Wemyss Spice King Review

“King For A Day”

Country: Scotland 

Brand: Wemyss Spice King

Bottler: Wemyss Malts, Edinburgh

Type: Blended Malt Whisky

Age: 12 Years

ABV: 40 %

Colour: Amber 

Nose: Young, Sweet and Spicy. And, to my surprise, slightly Smoky. I find Bread Dough, Wet Earth, Straw, Nut Shells, Toffee, light Honey, Dried Fruit, Malt, Citrus Peel, Chili Pepper, Apple Vinegar, Nutmeg, Cinnamon, Dried Herbs,  lightly Charred New Oak and some soft Mineral - and Maritime tones. I'm pretty sure there is Talisker in this Blend. The Alcohol is not fully integrated.

Palate: Slightly Thin on account of the weak ABV. Not too much going on here. I find Charred New Oak, Malt, Straw, Grass, Wet Earth, light Smoke, Lemon Peel, Toffee, Nuts, Nutmeg, Pepper and Cinnamon. The Palate would have greatly benefited from a higher ABV.

Finish: Middle-Long, Dry and Spicy with Malt, Nuts, Orange Peel, light Smoke, Charred Oak, Salty Licorice, Cinnamon, Pepper and Nutmeg.

I added some Water and found some slightly Sour Cooked Apples on the Nose. The Spices are mostly gone. Palate and Finish do not improve with Water. 

Rating: 82.5 

Nose: 21 - Taste: 20.5 - Finish: 20.5 - Overall: 20.5

I Bought this Miniature in the Dallas Dhu Shop. 

General Remarks: The Spice King is part of a new range by Wemyss of Edinburgh, next to Hive and Peat Chimney. Each represents one of the three main Scottish production areas, respectively Highlands, Speyside and Islay. The Spice King is a Blend of 16 Single Malts. The heart is formed by a Highland distillery but some Island Malt is used as well. By the way, Wemyss is the old Gaelic word for Caves. The Whiskies for the Wemyss Blends are chosen by a Panel, chaired by the well-known whisky writer Charles MacLean. The Spice King is usually sold at around 55 US Dollars. A cheaper 8 year version is also available. Wemyss did a very nice job on Packaging and Presentation!

Drinking Experience Neat: Good. 

Conclusion: After having tasted close to 400 different Blends and Single Malts from all over the world I have found that I like drinking a nice Blend on the Rocks but that I truly enjoy tasting a Single Malt. Of course this does not mean that you can't enjoy sipping a good Blend or drinking a good Single Malt all night long. But I hope you'll get the general picture. Blends are produced to please as much people as possible and most of the times this leads to a perfectly drinkable but slightly boring Spirit. A Single Malt, or, even better, a Single Cask possesses its own Character, Strength and Weaknesses. It's almost like comparing an imperfect but colourful human being to a perfect robot. Take the Wemyss Spice King for instance. It's certainly not a bad Blend and it's pleasant enough. And the Talisker Touch gives it a little extra Punch. Still, I have tasted it today and will have forgotten it by tomorrow. Truly a King for a Day.

Jan van den Ende                                                         October 16, 2014

Dunes An Oir 1996 Review

“Bottled Oak”

Country: Scotland 

Region: Speyside

Brand: Dunes An Oir - Caperdonich 1996 (Malts of Scotland - Van Zuylen)

Type: Single Malt Whisky

Age: 17 Years

ABV: 58.6 %

Colour: Dark Gold

Nose: Mature and quite Oaky. The Alcohol is very strong so avoid smelling in the centre of the glass. I find Bourbon, Vanilla, Chocolate Bonbons filled with Cherry Liqueur, Dried Fruit, Nuts, Orange, Black Currants, Brown Sugar, Malt, Nutmeg, Cardamom and Cinnamon. The Nose is similar to a mature Bourbon. However I find the Oak a bit too dominant.

Palate: Very strong Delivery on account of the high ABV. This seems to beg for a bit of Water. I find Charred Oak, Dusty Roads, Dried Herbs, Licorice, Strong Black Tea, Orange, Nutmeg and Pepper. 

Finish: Quite Long and Spicy with Oak, Walnuts, Nutmeg, Pepper, Dried Herbs, Bitter Orange, Licorice and Dark Chocolate.  

I added a teaspoon of Water and the Alcohol backs off naturally. On the Nose I find more Dark Red Fruit tones and some Menthol. Palate and Finish do not improve with Water. I find some extra Licorice and Cardamom on the Palate. It is of course much easier to drink the Dunes An Oir this way. 

Rating: 82.5  

Nose: 21 - Taste: 20.5 - Finish: 20.5 - Overall: 20.5 

General Remarks: This Dunes An Oir (Gaelick for Dunes of Gold) was bottled at Cask Strength by Malts of Scotland for Van Zuylen, the Netherlands. The Spirit was distilled in March 1996 and bottled in June 2013. It matured in a Bourbon Hogshead with Cask # MoS 13025. This Single Malt is naturally coloured and not Chill-Filtered. Only 276 bottles were commercialised at around 110 US Dollars a piece. The Dunes An Oir was distilled by Caperdonich. This distillery was built in Rothes in 1898 by the founders of the Glen Grant distillery. Initially named Glen Grant # 2, it closed after only 4 years and was not operational until 1965 when it was rebuilt by Glenlivet Distilleries and renamed Caperdonich. It was sold to Seagram in 1977 and subsequently to Pernod Ricard in 2001. Caperdonich was closed in 2002 and demolished in 2010.

Drinking Experience Neat: Good 

Conclusion: The Dunes An Oir 1996 is certainly not your every day kinda dram. In principal it comes with all the right features such as Single Cask, Non Chill-Filtration, Cask Strength, Natural Colour and a high ABV. But despite all this I believe that the 17 years in the apparent active Cask # MoS 13025 were too much for this delicate Caperdonich Spirit. Additionally I think that the ABV is actually a tad too high. As a result, the Dunes An Oir is a heavy handed Single Malt with lots of Oak and Dark Aromas and Flavours. Almost the Scottish version of a mature Bourbon but lacking the Sweet tones of the latter. Hardly the type of Spirit I would reach out for on a regular basis. Interesting tasting experiment though!

Jan van den Ende                                                            October 12, 2014

Macallan Amber Review

“Not a Big Mac”

Country: Scotland

Region: Speyside

Brand: The Macallan Amber (Sherry Oak)

Type: Single Malt Whisky

Age: NAS 

Alcohol: 40%

Macallan in Mist and Rain

Colour: Golden Amber

Nose: Light but Pleasant enough with Floral tones, Fruit and Barley. I think of freshly baked Apple Pie stuffed with Raisins and Spices like Cinnamon, Ginger and a bit of Nutmeg. I also find Vanilla, Toffee, Orange, light Sherry, Bread Dough, light Varnish, Straw, Cocoa Powder and a hint of Canned Peach.

A Very Warm Reception in the Shop

Taste: Quite a disappointment after the Nose. The delivery is Thin and Watery. The ABV of 40% is clearly not sufficient. I suspect a high percentage of refill Casks as well. I find Burnt Caramel, Toffee, Brown Sugar, slightly Bitter Oak, Citrus Peel, Nut Shells, Cinnamon, Ginger, Pepper and artificial Fruit flavours like Strawberry, Watermelon and Apricot.

Some of the Wash Backs

Finish: Short, Light, Dry and quite Bitter with Malt, Oak, Vanilla, Artificial Strawberry Flavour, Orange, Nut Shells and Bread Dough. 

Another View of the Wash Backs

Added Water does not improve the Macallan Amber. Better sip it neat.

Rating: 81

Nose: 21.5 - Taste: 20 – Finish: 19.5 – Overall: 20

The Aroma Gallery

General Remarks: The Macallan Distillery was founded in 1824 and is located in Craigellachie, Moray. It is part of the Edrington Group since 1999. Generally, the Macallan whisky is considered a Sherried Speysider by nature although by law (2009) Craigellachie is Highland territory. Gold, Amber, Sienna and Ruby form the NAS "1824" Series. The Amber matured in First Fill and Refill Spanish Oak Casks from Jerez and American Oak Casks, all seasoned with Oloroso Sherry. All Macallans of this series are named after their Colour. The Series honour the fact that all Macallan Whiskies are free from Artificial Colouring. The Amber sells at around 70 US Dollars.

Delivery of the Barley

Drinking Experience Neat: Average/Good

Conclusion: Not a Big Mac I'm afraid. It starts off well enough with a Light but Pleasant Nose. A nice combination of Barley, Fruit and Floral Aromas. The Raisin - and Spice notes are very clear. But on the Palate the Macallan Amber is Young, Thin and, quite frankly, too boring for a Single Malt that will cost you around 70 bucks. The Finish is very Short and quite Bitter. Lack luster Wood Management I would say. This Malt also needs an ABV of around 46%. If you like Macallan and you don't want to spend a small fortune, I would advise you to go for the Sienna instead.

A Few Warehouses

Some Data: The name Macallan derives from two Gaelic words namely Magh that means Fertile Strip of Land and Ellen referring to St. Fillan, a missionary from the 8th century. The Macallan Distillery is located close to the B 9102, just north of Craigellachie. It was first licenced in 1824 to Alexander Reid. Macallan is the 3rd best selling Single Malt worldwide. Some of its Malt disappears in Blends like The Famous Grouse and Cutty Sark. The Distillery possesses 2 Mash Tuns, 22 Wash Backs and 14 Stills. In 2013 their total production amounted to close to 10 million litres.

Tasting Session after the Tour

The water for the distillery is sourced using boreholes by the river Spey. From Easter to August, the Distillery opens from Monday to Saturday from 9.30 to 16.30 hours, In September and October from Monday to Friday from 9.30 to 16.30 hours and from November to Easter from Monday to Friday from 11.00 to 15.00 hours. The Standard Tour costs 8 Pounds but is worth every Penny of it. The Precious Tour costs 20 Pounds and promises even more details as well as extra fine drams during the Tasting Session afterwards. All tours must be booked in advance as their is a limit of 10 persons per tour.

Our Excellent Tour Guide Julie

We visited Macallan on a rainy Saturday May 24, 2014. We were very early (9.30) and were really lucky to have Julie as our Tour guide. She only started working at Macallan at the beginning of 2014 but she was the best tour guide during our trip to Scotland. Enthusiastic, pleasant, knowledgeable and also extremely detailed. The Standard Tour takes around 1,5 hours and is great value for money. Macallan uses Models, Pictures and Aroma, Flavour and Wood samples to provide you with a really complete overview of the Whisky making process. At the end of the tour we tasted the 12 Fine Oak, the 18 Sherry Cask, the 21 Fine Oak and the Amber. The Gift Shop and Visitor Centre are very representative and have a lot of great old Maccallans on display. If you were to visit only one distillery while you are in Speyside I fully recommend Macallan. A  pity you are not allowed to take pictures of the production process! But other than that full marks to Macallan. If only I liked their affordable Whiskies as much as their Tour!

Some Golden Oldies

Jan van den Ende                                                            October 8, 2014