Review 173
8/19/13
Isle of
Jura 10 Year: 43% abv
Background: Isle of
Jura is a single malt Scotch whisky off the…well…the isle of Jura, to be frank.
Jura is not the most climactic of all places when you put it in perspective,
netting at 142 square miles of land with one road, one pub, one distillery, and
a population of 188 people. You could say then, that the people of Jura are
probably pretty well familiar with each other. Despite my seemingly scathing
remarks of Jura, pictures show it to be a fairly gorgeous island, not unlike
most of Scotland’s landscape. How about the distillery, though? The good people
of Jura had self-entitlement to distil liquor until 1781, where authorities
decided that they needed a license. In 1810, Jura distillery was founded. At
some point, the distillery was mothballed, only to be rebuilt in 1960.
Currently, Whyte and Mackay own Jura. Jura yields a yearly capacity of about
2.2M liters a year, produced by 4 tall stills. This particular whisky is their
10 Year offering, netting 43% abv and what looks to be natural coloring. This
particular Scotch has been a mystery for me for as long as I’ve owned it,
because I can’t seem to place my finger on whether or not I like it. Today I do
a formal review.
Straight
Nose: The nose, on immediate visitation, relays
flavors of both citrusy white wine and some amount of corn and light grain.
This nose gives the impression that the whisky is fairly young, with a light,
fresh smell to it. There is a slight hint of maltiness in the nose, but it is
overwhelmed by misplaced smells of other grains. There isn’t a strong sense of
woodiness dominant on the nose (with exception to the odd sawdust smell that
you get if you spend enough time with it), but there is a consistent nuttiness
that comes through. If you dig deep enough, there is almost a slight hint of
sherry to it, but it smells coincidental, not intentional. There is a subtle
seaweed/sea salt type implication to the whisky, but it doesn’t come through
like your Old Pulteney’s would. Overall, it is a mellow nose with some
interesting flavors, but it is flat and shallow flavors that come through.
There is not a lot of intensity to the nose.
Arrival: The
arrival starts off sweet, making it seem as if there was some play from a
sherry cask that might not have been assumed before. There is a hint of
maltiness, caramel, and then with enough time, some salt and pepper that burns
through. There is a sweet vanilla that contradicts a sense of saltiness, with
some mixed berries and orange marmalade to accompany the flavor. There is a
sense of tartness that comes through, akin to sweet lemon candy flavor. The arrival is bold and complex, and certainly
a respectable entrance into this whisky.
Body: This is
where you might start losing the familiarity of single malt Scotch. There is
not maltiness to be found in the body. There is a strong sense of salty
nuttiness that is very prevalent (maybe almonds). The body is not very
climactic, which can be common after a big arrival, and especially leading into
this finish. There is some sense of corn that comes through in the body, almost
reminiscent of soft bourbon flavor.
Finish: There
is a confusing mixture of flavors coming out of the finish, most unfortunate of
which is the sense of burnt wood that reminds me a lot of the Dalmore 12 we
just tried. The corn-like grain flavor persists into the finish, with somewhat
of a fluoride-like aftertaste that acts as the last flavor standing. Other than
that and some light citrus flavors, with the small hint of sherry coming
through, Jura falls flat in the finish. I don’t think this finish is what it
could be, and with such a promising arrival, it’s disappointing to see it come
to this conclusion. The finish is short and what lasts is bitter and strained.
We are still waiting to see how water may help make this whisky better.
With Water
Nose: After
letting this Scotch marry with some water for a few minutes, you will find in
the nose that the barley starts to come through more. There are still very
similar notes as before, but some confectionary subtleties start to emerge as
well. There is a slight pear-like scent that can be found, as well as a small
amount of green tea smell.
Arrival: The
arrival, after water, is smooth and sweet, with similar flavors as before. The
sherry, mixed with some lime tartness, is a prevalent sweet and sour combo up
front, with some herbal notes later on.
Body: The
herbal, grassy flavors bleed into the body, presenting it with a little more
character than before. All the same, the body is still pretty subtle and short,
just dying off from the arrival.
Finish: The
finish has not been salvaged from the addition of water. There is still
bitterness to be found in the finish. It also comes across as slightly vegetal.
The slight burnt flavor seems to reside quite a bit in this instance, and there
is a bit more malt richness to carry through, but it seems compromised by an
almost plastic-like flavor. This is just not hitting the right way.
Final Comments: I would
like to start by saying I have nothing against the Isle of Jura or its people
(all 188 of you). I think the fact that they have a distillery to represent them
is excellent, and Jura does have some great representation in terms of
bottlings. Personally, I am not a fan of the 10 Year, and I don’t want to drink
more of it. It is unique, it has a nice arrival, and it has some complexities
to it. I would recommend trying this, for anybody who wants to learn more about
single malt Scotch, but I have a bottle of it that I’m not too keen on killing
off. That being said, I will continue to do experiments with this bottle and
learn more about it. Bottom line, this is not on the top of my purchase list,
and as a casual drinker, I wouldn’t put it on the top of yours either.
Why you’d buy it: You
like trying new things, even if you’re told not to
Why you wouldn’t: You
listen to the advice in my reviews (poor judgment call, if you ask me)
Score: 7.0/10
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