Staff Favorites - Alexandre Brisoux

Review Date: 5-15-2013

Pungent stuff, this! The nose gives off big aromas of salty, toasted almond, brown sugar, maple syrup and caramel fudge. You might think this would then be one of the sweeter malts, but it switches up when you taste it: the contrast of the salty, rancio notes from the Sherry cask keeps the sweetness well in bounds. Still, this is a full, thick and rich dram, which comes across to me something like a pianist playing a slow, left handed vamp on the lower reaches of his instrument. Into this deep end flavor range, on the finish, comes just the slightest bit of fruity, bright, candied citron peel; a spot of sunlight beaming into a shadowed room through a torn shade. While this, of course, makes me wish we had more Mortlach, getting to sample this singular malt is well worth the price of admission.

Review Date: 5-15-2013

When mortlach is good- its this freaking good. This is a rich and dense bottle of pure malty deliciousness, filled with dark fruits, baking spices, and round oak flavors that coat your mouth and leave you wanting more. Put a little water in this cask strength beast- it will show you all its capable of.

Review Date: 5-15-2013

Hewitson is a great grower/producer who does not make his wines with the heavy handed approach popular in Australia. His are balanced and finessed wines that show what Barossa is really capable of. The Miss Harry blend is a rhone-inspired wine, unmistakably Australian in its fruit flavors, but with a bright and balanced finish and wonderful spices. Its easily one of the best deals we have for good Australia wines.

Review Date: 5-15-2013

Mencias from ribeira sacra tend to be more elegant than their bierzo brethren. This wine is a fine example at a perfect price- bitter raspberry fruit and earth with an elegant body and light tannin.

Review Date: 5-15-2013

If there is one single malt I'm going to drop the cash on this year, the Mortlach has just won my first choice slot. Baking spices like cinnamon, clove, and nutmeg with caramel and vanilla. Sweet richness intertwined with a meaty saline quality. Stunningly layered and crazy drinkable. Snap it up while you can- it's a rarity worthy the splurge.

Review Date: 5-15-2013

Fans of past bottlings of the Rusty Blade rejoice- this is your baby, back again! All that wonderful gingerbready goodness, clove, nutmeg and cinnamon with sweet juniper flashing through. Doesn't even really feel like Gin. Y-U-M!

Review Date: 5-15-2013

Super nerdy Gin fans, this one's for you! Cinnamon, vanilla sweetness, with a funky saline-wet-sand-beach kelp thing happening. Richer mouthfeel than the "Cask A" for sure. A gin to stretch your intellect over a long afternoon!

Review Date: 5-15-2013

The Launois Quartz is a perennial favorite here at K&L. One of our cleanest and lightest in style, the Chardonnay flavor really comes through on the nose with a tasty finish that's brimming with crisp acidity. A no brainer for the money.

Review Date: 5-15-2013

Absolutely delicious bubbly! Bright citrus and stonefruit right on the entry with a richness that finishes cleanly, rather than nutty or oaky. The Launois Reserve is right there with the Bonville Blanc de Blanc and Bruno Michel for best $35-ish bottle of Champagne we carry. A big step up from the Quartz, although both are the same price.

Review Date: 5-15-2013

I had previously seen releases of Mortlach growing up in the UK but sadly had not yet developed much of a taste for Scotch. Bottlings I have had since then in the USA have been pretty underwhelming yet I remember the distillery being held in high regard by customers in London. Just the other day Mr. Driscoll presented us with this new purchase and announced it was the real deal Mortlach expression complete with heavily sherried color, texture and taste. The bottle does not disappoint. Decadently concentrated, with a rich and saturated texture. It shows alluring and complex flavors of fruitcake, dried figs, baking spices and a beautifully savory sherry induced rancio character with toasted hazelnuts that lingers on the finish.

Review Date: 5-15-2013

Mortlach as it was meant to be, that Diageo doesn’t see fit for the American consumer, heavily influenced by Sherry, and darn delicious. David had been raving about this, I try to remain neutral until I’ve had a chance to have it in my glass, well (and I am loathe to say this, again, but) He was right. This is one of the purest expressions of what Sherry tastes like. This isn’t sweet, like most Sherry isn’t, it is nutty, and savory, notes of roasted coffee and black walnuts, the Scotch really has been beautifully influenced by the barrel. The marriage of Single Malt and Sherry is in supreme balance, and at the apex of maturity.

Review Date: 5-15-2013

The Absolut Elyx Single Estate impressed me with its effortless presence, it seemed to tease me with a hidden flavor or texture, and this hard to describe but easy to appreciate vodka changed the way that I think about the whole category. Since I tasted it yesterday with Mr. Driscoll I have not been able to stop thinking about it! Vodka is not an easy thing for a wine guy to get excited about. It is meant to be flavorless, which seems like a strange goal for something that goes in your mouth. If you have been drinking Grey Goose or Chopin and want to see what one of the world’s top producers of vodka can do when they really put their mind to it, this is bottle is a must.

Review Date: 5-15-2013

I was blown away by this malt! Finding value in over 20 year old Speyside in first fill Sherry sounds like an impossible task in today’s market, but our two David's have really done it with this Mortlach 22 Year Old. It has a deep walnut color and a rich rancio nose full of both malty sweetness and nutty Oloroso complexity. On the palate this Chieftain's bottling is giant and powerful, but opens very nicely with a little water. The finish has the rare "peacocks tail" expansiveness that only the best well aged elixirs in the world have- it goes on forever. If you don't have room for one more bottle of scotch in your cabinet, it is time to finish one, because this is not to be missed!!!!

Review Date: 5-15-2013

Finding a cask of sherry-aged Mortlach has been kind of a white whale hunt for me. In my opinion, when Mortlach is aged properly it's the best sherry aged whisky in the world - better than Macallan, Glenfarclas, Glendronach, or Balvenie. There's something deeper and more magical happening at the core of this malt that outshines the other Speysiders. There's plenty of Mortlach casks out there, but they're always the castaways - the barrels that Diageo cut loose because they were aged in refill hogsheads (barrels that add little richness and result in light, fruity, leaner whiskies). However, we fell upon this 22 year old monster in the Chieftain's warehouse and we didn't even blink when they offered it to us. I think it's the best sherry-aged whisky we have - it may be the best sherry-aged whisky we've ever had. It makes Mac 18 seem foolish and watered-down . It makes Glenfarclas seem overbearing. It makes Glendronach seem overly sweet. Balvenie can't hold a candle to this. Behold everyone - the great Mortlach. Sherry-aged perfection if there ever was such a thing.

Review Date: 5-15-2013

I love it when a brand-oriented whisky customer comes into K&L and I get the chance to talk with them about all of the smaller independents. Nothing feels better than turning a new drinker onto the lesser-known spirits of the world. Almost nothing. There's one thing I actually enjoy even more. I really get a kick when a brand known for bulk production and cheesy gimmickry actually delivers a product that tastes good.I love it when Glenlivet makes a good whisky. I love it when Tanqueray releases a good gin. I love it when gigantic brands show that they're still capable of making something inexpensive, but tasty. Taking a page from the craft spirits movement, Absolut has answered the call for locally-sourced, "handcrafted" (whatever that means these days - in this case I think they're referring to the fact it was manually distilled on a copper still) spirits by offering one of their own. The Elix is made from all-estate (apparently Absolut owns a number of fields in Sweden) grown wheat. It's bottled in a nice package and proofed down to 42.3%, which to me means that they actually tinkered with this thing at various levels to find the one that tasted best, rather than just dropping it down to the defacto 40%. One of the best vodkas I've ever tasted - easily.