Rediscovering The Classics: Talisker 10 Year Old

Some readers of this blog may have noticed that there haven't been many posts this week. Unfortunately I have been taken sick. Drinking, and even the thought of drinking, has been far from my mind. My greatest affliction is an unwillingness to seek help, I come from the school of thought that insists all illness is just a sniffle and people should just 'man-up' and get on with life. The extremity of this became apparent to my girlfriend when I took a fortnight to go to the doctor's when I went down with a rather nasty case of tonsillitis. It wasn't until I realised my tonsils had turned black and were leaking pus did I surrender and took my 'cold' to the doctor. The most horrid part of any illness is the point at which you can't face a drink. Whisky may cure a cold but stomach infections, tonsillitis and chicken pox lay outside of its glorious remit. So having not tried anything new this week I thought I'd talk about the single malt that started it all...

I've drunk whisky for quite a long time, beginning with Drambuie before progressing to Famous Grouse. However the first single malt I tried was the almighty Talisker 10 Year Old. One of my Dad's favourites, it was an introduction to a whole new level of whisky drinking. For years Talisker was my absolute favourite to the extent that my friend Rob and I took a day to train and bus hop to Skye then hike nine miles to the nearest pub for a Talisker 18 Year Old. Talisker was my earliest benchmark for judging whisky. It has a ferocity coupled with flavours that for me define whisky. Although I now appreciate many different whiskies for their different complexities I still have a soft spot for my old favourite. Here's to Talisker!

Talisker 10 Year Old
45.8% - Distillery Bottling
Nose: That trademark black and white pepper with kippers, melon and apple following, closed with ashy coal smoke.
Palate: The smoke continues straight on to the palate with a vanilla sweetness and peaty pepper.
Finish: Malty, long and spicy with waves of gentle smoke.
Overall: A classic malt indeed, excellent with haggis, perfect all year round. I find it pleasing that no matter how many whiskies I try, I still enjoy a good Talisker. Slainte.

Blogger to Blender...

A little while back I let my arrogance get the better of me. I foolishly thought that blending whisky must be easy and could be done in an afternoon. Buoyed up with thoughts of being the next Richard Paterson I set about my vain work. The concept was simple, make a blend combining the flavour profiles of three of my favourite (apologies for the f-word) distilleries: Talisker, Highland Park and Springbank. I set up my tools; an array of pipettes, Glencairns and some tongue stretches to get my palate loosened up. Having never attempted blending whisky before and caught up in the excitement of the moment I didn’t really think through the intricacies of making a blend, my foresight went as far as to record quantities used (that I later lost) and to include a grain whisky, as a blend would of course be a combination of both single malts and grain whisky. What I hadn’t considered was firstly that most bottles of whiskies are already an optimum blend of different casks, secondly that alcohol is a volatile substance and therefore some whiskies would not combine and thirdly that blends are usually allowed time to vat to become a whole. Okay, technically there was a fourth element I had completely forgotten in my fervour to become the next blending giant and that is that I don’t know what I’m doing. Having forgotten all of this I set about my task.

For all of my glaringly obvious mistakes I did have myself a very fun afternoon. I used Cameron Brig and another single grain whisky for the grain element of my blend then I went in heavy on the Talisker 10 year old. After tasting it later it became apparent that I should have held back on the Talisker as it clashed the most with the other flavours. I waded on adding equal quantities of the Springbank 15 year old and the Highland Park 12 year old. This is when it started to go wrong. In an effort to combat the increasingly bitter flavour the blend was taking on I began adding a variety of different malts to balance out the flavour, including Glenfarclas 30 year old and MacAllan 12 year old. The idea behind the Glenfarclas was to add some age and depth to the blend, whereas the MacAllan was supposed to soften out the bitterness; instead it overpowered the constituent parts. In a moment of inspiration I added Longrow C.V. that actually married quite nicely giving the blend a touch of smoke and I reckon complimented the Springbank quite well. After adding a few more bits and bobs and tinkering with the quantities I was forced to admit defeat. Dr. Jekyll had morphed into Mr. Hyde. So below I provide the tasting notes for my humbling blending attempt.

Peatreek Blend 1.0
Blend – No Age Statement
Nose: The nose was surprisingly wholesome and was the only part of the blend that actually worked. A lovely maltiness arrives first with waves of sea breeze and light fruits, with apple wood smoke drifting behind. Underneath is a touch of caramel and vanilla that plays quite nicely with the malty foreground. This blend has a nose of two parts: Coastal malt and sherried Speyside.
Palate: Bitter, Talisker dominated and fought a bloody battle with a squabbling opposing army. Truly horrid.
Finish: The bitterness now comes in waves, reminding me of my own idiocy. On the other hand a slight toffee-ness allows for a brief respite.
Overall: A sharp learning curve and a lot of fun. This is by no means my last attempt and next time I will bear in mind what I forgot this time. I will probably use single cask whiskies so that I am working with purer ingredients. I won’t be quite so selfish as to include all of my top whiskies and next time I will let it marry for a time to give the flavours a chance to settle in. Watch this space for future updates…

The F-Word - Longrow C.V and Springbank 15 Years

In starting a new blog I felt that I should refrain from using the word 'favourite' and all its connotations of single-mindedness and rejection of the new and exciting. So in keeping with Obama's spirit of change, I will attempt to avoid using the f-word. However I find with whisky, as in music records, I have drams that become short time favourites. The whiskies that you discover then tell everyone who is interested, everyone who isn't and anyone packed uncomfortably close to you on the tube about.

I have a couple currently that I have been using unreasonable force to get people drinking. These whiskies hail from a distilling region, that for reasons I cannot fathom, I've never really explored. This region, and I apologise for my ignorance, is that of Campbeltown, on that long thin peninsula off the West coast of Scotland. Fortunately, I've had plenty of opportunity recently to try the Campbeltown malts. Many have stood out but there are two that I think are the most drinkable; in a: 'I want to relax with a whisky, I may finish the bottle I may not, but by God I won't be disturbed. For these whiskies are sublime' kind of way. These two are the Longrow C.V. and the Springbank 15 year old. I was lucky enough to do a vertical tasting of the smoky Longrow malts and I loved them all, and you can expect complete tasting notes for all of them soon. However it was the C.V. that really turned my head therefore gets first dibs. With the Springbank I thought it had near perfect balance and became an instant dram to canvas to the unwitting around me. Here's what I thought:

Longrow C.V
46% - No Age Statement - Bottled by Springbank
Nose: Salt and a leathery smokyness come to the fore in a maritime combination I like to describe as a Harbourmaster's Jacket.
Palate: Light and sweet, a great contrast to the nose.
Finish: That salty smokiness returns from the nose providing a deeply satisfying ending.
Overall: I love the entire range of Longrow but the C.V. stands out as it combines a great quality whisky with fantastic value.

Springbank 15 years old
46%
Nose: Grape and rhubarb dominate the nose in unison, with light smoke providing backbone and structure.
Palate: The grape returns with a dry and forgiving mouthfeel.
Finish: A long, silken, returning finish begging you to have another!
Overall: Delicious and unobtrusive with a balance of flavour and weight that all whiskies should aspire to, a region defining malt.