🥃 Whisky van Zuylen

Irish Session: Bushmills Imported *** (1970s) https://www.whiskeybase.com/whiskies/whiskey/37511/bushmills-imported 86- Redbreast 12yo (2019) https://www.whiskeybase.com/whiskeys/whiskey/134077/redbreast-12-year-old 84+ Broad Aontroma ANHA 2006 https://www.whiskeybase.com/whiskies/whiskey/126218/brd-aontroma-2006-anha 84+ Fercullen 21yo https://www.whiskeybase.com/whiskeys/whiskey/218157/fercullen-21-year-old-pow 86+

Quick hit review. It's been a while since I last tasted this classic single pot still Irish whiskey. 'Floral elegance' is the first thought that comes to mind, as the nose opens up with breakfast cereals, fresh pears and hints of banana. It is delicate and understated. The palate reveals orchard fruits, heather honey and soft tannins before it shifts towards spearmint, almonds and grassy notes. Just shy of medium-length, the finish emphasizes oak spices, vanilla and hints of marzipan. I know, a higher ABV would help, but thank goodness we have the cask strength version. RATING: 3.5/5.0 stars ≙ 83 pts → ABOVE AVERAGE

Already countless times - different vintages - in the glass, and yet again and again surprising what he is able to achieve with his 40% vol. When freshly poured, he is sometimes a little shy; you should allow him to rest in the glass for a few minutes. Because then he opens the full single pot still program, shows great spice and sherry notes. A classic you can't get dead.

Amber color. Oily structure.

https://whiskeylovingpianist.wordpress.com/2021/06/03/yet-even-more-bottle-polishing-spring-summer-2021/ N: Instantly appealing, the oloroso influence is irrefutable but comes with an Irish twist on those ‘seasoned’ sherry casks. Oh, and then there’s that wax! The tropical fruits integrate/meld beautifully with the [banana/melon >pineapple] fruit punch waxiness, putty wax, [new not dusty] wax capacitor wax, vanilla=ed [JD] bourbon-ed wax,… What’s the chemical compound for wax esters? RCOOH + R’OH RCOOR’ + H2O, apparently! T: And there’s that wax again, consolidated fruity > vanilla-seeped soupy/juicy sour-sweet [dessert-gravy?] fruit punch-like candle wax [again], and more besides. The minimum bottling strength of 40% is telling whilst making this far too easy to drink. With soft-tempered yet active/ raw bourbon cask action underneath [as seen with the CS version], and the mash-bill under that, it’s the vanilla-putty, metallic Milk of Magnesia succulent tropical sherry-seasoned fruits & berries into powder [Nesquik strawberry] shakes that seal the deal, though the bourbon-y raw sherried-freshness finds itself on tenuous lines. F: As if painstakingly choreographed, it finishes true to form – varnished [bourbon] wood-induced/influenced with more of that waxy slightly parching scrunched burnt/scorched-fruit vanilla. Concludes with putty < wax and a biscuity/woody floor, the sherry influence sympathetically managed to the last. C: As discussed with the CS version, what a difference a few more abv degrees wouldn’t give – 43% might even do it. Still, it’s moreish juice from the off. After some splendid O&R drams interspersed by a number of decent malternatives over the last few months, this certainly holds up as a jobbing contemporary 12yo from start to finish.

Still an absolutely pleasant sipper, but a bit evanescent: you keep wanting to grasp more of it.

Nose-83/100; Taste-82/100; Finish-82/100.

A very smooth and even whiskey, the aroma is best revealed here, the taste/finish is simpler, not particularly varied and deep, but very harmonious, whole and drinkable.

The taste is 100% missing 6% ABV - and this would be one of Ireland's best regular releases! All in all, a tasty, drinkable, balanced fruity whiskey with delicate sherry notes and familiar Middleton signature! 22 21 22 21

The tasting notes refer to the 2021 batch WB194770. A very serious standard bottling that you can definitely have fun with. It's really great what he can deliver with only 40% drinking strength. First the sumptuous-tropical nose, then the great and spicy nut aromas, on the palate and on the finish, I particularly liked. Very nice value for money when you can get it for €40. Otherwise, of course, it would also be worth considering whether to treat yourself to the 15-year-old Redbreast (with 46%) for €65. He really tops it again.

Smell: Oak wood/vanilla, strawberry, cherry, cake Flavor: Strawberry, pudding, caramel, vanilla, milkshake Finish: Caramel, vanilla custard, wood

drinking date：2023.4.14

This bottle is from just before the rebranding. Bottlecode: L917731394 21:26 This is an perfect daily dram!

too light

I tested the version of 18/10/2022

06/07/2024 - 30 ml Pleasant, dense, alcohol-free but spicy in its spices. A good impression.

For me personally it was a bit too rough and dry at the end, and was the worst tasting experience for me at an Irish whiskey tasting. Color - matte amber

The Redbreast 12 is a real fruit bomb in the glass. A very nice and pleasant whiskey.

N: fresh fruits, apples, pears, vanilla, oakiness and some spices. sherry notes P: spiced fruits, malt, sherry and some charred oak F: warm, long and smooth, very pleasant

Nice, round, soft pot still whiskey. The sherry is noticeable but not dominant.

A flavorful experience for a 40% whiskey. A great nose of sherry cask, stone fruits, butterscotch, raisins, raspberry , peaches and strawberries which follows through creamy mandarins and ginger, pepper with red apple sauce.

So tasting after a good day at work at the end of the weekend Glencairn

The aroma is dominated by a nut platter along with baked apples with honey. On the palate there are waxed dried apricots and fatty southern raisins, nut butter and butter. The finish is simple, short, creamy chocolate, buttery. A very simple, but impeccably balanced whiskey, the standard version of this two is probably a little more pleasant, but this is also very good. RATING: 84pts - | 83 - 86 (B) → Good | - Not a “must”, but a nice-to-have.

N: very sweet, grain, malt, spicy wood T: lots of grain, mild, light oak F: long, malt

Sherry cask character dominates this whiskey. Nothing wrong with it.

aroma: fresh, sweet, rounded, honey, butter, vanilla, caramel, citrus taste: full, sweet, butter, vanilla, caramel, honey, sherry Something delicious. Delicate, sweet, complete, harmonious.

Room temperature when drinking: 17 ℃ Watching Eyes: Honey Smell Nose: At first, it was green apple caramel, grass (no grassy smell), dewdrops, wildflowers, roses and other relatively fresh elements. Slowly sweet milk began to escape, honey, caramelized apples, cinnamon bread, Wangzi milk . It feels that the Bourbon barrel is relatively large. Taste Palate: wheat, heavy cheesecake, half-cooked cheese, egg milk, fig milk, green apple candy, a little oak Finish: Finish, long, astringent, dry, hard candy, red apple, fragrant pear Body: Medium, with a bitter bottom, oily texture, the liquor is tightly clumped from beginning to end in the mouth, I like it very much Nose: 85/100 Palate: 85/100 Finish: 84/100 Body: 85/100 Overall: 84/100 Overall: The smell is relatively pure, and it is a simple fruit dessert.

Nice pot still character: sweet muesli, unripe green nuts and dried fruits, with a hint of vanilla. In the mouth, the low alcohol content makes it relatively light and soft but still with a nice volume, which increases again in the aftertaste and sounds chocolatey and with hints of dried fruit. Grade: 2

Musty, wet rag. Caramel, marzipan, dry. Not uninteresting.

Full bodied, misses some of the richness. A mash of malted and unmalted barley. Triple distilled. Matured in bourbon seasoned American oak barrels and Oloroso sherry seasoned Spanish oak butts. Chill filtered. Coloured. Mid-size slowly forming primary legs. Droplets trails. Inferior to the 12 YO Cask Strength.

A great standard. Very suitable for entering the world of Irish whiskey.

One of the whiskies with the best price-quality-ratio on the market.

Very nice quality/price ratio, which is quite strange nowadays. My favourite daily irish dram so far.

85+ Best 40%er I've tried thus far.

The Red Breast 12 is the ideal introduction to the world of Irish pot-style whiskey. It's smooth, well-rounded, and has the typical pot-style spice. It's a wonderful, easy-drinking whiskey. It's approachable yet offers enough depth to be interesting. The 40% alcohol content naturally limits it, but it's surprisingly full-bodied and comparatively strong. Those who prefer something more complex and powerful should opt for the cask strength version.

Soft. This is okay stuff, but nothing really special

It is lightly aged but controls the alcohol well and is drinkable. It has strong sherry characteristics and a musty note like vanilla and candied herbs.

An intense taste. A favorite. A must have.

[2021.12.30] Very fragrant smell as soon as I opened the bottle, very good first impression! After tasting it, I was even more amazed at his balance and supple taste. The overall performance makes it hard to believe that this is only a 40% abv whiskey, what a great performance! Too bad the cask strength version doesn't seem to be available in my area, I think that would be more perfect...! The whole bottle of whiskey gives me the feeling of "elegance", The first smell is delicate and lovely like Robin redbreast, but after drinking it, it also has a strong and beautiful inner. Good standard presentation, recommend buying a full bottle. The sum of the taste is 86 points and the price does not affect the rating. [2022.1.3] Oh my.... I have to revise my rating because this Redbreast keeps getting better and better in the days after opening, the complex aroma and oily body continue to grow, and tonight I'm really sure, It's damn excellent! I have to buy a few more bottles and keep an open bottle in the cupboard at all times. With just 40% ABV and 12 years old, it disintegrated my knowledge of whiskey, and now I know that a good whiskey can still make a door to heaven within these constraints. I must continue to try 12yo Cask Strength & 15yo, and I hope the wine merchants in Taiwan can help import some. This is my humble request. [2022.1.6] Finally can be compared with 15yo. Personally, I prefer 12yo's expression, Although it has the defect of lack of power, it is very round and very comfortable to drink. I'm sure I need to stock up, and having drank over 50 whiskies by now, I'm pretty sure this will be my top 3 and a great whiskey that I can drink every day. [2022.2.6] Postscript. There are about 150ml of liquid left in this bottle. Although the taste is still as good, the aroma emitted in front of the nose is not as unrestrained as before. It seems that the air has a great influence on it. (15yo smells just as good, it seems that the strength of abv still has a role) It seems that this bottle of whiskey must be consumed within 2 months. The total taste is 88 points, the price does not affect the score, and it is definitely worth the money. [2022.5.22] The bottle opened today is not ideal, the aroma is much weaker. It seems that there is a big difference in performance between batches, I would probably only give around 85 points for this bottle in my hand. It's a pity, I hope the quality can be more stable...

goldene Farbe, voller Körper

Pours a medium colored gold. Scent is full, funky, heavy grains. Not overly integrated, if i'm perfectly honest. Old wood, not very specifically sherry nor bourbon. Taste is fairly sweet, Taste at least is much more integrated. Noticably buttery, grainy base. Recognizable bourbon, not much on the sherry. Not sure I love this ... Buttered bread character is just a tad too high. Alcohol remains smooth, not as good (not even close) as the lustau edition.

I was hyped by a friend about this dram but it came out less than it was "promised"

The Robin with ice brings out its aroma, and the first sip is bursting with fruity sherry flavor. It feels very different from the original, and I highly recommend drinking Robin with ice.

Tasted on 13.02.2023. as part of 5-dram vertical: 1. Redbreast 12 - WB134077 2. Redbreast 12 Cask Strength - WB139113 3. Redbreast 15 - WB134080 4. Redbreast 21 - WB195242 5. Redbreast 27 - WB175654 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Nose: Dried fruits, raisins, caramel, sherry, wine notes, rice crackers, it's missing some alcohol potent Taste: Spices, cookies, slightly watery, wood bitterness

this is dessert Whiskey in its finest Irish style, delicious stuff, very old Irish style whiskey, with a great sherry butt influences in the casks, i love it!

I recall enjoying this much more a few years ago. It wasn't something I kept at home but would enjoy when out. Finally opened one of my bottles of this today and it's not as deep or rich as I remember. I think the bottle will improve to an extent over time and I'll frequently check back in. I pick up a distinct vanilla bourbon note. Eyes closed this tastes more like a sherried Blanton's. I think this will balance out and mellow soon and become closer to what I enjoyed previously.

Did something happen with this whiskey? It doesn't seem as good as it was years ago. It feels like the finesse has gone to overt sweetness or something. Cheaper/younger sherry casks? I know it's not for a lack of bourbon casks. Still a solid whiskey.

A wonderful sherry whiskey with notes of fruit, dryness in taste and aroma. And a pleasant aftertaste, the only unpleasant thing about it is the price. But inhaling its aromas is a real pleasure. Delicate, aged, tart. Oak and resin tones only complete the picture. The manufacturer says that sherry is only a small part of the aroma, although it was the first thing that caught my nose. Fruits come in on a second place, from which they are trying to be driven away by the aroma of wood, which is not limited by oak alone. I caught myself thinking that whiskey sets you up for a leisurely mood and you want to enjoy it for a long time and by small sips. A well-recognizable aroma of excellent whiskey. The aroma lives in the glass for a long time.

First impression was not very interesting, however after 2-3 drams I somehow adapted my taste buds to sherry taste as I am peat guy. N: sherry spice, fruity, green apple T: strong sherry influence in terms of fruit and spice F: oak, white pepper, sherry sourness and fruitiness

Nose: Spiced fruit, mainly apples and pears. Some hints of vanilla. Beautifully oaky. Palate: More spiced fruit, the palate has some citrus. Malty. Sherry coming through nicely. Charred oak. Finish: Long. Warm and smooth. Vanilla lingering. Overall Score: 89. This is a fantastic whiskey. The buzz around this one is not overhyped or exaggerated. The whiskey is beautifully light and sweet. It has a very mature flavor to it and does not disappoint in terms of complexity. I would recommend this to anyone and everyone. I’m excited to get the 15.

Very light whiskey and drinkable with spicy notes.

This isn't extraordinary or exciting, but well done sherries single pot still that excells at nothing but has really few shortcomings for the price. Hence extra point or 2. Nose was fresh paint, raisins, marmalade, orange zest Taste is typical single pot still but sherried, and very smooth. And this is what people might be looking for in this price range, hence highly recommended!!! I think it is really good price/value ratio.

Ok fresh and dry fruity notes, with ok wood spiciness, which makes an ok whiskey, Good introduction for non whiskey enthusiasts to Irish whiskey.

The sour dairy note put me off at first. But the Redbreast keeps growing on me. Nice summer dram. Sweet and easy drinker.

Clean irish, a safe bet to have a good time. Delicious pastry taste, combining vanilla, tropical fruits and spices through its malted barley. For its age thats brilliant.

The smell of grass and fodder is too strong

The best whiskey among 120+ I’ve tried. You definitely should try at least a dram of this nectar. For me, it’s the best Irish and better than any Speyside scotch with comparable age.

The specimen single pot still expression. The balance of the spicy vegetal single pot still signature, balanced by decent sherry casks ( and not overly sherried). While the taste doesn't live up to the nose, it has a nice oily balance and a decent finish. Excellent value whiskey.

A fairly light, delicate whiskey, with a nose of spices and red fruit (which, unfortunately, is missing during the tasting). Vanilla, caramel and toffee on the finish. The finish, however, lacks a little length. A sober, elegant whiskey.