WhiskyLive : the last in a recurring cabal expedition

And so we come to the final cabal write-up, which happened before final cabal tastings (Bruichladdich), but due to vagaries of the notes (slightly lost) they've only just become available.
We've learnt that note taking is not our strong suit when drinking, so it's name and rating only - sorry kids!

WhiskyLive has grown, significantly, since we first went - there's now a lot of non-scotch drinks, including for the first time an optimistically titled 'craft beer' area.

First up we went for something we'd never heard of before, the Islay Boys Flatnose whisky.
Blended Scotch 7.5/10
Blended Scotch 6/10 [top tip, the other one is cheaper]
Islay 8/10 [we enjoyed this one]
An excellent start to the day, and worth having a punt on them as they're very reasonably priced.

Glenglassaugh Peated, nose was brilliant, palate a bit weak. 5/10

Glendronach, ahhh hello our old friend....
Peated Port finish - oh yess :D 9/10

Benriach, another distillery we like.  A lot.
Curiositas 10 yo peated. 5/10
Authenticus 10yo 8.5-9/10
22yo rum peated 8/10
Pedro Ximenez peated 21yo? 9-9.5/10
Glendronach 21yo 8.5/10 [yeah we like this one, we've had quite a bit of it]

Cotswolds Whisky, fruity, young 6/10

Glen Moray
Sherry cask, very dry 8/10

Glenrothes
92  8/10
94 oak 6/10

Berry Brothers Rudd
GlenMoray 8.5/10 [I think it's this one]
Teaninich 33yo 7/10
Islay Blend 8/10

Cabal: Bruichladdich MP7

Half of the cabal, Alec and I, completed our virtual tasting of the Bruichladdich MP7.

1694 d. 9/12/2004; b. 2017; 12 years first fill bourbon

N: sweet, bourbon, manuka honey?, vanilla

P: very spiky, sweet, oats? Cloying,

F: long, burnt wood,

Very vigorous, maybe too young? Smoothes out with water, but still very prickly.

Rating: 6/10

4019 d.17/12/2008; b 2017 8 yo; 1st fill bourbon

N: Hint of smoke, very sweet, hint of sweet fruit, ?maybe?

P: smokey, gentle tingle, fruit disappears on the palate

F: med, smoke-tingle, sweet almost smoky bacon crisps sweetness

7.5/10 good interesting, but not very complex

Water improves it, brings out smoke and warmth, maybe even 8/10

2431 d.11/07/2011 b 2017 6 years 1st fill bourbon; 61.5%

N: bourbon sweetness, oak chips, wet neoprene, wet cat (hopefully not in neoprene)

P: hint of smoke, prickly, pineapple, turkish delight?

F: oddly short, candied pineapple

7/10 more delicate than 4019, water doesn’t do much for it

Overall, we thought this was the lesser of the three tastings. The whisky seemed very aggressive, rather than interesting, and in at least one case, really needed more time in the barrel.