Josh's Blog

Month: April 2022

RedBreast 12 Year

Fruity, zesty, bright and light, easy to drink with little bite.

Purchased from the House of Malt onn the 27th of September of 2021. Finished this evening, on the 29th of April 2022. Price was 42.40 GBP.

Region: Ireland                              ABV: 4o%

Expressions also enjoyed during this time were Arran 10 year, Glengoyne 18, Arran Barrel Reserve, Chivas Regal XV Balmain, and Arran Cream Liquor.

Pros: Tropical overtones. Easy on the tongur with just enough heat. Few flavors to unpack make this a terrific bottle to devlop a palate with. 
Cons: Was not the same dram at the end of the bottle as it was at the beginning. First pull was not impressive, yet last pull was stellar. This was over six months, Not sure which flavrou RedBreast was going for. 

Nose: Lemony candy, seasalt, fresh fruit
Taste: Orange peel, ripe melon, peach, tiny bit of butterscotch. No need to add water to its 40 percent ABV. 
Finish: A nice long finish that moves from the citrusy tang to very faint, yet perfectly satisfying cholocate creamy coconut.   

Additional notes: This bottle has really suprised me over the several months of pulling off it. When I first popped it I thought it was a bit too ordinary, with a very average overall whisky tone. However, the time in the bottle has really opened this dram into a delightful experience, with all sorts of flavours having come out of the woodwork, and all of them very chummy with the taste buds. RedBreast is also a pot still whisky from Ireland. 

Dram Rating:
6.5/10

GlenAllarchie 12 Single Malt

Condensed medley of pleasing sweet, darker flavors that come into their own after a bit of water and rest.

Purchased from the House of Malt website in October of 2021 and opened about a month or so later. Finished this evening, on the 26th of April 2022. Price was 40.95 GBP.

Region: Speyside                                              ABV: 46%

Expressions also enjoyed during this time were Arran 10 year, Glengoyne 18, Arran Barrel Reserve, Chivas Regal XV Balmain, and Arran Cream Liquor.

Pros: Pops with chocolatey depth at the forefront. Nonchill filtered, beautiful rich natural color. A flagship bottle at the price point.
Cons: Alcohol nip is just tad on the hot side. Finish isnt fully defined.

Nose: A deep prominance of fudgy chocolate, rum balls, tinges of caramel, vanilla, raisin, with an upper hint of Creme Brûlée.
Taste: Flora, chocolate and raisin, vanilla. Adding a bit of water brings about sugar cone, oily and rich. The proof let’s itself be known, with a stingy bite on the back of the tongue even with a few drops of water.
Finish: Overipened fruit with a biterness in the resolve, dry, lingering notes of banana after several minutes of breathing,   

Additional notes: One of Ralfy’s whiskies of the year and purchased purely on that merit. A delightfully engaging intoduction into the speyside region of scotch whisky. When contrasted with Arran 10 year (another Ralfy favorite), the GlenAllarchie 12 has more bottom end to its flavour profile, where the Arran is more trebley on top. 

Dram Rating:
6/10

Glengoyne 18 Single Malt

A pleasurable experience on the front end, but falls a bit short in the rear.

Purchased at the Glengoyne distillery in August of 2021. Opened early 2022, and finished on the 25th of April 2022. Price was apx 140 GBP.

Expressions also enjoyed during this time were Arran 10 year, GlenAllarchie 15, Arran Barrel Reserve, Chivas Regal XV Balmain, and Arran Cream Liquor.

Pros: Festive and warm with friendly character.
Cons: Chill filtered, color added, pricey for what it delivers

Nose: Light vanilla, raisin, light citrus
Taste: Chocolate, christmas spices, sweet, a distant, slight peatiness, marangue
Finish: Bitter, dry, with a touch of oily lemon on the upper register, seems incomplete as it falls rapidly.

Additional notes: Located just outside of Glasgow, the beautiful Glengoyne distillery is small and intimate. The staff are lovely and the tour is informative and memorable. The drive to the distillery passes through beautiful scottish countryside and quaint chocolate box towns along the way. The distillery also sits right between the Highand/Lowland regions, with the road to get there dividing the two. In fact, the warehouse sits across the road from the distillery, making Glengoyne a scotch made in the highlands and aged in the lowlands.

Related Instagram post

Dram Rating:
5.5/10
Dram + Distillery Visit Rating:
8/10