Goodness Nose book winner!!

Well, we have a winner for our recent 'Goodness Nose' competition, which closed at the end of April. The lucky recipient is Scott Donkers from the Netherlands! Well done Scott and hope you enjoy what is a most entertaining read.

Keep your eyes peeled for more competitions which we have planned for later this month - and also stay tuned for our 'live-from-Islay-daily-diary' during the Feis Ile. Try saying that after an afternoon's tasting at Lagavulin!!

Nearly a ton of whisky and several frantically flung flying fish.

Now, there's an abstract title for a whisky post.  But as mad as it may seem, all in a days work for caskstrength. Friday saw us sampling a mammoth 98 whiskies in the space of a few hours, which if swallowed, would surely require some kind of superhuman liver... or no liver at all.  (sadly, we only fully consumed a few, but they were all crackers, as you will see below.  

Only a few hours later and your humble writer was fending off well targeted fish, flung from the hand of a small boy.  No, it wasn't feeding time at my young nephew's, but a very bizarre scene in a film I've been luckily enough to get my mug in, involving a staged food fight.  As they whistled past my head, I imagined going to the doctors with a fish-related black eye... 

Anyway, Back to those whiskies.  The name Port Askaig will excite many of you - its precise location lies to the north east of Islay where, a certain distillery, surrounded in spectacular scenery, lies in wait.  It is now the name of a new range of single malts, exclusively bottled by Speciality Drinks, the contents of which come from the mightly Caol Ila distillery- and we were itching to get stuck in!! here's our findings. We'll be reviewing the 'cask strength' edition in a later post...

Port Askaig - single malt- aged 17 years - 45.8% - 70cl

Nose: Lovely fresh and floral notes are the first thing your nostrils will notice- perhaps even some lilies and a hint of grapefruit?  Further in, and some lovely waxy comb honey rears up, mixed with some of the sweetest, softest peat i've come across in a while.  This has an aroma which belies its age masterfully.  

Palate:  The classic coal/oil mix of Caol Ila breaks through and then you're into creamy fudge, fizzy sherbet, followed by a sharp, salty, coastal note.  It shares some similarity with Ardbeg's Airgh Nam Beist, albeit with less of those sweeter, richer notes and silky mouth feel, but a satisfying licorice note and more fresh lemon really gives this a really classy edge.  

Finish:  Some excellent length with the oily notes slowly fading away over time.

Overall: A superb example of one of my new favourite Islay malts.  

we also got to sample the 17 yo's older brother, which at 25 years old is certainly the oldest Caol Ila ! have tried!

Port Askaig - single malt- aged 25 years - 45.8% - 70cl

Nose: Rich and textured with lots of summer fruits, seasoned oak, red wine and again, that soft older peat.  Very expressive for an older beast...

Palate: Some firey licorice, woody spices, a faint hint of cereal and another squirt of that soft, flavoursome peat.  It still retains that coal/oil feel of the 17, but it is much less pronounced. A little sweetness decends on the palate, in the shape of swizzle sticks (remember them, you older folks??!) dipped in honey.  

Finish: The sweetness dies away and leads into the drier, woody notes that your would expect from an older whisky, the coal like notes returning long into the finish. 

Overall: Another highly regarded dram which certainly raises the bar for all other Independent bottling's of Caol Ila.  The 17 yo just pips it to the post for me, in terms of overall excitement but, make no mistake, these are some serious whiskies that any Caol Ila fan should take a look at.    

Lights....Camera....but no action.

One of the most precious things in life is clearly time.

For the most part, it's wonderful to have too much- and lazily drift away with a wonderful whisky in hand, contemplating all those years it's taken to quietly mature. It's also a nightmare when you don't have enough, a frequent complaint in anyone's daily routine.

Yesterday, I was in a bit of a strange position- Having too much time and not particularly enjoying it. Finding myself on the set of a new British film starring Ray Winstone, I was eagerly looking forward to my brief cameo as an undertaker, a scene in which I bury the unfortunately deceased character Mr Winstone was playing.



Starting at a 7am call time, I patiently waited for my chance to deliver the line... and waited....and... waited some more. Being dressed as a 1950's Undertaker is fun, for about half an hour or so. Not the best part of 11 hours though. Finally my scene arrived and... well. They seemed to just abandon it, due to the lateness in the day. (my moustache drooped in disappointment)
On this occasion- bad things come to those who wait.

But let's not forget that most of the time, extremely good things come to those who wait and this time, I refer wholeheartedly to whisky! in particular, the range of blends offered by Cutty Sark.
The night before the filming, Caskstrength tasted the complete range of these excellent blends- the Original, through to the stupendous 25 year old, which certainly gave one's palate a taste that can only be developed over lots of time....here's a quick review of the highlights...

Cutty Sark Original - Blended whisky- 40% abv - 70cl

Nose: Light floral notes initially, followed by much more sugary rich buttery notes- reminiscent of homemade butterscotch sauce. Masses of vanilla and oak.

Palate: Again, light fruity elements coming thru, with green apple and lots of vanilla flavours. A very refreshing whisky.

Finish: not particularly long, but in keeping with the style. Very clean.

Overall: A superb pre-dinner whisky, try it with a hint of soda water if you dare and unlick some more freshness!!

Next up, the 15 year old, which contains a much higher proportion of malt-grain than the original.

Cutty Sark 15 Year Old Blended whisky- 40% abv - 70cl

Nose: A much richer and spicier nose lingers beautifully in the glass. Prunes, oven baked oranges covered in brown sugar and that classic oaky note from a good sherried cask.

Palate: The spices continue with sweet sultanas, marzipan, chopped nuts and more of the sherry. Very well balanced.

Finish: A surprisingly sweet finish, with a hint of lingering oak and sherry, returning to the baked oranges again.

Overall: A contrasting whisky to the original, but nonetheless exciting.

Finally, the daddy of the Cutty family- the 25 year old. This dram is based on an 80/20 split of very old malts and grain whisky.

Cutty Sark 25 Year Old Blended whisky - 40% - 70cl

Nose: Wow, huge wood in here!! polished Mahogany furniture, mixed with a really earthy 'forest freshness' - similar to the old Karuizawa's we keep banging on about on here. Over time, a similar freshness and zestiness to the original also comes through, bizarrely.

Palate: Hugely rich mouth-feel, with lots of dried fruits, oranges, cloves and marzipan. A superb collection of refined flavours.

Finish: Long.. and then some. the oak comes through, but does nothing to over power the still-tingling spices and sweet nuts that last up to the death.

Overall: A mighty dram, which is a real end-of-the-night soother. Certainly the star of our last few blended whisky related posts....

Off now to brush up on my next role... ! think i'll bring a hip flask next time!!

Golden tickets ahoy!! Glenrothes opens to public!

In a similar scenario to the great Roald Dahl book, Charlie And The Chocolate Factory, the legendary Glenrothes distillery in Speyside are opening their doors to the general public on Friday 8th May, offering a rare opportunity to discover the secrets of their award winning single malt.

Established in 1879, The Glenrothes has historically been closed to the public. As part of the Speyside Festival celebrations, the distillery will be running two exclusive tours of the distillery distillery in Rothes.



Guided by Brand Ambassador (and Rothes' very own Willy Wonka), Ronnie Cox, plus Speyside born Eric Jefferson, visitors will be taken on a tour of the distillery as well as the working cooperage on site. The tour will end with a complimentary tasting of The Glenrothes Select Reserve.

Late last year, Caskstrength got an opportunity to tour round this wonderful distillery so wholeheartedly recommend you get on the phone and book your place now. You can read about our adventures here and here.



Tours will take place on Friday 8th May at 9.30am and 10.30am and are free of charge. Places are strictly limited so the distillery recommend that anyone interested books a place in advance. To book a place please contact Pamela Wils or Sarah Bailey at The BIG Partnership on 0131 555 5522.

In The Loop

I recently spent a wonderful evening at the Electric Cinema in London’s famous Portabello Road, where I took in a showing of In The Loop. Scripted by a man who would take up a seat at my fantasy dinner party, Armando Iannucci, the film is a fantastically witty comedy about the way bumbling MP’s are cajoled by aggressive (Scottish!) spin doctors to tow the party line. In this case, avoiding committing, or otherwise, the UK to a war in the Middle East. Set between Westminster and Washington DC it gives a fascinating insight into the way the world is run; for one Cabinet Minister, balancing the needs of his constituency in Middle England with that of an impending war, to be voted on at the UN in New York.

I came away from the film thinking how difficult it must be to balance the life of a jet-set Cabinet Minister against that of a run-of-mill Member of Parliament, dealing with bad local schools, farmers and walls. Whenever they get a chance, they must sink into their sofa’s in the 2nd home, stick on some pay-per-view and pour themselves a nice big Scotch! All the tax payers expenses, you understand...!

So which Scotch would be the choice for our busy MP’s? Well, there are currently two bottlings available to buy at the House Of Commons and two in the House Of Lords. The Commons bottlings, as with the Lords, come in two forms: Single Malt and Blended.

Blended:

House Of Commons Blended Scotch Whisky – Bottled By Gordon & Macphail – 70cl – 40%

Nose- This has a very delicate and quite wonderful nose to it. Lots of floral notes (Heather, honeysuckle, Rosehip and Vanilla) and a hint, just a hint of golden syrup.

Palate - Again, very delicate on the palate and not overly complex: honey with vanilla fudge.

Finish - Toffee apple followed by lots of liquorice and a wave of vanilla cream. A very delicate hint of smoke right at the finish.
Overall- this does what any good, cheap blend should do; provide a quality dram that isn’t over expensive nor too complex for the palate. It doesn’t just “taste like whisky” either. They honed in on what they want to achieve with an overall flavour profile, and gone for it. And it works. Lovely packaging too. This would make a nice gift for someone.

Single Malt:

Now, this is a real treat and a super rarity. Unlike the House Of Lords, where the single malt is unnamed, the House of Commons have gone for it big time! If the selection of bottles available in the corridors of power are this, plus two blends and an unnamed Chivas single malt (answer on a postcard for that one, please!) then this one is the icing on the cake. The Robinho in the Manchester City squad...

The Macallan - Speaker Martin’s Highland Single Malt Whisky - 10 Years Old – 40% vol - 70cl

Let’s kick off with the information on the elaborate, but beautifully presented box:

“Michael Martin was elected Speaker of the House Of Commons on 23rd October 2000. He has been a Member of Parliament since 1979 and has represented the Glasgow Springburn constituency since then. He is and avid player of the Highland bagpipe, ‘the noble instrument of Scotland’, and was keen for it to be featured on this malt.

On 26th February 2001, a tasting of some of the finest malt whiskies took place in the Speaker’s House, House Of Commons. The Speaker together with a number of Parliamentary colleagues specially selected this rich 10 years old Macallan.”

As mentioned above, the box and bottle both show the bagpipes and has the musical notation for the traditional Scottish song “Mhairi Bhan Og” or “Fair Young Mary” on it.

N- Freshly cut green apples, Toffee, fresh mint. Lots of malt and sherry. Like the soaked biscuits at the bottom of a trifle.

P- Slightly weak at first (to the seasoned Scotch drinker most things at 40% need more punch), but then you get figs, raisins, cloves and freshly cooked wholemeal brown bread.
F- A touch of delicate wood smoke with some mince pie spices. The perfect length.
O- A sumptuous dram, worthy of a place in my Cabinet! This really is a lovely, lovely pour. The right balance of sherry, oak, fruits and spices. Hear, hear!

NOTE: Speaker Martin must have an amazing nose, or an amazing set of friends as he is a teetotaller! He doesn’t touch a drop. Much is the shame, as he’s really missing out with his own bottling here!