Touring the Western Isles plus bonus

Jura 20 yo ‘Batch 5’ (48.2%, That Boutique-y Whisky Co, 901 bottles)
Color: straw. Nostril: very Jura! This avalanche of mashy grains, wort and root greens baked in honey. Additionally waxes, suet, bouillon, over-stewed chamomile tea and a few type of fermenting honey. Charismatic, bizarre and a complete heap of enjoyable! Mouth: similar feeling, however with many extra waxes, honeys, breads and a myriad show of mechanical oils, toolbox grease, hessian rags and bike chain ‘stuff’. Actually, you can not say that Jura doesn’t make a spirit with persona. Though, it’s also possible to see why the commercially minded house owners is likely to be tempted to clobber their distillate into Grocery store uniformity with any variety of energetic woods. End: medium however very fatty, waxy, beery and going in the direction of lactic notes and mustard powder. Feedback: I can see why some would discover this too excessive, components of it remind me of some Loch Lomond makes or some moderately off the grid outdated Irish whiskeys. For me nonetheless, I really like this zany profile. We’re a really good distance from Glen Boring!
SGP: 472 – 87 factors.

Jura 28 yo 1993/2021 (48.2%, Mossburn, hogshead, 220 bottles)
Color: gold. Nostril: similar household tree, however this one way back veered off extra in the direction of medicinal ointments, natural cough syrups, funky outdated liqueurs and issues like creme de menthe, eucalyptus scented pipe tobaccos and a few outdated dry Rieslings. There’s additionally a glimmer of salinity and a fairly spectacular and encroaching waxiness that reeks of fatness and texture! Mouth: wonderful! Richly honeyed, pure candy, filled with old style beers, ales, breads, meads and camphor. Fir wooden resins, myrtle, camphor, lemon infused olive oil and this persistently textural waxiness. End: good size, one freshly baked breads as soon as once more, additionally toasted seeds, mineral oils, bouillon and extra camphor and fir wooden notes. Feedback: terrific, charismatic, outdated fashion malt whisky. I do know they divide opinion a bit, however I am a giant fan of those parcels of aged Jura. This can be a prime notch instance, nice choice.
SGP: 662 – 90 factors.

Tobermory 24 yo 1994/2022 (49.8%, C.Dully Choice for Sansibar, cask #10942, sherry butt, 78 bottles)
Solely 78 bottles from a sherry butt? Very leaky, or somebody in Switzerland has been necking the Toblerone Eau De Vie once more… Color: mild amber. Nostril: it is a balanced sherry fashion that is moderately lean and leafy with a variety of gun metallic, bouillon, mineral oil, sultanas and light-weight tobacco notes. Elegant and moderately fashionable I might say, pairs fairly effortlessly with the Tobermory character to date. Mouth: similar emotions, gently drying, calmly natural, moderately leathery with creme caramel and praline. Additionally some good umami flavours of miso, truffle and black pepper. A little bit gingery too maybe. End: good size, changing into moderately delicate now with teas, mushrooms, a contact of balsamic and a few walnut oil. Feedback: subtlety is the phrase right here. Tiptoes round like a Swiss ballet dancer – most likely.
SGP: 561 – 88 factors.

Tobermory 25 yo 1996/2022 (50.1%, Dram Mor, refill hogshead + 1st fill Calvados end, 167 bottles)
Dram Mor appear to have mastered these intelligent finishings. Apples and pears + 90s Tobermory appears on paper like a superb recipe… Color: deep gold. Nostril: it’s most likely the ability of suggestion, however I do certainly discover appley notes upfront, russet apples and bruised Granny Smiths. Then it goes extra in the direction of shoe leather-based, boot polish, mineral oils and toolbox rags. I like this moderately rustic / mechanical combo. Additionally some touches of liquorice, verbena, coal mud and snapped twigs. With water: sooty apples, a drop of custard, some candy cider after which some properly mossy petrichor notes. Mouth: hoho, a giant rush of Calvados! Was this cask rinsed? Apple pips, cask aged perry, lemon verbena, wormwood and mineral oil blended with creme de menthe. A complete heap of enjoyable! With water: opens up on inexperienced fruits, tea tree oil, mossy bark, lime curd and touches of aniseed and fennel. Very engaging. End: medium in size and displaying some properly bitter notes of apple peelings, dried herbs, tree bark and citrus rinds. Barely peppery within the aftertaste. Feedback: I am not typically a fan of finishings, however the ones I like are typically very a lot about enjoyable moderately than something too pretentious. That is actually a enjoyable whisky, one to pour blind to kick off a night with some fellow whisky geeks.
SGP: 651 – 88 factors.

Tobermory 26 yo 1995/2021 (51.0%, North Star, refill hogshead, 238 bottles)
Color: pale gold. Nostril: very usually on greases, yeasty breads, ales and materials. Some chalky seashore pebble vibes and wee notes of waxes, flints, mineral oil and shoe polish. Very consistent with these 90s Tobermory batches and in addition superb I believe. With water: greener and barely extra peppery, these good notes of grass, chlorophyll, moist rocks and muesli. Mouth: wonderful arrival, surprisingly candy and juicy with a variety of pure barley sweetness together with some notes of milk bottle sweets, ink, parsley and dried blended herbs. Extra sourdough vibes together with just a little lemon peel and verbena. Nonetheless properly waxy too. With water: wonderful weight and physique, appears like a surprisingly textural instance within the mouth, which can simply be a really intelligent hogshead? Apple juice, honey, Turkish delight and condensed milk. End: good size, plenty of heat peppery qualities, lingering waxy emotions and extra of those citrus rinds and dried herbs. Feedback: undoubtedly one the very best of those numerous Tobermory mid-90s casks I’ve tried to this point, this one actually ticked many packing containers and managed to stability a number of the extra ‘milky’ traits these can typically show.
SGP: 651 – 89 factors.

Ledaig 19 yo 2001/2021 (49.2%, Membership Qing & Associates, hogshead, 219 bottles)
A bottling by Membership Qing and shared with a variety of different nice bars. Color: pale white wine. Nostril: ashy smoke, seawater, grizzly peat and bonfire embers. Huge, chunky, classical trendy Ledaig, solely now at this age its edges are starting to spherical off. Peat smoked sheep wool with lemon juice and recent oysters. Lovely freshness and magnificence after just a little time. Mouth: seawater once more, waxed lemon rinds, sooty-tinged kiln smoke and these moderately excellent camphor and hessian notes. Terrific fatness and thickness within the mouth even at beneath 50% – I might say the power is type of excellent actually. Turns into just a little extra tarry and in the direction of hessian and creel rope with time. Very maritime! End: lengthy, pure, intricately smoky, plenty of impressions of shellfish, salinity, umami broths and tar. Feedback: it began out a tad easy however simply stored on getting larger and higher because it went alongside. Is not trendy Ledaig simply good? Nice choice.
SGP: 366 – 90 factors.

Islay 30 yo 1990/2021 (48.8%, Thompson Bros ‘Error 502 Unhealthy Gateway’, refill hogshead, 89 bottles)
Color: pale gold. Nostril: arduous to not simply consider mature early Nineties Laphroaig. Mushy, quilted peat smoke, crushed seashore shells, mild medicinal embrocations, seawater, grapefruit, gauze and background notes of extra luscious greener and unique fruits. Undeniably fairly attractive with this impression of gentility and easiness. Mouth: a deeper, extra impactful peaty high quality, one which takes in bitter espresso, smoked teas, iodine, pure tar, seawater and dried herbs muddled with umami seasonings. Liquid smoke and aniseed. Excellent energy and texture within the mouth – most likely bottled at excellent maturity these batches I might say. End: medium, on anchovy paste, extra dried natural notes, dried lemon peels and extra these seductively silky wafts of peat smoke. Feedback: pure class! Beautiful, mature, south shore Islay juice, that also retains an fringe of energy and complexity regardless of additionally fooling around drinkable.
SGP: 566 – 91 factors.

Islay 30 yo 1990/2021 (49.4%, Thompson Bros / Auld Alliance, refill barrel, 252 bottles)
Color: pale gold. Nostril: similar story, however maybe extra citrus-focused, extra lemons in brine, grapefruit, bergamot and scented lapsing souchong tea. Once more this smooth natural facet, seawater, generic inexperienced fruitiness, straightforward smooth peat smoke and calmly peppery tones on the again. Mouth: similar story once more, similar high quality. Beautifully crisp peat smoke this time, maybe extra salty, extra sharp and resinous. Seawater, grapefruit, aniseed, iodine and kiln smoke. Getting even a notch kippery. End: lengthy, gently tarry and peppery, a deeper and extra chewy peat smoke profile, and equally pretty notes of smoked teas and citrus. Feedback: if push got here to shovel, I might most likely admit that this one is my favorite of the 2, however I am undecided it is sufficient that I might go a distinct rating. No half factors on Whiskyfun. One other actually attractive outdated L*******g.
SGP: 566 – 91 factors.

Islay 29 yo 1991/2021 (49.2%, Thompson Bros / Auld Alliance, refill barrel, 240 bottles)
Color: vibrant straw. Nostril: I discover this one goes extra particularly in the direction of medicines, all on bandages, gauze, mild embrocations and distant wafts of TCP and iodine. Extraordinarily typical however extra focussed. With time it turns into just a little extra rooty and earthy, hints of gentian, antiseptic and smooth peat smoke. Mouth: pure, ashy, briny and peaty with an overlying citrus fruit high quality however with every little thing dialled down low so there isn’t a single dominant flavour. The entire feels solely about stability, integration and magnificence. It is virtually like a 10yo Laphroaig from the early Nineties however at a correct bottling power and barely much less fruit. A contact of sandalwood and dried fish too. End: lengthy, extra deeply and assertively peaty, earthy and on medical roots as soon as once more, then peppery and with a tang of mustard powder within the aftertaste. Feedback: prime notch and splendidly focussed and balanced, however I might say I simply miss the extra overt fruitiness of the Nineties.
SGP: 466 – 90 factors.

The Liquorists Bubblegum Flavour Gin Liqueur ‘Small Batch’ (20%, OB, -/+2022)
Appropriate for vegans, apparently. Color: blue – with swirling whorls. Nostril: probably not existent. Some solutions of bubblegum that is been below a desk for some years, additionally a couple of sprigs of gin. Some barely sweaty, virtually crotch-like notes with related should. Very decidedly not good. Mouth: jarringly sugary, abusively exuding terrible chemical substances – like some type of malfunctioning Soviet chemical facility (degree 2 of Goldeneye however as a flavour). Blue sweet floss aged in a haunted doll’s home manufactured from cow dung. Like rimming a sweaty Haribo addict in a sizzling tent on day 2 of Glastonbury. Utterly atrocious. End: mercifully, vanishingly absent. Fast flavour entropy. Features factors right here by advantage of absolute absence of something. Feedback: did they chew the bubblegum first?
SGP: 900 – 8 factors.