Johannes Lindblom -

April 18, 2015

Smokehead Extra Black 18 year old review

Smokehead 18 year old single malt is a 6000 bottle limited release by Ian Macleod – a mystery dram from Islay. There’s also a non age statement whisky under the Smokehead brand, launched in 2006. It is much cheaper and presumably, better available than this 18YO Extra Black. The name, […]

April 8, 2015

Blanton's Single Barrel Bourbon from Frankfort, Kentucky

Blanton’s Original Single Barrel Bourbon review

For a brief moment, I was MAVERICK taking a sip Blanton’s Original is a product by Sazerac Company, made by Buffalo Trace in Frankfort, Kentucky. According to Wikipedia (4/2015), it was the first bourbon marketed under the single barrel statement. There’s so much old school in it: the history, the […]

April 8, 2015

Oban 14 year old review

Oban 14 year old single malt whisky is the primary product of their distillery. The Oban distillery was built in 1794 and it is located in west coast of Scotland. The distillery was built before the town with the same name, which developed later in the surrounding harbor and is […]

April 4, 2015

Jim Beam White Label Bourbon review

Jim Beam White Label is one of the most recognizable bourbons in the world, Jim Beam being “one of the best selling brands of bourbon in the world in 2008” (according to Wikipedia, 3/21/2015). Aged for four years, this Original Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey has a big portion of rye in […]

March 13, 2015

The Naked Grouse blended malt whisky review

This BIRD is hard to comprehend, yet it’s rich The Naked Grouse is a blended malt whisky from The Famous Grouse brand by The Edrington Group. The malts are from Highland Park and Macallan, matured in first-fill Sherry casks. It has a higher proportion of above-mentioned malts, than in the […]

March 13, 2015

The Black Grouse Alpha Edition review

The Black Grouse Alpha Edition is a peated version of the Famous Grouse. This is a little bit peatier than the ordinary Black Grouse whisky released in 2007, developed for Swedish market. In the label, there’s that grouse again, this time it’s a black one (tetrao tetrix). Miss Whisky has a […]

March 13, 2015

The Famous Grouse Blended Scotch Whisky review

Matthew Gloag & Son Ltd. started the Famous Grouse production in 1897 and nowadays it’s been made by The Edrington Group. Named after the famous British moorland bird called red grouse (lagopus lagopus scoticus), which is Scotland’s national game bird. “It has been the highest selling whisky in Scotland since […]

March 7, 2015

The Glenlivet Nadurra 16 year old review

Glenlivet Nàdurra 16 year old is a small batch cask strength single malt whisky, “nadurra” meaning natural in Gaelic. Based on the alcohol per volume level and the time I bought it, I think that this sample is from the batch bottled in January 2014. Resembling a lot of Glenlivet 12YO, which i […]

March 4, 2015

Highland Park 18 year old review

Edit 7/7/2019: I’ve kept my old bottling of Highland Park 18 year old stashed away in my cabinet. In fear of too much oxidation, I’ve transferred it to a smaller bottle after halfway through. Then, in autumn of 2018 we decided to have a Highland Park tasting with the 18YO […]

February 27, 2015

Säntis Malt Edition Dreifaltigkeit Peated whisky review

Säntis Malt Edition Dreifaltigkeit is a cask strength peated whisky from Switzerland. This beauty has been matured in old (60-130 years old) oak beer casks that were smoked with oak wood by the “Swiss Highlander”. Säntis whisky is a product of Locher brewery – famous for making a wide range […]

February 24, 2015

Mackinlay’s Shackleton Rare Old Highland Malt review

In 2006, The New Zealand Antarctic Heritage Trust found three cases of Chas Mackinlay & Co’s whisky in the ice under Ernest Shackleton’s hut. Shackleton made an expedition to Antarctic in 1907-1909. The expedition didn’t go well, forcing Shackleton to abandon their hut and leave stuff behind – including the whisky […]

February 21, 2015

Elijah Craig Barrel Proof Straight Bourbon Whiskey review

Elijah Craig Barrel Proof is a small batch 12 year old bourbon by Heaven Hill Distilleries. Bottled cask strength, this batch in question has a whopping 67,4% alcohol per volume level. I had to test this devil neat and boy oh boy, was it spicy and strong! Tough but good […]

February 19, 2015

Willett Single Barrel Rye 4 year old review

Family Estate Bottled Single Barrel Straight Rye Whiskey Aged 4 years, this straight rye whiskey has a mash bill of 95% rye and 5% barley. This rye dram is truly a craft whiskey coming from private family-owned Willett Distilling Company (also known as Kentucky Bourbon Distillers). Willett Single Barrel whiskeys are selected […]

February 19, 2015

Old Overholt 4 year old Straight Rye whiskey review

Old Overholt has been in production for a long time and it is one of those straight rye whiskies available at most liquor stores. Originally from Pensylvania, nowadays produced at the Jim Beam distillery in Kentucky. It is a popular ingredient in classic cocktail mixes (Old Style Manhattan for example). […]

February 18, 2015

Yoichi 10 year old review

Nikka Yoichi 10 year old single malt comes from the Hokkaido island in Japan. Matured in new oak Hogshead barrels, which are built on-site. In conditions, where the temperature varies very much. Yoichi 10YO is like velvet in your mouth. Manages to be oily enough, but not too oily to […]

February 15, 2015

Compass Box The Peat Monster blended malt review

Compass Box The Peat Monster is a vatted malt of Islay, Speyside and Isle of Mull, created by John Glaser from Compass Box. The Speyside malt comes from Ardmore distillery. Islay is represented by a village of Port Askaig and some south coast Islay too. Also with some peated malt from […]

February 14, 2015

Johnnie Walker Red Label review

I decided to get back to my roots by reviewing Johnnie Walker Red Label, one of the biggest selling whiskies in the world – usually the “cheapest whisky in the house”, when you ask the bartender. Nothing great but along with Jack Daniel’s one of the first whiskies, I’ve ever […]

February 13, 2015

Juuri new make by Kyrö Distillery

Juuri (root in English) is a rye distillate coming from Kyrö Distillery Company (KDC). Determined to make rye whisky from 100% malted rye, KDC surely is an interesting new comer in the world of whisky. Juuri was my first encounter with KDC, so I was excited to taste it. Even […]

January 30, 2015

Ardbeg Uigeadail review

Obviously I’ve already heard that Ardbeg Uigeadail is a legendary non age statement whisky by the famous smoke whisky producer in Islay. But I didn’t know that when I first discovered this whisky by accident (got a miniature gift bottle while purchasing the Ardbeg 10yo). Ardbeg Uigeadail has made quite […]

January 23, 2015

Teeling Single Grain Cabernet Cask Finish review

This Irish whiskey surely is not the most usual dram, you will bump into. Single grain whiskies aren’t made that much at the moment. And on top of that, Teeling decided to finish their single grain in Californian Cabernet Sauvignon casks. In 2014, it won “World’s Best Grain” at the World […]

January 20, 2015

Glenturret, oldest distillery in Scotland

Glenturret 10 year old review

Glenturret is “the spiritual home” of The Famous Grouse brand, because it is the core malt in their whiskies. So it is Scotland’s most visited whisky distillery, because of the The Famous Grouse Experience, a 5 Star visitor experience. The distillery was officially established in 1775 but there’s been claims, […]

January 19, 2015

Black Velvet Blended and Reserve 8 year old reviews

Black Velvet Reserve 8 year old blended Canadian whisky More like BLUE VELVET? Black Velvet Reserve 8 year old is a strange whisky from Canada. It reminds me of the movie Blue Velvet by David Lynch. Offering few nice bits of entertainment but mainly being just annoying. All the aromas […]

January 16, 2015

Bowmore Small Batch review

Bowmore Small Batch is matured in first and second fill ex-bourbon casks. Coming from Islay, it is surprisingly light all the way. Yes, there is some of that signature peat smoke buried on the back. But we’re talking about wee hints of it. And even when talking about other things […]

January 15, 2015

Black Bottle (old bottling) review

I’m glad I got to taste the discontinued old bottling of Black Bottle. According to rumours, it has malt from almost every distillery in Islay (Kilchoman not included). And grain whisky from Speyside, Highland and Lowland. Whiskies contained in this old bottling are thought to be at least 7 years […]

January 12, 2015

The Irishman 70 review

The Irishman brand is fairly new, established in 1999. It started out as a company, which was blending and bottling Irish Coffee. In 2007 they started to bottle Irish whiskey. This Irishman 70, the Founder’s Reserve is made out of 70% single malt and 30% single pot still, created by founder […]

December 31, 2014

Herrgårds glogg and Wigren whisky mettwurst

Here are couple of whisky related products for the Christmas holidays. First, Herrgårds glögg med whisky from Sweden. Glogg is a traditional Nordic drink during Christmas time. It is to be served warm. Glogg, or mulled wine, is kinda like warm and spiced sangria. Herrgårds whisky glogg felt like a sherry […]

December 19, 2014

Amrut Peated Blackadder Raw Cask review

My sample of Blackadder’s Peated Amrut Raw Cask was from the batch of BA14/2012 (62,7% ABV). Amrut’s Peated Blackadder Raw Cask (63% ABV) batch BA18/2013 won Best Peated Whisky 2013 in The Malt Maniacs Awards. The Raw Cask Series contains whisky, that’s been bottled directly from the cask without any filtration. I don’t have […]

December 17, 2014

Peat’s Beast Intensely Peated single malt review

Peat’s Beast is a heavily peated single malt whisky, with phenol level of 35 ppm (parts per million). Coming from a mystery distillery from Speyside in Scotland. Matured in bourbon casks, bottled by an independent bottler, Fox Fitzgerald. The first release (2011) was a 5000 bottle edition. Like BEAUTY AND THE […]

December 15, 2014

Armorik Edition Originale review

Armorik Edition Originale is a Breton Single Malt from France. It’s been double distilled in copper stills, made from local malted barley and granite filtered water from a well on the Armorik distillery. Matured mainly in ex-bourbon casks but also some refill ex-sherry butts are used. According to Armorik, it […]

December 12, 2014

Old Pulteney 21 year old review

Voted “World Whisky of the Year 2012” by Jim Murray in his Whisky Bible, with a stunning 97,5 points. Old Pulteney is the most northerly mainland distillery in Scotland. Old Pulteney 21 year old single malt is a marriage of spirits matured in second fill American oak ex-bourbon casks and […]