Bushmills Causeway 2 Marsala Cask 1995
A release in the Bushmills 2021 Causeway Collection, this whiskey has matured for over 10 years in Oloroso sherry butts and Bourbon barrels, before being aged in rare Marsala casks sourced from the island of Sicily, for 15 years. This limited edition release is bottled at 57.8% ABV and retails at €410.
Omar Fitzell Notes
What a nose! Immediately enveloped by dark berries drizzled in milk chocolate. Demerara sugar and honey give a lovely sweetness to it while there is also leather and tobacco in there.
Palate
Beautiful oily mouthfeel. To the fore is fruit, fruit and more fruit. Those berries are back along with plums and cherries. Mid palate I get raisins, vanilla and a slight citric note.
Finish
Long and lovely! An excellent cinnamon and star anise spice linger in the mouth.
Overall
A home run from Bushmills if you enjoy a sweeter whiskey. Highly recommended to try.
Al Higgins notes
Nose
Mature and intense with an incredible amount of Bushmills spirit character. Hot tar on a wet road, molasses, fresh rainwater, lime cordial, concentrated white grape juice, agave syrup, ginger snaps and ripe tropical fruits.
Palate
Amazing complexity with some really unusual flavours coming through. Almost like a high-ester Jamaican rum with some real ‘funk’ and crude oil-like aromatic flavours. Not that I’ve ever drank crude oil! Molasses again with liquorice, creamy coffee, hazelnut chocolates, roasted nuts smothered in hardened sugar syrup, muscovado sugar, fudge and toffee yoghurt.
Finish
Very long and suitably complex. Waves of roasted nuts and tropical fruits with rum ‘n’ raisin ice-cream.
Overall
Bags of personality. I think this is even better than the 1995 Malaga cask. Nice to taste something just a little bit ‘out there’ with an unusual character. It works well on so many levels and the flavours are amazing.
Omar Fitzell
Omar has been lurking in the background of the Irish Whiskey Industry since 2010 when he started his journey through tasting, enjoying and collecting whiskey. In January 2018 he launched the online blog “That’s Dram Good” which, in those few short months, has become one of the most popular whiskey blogs in Ireland.
You can find him on:
• Twitter – @thatsdramgood
• Facebook – ThatsDramGood
Al Higgins
Over 20 years of experience in drinks retail and a member of the team at the Celtic Whiskey Shop since 2003. Alastair is chief tester and taster at the shop and is also coordinator for the Irish Whiskey Awards. When he is not working he is either training for ultra-marathons, parenting or drumming with his band Le Galaxie.
You can find him on:
• Twitter – @mostlydrinking