A rarely seen, regal whisky still in the prime of its years, with a rich, sweet nature lightly influenced by long years in cask, and a spicy, peppery finish that comes as a pleasing surprise. Urbane yet determined; sweet and smooth on the surface, but with hot spices bubbling away beneath; quite delicious.
TASTING NOTES
APPEARANCE: Gleaming gold with amber lights.
BODY: Medium.
NOSE: Subtly spiced cereal hints and sweetness entwine to suggest ripe tropical mango, papaya, and peapods. Rising through this, traces of hard toffee and light, sustained shavings of oak hint at the spicy intensity on the palate. A splash of water reveals notes of cinnamon bun and salted toffee. Later, these fade appealingly to scented beeswax.
PALATE: Silky and smooth-flowing in texture with an intense butterscotch-sweet taste, which mellows into rich caramel toffee. A balancing spicy-dry, oaky intensity appears mid- palate. Adding water softens the honeyed sweetness to creamy-smooth Swiss milk chocolate, with just a little salt mid-palate. Gentle spice now holds the sweetness in check.
FINISH: Short and quite intense, with considerable warming chili spice. With water sweeter, the spice reduced.
