Knappogue Castle 14 Year Twin Wood

This has long been a favorite of mine and was one of the whiskies that got me into sipping. In fact, it’s one of the ones that inspired me to start doing the research that would then lead me to writing these reviews. So it’s only fitting that I tackle this now and not a day later. I will try and leave my bias at the door, no promises. Nose: Classic Knappogue Granny Smith Apple. Fig and green grape. Plum. Shortbread cookie, honey, vanilla, and toffee. Raisin. Walnut and almond. Pecan. Orange. Black pepper. Perfume and floral notes. Irish soda bread. Coconut. White pepper, clove, nutmeg, and oak. Palate: Gala and Granny Smith apple. More of the fig, raisin, and grape. Almond, walnut, and cashew. Caramel, toffee, and vanilla. Black pepper, clove, nutmeg, and oak. More of the Irish soda bread. Banana. Coffee-flavored ice cream. Clove, nutmeg, black pepper, orange peel, and oak. Finish: Almond. Vanilla, toffee, and caramel. Brown sugar and shortbread cookie. Raisin and apple. Black pepper, clove, nutmeg, and oak. Medium-long finish. It’s every bit as good as I remember. The bourbons barrel-Olorosso sherry cask “Twin Wood” combo provides the nutty and wood notes that elevate the softer, fruit forward 12-year was missing. This combines all of these features, kicked up to a 46% ABV, and I’m sure those two extra years in the barrel didn’t hurt either. This has been inflation proof. At $53, it’s jumped a mere $3 in almost a decade in my market. Some of the hot garbage out there has almost doubled in half that span. As if its sheer quality wasn’t enough, the value here is unparalleled. 4.75/5. Sensational work here.

If your breadth of Irish goes beyond the standard offerings from Jameson and Bushmills, you will instantly recognize this as a kindred spirit on both the nose and palate. Cut apples, mashed grapes, and a bit of bitter chocolate powder make for an interesting aroma, provided you don’t nose deeply enough to get the ethanol. Palate is same song, second verse, except there’s no escaping the burn here; rich, full, sweet and smooth, and then suddenly whamo! Burn. It’s not a cask-strength burn or any such, but it definitely colors the entire experience, as though I’m offended that something so smooth and sweet could suddenly turn bitter and hot. And to me it’s more of an unrefined hot rather than a ‘duh, this is alcohol and alcohol sometimes burns’ kind of hot. As if 14 years wasn’t enough and it could use just a few more. That burn takes me all the way to the finish, which briefly flashes orchard sweet again before turning green-apple sour and fading to a clean lidocaine tingle that lasts several minutes. Also note that time and air are not friendly to this, washing out the good flavors and leaving more of the burn. It is certainly not bad, but it’s also a little disappointing because at $70, it’s not really distinguishable from most any Irish in the $40 and up range.

Picked this up for st patrick's day and after some rave reviews from Telex and Malt Muser on their tuesday show. Lets jump in. Nose - Fruity orchard fruits, bubble gum, light malt and bread notes, twinge of red fruits, nearing the level of chocolate but perhaps white chocolate. There's an almost icing meats glue thing going on in the back transitioning to light toasted oak. Taste - Juicy fruit bubble gum transitioning to tropical fruits. There's vanilla and oak, sugary almost fast food bun notes, and perhaps some berries and cream. Finish - nice toasted oak and a light spice. Overall for 56 bucks you can't really beat this, unless you grab a powers 12 year. 1.5 score here. A bit below the average whisky I'd buy but I'm more than happy with the price to value. Ultimately, it's a bit boring and will be my go to pour until it is gone. I don't want to waste space with it but I'm enjoying every pour more than enough to go back to it. Edit going 2.0. It's a nicer better whisky than I thought. The hype hurt it for me and the price didn't help. But yeah I'm happy with this as a cheap really tasty bottle.

Visual: Medium amber/gold color. Thin to medium legs that take a little while to slide into the glass. Nose: Candied Almonds, hazelnuts, and pecans are first to arrive, followed by honey and cereal, a la Honey Nut Cheerios. Citrus zest and apple juice follow. Thankfully, the initial objectionable sourness that I found in the 12-year-old was not present at all here. Palate: Sweet and nutty like the nose, with some grain and a little spice. I get a little of the savory note that I found in the 12, especially when breathing out through my nose. Nice sweetness, but not over the top. Finish: I agree with those who experienced a dry, oaky finish. The dryness and slight bitterness are not off-putting. The finish is medium length and warming, but not too hot. Empty glass: Lightly nutty. Overall, I like this much better than its 12-year old younger sibling. I especially like the nose better, but the entire experience is much better than the 12. I believe the 14-year benefits from being bottled at 46% ABV instead of 40%. I would buy a bottle of this for sure. Four stars.

Ah Eire. Many moons ago as a fresh 20 something year old I lived there for 3 years, met my wife amongst a flat of up to a dozen at anytime flatmates (was a big old house), drank many a pint of Guinness, discovered whiskey wasn't that as terrible as I thought (very well watered down not neat...it took another decade to achieve that and truly drink whiskey) and now here back in NZ I crack open a sample of a brand which wasn't in existence when I was there. To be honest there was only 3 or 4 distilleries and limited brands in those days. Fast forward and the diversity is mind boggling. Now the whiskey at hand...is it any good. Hmm...not bad but not Redbreast, Yellow Spot good either. Mild bitterness mentioned in the 12 year in reviews comes through here...not massively but enough to slightly overpower and distract from the rest of the dram. The potstilled nature comes through, vanilla, bit of pepper, very mild sherry influence. I'd give it a 3.5 but couldn't round to a 4. Not bad value at just over $80USD

The flavors are a little different, but my experience of this is pretty similar to the tasting I had of Powers 12 year, in that it has a great nose and finish, but the palate is a let-down. Here we have fresh cut Granny Smith apple, tropical fruit, sugar cookie, and something floral on the nose. The palate is mostly vanilla, maybe a little grassy and thin feeling, but then the finish comes back with the fruit, caramel, and some nice oaky spice. The higher-than-normal proof for an Irish is appreciated most on the finish. Overall not bad, but wish it had more flavor on the palate. The finish keeps making me think this is better than it is, but then I have another sip and am underwhelmed again by the palate. Still, probably a decent value at $50 for a 14 year old single malt Irish whiskey, and bottled at 46%. Update: nearing bottle kill, I’m giving this a bump. It emptied itself pretty quickly. Good Irish and good value.