Chieftain's Auchroisk 11 Years Medoc Finish Review

Country: Scotland

Brand: Chieftain’s Auchroisk Medoc Finish

Bottled by: Ian Macleod & Comp. Ltd., Edinburgh

Type: Single Malt Whisky

Region: Speyside

Age: 11 Years

Alcohol: 43%

Colour: Golden

Nose: Sour like Vinegar, Wood, Grains, Caramel, Malt, Harsh Alcohol, Light Peat, Hints of Red Fruit and Port Wine.

Taste: Not extremely pleasant. It’s harsh and hot with Spices (think of Nutmeg) and a strange Medicinal/Metallic off-note. Bit of Toffee/Caramel and a hint of Berries.

Finish: Bitter-Sweet with Wood and Spices. Fortunately it’s not very long.

With a few drops of water you get a few extra faint floral - and fruity tones on the Nose. Heather comes through and hints of Buttered Toast with a touch of Honey. The Nose certainly benefits from a bit of water. The Palate however does not and reveals a sloppy wood quality. The Finish practically disappears with the exception of a rather unpleasant sweetness that stays for a couple of minutes.

Rating: 70

  

Nose: 19 - Taste: 17 - Finish: 16,5 – Overall: 17,5

There are five Chieftain expressions in this gift-set. Let’s hope the three remaining ones are better than what we had so far.

General Remarks: Ian MacLeod is a so-called Independent Bottler. These companies play an important part in today’ s whisky industry. They buy casks of (young) spirit from Distilleries, mature them, finish them and bottle them, all at their own discretion and then sell the final product under their own label. This is all very attractive for whisky drinkers who look beyond the standard Distillery offerings. They are often bottled at cask strength and non-chill-filtered. Many times, but not always, Independent Bottlers offer products that are greatly appreciated.

The Auchroisk Distillery was only founded in 1974. It’s a large distillery, located in Banffshire ,with an annual production capacity of around 3,5 million litres. It is owned by the Diageo Group and is the Home Distillery for the J&B Rare Blend. The 11 Year Medoc finish was distilled in 1994 and bottled in 2005.

Drinking Experience Neat: Below Par.

Conclusion: Another Medoc Finish from Ian MacLeod and although it’s slightly better than the Dalmore 10, there is no cause for rejoicing. The Nose is not that bad and would have been even better if not for the Vinegar off-note. I feel that a high percentage of older Refill Casks have been used here. But Palate and Finish are quite disappointing and therefore I can’t recommend this Single Malt.

Jan van den Ende                                                                    June 6, 2012

Grand Macnish Review

Country: Scotland

Brand: Grand Macnish

Type: Blended Whisky

Age: NAS

Alcohol: 40%

Color: Bright Gold

Nose: Sweet Grain, Malt, Caramel, Light Peat, Oak, Straw, Leather, Floral Tones (Think of Lavender), Honey and Lemon. A light Vinegar off-note. There’s a hint of fruit but I can’t pin it down. Peach maybe or Pineapple. Some Sharp Alcohol makes it a bit difficult to get to the heart of this Blend. Give it time to open up a bit. It’s not bad but I can’t really get excited about this.

Taste: Sweet Grain, Caramel, Toffee, Honey, Malt and Light Spices. It’ s quite sweet and smooth. A tad salty. Not earth-shocking but not bad either.

Finish: Short and Dry Speyside-type Finish with some Toffee, Oak and Floral notes. The Salt is still there as well.

I added a few drops of water that does nothing extra for the Nose but does enhance the Honey on the Palate and in the Finish. Just try it out.

Rating:  82

Nose: 20 – Taste: 21,5 – Finish: 20 – Overall: 20,5

General Remarks: This Blend was created in 1863 by Robert McNish. It consists of around 40 Malt and Grain-Whiskies from a.o. Highland and Speyside. The Brand is currently owned by MacDuff International, Glasgow. It’s not widely available around the world although it’s been produced constantly since 1863. It was a favorite of the well-known writer Ernest Hemingway. The bottle is quite old-fashioned.

Drinking Experience Neat: Good

Drinking Experience on the Rocks: Okay

Conclusion: This is one of those few occasions where I rate the Nose lower than the Palate. The Nose is really uneventful. Nothing to write home about. But on the Palate the Grand Macnish is very smooth and the Honey tone is very nice. The Finish is on the Short side. If you can get this Blend it will cost you around 35 Dollars, which is a good price for this Blend, especially when you like the combination of Speyside and Highland whiskies.

Jan van den Ende                                                                  June 2, 2012

Talisker 10 Years Review

Country: Scotland

Brand: Talisker

Type: Single Malt Whisky

Region: Highland (Island: Skye)

Age: 10 Years

Alcohol: 45,8%
Chill-Filtration: Yes

Fully Recommended!

Colour: Light (Amber) Gold (Artificially Coloured)

Nose: Somehow I had expected an overwhelming nose but it’s quite restrained actually. We start with Moderate Peat, Light Smoke, Leather, Old Books, Iodine, Salt, Brine, Shell Fish sprinkled with Lemon, Diesel, Pepper, Menthol, Wood and Mineral tones. When you have just opened a new bottle, there’s quite a bit of rather sharp Alcohol there so give it time to open up properly. After a while some Brown Sugar, Dried Fruits (Think of Raisins and Apricots), Malt and lightly sugared Orange Zests.

Taste: There’s a lot going on here. The delivery is reasonably strong thanks to its 45,6%. I find Sweet Barley, Pepper, Leather, Light (Peat) Smoke, Tobacco, Ashes, Citrus, Green Apples, Cinnamon, Vanilla, Salted Almonds and Mustard. 

Finish: This is the strongest part of this Single Malt. It’s long, rough and rather dry. Sharp Jalapeno Peppers, Smoke, Leather, Dark Chocolate, Wet Earth, Oak, Cinnamon, Diesel, Menthol, hints of Smoked Salted Fish and Bacon. A finish you are not likely to forget very quickly.

I added a couple of drops of water that brought more Peat and Heather to the Nose. On the Palate, the Pepper retreats a bit and the fruity Citrus tones come to the foreground. The Finish however gets watered down and looses its magic. Still there’s plenty of room to play with a little water here.

Rating: 88
  

Nose: 21 – Taste: 22 – Finish: 23 – Overall: 22

General Remarks: The Talisker distillery is located in Carbost on the shores of Loch Harport on the Isle of Skye. It produces 2,6 million litres per year. It’s part of the Diageo Group.

Drinking Experience Neat: Good

Conclusion: This is an extremely well crafted Single Malt. After a restrained Nose, lots of different flavors fight for your attention on the Palate, followed by an exceptional Finish that you are not likely to forget for the rest of your life. But while the Palate gives away a world of flavors, I miss some balance there. In particular I would have liked to see some sherry or honey tones to balance the Peat and the Spices. The Cinnamon can’t do that all by itself. I give it a high score because I think it’s a very well made Single Malt and it certainly stands out in the sea of colourless whiskies. It's one of my to-go-to Peated Islay Malts alongside the Ardbeg 10, the Caol Ila 12 and the Laphroaig 10.

Jan van den Ende                                June 2, 2012 and November 22, 2017

Jethro Tull - Aqualung - Review

Songs: Aqualung, Cross Eyed Mary, Cheap Day Return, Mother Goose, Wond'ring Aloud, Up To Me, My God, Hymn 43, Slipstream, Locomotive Breath, Wind Up.

Type of Music: (Hard) Rock with bits and pieces of Folk.

Comments:

There is no Classic Rock Fan that can´t hum the opening riff from Aqualung´s title track! The Album became Jethro Tull´s biggest commercial success and most acknowledged effort. This despite the controversial theme and lyrics of the album that deal with the distinction between religion and God. Ian Anderson is quite clear in stating that organised religion interferes with the divine relationship between God and men. Ian uses the figure of Aqualung ( a beggar with a bad cough – hence the name) to tell us his story.

I´m not sure if Aqualung is the Tull´s best Album but it is certainly one of their best efforts. And that´s because most of the songs here are excellent. They have even survived years and years of daily air-play on Classic Rock Stations all over the world. And that says something about the timeless quality. Many people thought at the time that it was a Concept Album but Ian has stated quite clearly that it's "just" a bunch of good songs. There is however an acoustic touch to the Album that the band would investigate more further on down the road.

The best song on the album must be Locomotive Breath, the perfect Rock Song about bad luck. The piano and the guitar get the train moving and once on its way, it won´t stop going, no way it would slow down! Many artists have recorded songs that seek to imitate the movement of trains but Ian beats them all.

Also excellent is the title track. Actually there are three different moods in this song reflecting our friend Aqualung´s state of mind. And both Cross Eyed Mary and Mother Goose display that near perfect inter-play between guitar and flute that is so characteristic for the best of Jethro Tull´s work.

Up to Me, My God and Hymn 43 have strong and recognisable riffs as well but the songs themselves are less memorable. And there are three short acoustic interludes (Cheap Day Return, Wond´ring Aloud, Slipstream) that are nice but quite uneventful actually,maybe with the exception of Wond'ring. Ian knows how to play the acoustic guitar although he would abuse it sometimes later in the Tull´s career.

The only slight let-down is the album closer Wind Up. Here Ian gets a bit too preachy for my taste. That´s also the case in My God but there the instrumental parts of guitar and flute provide a necessary counter balance.

And there´s one other flaw. The sound quality of the re-mastered album is still relatively poor and lifeless. It misses the warmth of the original vinyl record. In the interview that is added as one of the bonus tracks, Ian explains that the band was never happy with the sound of the Island studios. Apparently Jethro Tull was the first band to record an important Album there, together with Led Zeppelin.  

The other bonus tracks include alternate versions of Song for Jeffrey, Fat Man and Bouree as well as a slightly better version of Wind Up and, finally,  Lick Your Fingers Clean that would later be released on the Warchild album, be it in a somewhat different version.

Conclusion:

Despite some small flaws, Aqualung is one of the great Jethro Tull Albums and should be part of every Classic Rock Collection.

Who should buy this Record: Everybody.

Bonus Tracks: Lick Your Fingers Clean, Wind Up (Quad Version), Excerpts from the Ian Anderson Interview (1996), Song for Jeffrey, Fat Man, Bouree.

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

Black = Good Songs

Green = Great Songs

Red = Could Be Better

Dalmore 10 Years Medoc Finish (Chieftain's) Review

Country: Scotland

Brand: Chieftain’s Dalmore Medoc Finish

Bottled by: Ian Macleod & Comp. Ltd., Edinburgh

Type: Single Malt Whisky

Region: Highland

Age: 10 Years

Alcohol: 43%

Colour: Red Gold

Nose: Oh dear! Some call it Baby Vomit, I call it Morning Sickness because babies are so cute! But it hits you right in the Nose and it’s not pleasant. Other than that it’s Sour with some Wood and a faint hint of Bitter Orange Marmalade.

Taste: Delivery is watery, a bit hot and sweet (as in Sugar). Rubber Tires, Bitter Salted Almonds, Oak.

Finish: Hot, Alcohol, Salt.

I added a few drops of water that help control the sickness a bit. With some imagination you can detect a faint fruitiness that returns on the palate. It is too faint to be pleasant but a little water makes this almost drinkable. Almost but not quite!

The famous Dalmore stag

Rating:  67 

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

General Remarks: Ian MacLeod is a so-called Independent Bottler. These companies play an important part in today’ s whisky industry. They buy casks of (young) spirit from Distilleries, mature them, finish them and bottle them, all at their own discretion and then sell the final product under their own label. This is all very attractive for whisky drinkers who look beyond the standard Distillery offerings. They are often bottled at cask strength and non-chill-filtered. Many times, but not always, Independent Bottlers offer products that are greatly appreciated.

Drinking Experience Neat: Unpleasant

Conclusion: This is easily the worst Single Malt I’ve tasted so far. If this were your first whisky it would scare you off forever. It should not have been bottled, let alone sold. Thanks God I only bought a miniature. Apparently this whisky was distilled in 1994 and bottled in 2005. There shouldn’t be too much of it around but my advice is to stay away from it.

Jan van den Ende                                                                  May 26, 2012

The Dalmore Distillery