A Whisky Live Surprise!

Whisky: Overeem Port Cask Matured

Distillery/Brand:
Overeem

Bottling:

Overeem Port Cask Matured

Region:
Australia

ABV:
43%

Colour:

Young Sauternes

Review:
Overeem first came to my attention at Whisky Live Perth.  I'd heard of this distillery in Tasmania, as oh so many Australian distilleries are located, but I'd never tried it before.

While at Whisky Live Perth I was chatting with the owner of Sullivan's Cove, I'd just had his whiskies which I'd enjoyed, and he was running the stand for Overeem, which is a very common thing over here for the Australian distilleries to share one another's stands and talk about everyone's different whiskies.

I was blown away by the Overeem range, with the sherry cask matured cask strength instantly becoming my favorite whisky of the event.  I had to know more about these whiskies so I contacted Overeem about purchasing some samples and pretty quickly they arrived.

Tonight I'm starting the tasting with Overeem's Port Cask Matured, non cask strength.

It's from cask 45 and is bottle 121 out of 168.  That's right, all of the Overeem's are small batchs and they are no age statements.  I'm honestly going to guess that the whiskies are between 4 and 6 years old.

I crack the first bottle open and pour it into it's glencairn. 

Let's see what we shall see, shall we?

You definitely get the port casks influence with the whisky being a wee bit spicey with cinnamon and nutmeg, heaps of fruit, strawberries, vanilla and caramel, hint of nuts (hazelnut I'd say) and a small amount of cocoa.

Nice, very nice!

Let's see if the palate matches the nose.

Loads of vanilla, heaps of it in fact, more caramel, strawberries, hint of coffee and a wee bit of dark chocolate. 

Delicious!

There's a soft finish to the whisky, mild and easy going with faint fruits, cocoa and again the vanilla dominating.

Very nice!

And from memory my favorite Overeem was the Sherry Cask strength.  I think I'm going to enjoy the next few days quite a bit!

If you're looking for a good Australian whisky, I'd suggest giving any of the Overeem's a shot.  A bottle of the non cask strength Port cask will run at around $130 a bottle which is a reasonable price for how good this whisky is.  If you get a chance to try any of the Overeems do so!

Nose:       23/25
Taste:       23/25
Finish:      20/25
Balance:   20/25

Overall:    86/100

Worthy of Tears?

 

Whiskey: Writer's Tears Pot Still Irish Whiskey

Distillery/Brand:
Writer's Tears

Bottling:

Writer's Tears Pot Still Irish Whiskey

Region:
Ireland

ABV:
40%

Colour:

Young Sauternes

Review:
The beer shop that I manage now sells whisky, in no smart part thanks to me. Originally the owners had no interest in selling whisky, didn't think it'd do well enough, etc.

However thanks to my blog, the fact that I'm friends with most of the whisky guys in Australia and quite a few around the world, they decided that we should sell whisky.

Whatever whiskies I thought were good, we'd carry.

And it's completely taking off, at times accounting for a large percentage of our sells. And that means these days I have whisky reps in and out of the shop left, right and center.

A couple of weeks ago I had a whisky rep in the store and we'd got to chatting. The thing is I refuse to carry anything that the major chain stores sell just because I can't be competitive enough to justify it.

And so this whisky rep is in and we're chatting about that and he mentions an Irish whiskey that the major stores aren't carrying.

At this point I look a wee bit sheepish and comment that to be honest I'd yet to be suitably impressed by any of the Irish whiskies. They haven't been bad, but just haven't done it for me.

He looks at me in horror and states that he'll bring me a bottle in a couple of days time that he hopes will change that opinion. Fair enough, I'll bring the Kavalans I was telling him about as he can't believe that there are these legendary Taiwanese whiskies out there making waves.

It'll be a whisky trade!

On Friday he comes in, I've brought in the Kavalans and some glencairns and he brings me in a bottle of Writer's Tears Pot Still Whiskey.

He tries the Kavalans and is suitably impressed, commenting on how awesome they are. He then gives me the bottle of Writer's Tears to take home and play with.

Whoa!

So last night I crack open this bad boy while watching Castle with my wife and pour a nip into a glencairn.

The nose is very light and fruity with vanilla, lychee, apples, citrus, orange zest, cinnamon, slightly floral, lily's and lilacs.

It's a nice little aperitif type nose, reminding me at times of Auchentoshan and Glenmorangie, being a very light easy drinking whiskey (well at least the nose leads you to that thought!)

Time to taste though and see if I'm seduced into loving Irish whiskies!

Sweet, again very much an aperitif, light and sweet with heaps of vanilla, lots of citrus, orange peel, some oak, little grassy, honey, possibly just the slightest hint of cinnamon.

Very nice and easy going! I'm impressed. It's not a whiskey that I would normally go for as I generally enjoy the bigger casks strengths then the 40% abvs.

A very short finish with heaps of orange zest ends this whiskey.

Definitely a great whiskey to start the night on or finish a meal on. Am I sold on the Irish whiskies?

Nah, but that's more due to me preferring monsters like the Stag, Handy, Octomore, etc.

Am I sold on this being a good little whiskey?

Definitely!

You can pick it up at some of your higher end bottle shops here in Perth, not Dan Murphy's, for around $65 to $70 a bottle.

If you see it in a bar and would like to try an Irish whiskey that's better then Jameson then look no further!

Nose:        22/25
Taste:        22/25
Finish:       20/25
Balance:    21/25

Overall:     85/100

Wine and Peat?  Yes Please!

 

Whisky: Benromach Sassicaia Wood Finish

Distillery:
Benromach

Bottling:

Benromach Sassicaia Wood Finish

Region:Speyside

ABV:
45%

Colour:

Pale Gold

Review:
Still hunting for the perfect summer whisky, continuing through heaps of delicious whiskies, left right and center, when I decided to crack the Benromach Sassicaia Wood Finish.

Sitting here watching the final season of Breaking Bad, I do believe this whisky is the perfect accompaniment to it.

It pours with just the faintest pinkish tinge to it (so I say, my wife says I'm insane, but I've poured at least 4 different times now into the glencairn (separate days) and each time I look at the whisky I go "whoa that's a lil pink!"

This is another no age statement from the crazy guys at Benromach, but the spirit was distilled in 2005, making this whisky roughly seven to eight years old. It's a peated whisky and it's a Speyside distillery which isn't the most common match ups out there.

Alright more about what this whisky is like!

The nose is soft with peat smoke (not Islay style, much more mellow and mild), a hint of ash (as my wife describes it), toasted oak, heaps of vanilla, lots of fruit, raspberries and cherries, toffee, soft spices of cinnamon and nutmeg, you can easily get the wine's influence on the nose.

I've got to be honest I'm totally digging this whisky's nose. It's sweet (like how we're on the final season of a great tv series), but with the right level of . . . not harshness, but slightly in your face the way Breaking Bad is.

It's got a nose that I can definitely spend a lot of time with.

Time for a taste though!

Vanilla, slightly ashy, cherries, soft smoke, spices, cinnamon and ginger, toffee, again the wine cask's influence is easily seen. The palate is very dry, begging you to take another sip.

A long finish with faint fruit and a hint of smoke end this whisky.

I do believe that I could happily drink this whisky all day, no matter the weather. I'm totally digging it, love the wine's influence, love the smoke and peat, love the fruit. Why have I not tasted this whisky before?!

The only thing left that I can say about this whisky is that it runs about $100 AUS a bottle, IF you can find it,
I totally think it's worth that price and now I have to go find a bottle of this for my own personal collection!

A cracking good whisky!

Nose:        23/25
Taste:        23/25
Finish:       21/25
Balance:    22/25

Overall:     89/100

Crackling Pork Wrapped in Vanilla

Whisky: Benromach 10 year old

Distillery:
Benromach

Bottling:

Benromach 10 year old

Region:
Speyside

ABV:
43%

Colour:

Young Sauternes

Review:
Still hunting for the perfect summer whisky in preparation of the upcoming hot summer months or as I like to call it "when the land bursts into flame and I melt"

Today was a long day at work, full of whisky meetings and beer tastings (yeah I know my life is very difficult) and so I thought I'd crack open another Benromach, but this time I thought I'd go with an age statement, in this case the 10 year old.

Now going in I have no idea what this whisky is going to be like.  Yes I visited the distillery in May, but of the whiskies that we sampled, we didn't get a chance to try the 10 year old. 

So I was a little, only a little surprised, when upon cracking the seal I immediately discovered that this whisky, even thought it is a Speyside, was peated.

I say that I was only a little surprised as I know that Benromach does like to play with Speyside peat from time to time in their whiskies, I know this as I've got a bottle of their Peat Smoke in my cabinet.

So as I unwind I sit on Youtube, listening to different songs on my playlist, just nosing the glencairn, curious as to what will appear.

Well first off there is the smoke, but not the harsh oh so delicious Islay style smoke, but a softer kind, almost fruity at times, vanilla, green apples, grassy hay, dark chocolate, nutmeg, cinnamon, some mint, and as I quietly sit here listening to music, some very faint crackling pork belly.

COOL!

The meat totally comes out of left field and winds up developing around 90 minutes of the whisky sitting in the glencairn, but makes the entire experience extra special.  Now that I can smell it, I can't help, but not smell it!

But after 90 minutes or so I feel like I've gotten as much out of the nose as I can, so it's tasting time!

Slightly creamy, and while the 43% abv isn't optimal, it carries itself nicely.  Slight phenols, but again very mild, nothing like an Islay whisky, soft smoke, fruit, raspberries and strawberries, grass, little earthy.

Not a bad little whisky and definitely different from your normal Speysides.

A long finish with dark chocolate, some smoke and then faint apples and vanilla end the dram.

Running at roughly $75 to $85 AUS which is I'd say a fair price for an interesting little entry level Speyside that is not something most people think of when they think Speyside.  If you get a chance to try a nip of this, definitely don't hesitate!

Nose:        24/25
Taste:        22/25
Finish:       20/25
Balance:    20/25

Overall:     86/100

Spiced Toffee Apples!



Whisky: Glenfiddich 18 Year Old

Distillery:
Glenfiddich

Bottling:

Glenfiddich 18 Year old

Region:
Speyside

ABV:
40%

Colour:
Amber Gold

Review:
I've been working my way through all the various whisky samples that I received while I was in Scotland, dozens and dozens of different whisky samples, from distilleries, shops, independent bottlers and quite a few whisky friends.

Now with all of this bounty at my finger tips it's often times hard to decide which whisky to try and review next. Do I start with younger whiskies and work my way up in age, or do I start with the older whiskies first? Or maybe I start with the cask strengths, or maybe the rare whiskies.

Instead I've decided to go on a different take, and I'm not quite sure how well it's going to play out.

I'm going to try and find the perfect summer whisky.

See right now I'm sitting in the house, looking outside to a beautiful summer day and inside I tremble just a little bit.

I'm from a city where it can drizzle for weeks on a time, where you can get 200+ days of cloud each year.

You ever see X Files or Millennium and notice whenever they're in the Pacific Northwest how it's usually really cloudy and overcast?

That's because it is! And from that I have moved to Perth, where it is sunny, A LOT. To the point that oftentimes you're left asking "what are these clouds you speak of?"

And moving into summer where the temperature is going to start soaring, to 95, 100, 105, 110 degrees Fahrenheit, yeah it's going to be intense and I'm going to cry, a lot.

So like I said I'm going to try and find the perfect summer dram, to help keep me company over the long bright months ahead.

So I decided to head into the Speyside whiskies, so we can expect to see Balvenies, Benromachs, Glenlivets and Glenfiddichs.

Today was Glenfiddich 18 year old.

I cracked the sample bottle and even as I'm pouring the whisky into it's glass I'm picking up stewed apples and spices.

The nose is lovely, absolutely lovely, with apples, pears, vanilla custard, cinnamon, nutmeg, honey, dash of orange peel and a hint of smoke.

The mouthfeel is thin, which is to be expected at the 40% abv. This is my biggest issue with Glenfiddich. I love their whiskies, but the mouthfeel gets me every time. I'd love to see them raise their entry level abv to 46% abv honestly. I think it would do so much to improve their already good whiskies.

But enough about that!

Sweet flavors make up the palate, honey, the spices again, a bit of fudge, caramel, vanilla, apples, toffee, nice oak backbone.

The finish is VERY dry, with it being a wee bit floral and oaky, but the fruit and spices all blending together.

Definitely not a bad little whisky, a whisky that I actually quite enjoyed. Runs around $130 AUS at Dan Murphy's which isn't a bad price. I'd actually probably consider this whisky as a gift to a friend who was just getting into whisky as I personally believe that the fruit and spices would suck them right into the world of whisky.
 

Nose:        23/25

Taste:        23/25

Finish:       21/25

Balance:    20/25

Overall:     87/100

Toffeed Bananas in Honey!

Whisky: Benromach Organic

Distillery/Brand:
Benromach

Bottling:

Benromach Organic

Region:
Speyside

ABV:
43%

Colour:

Pale Straw

Review:
The very first distillery that I visited in Speyside is one of the smallest distilleries in Scotland. Run just by a couple of passionate whisky geeks my wife and I visited Benromach.

I'd heard of Benromach before, but had never sampled any of their wares so it was with great delight that at the end of the tour that I chose 3 very nice little whiskies as our guide Jimmy said "have fun!"

Arriving back home in Australia, I had received heaps of whisky samples from distilleries and whisky importers and quite a few of these whisky samples came from Alba Whisky who import Benromach.

Going through the samples I knew that the first one I reviewed needed to be the first one I chose in Scotland.
Benromach Organic.

As my Canivale marathon continues on I cracked open the sample bottle of Benromach Organic and poured it into the glencairn. Even from a foot away as I poured the whisky into it's glass the nose hit me.
Vanilla, toffee, and more!

Now Benromach Organic is a no age statement whisky that is older then three years old and less then ten years. The entire process of making the whisky, including the use of ingredients meets the standards set by the the UK Soil Association. The whisky is matured in American virgin oak.

Back to the tasting of the whisky!

The nose is sweet with honey, toffee, vanilla, pineapples, bananas, toasted oak, a little floral at times, lavender I think, a little bit of spice, cinnamon I'd say and more vanilla again.

Time for a taste!

Big vanilla, big big vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, creamy, pine apple, banana, peach and mango, a little white pepper, now maybe some lychee. It's not bad at all, quite easy going, but also makes you think a wee bit, know what I mean?

A white pepper with some slight fruit, mangoes, ends the finish which is of average length. Not a bad little whisky at all.

Especially when you consider that a bottle would run around $95 to $100 AUS when you can find it. It's an interesting little whisky and definitely worth a shot.


Nose:       22/25
Taste:        22/25
Finish:       20/25
Balance:    21/25

Overall:     85/100

When These Three Casks Unite....


Whisky: Glenfiddich 15 Year Old Solera bottle

Distillery:
Glenfiddich

Bottling:

Glenfiddich 15 Year old
 

Region:
Speyside

ABV:
40%

Colour:

Pale Gold

Review:
I've been watching the HBO series called Carnivale lately, well to be honest I should say that I'm rewatching the series as HBO is so very awesome and is always making something that I super enjoy such as Game of Thrones, Sopranos, Oz, etc and the thing that I find goes great with a good tv series is a good whisky.

I've been sitting on heaps of whisky samples for the longest time as I received many of them in mid to late June, but shortly thereafter I fell sick, sick to the point that I couldn't smell or taste whisky at all. As you all know, this is dangerously sick indeed.

Now that I finally have my palate back I'm happily making my way through the samples, exploring the whisky world and on today's menu is Glenfiddich 15 year old, Solera bottling.

Now for those who are unsure of what a solera bottling is, it's essentially where you have a vat of whisky from all sorts of barrels, and what you do is as you pull whisky out of the vat, you replenish it with more whisky so in theory you have a continually evolving whisky, that gradually gets older and older so that if you started this vat say 15 years ago and have been taking whisky out and putting whisky in, you still have the whisky from 15 years ago in.

Or maybe an easier way to explain it would be to say you have a bottle of whisky, it's an empty bottle of whisky so what you do is all the bits and bobs from your other bottles, the bottles that only have a dram or two left, you combine them together and as you drink from this combined bottle, you'd replace what you drank with more whisky so even years later you're still getting a little bit of the original bottling.

It's a very cool idea, really nifty in fact and many whisky geeks that I know do this.

The Glenfiddich 15 year old is just this sort of whisky, done with sherry, bourbon and new oak casks. This creates an interesting little whisky that contains notes from all of them.

So I crack the sample, pour it into my trusty little glencairn and give it a nose.

It's a sweet nose with honey and sherry immediately evident, and then you look beneath that and more appears. the trademark Glenfiddich apples appear, cinnamon, nutmeg, sultanas, figs, raisins, and a touch of toffee and vanilla. You can definitely pick up each casks influence.

Time for a taste though!

A big vanilla kick starts off on the palate, with hints of bitter oak, apples, cinnamon, nutmeg, honey, caramel and a hint of cocoa that slowly grows on the palate.

Not a bad little whisky, however it feels very thin on the mouth, a result of the 40% abv.

The finish is small, almost non existent, however there is a ghost of a wisp that has apples lingering, caramel, hints of citrus and cocoa. Like I said it's a ghost of a finish so that even a couple of minutes after you've finished your sip you have apples lingering oh so faintly in your mouth. Not bad at all!

It's not a bad little whisky as I've said before and runs around $100 AUS at Dan Murphy's. For the serious whisky geek I might pass it up, those guys who like mean are single cask, cask strength fiends, but for someone who's looking for an easy drinking whisky with a wee bit of complexity, it's not a bad whisky to go with.

Nose:       23/25
Taste:       21/25
Finish:      19/25
Balance:   20/25

Overall:    83/100