7-Whisky Flight

[jazznut]

I attended a tasting of 7 whiskies last night at a professional acquaintance's home while simultaneously acting as the resident whisky guide. There was some method to my madness in terms of the order of presentation...

First up, Oban 1995 Distillers Edition (43%). Predictably pleasant, with the Montilla cask finishing serving to round out the malt and delay the onset of those delightfully salty seaside nuances. A fine opening salvo, all told.

Then onto The Macallan 18 Year Old Fine Oak (43%). Sumptuous to a degree, but not nearly so much so as the traditional all-Sherry cask bottling. A certain sharpness to it also, which seemed (as one person pointed out) to display a note of acetone. Would never peg this one as an 18-year old if it were served blind. It seemed much younger. Pleasurable enough for all that, with an uplifted fruitiness throughout.

Glenlivet Archive 21 Year Old (older release with the dark blue label) (43%). Simply beautiful, with the effect of those Sherry cask aged distillates offering up a plush, yet not at all over the top, palate presentation. A class act.

Glenfarclas 25 Year Old (43%). Liquid gold. The initial smoothness momentarily deceives one into thinking that it's going down just too easily. Then, those deeper, more robust notes of wood-matured fruit and spirit emerge and tease the back of the throat. This one actually made the Macallan seem somewhat crude. Great value, too.

Aberlour a'bunadh Batch No. 27 (60.1%). A Sherry bomb as expected. Consumed most of the glass as it poured from the bottle, only adding two minute drops of water later on to open it up a little more.

Highland Park Old Malt Cask 26 Year Old, Distilled 1983 (50%). From a single Sherry butt. Perhaps not quite the breadth of underlying subtleties that the more venerable official distillery releases can display. But with something as delicious in and of itself as this, who really cares? Everyone loved it.

Nikka Whisky From The Barrel (51.4%). My very first encounter with this lovely blend. First impressions revolved around the slightly perfumed fragrance. What exactly was I smelling? Very complex nose. Absolutely shocked by my initial sips. Wow! Just a fabulous whisky, with the sweet grains and ex-Bourbon oak melding together in a perfect tango of flavours as the malt slowly crept up from beneath. Need to procure some more of this one.

Great tasting spree, all told. Great company and food as well. No ill-effects the morning after, either, which is a testament to both proper hydration throughout the course of the evening and to the quality of the spirits.