Saturday, 25 March 2017

Glendronach Parliament 21 yo, Benromach 30 yo, Laphroaig 18 yo Berry Best and Port Ellen 28 yo DL Platinum

Can't find the right idea for this tasting: sherry and bourbon? Speyside and Islay?

Glendronach 21 yo Parliament 48% - nice strength and nice age. 

Nose: tons of sherry, dark berries, prunes, but later it goes into struck match and sulphur, can't say I enjoy it.

Taste: dense and sweet with lots of boiled fruits.

Finish: long, sweet, spices and coffee, slightly woody.

Overall: too much sherry for me, I'd prefer 15 yo Revival both in terms of taste and price. But certainly recommended for sherrymonstromaniacs.

Score = 20 22 23 22, 87/100!

Benromach 30 yo 43% - owned now by Gordon & MacPhail who are making their best out of this distillery.

Nose: elegant, citrus and pear, sweet apricots, wood and spices, it's an old malt, baby!

Taste: mellow fruit jam, tobacco and leather, touch of citrus and spices.

Finish: long one on spices and wood, rich and generous with lovely hint of wood smoke.

Overall: very fairly priced 30 yo malt.

Score = 23 21.5 22.5 23, 90/100!

Laphroaig 18 yo 1997/2016 Berrys' Best cask #66 52.2% - bottled for 60th Anniversary of La Maison du Whisky, just 240 bottles in existence (already much fewer I believe).

Nose: smoky and fresh (don't ask me how that can be) with lots of oysters.

Taste: peaty and salty, not more, though not less :) Powerful and convincing.

Finish: long and smoky, sweet rubber and oysters in sea water.

Overall: it's like Black square Malevich painting, pure idea of Laphroaig itself, Laphroaig eidos, not a single excess detail.

Score = 22.5 22.5 22.5 22.5, 90/100!

Port Ellen 28 yo 1978/2006 Douglas Laing Platinum 56.1% - the colour gives idea of sherry cask maturation.

Nose: sweet with touch of peat, salt and smoked fruits.

Taste: lapsang souchong tea, peat again, dense and thick.

Finish: salty, meaty, almost salami in there, is that sherry cask work? :)

Overall: it's quite nice, though you expect from Port Ellen even more...

Score = 22 22 22 22, 88/100!

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