Tullibardine Sovereign 50ml
$6.29
The mini, or 50mL version of the full-sized Tullibardine Sovereign
It is bottled at 43% from 1st Fill Bourbon casks. Tullibardine Distillery was the first new distillery to open after WWII. Located in the town of Blackford, famous for its pure clean water. In 1488, King James IV, then 14, visited the town to purchase some of the best beer in Scotland for his coronation.
Distiller's Tasting Note: "It exhibits barley, pear drops and creamy chocolate notes, which develop on the palate with a lingering finish."
Ardbeg Corryvreckan 50ml
$14.99
This is a mini bottle or 50mL version of the Ardbeg Corryvreckan.
The Corryvreckan started out as a replacement for the Airigh Nam Beist but has become a legend in its own right. The whisky has a unique sweet and spicy twist which blends well with the whisky's peaty maritime backbone. Bottled at 57.1% this whisky is often amongst the highest scoring with whisky critics and reviewers. It gets its sweet and spicy characteristics from the French oak in which some of the vatting is matured. The whisky was featured on Day 18 of KWM Whisky Advent.
Andrew's Tasting Note
Nose: thick with honey and cream, Irish soda bread, dried fruits and salted caramel; a touch of powdered sugar, juicy malt, apricot and ashy smoke; sweet marmalade, candied ginger, cardamom and ginger.
Palate: big, rich, spicy, sweet and fruity; decadent, earthy and peated; massive spices: fennel, hot ginger, cinnamon and cardamom; juicy malt, firm earthy-oily peat and tar; sea salt, clean beach smoke and layers of fruit: oranges, melon and apricot.
Finish: long, savoury, oily and coating; tarry peat and juicy malt linger long with sugars, spice and everything nice.
Comment: this is a big peaty, maritime malt; a fine winter warmer, and still my favourite core Ardbeg.
Distiller's Tasting Note
Nose: With the first sniff, encounter the deep and turbulent force of Corryvreckan as it pulls you inwards. Swirl the glass and dip your nose into the torrents of tarry ropes, creosote and linseed oil rising from deep within the vortex. As you succumb to its power, a collision of waxy dark chocolate, warm blackcurrants and muscovado sugar pulls you under its spell with a burst of plump cherries and earthy pine needles leaping from its depths.
Palate: Plunge into the whirlpool and taste the mysterious depths of Corryvreckan. Torrents of taste well up on the palate; deep, peppery and chewy, bombarding the tongue with its intense tastes and textures. The first plunge brings forth chewy peppered steak soaked in pepper sauce with the tang of crispy seaweed. As you descend deeper, encounter a mouthful of black tarry espresso coffee that coats the palate with rich melted dark fruits (blackcurrants, blueberries and cherries) and bitter almonds. As the taste soaks in deeper, star anise and hickory dry out the palate before a surprise of chalky effervescent violets fizz to the surface.
Finish: Long, deep and remaining powerful into the finish with black tarry coffee, chocolate coated cherries and hot pepper sauce, the lingering memories of your mysterious and daring journey into Corryvreckan.
Glengoyne 15 Year 50ml
$10.99
Bottled at 43%, this whisky is a staff favourite. Matured in a mix of 30% 1st Fill American Oak Bourbon. 20% 1st Fill European Oak Sherry, 50% Hand-selected quality Oak Refill casks. 43%
Andrew's Tasting Notes
Nose: some earthy tones, wet leaves and malt with vanilla and some dried dark fruits; cinnamon infused chocolates and candied orange with some floral notes.
Palate: very creamy, soft and floral with loads of spices, some tobacco and chocolates; leathery with soft malt and candied orange.
Finish: long and leathery with fading vanilla, orange and clove.
Shelter Point Single Malt 50ml
$11.99
A 50ml of the second release of Shelter Point Single Malt (Spring 2017) has been bottled at 46% after maturing in Jack Daniels barrels. The whisky is made from two row barley, grown on the distillery's farm, doubled distilled in copper pot stills, matured and bottled on site. Rumour has it the whisky was matured exclusively in ex-Jack Daniels casks. Featured on Day 11 of the KWM Whisky Advent Calendar, 2017 edition.
Andrew's Tasting Note
Nose: fresh, toasty and honeyed; a touch of sour orange opens into oatmeal-raisin cookies right out of the over and corn syrup; a touch vegetal and quite malty with aloe-like oils.
Palate: still fresh, malty and honeyed; the corn syrup is still there with some simple syrup and melons; the orange note is drying with some Demerara sugar and Russian coffee dregs; still vegetal and floral with loads of toasty oak; the oatmeal-raisin cookies are still there, right out of the oven... not enough raisins though!
Finish: clean, crisp and toasty; more malty tones, sugars and honey with a floral finale.
Comment: more mature by a hair than the first release; further proof that they are on the right track!
Super Nikka 50mL
$6.99
Super Nikka is an entry-level premium blend from the Nikka Whisky Co. The whisky is a Blended Japanese whisky composed of malt from Yoichi and Miyagikyo, as well as Coffey Malt and Coffey Grain whiskies from their “Coffey Still” (column still) at Miyagikyo. It is also possible that there is some Scottish malt in the blend, as the rules around 'Japanese whisky' are quite flexible. Not to mention, Nikka owns a Scottish distillery, Ben Nevis, in the Western Highlands!
Featured on Day 1 of KWM's 2018 Whisky Advent Calendar! The full-sized version can be found here.
Nose: silky, honeyed and soft; gentle peat tickles the nose with decadent spices and Russian caramel; floral with apricots, apples and stone fruits.
Palate: still soft and silky on the palate with building gentle peat, ashy smoke, chewy malt and bags of honey; more white fruits: ripe pear, cooked apples and apricots; late emerging darker fruits; the spices start light and decadent and darken; a touch of leather and chocolate.
Finish: long, elegant and coating with fading fruits, spices, and more ashy peat.
Comment: this is a classic example of the overriding Nikka house style, which is elegance; whether heavily peated, sherried or other, Nikkas whiskies are always elegant; I forgot how good this is!
GlenAllachie 10yr Cask Strength B2 50mL
$11.99
We currently have bottles of GlenAllachie 10 Year Cask Strength Batch 1 on the shelves, which is bottled at 57.1%. As this mini bottle is 54.8% ABV, it must be from a different batch. It does not have a batch number on the mini bottle, but Batch 2 was bottled at 54.8% ABV, so we will assume the mini is of Batch 2 as well.
Both batches have been created from a combination of carefully selected ex-Bourbon, virgin oak, Oloroso Puncheon and PX Sherry Puncheon Casks containing whisky at least ten years of age then bottled at cask strength.
Evan's Tasting Note
Nose: big cereal and grain, newly sanded lumber, peaches and cream, pickled ginger, sliced pears, sesame seeds, cake fondant and white chocolate.
Palate: juicy and creamy with lots of fruit and big spice notes at the front along with beer nuts, cashews, toasty and also green oak, honeydew melon, pineapples, sweet Thai chili sauce and spicy ginger.
Finish: spicy but sweet with a nutty note thrown in. It creates a warming sensation with a pleasant creaminess on the fade.
Comment: the spice is big but the sweetness and helps tame it. It tingles the tongue but stays deliciously approachable.
Old Malt Cask Mortlach 11Y KWM Cask 50ml
$11.99
Our first ever exclusive single cask of Mortlach was bottled for us by Hunter Laing, and it is a steal. Bottled at 50% after 11 years maturing in a Refill Hogshead, Ref: HL14889, it is a steal for just $95! Featured on Day 4 of KWM's 2018 Whisky Advent Calendar.
Andrew's Tasting Note
Nose: apple-cinnamon pastries, dried pineapple chunks, vanilla extract and white chocolate bars with cocoa nibbs; silky malty, soft citrus and decadent honey.
Palate: soft, malty, honeyed and sweet; loads of white fruit, sliced pear and more warm apple-cinnamon pastries; fruity, a touch of melon, more tart pineapple and crisp citrus tones; floral vanilla and white chocolate with cocoa nibbs; warming and toasty.
Finish: fresh, malty and honeyed; white and citrus fruits fade slowly along with some spices, warm pastry and raw cocoa.
Comment: I remember when we selected the cask, I had very low expectations, they were shattered; for $95 a bottle it is a gem.
Producer's Tasting Note
Nose: vanilla, chocolate fudge and lime juice.
Palate: chocolate mousse, citrus and soft fruit.
Finish: long and lingering with caramel and oak.
Scotch Malt Whisky Society Advent 100ml
$29.99
SMWS 72.65 - Winter Comforts 100ml
$27.99
This 100mL SMWS bottle was Day 25 in our 2018 KWM Whisky Advent Calendar. We have 100ml bottles for sale in-store and online. No 700ml bottles were produced.
WINTER COMFORTS
This 10 year old Speysider is 59.8% and was matured in a refill barrel.
Flavour profile: Juicy, oak & vanilla.
Panel's tasting note: "Aromas combined in an alluring cloud reminiscent of dried flowers and scented candles illuminating the dark corners of a dunnage warehouse. Sweet balsa wood and the subtle spice of sandalwood moved towards the vegetal tones of carrots and parsnips before turning distinctly herbal with the introduction of tarragon and thyme. The palate exploded with a sweet and spicy detonation that splintered off into cinnamon and ginger with dried chili flakes. Sweet desserts swirled as crème brûlée joined mince pies lavishly coated with brandy cream. The viscous and creamy texture continued long onto the finish but became progressively drier as it was joined by lemon pith and fine wood tannins."