So here, in no particular order, are a couple of whisky-related nominees followed by a few personal faves I’m excited to see on the list:

St. George Spirits, Alameda, CA

Clear Creek Distillery, Portland, OR

Mission Chinese Food’s Danny Bowien, San Francisco, CA

Incanto’s Chris Cosentino, San Francisco, CA

Sanford’s Justin Aprahamian, Milwaukee, WI

Dogfish Head Craft Brewery, Milton, DE

Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., Chico, CA

Bar Agricole, San Francisco, CA

NOPA, San Francisco, CA

Congratulations, people!

Thanks to Master of Malt for the sample and apologies for not reviewing this before you went ahead and selfishly sold all of the bottles.

The character of Sir John Falstaff first barreled his way on stage in Shakespeare’s Henry IV, Part I, then again in Henry IV, Part II, and finally, in a larger “starring” role in Bill’s The Merry Wives of Windsor. In Henry IV, the portly Falstaff proves to be a bad influence on the king-to-be Prince Hal by dragging him into such low-life activities as tavern drinking and petty crime. Falstaff was a jovial, somewhat bumbling lump of a man who enjoyed his booze and spent his time bragging about things he hadn’t done and/or lying about the things he had. In The Merry Wives of Windsor, he clumsily schemes to make some money by courting married women, which, predictably, results in Falstaff being routinely embarrassed and mocked…which he takes with his usual indefatigable good humor. Nowadays, the term “Falstaffian man” seems to get applied to plus-sized men who champion their love of the table and the bottle and prove to be such eccentric yet gregarious characters that most of us find it hard to escape their sizable gravitational pull. It’s become a sort of complement, acknowledging someone’s capacity for bon vivant fun while simultaneously frowning upon their disregard for related potential health problems down the road.

Why the hell am I mentioning this, you ask? Well, it seems that the founder of Cragganmore, the uniquely named John Smith, was himself a bit of a Falstaffian fellow. Already an experienced distiller having worked at Glenfarclas and Macallan among others, Smith opened the distillery in 1869 after also throwing his weight behind the new Strathspey railroad which began service six years earlier and was a major factor in Cragganmore’s success. Legend has it that Smith was so large, he couldn’t fit through the door of a passenger train car. Legend does not have whether or not he ruined the reputations of princes or smeared the good names of married society women, so just how Falstaffian he was remains to be seen. Suffice it to say, he was a large man who made great whisky.

Today, Cragganmore is one of the 643 million distilleries (no, not really) owned by Diageo and is part of their Classic Malts line-up. This 20 year old single barrel offering from Master of Malt was matured in a re-fill hogshead, and numbered 274 cask-strength, non chill-filtered, non artificially colored bottles. Sadly, this is another expression from Master of Malt that sold out before I was able to review it, but visit them anyway to see all the other great stuff they have.

The Nose:  A crisp, yet well-matured Speyside nose full of floral honey, fresh-baked apple pie, raisins in vanilla-tinged rice pudding, and a bit of juicy fruit gum. Behind that lush honey and fruit sweetness, there are much subtler notes of dried sawdust, faint worn leather, and a tiny hint of pipe tobacco. There’s nothing too unexpected or unique about the nose, but there’s also nothing that’s not delicious and inviting about it. Water brings out much more orange citrus and quiets some of the “dessert” notes.

The Palate:  Wonderful entry of honey, orange pith and juicy but tart, crisp apples. Zippy, warming toasted malt and spicy wood grow in tandem with soft white pepper, grated ginger and bitter clove. Continued cut wood notes go from dry to green with an earthy twinge into the finish. Like the nose, water brings out more citrus in the form of candied lemon. It also candies the ginger a little and smooths out the bigger oak notes. I actually liked this quite a bit neat, but water does make the palate a little more approachable.

The Finish:  Continued honeyed citrus sweetness mingles with more drying spice and green wood and subtle oak.

Thoughts:  Though the nose is rather stereotypical of a Speyside malt this age, it’s also really enticing and rich. The palate is not quite as rich as the nose leads you to believe, but instead, surprises with its vigor and spiciness. I was missing some of the more earthy, rugged complexity I usually associate with Cragganmore but that didn’t stop me from enjoying this older Speyside.

Master of Malt 1991 Cragganmore 20 Year Old, Speyside

54.2% ABV

Score:  84

Shop Master of Malt here and check them out on Facebook and Twitter

In honor of Ernest Shackleton’s birthday today (138 years ago in 1874), I was all excited to write about this one, all ready to expound on the leitmotifs of his Antarctic adventures; epic heroism, brave leadership, and stoic perseverance in the face of withering climatic adversity, etc.  Then I realized that I didn’t actually know as much about Shackleton and his adventures as I thought I did. Without knowing much about the man, I had pictured a proud but taciturn English servant, boldly exploring the nether reaches of the globe for god and country. I assumed these expeditions were well-financed, well-supplied, and well-thought-out…I mean, why wouldn’t they be? You don’t want to be cavalier about this kind of thing. You wouldn’t want to trek down to a polar ice cap with an automobile, a few ponies, and nearly 70 gallons of booze would you? You’re damn right you wouldn’t, hangovers and hypothermia don’t mix, nor do cars and massive amounts of drifting snow.

It turns out I was wrong. Shackleton, like many of his exploring cohorts of the day, wasn’t a serious scientific man looking to uncover the mysteries of the unknown, he was a gregarious adulterer mostly looking to uncover the mysteries of wealth and fame. His 1908 Nimrod expedition was underfunded, hastily put together, and poorly thought out, rushed into being to capitalize on the attention polar exploration was getting in those days. It turns out that the English explorers didn’t think much of the already-proven arctic exploration techniques of skis and sled-dogs used successfully by the wonderfully mustachioed Norwegian, Roald Amundsen. Nope, for his expedition across snow and ice Shackleton chose…ponies and a car…seriously. Suffice it to say the car was pretty ineffective and the ponies ended up in several dinners and not necessarily tasty or healthy ones at that. Also, because these boys cared more about throwing a good sub-zero party than they did a balanced diet, they brought no fruits or veggies, opting instead for half a dozen cases of Port, a dozen cases of brandy, and 25…TWENTY-FIVE… cases of whisky. Of all that they drank everything but a couple of cases of brandy and few cases of whisky which they left behind as they beat a hasty retreat back to warmer climes.

By now, the story behind  Mackinlay’s Rare Old Highland Malt Whisky, the replica of this long  frozen “Shackleton Whisky” is pretty familiar to almost every whisky fan from here to the Weddell Sea. In 2007,  3 cases of Mackinlay & Co.’s Rare Old Highland Malt Whisky cases were found hidden away under the floor of the main base camp hut used in ol’ Ernie’s Nimrod expedition. The bottles inside were intact and preserved by the cold but needed to be carefully excavated, slowly defrosted and cleaned over a period of years before any further research on the contents was done. Once they were ready, Whyte & Mackay, the owners of the Mackinlay’s brand (which they shelved years ago), were allowed to examine a  few of the bottles and even taste a bit of the ancient juice inside. Richard Patterson, Whyte & Mackay’s esteemed Master Blender, made careful analysis of the stuff and then set about making a reproduction of Shackleton’s Mackinlay to release as a special bottling. Fanfare and marketing hype ensued, of course, but in this case, the back story and resulting whisky actually live up to the hype.

The 1908 version of Mackinlay’s was found to consist of malt whisky made at Glen Mhor. Orkney peat was used in the drying of the malt and once distilled, the spirit was aged for between five and ten years in new American White Oak casks that previously held sherry. In making the reproduction, Mr. Patterson could not simply go back to the original source as the Glen Mhor distillery was torn down in 1983. Instead, he carefully vatted a malt using old existing stock from Glen Mhor’s last distilling year and younger malts mainly from The Dalmore along with others from various Highland and Speyside distilleries. The range of malts in this new expression range from 8 to 30 years old. It was bottled at 47.3%, the same strength as the original ended up being.

The Nose:  Light and almost delicate but with a subtle depth and richness as well. Tart lemon icing and fresh-pressed apple juice. A bit of creme brulee and French vanilla ice cream. Toasted walnuts and a bit of fudge with subtle wisp of dry wood smoke and floral heather. Just keeping things interesting in the background is a faint kiss of peat. Reminds me of Highland Park in a way, not so much in the actual flavors, but in its covering-all-the-bases kind of way.

The Palate:  That light yet complex nose doesn’t quite prepare you for the more rugged, powerful palate, but it’s a welcome juxtaposition. Great mouthfeel with opening notes of rich toffee. Dry, but aromatic wood smoke moves in quickly and compliments a swell of juicy raisins, dates, and bright, juicy orange. Dark chocolate fudge, roasted nuts, more of that delicate peat and a familiar compliment of spices, cinnamon, clove, and vanilla, round things out with nicely tannic notes leading into a mouth-watering finish.

The Finish:  Lingering apple-wood smoke, a touch of dryish peat, and salty roasted nuts. Nice length, though it was so good, I found myself wishing it held on a little longer.

Thoughts:  If I was freezing my ass off on a barren ice shelf with only filthy, bearded men for company and only seal blubber and/or cold ponies for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, I would definitely want a few cases of this stuff along. A huge congratulations has to be given to the staff who rescued the original bottles and to Richard Patterson and Whyte & Mackay for all the hard work in re-creating Mackinlay’s, it’s beautiful stuff. There’s delicious complexity throughout, with a lighter, almost teasing nose and a fantastic, rich and rugged palate. With a flavor profile that is definitely that of a much older style this whisky is masterfully made and obviously a delight to drink. This whisky is in high demand and tends to be hard to find, but if you have the chance, it is most definitely worth a try. Highly recommended.

Mackinlay’s Rare Old Highland Malt

47.3% ABV

Score: 90

Fellow Whisky Roundtablers Jason Johnstone-Yellin (he of Guid Scotch Drink) and Joshua Hatton (he of the Jewish Single Malt Whisky Society blog) along with their partner Seth Klaskin have just this week announced the debut of the Jewish Single Malt Whisky Society. The JSMWS is now a true society, with several membership levels and the opportunity to get in on their exclusive independent bottlings. Yes, you read that right, these fine fellows are now independent bottlers as well. That’s hutzpah, ladies and goyim. Speaking of Goyim, fret not Jesus, Vishnu, Muhammad, Buddha, Quetzalcoatl, and P’an-Chin-Lien worshipers, and atheists/agnostics, you don’t have to be one of the chosen ones to partake…The JSMWS is open to everyone regardless of their stance on gefilte fish, dradles, golems, or Hank Greenberg. The water of life is its own religion, right?

I couldn’t be more excited for these guys in this endeavor, they’ve done a lot of work to get here, including what must have been a few grueling trips to Scotland.  If you’re interested in learning more check out the JSMWS here, they will be open to the public on February 20th!

L’chaim!

The most recent Roundtable is hosted by Keith over at the Whisky Emporium where he queries us all on the big whisky shows we plan on attending and what we hope to gain from the experience. Here’s his three-part question:

1 – Which, if any, festivals are you planning or hoping to attend this year?

2 – What dictates your choice(s) here; Is it location and perhaps ease of travel, or is it more?

3 – What do hope to get from festivals?  Meeting people, trying new editions, bringing samples away to try later or anything else?

…and here are the responses.

Any industry landscape is littered with companies being bought and sold and changing their names faster than Margaret Thatcher changed his or her underwear, but just for fun, as a brief, related aside, let’s take a quick look at the ownership and name changes The Dalmore’s parent company went through in the last 22 years. In 1990, Whyte & Mackay Distillers Ltd. was purchased by American Brands, a sprawling holding company that got its start in tobacco and by this time had a range of products including cabinets, windows, locks, golf equipment, booze (Jim Beam), and perhaps most importantly, Swingline Staplers. American Brands re-branded itself Fortune Brands in 1997 and its European division seems to then have been re-named JBB (Jim Beam Brands) Greater Europe Plc. in 2001. That didn’t last long as a Scottish-led management buy-out then took control of JBB and renamed it Kyndal Spirits. Wisely, the new owners quickly decided that Kyndal sounded like some kind of futuristic reading device and what the company really needed was a good, solid, Scottish sounding name. They pondered and pondered and in 2002, renamed the company…Whyte and Mackay.

Somebody somewhere has boxes full of all these obsolete business cards and stationary, I’m sure. Believe it or not, Whyte and Mackay was purchased yet again in 2007 by United Spirits. Luckily for us, throughout this silly, corporate three-ring circus, excellent whisky continued to be made. This 14 year old single cask bottling from the incomparable Master of Malt was matured in a re-fill hogshead and unlike most distillery Dalmore expressions, was bottled non chill-filtered at cask strength with no caramel color added.

The Nose:  A decidedly different nose for a Dalmore. Toasted malt and marzipan, apple sauce and slightly bitter grapes. A touch too spirity, there’s also vanilla bean with subtle hints of damp leather. Behind the initial flavors, there’s an almost thin bourbon-y sweetness…which is odd given that it came out of an ex-sherry cask, and the tiniest whiff of pipe tobacco. A bit of water flattened out the nose too much, though it did release some cocoa notes

The Palate:  The juicy youthfulness of the palate caught me off guard here with spirity white grape juice and candied orange. Joined quickly by some lightly sour malt, salted nuts, and some citrus rind, that hot high-octane tingle continues. Bright but brash, bitter spice and wood notes bring things to a close with a bit of ginger, white pepper, and salt. A little water takes the edge off a bit and quiets those upfront fruit juice notes. A bit more sherry influence comes through as well, but it still winds up being a little sour, spirity and bitter at the end.

The Finish:  Still young, with more ginger, bitter citrus pith and unsweetened chocolate.

Thoughts:  I would’ve never guessed that this spent 14 years in a sherry cask, a tight ex-bourbon barrel, finished in a Manzanilla or some white wine cask, maybe, but not solely in a sherry cask. There’s not much here that says “The Dalmore”, and while there are interesting, winey, fruity moments, ultimately it’s the surprising spirity and bitter youthfulness that keeps me from thinking more highly of it.

Master of Malt 1996 The Dalmore 14 Year Old, Highlands

55.5% ABV

Score:  79

Shop Master of Malt here and check them out on Facebook and Twitter

Slainte Mhath, people.

“Let other poets raise a fracas
‘Bout vines, an’ wines, an’ drucken Bacchus,
An’ crabbit names an’ stories wrack us,
An’ grate our lug:
I sing the juice Scotch bear can mak us,
In glass or jug.

O thou, my Muse! guid auld Scotch drink!
Whether thro’ wimplin worms thou jink,
Or, richly brown, ream owre the brink,
In glorious faem,
Inspire me, till I lisp an’ wink,
To sing thy name!

Let husky wheat the haughs adorn,
An’ aits set up their awnie horn,
An’ pease an’ beans, at e’en or morn,
Perfume the plain:
Leeze me on thee, John Barleycorn,
Thou king o’ grain!”

- from Scotch Drink, by Robert Burns

It is with great regret and mild humiliation that I’m writing this review (and a few others) pretty much after the fact. This past Fall, Master of Malt, in their infinite wisdom, sent out samples of their most recent round of single cask bottlings for people to review, to you know, drum up sales. However, in my case, they failed to take two things into account. One, they’re a damn popular outfit, and their well-priced, well-chosen independent bottlings tend to sell out quickly, even without the help of humble whisky bloggers. Two, I’m woefully behind in my tasting queue; new kid, new job, the holidays, all of that has conspired against me and I’m just not drinking enough whisky quickly enough. Rest assured this is something I hope to improve upon in 2012. The end result here is that Master of Malt sold all of this particular bottling before I was able to post my tasting notes, leaving this rather philosophical question hanging in the air, “if one posts tasting notes for a whisky that no longer exists, should anyone care?” Hell, I don’t know, philosophically speaking, who do I look like…Hegel? If nothing else, this shows just how good these Master of Malt selections can be.

Dailuaine (pronounced ‘dale-YOU-an’) is one of Diageo’s workhorses, laboring in single malt obscurity with 98% of its whisky going towards blends, specifically Johnny Walker. Indeed, over the last several years, the distillery has suffered a bit of an identity crisis, making three different styles of whisky to fulfil the needs of various blends. As there’s only the occasional special distillery bottling released (the 16yo Flora & Fauna), Dailuaine’s single malt can more easily be found in independent bottlings like this cask-strength, non chill-filtered, un-caramel-colored 27 year old beauty from Master of Malt.

The Nose:  Sweet, sherried, and mature to be sure, but there’s also something a little dirty about this one…and I mean that in a good way. Ginger snap cookies, thick honey, hints of butterscotch, and a bit of orgeat syrup. The sherry influence comes across as lush, sweet dessert wine, think Vin Santo. There’s a subtle earthiness here as well, old damp leather, old worn wood, almost a touch of peat-like pungency, but it hovers well in the background just showing up enough to keep all the sweeter components interesting. A little water brightens the fruit here quite a bit, softens the ginger and sweetness and brings up more delicious grain notes.

The Palate:  Oily mouthfeel opens with burst of honey, figs, juicy grapes, and spice –  grated ginger and white pepper. The wood takes no time in letting its presence be known, but it wisely does not blow everything out of the water. Joined by strong malt notes with hints of cardamom, clove and star anise, the wood is complex and quite tannic yet works well with the initial sherried sweetness. With water, this is just beautiful, it slows everything down, and stretches out the flavors. The wood gets a little too heavy at the end, but its worth it to have the rest play out more languidly.

The Finish:  Continued spicy, woody goodness with more ginger, white pepper, wood spice and sherried sweetness.

Thoughts:  Pretty impressive stuff. It teeters on the edge of expected and refined on the nose, but has that slight earthy catch that keeps it interesting. The palate is a bit of a wild ride without water, but with water, it really shines. There’s a lot going on here to keep it from being just another decent old sherried Speysider. A nice display of malt and wood, and of sweetness and spice.

Master of Malt 1983 Dailuaine 27 Year Old, Speyside

53.6% ABV

Score:  87

Shop Master of Malt here and check them out on Facebook and Twitter

In the interest of full-disclosure, I’d like to mention right away that Master of Malt sent me a sample of this whisky to review. Also in the interest of full-disclosure, I’d like to mention that I am a huge fan of Master of Malt. Rest assured that I was a huge fan of Master of Malt long before they sent me samples of their whisky, and will continue to be a huge fan even if they start sending me flaming bags of dog poop, which they might start doing after they read some of the posts I plan to put up later this month.

If you’re a fan of whisky and you don’t know about Master of Malt then you are in for a treat. If you do know about Master of Malt, then you already know what a great retailing resource they are and you can skip to the tasting notes section if you want. The company has been selling booze to folks since 1985 and today are one of the few non-US based online retailers that ship to the states, giving us poor saps in the colonies access to whiskies we might normally never see. They are also one of the few whisky retailers that sell a broad range of samples, fantastically packaged in wax-capped bottles with rustic, hand-printed looking labels, again giving people a chance to try whiskies they might not otherwise even consider. They do a great job, better than practically any retailer that I can think of, of not just creating an educational community around the spirits they sell, but of being really enthusiastically involved, of reaching out and participating with the serious aficionados and budding malt-heads alike, and of being creative in their approach to bringing people to the world of whisky. As a prime example, this year they sent out special blending kits to 10 fellow bloggers, who then each created their own blend. Master of Malt then sold samples of the blends and asked people to vote on their favorite with the resulting whisky now being sold as St Isidore’s Blend. If you’re seething with envy over not being one of these blogger blenders (bleggers? blonders?), fear not…you can create your own blend with one of these fantastic little blending kits.

Along with their own line of carefully selected, single cask bottlings from various distilleries, Master of Malt has produced several expressions from un-named distilleries representing the main Scotch producing regions. This 30 Year Old Speysider is the fourth edition of 30 year old Speysiders and like all their bottlings has no added color and has not been chill-filtered.

The Nose:  Wonderful honey-coated everything…winey, juicy raisins and baked apples, vanilla rice pudding and caramel sauce. All this lush sweetness is balanced nicely with soft notes of rich malt, smooth polished oak, and gentle spice hints of cinnamon, dried orange peel, and black peppercorns. Tucked in the background are fainter hints of tobacco leaf duskiness and sawn wood.

The Palate:  Luscious mouthfeel and even more honey and caramel to start, but quickly becoming more robust with darker sherry tones, burnt toffee, marzipan, and unsweetened cocoa. While the oak presence is strong, it’s not nearly as overwhelming as it could be for something this old. Requisite vanilla, cinnamon and clove notes are joined by a nicely honeyed, tannic oak quality that grows persistently on through the finish.

The Finish:  A wonderful continuation of the palate, this just slides into more drying, but still honeyed oak with dwindling unsweetened cocoa and spice.

Thoughts:  Beautiful stuff. Lush, just shy of voluptuous, a bit regal, and just enough “been around the block” to make for a dram you can sit and savor for the good part of a cold winter’s day. Rich, sherried nose leads into a really nicely developing, balanced and complex palate. You certainly can’t expect a 30 year old Scotch to be inexpensive, but for £99.95, around $153.00, this is a good value and a delicious way to try an older Speysider.

Master of Malt 30 Year Old Speyside (4th Edition)

40% ABV:

Score:  88

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Here’s another different but equally excellent master of something…

Round II of this little foray into Glenglassaugh’s young spirits finds us in a slightly more mature state of mind than the first round. While the Clearac and Peated offer a chance to try the distillery’s juice straight from the still, The Blushes and Fledgling XB show the effect of a short hiatus in wood before bottling.

Glenglassaugh Blushes

The color might be a bit of a giveaway here, but…Blushes has been aged for 6 months in oak casks that previously held Californian red wine.

The Nose:  Quite subtle and pleasant. The crisp, under-ripe pear of the Clearac is joined by grape skins and currants…it looks like a rosé, and it smells a bit like one, too. Dry sawdust and cardboard. A slight hint of spirity cough syrup.

The Palate:  The initial sweetness definitely has a wine like cast to it, with a bit of bittersweet cocoa as well. Cinnamon and salted cashews. Towards the end, youthful almost beery grain gives it a sort of subtle, bitter “green” feel.

The Finish:  Surprisingly lengthy and mouth-watering, lots of salted nuts and raisins with just a touch of the sour grain hanging about.

Thoughts:  Like the Clearac, I found this young spirit to be surprisingly drinkable and smooth. I’m not sure the six months in wood have smoothed out that many rough edges, perhaps there’s less of a sour feint-y quality, but the influence of the barrels former resident is clear. There’s a light wine-y-ness, a little more dried fruit and nuts, that give this more complexity and drinkability than I expected. A successful and interesting experiment to be sure.

Glenglassaugh Blushes, Highland…but damn near Speyside

50% ABV

———-

Glenglassaugh Fledgling XB

The “XB” in Fledgling XB stands for ex-bourbon, as in this was aged for 12 months in an ex-bourbon cask.

The Nose:  Very smooth soft nose with canned pears in syrup, vanilla panna cotta and perhaps even rice pudding with raisins. Loitering in the background are some spirit-y plastic notes, but they’re pretty restrained for only having a years worth of maturation.

The Palate:  Dark, dark chocolate and more tinned fruit. Grows quickly spicy with coarse vanilla bean, cardamom, and clove. A surprising amount of wood, not much relatively speaking, but more than I would’ve guessed for something so young. The young roughness of the grain is tempered but still there.

The Finish:  Continued coarse grain and zippy youthful, slightly bitter, spices. I’d swear there was the tiniest wisp of dry wood smoke at the end, perhaps the char from the cask?

Thoughts:  Like the Blushes, the Fledgling XB, is another interesting and worthwhile experiment. While not really something I could see myself reaching for at the end of the day, it is a surprisingly mature, complex spirit. The ex-bourbon influence is clear, lots of vanilla, spice and that little bit of char.

What I find fascinating about these two is that the very brief maturation provides a quick, clear picture of what each type of barrel adds to the spirit. There hasn’t been nearly enough time to build layers of complexity, so instead, one is treated to a tasty snapshot of the strongest, main characteristics. Kudos to Glenglassaugh for releasing this quartet and giving people the chance to really explore the spirit that will eventually make up their whisky.

Glennglassaugh Fledgling XB, Highland…but damn near Speyside

50% ABV

———-

Scores:  Not going to bother with scoring these, a new make spirit is far too different an animal to judge and score on the same basis as other aged whiskies and I don’t have enough experience with other new make to make an objective comparison.