Today, Prince Charles becomes Charles III. As some celebrate this coronation, we meet for non-monarchist drams with a firm plan to not monitor events all day. "We" are JS, OB, Cavalier66 and I.
The soundtrack: Pronto Pronto ??!! (for the sole reason that the last track of CD1 is by a band called CO.RO[nation] -- ha!)
Cavalier66 immediately preys upon the food he brought. In pure Cavalier66 style, he has not had anything to eat since he got up -- presumably six minutes ago. Amongst the goodies, a Royal Oak smoked ham. Also Serrano ham and Comté, plus a potato-flour bread which is delicious, if hard to cut (so spongy!)
OB explains that he brought an apéritif, a French whisky, to celebrate that the French have done away with their monarchy, because they were anticoronation.
Ergaster Nature N°001 (45%, OB, French Oak Cognac + Banyuls + Pineau des Charentes Casks, 1900b, b#0579, b. 2019) (OB): nose: strangely woody for a four year-old, bready (Cavalier66), with something lactic, and caraway seeds (Cavalier66). The second nose has a lot of nail polish and crayon shavings. Mouth: velvety, it quickly turns a little bitter, as well as sweet, somehow reminiscent of Crodino. Finish: mellow, it cannot hide its vin-jaune influences. Or Pineau, since it is N°000 that was matured in Vin Jaune casks. There is a clear taint of apricot too. 7/10
From a four-year-old French whisky to a thirty-eight-year-old Scotch. Ahem. Cavalier66 has us play anagrams, for this one, and it takes a few clues to decipher that with the coronation comes the pledge of allegiance -- which almost spells Glenallachie. We will drink the latter, rather than pledge said allegiance.
Glenallachie 38yo 1973/2010 (44%, Malts of Scotland, Bourbon Hogshead, C#MoS11018, 96b) (Cavalier66): nose: Cavalier66 notes dunnage and sour fruit, whereas I find it is a flowery one (jasmine, lilac) that reveals a juicy fruitiness, chiefly that of mirabelle plums. JS detects apple compote, and it has galangal shavings too, far in the back, mingling with apple peels. The second nose even displays dragon fruit. Mouth: surprisingly dilute and a bit disappointing (Cavalier66). It is delicate, with middle-dry white wine (Chenin blanc), and the soft bitterness of the vine that bore its grapes. Finish: it is gentle, again, in a white-wine way. Cotton Candy grapes, and a sprinkle of burnt-wood shavings. This is boss. 9/10
JS: "We could use the 'h', perhaps?"
Cavalier66: "Jamaicans would."
tOMoH: "Hallegiance. Jah bless, mahn!"
OB tells us how Ireland left the UK and the Commonwealth because they were anticoronation. Cavalier66 adds that the previous time Ireland had no king was during the Civil War, and that Oliver Cromwell then massacred the Irish, which made them (even more) anticoronation.
Ireland 24yo 1989/2014 (42.2%, The Nectar of the Daily Drams a joint bottling with La Maison du Whisky, Rum Cask, C#16262) (Cavalier66): nose: fluorescent-purple nail varnish, waxy mango peels, butterscotch and glue (JS), bergamot and kumquat, plump satsuma and foliage. Then, slowly but surely, mango rises. It is a grassier number, though, no doubt about it. Coming back to it after the next dram, this smells more buttery, in a smashed-mango-and-apricot way. Mouth: the texture of a good citrus juice, and the taste of juicy mango, alongside the metal of the knife that cut the fruit open. Finish: long, fruity, mango-y, and a little earthy too. The second sip has bread and just what it needs, in terms of fruitiness. Lovely drop. 9/10
vs.
Emerald Isle 24yo d.1991 (52.6%, Speciality Drinks, C#8507) (OB): nose: menthol (JS), and a minute amount of smoke, which surprises us all -- there was none when we had it, ahem, six years ago. Mouth: ooft! Here is a gigantic lick of mango, and a touch of metal. The alcohol is fairly obvious and numbing, but never overtakes the mad fruit. There is even banana in this. Beautiful. Finish: long and boldly fruity. Warming. The second sip is bolder, still, with loads of mango covered in chocolate. Repeated sipping reveals an earthy side too. 9/10
The soundtrack: Helena Hauff - Kern Vol. 5
The next one, I explain, has the seal: "By appointment to HRM The Prince of Wales." Laphroaig are likely mightily against the coronation, because it means they will have to replace their labels (at no small a cost, no doubt).
Laphroaig 28yo b.2018 (44.4%, OB Limited Edition, Quarter Casks + Bourbon Barrels + Sherry Butts) (tOMoH): nose: pure fruit (Cavalier66). We have an enthralling, smoky dark-fruit jam. Mouth: it develops more ash on the tongue, but it is still very much a dark-berry affair. Finish: ash and fruit (Cavalier66). Full notes here. 9/10
JS introduces an SMWS bottling that has "lip-smac-KING" in the name.
44.53 22yo d.1989 Lip-smacking, chewy and chunky (51.5%, SMWS Society Single Cask, Refill ex-Bourbon Hogshead, 279b) (JS): nose: coal, in the back (Cavalier66). Old jam stuck to the cast-iron cauldron. Mouth: chewy (OB), oily (OB and Cavalier66), it has a distinct, industrial-age, dusty-boiler side. Phwoar! Finish: it has the legs of a centipede (Cavalier66, prompting a discussion about cult flick The Human Centipede), buckets of soot, and caramelised marmalade. It is also very waxy (Cavalier66). This is OB's favourite, so far. I like it too, of course. My full notes are here. 9/10
JS plays single tracks.
The soundtrack: Thompson Twins - King For A Day
The soundtrack: King - Love And Pride
Cavalier66, always great at international relations, presents the next one, a Cognac, thus: "The French. You get rid of monarchy, you chop off your king's head, and you don't even make whisky."
Cavalier66 [to OB]: "And you had to bring a fucking French whisky [to ruin my connection]!"
François Peyrot 61yo 1959/2010 (44.2%, OB Heritage, Lot '59) (Cavalier66): nose: wood smoke, but especially gummy bears, Cola Bottle sweets, purple chewy sweets, then soft rubber. We have a note of grapes (raisins, actually), marzipan, and then we are back with wood. The second nose has putty and balls of clay. Mouth: cinnamon-y ginger, modelling clay, dark grapes, peppermint. Over time, the sweetness of chewy (blackcurrant) sweets takes over. Finish: long, elegant, it has a wheelbarrow of fruits, the heat of a mentholated gingery paste, and the chewiness of clay. 9/10
The soundtrack: Echo & The Bunnymen - My Kingdom
The soundtrack: Talking Heads - Once In A Lifetime
OB: "Well, I hope I live a bit longer than..."
Cavalier66: "...Charles! That's the only way to finish that sentence."
JS: "Actually, it is for Tal-KING Heads."
 |
| Time to attack OB's excellent gâteau basque |
The soundtrack: Roadking - SAT015
I bring the next bottle to the group.
[All laugh]
JS: "That is going to be my email signature from now on."
tOMoH: "A Glenlossie. This is about the loss of Charles's title of Prince of Wales."
Cavalier66: "Or the loss of his head when we behead him."
Glenlossie-Glenlivet 21yo 1957/1979 (80° Proof, Cadenhead imported by Mario Rossi, Sherry Cask) (tOMoH): nose: sherries, but not in a bulldog way (OB). Half OBE, half sherry (Cavalier66). It has rancio and more rose water than I remembered too. Mouth: phwoar! This really is a beautiful Sherry maturation, with dry earth, stone-hard, bone-dry raisins. Finish: old dry Sherry, and industrial-era soot, as well as coal dust. This remains amazing. Full notes here. 9/10
The soundtrack: Adam & The Ant - Kings Of The Wild Front
OB explains that the next dram is colloquially known as Red Stripe -- Red Stripe, like the rave beer from Jamaica, a country that wants to leave the Commonwealth, and whose citizens are presumably anticoronation until that departure has taken place.
Laphroaig 10yo (55.7%, OB Original Cask Strength imported by Allied Domecq Zürich) (OB): nose: peaty. Tanned leather, damp earth, ploughed fields. It is very farm-y in an agricultural way, as opposed to cattle farming. We have a vaguely maritime touch too, with kelp, seaweed, and seaweed-wrapped chicken (or rooster, really: it comes across as tough). Finally, here are hard tree bark and old ink. Mouth: dry, earthy, it has elderberries, blackcurrants, and lots of horsepower. This is chewy as a beard, and punctuated by burning hay. Punchy, boisterous. I can see why so many fall for this. Truth be told, I can also see why some grow out of it. Finish: rougher than the 'lossie (OB). There is a clear kick of earthy blackcurrant and elderberry. It suffers from the sequence, but is otherwise a decent whisky, even if it is lacking in the elegance department, perhaps. 7/10
The soundtrack: The Coronation Of King George II
JS explains that Princess Charlotte will never be crowned, and does not move closer to the throne as a result of the coronation, so she is probably anticoronation.
Port Charlotte 14yo 2002/2017 (60.1%, The Creative Whisky Company The Exclusive Malts, Sherry Hogshead, C#1140, 228b) (JS): nose: mud, pastures, muddy pastures. This is well farm-y, and more cattle farm than agriculture, this time. It has dark berries too, mind. The trademark bacon is present, yet subdued. Mouth: berries aplenty, as well as liqueur and earth. It is thick and sticky, faintly animal... and strong. Fierce peppermint ends up poking the tongue relentlessly. Finish: unexpectedly balanced, it has menthol, berries, earth and chocolate, a pinch of coffee grounds, and black-cardamom husk. I need to spend more time with this another day. 9/10
OB: "...ever."
[Cavalier66 chokes -- not to death, I should add]
Good times, even if I am so wrecked from an early start to the day that I do not enjoy it as much as I should. Also, the pace is sporty, to say the least.
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