Tag: Rating: Excellent Page 31 of 41

Whisky of the Week review and tasting notes for whiskies that I rated as Excellent. Excellent means that after tasting the whisky, I want to pour a second and third glass. It is whisky that I want to keep on drinking and when the bottle is finished, I will buy another one. Rating: Excellent

Scottish Cousin Whisky

By Jeannette Wentzel

On 07/18/2016

In Blended whisky

I am not impartial to some wine now and again. Whisky is perfect, but a nice glass of wine, on a hot day, is refreshing. A while ago, on a Friday afternoon, John brought me a bottle of wine. It was in a plastic bottle. The snob in me was slightly horrified. What was he thinking?

Not to be rude, I tried it. And oh my, what a fantastic glass of wine it was. The bottle in question was the Tangled Tree Tropical Sauvignon Blanc. After that, I have tried all five wines in the range and love the Chocolate Cabernet Sauvignon and the Moscato Rosé wine the most.

Jump forward a few months, and there I was, wandering around the Whisky Life Pretoria in Brooklyn. I visited one of my favourite people, Pierre Meintjies, at the Bunnahabhain exhibition, then turned around and walked straight into a new blended whisky.

It’s called Scottish Cousin whisky. I stood there listening to an enthusiastic man talking about this affordable blended whisky and realised that the label is reminiscent of the Four Cousins wine.

To say that I was sceptical might be an understatement. Were a few wine farmers from Robertson trying to sell whisky? At an event where you had some of the most loved whisky brands on the planet? Seriously?

About the Scottish Cousin whisky Blends

I watched people walking up, tasting and standing around with a smile. The man saw me and offered me a taste. I declined at first but listened to the story behind this blend. The Cousins of Van Loveren visited Scotland and decided to extend their range with a Cousin from Scotland. The blend of traditional Scottish whisky was hand-selected by Neil, the youngest of the Four Cousins and fourth-generation Scottish ancestry.

Now I am from a Dutch background, but that does not make me an expert cheesemaker. After a bit of research, I realised that the Tangle Tree Eco Wine Range was part of the Four Cousins’ portfolio. They made excellent wine, but did the fourth generation wine farmer know something about whisky?

The Scottish Cousin whisky range includes a 5 year old, an 8 year old and a 12 year old blended whisky. They were all aged in American Oak and use the Optic and Concerto barley strains. The whisky was distilled, blended and bottled in Scotland and released at a 43% ABV.

The pricing ranges from the very affordable Scottish Cousin 5 year old at about R200 to the very reasonably priced +-R 400 for the Scottish Cousin 12 year old. But what did they taste like?

Also Read: The Singleton 15 yo Whisky

Scottish Cousin 5 year old Whisky Review

ABV: 43%

COLOUR: Gold with dark amber hints

NOSE: Oak, toffee, Christmas pudding with hints of butterscotch and vanilla. It’s not a very complex nose. The addition of water brings out more sweetness and marshmallow notes.

PALATE: There is a spiciness balanced with sweetness. Hints of cloves, balanced with fresh berries. Light and refreshing, a summer sipping dram. Adding water to this Scottish cousin 5 yo makes it smoother and very easy drinking.

FINISH: Medium length and ends in sweet woody notes.

RATING: VERY GOOD

At a R200 price point, this is an amazing dram. The Scottish Cousin 5 year old whisky can easily compete with older more expensive drams and hold its own. It is an unpretentious, easy-drinking and thoroughly enjoyable whisky which offers great value for money.

Scottish Cousin 8 year old Whisky Review

ABV: 43%

COLOUR: Golden yellow with copper hints.

NOSE: Floral and fresh summer fruit drizzled in honey, mixed with vanilla, butterscotch and marshmallow. Faint hints of cinnamon spiciness.

PALATE: Fresh fruit, spice, roasted nuts and sugar sweetness wonderfully balanced with that rich bourbon vanilla taste. There is a creamy chewiness to the Scottish Cousin 8 yo. An almost chocolatey yumminess. The addition of water soothes the fruity notes and brings a little bit of the oak to the forefront, but at the same time makes the whisky deliciously enjoyable.

FINISH: Medium length that ends in light notes of sweetness and toasted rice. The addition of water brings out the dryness and a woodiness that reminds me of faint hints of leather.

RATING: EXCELLENT

At around R 280 for the bottle of deliciousness, it is the best buy! The 8 year old whisky is my favourite. It is an easy-drinking, fun, thoroughly enjoyable whisky that will not be out of place in an upmarket bar.

It’s rich with wonderful complex notes. This is what liquid sunshine tastes like. I paired this Scottish Cousin with some Oreo cookies over here, and it made for a delectable combination.

Scottish Cousin 12 year old Whisky

ABV: 43%

COLOUR: Dark Gold with mahogany hints.

NOSE: Rich and complex. Condensed milk fudge sweetness, fresh summer berries, maple syrup with hints of vanilla, butterscotch and cream. Faint hints of bread pudding.

PALATE: Heaviest of the three, it’s rich and creamy. On the palate, there is fruity sweetness followed by spicy notes and faint hints of oak. There is a deliciousness to this dram that invites you to try some more. The Scottish Cousin 12 year old becomes smooth and easy drinking with the addition of water. It is complex and fun drinking; especially at R400.

FINISH: More significant and longer than the other 2 expressions and end in notes of dried oak, malt biscuits and toffee.

RATING: EXCELLENT

It is a warming and comforting dram that you will reach for again and again. Trust me, I know, my bottle is nearly half. I also paired this 12 year old whisky with a Royal Ashton cheese, and the results were delicious!

These amazing Scottish Cousin drams are available at Pick n Pay, Checkers, Spar, Liquor City, Liquorland, Norman Goodfellows, Makro and online at Takealot. So go out and grab a bottle.

Also read: Bell’s Special Reserve Whisky

Crown Royal Northern Harvest Rye Whisky

By Jeannette Wentzel

On 07/11/2016

In Rye Whiskey

During November the annual Whisky Bible ratings come out. For some, it is an event that is highly anticipated. For others, not so much. Over the last couple of years, the top awards have been somewhat controversial, and Jim Murray even depicts himself a bit of a devil (playing a bit of Devil’s advocate) on the front page of the 2015 bible.

November 2015 was no different. The Whisky Bible crowned the Crown Royal Northern Harvest Rye whisky as the highest-scoring whisky. An affordable whisky from Canada? Can it be possible? Not from Scotland?

Some critics jumped up to complain. Bitterly in some instances. Supporters of the Crown Royal and Whisky Bible cheered. The Scottish whisky industry barely showed a ripple.

I have looked at Jim Murray’s comments over the years, especially when I want to buy a new whisky. Some of his top-rated whiskies I loved. Examples such as the Ballantine’s Finest, Johnnie Walker Black, Ardbeg Supernova has gotten high ratings and are some of my favourites. But other suggestions, I did not particularly enjoy.

Also Read: Rittenhouse Rye whiskey

Examples include the Old Pulteney 21 yo and Kornog whisky. For me, I have started to take his reviews with a pinch of salt. Then a family member came to visit. From Canada! And he brought me a bottle of the Crown Royal Northern Harvest Rye. I did not mind. You don’t find many Crown Royal releases in SA, and rye whisky is also limited. So regardless of Jim Murry’s rating, I was happy.

But what is a Canadian Rye whisky?

Not the easiest questions to answer, it seems. It seems like the term “Canadian whisky” and “rye whisky” are used interchangeably in Canada and refer to the same thing. Whisky which generally is made with some percentage of rye grain. According to a Canadian whisky website, rye whisky began as a “whisky style” two centuries ago when the Canadian Flour miller began making whisky from their excess wheat.

There are a few distinct differences between the USA version of a straight rye and the Canadian rye. In the USA, the mash bill needs to have at least 51% rye where in Canada this percentage is not defined.

American straight rye whisky is aged in new charred oak barrels, where in Canada the whisky is aged in a mixture of used and new barrels.

Rye whisky is not very well-known in South Africa. I have tasted over 300 different drams over the last five years, but never tasted a rye.

Due to the hype around this dram and the limited availability of Rye whisky in SA, I invited a few South African whisky friends to join me for a Twitter Tasting of this Crown Royal Northern Harvest Rye whisky. My tasting notes include their comments as well.

Also Read: JP Wiser’s Deluxe Rye Whisky

Crown Royal Northern Harvest Rye Whisky Review

The Crown Royal Northern Harvest Rye is a blended whisky and has a 90% rye mash bill. I have a bottle from batch number L6021 N3.

COUNTRY: Canada

ABV: 45%

COLOUR: A golden wheat colour with hints of sunshine.

NOSE: Sweet cereal, woody oak and butterscotch with some chocolate. Light flowers with hints of spice, specifically cinnamon and nutmeg float about. There are a grape syrup note and fruity sweetness on the nose mixed with crème brûlée.

PALATE: Without water has notes of sweet winter spice, aniseed, fresh-baked rusks and is creamy. Notes of grape sweetness mixed with more of the wood spice. Water adds a chewy note and allows the balance between spicy, woods and cereal to come out. Adding water creates an interesting mix of winter and wood spices with a bit of hotness tingle.

FINISH: Medium length and ends in notes of spiciness, condensed milk and malted biscuits.

RATING: EXCELLENT

Individual ratings were very broad. John gave this a Divine, I gave it an Excellent, Bernard rated it as ‘Good to Very Good, and Edward from Smoky Dram said ‘Very Good, just shy of Excellent’.

Is the Crown Royal Northern Harvest Rye the best whisky in the world? Probably not. I have tried various drams this year, that I enjoyed just as much or more.

John loved it. He thinks that the Northern Harvest Rye is one of the best drams this year. And that is the beauty of whisky. It lies in the eyes (taste buds) of the beholder. What do you think?

On a whim, I paired the Royal Ashton cheese, and the results were delicious!

Also Read: Sazerac Rye Whiskey

The Macallan 15 Year Old Whisky

By Jeannette Wentzel

On 05/16/2016

In Single Malt whisky

A lot has been written about the Macallan distillery and brand. Some people love it; some people hate it. Many stories about it exist; some true, some not quite. It often makes the ‘Most Expensive whisky’ lists.

If anything, it is a polarizing whisky and distillery. John loves it. I find it pretentious and old-fashioned. Regardless of my personal view, let’s try the Macallan 15 year old Fine Oak single malt Scotch whisky.

Macallan started life as Elchies Distillery. The name changed, and it expanded as the demand for the product soared. Over time, the Macallan had become very sought after. The Macallan is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Edrington Group.

Related Article: The Glenlivet 18 yo whisky

Regardless of all the controversy surrounding the brand, Macallan is situated in a beautiful part of Scotland. Next to the River Spey on the Macallan Estate, it is not too far from Glenrothes.

The Macallan 15 year old whisky has been discontinued. Initially, the Macallan was matured only in oak sherry casks. The ‘Fine Oak’ series was launched in 2004. Whisky from this series was aged in bourbon oak casks as well as sherry ones. I have had it for quite a while; I just never to around to writing about it.

Macallan 15 year old Fine Oak Whisky Review

REGION: Highland

ABV: 43%.

COLOUR: It is a beautiful golden colour. A rich straw.

NOSE: Oak and orange blossom sweetness. It is rich and rewarding and invites you to dive in. There are faint hints of orange peel and honey.

PALATE: Without water, the palate has notes of florals, barley, vanilla sweetness mixed with some pepper spice and nutmeg. Adding water smooths out the spiciness, but takes away some of the sweetness. Faint hints of orange blossom and fruit float about. I was expecting a lot more bourbon notes on the palate, but the bourbon notes are a very faint part of the vanilla sweetness.

FINISH: Medium length and end in notes of oak, orange and spice.

RATING: EXCELLENT

This 15 year old Highland whisky is not the most complex of drams. I was expecting a bit more of the bourbon complexity to come through on the palate. But it is a great all-round, well-balanced, smooth whisky. One of the few Macallan whiskies that I actually like. Yes, this one is worth the hype!

I paired this Macallan release with some Wensleydale cheese with cranberries. I have also captured tasting notes for the Macallan 10 year old whisky as well as The Macallan 12 year old whisky. See what I think about these releases.

This is a fun whisky to play around with and I have done a side by side comparison between the Macallan and the Glenfiddich 15 year old whisky. Go and take a look at how they differ.

Arran Napoleon Cognac Finish Whisky

By Jeannette Wentzel

On 05/09/2016

In Single Malt whisky

I love adding whisky finished in interesting casks to my collection. A rum finished whisky or a Sauternes cask finish adds interesting dimensions to the whisky and also to my collection. I have plenty of bourbon, and Sherry cask finishes, a Madeira cask finish and even a Merlot cask finish.

But one of the finishes I enjoy the most, looking at the nearly empty bottle on my shelf, is the Arran Napoleon Cognac single cask finish Scotch whisky. I can’t find many whiskies aged in Cognac casks. Not currently in South Africa anyway.

To learn more about Arran Malts, you can read my review on the Arran Sherry cask. The Arran Malt has also done a Lepanto PX Brandy cask finish as well together with a host of other unique cask releases.

But for today, let’s stand still and appreciate the Arran Napoleon Cognac cask whisky. Cognac is a variety of brandy produced in the wine-growing region around the town of Cognac.

The production methods of Cognac must meet specific legal requirements, and it is made from specified grapes. Cognac is aged and graded based on the time in cask.

This whisky was aged in Napoleon Cognac casks from A Hardy. A Napoleon Cognac designates a blend in which the youngest cognac was aged for at least 6 years. I have The Arran Napoleon Cognac cask bottle no 15 of 456. It was bottled 19 Sept 06 at an ABV of 51.8%.

Related Article: Amrut Intermediate Sherry whisky

Arran Napoleon Cognac Cask Whisky Review

REGION: Scottish Islands

ABV: 51.8%

COLOUR: Light gold

NOSE: Initially there are rose florals, fresh grapes and oak with hints of honeycomb sweetness floating about. It’s got a remarkably clean and flavourful aroma. Slowly the cognac notes start to build on the nose. When you nose it for the second time, more of the cognac sweetness comes through.

PALATE: Very surprising. It has far more cognac then expected. It hits you with a lot of cinnamon spice and then the traditional long slow lingering cognac finish. Some of the fermented grape notes, associated with Cognac, come through beautifully.

There are hints of leather and wood. The addition of water brings a lot of smoothness and takes away some of the spice. Water releases a bit more sweetness as well.

FINISH: It lingers and warms the heart. With the addition of water, the dram finishes on the more classic notes of dried wood, citrus and notes of leather.

RATING: EXCELLENT

This Arran Napoleon Cognac cask whisky is a dram that will polarize people. For the lovers of Cognac, this is a brilliant dram. Those who prefer the traditional style of whisky may not rush to this particular expression.

However, I find this an excellent dram. It’s different, it’s unique, it has personality and balances the oak sweetness wonderfully with the fruity Cognac notes.

Also Read: Glen Moray Classic whisky

Hammerhead Whisky

By Jeannette Wentzel

On 04/11/2016

In Single Malt whisky

Today I look at whisky from a unique destination, the Hammerhead Czech single malt whisky. This is the 1989 Edition. It was the height of the Cold War. In the Soviet Union, the national drink was vodka.

But in Communist-era Czechoslovakia, a few high ranking comrades had a taste for something different. They wanted whisky. Importing it from the West was impossible. But the resourceful comrades made a plan.

A small distillery in Pradlo, know for pot stilled spirits, had a hammer mill. It dated from around 1928. It was noisy and crude, but it was the only one in the entire Czechoslovakia. The barley was 100% Czech, and the water was from the Bohemia region.

The biggest problem was the peat. Peat from the Czech region did not work. So, at a considerable cost, a train carriage full of Scottish peat was imported. It was to last for at least five years.

Also Read: The Belgian Owl whisky

Through trial and error, the comrades learned their trade. It took years. Reading about whisky and converting this into practice, did not prove to be easy. But they persisted. The end product was aged in 100% Czech oak casks.

The comrades liked the result very much, and a bottle of whisky from Pradlo was a prized gift. But then in 1989, the Berlin Wall came down, and Europe changed forever. The casks put down were forgotten, and they lay dormant in the old distillery cellars for over 20 years.

Stock Spirits purchased the distillery without knowing that the whisky even existed. They discovered the casks and after tasting it, discovered the true quality of the whisky.

It was bottled under the name Hammerhead in honour of the old Mill. We have the Hammerhead 1989 whisky release which is a 20 yo. There is also a Hammerhead 23 year old whisky.

Hammerhead Czech Single Malt Whisky Review

COUNTRY: Czechoslovakia

ABV: 40,7%.

COLOUR: Light wheat colour. Quite light for a 20 year old release.

NOSE: Initially there are spicy notes, with hints of sweet vanilla and malty oak on the nose. Hints of fresh-cut flowers fresh fruit and some citrus in the background. After a while, butterscotch notes appear. The addition of water seems to take away some of the spiciness but accentuates wheat and white oak on the nose.

PALATE: Very spicy with lots of winter spice notes, including cloves and nutmeg. A fair bit of citrus fruit floats about intertwined with toasted nuts. A few seconds later, vanilla and butterscotch come through.

Without water, the Hammerhead whisky is quite rich. The addition of water cuts through a lot of the spice and adds smoothness and makes it even more easy drinking. Water brings a roundness to the palate. The dram is chewy and smooth.

FINISH: Oak and pepper and is medium length.

RATING: EXCELLENT

A great addition to my collection. I can understand why Yeltsin liked whisky from this distillery. It is an excellent whisky for a group of people who learnt about distilling and ageing whisky in books. Now to get my hands on the 23 yo whisky to compare!

The Hammerhead whisky has received several awards including three gold stars at the 2014 and 2013 International Taste & Quality Institute (iTQi) awards. I saw a comment on a blog somewhere that the Hammerhead 23 yo was a favourite of Boris Yeltsin.

The Hammerhead is considerably nicer than the Maraska blended whisky from the old Yugoslavia.

Also Read: Kornog whisky