MrWizard's Ramblings

Mostly Samples. Thank you friends, Charu, Mike, Orpheus, Logan!

Glenmorangie 10, 1990s bottling. 40%
Something from dusty old archives of history. A sample of 1990s bottling of Glenmorangie, at 10 years old. I unfortunately don’t have a modern sample to compare with and it’s be a while since I’ve had Glenmo 10 last time. There’s an interesting minerality and somehow… ‘warm’ orchard fruits on the nose. Think bakes pears or green apples from the oven, not quite cooled yet. Yet more of those creamy vanilla ex-bourbon notes there. Sweet and malty and somewhat fruity palate yet somewhat flat and uncomplicated. Pleasant, slightly nutty aftertaste with some baking spices finally appearing, finishing with a light chili pepper tingle and some coffee. Overall: I’m pleased but not impressed with this. Since I cannot compare it to more modern iteration we’ll judge it in vacuum of perspective. A good daily drinking but what else would I expect out of age really? Value: This wasn’t ever expensive but due to the current age will probably fetch a small premium by someone curious.
Score: B

The Macallan Edition No. 4, 48.4%
Oh, this smells like good sherry funk. The palate is full on sherry, sweet, nutty, slightly spicy profile. Long finish with rising peppers while sherry drops off. Both sweet and savory this is mouth watering in the end. Overall: This is good stuff. More or less exactly what you’d want in a sherried speyside scotch. Interesting and not bland, this is definitely a ride for the palate. If i knew what i know now in 2018 I’d probably bought a handful of these to hide away. Value: In 2018 when this came out, the MSRP was $100, currently there’s no chance of finding it anywhere less than about $200-250, even if you’re lucky. Macallan prices are in stratosphere, being beaten only by the Springbank pricing at least for the ‘affordable’ bottles.
Score: A

Compass Box (CB) Canvas, 46%
More than half of the recipe is Tomatin (the Vino Naranja making up nearly 11%) and the other single malt whiskies came from Glenburgie, Glen Elgin and Imperial distilleries. They were all aged in American oak to highlight their fruitiness…
As usual CB bottles are supposed to evoke the name while drinking them… Light orchard fruits on the nose, not overwhelming as they could be, yet well balanced. Mineral forward palate with more white orchard fruits, this case towards light side of the spectrum, green apples, pears… green honeydew, etc. Not too long, malty and unremarkable aftertaste. Overall: This is a true blank ‘canvas’ with your imagination is there to paint something on it… but… this is a also a whiskey and having a blank canvas isn’t something that’s usually done or expected to be in a bottle. Kudos to John Glaser’s team for actually making it a ‘blank’… but IMHO this is a miss for Compass Box limited editions as this is also about as interesting as a white canvas. Very drinkable yet immediately forgettable. In short… It’s boring by itself! Value: Total Wine lists these at $124.99 and as pretty packages these come in; I’m going to give this an ‘bad value’ rating. Even if I’m a fan of Compass Box bottlings this one just doesn’t stand out.
Read the details here: https://www.compassb … .com/whiskies/canvas
Score: B

Compass Box (CB) Artist’s Blend, @SFWBSS SiB, 49%
A Compass Box Artist’s Blend whiskey aged in single cask from Clynelish distillery here. Single Cask picked by SFWBSS. Malty tropical fruits on the nose, bananas dominating. Slightly woody, an somewhat spicy for ex bourbon palate. Few charry notes in a medium-long aftertaste on top of the expected sweetness. Overall: This is a ‘better’ artist’s blend vs the regular even if it’s just proof that’s higher but there’s not much to write about it… it’s pleasant and easy drinking. Value: This was like $50. I’d say money well spent.
Score: B+

Cameronbridge 27, Single Grain Scotch, Old Particular K&L SiB 54.3%
Another single grain! Where do I stop? Actually I’ve finished one bottle and opened next one. Charred vanilla sugar on the nose. Hard candy basically, burnt orange zest. Wood notes with baking spices, cereal butter notes, more charred orange peels. Long ginger and pepper aftertaste with a touch of sweetness. Overall: Quite enjoyable in a single grain scotch way even if overshadowed by its malt brethren. Not too bitter, not too sweet… this is basically butter-orange cookies that are well toasted. Value: This was $80. A solid price for the bottle!
https://www.klwines.com/p/i?i=1430020
Score: B+

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Scoring Breakdown: https://www.aerin.or … age=scores_breakdown