Read stories about Master of Malt of A Wardrobe of Whisky blog.

Hello there! There we are again! November! Christmas! Holidays! And delicious randomly sorted samples of whisky for a whole month. We are again at that time of the year, and always there we have a new incarnation of the Whisky Advent Calendar.

This year is even more fantastic because we have the usual great whisky calendar, with samples of up to £600 whiskies but also we have several aditions. It has been really hard to choose one. I finally chose the standard whisky calendar because I haven’t tasted several of the whiskies inside like the Kilchoman Sanaig or the new Wolfburn Northland Single Malt and well because it has inside a sherried Macallan, a Kavalan, a 25 years old Glenfarclas… you can’t get it wrong.

But between the new aditions to the range I really considered the premium whisky advent calendar and the expensive old whisky and very old whisky advent calendar. Well, not really, I can’t afford it and it is one of the problem with today’s whisky industry… I have no idea for whom they are creating this whisky… but surprisingly for me it is sold and it is even sold out!. Just have a look at the bottles and it is a mouthwatering experience, expensive but intense and delicious. Unfortunately not for my pocket.

I am not going to promise about tasting each of the samples each day because I won’t be able to do it ( Did I mention I am dad again for third time?! ) but I will do my best to keep you on the loop with this year whisky advent calendar.

The first sample that I tasted was the iconic Buffalo Trace. Let’s review it!

Day 1: Buffalo TRace Bourbon

“I really love Buffalo Trace. A good bourbon for an excellent price range and with notes that remind me of the much more expensive George T Stagg. Simply well made bourbon”

88

Winner of Malt Advocate's 'Distillery of the Year 2005' award, Buffalo Trace is a great bourbon at a very reasonable price. Jim Murray loves it.

This Buffalo Trace bourbon is the basic bottle of Buffalo Trace distillery that is responsible of such great whiskeys as George T Stag or William Larue Weller

This dram has a gold-like color.

Nose (88): more than average. corn, flowers, spices, citrus, candies. Balanced, sweet and with notes of age and wood. Quite interesting.

Palate (88): smooth, oily. honey, flowers, citrus wood, corn. Sweet, lovely and still those notes of wood and age that show care and love for the product.

Finish (88): longer than average. honey, citrus.

So based on other whiskies I have already tasted I rate this Buffalo Trace with 88 points over 100.

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My opinion on Drinks by the dram’s Whisky Advent calendar is still the same, a fantastic idea, a great gift, a delicious experience and everything packed in little cristal bottles. Just great! And if you can afford the old & rare whisky calendar go and get it!

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Hello there,

Wooo! It has been almost a year since last time I wrote on the blog. I could write lots of excuses but to be fair… I got a bit exhausted of writing here and decided to do something else with my time. Unfortunately I became Youtuber. I run a youtube gaming channel and I am enjoying it a lot… but from time to time, I watch my whisky bottles and I feel a bit nostalgic.

So when Drinks by The Dram told me about 2016 Calendar I couldn’t but jump and shout like a teenager. I am a bit fan of the idea behind this whisky advent calendar, for £149.99 you get a box full of samples of damn good whisky. Personally I love blind tastings but in case you want to know what are you drinking you can read the full list at their site. I won’t write spoilers this year… but I just opened the Day 1 window and found a Lost Distilleries Blend.

Most of the whisky contained in The Whisky Advent Calendar are simple awesome and in fact there are a few that I have never tasted. And that is something hard to see. I really encourage you to have the first sip of the whisky blind so you can make yourself an opinion of what you are drinking before being assault by years, alcohol content, regions, distilleries… It is so easy to get conditioned by all that data…

Anyway, let’s taste this The Lost Distilleries Blend whisky.

The Lost Distilleries Blend Batch 8

“A great kick of honey and tangerine with good amount of spices and something that could be peat or smoke that make the whole stuff simple delicious. A humbling experience”

90

The Lost Distilleries Blend is a truly extraordinary whisky made exclusively with malts and grains from renowned, but sadly closed, Scottish distilleries. The surviving stock from these once great distilleries has become legendary in many cases, and is highly sought after by enthusiasts and cognoscenti. They are pieces of liquid history, lovingly crafted into this wonderfully balanced, multi-award-winning blended whisky.

This dram has a fino-like color.

Nose (90): more than average. vanilla, honey, cinnamon, citrus, wood, grapes, butterscotch, tobacco, sandalwood.

Palate (91): powerful, oily. honey, citrus, spices, pepper, vanilla, wood.

Finish (89): longer than average. citrus, honey, spices.

So based on other whiskies I have already tasted I rate this The Lost Distilleries Blend Batch 8 with 90 points over 100.

I hope this little sip of whisky is the first of many to come.

You can, and you should!, buy your own Whisky Advent Calendar at https://www.masterofmalt.com/whiskies/drinks-by-the-dram/the-whisky-advent-calendar/ for £149.99

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Oh my God, I did it again. So busy this time of the year that I forgot about this fantastic whisky crackers what I got from Drinks by the Dram. This year, instead of a yummy surprise inside each cracker ( open it with care! There is glass inside! ) we have a six whiskies version… it isn’t as crazy as last year where I drank really strange stuff that I have never tasted before. By the way, for your own sake… don’t read the jokes…

So, let’s crack them open!

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I have just realized that I never completely published some of the tasting notes from #WhiskyAdvent 2014 calendar, and particularly one that really caught my attention was the dram for the Dec, 24. The Lost distilleries whiskies are a serie of whiskies created using malts and grain whiskies from closed distilleries of Scotland like Port Ellen, LittleMill, North Port.

This batch 6 features malt whiskies from Mosstowie, Port Ellen, Glenisla, Imperial, Caperdonich, Glen Mhor and Brora, and grain whiskies from Port Dundas.

“Deliciously delicate! So well balanced... it is truly a real masterpiece. A candies shop full of flowers and oranges”

93

A truly extraordinary award-winning series continues - behold, Batch 6 of the Lost Distilleries Blend. This spectacular blended Scotch whisky is produced solely using whiskies from some of the most renowned, though sadly closed, Scottish distilleries and the result is a dram that undoubtedly lives up to their lofty legacies.

This dram has a fino-like color.

Nose (93): more than average. honey, flowers, toffee, vanilla, liquorice, pepper, citrus, oranges, wood.

Palate (93): powerful, oily. honey, candies, spices, citrus, cinnamon, ginger, orange zest, vanilla, flowers.

Finish (93): longer than average. honey, spices, candies.

So based on other whiskies I have already tasted I rate this The Lost Distilleries Blend - Batch 6 with 93 points over 100.

Miguel says…

You know what I think about all the nonsense of actual whisky prices… but with Karuizawa and this one I have been tempted to make an exception. Unfortunately it is too much money for my pocket, but maybe it is not for yours. An excellent dram and one of the best ones that I have tasted in 2014.

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Welcome to the Darkness… Darkness is a range of single malt whiskies finished, and some of them aged, in sherry casks to give them that characteristic dark color that is a promise of spices, christmas aromas, cocoa and nuts.

Maverick Drinks send me five samples of their initial batch, an Ardbeg 21 years old finished in PX between them. I were going to explain you about how it was done and what was the finish process and what it does mean to whisky… but I am so anxious to taste them that I don’t really want to lose any more time on small talk.

So the whiskies…

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When you start drinking whisky two things can happen: that you decide to mix it with everything at hand or that you decide to enjoy the spirit as it is. The second path usually makes you want to learn more and more about it.

So here comes Maverick Drinks at the rescue with a very educational and interesting proposal: a range of whiskies that allow you compare and contrast different production techniques and ingredients. Have you ever wondered how a whisky differs after Chill-filtration, Met Karamel? Well… now it may be your chance to learn and grow.

A few weeks ago I received a set of samples for the initial launch. They are three blended whiskies with different proportions of aged whisky. The whiskies are made with three ingredients A – young blended malt, B – complex and spicy blended malt, C – old single malt and D – very old single malt.

So let’s taste them

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Master of Malt launched a few years ago a blended whisky called The Lost Distilleries Blend. The idea is that the whisky is created, crafted, using malts and grain whiskies from silent distilleries.

The list of closed distilleries of Scotland is a bit long but malts that can be obtained nowadays are Littlemil, Port Ellen, Caperdonich, Brora, Glenury Royal, … so the idea of creating a blended whisky with this is simply awesome. The second batch of this The Lost Distilleries Blend has recently won the World’s Best Blended Whisky at World Whiskies Awards ( or WWA for friends ) 2014. And this is no minor achievement, other years winners are whiskies like Hibiki 30 years old or Jameson Select Reserve.

The recipe is undisclosed but let’s taste it and let discuss what it can be and how old you would say it is.

The Lost Distilleries Blend Batch 4

“Lovely floral... I wasn't expecting this kind of whisky... it is much like nosing in a spring garden with a tiny bit of peat hidden there. Littlemill?”

92

This dram has a fino-like color.

Nose (91): more than average. floral, ginger, honey, citrus, vanilla. Fantastic nose. It is something quite familiar between floral and fruity but I can't spot it... maybe ginger but not sure.

Palate (93): powerful, oily. floral, candies, parma violets, honey, citrus, wood, vanilla, spices.

Finish (92): longer than average. floral, honey, spices, peat.

So based on other whiskies I have already tasted I rate this The Lost Distilleries Blend - Batch 4 with 92 points over 100.

Miguel says…

Well, I have to say that I was expecting something like a crazy old Port Ellen and well… definitively this is not. The whisky has something old inside, around 20 or 30 years old and ex bourbon cask. It isn’t crazy old whisky and if there is sherry here it is in a little proportion. It has a trace of peat on the taste so it can has a tiny drop of Port Ellen or Brora… but due to the way it tastes I really think the main component here could be an old Littlemil. But who knows… have you tasted it? What do you think it could be?

I have enjoyed each drop of it… certainly is a magnificent whisky.

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Today Master of Malt has released a new member of their Secret Bottlings series, a stunning 60 years old single malt whisky for… umm… let’s see… Brora 40yo is £7,000, a Macallan Lalique goes for around £30,000… so this 60 years old Speysider will be sold for…

What?! £1,000?! I don’t have the money but I have to agree that it is an interesting proposal. One of my favorites is Glenfarclas 40 years old and it goes for barely £240… so a 60 years old whisky for £999 is around the ok price. But why speak about money when I have a dram of this stunning stuff waiting to be tasted?

So without any delays… here it is…

Master of Malt Speyside 60 years old

“Delightful experience... not everyday one has the honour of drinking liquid Scotland history. I think this whisky is even better than the mythical Glenfarclas 58yo released a few years ago for a fraction of the price”

93

Part of Master of Malt award-winning Secret Bottlings series, this 60 years old whisky has raised the bar yet again with this single malt Scotch whisky from a famous Speyside distillery.

It is Master of Malt's oldest bottling to date and one of the oldest whisky releases in history.

This dram has a cooper-like color.

Nose (94): more than average. honey, nuts, cinnamon, spices, vanilla, dried flowers, citrus, wood, sandalwood, cloves. Lovely layer after layer of aromas. Not even woody for a 60 years old in a cask as I was expecting... This whisky reminds me of... nevermind.

Palate (93): powerful, oily. honey, nuts, citrus, spices, pepper, dry, raisins, candies, vanilla, liquorice.

Finish (93): longer than average. honey, candies, spices, pepper, wood.

So based on other whiskies I have already tasted I rate this Master of Malt 60 years old Speyside Single Malt Whisky with 93 points over 100.

Miguel says…

I have tasted old whiskies that where incredible but that need time to approach and enjoy them fully… this whisky on the other hand assault you with pleasure from the very first moment. Not too sweet, not too woody, not too spicy.

It is a crazy guess but I think this whisky could be a Glenfarclas… because it reminds me powerfully of their Glenfarclas 58yo and because it is one of the few distilleries I can think of that can still have such old and good whisky.

You are just £1,000 away from perfection.

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Hello!

Welcome to this new serie of tastings that I starting right here and right now. What the f*** is WTF Tastings is listen to you asking? Let me explain…

In these three years I have tasted almost 1,000 whiskies and I have realized that although I do my best for not to score whiskies because of its name, its bottle or its price I end up doing it. But don’t despair! I have decided to use a new method to grab samples and taste it. I call it WTF!.

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Master of Malt sent me a press release about a new blended whisky they recently created in collaboration with Carey Willets to celebrate Mr Willets’ solo music project: Boxes

Well, not knowing about Boxes and his album Stickers, you can understand that my excitement about this whisky was quite low. But just a few days ago, a sample, courtesy of Master of Malt, arrived home and I felt it was my duty to taste it and just complete the job…

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