Following the Spice Tree recipe of 60% Clynelish, 20% Dailuaine, and 20% Teaninich, Extravaganza’s core was matured for more than four additional years in light/medium toast, refill, and heavy toast hybrid casks of American and French oak. Finally, sherry-matured Glen Ord, Benrinnes, and Allt-a-Bhainne were added to the mix. The elaborate process is typical of maverick blender John Glaser, but it’s his results that count. Flavors of peanut brittle, toasted coconut, and pale, light sherry translate into a delicious honeyed palate of caramelized sugar, red apple, and red berry fruit. Ginger and clove provide further rigor before a finish of incendiary spices. Number 7 in the 2017 Top 20 

Reviewed by: Jonny McCormick (Winter 2017)

This gorgeous whiskey has taken on a lot of sherry character from the refill sherry hogshead: cherry, prune, chocolate orange, baked pineapple chunks, and toasted spice. A good weighty structure boasting deep citrus intensity, with ginger and pepper snapping at its heels; a sensation only intensified with water. Lush fruits, butterscotch, and milk chocolate, with a finish of lively spices, stone fruits, and zesty orange muffins. (276 bottles)

Reviewed by: Jonny McCormick (Winter 2017)

Distilled in 1982, this expression was matured in refill American oak hogsheads. It is the 16^th Brora in the Special Releases series. Ripe pears and vanilla on the nose; progressively more perfumed, with developing toffee notes. Slightly waxy on the palate, with fresh-squeezed lemon and sweet background smoke contrasting with spicy dark berries. Plain chocolate, sultanas, and raisins in the medium-length finish. A relatively restrained Brora. (3,000 bottles)

Reviewed by: Gavin Smith (Winter 2017)

The relentless upward march of prices for well-aged scotch is discouraging to veteran whisky drinkers and newcomers alike. At just $90, this lovely Speyside 18 year old hearkens back to the good old days of single malt. A warm, soft, and rounded whisky, with pleasing melon and apricot flavors, hints of dried hay and apple pie à la mode, and a backbone of peppery fruit and malt, Glen Moray 18 year old isn’t about bombast. It balances delicacy and strength rather than embracing raw power. Although it’s celebrating its 120th anniversary this year, Glen Moray isn’t very well known in the United States, but that may be about to change. Number 10 in the 2017 Top 20 

Reviewed by: Adam Polonski (Winter 2017)

Ah, the pleasant aroma of warm rye rolls nails its opening, but so much more awaits. Balsam, peppercorn, almond butter, arrowroot pie crust, pine nuts, pumpkin pie, brown sugar, and savory toasted rye bread tingle, as slight hints of pear, tobacco, and citrus develop. Then, it’s earth, from sautéed mushrooms to soil. The long, strong finish presents baking spices. Lovely sipping rye!

Reviewed by: Fred Minnick (Winter 2017)

By focusing exclusively on high-quality straight whiskeys, without neutral spirits, Little Book is a fine example of America’s new era of blends. It includes all straight whiskeys: 4 year old bourbon, 13 year old corn, 5 year old 100% malt, and 5 year old rye. Like Booker’s bourbon, Little Book is uncut and unfiltered, to preserve the full flavor. The dominant note, cornbread, still allows the malt’s sweetness and the rye’s spice to come through. This is the first release from Freddie Noe, son of Beam master distiller Fred Noe and grandson of the late Booker Noe himself. It’s an impressive and unconventional debut, as Freddie prepares to continue the Beam legacy. Number 11 in the 2017 Top 20 

Reviewed by: Fred Minnick (Winter 2017)

A fan favorite now in its 11^th year, the 2017 edition, Heritage, maintains the grain-forward, fruity Forty Creek house style, adding a buttery slipperiness, honeycomb, citrus peels, kumquats, marzipan, and blazing rye spices. Nutty and oily, but clean and spicy, with a never-ending finish. (under 16,500 bottles)

Reviewed by: Davin de Kergommeaux (Winter 2017)

Terroir and provenance are keenly debated in many corners of the whisky world, and Bruichladdich shows intense focus on the question with Islay Barley, which uses only locally grown grain. The 2017 release was distilled in 2010, using Optic and Oxbridge barley varieties grown on eight Islay family farms and matured in a combination of French oak and bourbon casks. In addition to Islay Barley’s ambitious pursuit of true single-origin whisky, this is a real gem for its ginger and tobacco aromas, muscular mouthfeel, and flavors of toffee, spices, and youthful oak. Number 9 in the 2017 Top 20 

Reviewed by: Gavin Smith (Winter 2017)

Availability and quality are two words that you don’t often hear in conjunction with new American whiskeys. But Rebel Yell 10 year old Single Barrel scores on both counts. The 2017 release presents stellar caramel and vanilla notes, then pure bliss, striking powerful mouth-coating notes of crème brûlée with a beautiful pecan pie note on the finish. Since these are single barrels, flavors may vary by bottle; no two barrels yield identical flavors. However, Rebel Yell 10 year old has come pretty close to a house style, and that sort of consistent excellence in a single barrel whiskey is an achievement in itself. Did we mention it’s available? Number 12 in the 2017 Top 20 

Reviewed by: Fred Minnick (Winter 2017)

The nose is superb, with oat and pecan flapjack, cocoa powder, nutmeg, star anise, and caramelized brown sugar. Golden syrup laced with strands of citrus swim within a smooth, thickly textured malt. A rich sweetness spills over, unctuous with sweet honey and nuts over a base layer of spice. Confident, self-assured, expressive whiskey.

Reviewed by: Jonny McCormick (Winter 2017)

This is a nuanced delicacy, so tread lightly. It offers a nose of rich apple, oloroso sherry, cranberry, pepper, fennel, star anise, and a touch of milk chocolate. The sherry casks are at play: dark ruby fruits, peppery spice, and cinnamon. The mouthfeel holds steady, with Cola Cubes, stewed blackberry, and apple peels as the spices fall out, ending with cocoa-dusted dried fruits. (1,479 bottles)

Reviewed by: Jonny McCormick (Winter 2017)

The dark chestnut liquid results from maturation in bourbon and port casks, and it has an equally enticing nose: squishy prunes, dried fig, blackcurrant, sour cherry, apple tarts, and nutmeg. The concentration of fruit on the palate circulates around dark cherry, red apple, and raspberry flavors. Then vanilla, caramel, and milk chocolate flood the mouth and everything turns deliciously gooey. Go on, give in to your urges. (240 bottles for the U.S.)

Reviewed by: Jonny McCormick (Winter 2017)

A wonderful beginning of floral, fruit, leather, and oak notes; the start to a truly sensational whiskey. Its round caramel meets florals, stone fruit, honeysuckle, and dried apricot, with hints of dark chocolate, pear, and raw almonds not far behind. But this whiskey is about the spice, from pepper to baking spices; they wander the palate and walk you down a long and lovely finish with a hint of cinnamon apple.

Reviewed by: Fred Minnick (Winter 2017)

It opens with dark chocolate, coffee, hazelnut, leather, earth, cornbread, and maple syrup. Then it pops with brown-sugar butter melting over grits, but the iron skillet cornbread reappears with a dominating and pleasing malt note. Hints of dill, parsley, and roasted almonds come next. Toward the end, a burst of vanilla hits before a long finish with a hint of honey. As American blends go, this is a fantastic pour.

Reviewed by: Fred Minnick (Winter 2017)

An oddball that crosses the divide between American whiskey and scotch by literally mixing the two, Campfire combines straight Indiana rye, straight Indiana bourbon, and peated blended malt scotch, marrying them together in heavily toasted French and Hungarian oak wine barrels. The scotch adds hearty, meaty flavors to the dry, spicy, and rich bourbon and rye. This is a robust and beefy whiskey, with smoke reminiscent of Southern barbecue. Earlier releases of this ambitious whiskey didn’t quite hit the mark. Now, it’s right on target. Number 14 in the 2017 Top 20 

Reviewed by: Adam Polonski (Winter 2017)

Deftly blending the power and grace of popular Islay malts, this whisky offers a sizzle of bacon fat, thick clods of peat, cocoa, and breezy smoke on the nose. The rounded palate has sweet satsuma, swathes of toasted spice, sweeping malty notes, delicious chocolate, and burnt caramel. The wafting smoke builds formidably, until it engulfs the back of the palate. Sheep Dip whisky may have been around since the 1970s, but this latest creation maps out the best of modern Islay styles to great effect. A triumphant, approachable blend that shows great strength of purpose, yet remains full of charm. Number 13 in the 2017 Top 20 

Reviewed by: Jonny McCormick (Winter 2017)

The salty coastal twang meets the sherry head on, revealing mandarin, gingerbread, glazed ham, clove, seashells, and driftwood bonfires built on pebble beaches. Smoke comes to dominate the sherry. Orange oils precede a delayed ignition of the spices. More honeyed sweetness comes through, while a smothering layer of peat rises up. Warm spicy finish, until a thick curtain of smoke closes it down. But hey, this rocks.

Reviewed by: Jonny McCormick (Winter 2017)

Dalmore launched a trio of vintages finished in tawny port pipes. The pick of the bunch is the oldest, distilled in 1996, which displays a confident, rich nose of raisins, mildly smoky prunes, vanilla, and blood orange. Full-bodied in the mouth, with red berry fruits, ginger, white pepper, and spicy oak. Medium-length in the finish, with coffee-soaked oak, figs, and damsons at the close. £450

Reviewed by: Gavin Smith (Winter 2017)