Bushmills 10 Year Single Malt

This is a fairly typical Irish whisky in terms of flavor profile. I get honey, apple/pear notes along with vanilla and shortbread. Nose and palate are pretty much the same notes with nothing really evolving over the course of the sip. The 10 years gives it a bit more oomph than your garden variety Bushmills with a rounder mouthfeel and more viscosity. But what makes it prohibitive is the pricing here. Typical of a lot of brands these days, it's about ten dollars too expensive. I managed to pick it up at a $12 discount, and for $38 it's not bad. I wouldn't exactly call it a steal, but I didn't rue the cash. Overall, it's one that can be enjoyed best after tasting something better when you still want a whisky but you're not as discerning with what that whisky is. At 80 proof, it might be a bit more intense and interesting if you bumped the proof up, but then again, if you're using it to the effect of having something to taste to come down off your better whiskies, having something that's 80 proof doesn't hurt. PS. This is one of those odd whiskies where it tastes better sipping out of a shot glass than out of a tumbler or a Glencairn. I'm not sure what makes this happen, but I've noticed that every once in a while, a whisky comes along where this is the case.

Light clear gold color. Sweet honeyed nose along with a key-lime-pie-with-graham-cracker-crust note, with a little menthol coolness. Sweetness continues on the palate, with some similarity to a Hall’s honey-lemon cough drop—in this regard, flavor profile is very similar to my recollection of Nikka Coffey Malt Whisky (not Nikka Coffee Grain Whisky, which is not dissimilar to bourbon). This same note continues on the finish, where the light 40% ABV becomes apparent, and again shows a menthol coolness. Not complex, with the same note or two being struck on nose, midpalate, and finish—but sweet and easy drinking, if unusual with the menthol coolness. I need to taste this side-by-side with the Nikka Coffey Malt to test my taste memory; perhaps tomorrow. 2.5 on the Distiller scale. N.B. All spirits tasted neat in a Glencairn glass.

I really wanted to like this one more than I actually did. It starts off just fine on the nose with vanilla and light fruit. Initially, the taste is very close to the aroma with honey and fruit, however, in the end there is a flavor note there that just doesn't sit well with me. The best way I can describe it is meat broth. This is probably an issue with my pallette and not the whiskey, but I just couldn't get past it when drinking it neat. It did mix well, hence the 2.5 stars. I have really enjoyed the other Bushmills varieties that I've tried (with Black Bush being my favorite), so if I can locate a second bottle of this I'll give it another try. Hopefully it will be different the second time around.

Visual: Golden-Honey colour. Quick, thin legs. Nosing: Tinned/Jarred pears; fresh oak shavings. Honey and floral. Esters are released when swirled; a light banana cream. Tasting: Sweet, lots of vanilla; smooth. Decent body, short finish. A tad bit of spice; namely nutmeg, but only when aerating the mouth. A mellow dram. Reduced Nosing: slight, sweet biscuit notes. Nothing much else. Reduced Tasting: a bit of added water takes the bite away, allowing for much more honey and sweetness to shine through. Slight light white pepper. An affordable dram. Good quality for value. Bushmills is a classic and the 10 is well worth the price.

Nose: Hints of sherry and dried fruit, honey, malted cereal grains. Not very nuanced but an inviting nose nonetheless Palate: maltiness and honey dominate, the sherry is still there just less assertive than the nose. A bit of astringent citrus rounds it out Finish: The sherry is back followed by honey and bit of slalinity . A small bit of oak rounds the short finish. Overall not a bad pour for the price, bushmills has a profile that works well but doesnt have the complexity you can find in similar single malts. Maybe with a couple more years or proof points it would shine.

A dram of this is a perfect representation of Irish whiskey. It's smooth, subtle, sweet, and comes at a very approachable $40ish. It's a great step up from the low end Bushmills, and sits as a great entry into their age statement core. If you like Irish, this should always have a place in your bar. It's cheap enough to mix in a good cocktail, but holds up very well neat, a middle ground difficult for many whiskeys to find. There's certainly better out there, but not many at the price.