Chivas Regal 12 Years Review - The Final Verdict

Country : Scotland

Brand: Chivas Regal

Type: Blended Whisky

Age: 12 Years

Alcohol: 40%

Tasting Date: 30/09/2011 + 18/08/2012

Colour: Light Gold

Nose: Oak and Malt followed by some Sherry and  Dried Fruit (Orange Peel and Apricot). Not much else there.

Taste: Creamy Delivery with some Toffee , Sherry and Spice. Then suddenly something of a bite on the palate.

Finish: Short, some Spice. Not much here as well. A bit of Hazelnut after a while.

Rating : 73

Nose: 20 - Taste: 18 – Finish: - 17 Overall: 18

General Remarks. This blend contains some Strathisla, the Speyside Distillery that is the home of the Chivas.

I added a few drops of water which brought down the sharp Spices a bit. Still, better drink it neat.

Drinking Experience Neat : Average

Drinking Experience on the Rocks: Good

Conclusion: The nose, as so often, is the best part of this rather unbalanced blend. The rest is a bit aggressive. It’s not really bad but not something I would recommend. Buy a miniature bottle first (as I did). It's good enough however to drink On the Rocks or mixed.

Jan van den Ende                                                                           August 2012

Santis Malt Edition Sigel Review

Country: Switzerland

Brand: Santis (Appenzeller Single Malt) - 

Type: Small Oak Beer Casks Matured - "Edition Sigel"

Age: NAS

Alcohol: 40%

Date: 16/08/2012

Colour: Golden

Nose: Pleasant, Crisp and Fresh. Savoury Malt, Anise, Wood, lightly Buttered Sweet Bread, Dried Apricots, Brown Sugar, Orange Liquor. Hints of Amber coloured Belgian Beer (Kwak), Cinnamon and Dark Chocolate.

Taste: Sweet Malt, Spices (White Pepper), Anise, Wood, Orange Liquor and Hints of Kwak.

Finish: Middle Long with Light Spices (White Pepper and Cloves) and Sweet Orange Liquor.

I added a bit of water but that does not improve the dram. It just waters things down in my opinion. Still, feel free to try out a couple of drops and see what you prefer.

Rating:  80  

Nose: 21.5 – Taste: 19.5 – Finish: 19 – Overall: 20

Part of the Brewery Complex.

General Remarks: The Brewery in Appenzell (Switzerland) produces beer since around 1830 but was purchased by the Locher Family in 1886. Today they produce a wide range of beers, with or without Alcohol. In 1999 the Brewery started distilling whisky that was presented to the market for the first time in 2002. It uses water from the Alpstein Mountains and the whisky is matured in old used Oak Beer Casks. There are 4 expressions all named after Alpstein Mtn. formations. They are Santis, Sigel, Drei-faltigkeit and Marwees. 

One of the fine beers of the Locher Brewery.

Drinking Experience Straight: Good

Conclusion: When you are used to drink Scottish whisky or American Bourbon you will need to get used to this Swiss whisky. The Nose is pleasant and interesting enough with a variety of tones. Palate and Finish are slightly comparable to triple distilled Irish whiskey. Spices and Orange Liquor tend to be a bit dominant here. Still, this is a good effort of a young Distillery. Would be interesting to see what would happen to this Malt when given more time to mature and bottled at around 46%.

Jan van den Ende                                                    August 2012

Whyte and Mackay The Thirteen Review

Country: Scotland

Brand: Whyte & Mackay “The Thirteen”

Type: Blended Whisky

Age: 13 Years

Alcohol: 40%

Colour: Full Gold

Nose: Soft. Needs time to breathe like his younger brother, the W&M Special, especially when you open up a new bottle. You need to get around a bit of Alcohol. Malt and Sweet Grains come through as well as Oak, Vanilla and ripe Bananas. Bit of Honey, lightly Buttered Toast and very light Rubber. Hints of Dried Fruits like Figs and Sultanas.

Taste: Malt, Caramel, Tea, Biscuits, Brown Sugar, Honey, light Spices, a touch of Sherry and Citrus.

Finish: Medium long. Sweet but not too Sweet with Sugared Tea, Biscuits, Nutmeg, Oak, Sherry and Licorice.

When you add a bit of water the Nose opens up with more ease, releasing a balanced mix of Sweet Malt, Honey, Sweet Grains and the slightest touch of Peat. It’s not unlike Bourbon and I’m imagining Custard Pudding with a topping of Cherries. No traces of Rubber now. The Nose definitively benefits from a few drops of Water. It does not do a lot of good to Palate and Finish however. Therefore I would advise you to add a few drops of water before Nosing while drinking it neat. 

Rating:  80  

Nose: 21 – Taste: 20 – Finish: 19 – Overall: 20

General Remarks: Allan & Poynter started as a warehouse in 1843 in Glasgow, gradually getting into the business of storing whiskies as well. The company 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 that have been matured in Oak Barrels for at least 12 Years are married and stored in Sherry Casks from Jerez for another year. This extra year distinguishes this blend from the usual 10-12years of maturation. Finally this Malt Blend is mixed with 6 Grain Whiskies before bottling. The Thirteen replaces the former 12 Years.

Drinking Experience Neat: Good

Drinking Experience on the Rocks: Good

Conclusion: To be honest I had expected a bit more of the Thirteen. The Nose is the best part of this Blend, especially when opened with a couple of drops of water. But, as so often, Palate and Finish can’t deliver what the Nose promises. It’s certainly not a bad blend and it’s quite okay on the Rocks. And it’s not expensive. Still, I can’t see me buying another full bottle that easily again. It’s simply not distinctive enough.

Jan van den Ende                                                                  August 12, 2012

Sixty Years!

Hello everybody and welcome back to the Whisky Paradise!

After having been away for two weeks on a business trip to the South of Brazil, I'm glad to be back in Sao Paulo. The trip was excellent, the weather was fine and over the weekend I had the chance to visit the spectacular waterfalls of Foz do Iguacu. Never saw them with such a large volume of water, nearly 30% above average. It looks something like this:

While in the South I also had the opportunity to pop over to the Argentinean side and visit the Duty Free Shop to get me some whisky. Not too much variety unfortunately except for the usual blends. I did manage a Jura 16 Years, Glenmoray 8 and 12 Y and the Whyte & Mackay 19 Years Blend. So you can expect these to be reviewed in the coming months or so. 

Above you see an image of a 60 Year-Old Glen Grant. Not because I'm reviewing that one at the moment although I would really like to give it a try! No, tomorrow is my 60th Birthday! How time flies. I still remember my fifteenth birthday in 1967. As a gift I got my first record, Ticket to Ride by the Beatles followed the next day by This Strange Effect by Dave Berry. I never stopped loving Classic Rock from then on! My real interest for whisky started much later as I preferred drinking beer and wine when I was younger. Since November last year I'm writing about these two hobbies on this site. In the meantime we passed the 47.000 page views and it's great to see there's interest for these subjects all around the world. So a big thanks to all of you! Although I didn't had the chance to taste the 60 year old Glen Grant, I did review another Irish Whiskey last night namely the Tyrconnell NAS Single Malt. You can find the Tasting Notes below or here: Tyrconnell Single Malt NAS. I'm not too fond of the Irish Whiskeys so far. I get too many off-notes to really enjoy them. Maybe it's just me! Please leave your opinion in the Comments sector if you think otherwise. 

One of the good things about Birthdays is the fact that you receive presents! Even more so because it just so happens it's also Father's Day tomorrow in Brazil. So I'm curious to know if there will be any whiskies among my presents. I think so! 

Before I start celebrating tomorrow I will make a few changes on the site today. I will rearrange the Tasting Notes in such a way that you will find separate sections for Scottish Single Malts, Scottish Blends, Ireland, the USA and The Rest of the World. Hope that makes your search somewhat easier. As always, just let me know what you think about it !
I wish you all a very nice weekend and do come back on Monday when I will post the Review of the Whyte & Mackay The Thirteen Blend.
Saude!
Jan

The Tyrconnell Single Malt Review

Country: Ireland

Brand: Tyrconnell

Type: Irish Single Malt Whiskey

Age: NAS but said to be 6-7 Years

Alcohol: 40%

Date: 10/08/2012

Color: Pale Gold/Straw

Nose: Light and Crisp. Lots of Vanilla to start with followed by Malt, lightly Buttered Grain Biscuits, Oak, Raisins, Apples, Vinegar, light Alcohol, Lemon – and Orange Zest. Unfortunately I also find a light off-note (Plastic). There is some Sweet Fruit lurking in the back (Pear).

Taste: Vanilla, Custard, Slightly Bitter Almonds, Sweet Malt, Honey, Butter Biscuits, Light Spices.

Finish: Sugary Sweet at first but dryer towards the end. Vanilla followed by Grassy tones, Oak, Pepper and Slightly Bitter Cocoa Powder.

I added a bit of water and won’t do that again. It doesn’t do any good. The Nose becomes very Malty and Grainy. The rest just waters down. My advise would be to drink this whiskey neat.

Rating: 79 

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

General Remarks: Tyrconnell is the name of an Irish race horse that won the Irish Derby in 1876 at 100-1 odds. The distillery was founded in 1820 by Alexander Stuart but closed in 1925. The brand name was bought and reintroduced by the Cooley Distillery in 1988.

Drinking Experience Straight: Good

Conclusion: I am desperately trying to get friends with Irish Whiskey. It’s true that I only tasted Jameson Standard, Jameson 12Y, Connemara Peated NAS, Greenore 8Y Single Grain and now the Tyrconnell. And that’s not a hell of a lot of course. But so far I found Jameson to be okay but certainly not great. The other three are produced by the Cooley Distillery and I’m not extremely impressed by any of them. The Nose is not the main problem. There are certainly nice tones to be found although I get off-notes in all three of them, respectively fake Peat Smoke, fake Bananas and Plastic. But I have difficulties in really liking the Palate. There are nice Vanilla and Malt tones but the overall impression that lingers in my mouth and in my mind is a combination of Sweet Sugar,slightly Bitter Nuts (Almonds) and a peculiar off-note. I’m sure there are a lot of people who will like the Tyrconnell and Irish Whiskey in general and I will certainly continue to test and taste these spirits. Who knows? Someday I might see the light. But for the time being I find them interesting to try out, yet not tasty enough to really compete with their Scottish brothers!

Jan van den Ende                                                                       August 2012