26/05/2026 An evening at Barrel Than Yesterday

One great joy of travelling is discovering that a bar on the other side of the world has whiskies one would never come across anywhere else. They may not be the most prestigious vintages, distilleries or ages, but that does not make them less exclusive.

Unlikely sightings

Tomintoul 8yo d.2014 Release No.106 (56.4%, Angus Dundee for Alistair Walker Infrequent Flyers imported by MetaBev, Oloroso Sherry Puncheon, C#2362, 696b)

Nose: sweet, syrupy, almost heady (in fact, not almost!). This has "cherry jam" written all over it. Waxed leather develops over time. The second nose has pressed currants and dried figs.
Mouth: thick, coating like melted chocolate. It has a clear Mon Chéri touch -- cherry-liqueur-filled, dark-chocolate pralines. JS finds it spicy. The second sip is a little woodier, if still as sweet and liqueur-like.
Finish: long, powerful and sweet. We have more cherry jam and a good dose of melted dark chocolate. A minuscule hint of musk struggles to make itself heard. The second gulp is woodier; oily exotic wood, such as teak or mahogany.
Score: 7/10

Knockdhu 9yo d.2013 Release No.104 (59.5%, Angus Dundee for Alistair Walker Infrequent Flyers imported by MetaBev, Bolgheri Red Wine Hogshead Finish, C#804977, 295b)

Nose: this one has dates and dried figs. It soon progresses to reveal strawberry bubble gum and a pinch of blonde tobacco..
Mouth: unctuous texture, liqueur-like, it has pressed currants, silky Cotton Candy grapes, but also some power. The second sip injects some bitterness into the mix. Wood or mocha? Probably dark wood.
Finish: big, a notch tannic, it has polished wood and coffee beans coated in honey. The second gulp has dried pineapple bark.
Score: 7/10

Ki One 3yo 2022/2025 (56.8%, OB, Hypebeans Coffee Cask, C#0297, 281b, b#211)

Nose: unsurprisingly, it reeks of coffee. More surprising are the notes of seaweed and urchin before it turns citrus-y. Lemon zest and hay. Smoked seaweeds rock up, with one mint crumble. The second nose offers seaweed-flavoured chocolate.
Mouth: it is very woody, especially considering the age -- even though there is no age stated, the distillery only started producing in 2020, so it is six years old at most. There is a hint of sweet latte, some pine-tree bark, followed by smoked grapefruit zest. The second sip is dry as bread dough that has too much flour. Dark flour (buckwheat?)
Finish: big and spicy, it has pine needles soaked in weak, watery coffee. Now, this is not watery! I mean that the coffee is not overpowering. JS calls it almost not a (malt) whisky, it being closer to a rye, sorghum or Coffey malt or grain. The second gulp is more whisky-like, yet it shows the cask influence clearly: coffee grounds, mocha filters, sandalwood and cedarwood.
Score: 7/10

Glen Keith 25yo 1998/2024 (49.7%, Whiskybroker for Club Qing Happy Loner imported by Roehni, First Fill Bourbon Barrel, C#149567, 191b)

Nose: very elegant. It has custard powder, citrus zest and cream soda, powdered peach skin, Turkish delights. The second nose is more-intensely scented, with fruity custard aplenty.
Mouth: it feels a tad watery at first (we just had a few high-octane drams, yeah?), but settles in as a fruity number, without surprise. Citrus zest, dried lichens, flower petals to provide a slight bitterness. It is fruitier at second sip, with peach, lime, grapefruit...What a cocktail!
Finish: wonderful custard cream with citrus zest. It has a little more Bourbon-y spices and lots of acidic fruits.

Comment: we have a winner!
Score: 8/10

Kimchangsoo 4yo 2021/2025 (51.7%, OB Single Cask, 1st Fill European Oloroso Sherry Hogshead, 276b)

Nose: phwoar! A refined peat hits my nostrils rather gently. Bales of dried meadow flowers, purple-primrose petals, then smoked green grapes. This moves from farming to gardening and back again effortlessly. It has a hint of chocolate-flavoured coffee too, but, mostly, it is farm-y. That said, rosewood embers grow in intensity. The second nose is earthier, with sweet potato peels and dried soil.
Mouth: rosewood, rosehip and earthy peat. This has burnt twigs, burnt rose bushes and dried earth (not scorched). It is a juicy, earthy number at second sip, full of drying peat bricks.
Finish: a trifle weaker here, it remains a solid peated whisky with some ozone and tar. The second gulp confirms: ozone, tar, even charcoal dust.
Comment: there are two different bottlings on the shelf. This is not the one we ordered, but we enjoy it anyway.
Score: 7/10

Ben Nevis 26yo 1997/2023 Private Edition No.2 (50.9%, North Star Spirits for Rotten Glasses x The Whisky Agency imported by Roehni, Sherry Butt, 120b)

Nose: a dirty Ben Nevis with sink funk, and some drying fruits, somewhere. We are treated to a vague smell of sewers from the street, and it is hard to tell where the Ben Nevis stops and the sewers start, so close they are.
Mouth: decaying fruits it is. Pineapple, apple, Comice pears, crunchy, crumbly and bruised in more places than necessary. The second sip confirms. Decaying fruits turn dirty, funky and a bit dry.
Finish: it has orchard fruits in disarray (apples, pears, quinces all past decaying point), Korean pears, perhaps kakis. That may be the location playing with my mind. The second gulp has a minty freshness and the drying touch of eucalyptus. Water turns down the funk and increases the fruitiness.
Score: 7/10 (8 with water)

Time to go. There are other drams to try, but tomorrow is another day.