Jameson Caskmates IPA Edition (제임슨 IPA)

(한국어 시음기 밑에 있어요!)

This is my first Irish whisky review! Admittedly I don't have a great deal of experience with Irish whisk(e)y. See, I live in Korea and it's not anywhere near as easy to get my hands on at a reasonable price compared to Scotch or Bourbon, which is sad, because of the Irish that I have had, I've liked the style quite a lot. The Jameson Caskmates IPA edition is merely a version of the world famous classic Jameson that has been finished in India Pale Ale barrels in order to impart a subtle flavour on the spirit. used IPA casks and other beer casks traditionally haven't seen much usage in the global whisky industry, which strongly prefers used bourbon casks, used sherry casks, used french wine casks and virgin oak casks. Recent years though have seen an uptick of whiskies being finished in unique casks that were traditionally shunned such as beer casks, and the Jameson Caskmates series was, in a way, a forerunner in this modern trend.

Vitals:

ABV: 40%

Colour: Gold

Chill-filtered: Yes

Nose: Quite sweet, with caramel fronting it. Behind the caramel lies notes of barley tea and freshly harvested grains. These then begin to develop into something reminiscent of bananas and cream, sprinkled with flaked almonds with the skin still on. Mostly quite pleasant, but there is an oddly sweet and slightly off putting nail-polish like aroma hanging around in the background. 17.5/25

Palate: Initially leads strongly with a hoppy bitterness and a touch of sweet honey, but the honey is soon overpowered by rising notes of oak with brings black pepper with it. As the hops and oak fade, citrus almonds and creams appear and the sweet honey returns. 18/25

Finish: As it draws to a close, the hops come back with a vengeance, with some honey and malt in the background. It's quite a short finish, but it ends like you've just had a pint of an IPA. Mostly bitter, but a little sweet and malty at the same time 15/25

Value*: Fairly reasonable in most places and cheaper than the likes of Johnnie Walker Black and Jack Daniels. And better too. 17/ 25

Conclusion:

I was surprised at how strongly the IPA influence came out on this whisky especially when contrasted with the Glenfiddich IPA edition, which over ever teased it at. Overall it's pretty good and makes a nice daily sipper.

If someone was looking to move into the whisky world from craft beer, then I'd definitely recommend this edition of Jameson to them.

Basic Rating: 67.3%

Price Adjusted Rating*: 67.5%

Daily Drinker: Yes.

Possible pairing: As crazy as this sounds, pair it with an IPA or another hoppy beer.

Where to find in Korea: Wine and More, Jura Shop, E-mart (larger), The Malt Shop

TLDR Version:

N: Caramel, barley, grain and honey → cream, bananas, almonds, nail polish.

P: Hops, honey → oak, black pepper → citrus, almonds, cream and honey.

F: Short, with hops, malt and honey.

V: Reasonable

C: If you like IPA beers, then you will like this whisky.

한국어 시음평:

향: 카라멜, 보리, 곡물 및 꿀 → 크림, 바나나, 아몬드, 매니큐어.

맛 : 홉, 꿀 → 오크통, 후추 → 감귤류, 아몬드, 크림, 꿀.

끝맛: 피니시가 짧아요. 홉, 맥아 보리, 꿀.

가격 : 합리적인 가격이에요.

결론: IPA 맥주를 좋아하면 이 위스키를 좋아할 거예요.

Buy / Mooch / Pass: Buy

Review by Glasgowhisky

2020/08/02