Producing WhiskyCast has given me the opportunity to taste some really amazing whiskies, and I’m pleased to share my tasting notes with you here. You can search my entire database of tasting notes from this page, and I hope you’ll find it useful.
This is the fifth release of Flaming Heart, and was released in 2015 to mark Compass Box’s 15th anniversary. The recipe is unusual, even by Compass Box standards, with Caol Ila dominating the blend: 38.5% matured in refill American Oak hogsheads for 14 years, with another 27.1% of Caol Ila matured in the same style of cask for 30 years. 24.1% came from Clynelish and was matured for 20 years in rejuvenated American oak hogshead casks, while the final 10.3% is a 7-year-old blend of Clynelish, Teaninich, and Dailuane malts finished for at least two years in French Oak “hybrid” barrels.
The nose is complex and rich with grilled pineapple, banana, coconut, and campfire smoke. The taste is oily, thick, and smoky with a great peatiness, grilled pineapple, caramel apples, ginger, allspice, and a touch of oak. The finish is long, smooth, and smoky with an underlying touch of fruits. Excellent! (October, 2015)