Green Spot Château Léoville Barton Single Pot Still

Amusing: I’ve had the Green Spot Chateau Montelena. I’ve now had the Green Spot Chateau Leoville Barton. I’ve never actually had Green Spot. My understanding is that this whiskey is superior finished in wine casks, Zinfandel and Bordeaux respectively, but it also feels kind of bougie drinking whiskey finished in such a manner (Leoville Barton sounds like the rich popular kid with the sports car you would have loved to punch in the face in high school). But I don’t mind drinking something that sounds bougie. The important thing is the flavor of the whiskey itself, and both the Montelena and the Leoville Baton are good. But which is better? That’s what I can’t tell you. People who’ve tasted these side-by-side seem to favor Montelena. That one also appeared on the Whisky Advocate Top 20 a few years back, but I’m not so sure that’s my opinion here. Granted I had Montelena last year, and I have a glass of Leoville Barton in front of me now, and my favorite whisky often tends to be the one in front of me. But if I can speak from memory, I think your preference will come down to whether you prefer berries (Montelena) or citrus (Leoville Barton). The nose here, while harboring a touch of vanilla custard, is also full of mango, orange sherbet, and creamsicle. I also think Bellini. Mainly what’s there is a the citrus with a custard side. Not orange prominently but orange cream. When it comes to the flavor, I’ll note that this has been open about a month and half the bottle is gone. The nose isn’t too evolved from being open, but the taste has mellowed. There was an bite initially on the tongue that has disappeared with time and aeration. The creamsicle continues with tropical fruit and marmalade. The finish isn’t terribly long, and there’s a touch of spice like candied orange. And it’s enjoyable but not entirely classic. Don’t get me wrong, this is good stuff. Among the better Irish whiskeys I’ve had, and it might be better than Montelena. Might not be as good. But I’d like to be more enthusiastic. If I like it better than Montelena, I'm still downgrading a quarter star. Time evolves your taste, so that might be on the level with this too. It's good Irish whiskey and at $65, it's worth it, but for the $100 I've seen it in other places I'd save your money. The market is going insane and we're paying way too much for good whiskey posing as great. Like I've said: $65, Green Spot, don't raise the price. You're getting what it's worth out of this now.

N: Heavy and ripe orchard fruit dripping with dew. Honey, caramel, toffee and overripe red fruit swirl together. Vanilla and red wine. Splash of oak. Milk chocolate. Dash of mint and spice. P: Red wine, chocolate, coffee, plum, dates. Vanilla and cinnamon spice. The fruit on the nose is there, but much more subdued - in the background, generally, but a juicy, ripe peach note occasionally pops off. Big, oily mouthfeel that leaves a hot baking spice taste/feel hugging your tongue. This has some of the bitterness of the Yellow and Red, but that I don't recall from the other Greens (or the Blue, for that matter). That bitter leads into the finish, which has some grassy, herbal notes plus baking spice and a bit of mint/menthol. That all sits on top of a still very big and rich malt roundness - caramel, vanilla, and toffee. Red fruit or red wine mingles with pot still spice and lingers for a long time. Final note is a different bitterness - this feels like that French oak tannin and dry red wine. It reminds me quite a bit of The Glenlivet 14 Year, which is aged/finished (not sure exactly which) in French Limousine oak. The nature of the wood notes is similar, although this is more nuanced, subtler, better. Excellent. This feels a bit more substantive and interesting than the Chateau Montelena version. It slots nicely into the Spot range between the Greens and the Yellow. This presents, basically, a more grown-up version of Green Spot, which is very welcome at times, but it's also just not worth the cost at other times. I still think the brightness, accessibility, quality, and excellent value of regular Green Spot makes it the overall winner of the Spot lineup, but I would say this is a not-far-behind 2nd place. It's easy to consider repeating this bottle. Special thanks to @Whiskey_Hound for pushing me off the fence on this one back in March. I bought this two weeks after your review. Savored it slowly until tonight.

The wine cask finish in the Montelena Chateau edition took an already fantastic base Green Spot to new heights. Naturally, I had to give this one a go next. The Leoville Barton adds 1-2 years of Bourdeaux cask finishing to Olorosso, American oak, and bourbon cask--bottled at 46% like Montelena. Let's give it a go. Nose: Vanilla, toffee, and banana off the jump. Peaches and cream. Raspberry, strawberry, apricot, and orange/nectarine. These last few notes intensify with time in the glass. Especially raspberry. A plum note lurks in the background. Floral notes. Vanilla pudding and roasted chesunut. Develops after even more time. Cinnamon, baking spice, and oak. Great nose. Palate: Gala apple, pear, apricot, and banana. Toffee and vanilla pudding. Caramel and chocolate-dipped raspberry. Honeydew and kiwi. Blackberry and plum. Shortbread/ sugar cookie in the background--generally those would be in the forefront in an Irish whiskey. Brown sugar and roasted chestnut. Walnut as well, and a touch of cinnamon. Like the nose, this is awesome. Finish: The honeydew and kiwi carry over from the palace. Apple, plum, raspberry, blackberry, and cranberry. Orange and nectarine. Cinnamon and oak carry this to a medium/long finish. Slid finish. Wow. This one meets expectations--and then some. It's phenomenal at every level. Couldn't recommend this enough-- to any whiskey drinker, whether you like Irish, Bourbon, or Scotch. This is fantastic. It's difficult to say any whiskey is worth $120 when I enjoy so many whiskies that are a quarter of the price. But if you can pony up, this is worth every cent. It is truly special and I can't see it being replicated based on everything else I've tried to date. And I've had a few whiskies. Buy with confidence.

Irish whiskey tasting, The Oak Barrel, Sydney, 7 Feb 2019. Whisky #3 Nose: Dusky floral notes (orange petal and violet potpourri), mixed berry preserves, light honey, buttered brioche. A warm, comforting cereal nose lifted by berry aromas. Palate: A rich but subtle (slightly restrained?) semi-sweet arrival focused on cereal and nuts (you can taste the un-malted barley component). The development brings out berries, red fruit and vanilla notes. The texture is creamy and slightly oily. Finish: Medium. A particularly nice finish with a sweet cereal character that gains a mildly drying chocolate bitterness in the aftertaste. The character of standard Green Spot is transformed by the wine casks into a softer form here, to create what is essentially a variation on a theme. So, is it worth paying 50% more than the cost of standard Green Spot for this expression? Well, it depends on how much a fan you are of wine-finished whiskey. If it’s a treatment that you find compelling (and it certainly can be in the right circumstances) then this is a fine example. I liked this whisky but it was clearly overshadowed by the next 3 whiskies in the tasting flight on the night, two of which were the same price. For me it was just a little too shy and retiring. I'm giving it the same score I gave the regular Green Spot. “Good” : 83/100 (3.5 stars)

Tasting neat. Golden brown straw color and strong coating legs in the glass. Nose is dry grain and musty grapes, sweet plum stone fruit and strawberry. Whiff of ethanol and grass in the far background. Sweet rich fruit and vanilla in the mouth, soft and coating. A little char oak tannins and ethanol bloom, but held in check by the wine influence and caramelized sugar sweetness. The finish is ripe fruit, orange peel, a little grassy spice, soft and looooong. Of the Green and Yellow Spots which I've tried (and tasting the Yellow Spot side by side with this Leoville Barton barreled Green Spot tonight), this is a softer and more wine-mellowed Irish whiskey. It's richer, thicker, more complex (which is saying a lot given how good the Green and Yellow are), less astringent, and more wine-coated. That said, I might still prefer the Yellow which is less opulent in wine flavors, but... that's like choosing favorite children... which we all secretly do. That doesn't make me love this LB Green Spot any less. I'm going to enjoy this bottle.

Nose is sweet and rich with the predominant note being vanilla pudding, along with graham cracker, fig, white grape, and bread yeast. No wood presence at all. Ethanol is truly non-existent. Not very complex, but nice. Palate brings vanilla creme, rich butterscotch, floral honeysuckle, berry compote, orange zest, generic tannins, and a hint of beet or turnip. Flavors are soft and delicate but well integrated. Finish is very dry, medium length, and offers some spice in the form of nutmeg and clove, along with oats, more vanilla, cotton candy, and a hint of almond. If you are looking for wood presence, this isn’t your jam. Mouthfeel is thicker than you would expect given the delicate profile, almost fudge-like, and is a real high point. This bottle took forever to open up, so don’t judge it by the neck pour but once it did, it really won me over. A lovely Irish whiskey, but I can get expressions I enjoy more from the Redbreast line at a cheaper price (Lustau, Port Finish) At $104.99, falls just short of rebuy.