TULLIBARDINE TASTING

I was contacted by Micheal Beamish, the director of Tullibardine back in May, because it had come to his attention that we didn’t stock his whisky. Now many of you will have read my notes and comments on their bottlings back in Newsletter No34 – January 2009. To put it mildly they were not that good and led me to coin the term ‘The Axis of Evil’ – In which they were joined by the likes of Dufftown, Deanston, Fettercairn, and Tobermorey.

I told him that I was ‘disappointed’ by my last encounter with his whisky. Yes, I can be diplomatic! And he said that he would send me some samples, to see if I would change my opinion. And…….. I have!! In fact they have been promoted from the ‘Axis’ and have been replaced by………… Glenkichie.

Old Tullibardine is still a bit industrial in character, but I was definitely impressed by the 1988, so if you happen to be a Dufftown fan then this is a style that you would enjoy. The Sauternes finish was like tasting a completely different whisky. I don’t know if these are batch bottled or whether the sample I tasted last time was tainted, but it was my favourite of all the bottlings.

The Aged Oak Edition is interesting. When I tasted it I assumed that it was relatively new make and it certainly is. Apparently it is a vatting of post 2003 distilled spirit with a little 15 year old spirit. However the predominant character is that of the new make with a distinct Grappa like character, and as I allude to in my tasting notes, give it time and good wood it will turn out to be soft-ish and drinkable.

Tullibardine Aged Oak Edition 40% £25.95

The paleness of the colour gives a marker to its age – young. Probably newly distilled (post 2003) as it has a controlled rustic rose petal marc character. Quite candied with a lot of white pepper and oily cereal notes.

Clean, slightly oily with a more grappa than marc like character. There’s some pepper and old wood notes on the middle but the grappa notes see it off quite quickly. Pleasant, clean and simple. Good spirit which just needs time and good wood.

Tullibardine Vintage 1993 (15 year old) 40%

An oily marzipan nose, reminiscent of playdough. Some subtle candied sweet notes and marc like rose petals arise, followed by some natural vanilla-caramel and barley. Actually the barley is pretty oily and there’s some late straw and lemon.

The palate mirrors the nose, just adding a touch of late spice and a slightly hot finish (probably why it wasn’t bottled at 46%). All in all nowhere near as awful as the last time I tasted it, maybe it’s a different batch. Pleasant but ultimately unexciting.

Tullibardine Vintage 1988 (20 year old) 46% £51.95

A marriage of approximately 50/50 1st fill Bourbon Casks & Sherry Hogsheads.

Again slightly oily but there is some seriously aged honey coming into play. Surprisingly that marc like note is still present and it is still a bit candied. However when the serious old Glenrothes style honey kicks in its much better. Time has teased out some almost exotic orange fruit and it’s ably supported by a touch of light malt and grippy oak.

Soft and lightly honeyed on the palate. Slightly early and displaying a lovely maturity. The marc note is noticeable in the background. A short but pleasant burst of alcohol on the middle cleans the palate and leaves a very peppery finish. I have to say that it’s still a bit industrial and hard but the honey sort of cloaks it. Not unpleasant but you’d have to like this style.

Tullibardine 1993 (15 year old) Sauternes Finish 46% £46.95

A monstrously huge nose. Very sweet, but avoids being sickly. Could be quite easily mistaken for a sherry finish. Pretty complex stuff, there’s a lot going on here! Lovely maturity with hints of hessian, coffee, burnt raisins, roasted nuts, and malty-chocolate. Struth it’s getting bigger and more honeyed! There’s so much of the damn stuff you’ll need a knife to cut it! The good thing is that the alcohol controls the sweetness adroitly. Ok it still has a bit on an industrial edge to it but – you know what I really like this!

Dry, dusty and initially quite tannic to begin with. There is a lot of wood and grape here – armagnac-esque dried fruit by the bucketful, earthy honey, over ripe apricots seeped in honey and white chocolate. Yes it’s intense and woody and the finish is pretty much all grape but there’s just so much honey it’s frightening, and it’s definitely more polished than I remember. Lovely length even though the tannins win out in the end. I still like it!

Tullibardine 1993 (15 year old) Oloroso Finish 46%

Polished, rich, un-leafy, rich oloroso. Seems quiet mature with dried fruit, honey, coffee and walnuts. The honey rubbles on unabated and it’s a dead ringer for a honeyed old Spey. All pretty well integrated, there’s the ever present industrial distillery character and some oily lanolin notes and even a perfumed top note! Again a definite improvement on last time.

Like the nose it’s polished but strangely seems younger. It opens with marc like notes followed by the grape, mature honey and a serious amount of tannin. The middle has an intensity of sherried salted green nuts and light coffee, almost manzanilla in style I’d say. It’s pretty much all cask, even the distillery character struggles to come through it. Very long with coffee liqueur and hazelnut notes amid the omnipresent tannins!

ONCE MORE INTO THE BREACH!

St Georges Distillery Chapter 9 46% £43.95
First Fill Bourbon Casks 110/113/117/134 Peated

Surprisingly astringent and coastal aromas, which bear more than a passing resemblance to Laphroaig (although not as pungent). Briny and subtly peaty, developing a slight floral top note. Underneath there is a depth of youthful cereal/ barley with a hint of honey and the oak adding a burnt toffee/ caramel/ coffee nuance.

Slightly oily with an Irish softness and plenty of sweet, chewy malt along with an almost grainy nip. A touch of floral marc gives away its age as the delicate peat fires up, becoming more coastal and floral on the middle. The finish shows the clean underpinning oak structure although it does grip quite tightly at the end, giving a peppery-bitter finale.

Just like in the Chapter 6, it is evolving well and quiet quickly. The oak is only now starting to add character as opposed to taking away, although just like in the Chapter 6 it does bitter out the finish. I wasn’t able to taste this against the earlier peated bottling (Chapter 4) but after reading my notes, the Chapter 9 appears to be a lot more coastal in character, which can only, obviously come from the peat, as Roudham, when I last looked was way inland!

JAMES MACARTHUR – REVISITED.

It’s not often that I re-evaluate samples. Maybe I should do it more often, but Arthur from James MacArthur was saying that he has had a good response with regard to the Glendullan 12 year old and the Dalmore 12 year old. I first reviewed them in Newsletter No? and they didn’t exactly do it for me, but I was more than happy to give them another shot, but as you can see from my notes below. I’m still not convinced.

Glendullan 1997 (12 year old) 56.1%

A very acetone and botanical dominated nose. It develops floral notes along with lanolin coated oily orange fruit and earth. A distinctly odd nose.
Oily with light vanilla-orange fruit and no shortage of botanicals. Very piquant alcohol leads to a grassy finish and a light lanolin coating after taste.
Water removes some of the acetone aromas and emphasises the floral notes but there’s no escaping the lanolin. On the palate it has become very sugary with a touch of white-floral fruit. It seems to give an impression of depth but frankly flatters to deceive. Unexciting and ephemeral, an acquired taste to say the least – Is this really what Glendullan is like? My only previous experience of this distillery was a Blackadder sherry monster with not even a shred of distillery character present.

Dalmore 1997 (12 year old) 59.8%

An earthy, phenolicaly peated nose, with hints of higher alcohols, some perfumed orange blossom fruit, grist and heavy oils. The perfume really builds and it’s a frankly odd combination of perfume and peat!

Dry and alcoholic on the palate. Soft and slightly cardboardy to begin with. There’s old wood notes – hickory and liquorice followed by that perfumed peated botanicals character. The alcohol masks the finish.

With water the peat simply vanishes!?! In its place is some slightly industrial orange fruit and the oak is definitely more pervasive adding a slightly soapy, vanilla-butterscotch note. Sweeter on the palate, and more homogenised and seems a lot younger with the peat trying to put in a reappearance at the death.

JAMES MACARTHUR – NEW

Highland Park 1998 (12 year old) 57.8% Bourbon Cask

Oily and pungent, yet strangely reticent at the same time. Heavy oak with hints of earth and botanicals. Some astringent salty fruit comes through along with some sweet-malty barley. However it seems a bit disjointed.

Oily on the palate with a more noticeable heathery character, quite scrubby but there still this heavy oak presence. It sort of sits like a lead weight, neither bolstering with vanillins or adding structure. Slightly winey with a pleasant light honeyed finish.

A drop of water makes the nose quite winey. Emphasising the crisp, white fruits, whilst the oak seems to be more engaging now and there’s a soupcon of honey. The palate is softened and the oak is imparting more caramel character. However it tastes a lot younger and is a bit one dimensional. Maybe could have done with more time in the cask? Or maybe the wood would just continue to overpower the spirit. All told another disappointing Bourbon oaked HP.

Glen Elgin 1991 (17 year old) £55.95 Sherry Cask 2598

Exceptionally clean, slightly leafy sherry cask. Plenty of robust coffee, liquorice and earthy-spices, mingle with pure molten honey. Very fruity with a delightful sweetness, a touch of malt and oak vanillins, spearmint and a slight perfumed/ floral note.

Delicately sherried, again a touch leafy with huge coffee grains marauding and the tannins building pleasantly. It becomes exceedingly leafy on the middle with that spearmint note appearing along with an undercurrent of earthy barley. A wonderfully clean cask with a slight botanical and bitter toffee finish.

With water the nose opens with a joyous sugar frosted tangerine/ satsuma melange. This citrus thread subdues the cask but it comes back with a spicy dark, liquorice/ toffee note. The palate is lighter and a touch more oilier, yet still robust. A wonderfully clean sherry cask.

Caol Ila 1996 (13 year old) 59.8% £49.95 Bourbon

Crisp, clean, classic Caol Ila aromas of phenolic, briny, iodine and carbolic soap laced crisp gently peated fruit. Lovely intensity.

The palate is lightly oiled with a wonderful complexity of pure, crumbly, loamy/ earthy peat. Crisp, refreshing, grassy Sauvignon garden fruits just scream Caol Ila. Gently peated with an amazing length and a real salty, coal dust finish. Personally I would avoid water as it makes it a touch watery and a tad soapier and besides half the fun of young-ish Caol Ila just like a young Laphraoig is in the wild, alcoholic ride!