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I'll Drink to That! What is your favorite beverage to have with a cigar? Juice? Cola? Beer? Port? Single Malt Scotch? This room is for the discussion of beverages, especially alcoholic beverages that go well with cigars! |
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02-04-2007, 12:42 PM | #1 |
Managing Editor Emeritus
Herf God
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: Montreal, Canada
Posts: 26,082
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Trio of Bruichladdich...
I'd been meaning to carry out a direct comparison between the three most widely available versions of Bruichladdich for some time. Well, yesterday was that time, and the exercise proved quite enlightening. Who would have thought that a relatively smokeless Islay could prove such a consistently excellent pour? All three whiskies are of natural colour, non-chillfiltered and have been reduced to their savvy bottling strength of 46% alcohol by volume with local Islay water...
10 Year Old Colour: Pale gold with lemon yellow highlights. Nose: Uplifted. Lychees and dandelion greens in yogurt. Palate: Wrigley’s Juicy Fruit gum meets the coastal waves of Islay. Succulent and bracing at once, with an almost sugary cantaloupe-laced malt sweetness and spirited splashes of salt water having a go of it, followed by dry cider and dune grasses. Assessment: A wee bit of a bite and a very demure backbeat of oak only add to the overall effect. Summary: Light and enlivening. 15 Year Old Colour: Refractive gold with a lemon yellow cast. Nose: Freshly milled barley grist washed by the ocean surf. Some honeyed floral scents peek through, too. Palate: A rousing ripple of brine. Proceeds to reveal a persistent fresh fruit and malt core imbued with crisp, spicy oak. Vanilla, banana and Jalapeño coax the taste buds towards notions of green tea and macaroons. Dances lightly yet emphatically on the palate, magically appearing both lithe and lush all at once. Lingering finish. Needs time in the glass. Assessment: There’s a savvy Bourbon barrel sweetness here, backed by a subtle Sherry cask roundness, that makes one want to order another dram. A real charmer, and simply beautiful stuff! 17 Year Old Colour: Gold with faint Etruscan gold reflections. Nose: Very fragrant. More of the sea. Palate: Silky entry and a tight intermingling of flavours, with the sea salt seeping into every corner. Honey and clean oak then broaden the spectrum. Vanilla icing. Fresh apricots. Bell peppers. Ginger. Cardamon. Lemon pepper. Lemon pastilles. Simply luscious. Assessment: Mature and composed, yet full of verve. Summary: Pure class in a glass.
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My whisky adventure began at the age of nine. Good things DO take time! |