Batch 5 is a release of 990 bottles. Undisclosed distillery.
Appearance: Light honey gold/white dessert wine. Lots of medium legs form an oily film on the glass, quite chaotic. A thick swirlmark forms.
Nose: Confectionary sugar dusted red apples, honey cereals and buttered toast. There’s also a subtle orange zest going on, very slightly bitter but mostly sweet. At 50.2% ABV this does present that alcohol wave nicely, a warming hum accompanies the sweet notes on the nose. As the glass matures there are some faint wood notes, as well as cinnamon and nutmeg.
Palate: A very welcoming buttery mouthfeel. Lemon pepper at first, that zesty sharp warmth. Cracked black pepper over butter croissant. There’s a good level of warmth that reaches the chest, together with a touch of dryness. There’s a sweet shop element to this dram too. Fruit salad sweets are quite evident in the palate, and I like it. The spicier dry side to the dram grows as more sips are consumed.
Finish: Medium to long. The sweet spices and orange bitterness linger the longest. There are those confectionary sweet notes at first, but they dissipate pretty sharpish.
Overall: A pleasing balance of sweet and subtle spices. The increase in the dry element is slightly off-putting for my taste but, overall, a very decent whisky.
