This bottle was labelled #3031 from Batch 0887 and bottled at 45.2% ABV. The nose was very nice, herbal tea with mint and sweet vanilla notes. The mouthfeel is fresh, light and oily, bittersweet on palate with more vanilla, candy, black coffee and dark chocolate. The finish has peppermint, wood and grassy rye notes. With water it gets sweeter, even honeyed, while heat builds in the finish with chilli spiced dark chocolate. Overall very delicious; a light and subtle of straight rye.
Read MoreKnock, Knock. Who's there? Knocked. Knocked who? That's right, Knockdhu distillery, the makers of AnCnoc.
If you can do better then please email it to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or enter as a comment on the Blog tab. Happy holidays.
This one of those whiskies from a major brand that reminds you that good whisky isn't limited to small artisan brands and doesn't have to be expensive. The nose on this has sweetness, vanilla (a bit like fudge) and some fruit and perhaps a little fresh paint. The taste is sweet has some soft spice (cloves, cinnamon and even coffee) and a little oak in the finish. Good stuff neat and with water gets a little sweeter, brown sugar, vanilla and some fruit.
You may have noticed the whisky countdown jump from 30 or so when the web page went live in early November to 45 as of November 20th. I thought it was worth pointing out that I have still been catching up on tasting notes from the last year or so and entering them into my web page content management system. However that exercise is now complete and I can start to look forward to the challenge ahead of finding the remaining 56 or so (which is slightly complicated by the fact the book was written in UK and I now live in the USA). I also thought I would discuss my self selected "rules" for completing the task of trying and reviewing all 101 whiskies in Ian Buxton's list.
Firstly I must have tried the whisky since reading the book in 2010. I can not claim a whisky I have tried before reading the book - ie Black Grouse or Laphroig Quartercask. I have decided I must try them again and write a review with my tasting notes to complete the list. Secondly I do not have to buy a bottle, (the book says I have to try them, not own them) and therefore for some of the more expensive and hard to find whiskies I am going to whisky bars and drinking and making notes there. This is a more economical way to complete the task but it does get me the odd strange look in bars when I start sniffing the glass and writing notes. Third, I am also allowing organized whisky tasting events to count, for example I am counting the five whiskies I tasted at Ian Buxton's tasting event in Aberdeen in 2011. However I am not counting the "sample pours" handed out at whisky shows or distillery tours etc. Finally I have discovered the world of whisky miniatures. Some of the more common whiskies in the list can be bought in 5 cl bottles. That helps a lot too, especially for ones I have tried before and I just want to remind myself of and write some notes.
But even with those increased odds of success, and wide range available on the internet now (which feels way too easy sometimes and so I consider it my last resort, I much prefer to browse a good liquor store or airport duty free in major international hub) I still think the following whiskies are going to be hard to track down in USA and will probably be some of the last ones I find. If you have any suggestions or ideas I would love to hear them at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Glen Breton - Canadian single malt. I have never seen this in US or in any whisky bars.
Hibiki 30 year old - Japanese blend. Hard to find anywhere. Will be looking for this one in a bar due to high price ($500+ / bottle)
Mellow Corn - US corn whisky. They don't distribute this in Texas, will have to look in other states.
The Wine Society Special Highland Blend - You have to be a member of the UK wine society, which I am not, to order this one.
We visited the Glenturret distillery, aka The Famous Grouse Experience, a couple of times while we lived in Scotland. This whisky is one of those that can generate some big differences of opinions (check out the Scotchcast and Malted Muse podcasts on the Glenturret). The nose on the 10 year old has cereal and new make spirit notes. The taste is soft and light, with more cereals and malt, caramel, vanilla and possibly banana (banana custard maybe). The finish? Let's be nice and say it is oaky, but subtle and not long.