sTemple Bar Irish Whiskey Flight 12/17/2019
     Our Ireland trip was highlighted by the holiday season. Lights were everywhere. People were shopping (almost all locally owned shops) and enjoying festivities everywhere. It was nice and cold, wintery and old European. Just like Scotland, everyone was warm and welcoming.
     We had to go to the Temple Bar of course. It’s a landmark destination for Dublin that has been serving since 1840. It is the focal point for a neighborhood named after it that includes other pubs and a famous hotel owned by Bono and the Edge (didn’t know this while I was there). As luck would have it, Temple Bar has a whiskey tasting room and retail store attached. Aly and I bellied up to the bar for a tasting!

​*Temple Bar Signature Blend    “5 yrs or so”  40% ABV  Port and Bourbon casks
     I was told that Middletons was in the blend.
     -smelled sweet  cherry
     -tasted slight oak with fruit
     -w/water smelled citrus sweet almost lemon
     -tasted tea biscuit – quickly goes to peppery oak

​*Temple Bar 10 Yr  40% ABV American Oak
     -smelled grassy sweet with sour apple candy
     -tasted apple candy
     -went to oak quickly
     -with water smelled apple candy
     -tasted bitter oak
     Water ruined this.

​*Temple Bar 12 Yr 40% ABV
     -smelled slight tar/smoke
     -tasted toast and oak
     -with water smelled light vanilla
     -tasted oak
     -trailed quickly

​     *Temple Bar 15 Yr 40% ABV Double Distilled, Bourbon Casks
     -smelled lemon, sugar cookie
     -tasted sweet pastry – went quickly to oak
     -with water smelled sweet cookie
     -tasted cookie dough – went quickly to oak with a little pepper

*Temple Bar 14 Yr Malbec Cask 43% ABV
     Aged in Argentinian Malbec casks
     -smelled slight rubber and floral
     -tasted rubber with wine
     -with water smelled rubbery and grassy
     -tasted wine – trailed rubber/pepper/oak
     I struck up a conversation with the young gentleman serving me. He appreciated my whisk(e)y knowledge and added this expression to my tasting. 

Aly was enjoying a nice Scapa while I tasted. 

​*Local Distillery- Dublin, Ireland. Method and Madness
Irish Single Pot Still   46% ABV
 
-Smells sweet vanilla with strawberry bubblegum
(Irish with no rubber hose)
-Tastes barely perceptible rubber with saltwater taffy-then quickly to peppery oak
-With water- very little- smells strawberry bubblegum with hint of vanilla
-Tastes pastry sweet with a touch of pepper and light oak
-Trails slowly! bitter oak
-No overpowering rubber hose in this Irish whisky

     My friend was in town and we had ourselves a tasting. John brought some whiskey and I opened my bottle of Lot 40. Here is what we had: 

​*Basil Hayden’s Dark Rye
-smelled sweet caramel
-tasted slight pepper w/sweet cherry candy
-with water smelled slight cherry dessert
-tasted cherry syrup with peppery oak
-trailed quickly slight oak

​*Lot 40 43% ABV
-smelled bourbon, sweet vanilla
-tasted sweet oak – trailed peppery  oak
-with water smelled sweet floral
-tasted bitter bourbon, oak
Water ruined this. 

Glendronach Comparison with John 
*My bottle: Revival 15yr
Aged in Olorosso only, bottled 5/2/13
 
-trails slowly with oak
 
*John’s bottle: Revival 15yr
Aged in Olorosso and PX casks, bottled 5/2/19
 
-sherry is rich but not sweeter
-trailed quickly and sweet
 
We both agreed that the older bottling is a slightly sweeter and overall and better taste. 

​*Highland Park Dark Origins 46.8% ABV
-smelled sherry w/slight peat smoke and hint of grassiness
-tasted sherry pepper, trailed quickly
-with water smelled lighter and sweet citrus
-tasted peppery, less sweet
-trailed slowly light smoke

​*Bunnahabhain Ceobanach 46.3% ABV
-smelled cookie dough and caramel
-almost a cooked meat smell w/slight peat
-tasted peppery smoked meat
-with water smelled cinnamon leather
-tasted peppery peat w/smoked meat
-trailed quickly

     Glorious Dalmore. Rich caramel, toffee, cherry goodness. Ahh. 
     Riverside Liquors put on a tasting that was entertaining and hard to replicate on your own. The expressions ranged from a 12 year to the Cigar Malt Reserve. Pictures of the event are in my pool with the other lost images, unfortunately. 
     Here's what we tasted:
​

*Dalmore 12 yr 40% ABV  Bourbon/Sherry aged
-smelled almost grape w/slight citrus
-tasted unsweetened chocolate, slightly peppery w/citrus notes
-trails oak
-with water smelled sweeter – caramel, slight toffee
-tasted light citrus orange but less sweet
-quickly goes to oak
Not as sweet as it smells.

Dalmore 15 yr 40% ABV  Bourbon/3 Sherry Cask aged
​-smelled slight bourbon w/oak and raisin bread
-tasted sweet oak w/sweet bread/dough
-with water smelled cherry w/caramel
-tasted almost smoky w/light floral
-trailed oak quickly!

Dalmore Portwood  46.5% ABV 
​-smelled citrusy apricot (port wine), orange scone
-tasted syrupy citrus w/pepper and oak
-with water smelled bread pudding w/tinge of oak
-tasted sugar cookie – went quickly to oak
-trailed very peppery

^Dalmore 18 yr 43% ABV
​-smelled apples/sweet dried fruit – lemony
-tasted sweet dessert, lemon pastry
-trailed w/barely any oak and slight alcohol burn
-with water smelled caramelized dessert/cookie
-tasted raisin bread
-trailed slight pepper and oak
Aly likes this one. 

^Dalmore Cigar Malt Reserve 44% ABV
​-smelled polished leather w/slight oak
-tasted toasted bread w/tinge sour
-with water smelled grape with orange
-tasted leathery pepper w/no oaky finish
Smells much sweeter with water than it tastes.

     This tasting was not just the one expression. My friend John stopped by with some whisky. He enjoyed some whiskies from my shelf and I got to taste a peated Glendronach. I did only take notes for that one though. Of course the picture of the bottle and others is lost in my pool somewhere from my swim. Here is what I tasted:

*Glendronach Peated 46% ABV (Olorosso & PX casks)
-smelled sweet toasted biscuit/butter cookie
-tasted slight peat w/oak
-trailed oak but sweet
-with water smelled floral, slight peat with lemon bar
-tasted peppery peat w/citrusy overtone
-trailed peat slowly

     This meeting featured whiskies with a connection to beer, I think. Lost notes and a bad memory are not my allies right now. I have notes for three expressions. Here they are:

​*The Arran Malt Single Cask 54% ABV
-smells lemon, floral, pastry (Entenmann’s pastry)
-tasted light oak, peppery
-with water smelled lighter lemony
-sweet sherry smell
-tasted peppery!
-trails oak and pepper
Water flattened the sweetness. I put just a dash. 

​*Two Lanterns American Whiskey 4yr 43% ABV
Berkshire Mountain Distillers - Sheffield, MA
Distilled from Sam Adams Beer
-smelled waxy, leathery
-can smell the tanins and slight touch of beer
-tasted slight beer w/oak- almost like beer foam
-with water smelled floral and dish detergent
-tasted light, sweet beer, flat
-slight oak
Interesting.

     This was a year of eclectic expressions. I remember Todd running around that afternoon to gather the bottles. Whatever pics I took from the event are lost. About the only goal I had for the evening was to try the Game of Thrones White Walker. In fact that is the only note I have. Shame on me.
​ 

​*Johnny Walker White Walker (GOT) 41.7% ABV
-extremely light blend w/touch of oak
-trails quickly!
That’s it.

*McCallan Edition No.3
-smelled slight oak, bourbon
-tasted peppery oak
-with water smelled slight caramel, vanilla
-tinge of rubbery oak
-tastes peppery oak
-trails bitter oak
     Nothing I would go out of my way for but a nice, easy to drink whisky.

     Well I'm only about two years behind at this point. I do not remember where this tasting happened, but it's a good bet it was at my house. Unfortunately this year, 2020, we are breaking the tradition and not having a meeting for St Patrick's Day at Castle MacDonald. COVID-19 is a concern and our club is on hiatus anyway. Seeing everyone is always fun and next year is a new year. 

     *Knappogue Castle 16yr 40% ABV
TwinWood Sherry Finished
-smelled sweet birthday cake w/vanilla
-tasted vanilla
-with water smelled sweet oak vanilla
-tasted slight oak w/touch bread, doughy
-trailed bitter oak quickly

​*Knappogue Castle 12yr 40% ABV
-smelled sweet candy oak w/dessert icing
-tasted peppery oak w/toasted bread
-with water smelled powdered donuts
Tasted slight sweet with oak