This Littlemill by Gordon & Company was an excellent way to start Whisky Show London 2018. I spent a considerable amount and some tokens for this magnificent juice. This whisky was distilled in October 1988 and bottled in June 2016. An exquisite 27-year-old and the 51st bottle of only 102.

At a high proof of 59.5%, this whisky shows great characteristics of the great distillery. Nose has great floral notes, dried fruits, chocolate and sherry tones. The palate has a milky quality having the sweet barley with developing aftertaste with dried figs and earthiness.

Unfortunately, it is from a closed distillery and the bottles you will find won’t be that affordable. Though if you find a chance to taste one, you won’t regret paying for that!

Woodinville Distillery definitely surprised and rocked all of our palates with their bourbon and rye whiskies. It was hard to choose but I chose their Rye to be the more fitting one to my palate.

From my tasting notes on my Instagram post:
Minimum 5 year old rye has light cherries with sandalwood, pine trees and linseed oil on the nose.
The palate is creamy and totally coats the walls of your mouth. Tannic profile dissolves in beautiful cinnamon sticks and nuts. Darker tones of liquorice and peppers even feed you more.
Finish is medium long and has a nice earthy feeling into it.

Glenglassaugh was not a brand I would consider that I could put in my top 10 list until I tasted this meticulous whisky. This late Billy Walker release 38-year-old whisky which still has all the distillery character. Nose have red fruits combined with brown sugar and tannins. The palate has a big texture with orange marmalade almost like a Cabernet finish.

Thanks to Rory Glasgow for advising me to try this gem.

There comes an old Macallan 10 Year Old 100 Proof Bottle from my good friend Cem Alpay

We tasted this bottle with good people in Turkey and I killed it pouring it in a few samples on my way back to SF. I have tasted it over and over again. It is robust and delicate in a way. Just reminding of how old and young Macallans were just beautiful a couple decades ago.

Detailed Tasting Notes

Oh my God! This was a treat from one of my favourite brand ambassadors in the Bay Area, Mr. Trent Simpson 

Port Charlotte The Distillery Valinch 2005 Oloroso Cask was released during Feis Ile 2018 and it wasn’t long for it to kill my heart in a second. There was forest after rain, smoke, chocolate, raisins, figs, tobacco, cloves, espresso. Damn it was too good!

A lot of people who talked to me about whisky should have heard this whisky from me. It made me forget all the heartbreak I had with the 2002 Edition and just gave me what I wanted. An incredible expression from the Speysider.

Please read the complete tasting notes and find a bottle!

Ardbeg 21 Years Old, one of 2500 bottles. This was from the Ardbeg Day 2018 and we shared this bottle with a group of Ardbeggians! A rich, complex, undisputable bottle. It was bottled at cask strength, 56.3% and was a showcase of a how beautiful old Islay whisky can be.

Layers of richness and flavour coat your palate with underlying love of peat! The peaty feeling comes strong and deep but creates a perfect balance with the fruity character enriched with spices.
Salty notes with stone fruits carry the spirit to a lingering and rich finish!

As John Glaser created and developed the Compass Box, he won the hearts of many whisky enthusiasts, including me. This only doesn’t have anything to do with Glaser, but his creations and the team behind are just amazing.

During my visit to the Compass Box Office in London, I saw how beautiful the people behind the whisky are and our conversation with Mr. Glaser just got better every second with their whiskies. You may find my interview with John Glaser here.
What about the whisky? Hedonism The Muse came in a great packaging but there is more than the beauty of the packaging in the bottle. I have first tasted it with my friend @daydrammer  and our eyes were just wide open!

My dear friend Jill Boyd was the lead blender of this whisky. As the women employees in Compass Box is more of male, it had perfect packaging and she was a perfect leader.

Smelling of honey, summer with vanilla milkshakes and nutty tones. Palate is sweet with marzipan, butter, a touch of ginger and lemon zest. Long and lingering finish.

I tried the Kanya when it wasn’t even released in November 2017 and was amazed by it. I wanted to put it on my 2017 list though it only could come to the US in 2018.  Kanya gets the name from Zodiac signs and is the dignified Indian counterpart of the highly appealing Virgo.

I have known Virgos as meticulous, clean, detail oriented beautiful people. This bottle shows how smooth, clean and tropical can an Indian single malt can get after 7 years in American white oak barrels. Such a nice name for a great whisky.

Nose has an intense fruit explosion with apricots, mangos, vanilla and manuka honey. The palate is just beautifully creamy with butterscotch. Spices appear in butter like notes having apple pie traces.

The finish has just a little oak spice with a clean malt and a touch of apricot.

And the winner is…Glenmorangie Grand Vintage Malt 1989. Grand Vintage 1989 is a 27 year old treasure partly matured in ex Côte Rôtie casks.

I tasted from 4 bottles of this gorgeous bottle and I don’t regret any second of it. It just kept amazing me and any of my friends every second.

The nose has red fruits with great spice and tropical fruits. Apple pie, honeysuckle with light ripe dates. Some green vegetal notes surrounded by cedar wood.

The palate has milk chocolate and vanilla cake icing with shaved oak. Pepper dominates the back, with fudgy milk cream, buttery feeling. Tarty and reminds you of Côte Rôtie!
Finish is long and elegant! Cedar, tobacco mix into floral tones, peppermint and leather.