March Tasting Sessions – Pour & Sip
So another month has come to an end, and that means another summary of our Pour & Sip box. It was a very exciting box this month, with the Deanston 18 y/o, a wonderful Bourbon, and a cracking blended whisky. The March box was dedicated to Women in Whisky as a joint celebration of International Women’s Day and Mothers Day. Each dram we tasted was represented by someone from the distillery to give their story.
March also represented the end of my gift subscription, however, given the vast array of whiskies we have been able to try we have continued our monthly subscription. We’re really enjoying the accessibility of these boxes, and the fab member store discount.
Tasting session one:
| Name | Distillery | Origin | ABV |
|---|---|---|---|
| Compass Box – Juveniles | Compass Box | Scotland | 46% |
| Deanston 18 – Single Malt | Deanston | Highlands, Scotland | 46.3% |
| Bulleit Bourbon 10 | Bulliet | Kentucky, USA | 45.6% |
Compass Box – Juveniles
Nose: green apples, pear, vanilla, toffee apples and cut grass
Palate: buttery vanilla, doughnuts, peaches, apples and grapes
Finish: clean and crisp with apple and honey
This is a nice whisky which is easy on the palate. However, it is on the pricier end of the spectrum of whiskies we have tasted with Pour & Sip. It’s great to be able to sample more expensive whiskies, however, I don’t think we will personally be purchasing a bottle.
Deanston 18 – Single Malt
Nose: buttery pastry, tropical fruits, creamy porridge, vanilla pods and hints of nutmeg
Palate: smooth, ginger, orange zest and shortbread
Finish: citrus, oily oak and cocoa
Deanston is one of our favourite distilleries – we already had the Virgin Oak on our shelf. This whisky certainly doesn’t disappoint and I would strongly recommend, it is so smooth and has plenty of flavour to it. The mouth feel is great with the oily finish to it. A fairly rich whisky also but with the buttery notes on the nose and palate it’s balanced really well.
Bulliet Bourbon 10
Nose: oak, butterscotch, marmalade, banana bread, sherry undertones
Palate: buttery, rich, smooth, fruit salad sweets
Finish: rye spice and dried fruits
R loves bourbons and I am certainly less keen however, this is so good we purchased a bottle before the end of the tasting! It’s great, smooth and creamy with undertones of sherry. It offers plenty on the palate and has enough character to be enjoyed by even the most hardy of whisky drinkers. There are layers of fruit throughout and when left to breath just opens up further.
Tasting session two:
| Name | Distillery | Origin | ABV |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roe & Co | Roe & Co | Dublin, Ireland | 46% |
| Scallywag | Douglas Laing | Speyside, Scotland | 46% |
Roe & Co
Nose: oaky vanilla, muddy grass, honey and creamy walnut
Palate: light creamy, buttery, soft, sweet, fresh, rich vanilla, stewed fruits and buttercream
Finish: peppery, tarte finish like a rhubarb or berry crumble
Established in 2017 Roe & Co are based in the old power station from the Guinness factory, which naturally we will be going to visit when we can! They do use a tiny bit of caramel colouring for consistency but only when they need to so it isn’t misleading and all of the casks are ex American oak bourbon casks. This is one of the few blended whiskies I really like, everything comes together on the palate and the nose is just divine. At a very respectable £26 how could you not want to buy some? I know we certainly will when it is back in stock!
Scallywag
Nose: caramel, dried fruit, seaweed, butterscotch and hints of smoke
Palate: orange peel, burnt sugar, dark cocoa and cream
Finish: pepper, oaky spice, nutty fruitcake
Straight up the nose on this is weird, not overly appetising for either of us but we persevered. As a whisky it was okay, a blended one which once again doesn’t come together. Plenty of malt and medicinal notes which I don’t particularly like but hey, that’s why whisky is so varied to cover everyone’s taste. Another interesting one to try but not one I would personally go back for. Plenty on the tasting however did enjoy it. The label on this bottle though would look fantastic on the shelf as it is the head distiller’s dog!!
This has once again opened us up to some new whiskies and introduced some new expressions from favourite distilleries. We’re looking forward to our rolling subscription, so expect lots of roundups in the future! You can check out our previous reviews below.
- Whisky Review – Glenfarclas 15 y/o
- Pour & Sip – June 2021
- Pour & Sip – May 2021
- Pour & Sip – April 2021
- Pour & Sip – March 2021
In the meantime don’t forget to leave your comments on the whiskies we have mentioned and leave us some recommendations!
The Dram Duo 
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