How Much Would You Pay To Live Here??

Anyone fancy making a Pilgrimage to this most hallowed of South London streets? Best photo gets a free dram of 1977 on us...!

Where Will Your Vote Go??

Well, it's election night.  Apparently if like us you're holding an 'Election Party',  you're apparently middle class- according to the hilarious Jimmy Carr.

It's now 11.31pm. Our party of 4 is 25% asleep, leaving us with a swing of huge proportions towards boredom. 2 results have come (Sunderland) in and the most exciting thing to grace our screen thus far is the ample bosom of Anne Widdecombe. Every presenter from David Dimbleby, to the rather irritating 'Police Camera Action' Alastair Stewart is predicting all manner of result strategy based on exit poll stats and predictions. 

George Osborne has just arrived on screen and we're discussing whether he'd look good in a Regency wig and tailcoat- his face and demeanor seem to suggest he slips into period costume when the cameras are off him.

Frankly, I need a whisky. But as with the televised political debates last week, i'm holding a mini debate between the chief contenders in my own cabinet.  Which one is speaking the right language?  Whose palate policy is winning here??

Now that most odious and pugnacious of figures, Nick Griffin can be seen grinning like a Jackal from his Barking constituency. 

I definitely need a whisky. 

My three candidates are as follows:

Highland Park 18yo - Solid, dependable and straight talking.

Ardbeg 10yo - A definite cabinet stalwart. 

Yamazaki 18yo - A whisky whose smooth foreign policy is sure to get some attention.

Wow! now we're talking... Joan Collins is back on TV. Quite why, we're not sure, but we want to hear her views on electoral reform, not why she thinks David Cameron has nice hair.

The Highland Park has slipped down superbly. It speaks to us eloquently and with authority, a definite leader of men and whiskies.  The Ardbeg is now warming our party nicely with its fuzzy, touchy feely, almost bedside (and certainly fireside) manner.

The Yamazaki is now taking the stage for its keynote speech.  Smooth, fruity and long lasting with definite maturity, most certainly qualities one would hope for in a politician and certainly in a whisky.  

Frankly, we're gradually drifting away from the coverage. Time check: 12.36 and they have still only announced 3 firm results- all Labour, yet apparently we're going to see a 'Definite Hung Parliament' according to all the experts.  The last time that happened was 1977 (1974 before that) and the formal coalition between Labour and the Liberal party, seeing  Jim Callahan as the (ultimately ill-fated) PM.  

1977 and 1974. Perhaps very shabby times for politics, with the ensuing economic and industrial strife. But both sensational years for Ardbeg, thinking back to my 2 favourite vintages!!

Perhaps a hung parliament will produce another bumper year... Wake me up when the results are in.

 

Fit For A (wannabe) King

Sometimes you hear rumours. Sometimes you hear rumours of rumours. And sometimes you hear facts. Cold, hard facts. I remember the first time I saw a bottle of Highgrove Laphroaig. It was on a shelf at the Whisky Exchange and came with a suitably royal price tag. I had heard of the legend of these bottlings, only available from HRH The Prince Of Wales' countryside accommodation, but never seen one before. It was beautiful. The bottle was not unlike the old 30 year olds, but with a green box that had a lift off lid and string to carry it by! And at the price on the tag; well I'm glad it was behind a glass door! Wouldn't want to knock one of those badboys off the shelf...!

So it was with much glee that I was recently able to get hold of one of the new Highgrove bottling that Laphroaig released in August 2009. The bumph with it reads:

The whisky is matured for a minimum of 12yrs and, at timely intervals, the Distillery Manager selects a single barrel of matured malt whisky to be set aside and bottled exclusively for Highgrove. A barrel of whisky will fill approximately 280 bottles and each bottle is individually numbered and comes in its own presentation box.

Sounds like a winner so far. But the real bonus of the new bottlings is the packaging. Amazing! The bottles now comes with it's very own, gold embossed label design and a separate label sticker detailing the cask information. All of this is housed in an enormous shoe-box-like container that could happily house a pair of Jimmy Choos or Manolo Blahniks. In fact, if you have a special lady in your life then buy her one of these bottles for Christmas, wrap it up and she'll think she's getting shoes! Then you can snaffle a dram when she's not looking...

Now, packaging is all very good, but how does the damn stuff taste? Let's find out:


Laphroaig - Highgrove House Bottling - Bottled August 2009 - 12 Years Old - Distilled 15.01.1997 - Cask No. 136 - Bottle No. 160 of ~280 - 46% - 70cl

Nose: This is odd. Not what I would expect from a Laphroaig. Very subtle, almost like the nose on the Ardbeg 1977. Plenty of butter popcorn, a hint of cream, some red flowers (carnations, roses). In fact it really is very delicate and floral for a Laphroaig. Of course there is peat smoke, but it's right at the back where it sits with hints of green tea and liquorice. Very, very lovely.

Palate: It's got what you would expect from a Laphroaig; the kiss of peat, the medicinal heat but it is the most subtle I've ever had from this Islay distillery. The malt takes the driving seat with sea salt and a real sweetness, the like of which I've not come across before in a 'froaig. If it wasn't for the peat and TCP, this could be a Springbank. Very unusual, but gooood.

Finish: Medium with red chillies and smoke (as usual) but right at the back of the tounge there is a little coppery taste which adds a zest to proceedings. After that dies down there is a hit of lime that leaves you gasping for more. In a good way! :-)

Overall: I like. I like a lot. This Laphroaig is disturbingly easy to drink. Okay, it's a single cask but it has been paired down to 46%. Usually something I shake my head at. But this works wonders. So, so, so drinkable. Slainte!

Monarch of the Glens...

Well, bang goes the summer. Boo. Autumn has truly got its chilly grip upon us, so it's time to start digging out that old rain coat and planning on how to amuse one's self for the rest of the year. It is also a time for reflection on past experiences, which got us thinking. In our short, but perfectly formed life, (just 6 months) Caskstrength.net have tasted some truly great drams and had many memorable moments in the process.

The following review will be our 77th, which to most, is a fairly unremarkable number. But it is certainly a number that features highly at Caskstrength.net HQ. For one, it happens to be the year of the greatest Sci-Fi epic of all time, Star Wars, which undoubtedly shaped our childhoods. It is the year that the Sex Pistols released God Save The Queen, the pivotal point in the punk scene, which revolutionised British music. Closer to home, it is the vintage of one of our all-time favourite drams (Ardbeg 1977) - and now, also the vintage of the whisky we're about to try.

The whisky in question is the Glenfiddich 1977 Vintage Reserve. Glenfiddich are clearly no strangers to bottling older whiskies of exceptional quality. The 1973 Vintage Reserve was unbelievably well received and both the 30 and 40 year old bottlings have received prestigious awards. The premise behind this new vintage reserve bottling was simple- to find the undisputed champ from a small selection of vintage Oloroso casks owned by the distillery. Selected by an esteemed panel (including William Grant & Sons' Malt Master, David Stewart) from a shortlist of six European oak casks, the panel decided upon cask number 4414 - most likely 2nd or 3rd refill originally dating back to the 1940's. This cask was filled again on the 7th March 1977, which spookily happens to share a birthday with the inception of Caskstrength.net (born on the 7th March 2008 to be precise). Perhaps all just sheer coincidence, but it will certainly be at the back of our minds as we take our first sip.

Glenfiddich Vintage Reserve 1977 - 31 years old - Cask no 4414- bottle no 41 of 482- 54.1% abv

Nose: A slow swirl of the glass unearths a classic aroma or drying spices- cinnamon, cloves and cedar wood. Also a rich thick note of molasses, licorice, fresh cantaloupe melon and dried vine fruits are present. With a little water, the nose develops into smoky notes of bonfire toffee, black cherry and sweet tobacco.

Palate: The first treat is the rich, unctuous, oily mouth feel of almond paste, candied vine fruit and a surprising freshness. Oaky undertones with hints of that classic Oloroso spiciness are present but there's so much going on, your senses are really taken back. With water you'll find a slight waxiness emerge but a hint of sweet hazelnut, more cedarwood and an almost game like note (perhaps rare roasted venison?)

Finish: More sweetness and something aromatic, like licorice dipped in demerara. Hints of espresso coffee, cloves and something creamy. On the death, its respectable age shows through with some drying oak, but nothing overpowering. Tremendous.

Overall: A sublime, complex and exceptionally well rounded whisky. The selection process must have been incredibly difficult, considering the obvious qualities of the shortlisted casks but this bottling represents everything we at Caskstrength love about older sherried drams.

For more information on this bottling see here:

http://www.glenfiddich.co.uk/the-range/vintage-reserve-1977/index.html