Sadly, not the original Dalaruan. Sadly, and, perhaps, obviously.
Dalaruan (46%, The Lost Distillery Company Archivist’s Selection, B#1/i, b#298): nose: fortified-wine-cask influence in full effect, with cured game meat and wine sauce leading the conversation, even if they do not assail the nostrils. Pheasant breasts, smoked ham, boar sausage, roast venison, wild pigeon, and a sauce grand'veneur that veers towards barbecue sauce. Little fruit to speak of, beside old, dried-out raisins in said sauce. Dried dates, perhaps. Fig relish? Not quite! It has a whiff of peppermint, in the background, which promises a lively freshness. The second nose sees a dog in a rustic country-cottage kitchen, after a walk on the damp moor. In that kitchen is an open jar of fig jam, and logs for the stove. Mouth: peppermint is louder, here -- so loud, in fact, that it could also be liquorice allsorts, fresh and bitter simultaneously. We also find new rubber and charred game rind, as if new tractor tyres were made of venison biltong. Is that not original? The second sip is winier, and has the bitterness of grape pips, alongside Amontillado Sherry. It is rather numbing, in the medium term, akin to liquorice cough drops. That impression is made more pronounced by the syrupy texture. Finish: liquorice-y at first, it settles for woody-leafy notes seconds later: yucca-plant leaves, eucalyptus, vine leaves, yet also carnation stems and, well, still that liquorice that does not fade out. The alcohol seems to grow in power with each gulp (it feels a lot stronger than 46%) and brings back a bitter Sherry and musky game -- wild pigeon, served with lingonberry compote. Properly coats the mouth too! A never-ending finish, this is. 7/10
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