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Does darker whisky taste better? Maverick's Reference Series

By Miguel in Tasting , Maverick Drinks

A few months ago I reviewed a wonderful proposal from Maverick Drinks called Reference Series, a set of whiskies names I, II and III that where crafted with a different proportion of single malt whiskies of different characteristics.

Twelve-Bottles

So today I review part of the first addition to this crazy educational whisky range. There are for each of the three original bottles, 3 new whiskies called: .1, .2 and .3.

The .1 whisky consists on part of the whisky being finished in 50 litres PX sherry cask. The .2 extension includes a 10% of peated Islay whisky in the blend and finally the .3 contains the infamous e150a… also known as caramel.

So today and for you all ( and me myself! ) I will find the answer to one of the craziest questions of the whisky world… Does dark whisky taste better?

So let’s taste the four whiskies, the base II and their three new additions: II.1, II.2 and II.3. As usual I have reviewed them blind, that is… I had no idea what I was drinking.

References Series II

This is the Reference whisky.

“Wonderful nose on a young, malty, sweet, vibrant whisky. Yummy!”

88
Reference Series II

This dram has a fino-like color.

Nose (89): more than average. honey, citrus, spices, toffee, cinnamon, apples, oranges. Very much like an anCnoc malt. Wonderful nose and I would say it could be a mid-age 10 years old ex-bourbon cask whisky

Palate (88): powerful, oily. honey, citrus, spices, pepper, oranges, wood.

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

So based on other whiskies I have already tasted I rate this Reference Series II with 88 points over 100.

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References Series II.1

This whisky was partially finished in PX sweet sherry 50 litres cask.

“Nice evolution over Reference II. It looks like more old and I would definitively drink it over II”

90
Reference Series II.1

This dram has a gold-like color.

Nose (90): more than average. honey, floral, oranges, toffee, spices, baked apples, cinnamon.

Palate (90): powerful, oily. honey, citrus, spices, wood, cocoa, grass.

Finish (90): longer than average. honey, spices, cocoa.

So based on other whiskies I have already tasted I rate this Reference Series II.1 with 90 points over 100.

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References Series II.2

This whisky has a 10% of peated Islay whisky ( Caol Ila anyone ) added into the blend. 10% of peat should be noticeable, isn’t it?

“Noticeablly more sherried than II.1. I really like the character of this whisky”

90
Reference Series II.2

This dram has a gold-like color.

Nose (91): more than average. honey, floral, violets, spices, oranges, cocoa, cinnamon, citrus . Wonderful

Palate (90): powerful, oily. honey, malt, spices, citrus, wood, oranges, cocoa.

Finish (90): longer than average. honey, citrus, spices.

So based on other whiskies I have already tasted I rate this Reference Series II.2 with 90 points over 100.

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References Series II.3

And finally this last whisky is exactly the same than II but has a bit wee of e150 to make it darker ( and better? ). Many unscrupulous whisky producers add e150 to their single malts to “make batches of similar color”… a dark yummy amber color…

“If I were forced to choose one, I would say this is the most interesting whisky of the new batch”

90
Reference Series II.3

This dram has a cooper-like color.

Nose (91): more than average. honey, citrus, plums, spices, cinnamon, oranges, cocoa.

Palate (90): powerful, oily. honey, citrus, spices, wood, pepper, oranges, cocoa, nuts.

Finish (90): longer than average. honey, spices, citrus.

So based on other whiskies I have already tasted I rate this Reference Series II.3 with 90 points over 100.

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Does dark whisky taste better

So? Hell… yes. It tastes a bit better, it won’t shake your world but it does tastes better and definitively I would grab II.3 instead of II on a shelf. #shameonme

I am still surprised about not having noticed any peat on the II.2… after reading all about the bottle I think I can recall a bit of smoke on the taste… but it could really be self suggestion. Definitively it isn’t an Ardbeg.

And for me the three whiskies and quite slightly sherried but I would really say that II was an exbourbon cask any time.

As with References Series original release, these new whiskies are a great experience and a chance to taste by yourself stuff that it is only intended for master blenders. I do definitively recommend you the II and II.3 experiment so you can see it by yourself ( what are barely £10 for such wisdom?! )

You can buy this amazing piece of whisky knowledge at Master of Malt.

Thanks for Maverick Drinks for the samples provided.



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