (and nearly get thrown out for doing so inside the pub, the idiot that I am).

I have:

Loch Lomond Single Grain (46%, OB, b, ca. 2025)

Comment: it is delicious, and just what I need tonight: a light, no-frill dram that is not intellectual in the slightest. 7/10

Outside, on our way out, PG ambushes us. Indeed, he has just the perfect thing to bookend the weekender:

Littlemill 33yo d.1990 (53.9%, Brave New Spirits bottled exclusively for Galli Drams, C#65051A)
9/10 (Thanks for the dram, PG)

There. We survived the second day of the second year. What a whirlwind!

27/04/2025 The Whisky Fair (Day 2 -- Part 1)

A bad night's sleep it was! tOMoH got up every hour or so to empty the tank, and did so struggling to contain screams caused by kidney pain. Only later today will we establish that the acidity of asparagus coupled with the acidity of sour beer is a lot for one's kidneys. Whisky, on the other hand, is totally safe. I should add that tOMoH is not a doctor.

Today, we have breakfast at Café Kolorit, as we did last year. JS and I manage to nab the only table that is not reserved -- woo! We are outside, the weather is clement, things are looking good. Sadly, they bring something full of cold cuts that I did not order, and it takes an excruciating amount of time before we can pay and depart. The beverages (orange juice and grapefruit juice) are fantastic, on the other hand.

My Genieβer Frühstück

JS's Eggs Benedict

Artisanal bread

In the queue to the venue, we spot CD; he is watching from the balcony and is waving at us. JS is worried we will not be on time to meet AH and VW, but I am more relaxed. Where would they go? In any case, we are on time after all.

Planters Ozark Highlands (59.75%, OB Rickhouse Reserve, b. ca. 2025)

Nose: incredibly mild and cake-y, with custard and butterscotch, as well as toffee.
Mouth: drying and extractive, it is intense as Listerine -- cinnamon-infused Listerine.
Finish: mint cream, Bourbon cream, then numbing ginger and cinnamon.
Comment: a bit of a shocker with which to start the day. From the Nobleton distillery in Missouri -- a new one to me. 8/10 (Thanks for the dram, AH)

Black & White (unknown ABV, James Buchanan, b. ca. 1950s)

Nose: dusty, vinegar-y old blend. It smells beautiful.
Mouth: super jammy and mellow, it overflows with marmalade and peach jelly. That is topped with a pinch of gunpowder.
Finish: a touch of soot, a lot of jam.
Comment: good old blend. The spring cap is quite a conversation-starter to boot. 8/10 (Thanks for the dram, rhumauction.com)

Sadly, I am too slow to get to try this White Horse (unknown ABV, White Horse Distillers imported by WEMPA Handels, Nº 9604399). I do not insist either. Enough freeloading as it is. :-)

On the other side of the room, we meet our new friend from last night.

Domaine Pouy d.1998 (55.9%, L'Encantada L'Esprit Armagnac, C#708, B#98POUY7801, 605b, b#279)

Nose: fragrant, ethereal and ripe with jasmine.
Mouth: nice and fruity, though the mouthfeel becomes desiccating, with ashes and quarry dust.
Finish: fruity to the max, it also has drying Sauvignon blanc, Grenache, and ground lychee stone. It ends a "bit" bitter (read: very).
Comment: good. Will not turn me into a brandy head, mind. 8/10 (Thanks for the dram, armagnac.de)

Domaine Séailles 1979/2022 (49.5%, La Petite Gascogne for armagnac.de, C#81)

Nose: wood and cardboard. It smells alright, but it struggles after the previous.
Mouth + Finish: grapes, prunes, soaked raisins.
Comment: competent. I fear the sequence was wrong, however. 6/10 (Thanks for the dram, armagnac.de)

Time to climb the stairs to meet those we neglected yesterday, starting with EG, who told his wife yesterday that we did not come to the festival at all, owing to not seeing us the whole day. Woops.

Milton-Duff 13yo (43º G.L., OB)

Nose: musky, dusty, old. That dissipates to leave a light nose, fragrant like a forest undergrowth.
Mouth: jammy, sweet, it has marmalade and old copper coins. It is drying in the long run.
Finish: beautifully jammy, still retaining a good dose of copper, brass or tin.
Comment: a pleasant old dusty. 8/10 (Thanks for the dram, EG)

EG: "Have you tried this one?"
JS: "No."
EG: "Try it!"
JS: "What? You want me to pour it myself?"
EG: "No charge, no service!"

Tobermory 8yo d.1972 (40%, Gordon & MacPhail Connoisseurs Choice)

Nose: phwoar! More ashy fruits, this time, with a healthy pinch of soot.
Mouth: mellow, jammy, lovely.
Finish: yup, it has the sooty-marmalade profile one may expect from something that has spent so long in glass.
Comment: excellent. 8/10 (Thanks for the dram, EG)

Ben Nevis 1970/1988 (46%, Brae Dean Int. for Moon Import The Sea, Sherry Butt, C#2913, 360b, b#267)

Nose: warehouse dust, clay floor and tennis-court clay, damp after a drizzle, dark pipe tobacco. Meow.
Mouth: a trio of wood, orange and soot. It is terribly complex, and seems well powerful for 46%, with ginger powder and dried citrus zest.
Finish: long, it has cigar tobacco, cedar-wood sheets and dried orange peels.
Comment: extraordinary. 9/10 (Thanks for the dram, EG)

Someone bumps into us.

bumper: "Scusi, scusi."
tOMoH + JS: "Tsk! Oh! It is PG."
PG: "Don't spill [your whisky] on [tOMoH's] notebook."

We follow PG to his stand, where we catch CD.

Highland Park 18yo 2006/2024 (59.2%, C.Dully Selection, Hogshead, C#3571, 232b)

Nose: boasting a lot of very-dry smoke at first, it gains burnt sugar and honey with a lot of breathing, as well as cured leather.
Mouth: violet boiled sweets, torched and burnt. This is rather fierce, with burning lavender too, and it becomes drying in the long run.
Finish: it now is like licking dusty gravel in a quarry on fire (I know). Long, fiery, pushing incandescent heather bushes.
Comment: just okay for my taste. 7/10 (Thanks for the dram, CD)

Savoureur joins us. We try the next one blind, and, after a few attempts, I even manage to recognise it, owing to the fact I have tried it before.

Rosebank 15yo (50%, The Distillers Agency Ltd imported by Zenith, Ceramic decanter, b.1980s) 9/10 (Thanks for the dram, Savoureur)

Glen Keith 30yo 1994/2024 Nr.9 (53%, Sansibar Jens Drewitz' Personal Choice, Bourbon Hogshead, 110b)

Nose: super fruity, it offers a blend of apricots and peaches.
Mouth: I find it quite spritely too, akin to a fizzy drink made of kumquat and apricot.
Finish: long, jammy, fruity, still peddling peaches, apricots and kumquats.
Comment: who needs extreme complexity when the result is this good? 9/10 (Thanks for the sip, Savoureur)

Cool label too

Springbank 21yo (46%, OB signed by J Archibald Mitchell, b. ca 1990)

Comment: the tiny quantity I manage to put on my tongue does not allow for notes, but it is excellent. Same level as the Hedley G Wright edition we had in 2016. 9/10 (Thanks for the sip, Savoureur)

Pineau des Charentes Jean-Luc Pasquet 40yo Assemblages 75-80 (16%, OB for C.Dully, b. ca. 2025)

Nose: thick as OXO broth, filled to bursting with sweet prunes.
Mouth: fresh, overflowing with grapes, soaked sultanas and pressed prunes. Mind you, it is sweet, not sickly, chewy, not cloying.
Finish: concentrated prunes (JS). It is an explosion of rehydrated raisins and sultanas.
Comment: apparently, I like Pineau des Charentes, now. Although, this is head and shoulders above the ones we had in March. And, of course, it has little in common with the stuff one can find in supermarkets. 8/10 (Thanks for the dram, CD)

We will try this ultra-rarity another time

I spot AMcD from Clydeside. He does not recognise me, but it only take a couple of words for the penny to drop.

"Have you heard of Clydeside?"

Clydeside 2018/2025 (55%, OB for Vibrant Stills, Fresh Bourbon Barrel + Tawny Port Cask Finish, C#006F)

Nose: even blind, it is relatively easy to tell it is but finished in a Port cask: it has macerated grape skins alright, but also the fruits one might expect from a Bourbon cask.
Mouth: wine-y and drying, here. We find stem ginger  and peach stone, which betrays a certain bitterness, surely.
Finish: long, big, it is reminiscent of cinnamon buns.
Comment: good, but it confirms wine casks are not something I should systematically chase. 7/10

Clydeside 2018/2025 (58%, OB for Vibrant Stills, Fresh Bourbon Barrel, C#999)

Nose: vanilla custard aplenty.
Mouth: mellow, it has a citric edge, custard with a drop of lemon juice.
Finish: phwoar! Custard-y, lemon-y, it also offers fudge, bananas and pineapple.
Comment: love this. Well done, DH! 8/10

AH and VW join us. VW is enjoying a Millburn 25yo 1975/2001 (61.9%, OB Rare Malts Selection), I think for the second time this weekend. It is a bottling he knows well, and he wants to enjoy it while he can.

Oh! ST!
tOMoH: "Is your brother here? I have not seen him."
ST: "He should be."
tOMoH: "He should be?"

ST tells us how PT had an administrative mishap and could not come into the EU for this festival. He is in Scotland, probably fuming.

Dornoch 4yo 2018/2022 (55.91%, OB for The Barrel Baron, First Fill Bourbon Octave, C#90, 82b, b#74)

Nose: dry pineapple slices and a lot of wax. It also has pandoro, confectionary sugar and sweet dust.
Mouth: oh! Funky and seemingly old, it prolongs the waxy touch, and adds brass, shoe polish and custard.
Finish: big, brass-y, with a generous dollop of brass polish.
Comment: my favourite Dornoch to-date. 8/10 (Thanks for the dram, ST)

I spot something going on from the corner of my eye. It looks as though someone is negotiating the remainder of a bottle of EG's that I had my eye on.

Glenugie 20yo d.1968 (54.8%, Sestante, Sherry Wood)

Nose: phwoar! The jam in this nose! It is pure tangerine jam. I wish I had more of it and more time to spend with it, but even then: phwoar!
Mouth: incredibly balanced (remember: this is the cask-strength edition), it sprinkles a pinch of grated chalk on tangerine marmalade.
Finish: this leaves me speechless. I suppose we see the confirmation of the nose and the palate, with tangerine jam and chalky soot, but really, this is beyond words.
Comment: dram of the festival for me. I am very happy to reveal that the guy who tried to negotiate the rest of the bottle on the cheap did not get it. In fact, it went to elskling, in the end -- a good home if one can be found. 11/10 (Thanks for the dram, EG)

MW spots me.

MW: "tOMoH, do you like Port Ellen?"
tOMoH: "Errr… Sure?"
MW: "Here. The bottle is almost empty, this will make some room."

Port Ellen 15yo 1980/1996 (63.9%, Gordon & MacPhail Cask Strength imported by Giuseppe Meregalli, Oak Casks, C#5090 + 5101-5104)

Nose: a very-petrolic number, it has tarry sands, diesel and seashells after a black tide.
Mouth: petrol again, drying as a sanding machine, and fairly salty. This evokes cockles full of tarry sands.
Finish: huge, dry, earthy, petrolic, phwoar. Mind you, it is also fierce and desiccating, so I can see it not being as well received by all all the time.
Comment: excellent. 9/10 (Thanks for the dram, MW)

Teaninich 40yo 1973/2013 (42%, The Whisky Agency, Refill Sherry Hogshead, 213b)

Nose: very floral, it has honeysuckle, daffodils and ripe apricots.
Mouth: fresh, overflowing with spring flowers, lily-of-the-valley and suchlike, daffodil and narcissus.
Finish: spicy, jammy, we find peach jelly and the filling of apricot turnovers.
Comment: amazing. How can this shine so bright after the Port Ellen powerhouse? Who knows? Who cares? 10/10

The Westfalian 2012 11yo 2013/2024 Cask Experiment Islay (63.5%, Unique Liquids, ex-Laphroaig Bourbon Barrel, C#TW34, 210b, b#159)

Nose: extremely corn-like, with corn syrup, fructose, boiled corn and some kind of sweets.
Mouth: at once rough and sweet. It coats the taste buds in corn syrup, which immediately starts sucking all moisture out of the mouth.
Finish: funny, unusual, sweet and very much corn-orientated.
Comment: this comes recommended by the Cask Trade team. It is not bad, but I am less enthused. 6/10 (Thanks for the sip, SA)

Continue reading here.

26/04/2025 The Whisky Fair (Day 1 -- Part 3)

Back in from my errand, I rejoin my fellow festival-goers.

Auchentoshan 24yo 1999/2024 (52.1%, The Whisky Agency, Barrel)

Nose: light, minty and custard-y to a point, it has shortbread.
Mouth: bright, it offers dried pineapple slices. Chewing pushes cardboard forward, and Merbromin.
Finish: long, peachy and inky, with the ink taking the upper hand, after a while. We also have blackberry cough drops at the death.
Comment: a good 'toshan. 7/10

Look! It is our friends from Cask Trade.

Highland Park 25yo 1999/2024 "Old Orkney" (50.3%, Cask Trade, Refill Hogshead until 2018 + 1st Fill Butt)

Nose: a soft smoke and leather pouches. Is it bad that I list HP's trademark aromas? Ah, well.
Mouth: a tad sharp, drying and bitter, this is clearly marked by the wood. That, and a whole burning bush of heather.
Finish: yeah, sharp and a little too dry for me.  It has nice added notes of lavender boiled sweets, but the bitterness is less pleasant.
Comment: decent, not my favourite. 6/10 (Thanks for the dram, HT)

Glenturret 29yo 1987/2017 (48.4%, Cask Trade, 1st Fill Bourbon Barrel)

Nose: roasted apples followed by sugared almonds. Mint, chocolate, almonds.
Mouth: initially mellow, it is teeming with apples so roasted they are melting.
Finish: more roasted apples, a lick of the knife that cut them open, and heated quince jelly.
Comment: full of charm. 7/10 (Thanks for the dram, HT)

Back to The Agency.

Tullibardine 30yo 1993/2023 (47.6%, The Whisky Agency 15th Anniversary, Rum Barrel, 197b)

Nose: orchard fruits, probably baked pears and Golden Delicious apples.
Mouth: tight and acidic, it has crisp apple juice augmented with a dash of lemon juice.
Finish: it is custard-y, here, with added pineapple and cut apricots.
Comment: what an underrated distillery Tullibardine often proves to be! 8/10

Bowmore 26yo 1997/2023 (51.1%, The Whisky Agency The Perfect Dram, Barrel, 124b)

Nose: it is a lot peatier than expected, with a copious dose of tincture of iodine too.
Mouth: ashy, earthy and typically fruity, it has orchard fruits that have fallen into the mud and subsequently been heated.
Finish: phwoar! Earth, baked fruit, sea water and a drop of diesel.
Comment: Bowmore, innit. We are told this was part of a parcel that was earmarked for Macau, unpaid for a couple of years, then the client decided they did not want it after all. 8/10

Across the hall to KB, GB and BvG.

Clynelish 33yo 1973/2006 (54.3%, The Prestonfield Whisky Co. Prestonfield Highland, ex-Sherry Oak Cask, C#8912, 405b, b#32, 6/0637): JS chooses this as a surprise dram. A what a great surprise too! I make no note, since we had it at length a while ago. Still an essential 'lish. 9/10

Tamdhu 28yo (86º Proof, George Strachan, b.1970s)

Nose: old bottle effect screams at me. It has some metal and very-concentrated marmalade.
Mouth: big and metallic, lightly bitter but welcoming, full of hot tin lids.
Finish: long and full of OBE again; tin lids, brass buttons. We also find bread.
Comment: excellent. Glad to finally try this. 8/10

JS offers her Glenlivet 26yo 1968/1995 (52.1%, Signatory Vintage selected by, bottled for and imported by Whyte & Whyte for The Spirits Library, Barrel, 95/137) to BvG who turns around, extends his arm, and pulls this, which we had spotted from the corner of our eye.

Caol Ila 17yo d.1974 (43%, Signatory Vintage selected by and bottled for Whyte & Whyte for the Spirits Library imported by S & M Wine & Liquor, Oak Cask, 94/619)

Nose: earthy beach sand, a hint of kippers, and lemon. Archetypal Caol Ila.
Mouth: full, smoky, yet it is somewhat jammy too.
Finish: long, jammy, it has a touch of bitterness. Perhaps steamed asparagus? It may read horrible, but it tastes excellent.
Comment: killer. The bottle code suggests a 1994 bottling, which contradicts the age statement. Bah. 9/10 (Thanks for the dram, BvG)

Several people have directed us to Whisky Jury, over the course of the day. Time to pay them a visit.

Linkwood 33yo 1988/2021 (47.5%, The Whisky Jury, Refill Hogshead, C#2334, 176b)

Nose: blushing starfruit, dried papaya cubes and dried pineapple slices.
Mouth: effin'eck! This is really good. Bright, acidic, a touch citrus-y.
Finish: long, acidic, fruity, augmented with wood spices. 
Comment: love it. 8/10

"This whisky is a hoot!"

Ben Nevis 27yo 1996/2023 (48.8%, The Whisky Jury, Refill Bourbon Hogshead, C#912, 211b, b#145)

Nose: wood and lychee. It is fruitier with each passing second, full of guava, persimmon, and peach.
Mouth: fruity, acidic, here comes carambola, very crisp, very light. The following sips are even more pleasing, acidic, pumping carambola straight into the brain.
Finish: long, brisk, overflowing with crisp orchard fruits.
Comment: amazeboulanger. 8/10

A pour of JS's Glenlivet unlocks access to an under-the-counter bottle.

Bunnahabhain 35yo 1973/2011 (49.4%, La Maison du Whisky Artist, B#013, Sherry Butt, C#12153, 426b)

Nose: it has an unmistakeable wine-y dirtiness, as well as squashed berries and rich soil.
Mouth: rich, earthy, dripping with red-onion juice, and softly drying in the long run. Perhaps we find mushrooms too.
Finish: big and punchy, even now, minutes before the last pour.
Comment: less my thing, I must say. The dates and age make little sense too. 7/10

Oh! Port Ardbeg! A few words and a promise to meet up tomorrow. We never will. Go find someone in a festival like this without a clear meeting point and time! Ha! Ha!

Oh! GN! What is this? Well, go on, then.

Aultmore 12yo (70º Proof, OB, SC295)

Nose: old bottle effect again, with the usual marmalade and tin lids, this time sprinkled with a pinch of soot.
Mouth: cool, fresh, enhanced with squashed raspberries.
Finish: light, jammy, a little sooty.
Comment: very enjoyable. 8/10

We somehow find NH, or he finds us, strong with the knowledge we hold his beers hostage. JS, he and I head to Gasthaus Burgkeller for dinner. To put it bluntly, we crash the rhumauction.com dinner. They appear to welcome us as if they had been waiting for us. The food seems more refined than last year, and I like it even more.

Spargelsuppe (tis the season)

Bunter Spargelsalat mit Himbeerdressing (tis the season)

Kartoffel-Bärlauchstrudel mit Gorgonzolasauce

Sitting across me are an exhibitor from a stand that specialises in Armagnac and a pair of Americans (AH and VW). It all makes for interesting conversation (we do not talk about politics).

All are too tired (and/or drunk) to prolong the festivities. We promise to meet tomorrow, and finally go our separate ways. It is just NH, JS and me, then. I quickly compute how much of each beer each of us will have to ingest (per person -- if you know, you know) and worry a little. No need: NH, helped by wireless technology, is already talking to his former colleagues. I hear: "sour beers," and "we are coming." Two minutes later, JKr and Ar are with us. Suddenly, we are down to 75cl each (per person), which is more manageable.

"Can I find this on Untappd?"

Mûre de Rullquin (6%, Brasserie Artisanale de Rulles)

Thrills Barrel Aged Wild Ale b.2022 (5.8%, OB)

Fruits of Labour b.2023 (6.1%, OB in collaboration with and exclusively for Catawiki, B#1)

Burning Sky Through the Fields (5.7%, OB)

Cantillon Sang Bleu b.2024 (6%, OB)

Chilling. Dutching.

The rest of the evening (night) is full of silly nonsense, faked Swiss-Belgo-Dutch rivalry and pretend-nationalism. We have a lot of self-deprecating fun. Yet nothing tops the moment JKr breaks into the rap of Ice Ice Baby, somehow keeping a straight face. Classic.

I cannot believe that the Dutchmen, once we finish the beers, plan to carry on at Villa Konthor. I know better than to follow them. A bad night's sleep awaits. :-)