Amrut Portonova Single Malt

Nose - (w/o water) Very tropical fruity/floral, coconut, pineapple, hints of dark stone fruits, lemon cake (w/ water) More pronounced tropical vanilla, toasted coconut, less port influence. Taste - (w/o water) Dark fruity honey, fruity black peppercorns, strong white pepper heat/burn, pomelo, "dark" tasting yet fruity/tropical, pineapple, drying, light fruity bitter like a dark chocolate/coffee covered dark toffee, lightly briny (w/ water) more tropical fruity honey, grilled pineapple, floral saffron, sharp citrus/hoppy sweet. Finish - (w/o water) Lingering white pepper burn, charred pineapple bittersweet, tropical honey, weird splenda sweetness (w/ water) Less white pepper burn, lingering tropical saffron simple, fruity honey. Score - 85/100 Final Thoughts - When I first opened the bottle, my impression was great nose, not so great on the palate, but after having this opened for a few weeks, it's mellowed out a tad. Nose is still fantastic, both with and without water in that it retains the tropical vibe I get from Amrut. The port influence is more prominent without water and oddly seems to vanish quite quickly with water. On the palate, it's super hot without water, and gives a very tropical/fruity honey vibe which is somewhat tamed with water and makes it more of a lighter/tropical vibe with dark honey undertones. Without water, it burns from the instant it hits your tongue to the finish, a bit of water tames it a bit, but you need to be careful as it's easy to overdo it. I'd suggest a dropper to get it to the level you want as it's easy to add a bit too much, which is what I think I did. Overall a very interesting dram, hard to tell the youth from the heat and the dominating tropical flavors but that's a good thing.

The nose is damp cardboard. Fortunately, the palate is much sweeter, with plenty of fruit (cherry with some prune and nice pear rounding it out), but also some gross damp cardboard. It's this mix of tasty fruit and unpalatable ick. The high ABV helps to smooth it out and enhance the sweetness. It's a sipper with some nice flavor to it and also some ugly flaws. The finish fortunately loses a lot of the cardboard and taste more like rich cherry with something a little odd backing it. With water, the wet cardboard comes out a lot more, bringing out some smoke and moderate spice with it. This are bits of fig and honey in here too. The complexity comes out in a nice way with the added water, but it doesn't escape that one weird note. If it could just replace that cardboard with some barrel age, this could be quite good. As it is, this is a mix of some really good notes and one seriously disappointing one. Bits of chocolate do come out, but not in a way that is super transformative. The orange flavor is Abit strong here, adding to the cardboard and making it taste ever so slightly like alcohol too. There's so much here that's really good, so it's tragic that there is that one gross note. In the end, I could enjoy sipping this (at least it avoids gross bread) and is surpasses most Irish whiskeys. Still, it wouldn't be one of my highest choices. All that said though, I could definitely get over that cardboard flavor eventually and it is otherwise quite good. That richness is a really good selling point, especially with the nicely balanced fruit. The intense spiciness does make it taste like a more serious drink. That weird flavor though is just so disappointing.

I had the good fortune to attend an Amrut tasting event tonight with one of the brand ambassadors at the Seven Grand whiskey bar in downtown Austin. I got to try five different expressions from Amrut over the course of the evening, plus some delightful punch made with their peated single malt. Wow, what a whisky! I haven't had too many port finishes, as they're damn expensive usually and I'm not the biggest fan of wine finishes, but this one almost reminded me of a sweet red wine mixed with bourbon. The nose was just incredible. I wish my whole house smelled like this one. That being said, the brand rep said there were 60 bottles allocated to all of Texas, which likely means a high price tag. I was most glad I got to try this one though, and it ranks #2 out of 5 for my tastings tonight.

Batch 16 Shoulder pour. Strawberry jam, prunes, green pepper, hot pepper, chew-able aspirin bitterness. Unique, and wonderful. Thoughts: This is an expensive bottle, but the realization of losing it is too much to bear. The uniqueness and quality of this spirit is amazing. I went out and purchased the last one on the shelf - as a backup. I don't know where I can get another, but I'll miss it when its gone. It is my mountain top for fruity whiskies. 5.0 - go out and buy all of the stock you can find. 4.0 - must buy at least one bottle before you die. 3.0 - solid, must try at a bar, or mooch from a friend. 2.0 - didn't like it, you may. 1.0 - you may have the palate of my dog, and he licks his own ass.

Pro tip - let this one sit out a bit. Nose - Dark damp dunnage warehouse. Port pipes are sitting on heavily malt soaked wood. Dusty oak. Some nice spice notes. Taste - The 62+% coats the mouth, sweat malt, port pipe, old wood dries, spices. This is completely unique in how the wood spice and drying notes mix with huge abv and alcohol. The oak notes are completely unique while the sweetness gives us figs, dates, raisins, and vanilla sweetness. Really unique and tasty whisky. I've bought a second bottle. First bottle I bought was $128 but the newer bottle was $86. 3.25 - if this is your wheelhouse it's one to seek out. If not, you may still enjoy a pour, but not one to chase after.

This needs to come with a government warning: " for masochistic needs only, please do not use for any other leisure drinking. May also be used as antiseptic for MRSA and other hard to kill viruses and bacteria". My god this gives you a kick in the teeth! It's a little bunny on the nose, fairly a faint wisp of port and sweet bread. But, wow...on the palette, it turns into a chock full of caramel, winterberries, and dark fruits. A bit much for my taste, but I can see this being enjoyed by certain folks. Glad I had a sample only, not sure I'd be buying a bottle. If I did that, I feel as if I need an entire personality overhaul that involves skin tight leather, whips, and chains.