Tasting Notes: Thompson Bros: Dailuaine 2016

Thompson Bros: Dailuaine 2016 (Scottish Speyside Single Malt Whisky: 7 Years: 57.1% ABV)

Visual: A deep gold whisky with slow puckering from the spirit.

Nose: Caramel to twix. Honeycomb. Light wisp of smoke. Oily. Heather. Wood shavings. Light black cherry yogurt. Water adds blueberry.

Body: Strong! Thick fatty butter. Drying. Dried blueberries on digestives and shortbread. Water adds rich plums. Fruitcake and fudge.

Finish: Dry oak. Ash. Fatty butter. Drying. Dried blackcurrant. Dried blueberry. Shortbread. Water adds plums. Fruitcake. Dark rum. Slight cloves.

Conclusion: Oh this opened up so much with even just a touch of water. Neat it is very strong – the aroma just punching out sweet caramel to honeycomb along with some dark fruit. All this is just accentuated for the better with that drop of water.

Neat the body was kind of closed for me, others in the tasting enjoyed it, but I found that, due to the strength, it didn’t really show itself to me. Like this is had a kind of fatty butter quality and just hints of the dark fruit the aroma promised. Now water makes it what it should be, bringing out full on plums and caramel that makes the whisky shine here.

Then as we head back into the finish you get real dark fruit packed into a variety of biscuity flavours. Again, good neat, but expands massively with water. Top and tail this whisky is good at any point, but the body really needs water to show itself.

With water this is epically fruity, with plums, fruitcake, everything making it really dark, heavy and delicious, with spirity leanings thrown in. At this point, now it has opened up, it is amazingly rich and rewarding – a dark xmas dessert style whisky, covered with spirits.

Like this it is a genuinely great whisky. Enjoy just a touch neat to see how it is like that, then dive in with the water and really appreciate it.

Background: Another one from Independent Spirit‘s Burn night tasting. This is an independent bottling from Thompson Brother’s who have been very much impressing me with their bottlings and their own, very hard to get hold of, whisky. This is a bottling of Dailuaine, not one you see much. At the tasting we were told all the badgers on the bottles was a nod to the Flora and Fauna bottlings of Dailuaine – which is a nice touch. This is one of 1006 bottles and was aged in an oloroso hogshead. As always with tastings I did my best to turn out decent notes despite the range of alcohol being consumed and limited time. Apparently Dailuaine uses stainless steel rather than copper condensers, which is an oddity and probably explains a lot about the unusual nature of this spirit.

Tasting Notes: Douglas Laing: Provenance: Dailuaine: 8 Year

Douglas Laing: Provenance: Dailuaine: 8 Year (Scottish Speyside Single Malt Whisky: 8 Year: 46% ABV)

Visual: Clear, light gold. Fast thick streaks from the spirit.

Nose: Honey. Caramel. Floral. Heather. Oak. Whiff of sulphur. Water adds slight lychee.

Body: Warming alcohol. Honey. Vanilla fudge. Oak. Slight custard. Water more fudge. Lychee touch. Cinnamon. Brandy cream.

Finish: Dry oak. Slight sulphur. Soot. Water adds lychee. Fudge. Slight coriander.

Conclusion: This feels gentle and slightly generic. Easy to drink, but just slightly empty. A lot less viscous that last time I encountered a Provenance bottling from this distillery, with less jellied alcohol feel – thought still slight spice, albeit more gentle than before.

Neat it is simple sweet fudge flavour with honey and light floral backing. It is slightly light which is pretty surprising considering this packing an extra 6% abv over the minimum which would usual give a bit more grip. Water doesn’t change that but does add slight extra fruity edges and drying cinnamon sweetness into a coriander savoury touch in the finish.

It is still fairly simple – the contrast is nice, but doesn’t really address the lightness at the heart of the character. It is ok, very gentle, especially with water, and the spice edge does not alter that. It does keep it from becoming too samey moment to moment, but still never really grabs me.

Understated, not bad but doesn’t really earn its place either.

Background: So, fifth time around – Mini whisky samples! Woo woo! (I’m repeating myself so much that I’m starting to feel like San at the end of a bad run on Undertale …) These were donated to me by Independent Spirit for me to do notes on – much appreciated! Being a sample this is a smaller measure than normal, so may be slightly shorter notes that usual, not that I’m complaining. From a quick google I think this is made 2010, bottled 2019, and aged in a sherry butt. I have tried a Provenance Dailuaine before, last time was a 10 year though. Put on Television Villain‘s self titled album while drinking – still a blinder of an album, and I’m not just saying that ‘cos they are mates. Seriously, give it a listen.

Tasting Notes: Provenance: Dailuaine: 10 Year: Single Cask

Provenance: Dailuaine: 10 Year: Single Cask (Scottish Speyside Single Malt Whisky: 10 Years: 46% ABV)

Visual: Grain to gold.

Viscosity: Fast thick streaks.

Nose: Jelly babies. Spice. Pencil shavings. Water opens to crushed meringue, paprika and cinnamon. Some oak.

Body: Trifle. Raspberry. Spicy warmth. Brandy cream. Oak. Vanilla. Water lightens and adds coriander.

Finish: Malt chocolate. Oak. Brandy cream. Water gives a warming air and slight vodka feel. Coriander.

Conclusion: A while back I was discussing Amrut in Brewdog Bristol, and the resident whisky expert on the staff mentioned that he liked it as it had an almost Indian spice character which was unique to it rather than just copying scotch style. Now, I never really got that so much, but I bring it up as, well, it looks like Scotland has done that as well now.

This, not so well known distillery, is an odd mix. There is quite thick, cheap vodka, feel initially, but soon after it vanishes if you let it air. Then you get the meat of it, with brandy cream, raspberry trifle sweetness, mixing with Indian spice warmth.

Now, I know what you are thinking. Sounds shit right? You wouldn’t pour coriander on a trifle (Seriously don’t do that, it’s awful. Someone did that to me as a prank once). The odd thing is, I am really liking this. It has sweetness, warmth, and grounding oak. They compliment each other remarkably well. I can see why this isn’t a better known distillery if this is typical for the distillery, it is very unusual, but I would say it deserves recognition. It is dry and spicy for much of the time, then you get dessert treats rewarding you for your patience.

It does weaken with water, well mostly, the aroma does get far better and loses the harsher edges, but that is a contrast to the body which loses a lot of the complexity, becoming a more simple, if still unusual, spicy whisky.

So, based on this experience, this is a distillery well worth seeking out for something off the beaten track, and I will be keeping my eyes open for further expressions.

Background: Hip flask sized whisky! Again I found a 20cl bottle of a distillery I had not tried before at “The Tasting Rooms“, and after the success of the last one I was happy to grab this one to try again. This was distilled 2003, and drunk while listening to quite insane Pon Pon Pon meets metal. Before anyone judges me, Pon Pon Pon ties back to a memory of holiday in Japan, and metal makes everything better.