It’s time to check out the top of the line in the new Jura core range – The Jura 18 Year Old.

It was matured for 18 in American White Oak ex-bourbon casks and then finished in Premier Grand Cru Classé Bordeaux casks before bottled at 44%. So another wine finish but at least it’s singular and not a mix of different wine casks.

Let’s see how that works out.

Isle of Jura 18 Year Old (44%, €89,90 )

Nose : Sour vanilla, lactic, wine tannins, cream, toffee and caramel. After a few minutes in the glass it becomes more...

It’s really been a long time without an Octomore review on here, ah? A whole month has passed!

Truthfully I didn’t think another Octomore review will come out so soon but we’re closing on Feis Ile 2018 and some interesting Islay whiskys pop out.

Today I’m checking out a new Octomore from Dramfool, a Scottish independent bottler, released for Islay Whisky Festival 2018 which is also known as Feis Ile 2018 but the ‘Feis Ile’ term is now trademarked so Islay Whisky Festival it is in our case.

It’s a 150 ppm 6 year old Octomore (2011 vintage) from ex-bourbon Hogshead...

Carn Mor Celebration of the Cask Benriach 1990 (27 year old?) 49.8%...

Three Rivers Gin 40%...

Kinahan’s Small Batch Blended Irish Whiskey 46%

Matured for at least 6 years.

37.5% Grain aged in 1 ^st Fill Bourbon, 37.5% Grain aged in 2 ^nd Fill Bourbon and 25% Malt aged in 1 ^st and 2 ^nd Fill Bourbon casks.

Tasted: Feb 2018

The nose displays plenty of toasty vanilla oak with hints of pepper, orange, apricot and barley. There is a crisp, hard-ish grain note in the background but the oak is quite dominant.

The palate is slightly oily with like the nose suggests, plenty of toasty oak. A touch of sweet spice, barley and apricot follows....

Lunazul Tequila Anejo 40%

A 100% agave añejo tequila from Tierra de Agaves. Lunazul is part-owned by bourbon-producer Heaven Hill. Aged in ex-11 year old Elijah Craig barrels for 12 to 18 months.

Tasted: Feb 2018

A pungent agave nose with plenty of pepper. The oak is very subtle and adds hints of vanilla and milk chocolate. With time it becomes very peppery and slightly mentholated.

The palate is pleasantly rounded and soft with pungent agave and pepper. Slightly mentholated with subtle Bourbon oak, coffee and milk chocolate on the middle. Long and peppery finish with a touch of wood...

The English Drinks Company Cucumber Gin 40%

Distilled at Langley’s in Birmingham

Botanicals: Juniper, coriander seed, orange peel, angelica root, cassia bark, orris root, lemon peel, liquorice root, nutmeg and cinnamon.

Tasted: Jan 2018

The cucumber is very noticeable on the nose (which is good I suppose!) However it doesn’t dominate and hints of juniper, cassia, sweet lemon and coriander can be detected.

The palate opens with a pleasant combination of sweet and spritzy lemon with cucumber and juniper. Very lemony on the middle with a touch of cassia and coriander. Long and remaining fresh and citric.

The English Drinks...

Carn Mor Celebration of the Cask Mannochmore 1990 (27 year old) 42.5%

Bourbon Barrel 7431/ Dist: Jun 1990 Btl: Jan 2018/ Tasted: Jan 2018

A slightly taught, mature and straw-like nose, but it also displays a wonderful fruitiness – melon, apple and apricot with a touch of honey, vanilla cream and fills out well. Late sawdusty oak.

The palate is taught and subtly spiced with apricot, unsweetened pineapple, apple and a touch of vanilla cream. Hints of straw and barley come through on the middle as does the oiliness of the spirit. Lovely intensity with a subtle citrus and rose...

Many writers have found inspiration in a bottle of good whisky: Mark Twain, James Joyce, William Faulkner, Dorothy Parker, and numerous others. Scotland’s national poet, Robert Burns, wrote dozens of works that mention or focus on whisky, including “ Scotch Drink ” and the humorously metaphorical “ John Barleycorn .”

Joining the literary greats in using the water of life as a muse, Sara Robinson of Charlottesville, Virginia has been writing poetry about whisky for nearly a decade, though she came late to the craft after a career in the chemical and mineral processing industry. “I was writing articles in...

The classic match-up for cookies maj be a cool glass of milk—but who wants milk when you can have whisky? Just as there’s a different style of whisky to suit every person’s taste, various cookies also have a perfect flavor match.

“Whisky and cookies are an ideal pairing,” says Morgan Kirchner, whiskey advisor for Jack Rose Dining Saloon in Washington, D.C. “Cookies, like whisky, are a marriage of simple ingredients that come together to make an incredibly delicious snack. Aside from the fact that they share multiple aromatic and flavor profiles, cookies are comforting and homey, as is a lot...

The Ar10 , Oc5 and Lg8 releases in the recent batch of Elements of Islay releases was sold out in the blink of an eye, I didn’t even realized they were online until I saw the ‘sold out’ sign…

The last one available is this Caol Ila Cl10 , a marriage of three hogsheads distilled in 2008 and 2009 .

Caol Ila Cl10 (58,2%, Elements of Islay 2018, three hogsheads)

Nose: a lot of barley and yeast, with fresh kelp and hints of sweet oranges and lime. Smoked lemons. Light metallic and medicinal touches. Warm butter. Ashes and...

Wemyss Malts just released this blended Maltwhisky called Nectar Grove . Selected Highlands single malts were brought together and further matured in Madeira -seasoned casks for a while. A “finished” blended malt, quite a novel idea.

The ornate packaging is inspired by Portuguese ceramics: Madeira is a Portuguese island.

Nectar Grove (46%, Wemyss Malts 2018, 9000 btl.)

Nose: nice fruity notes up front, bright and juicy. Nectarines, kiwi and hints of orange oils. A modern vanilla / fresh wood character as well. Plenty of bread crust. A hint of tobacco. Well done. Mouth: same fresh fruits, but...

After a series of Inchmurrin single casks for different bottlers and shops, there’s now an official single cask Croftengea 2008 exclusive to The Whisky Exchange .

A heavily peated malt from Loch Lomond distillery, distilled using the same straight-neck pot stills as Inchmurrin, but peated to around 40 ppm.

Croftengea 9 yo 2008 (54,8%, OB for The Whisky Exchange 2018, refill hogshead #272, 289 btl.)

Nose: nicely elegant, there’s plenty of stewed fruits (apples, peaches, pears) and lemon frosted cake as well as ashy notes and mossy peat. Candied fruits and smoke, equally strong. Smoky hay. Hints of...

Earlier this year, Jura Distillery, owned by Whyte & Mackay, totally revamped the core line up after replacing their Travel Retail offers last oktober (bye bye Turas Mara ).

So no more Origin (10 Year Old), Superstition, Diurach’s 16 Year Old and Prophecy. Instead we have a new line up consisting 5 new offers:

• Jura Journey – A no-age-statement offering, matured exclusively in American oak barrels
• Jura 10 Year Old – Already launched in US during 2017 and now globally
• Jura 12 Year Old – Finished in Oloroso Sherry casks after 12 years in American white casks
• Jura Seven Wood – A...

The second Isle Of Jura whisky from the new line up is Jura 10 Year Old which is not to be confused with the older and familiar Jura 10 Year Old Origin. The new 10 Year Old was already rolled out in the US late 2017 but now it’s part of the new line up globally.

The new Jura 10 Year Old was matured in ex-bourbon casks for 10 years before being finished in Oloroso Sherry Casks, so I think we should refer to it as ‘Jura 10 Year Old Sherry Cask Finish’ until the older 10 Year Old Origin...