If you cast your mind back to your science lessons from school, you'll remember that to draw meaningful conclusions you changed just one variable, your independent variable, which in this case is whether spirit caramel colouring is added (as it is here) or not (as is the case in Reference Series III). The dependent variable, therefore, is what each offers to your senses. Clearly the colour deepens greatly with caramel added, but what about the flavour? Are there changes or is it exactly the same? Over to you whisky scientists...
Coffee bean, chocolate bread, a touch of marzipan, ice cream with toffee pieces, flamed orange peel and vanilla pods. Just a hint of blackcurrants on the bush.
Thick and chewy with calves leather and crumbly chocolate. Juicy dates, Corinth raisins and a touch of subtle mint.
A little more pleasant leather and tiramisu sprinkled with cocoa.
The only difference between this and III is the addition of E150a - has this led to any differences between the two releases at all? Or not? Try them side by side and discover the answers for yourself...
But christ it makes good whisky doesn't it? It's potentially very short-sighted of people to say that adding caramel is always a bad thing - at the end of the day it's there to lift the experience, and make people enjoy the whisky more because it makes it look and feel older. Sorry - but how exactly is that a bad thing?
