SmokyBeast

June 26, 2013

Review: Berry Brothers' Glen Grant 1974 - A Dead Body in a Whisky Barrel! Disco Dram #3

A Barrel That Is A Coffin!

abridged from The Vanishing Smuggler by Stephen Chalmers

Giles Serymegeour looked long and stupidly at the barrel. What kind of joke was this? Then slowly, into his eyes there dawned a look of horror and dread. He suddenly remembered that which Smuggle-Erie had said - about bringing home Grant in "a barrel - that is a coffin!" The perspiration stood in big beads on the miser's face, although the morning was quite fresh. The whispering and knocking at his cowardly conscience became a thundering and shrieking of certainty. He laid his hot, trembling hands upon it. The cold iron rings stung him like serpents. He flung open the shop door, seized the barrel and began hurdling it inside. It was heavy. And strangely balanced! He could not feel even the weight of liquid, but his frenzied imagination seemed to hear the sullen rolling and rumbling.

Then the barrel was opened.

There are some things in life which are better left undescribed. The scene that immediately ensued is one of them. Whether Captain John Grant, master of the Thistle Down, may or may not have been the infamous smuggler Heather Bloom, concerned us little in the face of the tragedy. A murder had been done!

1975 Birthday Bonanza Finale - Well Almost!

First the bad news: We were lining up a string of malts from hubby's year of birth - 1975. We had a final dram in mind, a disco king so to speak, but it got held up in transit. Alas the "hubby's getting old" celebration was in jeopardy. Now the good news: we found a badass 1974 malt to make up for it. Sure, whisky that's as old as you has that certain something, that shared history, that magical year of birth, yada yada. But whisky that's actually older than you, now we're talking about a big brother'ish veneration, a new level of respect for one's elders. Enter our stately sherried senior-classman: The Berry Brother's & Rudd Glen Grant Distillery 1974 vintage, 37 year-old single cask.

In Heaven

Berry Brother's & Rudd was founded on St James Street in London in 1698, so yeah they know a thing or two about whisky. They offer a line of their own bottlings, as well as a cellar of hand-picked stock. Berry Brother's is one of the top wine merchants in the world, specializing in the cream of the crop - Bordeaux, Burgundy, and Rhone. If you are a hifalutin English gentlemen, you may choose to have Berry Bro's cellar some of your vast wine collection. They will care for your millions of pounds in rare reds and add choice selections twice per year for future imbibing or sale. Basically we just want to set up cots in Berrys' and sleep there in the cellar surrounded by wine and scotch forever.

Now Back To That Infamous Barrel!

Glen Grant is our kind of story. It's not known whether the fictional account above is based on real events. Was John Grant captain of the notorious Thistle Down? Did he go by the pseudonym Heather Bloom and command shipmates with names like Smuggle-Erie and The Red Mole? Did he end up being delivered dead in a whisky barrel to the miser Serymegeour? Unclear. It is a known fact that both John and James Grant were acknowledged smugglers and bootleggers before they founded Glen Grant in 1840. It is also well known that James led seven hundred Grant clansmen in the 'Raid on Elgin' - the last clan revolt in Scottish history.

The Grant's stomping grounds in Rothes were bordered to the north by The Port of Garmouth and to the south by the River Spey. Easily accessible by sea and river, and surrounded by vast plains of barley, it was a whisky smuggler's paradise. Since whisky distilling wasn't officially legal until the middle of the eighteen-hundreds, all whisky makers were officially smugglers, but these two evidently took it to new heights. After the brothers' passing, young James "The Major" Grant took over the distillery. The Major was purportedly the first man in the Highlands to own car, and Glen Grant was the first distillery to have electric lights.

Today Glen Grant is one of the biggest selling single malt whiskies in the world. Their bottles range from "The Major's Reserve," a low-end No Age Statement malt, to a mid-range 10 Year, and quickly jump into an amazing range of vintages and bottlings dating back to the 1930's and covering every decade in between.

Tasting Notes

Appearance: Unchillfiltered - Uncoloured - Oh yeah! The color is flat-out gorgeous. No color correction in that centerfold above. This is a dark and lovely shade. Almost a combination of Jack Daniels and Welches Grape Juice.

Nose: Lots of amazing fruit going on here. Watermelon, cherries, lemon, a medley of berries. A hefty undercut of oak. And wonderful fresh herbals - just-cut mint, fresh thyme, rosemary. On a second pass more citrus, but getting denser into an orange rind, and some of the nice leather polish that we get with old whisky.

Body: There's a distinct creaminess. Like Dr. Brown's Cream Soda. Intense vanilla. Some root beer flavors coming through. Really lovely desert-like body, very delicate and immensely enjoyable.

Finish: A medium length finish where the vanilla and sweet cream fade into a nice belly warmth and sweetness on the tongue. Fading into hints of oak and leather, twist of lemon and lingering honey/molasses.

Review

The Berry Brother's Glen Grant is available from our friends at RoyalMileWhiskies for £120.79 (around $185). So this is a real splurge, or if you're feeling euphemistic (read: drunk), it's an investment. And hey if you had enough self-control to let this bad boy sit on your shelf for twenty years, it might well be an investment. But who's kidding who? You'd sooner end up dead in a barrel than let this stuff sit on your shelf. Of course you're going to drink it! Anyway, at this price we wouldn't recommend anything that wasn't truly special. This one is. It's something that anyone and everyone would appreciate, from a first date to a veteran whisky hound. What it's not: a smoky beast. If you're looking for a peaty, Islay gem, this is not your pony. But for something that comes out on a special occasion, after a beautiful meal, and doesn't wipe the palate with smoke and peat, this is pretty close to ideal. It was a perfect way to cap off birthday month, thanks for celebrating with us! /smokybeast

Click here for the next installment of Disco Drams, a whopper of 1970's vintage scotch: Signatory 1973 Craigduff, & Samaroli Glenlivet 1977

June 18, 2013

Review: Balblair 1975 - Part Two of Our 1975 Birthday Vintage Bonanza

There's Something About Booze as Old as You

As wifey and hubby's shared birthday month rolls on and Manhattan's thermostats begin to climb, we take shelter in the comfort of our trusty window unit, a good book (Telegraph Avenue by Michael Chabon which fittingly enough sports a 1970's fusion-jazz soundtrack), and another disco-dram from hubby's birth year, 1975.

We bumped into a miniature bottle of Balblair 1975 courtesy of our friends at RoyalMileWhiskies.com. Miniatures are brilliant because while the full-size bottle of this beast comes in at around £187.50 ($300 US), the 5cl (~2 Oz) miniatures were only around £10 or fifteen bucks. Let's face it, if we walked into a bar and they had a 1975 single malt on the menu for fifteen bucks, we'd be all over it in a heartbeat. Of course we bought two.

Speaking of fusion, here is the best jazz fusion record of all time - In A Silent Way by Miles Davis (1969), featuring the most mighty of electric jazz lineups: John McLaughlin on electric guitar, both Chick Corea AND Herbie Hancock on Fender Rhodes, Wayne Shorter on sax, Dave Holland on bass, and Tony Williams on drums. It's a nice soundtrack to this review if you are in possession of headphones..

There's something very comforting about booze that's the same age as you. It probably grew up watching Diff'rent Strokes and Knight Rider with a pouch of Big League Chew. Ok well it's Scottish so maybe not. Maybe it just sat in a barrel in a warehouse in the Highlands waiting for a home. Either way, we walked our path together through Duran Duran and Def Leppard, through acid washed jeans and break dancing, through the nineties and the 00's, mellowing out over time, greying at the temples, and waiting to finally meet on this auspicious day. Here's to you Balblair, where have you been all my life?!

Oh That's Where You've Been

Balblair is one of the oldest distilleries in the Scottish Highlands dating back to the mid 1700's. It's located in Ross-shire just north of Glenmorangie. Balblair is all about VINTAGE. Their claim to fame is their distillery manager John MacDonald, who only releases each cask at its perfect age. Rather than the typical age statement (a standard 14-Year or 16-Year bottle), Balblair is released by the year of distillation. They range from a 1965 vintage up to 2002. By choosing the exact age at which to release each batch, Mr. MacDonald can achieve the perfect balance or as they call it the 'optimum maturation'. These little bottles are the Second Release of the 1975 vintage, aged in American ex-sherry oak casks.

Tasting Notes

Nose: No rush here. We've been spiritually connected for almost four decades, so what's another ten minutes for this birthday beast to open up? The time was a good idea. The nose is lemon pound cake, the wonderful syrupy kind that comes in a plastic wrapper. There's some fresh citrus too: Meyer lemons and freshly sliced pineapple. Finally some botanicals - juniper, lilacs, and a hint of spicy ginger.

Body: This is really just a wonderful smooth body. Very well balanced with honey, lemons, and that same flower garden freshness. It's just dangerously smooth with no alcohol burn and the most pleasing sensation on the palate of fresh cut citrus dancing around on the tongue.

Finish: Extremely subtle finish. This is no beast, but rather a very elegant lady. There's a distinct finish of refined aroma and taste, like walking through an old fashioned pharmacy full of fancy and expensive soaps and perfumes with labels beyond any hope of pronunciation. The spirit wakes up on the finish as well with a ghostly warmth spreading up into your nose and cheeks.

Shaping Up

This is shaping up to be the best birthday month ever. We found a soul-mate, a contemporary, a seventy-five vintage gem. We're for sure saving that second little miniature morsel to drink on birthday night, unless someone out there in web-land wants to send us a full bottle! :). Ok three hundred bucks for a bottle of scotch is still a little out of our range, but when we think of people spending that kind of bread for hooch this is exactly the type of stuff we'd picture them toasting. It's got us very excited to get our hands on some of the other vintages. Obviously the '65 would be quite a treat, however we're also keen to review the later vintages. If the '75 is any indication, this line could find a permanent place on our shelf when we're in the mood to step aside from our standard beasts for some fine dramming with a classy broad like Balblair.

Read the next installment of Disco Drams, 1970's vintage scotch, with Berry Bro's 1974 Glen Grant

/SmokyBeast

June 11, 2013

"The Fine Line Between Heat and Personal Injury" - An Interview with Chip Tate of Balcones Distilling

A Break for Brilliance

We're taking a quick diversion from our birthday-month 1975 vintage bonanza to bring you Part Two of our piece on Balcones Brimstone - an interview with the head distiller of Balcones Distilling - Chip Tate. We've been craving Brimstone so hard since our original review, that a chance to speak with the brains behind the smoke was something we couldn't pass up.

Chip at Home (Balcones)

The Caviar of Whiskey

SmokyBeast: Chip, Brimstone was just an awesome experience! Thanks for taking some time to talk with SmokyBeast.

Chip Tate: "Thanks for your support."

SB So clearly you appreciate a good beast. We read that you spent some time in Islay. Was that the inspiration for Brimstone or how did you come up with the concept?

CT "Yeah well I’ve always liked peated whiskey and there were times when I’d considered doing a peated malt, which I thought would be fun. We moved away from that just because as cool as it is, that’s really a Scottish thing. The true story about Brimstone is that I was in the backyard by myself for about five hours without kids or anybody, which is kind of a weird thing, so I was just by myself and I started playing with oak and fire and whiskey and the concept was born. Then I figured I’d try the same thing on a bigger scale, in my licensed distillery rather than in the backyard, so I guess you could say that it accidentally became our iconic Texas whiskey."

SB So you just had some oak sitting around in the yard?

CT "Yeah I always have some well-cured oak and pecan and different woods because I like to cook a lot. And hence the entry of smoking whiskey, which is dangerous, but I liked what I got and never looked back. The way I would describe the flavor is kind of like caviar. It’s the finest quality of smoke, only in high quantity. So it’s actually very subtle whiskey I think even though it’s also very powerful. Sometimes you think of those things are mutually exclusive, but I don’t think they are."

The Line Between Enjoyable and Personal Injury

SB So we saw beer go through the crazy hop phase with Hop Devil, Hoptical Illusion, Hop Stoopid, and on and on. Then we saw the peat wars happening in malts with Octomore, Supernova, and Smokehead, etc. Do you think you're about to set off a contest for the smokiest American whiskey?

CT "I was a craft brewer for a while and was an out of control home brewer for even longer than that, and one thing I learned is to never let novelty and power be an excuse for a lack of balance. Don’t just see how many hops you can get in a beer because that’s very adolescent. Do it once and get over it and then figure out if you’re going to make a really hoppy beer, how do you make it balanced? Pilsner Urquell is a very hoppy beer, but it doesn’t run over the malt."

SB We talk about that balance all the time. It's why malts like Lagavulin, while not the smokiest, are our favorites. We noticed it right away in Brimstone. It's wildly smoky, but very well-balanced.

CT "Yeah, it’s intriguing to play with something like Brimstone, because it’s in danger of becoming out of balance at every moment. It’s almost like Indian Curry, the line between enjoyable heat and physical injury is carefully walked on a regular basis. But that just adds more intrigue as long as you don’t actually cross it. That’s what we’re trying to do: have the smoke, as big a player as it is, be one of several other major players to create that counterpoint and that balance."

Is That Grain You're Smoking?

SB So how does one smoke a liquid?

CT "Very carefully. Smoke is kind of a funny thing. Because we’re smoking the whiskey, there are some aspects of smoke that fade in time and some aspects that get deeper. We’re getting more aspects of the smoke into the whiskey than can be done by smoking grain. If you’re smoking grain, then it’s whatever dissolves into the mash, comes through the mash into the wash, and then into the spirit. Whereas if you’re actually smoking spirit, it’s a whole different animal."

SB Let’s talk a little about color. Brimstone is such a beautiful color and we’ve seen so many older whiskeys that don’t get that gorgeous dark caramel hue.

CT “Thanks. So that’s the wood. And it’s because we use only fully yard-aged wood. Most people say ‘oh yeah we yard-age our wood,' and they mean like three, four, or up to six months. They’d be fools not to yard-age it that long because it dries out so quickly. But from that point they kiln it off, dry it out, and make barrels out of it. Now, there’s nothing wrong with using a kiln, it’s just that there are certain things a kiln doesn’t do. When you let wood sit outside, you basically have a controlled rot process going on. The rain is washing off the harsher tannins and really breaking down the structure of the wood."

A General Dislike of Half-Ass

SB We're getting the picture that you're very serious about your barrels.

CT "I’m always pounding the podium about using fully yard-aged wood, fine grain wood, all the things that we do at Balcones. The downside of course is that a new barrel for us costs around $500 versus $75. But to me that’s so important. You have to understand why you’re using a barrel. It’s not just for getting wood color, it’s not just to evaporate the whiskey, it’s not just to put whiskey in contact with charcoal, there’s other ways to do all those things. It’s the oxidation effect. The chemical breathing that happens in and out of the wood. We have a general dislike of half-ass at Balcones. Anything that’s worth doing is worth doing right. If you’re going to take a risk (and whiskey is a risky business), go all in.

Yeast Are Living Creatures with Rights

SB That seems to be a common theme across everything you're doing.

CT "It is. We use a very nice heirloom blue corn. And it’s expensive, but it’s got a really nice flavor. Most distilleries are fermenting for 48-72 hours. We ferment for a week. The simplest way to put it is ‘yeast are living creatures and when you work them to death they make stinky smells', and we like pretty smells. Most distilleries are doing a very fast fermentation which stresses the yeast and then you have a lot of nasties to deal with."

SB So is that the secret of getting the whiskey so smooth without such a long aging process?

CT "Well let's put it this way, when they do this, they have a choice to make: you can either take a lot of those nasties out in the still, and end up with a much more neutral whiskey; or you can make a rich whiskey and include a lot of those less desirable by-products, and then let them age out. And that’ll work, but to get that smoothness it’ll take 15 or 20 plus years, especially in a cold place like Scotland. And then you lose other possibilities too, since you’re losing some of the malty characteristics as it gets older. And I’m not saying I don’t like scotch whisky. I love Scotch whisky. I guess what I’m saying is I want to have my cake and eat it too. I want a whiskey the doesn’t need to be aged that long but can be aged that long.

Inside Scoop: Brimstone Resurrection

SB So, speaking of aging, can we hope to see a vintage bottling of Brimstone?

CT "Well we have four casks that we’re going to release this year in celebration of our fifth anniversary. We have a Brimstone in that release which is slightly older. It’s nice and it’s really intense. It’s going to be called Brimstone Resurrection. It’ll be full cask strength, like 64%.

SB That's awesome, we can't wait to try it. Hey Chip thanks for your time and thanks for the whiskey!

CT "You're welcome."

Click here to continue reading - Balcones, The Birth of a Beast - Part 3...

June 7, 2013

Review: 1975 Glenlossie Blackadder Raw Cask - Disco Drams Part 1

Buying Candles in Bulk

It is June, the month of both hubby and wifey's respective births. We're only two days apart (insert ooh's & aaah's). Ok well two days plus some years. And, as wifey's year of birth shall remain confidential, this month we will be sampling some fine selections from hubby's birth year: 1975. That's right, the big three eight. Two years left until forty. Not old, but getting very close to not young. Time to start buying those birthday candles in bulk. So get out your bell-bottoms and disco shoes (or in hubby's case your diapers and baby bottles) and get ready for some serious seventies treasure.

Our first groovy dram comes compliments of Ol' Captain Coop. This time our peg-legged, patched and parroted friend went into the vault for a special birthday gift: Glenlossie Distillery's 26-Year malt, bottled as part of Blackadder's Raw Cask series.

Nose: It only takes one whiff of this 111.2 proof beast to know you'll have to head for some water, and more than our typical three eye dropper's worth. With a teaspoon full of water, the nose turns into something unique. The best we can describe it is like a desert oasis. It starts with salt and sand. That's really the only way to put it into words. Dry and crunchy, you can smell the camel hair. An old burned out jeep with some rust and tire rubber. The funny thing is that, believe it or not, these are all good things. It all combines into kind of a perfume-y oily musky fragrance.

Body: Whoa this is a mighty beast. We're going back for another splash of water, and then another. The desert sun and sand stay with us. It's a fire-breather. Pretty shocking actually considering twenty six years in the barrel and then thirteen years in the bottle. There are some faint sweet notes of dessert wine, cream, and lemon. But this one's tough.

Finish: Well we're still tasting it the next morning, so that's some finish. The Blackadder Raw Cask leaves a huge amount of sediment in each bottle. It's supposed to preserve the oils in the liquor. We'll give it that. It is definitely raw.

Sediment at the bottom of the Raw Cask bottle

Review: We're going to save this as an eye-opener on birthday morning. It's not an every day whisky. It's not an every week whisky. It's harsh, abrasive, ballsy, and honestly if we didn't know it was a '75, and we didn't have a label, we'd probably think this was some very young hooch. Wifey likes her beasts and took to it more than hubby, who was doing his best impression of having just dipped his tongue in raw lemon juice. Given the good part of a week to open up, and now at about 30% water, we start to see something drinkable here. There are some dramatic fruits - pineapple, tart lemon, grapefruit. It's a really strong character. Not unlike Blackadder himself. Well we're not likely to see this beast again, so it was quite an experience, and a fun way to start birthday month. Coming up next week, another groovy beast from 1975. Stay tuned, and send us some birthday wishes!

Click here to read the next Disco Drams 1970's vintage whiskey review: Balblair 1975 Bourbon Cask

/SmokyBeast

May 31, 2013

Review: Balcones Brimstone - The Lone Star Beast

Spoiler Alert: Balcones Brimstone got a SmokyBeast "A". Check out the full review below, pick up a bottle from our friends at Caskers (on sale for the next two weeks), and tune in next week when we'll be featuring an exclusive interview with Balcones founder and head distiller Chip Tate. (If you're afraid you're going to forget, like us on Facebook and you'll get a link to the interview). /sb

The Hunt

Ok we've been searching long and hard for a hand-crafted whiskey that we can get behind. We love the idea of scrappy intrepid pioneers taking on the mighty corporate distilleries. Imagine die-hard whiskey nerds obsessing for years over the perfect combination of corn and wheat, the exact angle of that hand-hammered still, the perfect cut, and the most secret alchemist-like art of producing a warm and mature product without sitting on their barrels for a decade. Alas our search to date has been uphill. There are some that taste too weak. There are some that taste too young and harsh. There are some that are so expensive that they put themselves into impossible contests with sixteen or twenty-year aged glories from the old country. There are some that flat-out lie and just buy Kentucky bourbon claiming to have distilled it themselves. (links have been left out to protect the not-so-innocent)

Blue Ribbon

We're pretty thrilled to announce that we have found not only a hand-crafted original, but a genuine smoky beast of the highest calibre. It comes at very fair price, with more than its share of beauty, grace, and balls. In our humble opinion, it's surely destined to become a long-term whiskey powerhouse. Enter Balcones Distilling, lead by Chip Tate, and the smokiest of Chip's creations: Balcones Brimstone.

Tasting Notes

Nose: Layers of sweet sugar and caramel. And that unique smoke. It's like taking the wood out of the body of a heavily oaked malt and adding it to the nose of a bourbon. Campfire embers. Sweet buttered corn, watermelon (sounds crazy, but see if you can smell it), slight oiled leather, and then the spice - habanero chilli peppers, bay leaves, slow-cooked meaty chili. Awesome balanced nose of smoke, sweet, and rich spice.

Body: Ok this is going to sound weird, but it tastes like really well-made french toast. Like the kind made with fresh country eggs, thick-cut bread, lots of sweet butter, and real maple syrup. The outside of the bread is brown and crunchy from the butter and eggs and the center soaks up the sweet molasses of the syrup.

Finish: Long and lovely finish of pipe smoke, more oak and leather, some smoldering wet grass. The smoke is dominant, but as we've said before: it's not just the smoke, it's the balance of smoke, richness, and smoothness. What Brimstone does so well is that it balances the smoke with the sweetness and the full-bodied corn and spice so that you can fully taste the spirit, you get that awesome warm feeling across your chest, but there's no medicinal alcohol burn. This finish goes well with being outside under the stars. At 53%, we prefer to drink Brimstone with only tiny dribble of water - four or five drops from the tips of the fingers or an eye dropper into a full pour of whiskey. The high proof makes the finish last a lifetime and we relish savoring the smoky sweet remnants.

Review

Brimstone is just what we were looking for. It's delicious, it's unique, and it's just the kind of new experience that we look for in a hand-crafted whiskey. At near cask strength it's incredibly drinkable with only a tiny bit of water, which is nothing short of a miracle for a young whiskey. It's honestly the first smoky American whiskey that we've fallen for the way we do for Islay malts. We love bourbon, but to find an American whiskey that embraces smoke like this is tremendous. If this is what Texas whiskey is all about, sign us up! Make no mistake, this is a beast of the smokiest variety. It's not for the faint of heart. But if you are a smoke lover, you simply must try it. $55 for a handmade product of this quality? It's a straight "A". Bravo Chip, you've got a hell of a beautiful beast on your hands here.

Click here to continue reading Balcones - The Birth of a Beast Part 2...

/SmokyBeast

May 23, 2013

Review: Auchentoshan Three Wood - What Happens When You Buy Your Wife Booze For Your Anniversary?

Hapless Romantic

Lord knows where the official list of traditional anniversary gifts came from, but I've had fun following them. Well, until this year...

Year 1: Paper - Plane tickets to Turkey for an amazing vacation.

Year 2: Cotton - Comfy PJs from Lands End.

Year 3: Leather - Leopard print Doc Marten's boots (huge hit!).

Year 4: Silk - Lingerie.

Year 5: Wood -

Seriously? Wood? Like a very romantic... salad spoon? clogs? animal carving? Not exactly wifey's style.

But I'd taken it this far, so I was determined. There I was tromping around downtown Manhattan walking into random stores and asking "Do you have anything made of wood?" I shook my head at a lot of carving boards and lawn gnomes. I finally found a rather cheap looking bracelet at a boutique in SoHo made of wood beads. "Well I'd hoped for something nicer, but this will have to do," I thought. I turned it over to look at the price. It was eight hundred dollars.

Defeated, dejected, I got on the subway and headed home. Well that was the end of that tradition, but at least I could get a nice bottle of champagne and flowers. I stopped into Beacon Wines (the best liquor store on the Upper West Side) and took a minute to browse the whiskey section before heading to the bubbly.

There it was! Winking at me from the Single Malt Scotch shelf, in big beautiful block text: "AUCHENTOSHAN THREE WOOD". Not just one wood, but three! And three classy woods at that: American bourbon oak, Spanish Oloroso Sherry, and Pedro Ximenez casks. What could possibly be more appropriate for celebrating our five years of marital bliss?

(Let me just pause here for the caveat that I'm not necessarily recommending hard alcohol as your 'go-to' anniversary gift. My wifey happens to be my co-blogger and a Grade-A scotch aficionado, so I had a feeling she'd appreciate it. I was right.)

Tosh

Auchentoshan, known to us insiders as "Tosh" or "The Tosh" is one of the few remaining lowland distilleries near Glasgow. Most commonly available are their 18-Year, the Three Wood, and the 12-Year, the 21-Year is more difficult to track down. Tosh's claim to fame is their triple distillation process, inserting a third "intermediate" still into the process with the goal of producing greater purity in the distillate. Check out this actually awesome explanation of triple distillation from their site. It's very informative. People who love Tosh, LOVE TOSH! Like this guy. Cheers Toshan Man, go for yours! Bottom line: it's sort of a phenomenon, and it's a whisky drinkers whisky - slightly off-the-beaten-path when it comes to the standard bottles you'll find in a bar or liquor store. Just how we like it. So how's it taste?

Wifey's Tasting Notes

Nose: Apples and cinnamon, very rich apple pie desert. And of course the wood.

Body: Still get a fruity flavor with the taste, but more pear than apple. Faint hint of smoke.

Finish: If it’s possible for something to have a light but rich finish, it does. Light on the tongue, but still the rich notes you get in the nose.

Gift rating: Best anniversary gift ever! (I mean the Dr. Marten's were pretty great, but I can't wear them in the summer, and I can't share them with my hubby!). Also I'm very glad that I didn't get a wood chair or a garden gnome. Well actually a garden gnome would have been pretty cool in Manhattan...

Hubby's Tasting Notes

Nose: Ok this is not a peated scotch, which is why I've never been that curious before. But the nose is incredible. What it lacks in smoke, it fully makes up for in wood and leather. It's an old oak desk with a well-oiled leather ledger. Letting it sit for a few minutes I'm discovering dark fruits: prunes, raisins, and plums. Finally there is sweet molasses and faint herbals - fresh thyme.

Body: There are few non-peated whiskies that really catch my attention. This stuff is just so uber-pure and clean, it's staggering. You can really taste the spirit, it's not hiding, but there's absolutely no burn, and it's wrapped in layer after layer of delicious wood flavor. The feeling of leather is intense. There is lemon, not tangy, but sweet like those tins of hard candy grandma used to keep on her coffee table. And a nice honeyed chamomile to wrap it all together.

Finish: The finish floats a millimeter off the top of your tongue. Medium long and extremely pleasant. Maybe my only criticism is that this could have a few more points of alcohol to really kick up the finish. But it's lovely as it is. There's a little more citrus, oranges and tangerines exploding on top of the wood. What a pleasant surprise this bottle is!

The Review

A perfect way to celebrate our first half a decade! The Three Wood gets a SmokyBeast "A-". What an excellent gift this bottle is, something new and different that will delight both scotch veterans and newbies alike. It's very unique and you can just taste the quality that goes into this product. At under $70, this is a winner. There are some very negative reviews of this bottle out there. We'll happily disagree.

Help for Next Year?

Talk about turning failure into triumph. Thanks Tosh! Now about next year...

Year 6: Iron - Any suggestions???

/SmokyBeast

May 20, 2013

SmokyBeast Scoop: Oban Distiller's Edition on Sale at Caskers!

Today's scoop: Oban Distiller's Edition at Casker's in limited supply for $88.99. This bottle has sold out around New York and online at over $100. Cheers to our friends at Casker's for hooking it up!

Tasting Notes
Nose: A good balance of smoke and spice. Rosemary, black pepper, cinnamon sticks and cloves. Then the fruit comes through with raisins, cherries, and a hint of mellon.

Body: Clear and crisp on the tongue, not oily or thick, it starts as a nice warm spiced apple cider. Very smooth, the lightness continues adding warmth without burn. There's enough smoke to cut through the alcohol and deliver a complex flavor that's both unique and extremely drinkable.

Finish: The finish is probably the most interesting aspect of this malt. It has a lingering smokiness that is quite enjoyable. But as the smoke drifts off the palate, the fruit and spice remain. There are some distinctly floral tastes coming through similar to rose water. Just as described it's like a special little cove between the peat bogs of the islands and the spice and fruit of the highlands. The smoke drifts up into your nose and through your sinuses while your mouth dwells on fruits and spices.

Good hunting! /smokybeast

May 16, 2013

Cece's Single Malt Sweet Tooth

Glenmorangie Lasanta, Scapa 14-Year

Cece's Sweet Tooth for Single Malts

This week we were fortunate enough to sit down for a special tasting with Cece Smith-MacKenzie of Walker's in TriBeCa. Cece has been a waitress at Walker's for 17 years, always with a smile and a lovely dram to brighten your day. While not a smoke head like your trusty authors, Cece is something of an expert when it comes to rich, honeyed, Highland malts.

"I first discovered whisky, like most young kids, when I stole some from my grandfather’s liquor cabinet. I did not enjoy my first encounters with Scotch. He had a taste for really smoky whisky. Then in my twenties there were many hapless meetings with blended whisky. Which, I barely survived, or at least that is how it felt.

It wasn’t until 16 years ago, Leonard, who is still a bartender at Walker’s, talked me into trying Balvenie 12. My love affair with single malt had officially begun. It is still one of my favorites today.

I tend to like Highland Whisky the best, but I love The Orkney Isles. Scapa is now one of my all time favorites and I also love Highland Park, both from Orkney. Glenmorangie is my favorite Highland and they have so many to choose from. Right now I am very partial to the Lasanta. I like Single Malts that are complex, with a peaty earthy flavour and very little to no smoke, with a vanilla, plum finish and a hint of spice. I don’t add ice. I do however add a splash of water to open the flavour. Old school. My grandfather would be proud!"

A Gem of a Pub

While the tourists are across the street gawking at the Ghostbuster's firehouse, locals flock to Walker's for the best happy hour in TriBeCa. Walker's is one of our all-time favorite pubs. They sport a great, well-poured draught beer list (amongst our favorites are: Lagunitas IPA, Southampton White, Bluepoint, & Palm), a hand-picked selection of malts and whiskies, and very solid pub food at prices that won't make you weep like most TriBeCa restaurants these days.

Most importantly the staff is awesome and deeply authentic. Walker's could be the Cheers of New York, if Cheers was a real place and not the most awful tourist trap in Boston.

Contestant #1: Scapa 14-Year

From the Orkney Islands, north of the northern Scottish Highlands, comes Scapa. Self-described as "sweet and velvety with flavours of sweet clementine and heather honey, a tang of ginger, and sweet baked apples," Scapa is a sweet treat that's off-the-beaten-path and was a very pleasant surprise.

SmokyBeast's notes: "On the nose: A bouquet of flowers and fruits - dandelions, spring meadow, apples, and dew. The body opens up with sweeter fruits: heavy apricot, peaches, white wine. The finish is lightning fast, just a pop of fruit with absolutely no burn."

Cece's notes: "On the nose: Salty, Floral, Oak, Ocean Brine. Body: A hint of spice, vanilla, caramel, chocolate. Finish: Very short, vanilla."

Scapa was delightful. We could see this as a perfect after-lunch scotch, or to be paired with salads, fish, or fruit.

Contestant #2: Glenmorangie Lasanta

The Oloroso Sherry barrel version of the 12-Year Glenmorangie is noted as "Smooth chocolate covered raisins, honeycomb, and caramel toffee. Deliciously sweet sherry flavoured sultanas, orange segments, walnuts, & butterscotch."

Cece's notes: "Nose: Spice, vanilla, caramel, banana fruitiness. Body: sweet & spicy with peat coming through followed by a long finish of peat and spice.

SmokyBeast's Notes: "Nose: overripe bananas, caramel, Nutella. There's a little funk on the nose here, maybe those bananas have gone a bit brown. It opens up with herb garden and a hint of smoke. Body: Sweet start, then little hints of lemongrass and thyme. Herby and medicinal behind the sweetness. Finish: Much longer finish when compared with the Scapa. The finish is probably its best feature, the smoke is apparent along with a heavy dose of leather (saddle oil) and fresh oak.

Conclusions

While we remain dedicated to the beastly smoky delights, Cece introduced a new favorite. The Scapa is truly unique. It leaves you craving another pour, the stone fruits and honey still rolling on your tongue. Think about a romantic evening with Scapa and chocolate-covered strawberries. Think about a delicious malt that wouldn't ruin your palate for a light summer meal.

Thanks to everyone at Walker's for a great time. Stop by next time you're in TriBeCa around happy hour (it's on the corner of N. Moore & Varick) and ask for Cece!

Cheers/SmokyBeast

May 9, 2013

Review: Laphroaig Quarter Cask - Can The Mighty Dwarf Prevail?

Surface Area

Here's a secret: If you're in a rush to cook pasta, boil your water in a wide and short saucepan. Spreading the water out over a wider pan makes it boil much more quickly. You'll be cooking those raviolis in half the time. It's all about surface area. Think about it... In a standard size pot, a lot of the water is very far from the edges. The heat has to pass through several inches of water to heat the cold water in the middle of the pot. In the wide and short pan, none of the water is farther than an inch or two from the hot surface of the pot. Ok, we're sure you understand all about surface area. You went to third grade. Sorry about that. But we bet you didn't really think about whiskey this way.

The Mighty Dwarf Cask

When it comes to aging whisky, distillers have been trying the same principles. The theory is that the aging process takes place when the whisky interacts with the oak of the barrel. So that would logically mean: higher ratio of wood to whisky = faster aging. Thus the concept of the quarter cask is born. Smaller barrels (casks) means more wood touching the whisky. More surface area. Boil that water quicker so that we can eat our ravioli (or in this case single malt scotch) sooner!

Laphroaig Quarter Cask

Look closely at the label below and you'll see the standard size Laphroaig barrel next to the quarter cask. Can this mighty dwarf really speed up the aging process and give us a lovely, smooth, and mature whisky without having to wait 14 years?

NAS

This is another No Age Statement bottle, so it's tough to really judge the quarter cask approach in a vacuum. There are a lot of rumblings about it being some combination of 7-year quarter cask barrels mixed with some older traditional barrels. Our friends at Master of Malt (who know a thing or two) say it's a traditional 5-year aging that's finished for 7 months in the quarter casks. No way to know for sure. Clearly it's young, or putting an age statement on the bottle would increase the value. The only detail is "Double Cask Matured at 48%". Ok, not helpful, but let's see what happens.

Tasting Notes:

Appearance: Definitely darker than the standard 10-year. Still not quite a pleasant color, but we're trying to remain impartial based on looks alone.

Nose: Ok now we're listening. This is the epitome of salt-water ocean air. You can just smell the breeze coming in across the whitecaps. You can even smell the rocks. Very nice aroma comparable to some of our favorite Islays.

Body: Here we are again with Laphroaig's throat. Unclear wether it's the lack of age, the barreling process, or the original flavor, but it's not where we want it to be. There is more wood flavor than the standard 10 year bottle, which is sort of nice, but the mellowness hasn't taken hold. It's a harsh and fiery dram that's tough to swallow.

Finish: It's extremely throaty on the finish. Uncomfortably so. You need to add water. When you do it mellows out slightly, but it's tough to find a balance between smooth and watery.

The Review:

So did Laphoaig's little scientific hypothesis prove to be true? In a word: No. The quarter cask aging did increase the wood flavor, but it didn't age the whisky any faster. Because the real key to aging is... age. It's not just absorbing the character of the wood. When whisky ages, the fire of the alcohol fades and the fruit, smoke, and spice flavors of the malt come through. At around $60, you'd be crazy not to spend an extra ten bucks and go for Lagavulin, Ardbeg, or Bowmore. Sadly the mighty dwarf from Laphroaig gets a SmokyBeast "C".

/sb

May 2, 2013

Review: Michter's 1753 10-Year Bourbon - The Most Shocking and Scandalous SmokyBeast Post Ever!!

"What's Your Favorite Bourbon?"

It starts out innocently enough. Two sets of parents on a playdate. Dad finds out you write a whiskey blog, furrows his brow, and in the spirit of conversation poses a question. "So... What's your favorite bourbon?"

This is the type of question at which all whiskey writers cringe. There are so many great bourbons out there. Dare I pick one? Will the serious aficionados of the world laugh me out of the room for picking something unworthy?

Then there are the qualifiers: Are we talking best value for the money? Best taste overall? Should this be a whiskey for special occasions or an everyday bottle? Or some hidden gem that will prove my upper echelon whiskey insider-osity? Should I be conducting weeks of blind tastings to refine my answer based on technical categories and palate profiles?

What Do You Crave?

No. Forget all that. No one cares. When people ask me this question it's because they know I sample a lot of different whiskeys and they want to know what I crave.

I'm reflecting on that moment at my office. It's ten minutes to five and while my corporeal form remains in front of the computer, my spirit is already flying home to loftier pursuits. I know that I'll get to spend an hour or two with my toddler. We'll probably dance a little bit (she heard Mumford & Sons on Pandora recently and went nuts for it). She'll have her favorite dinner: homemade mac & cheese with peas. And I know that she'll go to sleep around 7:30 and I'll be headed for a drink.

It's getting warm out which means that after my typical winter hibernation in a cave of single malt scotch, I'm going to have a bourbon. As I'm on my way home today, I'm not thinking about which bottle in my bar has the highest sticker price. It's money spent. I'm not thinking about which won the most awards this year or which is the most elusive and difficult to find. I couldn't care less.

The fact is that the decision has already been made. My mind has already skipped past the Pappy and the Hirsch, the Craigs and the Taylors, the Buffalos and the Black Maple Hills. In my mind I'm already pouring a glass of my favorite bourbon... drum-roll please... Michter's 10-Year.

My Favorite Bourbon

I crave it. I can picture its lovely dark color swirling in my best crystal tumbler. To be honest, my mouth is watering a little bit right now just thinking about it. I can taste the brown sugar, the vanilla, the leather and wood, the cocoa. There's just something about it that has all other bourbon beat.

A Dose of Reality

Ok we know it's another NDP (non-distiller producer) brand. It's probably made at Heaven Hill. It's just got a different label on it. Yada yada yada. You know what? I don't care. It tastes great. Maybe it's the recipe, or the special little spot in the warehouse where it earns its stripes. It doesn't matter. You can't second guess bourbon. You just sip it and see where it takes you. There's some magic going on there.

Tasting Notes

Appearance: Look at it. Soak in the dark caramel color. Live it. Love it. And remember that bourbon by law can contain no additives or artificial coloring. That's the years of charred oak, the brutal Kentucky summers and those cool southern nights you're looking at.

Nose: Starbucks Frappuccino with extra caramel and whipped cream. Sweet toffee, mocha, vanilla. A freshly opened box of raisins. Then the deep oak, char, tobacco, and leather. There's something else, a little hint of pink rock salt. FInally a healthy dose of candied orange rind.

Body: A lot of spices hitting at once. Nutmeg, fennel seed, cinnamon, little bursts of lemon essence and grapefruit. Add a little water and.. just kidding, you'd have to be nuts to add water to this. It's perfect at 94 proof. The molasses and vanilla are most intense here filling the mouth with sweet corn and brown butter.

Finish: A very fast finish. What does this mean exactly? Well with some whiskey the finish moves slowly, staying hot for a few seconds and then turning gradually into smoke or sweetness. Here the pleasant bourbon burn is gone as soon as you open your lips. There's little sweetness on the aftertaste, it's mostly smoke and spice. Rosemary comes out and hot pepper, campfire and cigar tobacco.

Review

If you can find Michter's 10-Year Bourbon in a liquor store in NYC, it's probably around $95. We see it online, though not from any of our standard reputable sources, for as low as $75, but that's probably due to usurious shipping rates. The regular Michter's is great too and can be found easily. Is the Ten Year worth a hundred bucks? I don't know. Yes. If Pappy 23 is worth $250, then triple yes. With Blanton's and Four Roses Single Barrel in the $40-$50 range, then maybe not. It's a crazy jumbled up mixed up world of bourbon out there. This is still this hubby's favorite.

Tell me I'm crazy, leave a note and let us know what you think of this scandalous beast.

Good drinking. /sb

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