Off The Rails...

Anticipation is a cruel and fickle mistress.
She has the ability to turn even the most ardent of stiff upper lips and steely resolves to a mushy, quivering puddle of over-excitement.

We're all guilty of being heavily seduced by anticipation fever, or 'Hype' as it is sometimes known.

In our other line of work, both Joel and I have been party to some of the most hyped up bands in the last few years- and yes, on occasion, we too have been sucked along for the ride.

Anyone remember these fresh-faced indie boys?


Menswe@r

Around 1994, this collection of chisel-jawed clothes horses were the band name on everyones lips. Before they had even released a single record, Menswe@r appeared on the cover of Melody Maker magazine. They assured us they were going to restore the grand and noble fortunes of the British music business around the world, despite only ever previously performing together 2 or 3 times and possessing less than a handful of tunes. Everyone got suckered in and they signed a HUGE deal (one of the biggest in modern memory)

And?

Nothing happened.

The buzz pretty much killed off the band, who clearly couldn't deliver under the weight of such lofty expectations.

Whisky is a cruel and fickle mistress.
She has the ability to turn even the most ardent of stiff upper lips and steely resolves to a mushy, quivering puddle of over excitem....

Ok. You get where this is going.

Today sees the release of probably this years most anticipated bottling and it's still only February. No doubt every Islay fan around the globe will have seen the recent online excitement over Ardbeg's newest committee release, Rollercoaster.

The tantalising countdown on the website was clever, helping to whip us all up into a frothing frenzy. A lot of this frenzy is based on the previous releases of Corryvreckan, and last years Supernova, which of course were absolutely wonderful whiskies. A new committee bottling stands for something- it's a benchmark of quality that will be judged by thousands of peat freaks from Calgary to Copenhagen. It also immediately gives the bottling an air of exclusivity, which the hoovers out there delight in. (Last year, a bottle of Committee Supernova was offered for Ebay auction BEFORE it had been released or the order secured by the unscrupulous seller)

Hats off to Ardbeg with this release though. The pricing is competitive and the out-turn is the biggest yet, allowing the many thousands of committee members a greater chance to grab one, which was heavily criticised last time. It's also one in the eye for the hoovers.
But the hype still lingers around the release. Is it really going to be a cracker?

Well, last week, we got to try it.

Would it manage to deliver like previous the committee bottlings, or would the massive weight of online expectation which has grown around the release devour any promise, like the ill-fated Menswe@r?

Buckle up... we're starting the slow, nerve jangling ascent....

Ardbeg Rollercoaster - Limited Committee Release - 57.3% - 70cl

Nose: Hot rubber, a big hit of malt vinegar, briney coastline, smoked meat (pastrami?) and some soot with a hint of mossy/mustiness. Hmmm. That vinegar is a tad off putting at first. Not bad though. With water, some more soot and very young peat starts to emerge.

Palate: Hot and spicy, with some sweet licorice coming through immediately- palate tingling. Again, this is clearly a predominantly youthful whisky. With water it grows in flavour, becoming peppery and slightly aniseedy, with a thin mouthfeel.

Finish: A very briney and short finish. This is all fanfare, but without much of a coda.

Overall: We love young whiskies here as those of you know, who saw us award Kilchoman's inaugural 3 year old release our 2009 BIG Award.

But I just don't feel that excited here i'm afraid. Compared to Corryvreckan and Supernova, (which were tasted alongside this too), it just falls a bit short. It has some balls, some grit and a little character, but it isn't that developed enough to make me grin from ear to ear. It isn't a massive disappointment, just not what Ardbeg committee bottlings have previously delivered... and that is a shame.

For those of you who missed out, don't start phoning the Samaritan's just yet...

A 'Vreckan good time...

As many of you Ardbeg fans will already know, the fantastic committee bottling of last year- Corryvreckan was recently added into the core range of expressions, sadly replacing one of our all time favourites- Airigh Nam Beist. But instead of crying into our Glencairns, we thought now would be a good opportunity to look to the future and celebrate the fact that Corryvreckan is a dram worthy enough to stand next to the other great contemporary Ardbegs.

At the weekend, we held a particularly special tasting- not just several great whiskies, but some highly unusual flavour profiles and aromas were thrown in to confuse, baffle and delight!
There seems to have been a tendency of late for some distilleries to 'embellish' tasting notes with relatively unknown flavour and aroma profiles, which most palates would simply never identify. We've always found this hilarious, so our little experiment was bound to produce some interesting results...oh boy...

Everyone knows that whisky and chocolate go together extremely well. As we pour our first dram, our good friend Darrell produces a non descript black box. Hello... this could be interesting...

Ardbeg Corryvreckan - 57.1% - 70cl

Nose: Butterscotch, orange zest and cereal. It's there in black and white. Lovely, honest and enjoyable. Of course, there is peat... but it's restrained, refined- clearly it's the backbone to the aroma, but it doesn't dominate. With water, the peat really relaxes and some wonderful sweet caramel. Surprising differences to the original committee bottling. There's perhaps a hint of the creosote/coal tar note from the original bottling, but it is no where near as prevalent.

Palate: Swathes of sweet peat and cereal take over the mouth instantly, leading into a fruity jam note- damsons anyone? Again, it is perhaps lighter than the committee bottling and doesn't seem to retain as much of the wine-like characteristics which the previous bottling had. That's not to say that it isn't great- the mouthfeel is wonderful, with a thick, sweet and rich viscosity giving the Corryvreckan a real air of luxury. 3 cheers for cask strength whiskies!!

Finish: Slightly oaky, perhaps seeing the influence of the wine casks but it's fruity sweetness lingers long after the palate has dried. Sensational.

At this point things went a little weird. We tried a combination of wonderful flavours with the whisky and the results are below:

Chocolates: From our selection of flavoured chocolates, a Jasmine, Bergamot, Tonka Bean (!) and Green Tea were chosen. The Jasmine and Bergamot, added a real floral note to the palate and were not dented by the whisky in the slightest- similarly, the whisky was certainly enhanced by the rich dark chocolate with the aromatic notes contained within. The Tonka Bean, had little effect, save for adding a certain 'aromatic bitters' like note to the whisky (Peated whisky sour?) and the Green Tea flavour was swallowed up greedily by the swirl of the Corry in full effect....

Darrell then reaches into his magic bag again and, with a grin from ear to ear, whispers- "now for the good stuff!" Oh er....

The phrase '5-a-day' will never have the same meaning after this tasting.

Presented on the dining room table were the strangest, alien looking fruits I have ever seen.

Mangosteen: Like a miniature brain inside a thick red husk.



Pitahaya or Dragon Fruit: Gelatinous and seedy, resembling a semi-set frog spawn.

And king of all weirdness..... drum roll please... the Durian.

Dear lord. This surely isn't a fruit?? You could batter someone to death with it!!
Thick, gloopy custard-like flesh, with a hard stone in the centre. Surrounded by a terrifying looking green spiny skin. It actually looked delicious when served, until your nose got within 20 yards of the bowl. What? Hugely strong aromas of onion, garlic and cheese covered Mexican chilli. IN A FRUIT!!!

Surely no whisky could match these brutes!!

Well, the Corryvreckan was admirable in its attempts, working superbly with the sweet flesh of the Mangosteen- the peat mixing nicely with the melon like flavour of the flesh. Well worth seeking out.

The Pitahaya added some floral notes to the proceedings, not all of them welcome but nonetheless, it was well flavoured and would be a better mix for a lighter whisky, say Rosebank or Glen Grant.

The spiny beast was up next. Wow. The texture is smooth and creamy, rather like the whisky, but the aroma blows your head off! In fact the peat certainly added to the overall flavour profile, but it was like biting into a whole Stilton, slathered in strong onion marmalade. Perhaps a sweet port or Oloroso sherry would mix well....?

We managed a few mouthfuls each, before conceding defeat. It was then impossible to taste anything else for the rest of the evening. The following morning, I found myself 'rediscovering' echoes of Durian for several hours, as did Mrs Caskstrength. Sorry about that. ;-(
Try this to expand your palate, but be warned- they're not for the faint hearted....

So there you have it.... Next time you see some distillery tasting notes, referencing bizarre aromas and flavours, try to think about whether they actually make sense. Anyone referencing a Durian is clearly a proper nutter....!!