Tag: Rating: Excellent Page 34 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

Kininvie 17 year old Whisky

By Jeannette Wentzel

On 07/06/2015

In Single Malt whisky

In October 2013, I tasted the William Grant & Sons Monkey Shoulder blended malt expression and loved it. Monkey Shoulder blended malt is a blend of three William Grant single malts. I have various expressions from Glenfiddich and The Balvenie, but I have never heard of the Kininvie distillery.

Lucky for me, on one of John’s business trips to London, he found the Kininvie 17 year old single malt Scotch whisky at Heathrow Airport Duty-Free. Of course, he grabbed it for me. Kininvie is a distillery in Dufftown, which produces single malt Scotch whisky.

The whisky from this distillery is mainly used in William Grant blended whisky brands. Notably their Grants and Clan Macgregor releases. The Kininvie Distillery, one of the youngest distilleries in Scotland, began production on 4 July 1990.

Kininvie Distillery is built close to The Balvenie distillery, and they share some equipment. Some sources argue Kininvie is not a proper distillery as most of the equipment is owned by Balvenie and that Kininvie is just an extension of Balvenie.

Other people don’t agree and argue that they share the Balvenie mill. Regardless of this, getting this bottle to complete our collection is great. Kininvie itself stopped operating in late 2010.

The Kininvie 17 year old whisky is matured in 80% American oak and 20% Sherry casks.

Related Article: Glenmorangie Spios whisky

Kininvie 17 year old Whisky Review

It is (only) a 350 ml bottle.

ABV: 42,6%

COLOUR: A light golden coloured. It has a sort of pale gold colour and is quite oily.

NOSE: Brings sweet sherry, candied fruit and malty sweetness. There are notes of toffee, fresh-cut flowers and apples. It has a rich and complex nose. Adding water enhances the floral notes.

PALATE: On the palate, the Kininvie whisky is spicier than expected. The sweetness suggested by the nose is a lot less pronounced. After the sweet nose, I was expecting quite a sweet whisky. There are notes of wood, fresh fruit and malt.

The toffee and caramel sweetness drifts past in the background. It is a wonderfully smooth and rich whisky. Chewy and full-bodied.

FINISH: Long and lingering. It ends in notes of creamy, spicy malt.

RATING: EXCELLENT

A splendid dram! It is easy to drink, complex and smooth. If only the bottle were bigger. I would love to taste more from this distillery.

Looking around, I see that there is a Kininvie 25 year old single malt at The Whisky Exchange, and it sounds amazing. However, at £ 399 for a 35cl bottle, it might be slightly out of my price range.

Also Read: Littlemill 25 yo whisky

Knob Creek Straight Bourbon Whiskey

By Jeannette Wentzel

On 06/08/2015

In Bourbon whiskey

Named after the small stream that flows through President Abraham Lincoln’s childhood home in Kentucky, today is time for some Knob Creek Kentucky Straight bourbon whiskey. It is a brand of Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey produced by Beam Suntory at the Jim Beam distillery in Clermont, Kentucky.

At the end of Prohibition and a boom in demand, re-starting bourbon production was challenging, and distilleries were forced to age their bourbons’ for briefer periods. Due to this, Americans developed a palate for softer whiskies.

However, Booker Noe wanted to bring back the quality bourbon produced in Kentucky before Prohibition collapsed the bourbon boom. He fathered the small batch movement and created Knob Creek Bourbon whiskey.

These smaller batches allowed him to create a ‘Pre-Prohibition’ bourbon that was aged longer (9 years) than other bourbons. He then aged his spirit in the deepest charred American oak barrels to fully draw out more of the natural sugars.

Knob Creek straight bourbon is bottled at 50% ABV, higher than the average bourbon ABV. It comes in a rectangular bottle reminiscent of an old apothecary bottle with a black wax seal. The Whisky Bible gave this Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey a rating of 94,5, so I am expecting quite a lot from this bottle.

Related Article: 1792 Bourbon

Knob Creek Straight Bourbon Whiskey Review

COUNTRY: USA

ABV: 50%

COLOUR: Dark amber syrup

NOSE: Packed full of sweet maple, oak and cereal. There are hints of caramel and raisins. After adding a bit of water, the nose develops more floral notes.

PALATE: Without water, this Knob Creek Bourbon packs a big punch. Not an alcohol punch despite the ABV, but a full flavour, mouthfeel. There are notes of caramel sweetness, oak and cinnamon and pumpkin spice on the palate.

After adding a bit of water to the Know Creek, the sweetness softens, and the oak, vanilla and fruit come through. The big mouth full feeling softens a bit, and the Knob Creek bourbon becomes very, very easy drinking.

FINISH: Long and lingering and end in notes of oak and cereals. This is no shrinking violet – this is a full-bodied, big, in your face, bourbon.

RATING: EXCELLENT

It has jumped up to my number 1 spot for bourbons this year. I loved the big, bold flavours of this American whiskey and could not resist a second glass. Best of all, it is readily available in South Africa and retails for less than R500. And for the mouthful deliciousness, you are getting, that is a bargain!

Also Read: Wild Turkey Rare Breed bourbon

Dalwhinnie 15 year old Whisky

By Jeannette Wentzel

On 06/01/2015

In Single Malt whisky

Today something from the Scottish Highlands, the Dalwhinnie 15 year old single malt Scotch whisky. The village of Dalwhinnie in Scotland is situated in the Cairngorm National Park. The builders chose the site for this Highland distillery for its access to water from the Lochan-Doire-Uaine spring.

There is ample peat from the surrounding bogs. It was close to the geographic centre of the Highlands and enjoy easy access to the Highland Railway. Set in impressive mountain scenery, Dalwhinnie is one of the highest distilleries in Scotland. In 1897, J Grant, G Sellar and A Mackenzie established the Strathspey distillery.

Production started in 1898, but the partnership went bankrupt. The distillery was sold to AP Blyth in 1898, who renamed it Dalwhinnie. Currently, United Distillers, a Diageo unit, owns the distillery. Whisky from this distillery is marketed under the Diageo Classic Malts brand.

Other distilleries that fall under the Classic Malts brand include Lagavulin, Oban and Glenkinchie. Only 10% of the Dalwhinnie production is released as a single malt. The remaining whisky is used in various of the Diageo blends. The distillery only releases a Dalwhinnie 15 year old single malt whisky and a Distillers Edition.

Dalwhinnie also has the distinction of being an official weather station, with one of the lowest recorded average temperatures in Great Britain. Jim Murray awarded the Dalwhinnie 15 year old, 95 points in his Whisky Bible, so I expected an exceptional dram.

Related Article: Glenfiddich Fire and Cane Whisky

Dalwhinnie 15 year old Whisky Review

I have a 200 ml bottle which was part of a Diageo Classic Malt whisky set.

REGION: Highland

ABV: 43%.

COLOUR: A light gold with medium length lingers in the glass.

NOSE: Rich and layered. It promises all kinds of wonderful experiences. There are notes of vanilla, oak and mint. Hints of aniseed and liquorice float about in between the toffee and fruit. The nose is gentle and inviting.

PALATE: Without water, the palate of the Dalwhinnie is spicier than the nose suggests. There are notes of malt, butterscotch, vanilla and fruit. Adding water changes the whole palate. The sweetness disappears, and the oak and citrus come through with a bang. Unfortunately, it overwhelms everything else.

FINISH: Without water, the finish is medium length, complex and smooth with notes of honey and nuts. When you add water, the finish lengthens, but it changes to bitter citrus and oak.

RATING: EXCELLENT

The Dalwhinnie 15 year old is a dram you should enjoy neat. In my opinion, a few drops of water enhances most whiskies. The water released more of the flavour notes and smoothed it out. This Dalwhinnie 15 yo whisky was an exception. Without the water, this dram was excellent. Water toned down the delicate notes and washed it out. Instead, drink this dram neat.

I tried the Dalwhinnie 1990 Distillers Edition and some Lindt hand-made dark chocolate for one of my whisky chocolate tastings. It made for a superb whisky chocolate pairing combination.

Also Read: Arran Napoleon Cognac Finish whisky

Glenfiddich Rich Oak Whisky

By Jeannette Wentzel

On 05/25/2015

In Single Malt whisky

Today I look at a release from Speyside, the Glenfiddich Rich Oak 14 yo single malt Scotch whisky. The Glenfiddich distillery is one of my favourite distilleries, and I have tasted many of their expressions. I loved the Glenfiddich 18 yo as a wonderful easy drinking dram and have tried the Glenfiddich Age of Discovery Madeira Cask.

Located in Dufftown in the Speyside region of Scotland, the Glenfiddich distillery was founded in 1886. Glenfiddich, together with Kininvie and Balvenie, forms part of the William Grant-owned whisky stable and sit in relative proximity to each other.

The triangular-shaped Glenfiddich has become one of the world’s most recognised whisky bottle shapes. It has been a Glenfiddich feature since 1957. The William Grant company remains independent and family-owned. The Glenfiddich Rick Oak is quite a recent release. It came out during the Spring of 2010. It was aged for 14 years in ex-bourbon casks.

Then followed two separate finishes of 12 weeks in new Spanish oak and 6 weeks in new American oak before bottling. According to Glenfiddich, the American oak adds spice, vanilla and fruit. The Spanish oak brings elegant fruit, spice and complexity.

Related Article:Balvenie Roasted Malt whisky

Glenfiddich Rich Oak Whisky Review

REGION: Speyside

ABV: 43%

COLOUR: Dark rich gold. There are long oily fingers in the glass.

NOSE: Sultanas and juicy ‘Moskonfyt” (grape must jelly) mixed with honey sweetness. There is an abundance of oak, spice and barley. The oak, however, is wonderfully balanced with fruity sweetness and not overwhelming.

PALATE: Without water, the whisky is sweet and spicy with hints of bubblegum and Muscadel wine. Adding water releases more pepper heat but also cinnamon and muscovado sugars. The fruitiness from the nose is still around in wafts of berries and grapes. The Glenfiddich Rich Oak is an easy-drinking smooth, nicely balanced dram.

FINISH: Long, memorable and lingers for a while. It ends in notes of wood, toasted nuts and bits of fruit again. A very drinkable whisky.

RATING: EXCELLENT

It has become one of my favourite Glenfiddich drams to relax with. It has a wonderful fruity character and will pair well with cheese. While the Glenfiddich 12 year old is the perfect single malt for a newbie, this Glenfiddich Rich Oak will be the whisky that will take them the next step along the road to whisky enjoyment. This release has made it onto my Top 5 Single Malt whiskies under R500 for 2014 list.

Also Read: Balblair 15 yo whisky

Wild Turkey Rare Breed Bourbon Whiskey

By Jeannette Wentzel

On 05/04/2015

In Bourbon whiskey

The Wild Turkey Rare Breed bourbon whiskey is a brand of Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey distilled and bottled in Kentucky. In 1869, the Ripy Brothers built a distillery in Tyrone, near Lawrenceburg.

After Prohibition, they merged with the current facility and resumed distilling. The Gould Brothers bought out the Ripys in 1952. Subsequently, Pernod Ricard bought the brand and the distillery in 1980.

The bourbon acquired its name in 1940 when a distillery executive called Thomas McCarthy grabbed a few sample bottles of 101-proof whiskey from the warehouse to take with him on a trip in South Carolina to hunt wild turkey.

The whiskey was such a hit with his friends; they repeatedly asked him to send them more of that “wild turkey bourbon.” The rest is history. The nickname became a famous brand, as Wild Turkey bourbon hit the shelves not long afterwards.

The Wild Turkey label carries a vividly printed, seemingly engraved illustration of its namesake. The Campari Group owns the Wild Turkey brand together with Glen Grant, Forty Creek Canadian whisky and Bisquit & Dubouché cognac.

Wild Turkey Rare Breed is a “barrel-proof bourbon” (54.1% ABV), meaning it has no added water to lower the proof or dilute the bourbon after it’s been distilled.

This Wild Turkey Rare Breed bourbon whiskey is a unique marriage of Wild Turkey 6 year old, 8 year old, and 12 year old stocks.

Related Article: Blanton’s Gold Edition Bourbon

Wild Turkey Rare Breed Bourbon Whiskey Review

COUNTRY: USA

ABV: 54.1%

COLOUR: Quite a dark colour, and the official description is dark caramel. The caramel theme pulls through in the rest of the bourbon as well.

NOSE: Lots of caramel notes mixed with sweet spice and woody oaks. The nose is rich and sweet and invites you to dive straight in. Hints of cinnamon and nutmeg mixed with vanilla and sweetness.

PALATE: Without water, this Wild Turkey is big and spicy. A bit of alcohol burn that softens and mellows after adding water. There is a distinctive sweetness to this bourbon that I have not tasted before. Notes of burnt caramel, oak, cinnamon and pepper.

Water transforms this bourbon into a smooth, creamy, big mouthful glass of yumminess. Getting the whisky to water ratio right made all the difference. We had a 1:1 ratio (1 tot Wild Turkey Rare Breed: 1 tot water).

FINISH: Builds for a long time and end in pepper, nutmeg, oak and caramel sweetness.

RATING: EXCELLENT

It is a bold bourbon that satisfies. Delicious and creamy with a wonderful mouthfeel. We could not resist a second glass. This Wild Turkey Rare Breed bourbon whiskey is sure to become one of my favourite bourbons. I can’t wait to try more from this American distillery.

Also Read: Four Roses Single Barrel bourbon