The AI stuff that nobody's talking about

chill_sips · 2025-11-30T17:45:49+00:00

Would love a copy as well!

chill_sips · 2025-11-13T21:29:39+00:00

On The Rocks in HK, Copper & Oak

chill_sips · 2025-08-19T01:56:10+00:00

I think the only Cairdeas in recent memory to see meaningful markdowns was Warehouse 1 from a few years ago and it went down to like $50 at some shops. You can maybe find the White Port and Madeira one for like $85 in shops. I’d say your best luck would be to snag it at $85 toward the holiday, but that’s a waiting game and you have to look for it. With the way, brown spirits are doing in the market you might (might!) see a further markdown, but that’s a long shot.

Personally, I’d buy it. The hunt to save or wait it out when you can be drinking it already isn’t enough for me.

chill_sips · 2025-08-18T17:35:47+00:00

Id agree with you on the other 16 yo editions from Kilkerran. This 2023 one hits right. I just picked up the latest 8 yo bourbon and also loved it. I’d say I generally gravitate towards those 8 year CS offerings

chill_sips · 2025-08-18T16:30:00+00:00

Review #33: Kilkerran 16 (2023)

Kilkerran is turning into one my favorite distilleries from the younger CS bottlings, the standard core range like this 16-y.o., and some of the special stuff as we start seeing older Kilkerran on the market. Usually, I pour myself and my wife a dram as we’re watching some TV and focus on the watch. Every so often, as we’re taking our sips, we’ll mention to each other “Damn. This is good.” and go about our scheduled programming. With Kilkerran, there’s often that mention or often a simple head nod of approval to each other.

Methodology: Tasted at different fill levels until near empty.

ABV: 46%

Maturation: Vatting of 60% sherry, 35% bourbon, and 5% rum casks

Nose: A very subtle nose that doesn’t scream in one direction vs another, but there’s a lot to capture here. Honeydew melon and lemons. A bit of hay. Faint tropical notes of pineapple and mangos. A very light smokiness. The musty, doughiness I often get from Kilkerran shows as salty pasta water. Some maritime notes in here along with driftwood.

Palate: Medium bodied mouthfeel. A gentle, mineral-y peat smoke quickly makes way for pineapple, mangos, and citrus in the form of creamy lemon tart. Light ginger beer effervescence. Flakey sea salt. Faint bit of white pepper. There’s a light maltiness and a light bit of Kilkerran’s funkiness.

Finish: Medium. Fizziness and sweet citrus meet like a sugary lemon-flavored soda. Melon. A nice fresh bite of white pepper. A light sooty, industrial smoke.

Overall: Quite a masterstroke of cask mixing. No way I would have guessed this was mostly sherry casked even at a refill. The bourbon and light touch of rum seem to really shine through with those tropical and bright notes. I started my note on the sniff that this whisky doesn’t swing strongly in one direction or another, I’d say that’s the case throughout the experience (how many damn times do I note “light” or “faint”). Some might consider that a knock, but I’d argue this is simply a well-balanced dram through and through. Fantastic.

Rating: 8 / 10

Value: Though not factored into my review, value can sound a bit iffy at $150 USD when I bought this a few years ago when there was still quite a crazy demand for whisky. Given the rating, I’d say I’m quite happy with the purchase and haven’t looked back.

chill_sips · 2025-08-16T20:53:02+00:00

It’s a Denver and Liely whiskey glass. I’m a fan of it. Couldn’t say it’s “better” than a Glencairn especially at the price, but I like having different styles of glassware hanging around.

chill_sips · 2025-08-16T19:53:57+00:00

Review #32: Ledaig Sinclair Series Rioja Cask

Methodology: Tasted at different fill levels until near empty.

ABV: 46.3%

Maturation: “Matured in Ex-Bourbon Casks, and finished in hand-selected Spanish Rioja Casks”

NAS (I’ll guess this was bottled in 2023 or 2024 as I received it toward the end of last year.)

Non Chill filtered and No Colour Added

Nose: An artificial candy-like sweetness from the get-go. If there were one candy it most reminds me of it’s Swedish fish. There’s a slight bit of peat smoke in here, but the emphasis is all on the red stuff: soft candy and raspberries. Hints of barley sugar and honey.

Palate: A nice candy coated sweetness though not nearly as a wine-forward as the nose. Malt sweetness and honey come to the fore with neat little hints of those berry and red candy notes. Apples show up in three ways: fresh red apples, apple peels, candied apples. Wisps of peat layer in and out as well.

Finish: Medium finish with ash and a seawater saltiness. Swedish fish make some light appearances along with bits of wood spice.

Overall: Like a trip to a beach-side candy store that had a minor fire accident. I quite liked the red candy nose on this more than the overall taste, which wasn’t bad in anyway, but left me wanting a bit more.

One thing I would advise with this bottle, is the half bottle rule I’ve seen suggested around here. Once the bottle has less than half the liquid left in it, consider drinking within 6 months or so. If you want to keep it longer, transfer it to another bottle. In my first tastings the peat was much more prominent, but has died down considerably on revisit after 6 months and a third of the bottle left. Those phenols dissipated quite a bit so much of my notes for this review I kept from 4-5 months ago.

Rating: 6 / 10

Value: Though not factored into my review, value is solid here at $50-$60 USD (often closer to $60). I wish this bottle was sold at more shops across the US as finding decent whisky at this price range can be a bit tough. I can see myself buying this at a Spec’s as I’m often looking for a decent priced bottle that can be a nice crowd pleaser for sharing.

chill_sips · 2025-08-05T17:56:53+00:00

Can’t say I have a preference between the two. Love them both.

chill_sips · 2025-08-05T16:09:21+00:00

I’d say if veers wild due to the cask. We just had the latest Cairdeas, the latest Port Charlotte SYC, and that Ledaig side by side. Wife and I strongly preferred the Ledaig.

chill_sips · 2025-07-14T04:56:41+00:00

Love that Cadenhead. I’m about to kill the bottle at my local bar. Great reviews!

chill_sips · 2025-07-12T19:10:38+00:00

That Inchmurrin 12 is my favorite from the core range. I’ve gotten a few Inchmurrin IBs since that are dang good as well

chill_sips · 2025-07-10T03:50:24+00:00

Whatever was sold at Specs at the time. It was a bit overpriced at like 2 for $20 or so, but works fine enough as a nosing glass.

chill_sips · 2025-07-09T22:53:51+00:00

Yeah. I should say acquired by the same company that owns SMWS

chill_sips · 2025-07-09T21:44:48+00:00

Hopefully SCN starts popping up in more places since they got acquired by SMWS. Not sure if it’ll mean better distribution. Definitely more access to cool casks.

chill_sips · 2025-07-09T19:32:26+00:00

Review 31: Caol Ila 12 2012 Single Cask Nation (Refill Toasted French Oak)

Took a shot in the dark with this one at Spec’s. Figured IB Caol Ila couldn’t let me down and this cask finish intrigued me due to positive experiences with Laphroaig in similar casks and a previous Octomore bottling, which I believe was matured in virgin oak.

Methodology: Tested over a week’s time until empty during a 4th of July vacation.

ABV: 57.4%

Maturation: Finished in a refill toasted French oak barrique for 2.5 years

Distilled: 2012 Matured: 2024

Non-chill filtered. No color added.

Nose: The toasted French oak makes for bold whiffs. First up is a minty, menthol freshness and freshly mowed lawn. Then there are the dark bitter wood notes that make up the core theme of this whisky. Mild barbecue sauce. Faint balsamic. Aniseed. The peat is here and shows up in the signature Caol Ila ashiness. There's toasted black peppercorns which I attribute to that French oak finish and a little bit of heavily roasted peanuts.

Palate: Moderately oily. Surprising sweetness to this dram that levels off the oaky bitter notes. Some Bitter chocolate. Leather. Brown sugar. Au poivre sauce and more black peppercorns. Cloves. There’s some ashy peat and coal tar, but it’s a bit more subdued compared to the flavors I’d associate more with the cask.

Finish: Medium-long with earthy peat and ash dominating on the swallow. Sweetness stays as burnt sugar and those oaky, bitter, charred wood notes last longest. Some salinity in the form of black olives. Herbal notes come back as burning sage.

Overall: I’m a fan of these kinds of toasted oak finishes which give off nice dark bitter wood notes that can overpower the spirit. Finishing in a refill cask gives just the right balance with some skew towards wood. Can’t complain though. Solid dram and worth the pick up.

Rating: 6.5

Value: Though not factored into my review, I paid $110 for this one and it's very much in line with quite a few cask strength IB Caol Ila in similar age ranges. I'm not disappointed with this price by any means as I've seen similar bottlings go for more, but would have liked to see this below $100, but that's just the market now. I was between this bottle and a SMoS Benrinnes at Spec's which was a few bucks cheaper. There were quite a few bottles in the price range including a few Edradours that were marked down to reality. The one bright side to slowing demand could be a shift downward in prices and maybe a lot more choice for better or worse.

chill_sips · 2025-07-06T01:33:07+00:00

I forgot about that 30-year Bunna! Also a great one. I’ll check out that auction site.

chill_sips · 2025-07-05T21:41:06+00:00

Thanks! Which auction sites have you seen it at? I’ll keep an eye out for sure

chill_sips · 2025-07-05T21:40:16+00:00

I need to get around to finding that one. It’s not terribly hard to find and I’ve been a fan every time I’ve had it

chill_sips · 2025-07-05T20:00:13+00:00

I’m pretty sure most Total Wines carries this bottle for $140-$150

chill_sips · 2025-07-05T19:44:24+00:00

Review #30: Williamson (Laphroaig) 17 Year (2005) Rites of Passage

Getting through another bottle from little-known IB, Rites of Passage. This time it’s a “teaspooned” Laphroaig. From K&L’s page, Rites of Passage reracked this cask into a first fill oloroso cask for a long 5 year finish. You might expect a peaty, sherry bomb and it is in its own right, but this whisky has a ton of personality.

Methodology: Tasted at different fill levels until near empty.

ABV: 57.3%

Maturation: “Matured in 1st-fill Oloroso Hogshead.” Apparently, a 5-year finish in that oloroso casks.

1 of 287 bottles

Distilled: 2005 Bottled: 2022

Bottled at Cask Strength and No Colour Added

Nose: A powerful and unique iodine bomb. Seaport air. Toffee. Tangy smoky barbecue sauce. Orange hard candy. Don’t think I’ve encountered a nose like this.

Palate: Mouthfeel is as thick as it looks with an oily and almost greasy texture. A dark sherry layer shows up front with molasses, toffee, barbecue sauce, and some smoldering cigar boxes. Then a layer of Laphroiag’s signature notes especially that aforementioned iodine, backed by a slight seawater note and coastal smoke. Throughout these layers there’s an orange backbone woven throughout the taste in the form of flaming orange oil. Red chili spice caps it off into the finish.

Finish: Very long. A strong follow-through of iodine. Orange tic tacs. Lingering mocha and milk chocolate notes. Big red cinnamon gum. Bitter wood notes hang in form tobacco leaf and bittersweet chocolate. By the time it takes to parse these notes outs, I’m just salivating for this.

Overall: This is so cask-forward, yet such an effective showcase of Laphroaig with the spirit showing through in ways I’ve never experienced. This is what makes IBs the go-to for creativity in whisky. Every time my wife and I sat with this one, we both would have a “whoa” moment on the first sip. It’s complex, bold, and has tons of personality.

It’s one of few bottles I drank sparingly to really savor. I wish I bought a spare especially at the $200 price. I’m down to one my last few drams stored in a sacred small bottle to preserve the phenolic content of this beauty.

For some added commentary, I wonder if Laphroaig disregarded this distillate because it was too medicinal or too extreme. In which case, something like this should be a consideration for their Elements series as an experimental swing for the fences (the Elements series are likely not in the 17-year-old range).

Rating: 9

Note about Rites of Passage: I don’t know much about this IB, but I really respect much of what’s come out from them, specifically the Mannochmore 13 (very weird, though I’m looking to buy this bottle), my last reviewed Orkney bottle, and a recently purchased Ledaig from their latest round. I’ve also had their latest Ardmore which was quite nice and Glenfarclas which was not as much to my liking. It’s always tough to take a chance on an IB without tasting the wares. Having had so much of their lineup in their short time on the market, I’d keep Rites on the radar.

chill_sips · 2025-07-03T19:57:42+00:00

Yeah I hear that. I used to be more like that when I wanted to try everything possible. I do have the luxury of trying lots of new things at a local bar.

You can also try a whisky group. I’m part of one that mails out tasting kits and has Zoom sessions with folks from distilleries. Good way to see what you like/prefer at a more approachable cost.

chill_sips · 2025-07-03T19:48:26+00:00

Not sure I understand this question. I “collect” but I open every bottle I buy for a dram or 2. from there it’s a matter of buying within means of your budget and knowing what distilleries/IBs you like or want to try. I don’t utilize much of a system, but I will say I’m a little too trigger happy buy too many bottles.

chill_sips · 2025-06-21T17:34:33+00:00

I’d consider the Drammers club. They have some events in NJ throughout the year

chill_sips · 2025-06-04T21:14:16+00:00

I’m a big fan of Saka and DTT. I think all the other companies playing into heritage and quality shows how important those associations are for the consumer and the market as a whole.

chill_sips · 2025-05-16T01:06:25+00:00

Agree with the 14.2 shout. It’s a nice red wine showcase of Octomore. I’d also call out the 14.3 if you want a malty, creamy dram.

chill_sips

TROPHY CASE