Kornog 2012 Ex-Libris Le Poids d'un nuage 10 yo

 

 

 

58,5°

Distillery : Celtic Whisky Distillerie - France

2d Fill Bourbon Barrel 

Independent Bottling 

By La Maison du Whisky 

Limited Edition 

Single Cask 

Bottled in 2023

Unchillfiltered, Uncoloured, Cask Strength

Peated around 50 ppm

 

 

 

Second volume in this trio of French whiskies honoured by La Maison du Whisky through its Ex-Libris range inaugurated in 2021, this Kornog underwent a very simple maturation in a Refill Bourbon cask. It is not known how many bottles were produced. The name of the bottle comes from a collection of poems by Yvon Le Men.

Let's Taste It : 

The nose is more mature, tamer, pastry-like, but still astringent. Very cerealy, with malted barley, toasted wheat, muesli, millet, rye. I still find some glue, but to a lesser extent. Aniseed, liquorice. Grainy smoke, fairly well mastered. Very round, balanced palate, light layer of ash, white fruits, juicy lemon. Various spices, nutmeg, cloves, cumin, pepper. The finish is long, very successful, on chestnuts and charcoal, with a few more cereals, dates and prunes.

In Short, 

A little calmer than its little brother, more balanced, fruity and pastry-like. It's better made, but lacks the intense personality of the 8yo, which I preferred. The price is as crazy as ever, but absolute fans will be able to afford it.

Score : 89

                                           To Be Listened While Sipping :

 

                                           Superbus - Butterfly

Kornog 2015 Ex-Libris Quelque part dans le ciel 8 yo

 

 

 

57,9°

Distillery : Celtic Whisky Distillerie - France

1st Fill Bourbon Barrel

Independent Bottling 

By La Maison du Whisky 

Limited Edition 

Single Cask

Bottled in 2023

Unchillfiltered, Uncoloured, Cask Strength

Peated around 50 ppm

 

 

 

La Maison du Whisky is launching the Ex-Libris range in 2021. Initially, the aim was to showcase two distilleries, one Irish, Knappogue Castle, the other Canadian, J.P. Wiser's. But this year, the sub-range has set its sights on the Kornog brand. A peated version of the production of the Celtic Whisky Distillerie from Brittany, this brand is undoubtedly the most highly regarded in France. The result is a trio of bottlings, of which this is the youngest, named Quelque part dans le ciel, after a collection of poems by Yvon Le Men. Each is matured in a single Bourbon cask. The number of bottles produced is unknown.

 

 

 

Let's Taste It : 

On the nose, liquid glue and almonds, it's airy and cereal-like. Toasted barley and wheat, strong windy peat. Slight saltiness. Burnt plastic, fresh iodine, a few patches of limestone. Creamy at the end, with a bit of vanilla and a drop of lemon. On the palate, still gluey, frangipane and dates, porridge, white fruits, caramel. Strong spices, cumin, nutmeg, white pepper. Braised chestnuts. Powerful, long finish, quite successful, sandy, with a nice thickness of ash. Black earth, truffles. Charcoal.

 

In Short,  

It's powerful, impetuous, slightly salty, but also earthy, which I like. It's a really radical product, with bold fragrances. Currently sold exclusively by La Maison du Whisky, the price is prohibitive, which is a shame.

Score : 89

                                           To Be Listened While Sipping :

                                            En Attendant Ana - I'm a Man You Don't Meet Every Day

Bimber 2017 Collection New Vibrations 6 yo

 

 

 

56,8° 

Distillery : Bimber - England

Ex-Imperial Stout Finish

Original Bottling 

Limited Edition 

Single Cask 

Bottled in 2023

Unchillfiltered, Uncoloured

Totally Unpeated 

This is not the first time that these guys at Bimber have tried a Stout finish on their whisky, a brown ale that is highly reputed in England. But this is the first time they've done it with a Single Cask. For the occasion, the 257 bottles from this cask have been selected to form part of the New Vibrations Collection and to be sold exclusively on the French market, in particular by La Maison du Whisky.

Let's Taste It : 

The nose is rather pastoral, herbaceous, alfalfa, hay, but also pastry-like and fruity, with mandarins, or rather clementines, vanilla and ginger. Some orchard fruits, green apples, lime. On the palate, nutmeg, slight stout bitterness, but with fruits and cereals. Dark chocolate, cloves, a pinch of pepper and cinnamon. Quinces and prunes. Very strong finish, long and powerful, on lemon biscuit, verbena and a few pine needles. Notes of coffee and chicory. Black tea.

In Short, 

I was very surprised to feel so little of the Stout influence, only on the palate and finish, and not so much then. If I hadn't been told what the finish was, I might not have guessed. I wonder how long the finish lasted, no more than a few months in my opinion. That said, it's far from bad, in fact it's really good and original, very herbaceous, but also balanced and with a kicking finish. Unfortunately, the price is unreasonable, easily that of a 12 year old, so I wouldn't recommend buying it.

Score : 89

                                           To Be Listened While Sipping :

 

                                           Mick Taylor - Blind Willie McTell

Bunnahabhain 2008 Limited Release Mòine Bordeaux Red Wine Cask Matured 9 yo

 

 

 

58,1°

Distillery : Bunnahabhain - Islay

Bordeaux Red Wine Casks 

Original Bottling 

Limited Edition 

Single Malt 

Bottled in 2018

Unchillfiltered, Uncoloured, Cask Strength

Peated around 40 ppm

 

 

 

On paper, ageing whisky in Bordeaux wine casks may seem like a good idea. In the end, it doesn't always work, the influence of the wine can give an unpleasant acidity, you have to find the right balance with the distillate, and you have to make sure it sells, because maturing in wine casks has a bad reputation. This is why this expression is the result of a daring experiment. It was aged entirely in red wine barrels from the Bordeaux region for 9 years. Eventually, 4,536 bottles found their way to the shelves.

 

 

 

Let's Taste It : 

Bewitching smoke and charcoal, dust and earth, liquorice and soot. The peat is intense and cavernous, but not mineral or iodised as usual. After a while, it's creamy, like blueberry pie. Burnt toffee, oak bark. On the palate, the fruit is more intense, cherry and blackcurrant, blackberry, muscat grape. Then spices, nutmeg, cinnamon, pepper. Heather. It's indulgent. Meat sauce. Long finish, where the fruit swells, with humus and chocolate, a hint of clove. It's a bit syrupy.
 

In Short, 

The maturation is well done, there's no acid aftertaste, and it's quite balanced. However, we lose the hallmarks of the distillery, the hint of iodine and the beautiful minerality that is its identity. The nose is too austere for my taste, and the red wine casks mask the power of the product. 9 years is not a good age, in my opinion. Too old to be powerful enough, but still too young for the distillate to interact with the cask and create a nice subtlety. So, for me, it's a mixed experience. And when I see the price it's sold for, I say no way. But absolute fans of the distillery may find it to their liking.

Score : 88 

                                           To Be Listened While Sipping :

 

                                           The Broken View - Something Better

Bowmore 2003 Whisky Sponge Edition n°74 18 yo

 

 

 

55,3°

Distillery : Bowmore - Islay 

Refill Sherry Butt

Independent Bottling 

By Decadent Drinks Ltd. 

Limited Edition 

Single Cask

Bottled in 2022

Unchillfiltered, Uncoloured, Cask Strength

Peated around 25 ppm

 

 

 

The 74th bottling stamped Whisky Sponge (not counting the Special Editions) is an 18-year-old Bowmore aged not in one, but in two Refill Sherry Butts. And yet it's a Single Cask. It has undergone a double maturation, moving from one Refill Sherry Butt to the other, not without spending some time out of cask in between. These are casks from the Signatory Vintage warehouses. Be that as it may, 629 bottles are the result of this slow process.

 

 

 

Let's Taste It : 

Powerful tide and apricot jam. Quince jelly, a bit coppery, cinnamon, herbaceous hints, along with iodine and kelp, seaweed, sea spray, foam. The whole is very elegant. Exotic fruits far behind, earth and nuts. The peat is very present, though relatively discreet, windy and charred. On the palate, samphire, earth and Brussels sprouts, honey and liquorice, it's meaty and salty at the same time, like a salt-meadow lamb. Slices of bacon and chutney. Duck à l'orange. Mandarins, red bell peppers. Deep and varied spices, paprika, nutmeg and cumin, fairly light. Very long, perfectly mastered finish, fig and lemon, damp leather, fine minerality. Salt again and again. Candied lemon.

In Short, 

It's an excellent Bowmore, very salty and meaty, set with a variety of fruits, rather candied, from lemon to apricot, banana, pineapple and others, with a lot of peat for its age. Definitely something to have if you're a fan of the distillery. It's obviously sold out almost everywhere, but you can still find it on certain websites, at a prohibitive price.

Score : 90

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                           To Be Listened While Sipping :

 

                                           Winger - It All Comes Back Around

Bladnoch 1990 Whisky Sponge Special Edition 33 yo

 

 

 

55,4°

Distillery : Bladnoch - Lowlands

Refill Bourbon Barrel

Independent Bottling

By Decadent Drinks

Limited Edition 

Single Cask 

Bottled in 2023

Unchillfiltered, Uncoloured, Cask Strength

Totally Unpeated

 

 

 

Whisky Sponge Special Editions are quite something. Expect very limited bottlings of very high quality rarities. Founded in 2020 by Angus McRaild and Ian McClune, Decadent Drinks has its fingers in every pie. Here, a 33-year-old Bladnoch, Scotland's most southerly distillery. The distillery was mothballed between 1993 and 2000, so it's not often you find a cask from the 1990s. Only 50 bottles were made from this one.

 

 

 

Let's Taste It : 

Chocolate and coffee, macerated fruits, buttered bread, with semi-salted butter of course, herbaceous hints, waxed wood and a touch of honey. If you look hard enough, you'll find some exotic fruits, banana and pineapple, but it's mainly lemony. Decomposed wood, vegetable moss, rusty metal. On the palate, it's full of melted chocolate and fig pulp, but creamy vanilla comes through. Orange peel, very slight bitterness, rich and varied spices, but not at all aggressive. The finish is long and balanced, with raisins, blueberry cake, hints of black earth and even truffles, brick and malted cereals.

 

In Short, 

Superb. Probably the best Lowland whisky I've ever drunk. Very expressive, contrary to the reputation of this region. It smells of autumn, dead leaves and coppery tones. But also earth and fruits, it's very rich and deep. Of course, it was sold out before we even heard of it, and today, if you want to find it... Well, I don't think it's possible.

Score : 90

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                           To Be Listened While Sipping :

 

                                           Highly Suspect - Serotonia

The Druids 2005 Orkney Spirit V 15 yo

 

 

 

57,6°

Distillery Officially Unknown - Islands

1st Fill Pedro Ximénez Sherry Hogshead Finish

Independent Bottling 

By Whisky Druid 

Limited Edition 

Single Cask 

Bottled in 2020

Unchillfiltered, Uncoloured, Cask Strength

Slightly Peated 

 

 

 

Founded in 2018, the small German company Whisky Druid has only around 30 bottlings. But its owner is Michel Reick, who also founded Best Dram, The Old Friends and Scotch Universe. He also runs a bar in Münster, by the way. In the course of his many occupations, this gentleman has launched the Orkney Spirit series, bringing together 5 bottlings, all from a mysterious distillery on the main island of Orkney. We're going to pretend that it might be Scapa. This one is the fifth, and therefore the last. Aged 15 years, it spent 12 years in an unknown cask, probably a Bourbon barrel, and the last three years of its maturation in a Pedro Ximénez Sherry Hogshead. 291 bottles were offered for sale.

 

 

 

Let's Taste It : 

Full-bodied and fruity, with a hint of charcoal. Vigorous hints of malted barley. Cherry, raspberry, but also apricot. Amber honey. Smoother and more balanced with a drop of water. An indulgent leatheriness, typical of Pedro Ximénez. Notes of cinnamon and clove. Apple and orange chutney. Orange peel. Green olives. Very discreet, the distillery's markers, bush, heather. Pear compote. On the palate, the fruit and spices stand out, quince and rhubarb jam, cumin, black pepper. Royal jelly, coconut. Quite a long, explosive finish, nougatine and tomato juice, carrot, spiced meatballs. Slight chilli. A few blocks of charcoal.

 

In Short, 

Very good. Unlike what has been said, the distillery's profile is not hidden, you can still feel it, behind heavy loads of Sherry. There's no sulphur either. I'm a big fan of this kind of product, very rich in Sherry, but which doesn't completely lose its identity. What's more, it's a bit dirty. Unfortunately, it's sold out, but you can find it from time to time at auction, at a tempting price.

Score : 90  

                                           To Be Listened While Sipping :

 

                                           Trivium - Until the World Goes Cold

Penderyn 2010 Ex-Bourbon Single Cask 13 yo

 

 

 

59,9°

Distillery : Penderyn - Wales

2d Fill Bourbon Barrel

Original Bottling 

Limited Edition 

Single Cask 

Bottled in 2023 

Unchillfiltered, Uncoloured, Cask Strength

Totally Unpeated

Specially bottled for La Maison du Whisky and sold exclusively by the same shop under the New Vibrations label, this 13-year-old Penderyn Single Cask produced exactly 182 bottles. It has been entirely distilled in the Faraday still acquired by the distillery in 2000, which promises a great intensity of flavour.

Let's Taste It : 

Wood glue, airy iodine, mineral hints, the nose is typically Penderyn. Fresh and sweet, with indulgent white fruits and pastry cream. A whiff of woody vanilla. Cinnamon leaf. On the palate, we have the markers of Bourbon, floral honey, ripe yellow plums, some juicy pears and a more gulping vanilla. It's frankly spicy, which gives it great depth. The finish is very well done, custardy, whipped cream, mille-feuilles, dusted with icing sugar. Crunchy shortbread. Dry earth, peppermint.

In Short, 

Truly the quintessence of Penderyn, all distillery fanatics will love it. The downside is that it lacks a little variety and originality, it's Penderyn and nothing else, the cask influence is fairly discreet, there's no special touch, except perhaps in the finish. But this is a very fine bottling, because it is totally representative of this excellent distillery. Unfortunately sold at a prohibitive price, it will be reserved for the wealthy and speculative, not necessarily for true lovers.

Score : 89

                                           To Be Listened While Sipping :

 

                                           Opeth - Windowplane