Tropical fruits with burnt peaks on lemon meringue pie, but overall, a clean and elegant proposition. The nimble palate is a fabulous clash between peach, vanilla, and candy sherbet sweetness and a deluge of spice. Accomplished and well made, this smart and affable whisky from Lorraine’s G. Rozelieures Distillery has a mouth-saturating finish backed by strident spices. (1,000 bottles)

Reviewed by: Jonny McCormick (Winter 2019)

This elegant, well-balanced Dingle is created from whiskey matured in bourbon, sherry, and port casks which bring out orange zest, cherry gummies, vanilla, strawberry, barley sugar, and a good rub of ground aromatic spices on the nose. Baked fruits, taffy, strawberry, raspberry coulis, clove, and pepper open up, leading to shortbread sweetness, candied peel, and more sherry fruit, while perky spices are left to carry through on the finish. (12,000 bottles)

Reviewed by: Jonny McCormick (Winter 2019)

This 8 year old was distilled using Bere barley, a low-yielding heritage strain grown on the Orkney Islands. Aromas of a damp cellar; oily, nutty, with cereal, burlap, and mild orchard fruit notes. The palate is persistently oily, with pineapple, honey, nutmeg, and white pepper. Drying in the finish, with licorice, coal, and strong black tea. Proof that barley varieties can make a difference. (18,000 bottles; individual reviewer rating: 92)

Reviewed by: Gavin Smith (Winter 2019)

Distilling with heirloom grains has become commonplace in the U.S., but much less so in Scotland. With this utterly unique single malt made from the historic Bere barley variety, Bruichladdich reexamines whisky flavors starting with the raw material. Herbal pine bough, salted almond, and tropical fruit appear on the nose, followed by a creamy mouthfeel with intense chocolate, pepper, citrus oil, pine sap, and perfumy chamomile flavors. The full, round finish has rose petal, white pepper, and vanilla overlaying a delicate but pronounced structure. Number 15 in the 2019 Top 20

Reviewed by: Susannah Skiver Barton (Winter 2019)

This is autumn in a glass, like jumping into a pile of dried leaves. Notes of sassafras and shredded chewing tobacco lead to aromas of spiced baked apple studded with cloves and sprinkled with cinnamon. Water really ramps up vanilla, delivering a burst of fizzy cream soda. The palate offers maple syrup sweetness, orchard fruit, root beer, and spices balanced by leathery oak tannins, before a long finish of chocolate, nougat, and candle wax.

Reviewed by: Jeffery Lindenmuth (Winter 2019)

A creamy and spicy nose, slightly nutty, with hints of mixed peel and malt biscuits. As it warms in the glass, a lovely bouquet of toffee, hazelnut, cinnamon, and nutmeg emerges. A thick, malty mouthfeel of toffee and cinnamon finds harmony between the sweetness, crisp rye, and fresh green edge of the spices. The finish has citrus and herbal notes, and a long spiciness with a touch of mint. (Individual reviewer rating: 92)

Reviewed by: Jonny McCormick (Winter 2019)

Rye has been farmed for centuries in England, and this sustainably-minded brewer and distiller uses grain grown by company chairman Jonathan Adnams on his farm close to the facility in Southwold. Rye takes the lead in this 75% rye and 25% malted barley whisky, matured in new medium-toast French oak casks for a minimum of 5 years. Creamy and spicy on the nose, it’s slightly nutty, with hints of mixed peel, graham crackers, hazelnut, and nutmeg. A thick, malty mouthfeel of toffee and cinnamon finds harmony between the sweetness, crisp rye, and fresh green edge of the spices. Number 20 in the 2019 Top 20

Reviewed by: Jonny McCormick (Winter 2019)

This rather good after-dinner dram is finished in peated Islay whisky casks. It is not a peated Welsh whisky, but don’t let that stop you. With its refreshing aromas of lemon floor polish, pine needles, gentle antiseptic, smoked fish, and breezy beach bonfires, we can cheerfully drop the pedantic objections to its name. This successfully delivers a wallop of spicy smoke, lemon, and vanilla biscuits, a bit like consuming creamy rice pudding beside a smoking peat kiln.(396 bottles for U.S.)

Reviewed by: Jonny McCormick (Winter 2019)

A limited-release preview of the distillery’s first American single malt label, Courage & Conviction, which will launch in April 2020. Aged at least 3 years in sherry, bourbon, and cuvée wine casks, this whiskey has a malty nose with notes of dried fruit, wood spice, lime, and pineapple. Baked apples, figs, vanilla, and baking spice on the palate, with a honeyed finish of toffee, toasted oak, and almond. A deft balance of barrel influences. (4,200 bottles)

Reviewed by: David Fleming (Winter 2019)

This Tennessee bourbon was bottled by non-distiller producer The Louisville Bourbon Transit Co. The nose offers toasted oak, blueberry pie, bakery shop, caramel, cinnamon spice, and bitter orange. A smooth palate of milk chocolate, melted caramel, blackberry, and black pepper is followed by a lightly spiced finish that offers more chocolate, as well as balanced oak, vanilla, coconut flakes, and almond. Spice melds with sweeter bourbon notes to create a unique, flavorful whiskey. (1,048 bottles)

Reviewed by: David Fleming (Winter 2019)

Aromas of old books, ether, raspberries, and caramel, with some sharpness and muddiness. Sweet and malty, with maraschino cherries, it then develops a hot and vaguely bitter-sweetness, some dry barrel notes, mild spices, bananas, and shoe polish. The finish is slightly sweet and mildly fruity with a fleeting bitterness, some barrel notes, and pleasant, burning peppery spice. Not as lush as past releases or as tightly integrated. $90 CAD

Reviewed by: Davin de Kergommeaux (Winter 2019)

This marriage of the distillery’s own malt whiskey and blended malt from Scotland’s Highlands is finished 8 to 12 months in cider casks and released every fall. Autumn leaves, minerality, and earthy peat on the nose, along with mulling spices, apple, and pear tart. A malty balance of vanilla cream, lemon pie, and caramelized sugar fills the palate, followed by a lingering finish of spice and baked fruit. The third consecutive release of Cider Cask to score at least 90 points. (1,902 bottles)

Reviewed by: David Fleming (Winter 2019)

This U.S.-exclusive release was initially aged in first-fill American oak sherry casks before a period of finishing in cognac casks. Spicy red wine notes on the notably aromatic nose, with vanilla and light cinnamon. Good texture in the mouth, sweet, and very approachable, with tangerines, toffee, dates, sultanas, and milk chocolate. Liqueur chocolates in the smooth, lengthy finish. Not overly complex, but robust and extremely drinkable.

Reviewed by: Gavin Smith (Winter 2019)

A portion of this limited-release straight bourbon is aged in new charred oak quarter casks, which enable more contact with the wood. The nose offers vanilla, licorice, dried herbs, red fruit, confectionary sugar, iced tea, and orange peel. A chewy palate shows off the oak influence, and has notes of spice, chocolate-covered candied oranges, blackberry compote, cinnamon, and peppercorns. Drying oak on a finish of dark cherry, chocolate, orange, and cola.

Reviewed by: David Fleming (Winter 2019)

A high-rye bourbon with the same mashbill as 1792 Small Batch, this whiskey will be an annual limited release. The nose offers an inviting medley of chocolate-covered cherries, pound cake, buttered toast, blackberry, and licorice. The palate is mellow and honeyed, with notes of cedar, chocolate chip cookies, blackberry jam, coconut shavings, and cigar wrapper, all completed by a finish of brown sugar, chocolate, peanut shell, and cracked pepper.

Reviewed by: David Fleming (Winter 2019)

Made from a mash of malted wheat, malted barley, and malted oats, this evokes chocolate orange, with hints of lemon and grapefruit, toasted coconut, ground ginger, clove, peppercorn, and cantaloupe. Toffee, sweet and tangy satsuma, a dash of clove, chocolate-dipped lemon biscuits, and a hint of oak astringency usher in a finish of bitter peel oils and ground pepper. Try a splash of water to accentuate the bitter orange notes. £37

Reviewed by: Jonny McCormick (Winter 2019)

A blend of 3 to 5 year old straight rye and 4 to 12 year old straight bourbon. Although the nose is a bit reticent, once it opens up, what is revealed is pure delight: orange blossom, iced tea, dark berries, lemon oil, pine, cinnamon, nutmeg, and leather. Fruit and spice enjoy a dynamic interplay on the palate, with orange, cherry, blueberry, and grape, shot through with cedar, cinnamon, and sturdy oak. The medium-length finish is supple and pretty: dark chocolate, toasted pecans, and well-integrated oak.

Reviewed by: Susannah Skiver Barton (Winter 2019)

Aromatic spices, scents of bleached driftwood, and hints of bramble and blackcurrant on this blend of wheat and malt whiskies matured in Australian red wine barrels. The palate shifts quickly from white to milk chocolate, red apple, crème de cassis, peppercorn spices, and cookies, but it’s soft and gentle, finely structured, with more dark fruits coming to the fore. The finish is drying and short, with evaporating spice.

Reviewed by: Jonny McCormick (Winter 2019)