Sean Lyons

9.3

Smells of dark cherries, Coke, vanilla, some apple pie, cinnamon. The initial taste is really great - loads of rich, fruity (prunes) and vanilla sweetness, offset with an interesting tannin. It has a medium finish where the oak becomes more pronounced. Best brandy I’ve had in a while. — 5 days ago

Sean Lyons

9.0

Another slightly disappointing Arran cask offering. I think I just like the Arran 10 so much that I get frustrated when some cask influence overwhelms the original flavor. That’s the case here. I get a lot of the Amarone flavor - tart, bright red fruits, perfume and even some tannin-esque notes - but it just dominates the flavor so much that I miss the that great Arran taste. — 5 months ago

Sean Lyons

9.3

Even though I was drinking the 2008 and 2024, this still took several hours of
decanting to open properly. Once it did, it really showed out – notes of dark fruit, like blackberry, but mostly luscious notes of leather, bacon fat, oak and tobacco. The last sip I took was the best sip. Really good. — 5 months ago

Sean Lyons

8.7

The most bourbony tasting scotch I’ve ever had. Just vanilla, oak, orange zest, cinnamon - typical bourbon notes. It’s weirdly hot on the palette for what’s supposed to be a 40% whisky. I’ll say it’s better than I’ve heard. Definitely not watery or thin like some chill-filtered, 40% offerings. Nothing too special either. — 12 days ago

Sean Lyons

9.6

Just everything you want in a big, fat Australian Shiraz. Big, bright fruit - cherries, cranberries, raspberries - jumps out at first, but later you enjoy some darker, stewed fruit flavors - plum and even tomatoes. Super long finish. Drinking this 2017 in December 2024 and it is perfectly balanced. Just the right amount of tannins and acid to balance the immense fruit bomb. Just great. — 4 months ago

Sean Lyons

8.9

I was so excited when I tasted the original Arran 10 that I went out and bought all the variations I could find. However, I found them all to be slightly disappointing, including this one. There is an odd thinness on the palate and an off putting sour note on the back end which I did not enjoy. I’ve been trying a lot of “sherry bomb” whiskies lately and this was my least favorite. — 5 months ago

Sean Lyons

9.3

Sean had this 2 months ago

Sean Lyons

8.3

Nose: light caramel, acetone, chocolate chip cookies, bananas.
Palate: cotton candy, caramel apple, very light oak

The coffey still process is obvious here. This is a thin, light, sweet whisky that reminds me of some cheaper Irish whiskies. Almost no finish, disappears in a second. It is what it is. Not my style.
— 3 months ago

Sean Lyons

9.3

This is a perfect introduction to Glen Scotia. I’ve loved every sip I’ve taken of every Glen Scotia and this is kind of their house style and it’s most basic and straightforward form. I can’t say the “double barrel” added a huge amount of oakiness, but I prefer it that way. This features the great Glen Scotia notes of caramel, tobacco, stewed apples, brine and a little bit of smoke. A pretty amazing value. — 5 months ago

Sean Lyons

8.6

Textbook bourbon profile…watered down. It hits all the right notes, but does so very, very softly — 6 months ago