At first, it’s truly American candy: melted chocolate-covered almonds and coconut. Then, it’s cinnamon, toffee, butterscotch, gingersnap cookies, red pepper, and Rice Krispies. This mouth-coating offers lingering baking spices throughout. A drop of water offers even more complexity, with pronounced caramel chew notes developing. With or without water, a complex and long finish awaits with hints of jalapeño chocolate.

Reviewed by: Fred Minnick (Spring 2018)

Spicier and darker than their blend, this delivers heather honey, banana peel, cashew, pepper, ground coriander, and bay leaf. Quite light-bodied and delicate to begin with, but the Cognac cask adds fruitiness and greater complexity. Sugary sweet, with tingly spices, honey, cracked black pepper, clove-studded oranges, and tangy marmalade. A finish of bitter orange, pepper, and fondant cream makes this a worthy addition to the Cognac cask revival.

Reviewed by: Jonny McCormick (Spring 2018)

This 40 year old was matured in a refill American hogshead. Perfumed on the nose, with vanilla, soft leather, lanolin, and lavender. Watery soft fruits on the palate, with cocoa powder and ginger. The finish offers more cocoa powder, black coffee, and licorice-flavored oak. £500 (191 bottles, The Whisky Exchange exclusive)

Reviewed by: Gavin Smith (Spring 2018)

A refill American oak hogshead matured this whisky. The nose offers malt, vanilla fudge, pineapple, and contrasting lemon. Lively tropical fruits on the palate, almonds, walnuts, and ginger cookies, with ever-present oak. Bitter coffee in the medium-length, leathery finish.

Reviewed by: Gavin Smith (Spring 2018)

Following on from 21 and 25 year old expressions of Authenticus, BenRiach has now added its oldest variant yet to the lineup. The nose offers orchard fruits, honey, polished oak, and vanilla-tinged peat smoke. Full and fruity on the palate, with sweet peat having a presence, plus milk chocolate and licorice. The finish is relatively long, with citrus fruit, ashy smoke, and a lingering herbal note. £400; Not available in the U.S.

Reviewed by: Gavin Smith (Spring 2018)

Blue iris, dried chilies, and fresh linen; the corn is sweet and fat, and the aromas integrate more harmoniously than the White and Black expressions. Fresh and fruity, orange marmalade, honey oozing into maple syrup, developing more complexity as the smooth layers shift to accommodate the growing pepper and chili heat ahead of a spicy honey finish. For a 10 month old single cask whiskey, this is remarkably impressive.

Reviewed by: Jonny McCormick (Spring 2018)

Inspired by the Morrissey-Sullivan bout of 1853, this whiskey received a 6 month rye barrel finish which results in enticing toasty notes, cinnamon bark, malt, and vanilla. The structure is light, the flavors are delicious, and it knocks you out with malt, creamy vanilla, active spices, and a dry nuttiness. Give the finish an eight-count for its long lasting spices and good punch of sweetness.

Reviewed by: Jonny McCormick (Spring 2018)

An innovative approach to flavoring casks by charring the staves with burning peat, this whiskey develops a smoldering nose of dark chocolate brownies, dry wood smoke, and cocoa sweetness. The impact of the peat is confined to the nose, but it tastes pleasantly oily, with tangy citrus, Jolly Rancher hard candy, chocolate cake, spices, fizzy candies, and coffee notes. The finish of nutmeg, cinnamon, clove, and dried peel rounds off an extremely tasty whiskey. (4,800 bottles)

Reviewed by: Jonny McCormick (Spring 2018)

Crown Royal develops its bourbon-like house style by using an American-style mashbill of 64% corn, 31.5% rye, and 4.5% malted barley for one of its many component whiskies. From this single component, blender Mark Balkenende selected mature whisky exhibiting sweet flowers, pear juice, vanilla, fresh grain, mild barrel tones, clean dry wood, brisk spices, and a long, glowing finish. Very floral, fruity, and quaffable. ($55CAD; Ontario only)

Reviewed by: Davin de Kergommeaux (Spring 2018)

The divine stone fruit aromas are the key to unlocking the nose on this one: apricot, honey, vanilla icing, malt bins, Quaker Oats Squares, and lofty floral top notes. Sweet mandarin, brown sugar, vanilla fudge, strands of finely shredded peel, and more spice than the 12 year old can muster. The sweet vanilla aftertaste is softer and more elegant than the younger expressions.

Reviewed by: Jonny McCormick (Spring 2018)

Think carnival aromas—the good ones, anyway—meeting the campfire. Cracker Jacks, cinnamon-covered almonds, popcorn, cotton candy, marshmallows melting over graham crackers, and hints of smoldering oak. Next, coconut, caramel, and cocoa over a buttery mouthfeel with hints of toffee, banana, baked apple, and pumpkin pie appear. Toward the end, hints of black pepper and raspberry strudel surface in a medium to long finish.

Reviewed by: Fred Minnick (Spring 2018)

Hoppy notes cloaking the crisp grains, green apple, and pomelo make for a happier marriage than its stout sibling. This is one of those whiskeys that continuously evolves in the mouth, progressing from a sweet, syrupy beginning of coconut macaroons, apple, and spices, to a creamier plateau of citrus, stewed fruits, and chocolate. It departs leaving the tongue weighted down with peppery spice and cooked apple. Unexpectedly delicious. Value pick

Reviewed by: Jonny McCormick (Spring 2018)

A little joy from Mount Fuji: soy sauce, five-spice powder, grilled pineapple, halved passion fruit, and the umami sensation of slightly salty umeboshi. It’s dense and mouth-coating, with maple syrup, cinnamon, and a steady build of rye spices, particularly nutmeg and clove, before closing off with dark baked orange. The spices are short lasting, but the pleasurably deep boiled orange candy sweetness persists for minutes. (JPY 22,000; Not available in the U.S.)

Reviewed by: Jonny McCormick (Spring 2018)

This is a re-release of the 2015 bottling. A tapestry of confectionery delights begins this journey, followed by fruit, cigar box, saddle leather, cotton candy, roasted pecans, caramel, and marshmallow. Then, it’s smoked paprika, fig, cinnamon, strawberry, and dark cherries. In the form of walnut shells, a powerful and somewhat pleasant bitterness finds the finish, with a hint of chocolate. But that bitterness does supersede the more pleasant notes, making it slightly unbalanced.

Reviewed by: Fred Minnick (Spring 2018)

One of four Octomore 08 Masterclass releases, this was distilled in 2011 from Islay barley peated to 309 ppm. Fifty-six percent of the spirit was matured in first-fill bourbon casks, while the remainder was aged in European oak wine casks. Barbecue smokiness on the nose, with wet peat and citrus fruitiness. On the palate, earthy peat, full-bodied red wine, and milk chocolate. Peat smoke to the fore in the finish, with ginger and chili. (18,000 bottles)

Reviewed by: Gavin Smith (Spring 2018)

Sweet honey daubed on ripe plums, an abundance of barley notes, black cherry, and a smattering of exotic spices. Juicy notes of cherry, plum, peach, and strawberry, with undertones of peppery spice. The flavor fills out with lovely malty notes, Quaker Oats, and vanilla. The port cask has really complemented the Bushmills character, and this second edition in the Steamship collection is the best in the series to date. (£99; Global Travel Retail only)

Reviewed by: Jonny McCormick (Spring 2018)

Distilled by Hans Reisetbauer, this is like an amplified version of his 12 year old (see below). Red pears, pomegranate, walnut husks, and more active spices, from mace and asafetida to coriander. The flavors unfurl sedately over the palate like a flower coming into bloom: soft honeyed fruit, pear, raspberry, strawberry, spices, bramble, and chocolate drops. A drying finish of five-spice, dried apple, and chocolate. Best of this Austrian trio.

Reviewed by: Jonny McCormick (Spring 2018)

The nose is pleasingly floral, with soft spice, malt, heather in bloom, and even a suggestion of violets. Well textured on the palate, oily and nutty, with tropical fruits, honey, milk chocolate, vanilla, and malt. The finish is lengthy, with a hint of citrus and warming spices. (Cask no. 69; 287 bottles)

Reviewed by: Gavin Smith (Spring 2018)