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Aberlour A'bunadh

Family Whisky Time: Abunadh Worries

0 693

@SquidgyAshReview by @SquidgyAsh

4th May 2012

0

  • Nose
    24
  • Taste
    23
  • Finish
    23
  • Balance
    23
  • Overall
    93

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Distribution of ratings for this: brand user

Now my wife and I had been trying for months to get to the whisky bar, Helvetica. We'd had all sorts of issues preventing us from going to this bar such as sickness, conflicting work schedules, lack of money, bar being closed when we're free and an emergency appendicitis. Now after all of these problems we were finally here!!

Our date had started with my wife and Glenfarclas 12 yr old at dinner, then Yamazaki 12 yr old, Hakushu 12 yr old, and Glenmorangie Nectar D'or, Amrut Fusion and Glenmorangie Astar.

While drinking the Amrut Fusion we were joined by my sister and brother in law who'd been waiting in another level of the bar since we walked in and who we'd missed.

Next on the menu was Aberlour Abunadh!

Now this was one of the whiskies that I'd really been looking forward to and was now extremely worried about.

Why you might ask?

While I'd been drinking my Glenmorangie Astar my sister in law had ordered a glass of Aberlour Abunadh.

And didn't like it.

Really didn't like it.

Mind you she didn't add any water to it until after I told her to. And I don't think she added nearly enough water to it, adding just a drop or two to try and open it up...

But she pretty much put it aside and wouldn't touch it again.

Please oh god please let this be a good whisky.

I order my Aberlour Abunadh and then specifically ask for the batch number. The waitress blinks at me for a moment then goes to get me my drink. When she hands me my drink she quietly informs me that it's from batch 35.

Batch 35.

My first Abunadh.

Here goes!

I nose this Aberlour and I pray as I am a huge Aberlour fan ever since my first 10 yr old bottle. And Holy Cow!!!

Red vine licorice dominates the nose, cherries, sherry (not surprising this is SUPPOSED to be a sherry bomb!) along with vanilla and oak. I swear I detect a hint of dark chocolate, but no one else says that they can smell that. Maybe I'm crazy.

I start getting wrapped up with the conversation and I take a very small sip unthinking.

Oh Sweet Baby Jebus!!! I can't breath!!!

This small little sip knocks my breath out. BAM!!!!

The cherries and sherry PUNCH me in the mouth and it's Rocky Time! I'm on my 10 count and I don't think I'm coming back up from this one.

HAHAHAHA Everyone laughs as I try to breath. I wind up joining in once it won't make me pass out from lack of oxygen.

I then take my little pitcher of water and add a very generous amount of water, roughly a 2:1 per Abunadh.

The whisky opens up beautifully.

Nose is the same, lovely and beautiful, but not quite the punch in the face.

Flavor though, it's thick enough to chew!! There is a creamy mouth texture and the cherries and sherry once again dominate, but in the mix is dark chocolate coming through beautifully with a hint of vanilla.

Even better is my sister in law looks extremely puzzled and informs us that she likes my Aberlour much better then the one she received.

The glass is passed around the table and everyone comments that this is a STRONG beautiful whisky here. It is no shrinking violet. If you want you whisky soft and subtle. Turn around. You WILL be disappointed.

The finish is LONG with the sherry and cherries hanging on the entire time and just a bit of alcohol bite on the end.

Thank you Aberlour!!

You did not let me down at all.

My first taste of Abunadh is SPECTACULAR!!

Now I wanna catch and taste them all!!

This is an AWESOME whisky that I enjoyed a ton. It's out there and in your face the entire time. This is a whisky I'd be drinking on a cold winters night sitting around the fire with the family.

Even better is that this bottle is available in many aussie liquor stores for roughly $100 AUS or so which makes it fairly affordable. Batch numbers will of course vary.

Next on the menu after MUCH palate cleansing will be one I've been waiting months to try and I've heard nothing but EXCELLENT things about.

Old Potrero 18th Century Rye!!

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6 comments

@systemdown
systemdown commented

Awesome! Batch 35! Glad you enjoyed it. It's amazing stuff at a great price, well worth stocking up on, particularly the good batches for future enjoyment as they range from merely "very good" to sublime (like the #35).

11 years ago 0

@SquidgyAsh
SquidgyAsh commented

It surely did not disappoint. It was worth every hint of anticipation that I'd had for it. Again this is a big bold whisky that takes no prisoners and it is BRILLIANT!

Can you believe they can get it for around $40 US where I'm from or so says the website. This was another whisky I told my brother that if he'd want to get me something I'd love a bottle of this.

11 years ago 0

@systemdown
systemdown commented

Wow, 40 USD.. I'd drink it every single day for that price!

11 years ago 0

@Victor
Victor commented

Oh, yes, Squidgy, our Connosr woods are full of A'bunadh lovers, and I am certainly one of them. There is much to love. And the various batches of A'bunadh are like collector cards, "Collect them all!"

A'bunadh never gets old. I am always impressed that when I do tastings, whisky newcomers usually really love it, much more so than they love some other wine finishes. Usually the people I give it to do not get at all upset by the ABV. And they usually don't wind up adding any water, except sometimes as an experiment to draw out other flavours. I never hesitate to introduce new people to A'bunadh. And I would never hesitate to buy a bottle of whatever new batch of it comes out onto the liquor store shelf.

11 years ago 0

@SquidgyAsh
SquidgyAsh commented

@System My friend this is why I continually complain so much about whisky prices over here. Pretty much most whiskies that you can get over here you can get over there drastically cheaper. Makes me a sad panda.

@Victor It was such an awesome whisky! I have to be honest I'm really not sure which bottle I hope that my brother purchases for my birthday. I HIGHLY doubt he'll find the Old Potrero, but everything else that he could find is all so yummy and I have no bottles of any of them so it is a tough choice, ahh the difficult decisions I have to live with in my life :D Which awesome whisky do I get?! :D:D:D

11 years ago 0

@Wills
Wills commented

Yeah, that are the problems we like ;) Thx to your review, I have to open my A'bunadh very soon. I was trying to finish some other bottles first!! But I am really only reading good stuff about this whisky. And ofc I discoverd it here :) Btw. $100 AUS is expensive indeed. That's 80€. I paid 50€ for mine. But maybe your pay is higher too? A friend of mine visited Australia some month ago and he told me everything is expensive Down Under. So I guess you have to gain more than Europeans too ;)

11 years ago 0

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