Great Balls of Fire: Whisky Tasting at the Broadfield

Is there anything as good as a drink and a curry? Well, we don't think so, and neither did the night's host - and when it comes to whisky tastings Ed (@whiskycurator) is an ace MC.

So for this event, the five whiskies and accompanying snacks were all selected with a bit of a kick in mind, whether it be from the spice of the food or the strength of the whisky. And so with a slight warning from Ed that we may need to "fight through the small pain barrier to enjoy the flavours beneath" we launched straight into the first cask strength whisky.

Benrinnes 16 Year Signatory Release (51.2%) is a beautiful sherry hogshead finished dram from a distillery that almost exclusively produces whisky for blends such as J&B. Opening with an aroma of grass and toffee with orchard fruit, the sweetness gave way to a punch of savoury heat on the palate, with a salty character tucked in there too. With a little drop of water, the initial sweetness really popped out as the whisky opened up to a wonderful almost fresh finish. This whisky overall demonstrates the finesse we've discovered in all of the Signatory bottlings we've been lucky enough to try.

Food pairing: Tarka Dhal and poppadoms

The second and strongest whisky of the evening at 60% came in the form of an award winning dram from Glenfarclas: Their 105 Cask Strength is highly regarded for its excellent value - priced at around £40. If the first whisky was a slap in the face this is outright hockey brawl... a heat that builds from the initial spark and continually grows for around 5-7 seconds. When the fire dies down a great molasses stickiness is left behind. Also on the palate we found sweet dark fruit, layered with a complex mixed spice. A splash of water again added great depth and enhanced the sherry character of the whisky.

Food pairing: Harissa straws

The third whisky came courtesy of a lesser known distillery - Dailuaine 15 Year - bottled by the fantastic folks at Master of Malt. Dailuaine again produce the majority of their whisky for blends (almost exclusively Johnny Walker). This use of whisky for blends means there is often far less money spent on the acquisition of casks, as in the long run it is less important than those producing single malt releases. So this bottling is somewhat of a rarity, and a frankly incredible find on the part of the guys over at Master of Malt, to happen upon this barrel in the right warehouse at the right time before it could be shipped off to what would have been a sorrowful end for this excellent cask. The 55.7% sherry-finished dram oozed with maple syrup and nutty earthiness in a far more smooth fashion than the previous few, with a gentle stickiness that allowed the spirit to glide down as you swallow. There was a lovely hint of lightly smoked sweet cured bacon, accompanied by an oily, rich finish.

Food: Goats and Chilli Arancini

After a short break, we returned to sample the Bowmore 10 Year Tempest Batch 3 - the only peated offering of the evening. This was a truly lovely, rounded whisky that did not solely punch of peat. The nose of tobacco sweetness prickled with a sweet, smoky, dried beef jerky that gave way into a burnt lavender. The palate held the classic Bowmore smoke and saltiness, with the expected savoury notes coupled with a fruity undertone of dried pineapple and fresh passion fruit that lingered with just a tickle of black pepper.

Food: Prawn tempura with soy and ginger dressing

Balcones Texas #1, the first single malt whisky to be made in Texas, rounded off the evening. This is also the first yard aged whisky, which happens to be as simple as it sounds. The crowd sourced tasting note for the initial nose got it bang on - the smell of opening a tin of Quality Street: heady notes of chocolate, toffee and light floral notes combined with an oddly appetising metallic character. The whisky had a silky, lightly oiled mouth feel, with a toasty malt sweetness and elements of overripe fruits. The finish left behind a soft sugar note with a great depth from the fresh American oak cask. Completely unique.

Food: Chilli jam (with a hint of Pedro Ximenez) and crispbreads

Another firecracker of an evening (see what we did there) was had by all - we'll be back in two short weeks for whisky and desserts!

Cheers,

J & L

Old and Rare Whisky at the Broadfield

With the heady wafts of five fine whiskies in front of us, we arrived again for another tasting in the upstairs room of the Broadfield. The evening was a warm one, due to both the weather and the extreme popularity of the soon to be international tasting events run by Ed Daly (@whiskycurator). As well as the excellent whisky on offer, there was also a selection of exquisite food planned by chef Rob, to complement and contrast with our drams.

We opened with a spectacular whisky from Bowmore: the 16 year (1989 release). This bottling is a limited release that due to its excellence has sold out from most places, but can still be purchased for almost double its original price from auction sites. The whisky hums lightly of the sea, coupled with a smoked lime sherbet. Even more of the salty, iodine flavours came out on the taste, which paired perfectly with the sweetness from the bourbon cask. The whisky is bottled at 51.8% but doesn't have the heat expected from cask strength. It is a whisky that does everything you would expect from a Bowmore, but on a level not often seen.

Seared king scallops with candied leek, served on a bed of truffle polenta were served alongside: the food managed to find a careful balance of sweetness in the leek and sea-saltiness in the scallop to enhance the flavours of the whisky.

Yamazaki Mizanara is a truly rare whisky, and one that has not yet been released in the UK, but had been acquired for the evening by our host. This whisky is aged in a Mizanara cask, a kind of Japanese oak not often used as it is a slow growing tree and very temperamental in casks (it expands and contracts erratically and leakage is often inevitable), which makes it the most expensive bottle of the evening (around £250 a bottle). It has the smell of lingering minty incense and apricots, that continues to grow on the palate to a flavour unlike anything else we've ever tried, with flavours of malted fruits and a sweet woodiness of tobacco. The finish is of a light fruitiness and subtle smoke.

The food accompaniment in this case was potted rabbit, hazelnut tuille and woodland pesto made from nettles, garlic, sorrel and lovage. A great earthiness from the pesto intensifies with the flavours of the Japanese oak. The rabbit itself is bold and rich and the hazelnut tuille provided the perfect level of sweetness.

The next dram was a Fettercairn 24 year. The smell was of a Victorian retiring room during tea service: wafts of old leather, fruit scones and a small sherry. A little further into the smell came the tickly heat of black pepper and walnut. On the taste was the same retiring room, this time late evening with a large glass of sherry and a toffee pudding, plus a lovely spice creeping in on the finish.


Pan fried pigeon breast with a summer berry kebab and a strawberry balsamic jus was the pairing here. Pigeon is one of my favourite pieces of poultry and this was a fine example of how good game can be.

The oldest whisky of the evening came second to last in the form of Glenfarclas 30, which has an incredibly rounded nose of sweet toffee with treacle that gives way to citrus punch. The sherry finish is exquisitely sticky and rounded across the mouth but steps up a notch with delightful spiced dried fruit. Whilst this whisky was awesome, its age means for me that there is a little loss of a certain characteristic - the flavours all marry together so well that we both found it almost bland.

This was served with an ideal accompaniment: venison tortellini with sautéed wild mushrooms. The richness of this dish worked really well with the hearty nature of the whisky.

The final dram of the night was undoubtedly the most special. We were initially taken by surprise by the colour - blush pink! This turned out to be Bruichladdich 10 year "Duplex" - a private cask bottling, with 244 bottles produced. Finished in very rare Petrus wine casks and personally bottled by Jim McEwan, this is certainly a whisky with a story to tell. A robust wine-y nose gives way to a rounded flavour of red fruits and delicate sweetness. At 62.3%, this is a whisky which fills the head rather than the stomach with warmth. It is a marvellous dram that tickles all the palate with a rounded depth from the fine red wine finish.

This was served with a goat's cheese semifreddo, apricot puree and summer berry candy: a delightful pud and a wonderfully sweet way to draw the evening to a close.

This was a splendid end to the tasting series, with some of the finest whiskies we've sampled throughout the tastings and easily some of the best food pairings.

The next round of tastings are already planned, and we're sure to be booking on to a few!

Jim