Tasted #22: caskstrength.net's "Caskstrength & Carry On 'C' - Cutty Sark" release

Caskstrength.net was one of the first whisky blogs I ever read, and one of the key blogs that got me into whisky blogging. I'm not sure why exactly, but Neil and Joel seem to blend (ha, blend) informative and fun posts in a way few other blogs can.

They also run their own events, and even bottle their own whisky - with a goal to work their way through the alphabet, creating 26 custom, limited edition "Caskstrength & carry on" releases

A was for Arran, B was for BenRiach, and C, you guessed it, is for Cutty Sark. Without going into too much detail (I'll let this post do that) the boys were quite involved in the process and the whisky was made available with quite a bit of fanfare in late March, via Master of Malt.

I was lucky enough to receive a sample (thanks to both Caskstrength.net and Master of Malt who generously sent me a dram - possibly the coolest little sample bottle around), and a very well-travelled sample it was too, hopping from the UK to Sydney, via America's Wang.

Caskstrength and Carry On (Cutty Sark) (51.4%, NAS, Blend, 500 bottles released)

Nose: Youthful, a hint of peppery spice, citrus, but not "sweet".

Palate: Big mouth feel - ABV% is evident. Big peppery hit makes it's way up the nose. A hint of nuttiness comes through too.

Finish: A hint of smoke (I didn't get it on the nose or palate, as the tasting notes suggested, but noticed it during the finish). Medium-length finish.

Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 87/100

Hats off to the boys for a great initiative - I can't wait to see what comes next (Dalmore? Dalwhinnie?) 




Who knows...? Maybe in a few years it might be possible for this blog to do something similar with one of the excellent Australian distilleries like Old Hobart, Lark Distillery, The Nant Distillery or New World Distillery.

Cheers,
 - Martin.