Whyte and Mackay Special Review

Country: Scotland

Brand: Whyte & Mackay Special

Type: Blended Whisky

Age: Unspecified but probably between 4 and 8 Years

Alcohol: 40%

Colour: Copper

Nose: Initial wafts of young Alcohol force you to have a little patience. After 20 minutes or so the first impressions start to develop. I find Grain and Malt, Oak and Citrus, mostly Orange. I don’t find the nose overly sweet though. There’s some fruit here but the alcohol makes it difficult to get there. Peach or Apricot I would think. With a bit of Honey sprinkled over it. The nose is not bad but the Alcohol spoils some of the fun.

Taste: Spicy delivery! Some Honey, Toffee and burnt Sugar. Slightly bitter but within reason.

Finish: Short. Bit of Malt. Sugar and Spice!

When you add a bit of water you get a bit of extra Malt on the nose but the palate gets too watery. Drink this blend straight or, if you like it, with an ice cube or two.

Rating: 75,5

Nose: 19,5 – Taste: 19 – Finish: 18 – Overall: 19

General Remarks: Allan & Poynter started as a warehouse in 1843 in Glasgow, gradually starting to store whiskies as well. It changed hands various times before it was sold to Whyte & Mackay. Soon afterwards these two partners started to blend whisky. Between 1900 and 1950 the company survived despite the World Wars and the recession. In the sixties things became better. After a large number of take-overs, United Breweries from India took control in 2007.

The blend is made following the Double Marriage process. First 35 Single Malts are married and stored in Sherry Casks for about six months. Then this vatted mixture is blended with 6 Grain Whiskies and stored for another couple of months in sherry casks.

Drinking Experience Neat: Average/Good. 

Drinking Experience on the Rocks: Average.

Conclusion: It’s slightly better than the blends I’ve been testing recently as you will notice by looking at the Complete Rankings of Reviewed Whiskies. But not by much. The nose is not bad but suffers from the wafts of alcohol. On the palate the Searchers sing Sugar and Spice but not in an unpleasant way. The finish is on the short side. This blend is known as the Whyte & Mackay Special. That, it’s not, but it’s not too bad either.

Jan van den Ende                                                          January, 25 2012

Beatles - Magical Mystery Tour - Review

Songs:  Magical Mystery Tour, The Fool on the Hill, Flying, Blue Jay Way, Your Mother should Know, I am the Walrus, Hello Goodbye, Strawberry Fields Forever, Penny Lane, Baby You´re a Rich Man, All you need is love.

Type of Music: Mid Sixties Quality Pop with Psychedelic Influences.

Comments:

Sure, the first six songs on the Album form the Sound Track of the film of the same name. But actually this record sounds more like another Beatles Greatest Hits collection with some accidental filler in the form of the Psycho instrumental Flying or the Psycho George contribution Blue Jay Way. These two songs do nothing for me.

But the other songs,  all written by John and Paul are at least memorable and at best excellent.

Personally I would consider Scott McKenzie´s San Francisco, but to a lot of people All You Need is Love is the anthem of that famous Summer of Love. Psychedelics are certainly an important ingredient of the Magical Mystery Pie and I am the Walrus and above all Strawberry Fields Forever are among John´s finest work in this specific field.

And Paul is not far behind with the spooky Fool on the Hill and Penny Lane, a song Ray Davies would have loved to have written.

Actually Strawberry Fields Forever/Penny Lane were written for Sgt. Pepper but were rejected because they would not fit in the context of that album.

So here it is, another Beatles album. Not very coherent but with some great songs.

 Rating: ******* (7 out of 10)

Black = Good Songs

Green = Great Songs

Red = Could Be Better

Who should buy this Record:  Actually you can find most of the relevant songs on this album on one of the various Beatles Compilation Albums. Therefore Magical Mystery Tour is for Collectors Only.

Creedence Clearwater Revival - Willy & the Poor Boys - Review

Creedence Clearwater Revival Willy and the Poor Boys (1969)  

Songs:  Down on the Corner, It Came out of the Sky, Cotton Fields, Poorboy Shuffle, Feelin´ Blue, Fortunate Son, Don´t Look Now, The Midnight Special, Side o´ the Road, Effigy.

Type of Music: Late Sixties Blues (Swamp) Rock.

Comments: 

CCR´s fourth album was released at the end of 1969 and was another huge commercial success. It tells the story of the imaginary blues/rock band Willy and the Poor Boys, four guys from California showing the world they can play Southern Music as well as anybody else.

And indeed, they took two American originals (Cotton Fields and Midnight Special) and made them sound as if they were written for CCR in the first place. And that says something about their qualities. Nevertheless, I never liked Cotton Fields as a song despite the nice harmony vocals and I assure you that I´ve heard a lot of versions through the years from artists ranging between Udo Jürgens and the Beach Boys.

No, I prefer the rockers on the Album. For sure Fortunate Son is one of the great Anti Vietnam-War Songs and John sounds really upset here. And let´s not forget It came out of the Sky, for me the best song on the album. It´s a great rocker in Chuck Berry style. Try it out in your car with the speakers as loud as you can stand!

Everybody of course knows Down on the Corner. You probably heard it on the radio today and yesterday and the day before yesterday and…..

Less known is the instrumental Side o´ the Road. In fact it´s John´s guitar solo set on a Booker T & the MG´s kind of groove.

The Blues shuffle Feelin´ Blue is a nice enough song but I took away half a point as it´s just a tiny bit too long. And if you´re curious if CCR could come up with their version of Jimi´s Hey Joe, listen carefully to Effigy.

Some filler here as well. I fail to see the relevance of the Poorboy Shuffle and Don´t look Now is an inferior re-write of Bad Moon Rising.

So what do I tell you. It´s not a bad album but it does not quite convince me. I consider it to be a step back when compared to Green River.      

Rating: ******* (7 out of 10)

Black = Good Songs

Green = Great Songs

Red = Could Be Better

Who should buy this Record:  It´s not the first CCR Album you would want to buy. But Give it a Chance if you find it remastered and cheap!

Bruce Springsteen - The Wild The Innocent and the E-Street Shuffle Review

Bruce Springsteen  : The Wild, The Innocent & the E Street Shuffle (1973)                  

Songs: The E Street Shuffle, 4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy), Kitty´s Back, Wild Billy´s Circus Story, Incident on 57th Street, Rosalita (Come Out Tonight), New York City Serenade.   

Type of Music: Early Seventies Rock/ R&B Influences.

Comments:

Bruce´s second album is his own West Side Story, telling us Dylan like tales about the big city street life. With lots of Latin American influences both in words and in music. Living in a big city is like living in a great big Melting Pot. Lots of different cultures and influences. The same goes for the music on this Album.

Sometimes you will recognise bits and pieces of Dylan, Lou Reed, James Brown, Mink Deville or even Tom Waits. But all the songs have two common denominators: Balls and Soul!!

It is inevitable that one day all of this energy will lead to Born to Run.

It´s a very coherent album as well. Not really a bad song in sight although some songs are a bit overlong. I´m not too enthusiastic about the sound quality. Sounds a bit muddy.

The rhythms seem very odd from time to time during the songs but in the end it always just seem to work out fine. And that says something about the quality of the band although the drummer Vini Lopez is not always convincing.

On the other hand I really admire the organ and piano parts played by David Sancious. What a pity he left the band to start a career in jazz music. Absolute high point for me is his playing in Kitty´s Back, my choice for best song here. His playing reminds me of Emerson, Lake & Palmer. Also very good is his piano part on New York City Serenade.

Like Greetings from Asbury Park NJ, I find it difficult to listen to the whole album in one time without losing interest after about 25 minutes. I suppose it is because of Bruce´s somewhat monotonous voice. However, on an individual basis the songs are all okay.  

It´s a pity that Bruce would abandon these story like songs later in his career and would concentrate on short and to the point musical statements. But I´m looking in the future. Let´s end this little story by concluding that The Wild, The Innocent & the E Street Shuffle certainly is one of the best efforts by The Boss.        

Rating: ******** (8 out of 10)

Black = Good Songs

Green = Great Songs

Red = Could Be Better

Peat Smoke and Spirit

Today I would like to draw your attention to a book that I received as a Christmas gift. The book is called Peat Smoke and Spirit and was written in 2004 by Andrew Jefford. Its about Islay, Scotland's most important whisky island. It tells the story of the island, its inhabitants and, of course, its distilleries. But the book also deals with the landscape, the wildlife and the weather. A very handy guide if you really want to explore Islay. And it reads like a novel. 


Jan 

William Lawson's Blended Scotch Review

Country: Scotland
Brand: William Lawson’s
Type: Blended Whisky
Age: Unspecified but probably between 3 and 8 Years

ABV: 40%

Colour: Light Gold

Nose: Very similar to the Cutty Sark Blended Scotch that I’ve tasted recently. There is a hint of apple-pie with raisins but it disappears quickly. Other than that the same Breakfast Cereals, though maybe slightly less sugared, Young Oak, Alcohol, Citrus and Malt. And even the Morning Sickness is revived in my mind. Pity that!

Palate: Sweet, Toasted Grains, Toffee, Young Oak, slightly bitter Almonds, A Bit of Nutmeg.

Finish: The Sugar sticks to the palate for a while. Bit of oak and almonds.

I would not add water to this blend. Sure ,it kills down the sugar a bit but on the palate you get a plate of lightly sugared corn flakes mixed with water instead of milk.

Rating: 75,5

Nose : 19 – Taste: 19 – Finish: 18,5 – Overall: 19

General Remarks: William Lawson first created This Blend in 1849. The Glen Deveron Single Malt lies at the heart of this blend together with another 30 or so Malt – and Grain Whiskies. The Glen Deveron is produced at the MacDuff Distillery close to Banff. Current owner is the Bacardi Group.

Drinking Experience Neat: Average/Good

Conclusion: It’s not really a bad whisky and it’s drinkable but why would you spend money on blends like this? They are basically plates of sugar-coated cornflakes with a bit of nuts thrown in for flavor. It might work for mixing which would explain its popularity in Southern Europe. But to drink a dram of good whisky should give you pleasure and satisfaction. This is just plain boring!

Jan van den Ende                                                                 January 21, 2012

To Blend or not To Blend

To Blend or not To Blend, that's the question as Shakespeare might have put it if he would have been an enthusiastic whisky drinker, which, I believe, he was not. But the question popped up yesterday evening when I tasted the William Lawson's Blend for the first time. Lately I have been testing a large number of the so called Bottom Shelf Blends and they all end up at the bottom of my Whisky League Table. It's not that you can't drink them but they don't give you any pleasure when you drink them. They all more or less taste like plates of sugared breakfast cereals with a bit of salt and some added oak/spice flavouring. So their only advantage is that they are relatively cheap. Now I know that more or less 90% of all whiskies sold world wide belong to the above mentioned category. I also believe that in the majority of cases these whiskies are not devoured straight but either on the rocks or in Long Drinks or mixed with cola or other soft - or energy drinks. I have tried to do that as well but I believe that other spirits such as Rum or Bourbon are more suited for this purpose because of their inherent sweetness. 
Based on the above it's easy to see the economic advantages for the industry as they are selling huge quantities of standardised product all around the world. Much cheaper to concentrate your marketing efforts on a couple of well known Brand names. But from the point of view of somebody who loves to taste and enjoy well made whiskies, either blends or Single Malts and either produced in Scotland or elsewhere around the globe, it's difficult to appreciate the fact that 40 or more Malt - and Grain Whiskies are blended and married only to result in an indifferent end product with no real own identity.
Of course it's possible to create good blends as well. And they are available in the market. But with the exception of Johnnie Walker Black they are quite expensive and can be compared price wise to a large number of Single Malts. And although I can understand that there will be people who will drink say JW Green or Gold or Ballantine's 17 Years for all their lives as it gives them the comfort of a well made dram, I personally prefer to spend my money on good whiskies from around the globe. It's tasting the differences between regions and distilleries and wood that makes drinking whisky a real pleasure.
Now I also realise that Single Malt whisky in general is getting really expensive these days because of the growing world demand. It's clear therefore that the vast majority of whisky consumers will keep buying affordable blends. So I can only wish that at some point in time the industry will succeed in offering (at a reasonable price) blended whiskies where the sweet taste will remind me of fruit or Sherry  instead of sugar, where Malt instead of Grain rules and where some Oak at least will remind me of quality casks. Or am I dreaming here!


Jan

Crosby Stills & Nash I Review

Hi Everybody,
Welcome to the Paradise on this fine Saturday morning. As you know Classic Rock from the Sixties and the Seventies is another passion of mine and today I would like to present to you my Review of the first Crosby Stills & Nash Album recorded in 1969. These guys are all time favourites of mine and very few albums come close to, let alone match the sheer Paradise of the harmony vocals offered by David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash. David the Dreamer, Stephen the Captain and Graham the Ecologist. What a chemistry existed between those three. They still perform but obviously age does count and I prefer to hear them at their best in the late sixties and early seventies.
So have fun reading the Review. Tonight I will start tasting William Lawson's Blended Scotch Whisky. Have a nice Saturday and see you all back tomorrow,
Saude!
Jan

Crosby Stills & Nash I - 1969

Songs: Suite: Judy Blue Eyes, Marrakesh Express, Guinnevere, You don´t have to Cry, Pre-Road Downs, Wooden Ships, Lady of the Island, Helplessly Hoping, Long Time Gone, 49 Bye-Byes.

Type of Music: Folk/Rock with a slight touch of Acid. 

Comments:

For me Crosby, Stills & Nash are the true representatives of the Woodstock Generation. Peace, Love and Harmony!! It´s not too acid like Jefferson Airplane or Grateful Dead nor too sweet like Joan Baez. But their music fits perfectly with those long gone Summers of Love.

The combination of the writing and musical skills of Stephen Stills (ex Buffalo Springfield), David Crosby (ex Byrds) and Graham Nash (ex Hollies) produced some of the greatest music of the late sixties, carried by their unique harmonies. Their Debut Album is packed with those songs.

Shortly afterwards, Neil Young joined the band and the power struggle for control over the band between him and Stephen began.

Maybe because of that, our friends would never again be quite able to capture beauty, innocence and delicacy and transform them in sheer musical heaven.        

Stephen contributes most of the songs here. With the exception of  49 Bye-Byes they are all great. Most of you will know Suite: Judy Blue Eyes written for Judy Collins. But also enjoy little pearls like You don´t  have to Cry and Helplessly Hoping. Graham gives us the happy hash song Marrakesh Express and the honest Lady of the Island. And David wrote the beautiful ballad Guinnevere for all his past, present and future wives, lovers and girlfriends. You remember the Woodstock movie? It still gives me the creeps when the film starts and you hear David´s Long Time Gone.

And then, there´s the best of them all. The slightly psychedelic anthem Wooden Ships, co-written with Paul Kantner from Jefferson Airplane.

It´s about the world or what´s left of it after the Big Bang. Actually our friends got some criticism as the song contains the line: We are leaving, You Don´t Need Us.

But I don´t care about that. I love the song and it´s in my all time Top 10 of Classic Rock songs.

What else is there to say. If you don´t own this album you should do something about that. And Quick!!!!!  

Rating: ********* (9 out of 10)

Black = Good Songs

Green = Great Songs

Red = Could Be Better

Who should buy this Record:  Everybody.

Teacher's Highland Cream Review (Bottled in Brazil)

Country: Distilled, Aged and Blended in Scotland. Mixed with water and bottled in Brazil by Allied Domecq Brazil.

Brand: Teacher’s Highland Cream (Wm. Teacher & Sons Ltd.)

Type: Blended Whisky

Age: Unspecified but probably between 3 and 8 Years

Alcohol: 40%

Colour: Pale Gold

Nose: First impressions are Grains, Malt and Light Peat and Smoke. A bit of young Oak, harsh Alcohol, Vanilla and Spices.

Taste: Sugared lamp oil sprinkled with low quality pepper. Bit of Green Oak and Licorice.

Finish: It’s like holding a lump of sugar in your mouth that is slowly melting and is followed by something that resembles hot and bitter candle wax. Some Oak and Licorice as well. No use to spoil water on this blend!

Rating: 63

Nose: 17 - Taste: 15 - Finish: 15 - Overall: 16

General Remarks: Teacher’s Highland Cream is said to have a Malt content of around 45%, very high for a blended whisky. At its heart is the Ardmore Highland Distillery where the blend is produced. Glendronach is another important ingredient. Its nose should reveal Smoke and Chocolate and Butterscotch and Lemon and its taste should be creamy with Toffee and Sherry and Fruit with hints of Peat and Smoke. I can’t find anything like it in my glass today.

Drinking Experience Neat: Well Below Average.

Hey! Teacher! Leave them kids alone!

Conclusion: I really don’t know if, and if yes, what happened with this whisky between it being distilled in Scotland and bottled in Brazil. Is only water added to the mixture received from Scotland? Because I find it hard to believe that I am drinking the same whisky that is highly praised in so many parts of the world. Or did I get a bad - or falsified bottle or something? I tasted a second bottle in September 2013. I wasn't that horrified this time, slightly adjusted the Tasting Notes and increased the Final score to 63 points. Still well below average of course. Not a Blend I can recommend, at least not the way it's marketed in Brazil.

Jan van den Ende                                 January 18, 2012/September 27 2013

J and B Rare Blended Scotch Review

Country: Scotland

Brand: J&B Rare (Justerini & Brooks)

Type: Blended Whisky

Age: Unspecified but probably between 3 and 8 Years

Alcohol: 40%

Colour: Light Gold

Nose: Average. I am welcomed by wafts of sharp Alcohol. I’m fighting my way through and find Corn Flakes with Sugar and a touch of Salt. I suspect the presence of many young Grain whiskies in this blend. Bit of Malt, Nuts and young Wood. Light Vanilla. There are some Fruity tones in the back but the Alcohol makes it difficult to identify them. Green Apples probably.

Taste: Thin delivery. Sugary Caramel with Hot Spices and rough Wood dipped in raw Alcohol.

Finish: Sweet as Candy. Bit of Honey and Oak. Stubborn Alcohol!

When you add a bit of water, it helps to drown the sharp Alcohol on the nose and I also smell a bit of Lemon. On the palate it waters things down on the one hand but it also makes the Caramel slightly less sugary. You can experiment a bit with water on this blend if you like.

Rating: 74,5

Nose: 19 – Taste: 19 – Finish: 18 – Overall: 18,5

General Remarks: This blend is the second best selling blended alcohol in the world! It’s hard to believe! Only Johnnie Walker Red Label sells more. Much more actually. But Still! It’s very popular in Spain but I’m sure they mostly mix it with something down there. The very sweet delivery makes it suitable for mixing I suppose. At its heart lies the Speyside distillery Knockando (Diageo).

There are over 40 Malt – and Grain whiskies in this blend and it’s been around since 1900 or so. But I fail to see the relevance of mixing so many whiskies to get such an indifferent end result. It must be me!

Drinking Experience Neat: Average/Good

Conclusion: Some guy (I believe from Balvenie) once said that whisky is liquid muesli. He’s got a point there. But there are many flavors available to transform your basic muesli into a very special breakfast. However, these flavors are not part of the J&B Rare Blend I’m afraid. It’s just your basic grains with a bit of sugar and some salt. It’s drinkable of course but it does not make me scream out for more.

Jan van den Ende                                                                January 16, 2012

Knockando Distillery

Yamazaki 12 Years Review

Country: Japan

Brand: Suntory Yamazaki

Type: Single Malt Whisky

Age: 12 Years

Alcohol: 43%

Color: Light Gold

Nose: Crisp and not too heavy. Malt, Cherries, Light Peat, Cinnamon, Blossom and Quality Oak are the first impressions followed by Honey and Tropical Fruit (Banana, Coconut and Pineapple). A bit of Alcohol but certainly within limits. Dried Fruits. The Honey and Floral tones on the nose are similar to Speyside malts. But with the Yamazaki we get Tropical Fruits instead of Sherry and the Wood is certainly different. Still, it would be difficult to keep them apart at a blind tasting session.

Taste: Strong delivery thanks to the 43%. Sweet Grain, Honey, Toffee and Dry Oak with Cinnamon, Cloves, Ginger, Nutmeg and Pepper. A whisky to chew on! The strong presence of Fine Oak sets this whisky apart from others tasted so far.

Finish: Sweet at first but dry towards the end. Honey, Apple and Oak. Very faint Peat and Ashes. Notes of Tea, Nuts and Tobacco. White Pepper to finish it off. But it all fades away too fast unfortunately.

When adding a bit of water, the Floral tones and Peat start dominating the nose. The palate becomes very smooth and honeyed and the Oak disappears to the background. I prefer it straight but you can certainly experiment with a bit of water. Just never overdo it!

Rating: 86,5

Nose: 21.5 – Taste: 22.5 - Finish: 21 - Overall: 21.5

General Remarks: The first malt whisky distillery in Japan was constructed by the Suntory Founder Shinjiro Torii in 1923 in the Yamazaki Valley close to the city of Kyoto. The place was chosen because its water, soil and climate were similar to Scotland. It was the first distillery of this kind outside Scotland and it used copper pot stills. Today the Suntory Yamazaki is the most popular Single Malt in Japan and it is exported to more than 25 countries.

Since 1972 Suntory is importing its malted barley from Scotland and Australia. The spirit is aged in a mixture of casks from American -, Spanish – and Japanese Oak.

Drinking Experience Neat:  Good

Conclusion: It doesn’t happen a lot but the Yamazaki 12 Years scored better on the palate than on the nose. The nose is crisp and tropical along with Speyside Blossom and Honey, but it’s the palate that steals the show combining rich sweet Honey and Toffee with a handful of Spices and a first class dry Oak. Nice combination. The finish is dry and agreeable but way too short. What stands out in this Single Malt is the Wood Quality. If you like the Balvenie DoubleWood 12 Years or Glenmorangie Original 10 Years, you really should give the Yamazaki a chance although it is more expensive!

Jan van den Ende                                                              January 12, 2012

Sgt.Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band - Review

Sgt.Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band - Beatles (1967)

Songs:  Sgt. Pepper´s Lonely Hearts Club Band, With a Little Help from my Friends, Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds, Getting Better, Fixing a Hole, She´s Leaving Home, Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite, Within You Without You, When I´m Sixty-Four, Lovely Rita, Good Morning Good Morning, Sgt. Pepper´s Lonely Hearts Club Band Reprise, A Day in the Life.

Type of Music: Quality Pop with Psychedelic Influences.

Comments

It´s been called by some the greatest record ever made. Others consider it to be the first concept album. Many people regard it to be the best of the  Beatles Records.

Well, for me it´s non of the above. It´s not in my All Time Top 10 of Classic Rock Albums. And the fact that the title track is revisited at the end of the album is clearly not enough to consider Sgt. Pepper to be a Concept Album. There are too many styles represented here. And, for me at least, the best of the Beatles was still to come.     

Since we have now established what Sgt. Pepper is not, we can concentrate on what it does represent. First of all I consider it to be a Work of Art. Never before in my opinion was so much attention paid to the presentation of a record. I´m sure that many of you can at least partly describe the cover of the Album. The same attention was paid to the sound quality.

Sgt. Pepper is also a fine collection of songs. The variety of styles avoid the record to become boring even after many spins. There is the acid-rock of Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds, the Indian Chant Within You Without You written by George, the Circus Music of Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite, the Vaudeville of When I´m Sixty-Four, the power pop of Lovely Rita and the sad but lovely pop-ballad She´s Leaving Home.

There are a few minus points as well. Everybody who saw the Woodstock movie will agree that Joe Cocker made With a little help from my Friends his Song. Sorry Ringo!!

I also rate Good Morning Good Morning as a weaker song and the reprise of Sgt. Pepper is irrelevant.

And although I consider A Day in the Life one of the best songs on the record, there are inexplicable irritating flaws in the way John´s voice was recorded.

But these observations do not prevent Sgt. Pepper from being an essential Beatles Album. As such it should be part of any Pop/Rock collection.       

Black = Good Songs

Green = Great Songs

Red = Could Be Better

Rating:******** (8 out of 10)

Who should buy this Record: Everybody.