Whiskyseminar für Einsteiger und Fortgeschrittene in Regensburg

– 10 ausgesuchte Whiskys aus verschiedenen Regionen, teils fassstark –

Moderation von Pit Krause (www.slowdrink.de / www.maltmaniacs.net)

Termin: 16.6.2012 um 19 Uhr

Ort: Markthalle Regenburg (am Dachauplatz mit Parkhaus)

Anmeldung: bei Wein und Mehr (hier klicken) – oder hier direkt zum Anmeldefenster.

Bei diesem Tasting wird ein Überblick über die Whiskywelt mit Schwerpunkt schottischer Single Malts geboten. Wir erschmecken Regionen der Herstellung, verschiedene Fasslagerung, Alterstufen, ideale Trinkstärken und weitere Besonderheiten anhand ausgesucht guter Whiskys, die sowohl für Beginner als auch Fortgeschrittene geeignet sind.

Auch Raritäten, wie ein 33-jähriger Glen Grant aus den frühen 1950ern, ein 23-jähriger Bunnahabhain aus dem Sherryfass oder ein Laphroaig und ein Bowmore aus dem Einzelfass werden verkostet. Der Spaß kommt neben der Wissensvermittlung und dem Genuss auch nicht zu kurz, also seid dabei! Dies ist das letzte Whiskytasting in Regenburg vor der Sommerpause.

Das Lineup:

• Jameson 12 yo, ‚Special Reserve‘ 40% (Irland, triple distilled)
• Glenmorangie Original 10 yo, Scotch Highland Single Malt 40%
• Auchentoshan Three Wood ca. 12-14 yo, Scotch Lowland Single Malt 43% (triple distilled)
• Glen Grant 33 yo, Gordon & Macphail, Scotch Speyside Single Malt, 40% (abgefüllt in 1980ern: sehr alter, historischer Whisky, top ausgereift, Rarität)
• Bunnahabhain 23 yo von 1986, Cairn Mor, Sherry Butt N° 1282, Scotch Single Cask Islay Malt Whisky, 53,8%
• Ben Nevis 15 yo von 1996, C&S Dram, Sherry Butt N° 824, Scotch Single Cask Highland Malt Whisky, 54,9%
• Linkwood 27 yo von 1984, Single Cask Collection, Bourbon Hogshead, Scotch Single Cask Speyside Whisky, 57,0%
• Wild Turkey 8 yo, Kentucky Bourbon Whiskey, 50,5%
• Bowmore 13 yo C&S Regional Islay Edition N° 1, Scotch Single Cask Islay Whisky, 46%
• Laphroaig 13 yo von 1998, Single Cask Collection, Bourbon Hogshead, Scotch Single Cask Islay Malt Whisky, 60,8%

Unkostenbeitrag: 45.- (limitiert auf 20 Teilnehmer)

__________________________________________________________________________

Vorschau:

Anfang Juli (wahrscheinlich 7. Juli) gibt es in München die Munich-Spirits-Sommersession mit erstklassigen Rum, Bourbons und Cocktails. Bald kommt die Info dazu. Ebenso ist noch ein Weintasting in der Laube geplant, Termin folgt – mit erlesenen Tropfen (z.B. 2x 100 Parker-Punkte). Wir freuen uns auf Eure Teilnahme!

Let me mention some of the names you can’t go wrong with. You should try some small-batch-Bourbon by Jim Beam (yes!), e.g., Booker’s and Baker’s. I have also liked Wild Turkey’s Rare Breed, Old Pappy van Winkles Family Reserves (15, 20, 23 y.o.), the expensive George T. Stagg or the 18 y.o. Elijah Craig in the past. However, the two bottlings to be reviewed might even beat all of the above, I think. They are not THE best Bourbons around, but pretty rare and excellent examples. I had them head-to-head:

Willett 14 y.o. Single Barrel Kentucky Bourbon Whiskey, Barrel 1067 for Whiskeykeller, bottled around 2010, 57,6%

Comment: Willett might have produced (and nowadays fills) the world’s finest Bourbons. Every single bottling I had – even their Rye – was a stunner. But these sips can be quite tannic sometimes. Their small family-owned business focuses on old drams now, but their 6 y.o. single casks also rule and show many older bottlings who’s boss. The new stuff can keep up with their legends. Check out their stills and general history, it is very interesting. If you liked Olde St. Nick’s, Johnny Drum, Old Bardstown or Joshua Brooks bottlings from the old days (Willett/Evan Kulsveen), you sure will be into this one. This 14 y.o. nutty (hazelnut, coconut) and spicy (black and white pepper) bottling has a darker and less obtrusive wood note than the Kentucky Crown below but plays it close to the chest at first. Once you work at it, the whiskey reveals notes of pickles, cucumber, natural yoghurt, vanilla, whiffs of tropical fruit and hazelwood. On the palate it explodes to an enormous volume, really mouthfilling, complex and slightly adstringent. The finish becomes brighter and even nuttier in character and adds laurel and vanilla pod to the mix. Size matters!

Score: 91

Kentucky Crown 16 y.o. Straight Bourbon Whiskey, bottled around 2003, 53,5%

Comment: This ugly bottle with its plastic screw cap (see picture above, or the one Jim holds on to) has been a rare myth and one of Jim Murray’s favourites. I tasted it with friends against many other Bourbons and it always came out on top or at least among the better ones.  As it is also made by Kentucky Bourbon Distillers, this is Willett as well, somehow. It is slightly darker than the 14 y.o. from above. The nose reminds me of Guatemalian rum a lot because of its immense sweetness and the vanilla/toffee combo. Gluey and spicy white oak wood transports tropical fruit, lemon and lime aromas, glaced pastries and Germknödel (vanilla-plum-dumpling) with great balance but is kept at bay despite 16 years of maturation in Dixie. On the palate, its sweet creaminess takes you in. It is less edgy than the wood would suggest at first, all the elements of the nose can be found again. Smooth but complex! The long and balanced finish is less on power than on finesse and leaves you wanting another glass. Great rummy Bourbon, folks!

Score: 92

Balmenach 22 y.o. / 1988 SMWS 48.24, Refill Bourbon Hogshead, 49,3%

Comment: Very fruity (green apples, pineapple, lemon zest) and mature in the nose, kept at bay by some spice (white pepper) and wonderful white oak influences (vanilla, caramel, wood, charcoal). On the palate it bursts even more with  fruits (local and tropical) and displays a honey-infused sweetness, herbs and roses in addition – this has really been stored in a good Bourbon cask (refill?). No water needed, but this is a swimmer indeed.

Score: 89+

Glenturret 22 y.o. / 1988 SMWS 16.30, 2nd-fill Bourbon Hogshead, 51,6%

Comment: Highly unusual, not to say weird in the nose, but not at all unpleasant. Cheese roll with pickle, berry liqueur, Amarena cherry sauce from Italy (Maraschino and Morello), heather, dandelions, moss, creme brulee, honey, white dessert wine (Riesling Auslese or Passito), wet socks after a walk in the woods. The palate is a tightly-knit mix of the notes above, concentrating on moss, berries and wine, but also wonderfully mineral. Awesome, seems older than 22 years. What a cristalline fruitiness that resembles dextrose! No water, please! The finish juggles with all these aromas at great length. This ranks among the best Glenturrets I had. It has a unique character, perfect maturity and a satisfying taste that makes you beg for another glass. STUNNER!

Score: 91

Glenrothes 20 y.o. / 1990 SMWS 30.63, Refill Sherry Butt, 55,8%

Comment: Sweet and christmas-cakey (or the German ‚Christstollen mit Marzipan‘). Tea, peat and Sherry, lots of raisins (too dominating), plums, maraschino cherries, orange zest, rubber, sugared nuts and marzipan complete the nose – this is perfect for the advent or X-mas coffee table. Later some tobacco and figs emerge from the glass. The sweetness in the mouth is overwhelming and a bit monodimensional (raisins again), but we have a long finish on the same notes and noble rot on dark grapes. Unfortunately, the palate couldn’t hold the promises of the nose. Not bad, but you have to like the rubber-raisiny Sherry profile mainly on primary notes, which can be really persistent.

Score: 86

Glen Albyn 31 y.o. / 1979 SMWS 69.14, Refill Sherry Butt, 56,3%

Comment: Herbal at first, licorice and honey, loads of flowers, lemons, orange peel, plums, kraut salad with black cumin, Sushi roll in Nori, whiffs of peat, old gardening earth, Chinese roasted duck and kola nut. A little water helps opening the complex elixir. Slightly dry arrival on the palate, rather light, oak, flowers, gentle peat, honey and herbs lead into an earthy finish with echoes of the nose and some ginger. The nose was better than the rest. Nevertheless, this is an enjoyable dram in the classic light but complex style without lots of ‚in-your-face‘ wood influence.

Score: 88+