Whisky Lovers Nagoya 2018 Pre-Tasting: Simplified Tasting

At the 'Whisky Lovers Nagoya 2018 Pre-Tasting' held at IAN in Mise, I had the opportunity to sample many malts. While I've introduced several of them previously, I'll now briefly share some of the final tasting notes. Auchentoshan 1966 31 Year Old Official #511 43.5% Extremely well-aged, with a diverse array of concentrated fruits like pineapple, malty notes with a grainy or paper-like texture, and an oily mouthfeel. It had the rich, long-aged flavor typical of Roland Malt. Tamnavulin 22 Year Old Official 45% 1980s Circulation A robust malt with apricot jam and a smoky character, featuring strong sweetness from the barley. It's a high-level peated malt with a rich, savory profile that doesn't become tiresome. Personally, it exceeded my expectations and was very enjoyable. Springbank 15 Year Old Official 46% 1980s Circulation A Springbank with old sherry cask characteristics, exuding a jammy richness and briny notes. It resembles the classic sherry cask Springbank from earlier years, with a strong original spirit character that doesn't disappoint. Scapa 1989-1997 John Milroy Selection #1890 59.5% Powerful yet surprisingly smooth, with a pleasant cask influence. The sweetness of apricot jam blends seamlessly with malty depth. Despite being a high-proof (59.5%) whisky aged around 8 years, it has developed a viscous, rich flavor over time. It's likely much mellowed since bottling and is now at its prime after approximately 20 years. Glengrant 30yo BBR #8239 46% Bottled in 2003 A pleasant, rich old sherry character with concentrated fruity sweetness and a firm herbal, woody finish. The sherry cask dominates in this Glen Grant. Estimating the distillation date around 1973, it carries a strong sherry cask character from that era. Laphroaig 1988 Kingsbarns Celtic 59.9% A slightly concentrated texture with vanilla cream infused with orange, a honey-like sweetness, and a powerful peatiness with subtle charcoal notes. This high-proof Laphroaig has mellowed, showing a smooth texture and the expected robust character. Glenfarclas 1978-1998 20 Year Old Official 58.1% A gentle sherry influence with a rich jammy sweetness of apricot and plum, retaining some malty elements. Surprisingly spicy for its mellow sherry character, the whisky wraps around a variety of flavors including the barley's natural sweetness. These bottles were sampled at the 'Whisky Lovers Nagoya 2018 Pre-Tasting' event held at IAN in Mise.