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“Because you can't buy happiness... but you can buy whisky and that's pretty much the same thing”

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Compass Box The Last Vatted Malt Tasting note

By Miguel in Tasting , Compass Box

“Great whisky that portraits with honor the fact of being the last of an era.”

91
The Last Vatted Malt
This special limited edition bottling is a valedictory farewell to the Vatted Malt, delivered with honour and pride.

After midnight on 22nd November 2011, such marriages of malt whiskies from more than one distillery will have to be labelled as Blended Malt Scotch Whisky.

This aristocratc whisky is made from a marriage of fine, old single malt whiskies from Islay and Speyside distilleries. Only 1,323 bottles have been produced.

Along The Last Vatted Malt, it was also released The Last Vatted Grain, an unrepeatable vatted grain whisky.

This dram has a cooper-like color.

Nose (91): more than average. peat, honey, salt, iodine, citrus, wood, apples. Very nice nose indeed.

Palate (92): smooth, powerful, oily. peat, honey, fruits, salt, citrus, wood, raisins, cocoa, vanilla, iodine.

Finish (90): longer than average. peat, citrus, wood.

So based on other whiskies I have already tasted I rate this The Last Vatted Malt with 91 points over 100.

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Compass Box Flaming Heart 10th anniversary Tasting note

By Miguel in Tasting , Recommended , Compass Box

“Lovely whisky from Compass Box. This Flaming Heart is very nice but the 4th release is even better”

90
Compass Box Flaming Heart 10th anniversary
Bottled to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Compass Box whisky company, for whom the epithets 'tireless', 'innovative' and 'pioneering' might have been invented, this Flaming Heart is a vatting of Highland Malt from a village near Brora (nudge, nudge), with some smoky Island/Islay malts. The label and packaging, it goes without saying, are stunning. Bottled at a good natural drinking strength, this should be fabulous.

This dram has a gold-like color.

Nose (89): more than average. peat, citrus, honey, floral, vanilla, salt.

Palate (90): powerful, oily. peat, floral, honey, citrus, wood, salt, pepper, spices.

Finish (90): longer than average. peat, floral.

So based on other whiskies I have already tasted I rate this Compass Box Flaming Heart 10th anniversary with 90 points over 100.

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WhiskyLive Madrid 2011 Tastings

By Miguel in Tasting , News , Featured , Destilerias Liber , Laphroaig , DYC , The Macallan , Compass Box , Suntory , Yamazaki , Edradour , Talisker

WhiskyLive Madrid 2011 celebrated at May, 26 on Hotel Villamagna, has been a great whisky show against all the odds: Great whisky, pretty girls, good friend. Whatelse?!

Touching a bottle of Macallan 25 years old at Macallan Masterclass in WhiskyLive MadridFinally I got time to write down the tasting notes and here they are. I am quite happy of the result. The whisky show has been great and I tried lots of expressions that it is not easy to taste here in Spain.

During the evening at WhiskyLive Madrid, that I spent with Richard Barr of WhiskyIsrael, we tasted more than twenty whiskies so bear with me if last tasting notes are not accurate.
If you haven’t read yet about our visit to WhiskyLive do it now!. We had a great evening together.

So here are the tasting notes. I am still missing some of them that I wasn’t able to properly write while on the show.

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WhiskyLive Madrid 2011: A whisky show at Spain's heart

By Miguel in News , Featured , Destilerias Liber , Laphroaig , Lagavulin , DYC , Cardhu , St George , The Macallan , Compass Box , Glenfiddich , Highland Park , Bowmore , Suntory , Yamazaki , Redbreast , Edradour , Talisker

Taking place at the Madrid business center, at the Hotel Villamagna, this whisky fair, although small, has been really interesting with lots of surprises.

Hotel Villa Magna at Madrid

Before attending the show, I meet Richards Barr, a member of Whiskyisrael that was also attending the show and we went there together after having a tasty Spanish lunch.
Richard Barr and Miguel Angel Blanch after 25 drams of whisky at Whiskylive Madrid

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The Kiss by Gustav Klimt

By Miguel in Compass Box , Drink & Arts

The Kiss is a discreet expression of Klimts emphasis on eroticism and the liberation therein.

kiss Gustav Klimt

The picture

The Kiss (original Der Kuss) was painted by Gustav Klimt, and is probably his most famous work. He began work on it in 1907 and it is the highpoint of his so-called ‘Golden Period’. It depicts a couple, in various shades of gold and symbols, sharing a kiss against a bronze background.

When he painted The Kiss Klimt was 45 and still lived at home with his mother and two unmarried sisters – but behind the respectable facade he was a man with a ferocious sexual appetite. Klimt fathered at least three illegitimate children and probably many more. He was obsessed by women and he had a fixation with redheads. It is no surprise that the woman in The Kiss has red hair. According to writer Frank Whitford: “Together the man and the woman form the shape of a penis and I think that is intentional – it’s about sex and about the fulfillment of sex between a man and a woman.”

The Dram: Compass Box The Spice Tree

a bottle of Compass Box The Spice Tree
Compass Box’s delicious Spice Tree was briefly illegitimate, according to SWA regulations. After adjusting it’s creation, Spice Tree is back, and better than ever. It’s a blended malt made from Highland malt whiskies, aged in specially made casks with new French oak heads.

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Compass Box Orangerie Tasting note

By Miguel in Tasting , Compass Box
87
Compass Box Orangerie
The famous, and beautifully-packaged Orangerie 'whisky infusion' from Compass Box. Smooth Scotch whisky infused with the hand-zested peel of Navalino oranges and subtle accents of Indonesian cassia bark and Sri Lankan cloves. Orangerie is not officially liqueur as it doesn't have the requisite additional sugar - with this much flavour, it doesn't need it.

This dram has a white-like color.

Nose (88): inexistent. oranges, tangerines, citrus, sweet, cloves, spices. First nosing data is innacurate as the previous tasting sheet lacked of this field.

Palate (88): . oranges, toffee, spices. Bouquet data is innacurate as the previous tasting sheet lacked of this field.

Finish (84): no finish. oranges, spices. Finish length is innacurate as the previous tasting sheet lacked of this field.

So based on other whiskies I have already tasted I rate this Compass Box Orangerie with 87 points over 100.

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Compass Box The Peat Monster Tasting note

By Miguel in Tasting , Recommended , Compass Box

“ An awesome nose, sweet and fruity, with a great amount of peat on the taste and a long peaty finish. Really a peat monster. This monster takes no prisioners!”

96
Compass Box The Peat Monster
Compass Box has created a range of incredible artisan vatted, oops, I mean, blended malt whiskies.

This Peat Monster is a top-quality vatting of the peated Speysider Ardmore with some choice Islay malt: sometimes Caol Ila sometimes Laphroaig, Peat Monster is never less than excellent. Pitch-perfect balance and delicious chewy complexity.

This is the best value whisky I have ever had. Even forgeting the price it is a whisky so good that stand over whiskies ten times more expensive. If you like peated whiskies of course :)

This dram has a white-like color.

Nose (96): inexistent. sweet, peat, honey, raisins, laphroaig quarter cask, oysters, sea, marine. First nosing data is innacurate as the previous tasting sheet lacked of this field.

Palate (96): . peat, sea, iodine, sweet, fruity, wood, pears, citrus. Bouquet data is innacurate as the previous tasting sheet lacked of this field.

Finish (96): no finish. peat, peat, iodine, flowers. Finish length is innacurate as the previous tasting sheet lacked of this field.

So based on other whiskies I have already tasted I rate this Compass Box The Peat Monster with 96 points over 100.

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Compass Box The Spice Tree Tasting note

By Miguel in Tasting , Recommended , Compass Box

“ With that great fruity nose, the good vanilla and spices taste and the delicious wood finish this precious whisky must be recommended.”

92
Compass Box The Spice Tree
The very welcome return of Compass Box's 'Spice Tree', originally barred by order of the officious twerps at the SWA, but now reincarnated after a slight tweak in production technique - and there's nothing they can do about it. Huzzah!

This dram has a white-like color.

Nose (92): inexistent. sweet, some floral and fruity, pears, apples, melon, cinnamon. First nosing data is innacurate as the previous tasting sheet lacked of this field.

Palate (92): . sweet, honey, vanilla, wood, spices, malt. Bouquet data is innacurate as the previous tasting sheet lacked of this field.

Finish (92): no finish. wood, vanilla, some wood, sweet. Finish length is innacurate as the previous tasting sheet lacked of this field.

So based on other whiskies I have already tasted I rate this Compass Box The Spice Tree with 92 points over 100.

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Compass Box Oak Cross Tasting note

By Miguel in Tasting , Compass Box
84
Compass Box Oak Cross
A cracking house malt that Arthur really enjoyed it's balance of cereal, honey and spice with a little background fruitiness. Bottled unchillfiltered at 43% This was given 3/4 Bunnies when reviewed by Playboy!

This dram has a white-like color.

Nose (88): inexistent. sweet, vanilla, honey, fruity, melon, pears. First nosing data is innacurate as the previous tasting sheet lacked of this field.

Palate (84): . sweet, honey, vanilla, fruity, pears, a little wood. Bouquet data is innacurate as the previous tasting sheet lacked of this field.

Finish (80): no finish. wood, fruity, pears, honey. Finish length is innacurate as the previous tasting sheet lacked of this field.

So based on other whiskies I have already tasted I rate this Compass Box Oak Cross with 84 points over 100.

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Compass Box Asyla Tasting note

By Miguel in Tasting , Compass Box
85
Compass Box Asyla
A lovely sweet easy drinking whisky of the highest standard. Matured in 100% American oak first-fill barrels and rejuvenated hogsheads and made with malt from the villages of Elgin, Longmorn and Ballindalloch, with single grain from Fife.

This dram has a white-like color.

Nose (80): inexistent. light, sweet, toffee, vanilla, flowers, grain, barley. First nosing data is innacurate as the previous tasting sheet lacked of this field.

Palate (88): . sweet, vanilla, floral, peaches, apple. Bouquet data is innacurate as the previous tasting sheet lacked of this field.

Finish (88): no finish. floral, honey, grain. Finish length is innacurate as the previous tasting sheet lacked of this field.

So based on other whiskies I have already tasted I rate this Compass Box Asyla with 85 points over 100.

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