29/01/2022 Burns Night 2022 -- Man to Man (Part 1)

At last, we are back in Huy for the traditional Burns Night celebration. The Plague is still on, even if restrictions are mostly manageable, now. Regardless, Red71 calls off, as he does not want to risk giving his missus something he might pick up tonight (considering adc is still recovering from COVID-19, it is not that wacky an idea), kruuk2 and PSc are travelling soon and need a clean bill of health, so they are not coming, and sonicvince and his missus have enough school-age children to guarantee an endless supply of COVID-19 at home (sonicvince has it now).

The idea for this theme came after watching, in no particular order, Cobra, Hokuto no Ken / Fist of the North Star, Bloodsport. The 1980s macho film had its own, virile often hair-metal soundtrack. JS and I thought it would be a lot of fun to have a tasting, in which we would have only bottles that sport men on their labels (or women -- it is 2022, after all). That was meant to happen in 2021. The Plague stopped that, and we recycled the theme for the London crew. Now that we can travel again (with acceptable caveats, that is), let us do it in Belgium.

With lots of whisky!

The suspects: adc, ruckus, Psycho, dom666, Gaija, JS, Bishlouk, STL, me.

This year saw pressure to start earlier than previous years; guests start arriving at 17:05 or so. By 18:30 or thereabout, kitchen preparation are advanced enough and we have enough people to start. Also, we are thirsty.

I improvise a very short speech. It is our first get-together in fifteen months, and I want to share how excited I am that a decent number made it. More importantly, I want everyone to be there when I introduce...

This.
Of course, the cork breaks

As expected, the welcome is incredulous at first, then raucous. The decanter is so kitsch it hurts. It also makes no sense unless one knows the legend of Irish Mist: take a seat, I will give you a summary.

Irish Mist is a traditional Irish heather-wine recipe, that is to say herbs macerated in alcohol.

As a result of the Williamite War of the late XVIIth century, many Irish Jacobites fled to France where they formed the country's Irish Brigade; others were arrested and sent to serve in the Austrian--Ottoman War, as part of Austria's own Irish Brigade. Allegedly, those Irishmen (nicknamed the Wild Geese) took the recipe with them.

Ireland then embarrassingly forgot how to make Irish Mist. They tried, but could not replicate it. Until, after the Second World War, a liqueurist from Continental Europe (possibly Germany), but of Irish ancestry, came back to the Gaelic Heimat and taught the locals how to make their own liqueur again.

Because one should not let historical accuracy get in the way of a nice story, and because, let us be honest, establishing a precise timeline of events stretching over three hundred years is difficult at best, let us believe the official claim that the liqueurist in question was, in fact, a descendant of a Wild Goose who served in the Austrian army's Irish Brigade. This ceramic figurine-decanter is that very soldier.

A lot of fun to pour, that is

Bishlouk and STL arrive as we try it. Clearly, they do not know the difference between 17:00 and 7:00pm. Ah well, they are here in the end.

The full line-up

Irish Mist (65° Proof, The Irish Mist Liqueur Co. imported by Heublein Inc., b.1970s) (tOMoH): nose: a bit of metal, verbena, sage, and a sweet aspect. The second nose seems dustier, with lots of hay (STL). Mouth: honey and sweetness galore. This is sweet, but actually very pleasant. I cannot say how much I could drink of it before finding it sickly, mind. Finish: sweet, pleasant, milky, creamy. The finish is long and sweet, close to Bailey's. 7/10

The soundtrack: noizaddict - Man to Man (not online yet)

Split-pea velouté (with crispy coppa -- not in the picture)

Who are these strange people?

St Magdalene 1980/1995 (40%, Gordon & MacPhail Centenary Reserve, IE/ABE) (tOMoH): yes, I used this one in the London tasting too. Get over it. Nose: a hint of musk, then flowers and cut yellow fruits. Peach, drying on the radiator. Mouth: hay, soft and mellow yellow fruit. It has a softly-drying touch, as well as, well, yellow fruit, which is juicier. Finish: a notch of burnt wood complements the yellow fruit. This is excellent. The lack of power is less and less an issue, the more I try it. Full notes here. 8/10

There is a collection of blokes
on the box too

dom666: "One day, my mother said, 'What did I do to God to end up with with a boy like you?' I said, 'You had drunken sex!'"
tOMoH: "How did she take it?"
dom666: "Pretty well. She said it was not false. The staff of the catholic college I said it in were less thrilled."

No haggis, this year, thanks to Brexit. Sausages enter. And vegetarian haggis. Only meat and dairy seem to be problematic.

Sticky sausages, thyme and apple bake

Veggie haggises

Warm Brussels-sprout salad

Modest portions

Dalwhinnie 15yo (43%, OB, L5164CM000 02076773) (Psycho): nose: wide and generous, it has something vaguely nutty too. Further is a drop of grape juice and cut apple. Mouth: assertive, it has a touch of metal to complement apple pips. The texture is reminiscent of custard, though it feels more metallic. Finish: more straightforward, here, with nutty butter and, again, a metallic side. Pretty good. I always find it useful to try those flagships once in a while. It reminds one why they are flagships in the first place. 7/10

There are three Highlanders on the box...
...if one looks really hard

The soundtrack:

As we tend to do, we improvise a duel with two expressions from the same distillery.

Tomatin vs. Tomatin

Tomatin 11yo 2009/2021 (54.9%, Le Gus't for La Confrérie du Whisky, Bourbon Barrel, C#262, 217b, b#36) (STL): nose: a big, bold Bourbon-cask influence. It is a little woody (white wood) and super buttery. Mouth: white pepper on peach slices and a drop of wood varnish. This is hot, but balanced. Hot apricot, chilli and hot avocado -- the texture is precisely that of hot avocado flesh. Finish: long and spicy, it has sawdust, more avocado and hot apricot compote, peppered with ground white pepper. This is very good. An unusual bottling that is more than a curiosity. 8/10

vs.

Tomatin 43yo 1965/2009 (41.1%, The Lonach Whisky Company Lonach imported by Preiss Imports) (JS): nose: funnily enough, it is quite similar to its younger sibling, yet if it is obviously much tamer, it also cranks up the fruit to the max: marmalade and peach jam with a metallic edge. The metal flirts with minty toothpaste, even. Mouth: mellow, super fruity, it has mango, cut peach dripping sweet juice, and a sprinkle of dust. Finish: amazing, fruity, dusty. Full notes here. It is the best whisky, so far. Of course, the night is young. 9/10

JS [about the track currently playing]: "Ah! It is this thing with Sting."
ruckus: "It's not Sting."
JS: "It sounds like him."
tOMoH: "Money For Nothing?"
ruckus: "Eberhard Schoener, from East Germany."
JS: "Who?"
tOMoH: "Was that Sting's name before he fled to the West?"

After that uneven duo, we have another. Glenmorangie vs. Glenmorangie. Because the juice is crafted by the Sixteen Men of Tain, of course. Annoyingly enough, that tag line appears on neither of our bottlings, tonight! The connection to the theme is therefore very Tain-uous... But since they are there, it would be rude to stow the bottles away.

 Of course, the cork breaks.

Glenmorangie 10yo Cellar 13 (43%, OB, First Fill Casks, B#2) (Psycho): nose: ahem. I do not take any note for the nose. :( Mouth: a wee bit bitter, it has a soft metal-blade aspect. Finish: milky, a tad butyric, while also rich with minty freshness. Pathetic notes, I know. I am trying to catch up. It is a cracking dram. 8/10

vs.

Glenmorangie 23yo d.1963 (43%, OB distributed by Wilmerink & Muller, Oloroso Sherry Casks Finish) (group): nose: "if you are wondering what 'rancio' means, this is it!" states Bishlouk. I do not spend half enough time as I should with this one, still playing catch-up. All the same, it is balanced, very elegant, with balsa wood and eucalyptus interwoven in all that rancio. Mouth: thin and ethereal, it still has lots of things to say. Liqueur-laced coffee, Kahlúa, Amaretto, wet coffee grounds -- wet with almond liqueur, of course. Finish: earthy, this has greasy soil to the hilt. It is rich, sweet and bitter in equal measures. Bishlouk finds it more bitter than he would like, after a couple of sips. He would not know beauty if beauty kicked him in the groin. This is a superlative dram, in line with what I remembered of it, and when I finish my dram at the end of the night, it still shines like Saint Elmo's fire. I cannot wait to spend more time with it in the future. 10/10

Poor Psycho has been hit by the same thing twice in a row: in 2020, it was his Strathisla 12yo that was easily topped by the group's Strathisla 35yo. This time, same configuration with the two Glenmorangies.

From one Oloroso maturation to another...

Arran 18yo (46%, OB, Sherry Casks, b.2019) (Bishlouk): nose: a mix of marzipan, melted chocolate, ginger paste and ginger peel. The second nose has more fruit (white peach) and a touch of coffee. Mouth: chocolate and Marmite, crushed liquorice bootlaces. It is root-y and earthy without being too drying. Finish: it seems huge for 46%. Still earthy, but also fruity and a half -- caramelised apricot compote and marmalade. Psycho finds it acidic. This recent version is as impressive as the one we had in 2018. No mean feat for a core-range entry from a young distillery. 8/10 (could easily go up to 9, when not following a legend like the 1963 Glenmorangie)

Oh! This is the theme connection. Bishlouk dared it.

That cake

Bladnoch 26yo 1990/2016 (47.2%, Sansibar for Spirit Shop' Selection, Sherry Cask, 117b) (Gaija): yes, it is a strangely-positioned apostrophe. Nose: it smells like a tannery, though it is more for the strong presence of polish and leather than meat and blood. Then, it turns woodier and displays a lovely freshness -- mint and paper paste. Mouth: dry as fook, but it is not annoying. Dusty bookshelves, old books, ground galangal, perhaps a dollop of dark chocolate. It does not lack in terms of spices, really. Finish: long and woody, it has loads of dust and spearmint. Yes, the mint is pretty fierce -- in fact, it is menthol. 8/10

Continue reading in Part 2.

16/08/2014 Whiskies for puffs

Who have we not yet offended? Races? Check. Religious groups? Check. Men in uniforms? Check. Women of the opposite sex? Check. Ah! Got it! We sort of beat around the sexual orientation bush (ho-ho-ho), but never really addressed it. Or did we? Well, not in a long time. At least not this month. If we did I cannot remember.
The theme was relatively open to interpretation. Anything below 50%, for example, as some (snobs) would not consider it manly enough. Fruity whiskies, since clichés tell us men drink hard booze, while anyone drinking fruit juice is effeminate. You get the picture, hopefully. All that because, when this was planned, the date, in the middle of the summer, suggested high temperatures.

The suspects: adc, mpd, Psycho, ruckus, sonicvince, dom666, JS and myself.

For real, yo!

Irish Mist Honey Liqueur (35%, OB, ca 2014) (dom666): wow, this is as unmanly as it gets. It has all the subtlety of a Liberace outfit too. Nose: super sweet. Honey (no shit, Sherlock), some herbs, genepy, lemon (adc). Mouth: super sweet (again). Close to mead, extremely syrupy and flowery. Finish: this is like drinking cough syrup -- but good cough syrup. Pleasant, though not something to drink litres of. Recipe for a headache, this is. 5/10

Can we start, already?

The Tyrconnell (40%, OB, ca 2013) (adc): this is a sure shot, a crowd-pleaser, even. Nose: fresh and flowery, full of meadow flowers, in fact. Also gives away herbs and a little touch of very milky chocolate. Mouth: metallic, strangely enough. First time it ever does that to me. A note that I associate with Tullamore more than Cooley. sonicvince finds it medicinal -- he just swallowed a painkiller, however. Verbena is present too. Finish: overripe apples with a drop of peach juice. It impresses me less than usually, yet remains a good whisky. 7/10

vs.

Psycho explains

Slaney Malt 11yo 2001/2013 (57%, Limerick Selection, Refill ex-Bourbon, American Oak Barrel C#9929, 235b) (JS): same distillery, which is why we have them back-to-back. This one is way above the 50% ABV, yet it is so fruity it can hardly be called manly. Nose: tropical fruit, overripe fruit and coffee (sonicvince, clearly becoming nuts). ruckus finds it sparkly in the nose, while I detect some vanilla. sonicvince comes to his senses and admits the so-called coffee is, in fact, hazelnut -- hazelnut paste, actually. The discussion moves to palm oil, since so much of it ends up in hazelnut paste produced by well-known brands. Mouth: peach-stone bitterness, lisomucil (sonicvince and ruckus, clearly off their rockers), fruit juice. Fruit? Citrus, to be clear, and grapefruit, to be precise. Finish: overripe fruit again, tainted by a slight woodiness. Less tropical fruit than previous times (passion fruit was in the foreground), still a great dram. 9/10

Team Glenglassaugh reprazent, yo!

Inchmurrin 20yo (40%, OB for Spanish market) (me): I cannot remember ever trying an Inchmurrin. Certainly not with this group, in any case. At a mere 40%, this is clearly in theme. Plus, it should be light and fresh. Nose: butter chicken!! Butter caramel, says adc (the round, flat sweets in a Quality Street tin). There is also a whiff of nail polish. An oddball. Last year's Croftengea was a full-on roasted chicken, this one is a full-on butter chicken (it is a nice Balti dish, look it up); what are they doing, at Loch Lomond? Mouth: milky, metallic, creamy as a flan (JS), rice pudding (JS, in dessert mode). Finish: lots of metallic notes, now, as well as quince (mpd). It is long and rather pleasant. Good whisky, interesting, yet it will not seduce everyone. 7/10

Knockando 25yo 1980/2005 (48.3%, Duncan Taylor Rare Auld, Oak Cask C#1908, 260b) (Psycho): another delicate and effeminate dram, this. We have not had it for a while. Nose: all sorts of flowers, cut pears and quince in a bath of hot milk, augmented with old brandy. Discreet, but oh! so nice. Mouth: milky, with woody tones (pine splinters) and a faint bitterness. Finish: long and fruity (peach), with also wood, vanilla and coconut. Wood-driven whisky, superbly made. Dram of the day for me, I think. 9/10

We move on to the next room for food: a ton of spaghetti al ragú. Marvellous. We all eat way too much. In fact, JS is close to illness. I do not feel too proud myself, but hey! it was worth it. :o)

Aberfeldy 1999/2014 (46%, Gordon & MacPhail Connoisseurs Choice) (ruckus): nose: walnut husk, nuts, polished wood, dried peach, a chesterfield sofa with lacquered, wooden arms. This is rather manly, to some extent. We will drink it anyway! Mouth: powerful and creamy, close to custard in texture. Finish: soft and creamy, with custard, chocolate pudding and a few drops of peach juice, as well as super-dark cocoa beans. I cannot claim huge familiarity with Aberfeldy, but the few I have tried have been very nice indeed. 8/10

Tomatin 35yo 1978/2013 (44.1%, Cadenhead Small Batch, Bourbon Hogsheads, 594b) (me): this is low strength, fruity, and there is little of it left. Must share it. Nose: pepper (Psycho), flowers (ruckus), overripe fruit (dom666), marzipan-like -- but not marzipan (ruckus). It is strawberry bubble gum, you fools! A tiny scent of dunnage warehouse, maybe. Mouth: juicy fruit cascade. This is extraordinary. Finish: more juicy fruit, with wood shavings. What is it? A fleeting gasp of passion fruit! And peach pulp. Wunderbar! Had this been a surprise for me, it would likely be my dram of the day. But yeah, I know it quite well. 9/10

Invergordon 37yo 1972/2009 (46.6%, Càrn Mòr Celebration of the Cask, Bourbon Barrel CC#60478/63675, 259b, b#236) (JS): a grain is precisely what we need to reset our palates, so the following have a chance to shine, after the Tomatin. Nose: bakery, with burnt caramel in the back. Mouth: creamy custard and light chocolate mousse. Finish: More bakery goodness, with a dash of that typical blackcurrant. Wonderful grain, this. 8/10

Balblair 1989 3rd release (46%, OB, ex-Bourbon Barrels) (sonicvince): another light and soft one. Nose: lemon juice, calamantsi. Quite straightforward, but good (provided you like lemon). Mouth: Acidic, as in: milk, peppered with lemon juice. Finish: long, Acidic, slightly drying, with lemon and green wood. Good, this. 8/10

By this point, some see it like this.

Dessert time. No-one is completely up for it, since we are still so full of pasta, but now seems appropriate. It is the usual.

'nuff said!

Glenmorangie 10yo (43° Gay Lussac, OB imported by Schutz & Cloos, b. ca 1985) (Psycho): ignore the fact it is also light and soft; this one spells it out for you: 43° GAY LUSSAC. That is as gay as it gets. No matter, this bottle is legendary in our little circle and we are all excited to try it once more.  Nose: interestingly, there is a note of leather and black shoe polish, this time. Plants and flowers, decanting in a gardener's hotchpotch. Mouth: spicy, with black pepper and black cardamom(-osexual). Finish: super dark chocolate, tar, linseed oil and shoe polish. The bottle is half empty; all that air has released the war-ready Highlander in this one. It used to be all light and flowery, but it is no more. This could now ruffle feathers with the bolder Invernessian tripplets, I feel. Dram of the day for adc, yet it is hard to say what part emotion plays in that choice. For me? 8/10

Untranslatable:
dom666: "J'aimais pas la poule de ma grand'mère. J'aime la poule de ma mère. Mais ma grand'mère cuisinait comme un pied."

me: "Regarde comme elle est fourbe!"
JS: "Fourbe?"
ruckus: "C'est un croisement entre 'fou' et 'tourbe'."
me: "C'est quelqu'un qui boit trop d'Ardbeg."

Bruichladdich XVII 17yo (46%, OB, ca 2002, 02-8143 2344) (dom666): nose: some sea air, but this one seems mostly spent -- there is barely enough left to fill everyone's glass. Mouth: more robust than the previous drams, this. Fortunately, it still retains some taste, mostly sea spray. Finish: yep, spent. Brine, sea spray and a bit of earth. The level in this one really has been too low for too long. It is mostly evaporated. 7/10

sonicvince wants to leg it. ruckus, who also has to be dropped at the station, wants to tag along. I had other plans, which now need rushing.
Firstly, I pour dom666 a Longmorn 1996/2008 (57.9%, Berry Bros for la Maison du Whisky, C#56788), since he claimed earlier this week to never have had a bad Longmorn. He agrees this one is not good at all. And that, dear reader, is why I use it for cooking.
To give it a ridiculously strong opponent and put it out of its misery, we open this at the same time:

I wish I was a fisherman
Tumblin' on the seas
Far away from dry land
And its bitter memories

Longmorn Centenary 25yo (45%, OB, b.1994): when they see the bottle, the two deserters decide to stay a wee while longer. sonicvince breaks the cork with his traditional daintiness: first time for him -- it had to be that of the most expensive bottle we have bought as a group. Luckily, we manage to fish out the pieces. dom666 happens to have brought shiny new stoppers, one of which is put to immediate good use. Take that, bad luck! Now, where were we? sonicvince and ruckus taste it quickly before making a move. Judging by their giggles, it is probably OK... Nose: PHWOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRR! :-O Banana, peach, grapefruit, pomelo, orange blossom, a touch of cola, marzipan. adc finds it close to the Invergordon, while Psycho finds it Acidic. I find it bloody good indeed. Mouth: fruit juice, all sorts of jams, delicate marmalade, fruity custard, happiness. Finish: long and soft, full of fruit, ... what is this? Green tea? A hint of beeswax too. dom666 finds it astringent. Naturally, with 11 drams in the gob, it is pointless to try and write objective, insightful notes, but wow, just wow! Unbelievable, this. My expectations were high (I dreamt of it the whole night, the previous night) and they were met, maybe exceeded. Exuberant, without ever being tout. It takes a 1964 Bowmore to exceed this level of quality. A moving dram. 10/10

The Cure - Disintegration

Excellent tasting, full of laughs, good food and great whiskies -- including a few good surprises. Shame the weather was too variable to dip into the swimming pool (by the time it became acceptable, we were so full, we would have drowned).

Today is also the day www.whiskogs.com goes down forever, bringing an eight-year adventure to a close. Heartfelt thanks to all who contributed through the years. It was a hard decision to make, but I had to make it. Trying that Longmorn made it less sour.