Twice a year we have a blind tasting - tonight was the first of this year with Jo,  our longest-standing member choosing whiskies to challenge our tasting skills, or maybe to expose our paucity of knowledge?

So, how does a blind tasting work? First, Jo took a trip to Arkwright’s splendid whisky emporium near Swindon ( http://www.whiskyandwines.com ) and chose 5 bottles from their extensive range of over 800 whiskies. She then decanted her choices into unmarked bottles and brought them along to The Ram. Sometimes, we are given a few clues to help us along, but Jo is mean and we were given very little information other than there was a theme linking the whiskies. In a moment of compassion and 4 tots in she did tell us that one of them was a blend.

There’s a lot of fun to be had, having no guidance other than your sense of taste & smell, trying to guess the age, ABV, region, distillery and price. It also allows you appreciate the whisky without pre-conceptions about how good or how bad a whisky might be. Take a bottle of Glenfarclas 15YO and a bottle of Bells and, without tasting it, you just know which one you’re going to like most – you get my drift, right? A blind tasting can sometimes throw out surprising results.
 
Whisky No 1 – (Linkwood 12YO Flora and Flora range). Pale straw in colour with aromas of pear, tropical fruits and elderflower blossom. (Someone suggested alcoholic Lilt). A very smooth taste with pear and melon and a light spiciness developing into a very pleasant finish. A complex and pleasing tipple. A bottle of this would get emptied very easily -  but don’t try standing up too quickly afterwards.
 
Whisky No 2 – (Cragganmore 12YO) –  This one hinted of sherry cask (second fill maybe?) with sultanas and mustiness. A buttery mouth feel with light sherry coming through, some honey and a little saltiness as well. The short finish was spicy and warming with a drying bitterness at the end. Generally, felt to be lacking in character and depth.
 
Whisky No 3 – (Johnny Walker Green Label 15YO) – I’m not the biggest fan of JW whiskies, so disclosure came as quite a surprise. Smelling it gave hints of smoke, acetone, wood, damp grass and slightly medicinal notes. Tasting provided an enjoyable mix of smoke, dark fruits and some pear with a thick, viscous feel in the mouth (“chewy” was one description). A lingering finish of sweetness developing into saltiness. A very drinkable whisky – if you like a little bit of peat.
 
Whisky No 4 – (Talisker 10YO) – This one ratcheted-up the peatiness a notch or two and added quite distinct maritime influences – seaweed, old rope - that sort of thing. Definite salt and pepper on the taste buds and a little bit of sweetness balancing out the smokiness. A long warming finish rounds this off nicely. A classic malt.
 
Whisky No 5 – (Caol Isla 12YO) – No prizes were given for guessing where this came from - it shouts ISLAY at the top of its voice with characteristic peatiness and medicinal aromas. Smooth to taste, some oiliness and sweetness giving way to the peat and a lingering salty finish. There aren’t that many distilleries on Islay, so you would think that at least one of us would have got this right? Wrong!
 
At the end of the evening we independently rated the whiskies.
 
1st place – Linkwood 12YO Flora & Fauna
2nd place – Johnny Walker Green Label 15YO
3rd place – Caol Isla 12YO
4th place – Talisker 10YO
5th Place – Cragganmore 12YO
 
… and the theme linking them? Whiskies from Linkwood, Caol Isla, Tallisker and Cragganmore distilleries are constituent parts of JW Green label. All of them are part of the mighty Diageo empire.
 
Finally, the author humbly wishes it to be known that he takes back everything he has said about JW in the past and would now quite happily add a bottle of Green Label to his collection.

This month’s meeting was the first of the year and was due to fall on February 14th – Valentine’s Day. To avoid an outbreak of mixed marital arts (aka extreme violence) it was re-scheduled to the 7th.


Five excellent bottles were lined up for the tasting – no prizes for guessing the theme.
The Deveron 18YO
Glengoyne 18YO
Glenmorangie 18YO
Bunnahabhain 18YO
Talisker 18YO


The Deveron – Bottled at 40%. This is the latest brand out of the Speyside based McDuff distillery. Not to be confused with Glen Deveron which is, to help make things confusing, also out of the McDuff distillery. This is priced around £55 a bottle which is good for an 18YO. A nice golden colour the initial aromas are of light fruits and some creamy sweetness followed by a hint of liquorice and some floral notes. In the mouth notes of honey and wood came to the fore with a light, drying finish and spiciness at the end. Adding a few drops of water took away some of the woodiness and gave a buttery mouth feel.


Glengoyne – Bottled at 43% and around £70. A Highland distillery, although being just over 10 miles north of Glasgow it only marginally creeps in. Another golden coloured whisky this has been matured in sherry casks which give a distinctive aroma of darker fruits and sweetness. There was also a slightly musty, but not unpleasant smell. Drinking gave a little spicy kick at the back of the throat and some warmth. There was a bit of disagreement on flavour with some picking up on the sherry and others hardly noting it. A medium length warming finish with a little bit of sourness, drying at the end. It was generally felt that this whisky had a narrow flavour profile and not as complex as might have been expected for an 18YO.


Glenmorangie – Another Highland whisky, bottled at 43% and circa £85. Labelled as “extremely rare”. It isn’t hard to buy, so “extremely rare” must refer to the maturation process which is described on their website as “Fifteen years maturing in American white oak casks approximately 30% is transferred into Spanish Oloroso casks to spend a further three years maturing. Then, when both elements have reached 18 years, we blend them back together” Was it worth all that effort? Find out in the results of our tasting later in this report. A light golden hue with a very floral nose, some vanilla and sweetness. Very smooth in the mouth with notes of orange, some honeyed sweetness and a richness. Jo likened it to Tooty Fruity sweets! A long, complex and well-balanced fruity finish rounded this whisky off very nicely. Class in a glass.


Bunnahabhain – Around £80 a bottle and 46.3% ABV. Hailing from Islay, this is a re-introduced version of their traditional 18YO without artificial colouring and chill filtration. This is light copper in colour (I’m getting fed up of saying golden) and gives satisfying aromas of toffee, leather and a little wisp of peat. Tasting gives sherried notes with some saltiness and a warming spiciness. Quite a long finish with waves of spice and a little peat developing at the end.


Talisker – Bottled at 45.8% and approx. £75. World Whisky Awards named this the best single malt in the world 2007, so it has a lot to live up to. Coppery in colour there were a lot of interesting comments about the aromas – antiseptic, germoline, plasticine, linement were just some of the terms used! Some detected a little smokiness as well, someone suggested it smelt like Gloucester Royal. Don’t let it put you off, as tasting gives a complex fruity, salty and peppery experience and a long and salty finish with peat at the end. More class in a glass.


As usual we rated the whiskies at the end of the evening. There may have been a pre-conception that Talisker would be first past the post, but it was narrowly beaten into second place.


1st place – Glenmorangie
2nd place – Talisker
3rd place – Bunnahabhain
4th place – Glengoyne
5th Place – The Deveron


Tasting notes by Sean.