Clynelish 14 year old

Country: Scotland
Region : Highland

Distillery : Clynelish Distillery

Type : Single Malt

ABV : 46%

Age : 14 years

Colour: Old Gold, Amber

Nose: Light peat with spicy floral notes.

Taste: Starts very dry producing only a lightly smoked barley taste. Mellow spiced honey fills out the body with hints of cereal and fruit. A very long, complex finish that moves from honey to oak and more floral/fruit notes and hints of the sea.

The Clynelish was a real suprise for me. To tell you the truth I nearly wrote it off before I had tried it. It is not often that I come across a whiskey that I haven't at least heard of before. Hailing from the northern highlands I was expecting a tame little brother of a Glen Ord or a Dalmore whiskey. What I got instead was a tame little cousin of a Laphroaig or a Bruichladdich. The character of the coastal location really through enough to really appreciate and the peat smoke is subtle and well balanced as opposed to to big and bold like its Islay cousins.

Would be a great whiskey for transitioning a whiskey newcomer from a Glenfiddich to a Talisker, Laphroaig or even Lagavulin.

Food Match. Being quite a light whiskey you could straight away pair this up with a light chicken or fish meal and it would serve just fine. To really play on the peat and spice of this one though, I would go for something a bit gamier like wild pork or perhaps pheasant.

Lagavulin 16yo

Country : Scotland

Region : Islay

Distillery : Lagavulin Distillery

Type : Single Malt

ABV : 43%

Age : 16 years

Colour : Deep amber / Rose gold

Nose : Strong iodine and peat smoke with a touch of salt / seaweed

Taste : Starts with very dry peat smoke followed up by mineral salt and touches of wood. Hints of sweetness come though then a long complexed finish almost like coal. 

This whisky epitomises everything about Islay whiskies. It is the bold statement of a wave beaten shore that begs to be either loved or hated. Definitely for those that enjoy a big, powerful whisky.

Food Match : This is absolutely a cheese whisky. The contrast of the creamy cheese with the complex smoke will amplify the flavors of bothe the whisky and the cheese.

For those of you in Tauranga, this bad boy is available at my favorite restaurant "Amphora" on the strand. At only $12.50 it is worth giving a go. 

Johnnie Walker Gold (The Centenary Blend)

Country: Scotland
Region : Multiple
Distillery: Multiple

Type : Blended
ABV : 40%
Age : 18 years

I'm lucky enough to work in a liquor store and get plenty of chances to try great products at even better prices. Just the other day my rep for Lion Nathan had a few tasty drops for me to try. Of those that we sampled the "Johnnie Gold" was by far leader for whiskey of the day. Thanks Magoo!

I didn't have a chance to take proper tasting notes for the session but it is definitely one that I will revisit when I add one to my collection.

Until then I'll leave you with this little write up.

Few whiskies offer as indulgent an experience as Johnnie Walker Gold Label. Exceptionally smooth, creamy and delicate, Gold Label is the ultimate whisky pleasure. A skillful fusion of rare aged whiskies inspired by the notes originally kept by Sir Alexander Walker and crafted from only a small number of Scotland's most renouned distilleries, each matured for a minimum of 18 years.