Aberfeldy 16 Year Madeira Cask Finish

Aberfeldy is exceptionally fruity. The standard core range of 12, 18, and 21 year olds are very fruity, offering notes of fresh apples and pears – typical for a standard whisky. This expression, finished in Madeira casks, adds a twist, maintaining fruitiness but introducing tropical notes. Bottled at 40% ABV with a golden color. The nose is amazing. It's a fruit salad with apples, pears, cinnamon, currants, and pineapple, very tropical, evoking the feeling of drinking a piña colada on a Caribbean beach. The palate becomes sweeter in an artificial/sugary manner while retaining some tropical fruitiness. Notes of toffee, dulce de leche, oranges, pineapple, and coconut are present. The aftertaste isn't as impressive but still passes muster. Coconut and hay are detected, along with coconut milk. Overall, this is a very refreshing, easy-to-drink dram. Quite nice, actually. My rating is 89 out of 100.

Aroma: Truly outstanding, with very distinct Madeira, raisins, caramel, almond, and honey. Palate: Velvety! Madeira and raisins dominate, with light candied orange, cinnamon, and honey. A medium-short finish with a slight bitterness. I'm not typically a fan of travel retail offerings, but this is a very drinkable product of excellent quality, superior to Aberfeldy 21yo. Rating 4.25

Exclusive Duty Free. 40% ABV, from the southern Highland region. Finished for a year in ex-Madeira casks. Sweet aroma of vanilla and honey, with apple and chocolate notes. The taste follows, being sweet, smooth, and creamy. Interestingly, spirits from this distillery are used in Dewars blends. A balanced whisky, suitable as a dessert drink.

It improves significantly by the third glass. It comes across as stronger than 40% ABV and has a pleasant medium-length finish. I would have given it a higher score, but for some reason, the extended aging process hasn't entirely smoothed out its ethanol bite.

Aroma: a pile of fallen leaves, dried raisins, natural honey, ripe pear, vanilla cola, buttery toffee Palate: caramel and rum and raisin ice cream Finish: sweet

The aroma is sweet with a slight plastic note. The palate is smooth, sweet, sherry-like, with licorice, woody, and oily characteristics. The finish is very short, sweet, and woody.