Black Bush versus Black Bush 80/20 PX Sherry Cask Reserve

 

Bushmills Black Bush 40% abv.          80% malt / 20% grain     $34/£24.50/€29

Roughly 8 years old, majority sherry cask matured

Nose: Foam banana sweets and ripe bananas. Tinned pineapple rings, peach, honeydew melon and fruit salad sweets. Malt, honey, cinnamon and some raisin. Brown sugar. It tastes a little artificially sweet.

Palate: A sweet arrival with caramel, brown sugar, banana and melon followed by cinnamon and nutmeg. Now a sour note – like wet cardboard. Now vanilla. The mouthfeel is thin. Towards the end is a touch of milk chocolate and raisin.

Finish: Short with vanilla custard, fruit and nut chocolate and a bitter/sharp finish

Score: 4 out of 10

Overall: Better than the original white label but not by much anymore. A pale comparison to what it used to be.

Black Bush 80/20 PX Reserve 46% abv.        $28.50/£22.25/€27

Malt component is finished in PX sherry casks

Nose: Banana’s again – both foam and ripe. Candied apples, white grape juice, raisin, peach and pineapple. Slightly buttery with honey, pepper and cinnamon.

Palate: Even at 46% the mouthfeel doesn’t feel much different from the regular Black Bush. A touch more sherried with more raisin, some dates, syrupy sweetness and marzipan too. The peach and pineapple are still there too but not much in the way of spice. Mild pepper, nutmeg and clove. A little orange peel too.

Finish: Short to medium with orange peel, raisin and light baking spice.

Score: 5 out of 10

Overall: A little more character than the standard Black Bush but probably not something I’ll buy again.

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