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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