It starts with some lavender which quickly fades away, then floral and tropical fruits like passionfruit, pineapple, guave, all layered in honey. It’s like an explosion of fragrances! Later on I get some green apples which fade away at some point. In the end the red fruits appear with some bubblegum in there. I love this! Tropical fruits and honey sweetness.

Tropical fruits, the taste lives up to the expectation! A thick honey sweetness, if that makes any sense, mixed with some red fruits. This is followed by white pepper, cinnamon and cloves. The wood impact is there but this is all very well layered. Really nice, something that I can enjoy for quite some time.

The finish is very long! Sweet tropical fruits and honey. It’s not overly complex which is weird as the taste gives me a very nice layered flavour. The finish comes down to plain fruity sweetness.

This is definitely the sweet one; an abundance of fruit and honey elements. It’s hard to judge which one is best, as they are both very very good. But I think this one is my favourite, it’s just a little more fruity than the other Speyside 1973.

Fruit and oak and fresh ginger. Pink grapefruit, ripe apples, beeswax, honey and varnish. It explodes in the glass, doesn't need to breathe at all. Pine sap, mint and pine needles make an appearance as well.

Lemon peel, honey, grapefruit, some bitter oranges even. Also ginger, a hint of black pepper. Some soft tobacco notes and a hint of wood polish. Yes, of course there's oak, but it's light and lovely and in balance.

Long, with oranges and subtle wood spices.

These two new Speyside 1973s from Archives are in a league of their own. An abundance of fruit, a healthy oak influence and lovely sweet honey and beeswax notes.

Honey, honey, honey! The nose is such a honey fest, as if all kinds of honey put right in front of you! Come after are the floral notes, together with citrus fruits, stew apple with vanilla extract and some fresh mints inside. How great is that!

Yums! Full of oranges, honey, menthol, nice balance floral notes, some tea (oak). Its sweet, balance and tongue coating.

Medium long, with citrus and some dark chocolate!

This is one of the best whisky i tried so far. No its not the aggresive and strong flavor type that i normally love. The balance here is almost perfect and so easy to drink with a finish to die for. A 91 pointer for me!

Ultra parfumé ! Prunes écrasées, melon. Une pointe de soufre. Le tout est très fondu, doux et caressant déjà. Une petite note boisée. Un malt timide pointe le bout de son nez. Du chocolat. Le miel rentre en scène. Les fruits ont tendance à se tasser un peu avec l'ouverture.

Une danse d'épices (muscade et girofle) avec un duo miel/prunes. Texture épaisse comme du sirop. Note de chêne nette mais non intrusive.

Intense, longue et épicée, sans amertume trop marquée vu l'âge. Persistance du chêne.

Enthousiasme : 

Nez : 5/5 initialement, 4/5 après ouverture.

Bouche: 4/5
Finale : 5/5

Whisky n° 1574

Gourmand sur le pain d'épices : miel et cannelle en tête. Quelques effluves citronnés sur fond de bois précieux équilibrent le tout et évitent l'overdose de sucre. De la menthe sur des fruits confits. Eucalyptus très net avec l'aération. C'est très beau et conforme à ce que j'attendais.

L'amertume domine des épices marqués, notamment le poivre. Le bois est là mais discret et équilibré. La fin de bouche voit des notes plus gourmandes de fruits au miel gagner sur l'amertume qui reste malgré tout trop présente à mon goût. Quelques soupçons mentholés, moins nets qu'au nez, parviennent à percer. Une bouche étrange d'austérité gourmande (oxymore).

Longue sur le miel, le poivre et un retour de l'amertume. Puis c'est la cannelle qui conclue en dominant de légères flaveurs florales.

C'est bon. C'est très, très bon, mais l'omniprésence d'une amertume en bouche et sur la finale nous empêche d'atteindre des sommets.