Dufftown 1997 Review

Country: Scotland

Brand: Dufftown 1997

Bottled by: Gordon & MacPhail, Elgin, Scotland - Connoisseurs Choice

Type: Single Malt Whisky

Region: Speyside

Age: 12 Years (Distilled in 1997 and bottled in 2009)

ABV: 43%

Date: 04/11/2012

Colour: Pale Gold

Nose: Soft. Typical Fruity and Floral Speyside Nose with Malt, Oak, Vanilla, Heather, Honey and Sherry. There is some Alcohol there but it's not aggressive.

Taste: Fruity although I find it difficult to identify the individual Fruit flavours. Plums and Pineapple perhaps. I also find Malt, Honey, Heather, Sherry, Oak, Vanilla, Spices (Pepper and Cinnamon) and Nuts. Traces of Cigar Ashes. Nicely balanced.

Finish: Relatively short, clean and medium dry with Malt, Pepper, Heather and Licorice.

I added a few drops of Water and you get extra Malt, Fruit, Butter, Heather and Honey on the Nose and on the Palate. The Finish does not alter significantly. Still, there's room to play with a couple of drops.

Rating:  84.5 

Nose: 21.5 - Taste: 22- Finish: 20- Overall: 21

General Remarks: The Dufftown Distillery (Diageo Group) started production in 1896 and is one of today's seven whisky distilleries in the city of Dufftown (Moray). The distillery has 6 stills that mainly produce for the Bells Blend. Gordon and MacPhail is an Independent Bottler from Elgin. In the Mid-Sixties the company introduced the Connoisseurs Range with many whiskies that otherwise would not have been available as Single Malts. Refill Sherry Hogsheads were used to mature this Dufftown Expression. I don't believe this whisky contains E-150. If so, than only a little bit.

Drinking Experience Neat: Good

Conclusion: A well-crafted Speysider. The Nose is soft, Malty, Floral and Fruity. The balanced Palate has Malt, Sherry, Spices and a nice hint of Ashes. The Finish is clean and medium dry. The Dufftown 1997 is not an earth-shattering dram but it's utterly enjoyable, specially if you like this type of Speyside Whisky.

Jan van den Ende                                                                   November 2012

Update # 2

Hi Everybody and Welcome to Best Shot Whisky Reviews,

It's been a great week. Thanks to the new set-up it has become much easier to find the site in Google. This way many more visitors have been able to read about Whisky and Classic Rock. I also succeeded in posting a new Classic Rock Album Review. That was about time as I have been neglecting that a little bit lately. It's not really Rock actually but it's Classic enough. You can find the Review of the first James Taylor album below or here: James Taylor - James Taylor

I hear you thinking. What has this well-known guy to do with whisky! Yesterday night I was tasting the Crown Royal Black, a Canadian Blend owned by the Diageo Group. In my opinion this whisky is a Crown Royal Goes Bourbon Style type of marketing! You can find the Tasting Notes below or here: Crown Royal Black

I would also like to remind you of the possibility to start enjoy drinking whisky via Nosing - and Tasting Sets instead of buying expensive full bottles with the chance of disappointment! You can find the basic details here: Whisky Nosing and Tasting Kits. If you want more detailed information you can have a look at the site of Dolce Vita Trading here: Dolce Vita Trading - Nosing and Tasting Kits

And finally I would like to thank all of you for visiting and re-visiting the site. At the end of this month we will celebrate the first year of Jan's Whisky Paradise/Best Shot Whisky Reviews. It has been a great year and today we will pass the 67.000 Page View mark. Who would have thought that when I posted my first Tasting Notes in November 2011. One of the first reviews was the Johnnie Walker Red. You can find them here if you like: Johnnie Walker Red Label It's nice to see how the Reviews have matured since!

I would like to wish you all a very nice weekend and see you all back tomorrow for more whisky and Classic Rock.

Saude!

Jan

Crown Royal Black Review

Country: Canada

Brand: Crown Royal Black

Type: Blended Whisky

Age: NAS

ABV: 45%

Colour: Very Dark Reddish Amber. I suspect that a generous hand of Caramel was added. This is the darkest dram I've reviewed so far.

Nose: In a blind tasting session, nine out of ten people (including me) would probably identify this as an American Bourbon or Rye Whiskey. The first impressions are Sweet Corn, Rye, Charred Oak, Pepper,Vanilla (Custard), Maple Syrup, Cherry Cough Syrup and Alcohol. After a while I find some Orange Peel, Mint and Cinnamon. Nice effort!

Taste: Bitter Caramel (Too much E 150?), Brown Sugar, Rye, Pepper, Licorice, Orange Peel, Alcohol (Ethanol), Nuts and Cherries. The Crown Royal character pops up a bit now. Taste Wise this is not a Bourbon anymore. It's more Crown Royal Fine De Luxe goes Bourbon style!  I'm not too impressed. I get visions of cheap Rum and Coca Cola!

Finish: Rye, White Pepper, Orange Peel, Alcohol (Ethanol) and Bitter Grapefruit Juice.

I added a few drops of Water but won't do that again despite the 45% ABV. The bitterness on the Palate is becoming unpleasant. Better sip this neat or with Coca Cola.

Rating: 78.5 

Nose: 21 - Taste: 19 - Finish: 19 - Overall: 19.5

General Remarks: This new 45% ABV expression of the well-known Crown Royal Blend was launched by the Diageo Group in April 2010 with a massive propaganda campaign. It is distilled at the Gimli Distillery in Manitoba, Canada and matures in Charred Oak Barrels. Crown Royal Black contains Corn, Rye and Grain Whiskies and was elaborated by Master Blender Andrew MacKay. It is imported and bottled in the USA by the Crown Royal Company, Norwalk (CT).

Drinking Experience Neat: Okay

Conclusion: Crown Royal definitively looked for ways to attract the US Bourbon market when launching the Black. First they put in lots of Caramel to make it look like Bourbon. Then they in fact managed to blend a Nose together that is quite similar to American Bourbon and Rye Whisky. Good work from Andy MacKay in this respect. But on the Palate the Caramel and Ethanol are too dominant and don't give the other flavours a real chance. Americans may be tricked in trying out the Black once but at an average price of around US$ 35 there are too many good Bourbon and Rye Whiskey alternatives available that simply outclass this Canadian brother!

Jan van den Ende                                                              November 2, 2012

James Taylor - James Taylor - Review

Songs: Don´t Talk Now, Something´s Wrong, Knocking ´Round The Zoo, Sunshine Sunshine, Taking It In, Something In The Way She Moves, Carolina In My Mind, Brighten Your Night With My Day, Night Owl, Rainy Day Man, Circle Around The Sun, The Blues Is Just A Bad Dream.

Best Song:  Carolina In My Mind

Type of Music: Soft Rock/Folk

Comments:

Most people think that James Taylor popped up out of nowhere in 1970 with his album Sweet Baby James and the Hit Single Fire And Rain. T´is not so. James was born in 1948 in Boston, Massachusetts. Around 1964 he played in a band called The Fabulous Corsairs. After that Danny Kortchmar asked him to play in his band that was called The Flying Machine. They released one single namely Night Owl/Brighten Your Night With My Day. In 1968, James went to England and met producer Peter Asher (The Peter from Peter & Gordon). Together they went to see Paul McCartney and as a result James Taylor was the first artist to sign for Apple Records.

After some long hours in the Think Tank, the resulting album was simply called James Taylor. Peter Asher thought it a good idea to add some brass. He also provided most of the Baroque style links between the songs. Especially the first six tracks are thus glued together and form a suite based on Taylor´s personal experiences including his short stay in a mental institution, here referred to as The Zoo. It is well-known that James has had a serious heroin problem throughout his career. 

Despite the above, this album sounds quite confident. James knows how to write a nice soft-rock song or two. Other artists seem to think so as well. It´s obvious where George Harrison got his inspiration for Something. And Bonnie Raitt would make Rainy Day Man her song on her album Streetlights. James himself would re-record some songs later on in the seventies and would even hit the charts with Carolina In My Mind.

James Taylor is a pleasant combination of folk, soft-rock, blues and country, craftily produced by Peter Asher. Another perfect album for a rainy Sunday morning. Unfortunately, not all songs are as good as Don´t Talk Now, Something, Carolina In My Mind and The Blues Is Just A Bad Dream. As always, there´s quite some filler as well. Not really bad but somewhat boring.

Still, a very confident first album from an artist that would go on to dominate the Soft-Rock Scene in the early Seventies.

Who should buy this Record: Everyone who enjoys pleasant Soft-Rock. It is not an Essential James Taylor Album though.

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

Glen Moray 12 Years Review

Country: Scotland

Brand: Glen Moray

Type: Single Malt Whisky

Region: Speyside

Age: 12 Years

ABV: 40%

Colour: Amber

Nose: Not as crisp as the 8 years. Quite Speyside though with Minerals and Floral tones like Heather and a light hint of Peat. I also find Toffee, Malt, Oak, Lemon and Vanilla. Fruity tones are present but in a more subdued way. I get a bit of Orange, Pear and Cocoa.

Taste: Medium-Sweet to Sweet. Slightly Watery delivery with Malt, Oak, Vanilla, Sugared Tea, Wood Spices and Toffee.  

Finish: Medium-Long with Spices (Black Pepper and Ginger), Nuts, Licorice, Malt, Toffee and Oak.

I added a few drops of Water and the Nose becomes a bit more Malty and Fruity (Orange, Apricot, Peach). But taste wise I can't find any significant improvements. If anything, the dram becomes more Sugary Sweet.

Rating: 79   

Nose: 20 - Taste: 20- Finish: 19.5 - Overall: 19.5

General Remarks:  The Glen Moray-Glenlivet distillery is located close to the city of Elgin, the capital of the Moray region. Glen Moray whiskies  have been distilled there since 1897. The Elgin region is known for excellent malting Barley and a mild climate. The Glen Moray is matured in American Oak Casks and stored in traditional low roofed warehouses that are said to maintain the well-rounded characteristics of this spirit. The distillery is owned since 2008 by La Martiniquaise from France.

Drinking Experience Neat: Good

Drinking Experience on the Rocks: Okay

Conclusion: I don't know about you but I like young Speysides. They are light and crisp and the Floral, Lemon and light Fruit Tones (Pear) aptly qualify them as a very nice Aperitif. They taste great with a bit of Ice on a warm summer day. That's why I like a.o. the Glen Moray 8. It's not a great and complex whisky but it has all of these simple, yet effective qualities. With 4 extra years of American Oak, the Glen Moray 12 is more subdued and frankly a bit boring. While it does not show any significant progress in complexity, it looses quite a bit of the crispy and fruity youth that makes the 8 attractive as an Aperitif. I'm sure this Single Malt would be a lot more interesting when bottled at say 46%. Like the 8 Years, the Glen Moray 12 years is not very expensive. I paid 35 US Dollars at the Duty Free Shop in  Argentina. Still, I don't see me buying the 12 again. Not because it's a bad whisky. But because it does not quite qualify as an Aperitif and it's too simple as a to-go-to sipping dram.

Jan van den Ende                                                              October 30, 2012