Sweet nose with a hint of soft-boiled egg, digestive biscuit, and cedar (nowhere near as nasty as it might sound!) Warming orange peel notes, toffee, rye grassiness, a trace of horehound, and light, oaky vanilla make a sweet but somewhat angular mouthful. Finish is a bit edgy and boozy; the weakest link in the glass. A bit of water helps the finish a lot. Nothing sticks out too much; a good whisky. (Canada only.) C$24

Reviewed by: Lew Bryson (Summer 2012)

New to Duncan Taylor’s Dimensions range is this single cask (#2927), cask strength offering from Perthshire’s Blair Athol distillery. Sweet and fruity on the nose, majoring in tinned pineapple in syrup. Toffee, nougat, and a hint of freshly-dug soil make up the supporting aromatic cast. Full bodied and initially as sweet in the mouth as it was on the nose, with vigorous spices, particularly nutmeg, then it begins to dry. The long finish is characterized by powdery cocoa and oak tannins. £80

Reviewed by: Gavin Smith (Summer 2012)

A tribute this time from Edrington Group in the form of this one-off blend of The Famous Grouse. The sherried element seems to have been upped as it shows lavish amounts of dark chocolate, black cherry, and a little treacle, with some orange peel and, with water, raspberry and heather. The palate shows a hint of smoke and builds through rich flavors to a toffee-accented finish. Subtle and long. £25

Reviewed by: Dave Broom (Summer 2012)

John Black is the veteran master distiller at Tullibardine distillery, and this is the sixth release to bear his name. The single malt in question was matured in bourbon barrel #10,002. Lemonade, dough, and maple on the nose. Progressively more floral, parma violets, pear drops, a hint of cinnamon, and milk chocolate in time. Hazelnuts and allspice on the palate, while citrus fruits emerge, plus more milk chocolate and a suggestion of cloves. Medium length, with nuts and oak. £115

Reviewed by: Gavin Smith (Summer 2012)

What a difference a cask makes, say Southern Distillers, and they're not kidding. Just five casks have been made available so far, each one hand-crafted in traditional fashion by people who know what they're doing, and each one pushing out the envelope. This is the nuttiest and dustiest of the five and it wears its youth on its sleeve, but there are no feints and the whisky marks a step up in quality, with date, walnut, and golden syrup in the mix. A$110

Reviewed by: Dominic Roskrow (Summer 2012)

Quite dark brown in the glass, and lots of vanilla and fruit — white grapes, pear — in the nose, with a sweet, clean floral character as well; a rich nose. Vibrant with malt and vanilla in the mouth, rather hot without water, and shot through with oakspice, which dominates the finish, though the vanilla struggles through. Water helps the heat in the middle, but not the finish. Texas is pretty darned hot!

Reviewed by: Lew Bryson (Summer 2012)

A restrained nose of fresh-cut oak, grassy rye, and a fleeting trace of solvents. Quite sweet in the mouth, spicy and minty, and the alcohol is fiery: this is young rye. Still, it's much less forward and rudely insistent than I'd expected; not at all the ripsnorter some young ryes are. This could be pleasant, but the finish is a letdown: sweet, mealy, uninspiring.

Reviewed by: Lew Bryson (Summer 2012)

A much-beloved malt in the U.S. Some say it’s because it is easy to pronounce (though having said that, remember it’s ‘OH-bin’ and not ‘O’Bahn’). I’d prefer to think its popularity is because there is something about the fresh cleanliness of the nose, its orange oils, chocolate, and zesty-zingy and yes, occasionally salty spiciness that is instantly appealing.

Reviewed by: Dave Broom (Summer 2012)

Mashbill of corn, smoked barley, rye, and wheat, and a ruddy, almost garnet color to it. Smells like barrel drool in a rickhouse; kinda raunchy and sweet, with broad notes of vanilla and hot corn. Quite a mouthful at 100 proof, and after a short initial wave of sweet, the smoke shouts through, squeezing and wringing the other flavors dry, right through the finish. Water makes it paradoxically hotter.

Reviewed by: Lew Bryson (Summer 2012)

Easy-going and uncluttered, but also not very complex. Balanced, straightforward notes of caramel, vanilla, creamed corn, subtle fruit, soft mint, and delicate cinnamon. A versatile bourbon: you won’t feel guilty using it in a cocktail, and it will do in a pinch to drink neat or with a splash of water.

Reviewed by: John Hansell (Summer 2012)

There are now fourteen distilleries in Sweden. This is the second one after Mackmyra to start bottling whisky, and it's rather good. It's clearly young, but there are big flavors here, including blackcurrant and rich citrus fruits early on, then a Highland-style earthiness toward the end, with distinctive peat lasting longest into the finish. There is a lot to like here, and with age the line between fruit and peat will become more blurred. 1295 SEK

Reviewed by: Dominic Roskrow (Summer 2012)

More of a reddish hue, but as equally robust as the 1961 (see below). Some baked characters alongside dried cherry and barberry, which shift toward balsamic-like concentration. Hint of black pudding (blood sausage) and bitter chocolate. The palate is tight and tannic, with a hint of smoke and cooked dried fruits. Water loosens the tannic grip, allowing licorice to show. (U.S. exclusive.)

Reviewed by: Dave Broom (Summer 2012)

Wow, that's a small barrel whiskey! Only 2 years old, and more like 12 years dark, with a nose stuffed full of oak char, steamy mint, and hot vanilla. You know it's wheat in the mouth; despite the aggressive nose and the heat you do get, this is still pretty friendly stuff for 50%: sweet dough, mint, and more oak. But the finish roars in real hot and a bit astringent, ruining the moment, and water doesn't help.

Reviewed by: Lew Bryson (Summer 2012)

Diageo’s smallest distillery and another that has worm tubs. The character here is grassy: think hay and straw rather than lawn clippings. There’s just a hint of cereal behind, and a fresh, roasted spiciness. The palate has good central sweetness where you just get a hint of fruit. Light and fresh, and a good afternoon dram. £33

Reviewed by: Dave Broom (Summer 2012)

A sweet mélange of bourbon, honey, ladyfingers, and praline in the nose, with a faint thread of heavy tree blossoms. Quite sweet, but not syrupy, and the aromas — minus the blossoms — are here, plus vanilla. Some stickiness on the finish, but it’s not unpleasant, more like candy, which is what this experience is like: booze candy. That candy simplicity is confusing: there are a lot of flavors here, but at a candy level. A bit less sweetness would be welcome.

Reviewed by: Lew Bryson (Summer 2012)

The finish in question here is Muscatel casks and you can tell that from the start, as the nose is filled with a rich, sweet, and very pronounced dusky fruitiness — sloes and plums. The smoke as a result is diminished as are the grassy/bacony notes. While the smoke does emerge from its fruity bubble on the tongue, the effect is almost liqueur-like. It’s a very pleasing dram, but the question is, is it Caol Ila?

Reviewed by: Dave Broom (Summer 2012)

One of the newest of the Distillers Edition family. Here, Royal Lochnagar has been given its secondary resting period in Muscat casks. That nodule of sweetness in the 12 year old has been picked up and extended into a more perfumed world; think blueberry muffin and boysenberry jam. The slight sour/bitter note is a positive, but I think in this case that the finish dominates proceedings and needs to be scaled down a little. £48

Reviewed by: Dave Broom (Summer 2012)

There's absolutely nothing wrong with this and out of context, its rounded, fruity, and sweet taste is perfectly acceptable. But it's standing in the company of giants, and when compared to the steady stream of world-class Irish whiskeys over the last year, this just doesn't cut it. The 12 years in oak don't seem to have added much to the story, the alcoholic strength means it lacks real bite, and the flavors are bland in this company.

Reviewed by: Dominic Roskrow (Summer 2012)