Christmas Countdown 2020 #2: Redbreast 12 Year Cask Strength

Distillery: Midelton Distillery

Region: Cork, Ireland.

Age: 12 Year.

ABV: 57.2% Cask Strength

Color: 1.4, Tawny.

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Nose: (according to the wife) It’s light, fruity, and sweet! There’s some fresh green apple along with lemon sherbet and a pear sorbet.

Palate: Much like the nose teases, this does come off as quite fruity but not in the form of fresh fruits. The taste reminds me heavily of Jolly Ranchers, specifically the fruit punch and lemon ones. It’s nice and sweet. There’s also a note of canned peaches in syrup.

Finish: Medium in length. Honey and those canned peaches in syrup are the main notes.

Conclusion: A couple years ago, when I reviewed the regular Redbreast 12 year a few folks commented that I needed to try the cask strength version of it indicating that it was a far superior whiskey. I have to say, I have to agree with them. The regular 12 year old didn’t have a whole lot going on for it, other than this weird “metallic” note and a bit of sweetness. This version, however, comes packed with flavor with those sugary candy fruits. The nose is delightful, it tastes of nice sweet fruits, and the finish is pleasant. If you’re in the US looking for a tariff-free fruity whisky fix, this would definitely do it!

Final Score: 82.

World Whiskey Review #38, Irish Whiskey Review #9, Whisky Network Review #344

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Scoring Legend:

• 96-100: The perfect dram, nectar of the gods.
• 90-95: Near perfect, there is something truly special about this whisky.
• 85-89: Amazing, will always try to keep a bottle of this in my collection (if feasible).
• 80-84: Very Good, maybe only one minor nitpick about the whisky keeping it here.
• 75-79: Good, quite enjoyable to drink.
• 70-74: Solid, wouldn’t go out of my way to get it.
• 60-69: Meh, still drinkable.
• Below 59: If you have a bottle of this, start cooking with it instead.

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