Bushmills Madeira Finish 21 Year Old Single Malt Irish Whiskey (700ml)

Bushmills 21 year old once again adorns our shelves amongst an increasing range of Irish. Production appears to have remained the same, with the whiskey aged nineteen years in Oloroso sherry and American Bourbon casks before marrying in Madeira 'drums' for its final two years. We were lucky enough to receive a 50ml sample. The first sniff evokes superbly pure scents of fruit pastries, vanillan oak, warm butter and fruit compote. Those notes are reflected in a silky, melt-in-your-mouth delivery where the wine input contributes hints of fruit jam and Madeira cake then dries with prunes, creaming soda, fruity dark chocolate and hazelnuts. It's a light bodied and breezy malt, yet full of flavour at the same time - a contradiction that makes you wonder how they pull it off. With some serious length to boot. 40% Alc./Vol.

Other reviews... Bushmills' sumptuous magnum opus spins aromas of sultana, brown sugar, walnut oil, date slice, chocolate-covered cranberries, leather gloves, and a hint of espresso. The dark, crepuscular mystique continues in the syrupy mouthfeel redolent of forest honey, banana bread, nuts, browned butter, sultana, date, and blackberry. Utterly beguiling, the Madeira finish works wonders here, right through to the last moments of the smooth, sweet finish. A must-try for all. 96 points - whiskyadvocate.com

"As Veruca Salt would say, "I want it now!" With the intensity of the sweet fruit and chocolate notes on the nose, could you blame her? The trail mix filled dram also has deep malt flavors with the texture creamy, not cloying. Towards the finish, the whiskey becomes dry and spicy. A comparable Scotch whisky would be almost double the price so snatch up what you can." 97 points - distiller.com

...oaky and drying, with complex notes of toffee, dark chocolate, toasted nuts, caramel and a spicy finish. 93 points - wineenthusiast.com

(n24.5) this remains something of a Chinese puzzle on the nose: just how do all those different notes, sometimes soft and rounded, sometimes hard and angular, many of them fruity, manage to intertwine...yet never clash? And why can you never detach one without another clinging onto it. If Sherlock Holmes tried to solve it, this would be a three pipe conundrum...except the use of tobacco would ruin the experience. Just marvel at the greenage and physalis, the flaked vanilla and liquorice, the ulmo honey and hickory...so much else besides; (t24) as melt-in-the-mouth as a whiskey can be: amazingly juicy barley offers the cutting edge and lead while a plethora of delicate sugars dissolve on impact; the fruit is solved as a perpetual mixed salad; (f23.5) this is where i am really impressed. Despite all the complexity of the nose and delivery, at the finish the Bushmills trademark flaky vanilla and delicate barley comes through...a signature unique to one distillery in the world; (b24) an Irish journey as beautiful as the dramatic landscape which borders the distillery. Magnificent. 95.5 points - Jim Murray Whisky Bible 2013