A lovely, rich whisky from this popular Islay distillery. Often called the “benchmark” for all other Islay offerings. Smoky and dry, its heavy peat reputation does not mask some complex flavours, with a surprising sweetness and hint of vanilla. Everyone seems to taste something different. A go-to for big peat lovers worldwide. 42.9% ABV and a very reasonable $144.95 at the LCBO.
Finished in a Pedro Ximinez cask, this dram is both a peat and sherry bomb. Lots of dried fruit amongst the smoke. Warm and inviting, bold and unapologetic. 43% ABV, distilled in 2001 and bottled in 2017. $159.95 at the LCBO.
When a bottle of Bunnahabhain 18 became available to us, it was a no-brainer to snap it up. I first sampled this whisky at Spirit of Toronto in 2016 and it stood out as one of my favourites of the evening. With sherry notes that do not overwhelm, it comes across as complex and warm, a touch oily and nutty. Delicious. [Some online critiques mention batch variation for this particular whisky…quality certainly wasn’t an issue with this specific bottle, but an interesting note to keep an eye out for as this will be repeat buy!]
This bottling is the 10th in Glenmorangie’s Private Edition Series (and I understand it is the last of the series). It is bitter-sweet in taste, with mild vanilla and citrus flavours and woody-earthy tones. The highlight of this whisky is the claim that the distillery used wild yeast grown on their own local barley, creating a creamy, “old-style” feel. Some criticism is the casks utilized in aging killed the complexity of the yeast, leaving a fairly simple tasting whisky with too much wood on the palate. A beautiful deep gold colour, it looks lovely on the shelf. “Allta” is Scots Gaelic for “wild”.
The Club’s second selection from the Scotch Malt Whisky Society. Coded as their fifth bottling from Loch Lomond Distillery (Highand Region), this 17 year-old whisky certainly lived up to its name by the reaction of members, ranging from “Not for me thanks” to “Interesting…?” to “Pass me another!”. Some odd tasting notes including Chinese Chrysanthemum tea, basmati rice and cactus juice liqueur are noted by the SMWS on the bottle….we didn’t taste much of these flavours, but certainly had an interesting time trying! An enjoyable 1-time bottle.
This Campbeltown whisky obtained at the LCBO was finished in a heavy-char barrel, but is a very easy drinker for cask strength (54.2%). A fairly sweet flavour, with definite vanilla. Mildly smoky. A drink to enjoy on a warm summer night. $98.80 and sold out. This whisky was paired with an SMWS bottling for the Club’s first ever virtual meeting – a result of COVID-19.
This Single Malt Whisky comes from Glenora distillery on Cape Breton. Generally mild flavours make it an easy sipper, with light notes of salty brine and smoke, layered under honey and citrus. The Club has sampled 2 Glen Bretons in the past – a 10 and a 15 – and we are happy to support a Canadian distillery once again, particularly given the immigrated Scottish tradition this distillery touts as the heart of its approach to whisky-making. Cheers to a truly Canadian dram!
Another selection from our 12 Year Anniversary meeting, which featured one whisky from every classic whisky region of Scotland, as well as a popular Japanese Whisky. Bunnahabhain is a general club favourite, hailing from Islay, near Port Askaig.
One of 7 unique selections for our 12 Year Anniversary, held on January 25, 2020. From the little-known Spey distillery and sourced from Calgary, Alberta. Beautiful bottle and packaging!
Kavalan Solist Amontillado
Single Malt Whisky
Bottled at Cask Strength 56.3% ABV
Cask #: AM110216009B
Bottle #: 367/377
This exploration into Kavalan started with a chat with one of my co-workers who was about to travel to Taiwan to visit family and friends. They are also pretty big fans of whisky and said they were planning on taking an excursion to the Kavalan distillery while on their vacation. The Kavalan Solist Amontillado is what he brought back for me from his travels overseas, thanks so much Wayne for picking this up for the club to enjoy.
First impressions upon seeing the packaging is wow! It’s a lovely, sturdy wood case, it’s lined with a golden silk liner under the bottle. On the inside of the opening cover there is a panel with a story of the distillery and some basic tasting notes for this single cask expression. The packaging really takes this to the next level and has an exclusive feel while protecting the nectar inside. Kavalan also include a rolled-up scroll that shows additional tasting notes with a note that this expression won the World Whisky Awards Best Single Cask in 2016.
Amontillado is a dry sherry characterized by nutty aromas, tobacco, aromatic herbs and often ethereal, polished notes of oak, these casks are certainly unique to the whisky world but still carry the familiar sherry finishing notes on the whisky.
Some notes from the distillery:
Colour: Dark rich bronze similar to, the darker brown of the wood packaging box
Nose: Very rich and fruity, warm heat from the cask strength, sweetness with notes of almonds and a touch of oak
Palate: Exotic soft sherry with a hint of caramel, longer finish backed by nuts and pepperiness
This whisky packs a bit of punch and you will be well served to let spirit breathe for a few minutes after pouring it into your choice of whisky glass. You get the warming alcohol note on the first waft from the glass. The sweetness comes through backed by a touch of oak in the back end as you breath in the aromas. The spirit is quite dark taking colouring from the Amontillado Sherry casks, it imparts some serious legs on the glass as you swirl it in your glass. Once the spirit hits your lips you get the immediate warmth from the high ABV, however that quickly dissipates into the sweet notes of the sherry backed by caramelised nuts. It is so smooth for a cask strength whisky. The finish imparts a sweet oaky wood backed by a bit of pepper. I still got the flavour of the whisky for up to 10 minutes after the first sips. The alcohol on the nose is quickly replaced by the nuttiness and overall dry sweetness of the Amontillado sherry cask finish.
There is no age statement on this range of Solist single cask expressions from Kavalan, however some research puts it anywhere from 8-12 years, notes on the Kavalan website show that the warm climate and the heat in Taiwan allows the spirit to take on notes of the casks at a much higher rate that the traditional scotch whisky processes. For me and the club members this expression did not taste like a young whisky that was boring and was gone on the palate instantly. This was a complex spirit that would normally have an aging of over 20 years.
I have not seen Kavalan for sale in Ontario through the local LCBO, it is available in other parts of Canada so this was a fantastic and rare treat for us to taste and sample. I cannot wait to get a hold of more Kavalan expressions if they are all special like this one. Bottle was $300 Canadian after exchange. Highly recommend this expression and from what I’ve heard the other Solist expressions are just a great, well done Kavalan.
