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[FWOTY 2014] Foreign Whisky of the Year


ChainWhip
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If we were rewinding to 2013, I'd have a ton of great replies to this. Since we are not, I will have to go with a whisky that has only become available in Maryland in 2014 (as near as I can recall, anyway): Nikka Taketsuru 17. It's just a beautiful dram. Well blended, with a little bit of everything. Sherry, peat, bourbon, and barley character all come out to play, and they all seem to be on the same team.

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Not sure when Redbreast 21 was released but I don't think it was in the US until early 2014. It is at or near the top of my list of Irish Whiskey as well as foreign whisky as a whole. It is superior to the Midleton Very Rare I have (and the Whisky Advocate pick for Irish Whiskey of the Year but I don't have the 2014. Mine is several years earlier).

Right next to it is the Teeling Silver Reserve 21yo finished in Sauternes although I think that probably came out in 2013. It was and is still Europe only though so I don't think I got it until 2014! Does that count?

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Not sure when Redbreast 21 was released but I don't think it was in the US until early 2014. It is at or near the top of my list of Irish Whiskey as well as foreign whisky as a whole. It is superior to the Midleton Very Rare I have (and the Whisky Advocate pick for Irish Whiskey of the Year but I don't have the 2014. Mine is several years earlier).

Right next to it is the Teeling Silver Reserve 21yo finished in Sauternes although I think that probably came out in 2013. It was and is still Europe only though so I don't think I got it until 2014! Does that count?

Well, they beat Ardbeg Auriverdes, which is the only truly 2014 LE I've managed to drink this year. My entrant has probably been available in Japan for years . . . I'll count it!.
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My #1 is easy: Kavalan Sherry Cask. Most of what I drink as far as malt goes tends to come from years past due to more favorable pricing.

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My #1 is easy: Kavalan Sherry Cask. Most of what I drink as far as malt goes tends to come from years past due to more favorable pricing.

Much as I liked that one, and I did like it a lot, it was not better than Redbreast 21 for me. No doubt my irish bias showing through. It may however be a truly 2014 release, unlike the RB 21 which appears to have come out in 2013 across the pond even if it didn't get here until 2014. Although I think the Kavalan Solist line had been out for several years in Taiwan before it washed up on our shores so perhaps not much difference.

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My #1 is easy: Kavalan Sherry Cask. Most of what I drink as far as malt goes tends to come from years past due to more favorable pricing.

US version of the Solist?

To add to the confusion, there is a "Sherry Oak" expression too.

Edited by ChainWhip
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US version of the Solist?

To add to the confusion, there is a "Sherry Oak" expression too.

It was the cask available from Binny's so I suppose it is the US expression. Weighed in at 115.6 proof.

Picked up[ the 2014 Midleton Very Rare 2014 today. Couldn't resist even though it is 80 proof. Will compare to cthe 2011 MVR at some point.

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In the Blend category (or blend of blends), I'll put my markers down on CB General or Taketsuru 21

Hmm, excellent choices. Maybe we should liberally borrow from the Whisky Advocate format with separate categories?

Current Nominees:

Canadian Whisky of the Year - ?

Irish Whiskey of the Year - Redbreast 21, Teeling Silver Reserve 21

Japanese Whisky of the Year - Nikka Taketsuru 17, Nikka Taketsuru 21

World Whisky of the Year (which seems to be any whisky not from one of the other categories) - Kavalan Sherry Cask

Blended/Blended Malt Whisky of the Year - Compass Box The General, Nikka Taketsuru 17, Nikka Taketsuru 21

Speyside Single Malt of the Year - ?

Islay Single Malt of the Year - ?

Highland/Islands Single Malt of the Year - ?

Lowlands/Campbeltown Single Malt of the Year - ?

Perhaps also have the overall Foreign Whisky of the Year as a category too?

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I'll throw out Springbank CS as being a top flight dram at a reasonable price. It's not a LE, but is consistently outstanding.

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I really liked Compass Box's Lost Blend - it was pretty tasty. But many of the other releases this year were fine but nothing was especially noteworthy.

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Top Speysider for me was Benriach 19 1994 PX Cask # 7179 - 51.9%

The peat & PX makes this a absolutely delicious pour.

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Turns out I got to try the Whisky Advocate selection for Islay of the year at a tasting here in town this year in June. I have to agree it was a mighty fine whisky!

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In fact there was a lot of very tasty whisky that evening!

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This was a pretty interesting whisky as well. May have been around a while but I first tried it this year at a Wednesday tasting in July.

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Two standouts I personally drank this year were SMWS 53.194 A Calmac Ferry Dram, and a Springbank 17 refill sherry cask. Not sure when those came out, but I drank 'em in 2014. 53.194 was one of the better Caol Ilas I've ever tasted. Scratch that, it was one of the better peated whiskies I've ever tried. The Springer was good enough for me to pay the fairly ridiculous asking price after trying it, and not even complain about the shipping I also had to pay.

I have a few bottles that would probably be up there with these, but they are put away for future special occasions.

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My personal favorite this year is a Springbank 18yo single cask for the Belgian distributor The Nectar. I feel like it's a real old school whisky, and a shining example of Springbank quality. It's a trip back in time - as evoked in this performance of "Flower of Scotland" by The Corries in 1975.

The song is about the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314 in which the Scots defeated the larger British occupying army. Springbank released a whisky "Spirit of Freedom" this year to commemorate the 700th anniversary of the battle, prior to the Scottish vote for independence. Springbank really is doing it differently.

Edited by tuntime
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Kavalan Sherry Soloist is very nice (and I tend to dislike sherry). The proof really ups the stakes. I think the Sherry Oak and the Soloist Sherry are one in the same (I could be wrong). At the Taipei Airport we bought 2 liters of Soloist Sherry and they gave us 4 samples of Sherry Oak.

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Kavalan Sherry Soloist is very nice (and I tend to dislike sherry). The proof really ups the stakes. I think the Sherry Oak and the Soloist Sherry are one in the same (I could be wrong). At the Taipei Airport we bought 2 liters of Soloist Sherry and they gave us 4 samples of Sherry Oak.

The Kavalan Sherry Oak is pretty much the same whisky as the Solist Sherry, just diluted to 92 proof, as I understand it. There is also an ex-bourbon oak which, like the Sherry oak, is the Solist watered down to 92 proof.

There is also a very nice Concertmaster Port finish at 86 proof but sadly no corresponding cask strength Solist port version that I am aware of.

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