BTC4 #BlindDrams Tasting Notes

 These are my tasting notes from the Blind Tasting Consortium's 4th #BlindDrams evening.

These drams were picked by Damian @newdramrising

Dram 1

Appearance: Pale gold in the glass, swirls cling, bead up slowly and fall as slow thick legs.

Nose: loads of orchard fruit and honey notes - pears, apples, apricots giving a drying note. Malted Milk biscuits (thanks @whiskyrover) and a little off note - cheese or farmyard as others have said.

Palate: smooth sweet arrival, loads more honey and orchard fruit but there is a strange meaty note too.@newdramrising wouldn't put peat at #1 so maybe cask char? Hay, grass odd param violet note...

Finish: short sweet slightly drying.

Dram 2

Appearance: Pale gold in the glass, swirls cling, bead up and again fall as slow thick legs.

Nose: orchard fruit, honey, almonds, icing sugar.

A little different from #1 there isn't the cereal or farmyard note - maybe as @newdramrising suggested we are in a different Waterford field?

Palate: smooth sweet arrival, vanilla custard on stewed apples. There is a little peppery spice and a hint of tropical fruit. Very grain like - Bushmills, Cooley, GND ?

Finish: short bite of peppery spice then a lingering oaky vanilla note - nice. Much better than dram #1

Dram 3

Appearance: maybe the palest of the 5 drams tonight, swirls cling as a hairline crack, bead up and fall as slow thin legs.

Nose: apricots, peaches, icing sugar, a little tropical fruit and honey after some air. Lemon drizzle cake. Might still be in Ireland....

Palate: he ABV is ramping up here, very smooth sweet arrival - I'm liking @Mark_BCWS Rum cask finish idea but are we still in Ireland or hopped over to Arran maybe?

Finish: Long lingering tropical sweetness - must be rum cask finish. Nice.

Dram 4

Appearance: Pink / rose / salmon / coral / fuchsia in the glass, swirls cling as a hairline crack,  bead up slowly and fall as slow thick legs.

Nose: hints of smoke and seaweed, red berries, plums, cherries - got to be a wine cask. I'm thinking we've made the short hop across the Irish Sea to Campbeltown?

Palate: Wow the ABV hits you straight away - upper 50s% Smooth sweet arrival - red berries, drying icing sugar, a little sour citrus and a huge dollop of smoked salted herring. YUMMY! Wavering now.... Springbank or Port Charlotte?

Dram 5

Appearance: Pale gold with a hint of orange in the glass, swirls bead up and fall as slow thick legs.

Nose: slightly salty smoky citrus with a hint of smoky bacon crisps. brown sugar and burnt rubber. 

Palate: Sweet peanuts, ashy bbq smoke, salted bacon. Yuk.

Kilchoman?

The drams were:

Dram 1 was Waterford's Ballykilcavan Edition 1.1 - NAS - 50%ABV - Approx £75 - Ireland

Dram 2 was Drumshanbo's Inaugural Release - NAS - 46%ABV - Approx £74 - Ireland

Dram 3 was Bushmills - SMWS 51.17 Spring In Your Step - 19yo - 54.6% - £150 - Ireland

 Dram 4 was Arran - Amarone Cask Finish - NAS - 50%ABV - £50 - Scotland

 Dram 5 was Caol Ila - SMWS 53.325 When Two Powerful Pearls Meet - 7yo - Ex Madeira Hogshead - 61.2%ABV - £65 - Scotland

The theme was #HeadingNorth with Damian taking us on a journey from Southern Ireland to Northern Scotland!

More information about the Blind Tasting Consortium can be found here!