Whisky note - Teaninich 23yo cask strength

Wow! At £5.70 a dram it should be good, and blimy, it is. Just had a wee Talisker to start. Nice iodine, golden syrup and black pepper accents, but it gets knocked into a cocked hat by this complex beauty. I don't know where to begin. It speaks in full sentences. The first nose is like the essence of a seaside hayfield distilled through a full silver moon. The first touch on the tongue is astringent and warming as cloves, nutmeg and allspice. Throughout the high alcohol note would remind even a meths drinker that there is something to life. In the background, Seumas' bar is selling cullen skink and the smoked haddock backdrop makes a hard stage for any whisky to work. The colour is very pale straw. The whisky rolls on the back of the tongue like pearls fresh out of an oyster and there is a hint of Tobasco that fades into a warm cedar glow.I  know it must be oak, but there is nothing cheap retzina or Aussie Chardo about this. You couldn't imagine a better potpourri for a country house. Seems a shame to tip water into it, but, needs must. The tap water isn't great. The whisky reveals the chlorine and metals that you wouldn't otherwise notice. But the water does release the sweetness, knocking the alcohol spirit down and bringing up the golden sugar and grassy, gentler notes with a hint of wintergreen wafting down the path.

Wish I had paid as close attention to last night's Springbank.