This week in London was marked by large-scale strikes on the public-transport network. It mostly affected the Underground, but also the DLR, and, of course, that had a knock-on effect on everything else. We therefore meet to have a few drams on that theme.
In the run-up to today, emails fly about regarding how challenging this theme is (is it?) and I say I hope we do not end up with eight Cam-buses. Fortunately for my head, no Cam-bus in sight.
JMcD arrives first, followed by OB, JS, SOB and YM.
The soundtrack: Pet Shop Boys - Discography (The Complete Singles Collection)
SOB explains that Norwegian public transport is probably better than London's. He adds that, in Norse mythology, Bifröst, also called Bilröst and often anglicized as Bifrost, is a burning bridge that reaches between Midgard (Earth) and Asgard, the realm of the gods. In other words: Bivrost is a link between two worlds, just like public transport is a link between two places. Finally, this expression is called Yggdrasil, which is the name of the tree at the centre of everything. SOB reckons the Underground map looks like a tree, with many branches at the top, and not much going on around the trunk (south of the river).
Bivrost Yggdrasil 2024 (46%, OB Limited Edition, Oloroso-Seasoned + In-House Charred Casks, 9009b, b#5208): from the Aurora distillery, in Norway. Nose: it is super herbaceous, presenting hawthorn, thyme, sage and some kind of custard to balance it a bit. Later on, it gives dried sausage, cured reindeer meat and white pepper. Mouth: unique, this has chives-topped omelette, peppery egg white and meat fat -- think of the white bits in mortadella, for example. Finish: big and odd, it continues the eggy trip. "This is a brunch dram," says JS. Quite. The egg fry-up turns browner over time, a little crispy on the edges. Yum! So very interesting! 7/10
The soundtrack: three pipers on the bridge downstairs, probably providing music for morris dancing.
OB: "The music selection is more and more eclectic!"
JS: "It better have 'mizunara' written on the bottle!"
JMcD explains that Ichiro Akuto is in charge of Chichibu distillery. Chichibu regularly release a London Edition, which is his tenuous link [sic].
Ichiro's Malt MWR Mizunara Wood Reserve (46%, Venture Whisky distributed by Japan Import System, B#127): nose: lovely fig relish and date spread. Then, we get lots of bold, chewy sweets and crystallised berries. Mouth: woody and drying, it does not want for fruits and sweets -- in fact, it is full of them. Finish: wow! Sweet, fruity, it does not have anything exuberant or extravagant (no Japanese whisky has, other than Karuizawa), but it has enticing jams and pressed currants. 8/10
The soundtrack: Katia Casio - Untitled mixtape
OB presents a Glen Gants Hill. He adds, "I guess there must be a 31 bus somewhere, and it has to be operated by Go a-Caden-head London." Boom-tsch.
Glen Grant-Glenlivet 31yo 1985/2017 (44.8%, Cadenhead Authentic Collection 175th Anniversary, Sherry Butt, 312b): a 'splosion of peaches and figs doused in Golden Syrup. Behind that are tons of pressed currants so ripe they are borderline hairy. Juicy prunes in a leather goblet. The second nose adds dark plums, very ripe too. Mouth: inky prunes, figs, pressed dates, sweaty currants. The second sip has a faint whisper of smoked meat, blood sausage or black pudding with raisins. Finish: long, comforting and sweet, though not overly so. It is a parade of currants and prunes. The second gulp adds a custard-y, cake-y note: berries cheesecake, in which currants are substituted for the berries. I suspect this one benefits form extended breathing in an open bottle, because it is even better than last time. 9/10
Incredibly, as I write down that note of berries cheesecake, JS sits down with a slice of the very same berries cheesecake that JMcD brought and I had not yet seen. Even more incredibly, the previous time we had this Glen Grant, in 2017, it came just after another batch of Ichiro's MWR, the very same sequence as today.
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| Blueberry cheesecake |
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| Custard-and-almond cake |
OB tells us that the next one is bottled by East Village Whisky Company. He adds that another word for 'village' is 'hamlet' (ahem), which makes this an East Ham(let) whisky. There is also a moon module on the label, which is not a London mode of transportation.
Speyside Region 44yo 1973/2017 (47.4%, East Village Whisky Company, Sherry Butt, 142b, b#125): nose: bergamot and a plate of moist mortar. It is sweeter and sweeter with time, piling on crystallised sugar cane. The second nose has wee-soaked pyjamas -- astonishingly, I mean that positively. Mouth: soft and juicy, it has barley syrup, ginger snaps, stem ginger and candied dried-fruit cubes (pineapple, peach), as well as candied angelica (yes, a gentle bitterness). Finish: it is not big, which suggests it has lost a bit of power (the cork is broken), but it remains delicious. Candied fruits, a puff of light pipe tobacco, balsawood smoke. Lovely dram, even if the smoke bitterness becomes a little loud. 8/10
The soundtrack: Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark - The Pacific Age
tOMoH: "Oh."
YM brought a Spring-Bank
Springbank 28yo (48.9%, OB specially selected for the Springbank Society, 2966b): nose: moss fire, gingerbread in the oven (oooh!), roasted nuts, roasted berries. The second nose adds hot, oxidised metal. Mouth: ooh! it is rather pickle-y on the tongue, with cured red onions and red-wine vinegar. Chewing releases squashed berries, dark jams, smoked elderberry and blackberries. Those berries are muddier in the second sip, and soot makes an appearance. Finish: long, rustic and comforting like a kitchen fireplace in the countryside. The second gulp feels smokier and adds a blend of grated coal and soot. It remains berry-laden and juicy, however, even if it adopts stagnant water in the long run. 8/10
SOB brought a Gold Spot for Gold-ers Green. He adds that the gold spot of the tube is the place on the departure platform or on the train that is closest to the exit at the destination station. He confesses he missed the gold spot on his way here.
Gold Spot 9yo b.2022 135th Anniversary (51.4%, Midleton Distillery Limited Edition celebrating the 135th anniversary of the Mitchell's Whiskey bonding tradition, Bourbon Barrels + Sherry Butts + Bordeaux Wine Casks + Port Pipes, L215031402): nose: it is not a complete fruit onslaught, but it is pretty bold in that department, as if ripe fruits were served in a precious-wood bowl. This has a pinch of cigarette ash too, which is more unusual. Mouth: softly drying, it is also creamy and, of course, fruity. Plums, persimmons, plantains, baked cherimoyas. The second sip is a little more drying yet, though it is now on the confectionary side of the spectrum -- sweets and candied fruit. Finish: long and blend-y, this clearly has a good does of unmalted barley in the mash. Old polished wood, wood stain... it is fairly woody alright, with plane shavings and stuff on top of a shier fruitiness. 8/10
The soundtrack: Visage - Visage
tOMoH unveils a Glenlochy by Signatory Vintage. He points out that this one did come with the tube (see picture).
SOB: "I thought you were going to say we would have been sorry to come last week, because all the stations were Glen-locked."
Glenlochy 29yo 1980/2010 (52.8%, Signatory Vintage Cask Strength Collection, Hogshead, C#2649, 265b, b#71): nose: nostril-clearing, it then emits a nice faded suede and yellow fruits. Mouth: ooft! This has fruits and smoke in a smoky bar, a bit of jam and tin lids. Finish: big, a tad briny, and full of acidic yellow fruits. My full notes are here. 9/10
JMcD, who, remember, is back from Japan, brought a Yoichi, because the company that runs the Tokyo Metro also runs the Elizabeth Line in London.
Yoichi Peaty & Salty (55%, OB distributed by Japan Import System): horse's hair, suede, sheepskin, desert dirt after a soft rain, earth patties. It has a bold spiciness to it and lots of horse shenanigans -- stables, hay bales, straw, saddles, harnesses and, well, horse's hair and horse's sweat. Manure appears in the second nose, with also a whiff of muck. Mouth: it Is pretty potent, borderline fiery, briny (JMcD). It has salted chocolate and smoked apricots eaten on a horse's back. Finish: huge, it has lots of dried ginger, earth, desert dirt, and more horse. We find smoked pasties with the second gulp. Lovely stuff, this. 8/10
JS extracts an unbroken cork from her contribution.
tOMoH [picks up the cork]: "I don't know why I'm looking. I can't compare it to a Rare Malts cork: I've never seen one intact."
The soundtrack: The Fall - 458489 A Sides
JS finally unveils her bottle: a Rare Malts Teaninich. YM immediately registers that it spells 'RMT', the name of the union who initiated the strike.
Teaninich 23yo d.1972 (64.95%, OB Rare Malts Selection, b#1323): nose: interestingly, it prolongs the suede-and-stable profile of the Yoichi, perhaps meatier: it is not just horse's hair, but horse's meat, cured and thinly sliced. Horse's hair and fringed suede jackets mingle with smoked raspberries too. Soon, we find heated metal -- think of a cannon, without the gunpowder. It becomes ester-y, after a few minutes, and, with that ABV, how could it be otherwise? JS rightly calls it ferocious. Mouth: drying as warm sand, it has more of that horse's hair goodness and a lick of fresh paint. Quickly, hot cast iron joins the dance. Keeping it in the mouth until the taste buds wake up generates a shock. Finish: hugely powerful, it is not particularly wide. It unfolds similarly to the nose and palate, with smoke, horse's hair and sun-drenched hay bales. Without surprise, it leaves the palate a little numb. In fact, it is surprising that it does not leave it completely destroyed. 8/10
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| Huh? |
It is unclear why this (and other RMS) give the ABV with two decimals and why the bottle label states 75cl and not 750ml (as American imports do -- the box does, yet the American version has no box). It does not sport the 'B297' that would indicate a South-African bottling (also 75cl), and has a blank space where market information would normally be written. Just which market was this bottled for?
JS: "The mystery, like the cork, remains intact."
JMcD is made to drink out of the 1920s blender's glass (aka the dickhead glass).
JS: "Hence the name. One looks like a dickhead when using one."
OB: "I bet it makes you want to look down on us, though."
JMcD: "I do feel superior indeed."
He passes it around for comparison with a regular glass.
YM [sarcastically]: "Maybe with an Octomore…"
JS: "But then you'd be dead on the floor with a dickhead glass on you."
YM brought an SMWS bottling called 'Entropy meridian', which, he says, describes the chaos caused by this week's tube strikes.
53.318 11yo 2008/2020 Entropy meridian (57%, SMWS Society Cask, Refill ex-Bourbon Hogshead, 232b): nose: hot sands wet with diesel, mud patties, ashes (YM). YM finds it not as punchy as most Caol Ilas, yet it packs a punch alright, even after the previous brute. We have more and more smoked cockles, over time. Mouth: oh! Here, we find more-usual Caol Ila notes; whelk, salt water, fishing nets. It gets saltier and sandier with subsequent sips. A tank of diesel augmented with a drop of ink, and a fishing net basking in it. Finish: it has a huge earthiness of smoked mud patties. Later on, we have sugar cubes and caster sugar sprinkled on oysters. 8/10
YM: "It's a chaotic dram, not very much like their usual 11yo."
tOMoH: "Not something you hear in many circles."
YM: "..."
tOMoH: "Give [YM] the dickhead glass [so he can feel superior]!"
OB: "I would like to say the Glenlochy, but tOMoH will piss himself if I say that."
tOMoH: "Why do you say it in the future tense?"
Excellent tasting, lots of silly nonsense, good food, good drams.
