Mark’s Whisky Ramblings 449: Cley Secret Islay

Mark Dermul, Belgian whisky blogger, tries a Dutch malt. Paul and Maria from the Rotterdam Cley distillery have a special place in Mark’s heart. They make really nice whisky and they are also super sympathetic people. That’s always good for a nice story. And they are getting more and more acclaim – rightly so! – because after the special festival bottling for the whisky festival in Eindhoven – selected by The Barrel Baron – this time they bottled a very special malt for the Whisky Festival in Delft in May 2022. A Secret Islay! And triple distilled! After 4 years on a classic bourbon cask, this Dutch malt got an 18-month finish on a cask on which an Islay whisky previously matured.

https://youtu.be/iRuIYE5_UIY

This weeks episode of the Good Dram Show https://youtu.be/OTEi0yHFxxQ features the Rebels ‘Guerilla Casks’ releases from @bravenewspirits

ralfy review 933 – Ledaig 18yo @46.3%vol: (2022)

Wild Turkey Rare Breed

https://youtu.be/wl0tRR-B18w

Took me long enough to review it, but here we are, finally.

Wild Turkey Rare Breed. The small batch, cask strength bourbon that all are compared against.

Picking up so many plaudits amongst whisky drinkers of all varieties and styles, that alone says something about the quality of what is inside. The same mash bill as all other Wild Turkey products but with a smaller batching of casks, roughly 250, it still allows these classic WT notes of caramel corn, dill, peanuts and wave after wave of deliciousness!

ralfy review 932 Extras – Information on quality of casks (Part 1)

ralfy review 932 – Deanston 18yo @ 46.3%vol: (2022)

Welcome to this week’s episode of the show in which I’ll be taking a look at the first batch of releases in the Whisky of Voodoo range created by Brave New Spirits.

https://youtu.be/A1lnNTK5xNA

Mark’s Whisky Ramblings 448: Caol Ila 2010 Signatory Vintage Cask Strength Collection

Mark Dermul, Belgian whisky blogger, tries a very sherried Caol Ila. A few weeks ago his whisky buddy Rainer sent Mark a message about this bottle. And whether he would be allowed to come by to have it tasted and whether Mark would like to make a Rambling about it? Yes & yes. And so here we are.

https://youtu.be/W4xls2iT4VQ

https://youtu.be/AN6n2emwXro

This is a bottle I’ve been chasing since receiving a sample from a viewer, always very kind this community!

The smell of this thing is so alluring that it made me think that it could be a top 5 whisky ever. The development from smell to taste is so hefty and oak driven, spicy and sumptuous with caramel, tobacco and menthol. A finish that is a little bit of damp squib compared to the rest of the whisky, but either way, at £60 a bottle it doesn’t break the bank, and it’s a smaller/lesser known brand of cask strength bourbon. It is certainly worth checking out if you’re a fan of bottles like Elijah Craig, Stagg and Kentucky Owl.

Cheers

ralfy review 931 Extras – My Journey with Bunnahabhain.