The View from the Golden Promise is a chance to see the bottles under the hammer at finespirits.auction in a new light. To give you this fresh perspective, we’ve called on two experts from the Golden Promise Whisky Bar.
STANISLAS KINDROZ
Caroni 2000 Velier Special Edition 3rd Release Nita “Nitz” Hogan 65.2%:
This bottling is a blend of eight casks first filled in 2000 and aged in Trinidad until 2008 before being transferred to Guyana. In October 2019, the Caroni was then transferred to a stainless steel vat and bottled the following year. Caroni’s organic trademark is of course present right from the start. Petrol wafts throughout the aroma palette, gradually covering fragrances of liquorice, almond, orange liqueur and aromatic plants. With time, the nose reveals a beautiful oxidative sequence. The attack is extremely rich, with notes of cherry and almond. The mid-palate takes us to Caroni’s petrol notes, along with original spice flavours (pepper, cardamom). The end of the palate is earthy, and the finish lively, with tobacco notes that bring lots of warmth to the end of the tasting. A rich, organic and above all perfectly well-balanced Caroni.
Macallan (The) 18 years 1968 Of. Sherry Wood Matured - Bottled 1987 Corade Import - 43%:
The first bottlings of vintage Macallan 18 Year Old were released in the 1980s. The one we are looking at today is a 1968 vintage bottled in 1987 and imported by Corade for the French market. With great finesse, the nose opens the tasting with waxy notes of old furniture and candles. A magnificent fruity (apple, pear) and exotic (mango) sequence introduces freshness. Allowed to breathe, the sherry reveals its arsenal, with crème de café, balsamic vinegar and walnut. The juicy attack releases flavours of apricot and nectarine. On the mid-palate, tobacco leaves bring dryness, while pepper notes add vigour. The end of the palate is deeply rich (apple, coffee éclair). Apple returns at the start of a finish which, with finesse and delight, ends on herbaceous notes of mint and bay leaf. Did someone say elegant?
SALVATORE MANNINO
Chichibu The First Ten, 50,5%, 70cl, 2020
The first bottlings of Chichibu that arrived in Europe were not technically whisky and were simply “newborns” that had been aged for just three to 16 months. I still remember how surprised I was by this just five-month-old spirit and its nonetheless impressive maturity! Like many, I couldn’t wait to try the first whisky from the distillery, a true Mozart of its art, because if the newborn was already that good, its older brother could only be better. In 2011, when Chichibu The First finally arrived at Whisky Live Paris, it met all the expectations of those that had loved the malt right from the start (myself included). And with it came a question that required even more patience: what was the 10 year old going to be like (an age that for many symbolizes a whisky’s maturity)? As we waited impatiently, Ichiro Akuto gifted us many bottlings to tide us over until 2020 when this First Ten was released—in a bottling that once again met all our expectations.
The nose is round and delicate, moving between acacia honey, roasted apple dusted with cocoa, notes of sap and aloe vera. Initially floral, once allowed to breathe it becomes more spicy and fruity in a seemingly infinite palette of aromas. The palate is rich and spicy, this time adding tarragon to the honey. Rich and generous, it recalls a candied papaya and star fruit sponge cake, finishing on praline vanilla and herbaceous notes.
