they choose not to do so. If we look at Dalwhinnie for example, when it was first built in 1897 the distillery was then called ‘Strathspey’, which should give you a clue to its location, with it becoming known as Dalwhinnie in November 1898 when it was sold to the Dalwhinnie Distillery Company. However this doesn’t answer the original question as to why it is not labelled as a Speyside distillery and the answer to that is plain and simple – the don’t want to!

Nick Morgan, the head of whisky knowledge global (great job title!) at Diageo told me that “In terms of its physical location, Dalwhinnie is located in the central highlands at a considerable distance from the acknowledged geographic reality of Speyside. A 21st century re-drawing of boundaries for administrative purposes cannot undo the realities of geography and culture.”

“Dalwhinnie is a Highland distillery, located at an important centre of the old highland droving industry. Its history, its character and its culture – as well as its physical geography – are of the Scottish Highlands. It is not, has never been and will never be a Speyside distillery.”

The Macallan distillery was a bit less romantic and more forthright with regards to its reasons. “Macallan chooses to continue to use Highland [as its designation] as it has always done.” I was told. Both distilleries took pains to remind me that the Speyside region was just a subset of the Highland region, almost in self defence, if I was somehow criticising them for not using the Speyside ‘appellation’. Which I obviously wasn’t, maybe it’s because I ask awkward questions? Just ask a certain well known author! –

“But I am interested to know on what grounds you claim Tomatin not to be a Speysider, seeing that geographically (just) and style-wise (massively), it is…” – Well we now know that legally it definitely isn’t!

Right time for some tasting!

NEW RELEASES FROM RAYMOND ARMSTRONG
Glen Ord 1990 (20 year old) 54.4%
Puncheon 1160
A high toned and slightly spirity nose with some gentle honey and grass. Quite delicate and mature, maybe just a touch too old as the alcohol gives it a definite nose prickle. However it has a good depth with a mature edge to the honey notes and with time some creamy vanilla oak.

The palate is surprisingly mouth filling, yet still delicate with mature light honey coated fruit, grass, straw oak and plenty of spice. The alcohol is pretty intense and the finish is quite hot with a spirity/ botanical finish.

With water the nose is beautifully grassy, almost lowland-esque. The oak is pushed back and lets some white fruits and flowers come through. Overall it seems fresher now. However the palate has lost its shape and become sugar water. Pity.

Teaninich 1982 (27 year old) 49.2%
Bourbon Cask 7697
Deep aromas of mature honey, floor polish, lanolin and spices. Amazingly it is still a bit gristy with a core of granity hard cereal and hints of wheat flakes. Delicate and elegant, the oak supports well.

The palate is gentle and again surprisingly gristy with a distinct sawdust and pure barley husk dust character. Mellow and gentle with oodles of honey and just the right amount of alcohol to balance the dustiness! The finish is fresh and intense and leaves an oily coating to the mouth and a gentle dusting of dried spice.

With water the honey aromas become more pronounced, yet it has developed a touch of confectionary sweetness. The palate is a touch watery and a bit so-so, but then out of nowhere comes a burst of old rose petals, Turkish delight and spices. Even so I would prefer to drink this neat.

Inchgower 1982 (28 year old) 50.4% £54.95
Bourbon Hogshead 6965
A simply gorgeous nose! Superb depth of garden herb infused honey with a touch of lemon sherbert and old wood spices. Although given time the oak barrels in with lashings of caramel and toffee, the honey is always in charge! The oak is definitely of the sawn/ sawdusty type and the aromas move into a digestive biscuit direction. All this oak and honey is balanced well by the mint, juniper and garden herbs.

Soft, silky and liqueur like with a slight lactose quality. Again the honey shows first followed by the boisterous oak adding a pure vanilla ice cream note before moving into the caramel/ toffee arena. Oooh this is getting richer! We’ve not finished yet! The middle opens to display some brown sugar sprinkled wheaty biscuit before the alcohol cleanses the palate. However the toffee has coated the mouth and it easily sees off the alcohol intrusion. Yes there is a lot of oak but to me it is definitely not unbalanced. It won’t appeal to all palates, but if you love the purity and complexity of good Bourbon wood, then this is your dram!

A drop of water emphasises the light herbal character of the nose, brining out some Sauvignon blanc-esque fruit, grass and citrus. On the palate the oak is subdued somewhat and now kind of lurks at the edges, it allows the icing sugar coated grassy citrus fruit to shine along with the honey and dried flowers/ rose petals. The balance is probably a bit better with water, but either way it’s a superb bottling.

Highland Park 1997 (12 year old) 50% £44.95
Bourbon cask 6259
Quite a pungent and heavily peated nose for a Highland Park. Very fishy with hints of bog myrtle, menthol, heather-honey and slightly gristy barley notes. Youthful and slightly coastal with some late rubber and iodine.

Slightly oily, opening with cereal biscuits followed by heather-honey and herbs. The intense alcohol dies out the middle and the finish. Although it does seem quite full for a Bourbon oaked Highland Park. The peat is gentler on the palate, yet it is quite an oily/ tarry, sort of liquid peat – Pretty wild huh!

With water the nose becomes gentler and slightly candied with the barley taking on a sugar coating and the intense peat retreating into the background. The palate has opened quite delightfully. Like the nose it has become sweeter and a lot more expressive. Gristy and grippy, considerably
more floral and heathery with just a touch of honey and light fishy peat. Delicate (almost!) and complex, this is an amazingly good Bourbon cask (and I don’t say that very often!) The finish just keeps on going, finishing with a smidge of peat smoke and salt.

Craggenmore 1991 (19 year old) 53.8% £49.95
Bourbon Hogshead 1176
A superb nose of complex honey aromas – natural clear honey and macula. Balanced by a slight grassiness and gentle spices. Fresh and aromatic with a lovely poise. With time there is a touch of cereal and banana. The vanilla oak along with some maltiness sits beneath.

Soft and gentle on the palate. Quite grassy to begin with then the complexity of honey unfolds itself before being cut short by the piquant alcohol.

With water, the nose becomes extremely fresh with a veritable fruit basket of zingy citrus before moving into a slightly fleshy tropical fruit direction. There is still plenty of honey although that has taken a bit of a back seat. As expected the palate has opened up beautifully. The honey is cut through with a vein of citrus and the gentle spices come to life. Possibly not as complex as the nose, but still very enjoyable.

Balmenach 1983 (26 year old) 52.8% £54.95
Bourbon Hogshead 2410
An oily and slightly pungent nose of floral scented mature honey along with some old rose petal notes. Over time it becomes liberally sprinkled with pure icing sugar and the oak begins to express itself with a crème caramel note. Superb balance between the oak and spirit.

Lightly oily on the palate with a touch of treacle, light coffee, tar and manure along with the sugar coated mature honey (sounds odd but is quite pleasant!) Mouth watering alcohol clears the way for some old botanicals and a sharp, dry finish. Intriguing!

Water brings out some oily marzipan and the oak grips a little more now, although that is balanced by a fresh edge. The palate is softer and sweeter with some marzipan, rose water and crumbly spices. Definitely mature but still lively. Quite charming.

Glenburgie 1983 (26 year old) 53.7% £67.95
Sherry Cask 9801
A high toned leafy, sweet Oloroso nose. Quite malty and full with distinct green nuts and wood spice notes from the cask. A gentle/ elegant sherry monster! Lovely maturity and the sherrywood spices are divine. With time some liquorice, coffee, tar and a touch of menthol become apparent.

Soft and gentle nutty sherry fruit, a bit more Palo Cortado in style. As to be expected the combination of alcohol and tannins masks the finish although some leafy notes hang in there. The sweetness builds through out and becomes quite candied towards the end.

With water the nose becomes more candied and some orange conserve and sugar coated dried citrus rind appears. It’s definitely a sugar fest now! The palate is showing its age now – mature, poised and gentle with the flavours melding into serene morass. Like the nose it is pretty candied and one for those of you with a sweet tooth. Very long with hints of white flowers in the finish. A lovely mature sherry cask!

THE TOBERMORY TASTING

So could Tobermory do a Tulli? Well…… er……no! Although I will say that the 10 year old has improved a great deal since I last tasted it but overall it is still a very industrial and for me unpleasant malt. It still exhibits that wet cardboard character and occasional butyric note, plus when they add some peat to the mix, as in the Ledaig bottling, well, just read the tasting notes!

Tobermory 10 year old 40% – Distillery Bottling
Bourbon/ Sherry (?)
The nose, although still rather industrial in style has definitely improved. Yes there is still that wet cardboard note but there is some sweet barley, malt and a touch of grape. On the palate it tastes like an innocuous blend component. It’s softly sherried with a touch of malt and again wet cardboard. It’s short and a bit hot on the finish along with some pleasant spices which are unfortunately trounced by a slightly metallic/ tarry after taste.

Ledaig No Age Statement 42% – Distillery Bottling
Bourbon
Good grief this is rough. Industrial isn’t the word for it. Pretty young with plenty of ‘off the still’ marc, cardboard, peat and a butyric edge. Yep it’s that pleasant!

The palate mirrors the nose, some pleasant smoke tries to liven the proceedings but it’s all a bit flat and spirity. Oh and under no circumstances add any water………. It’s toe curlingly nasty!

Ledaig 8 year old 50% – Old Malt Cask Bottling
Bourbon
The nose is quite fishy and only faintly cardboardy. It has considerably more depth the previous bottling and in fact it’s quite refined. Lots of manurey peat mingle with cod liver oil and hints of crispy bacon bits!

A reasonably oily palate with an initial honest gentle peat but still acquiescing to the cardboard notes. The middle is pleasant as the oak arrives with a buttery wave and some pleasant spice. Like the above it’s a bit short, yet it has a agreeable, lingering smoky finish.

Adding water signals the retreat of the peatiness as the cardboard hordes rush in! Flat and a bit sickly sweet on the palate.

Ledaig 9 year old 40% – Glen Keir ‘Treasures’ Bottling
Sherry
Serious baby sick and sherry! Pretty fishy with some wet cardboard/ wet dog aromas going on! Enough said! The palate is thankfully after that nose quite innocuous. There’s some sherry of the candied persuasion, some youthful marc, some oily/ sooty peat and the ubiquitous cardboard!

For some reason we added some water (probably to torture ourselves a bit more!) which emphasised the sherry cask adding a touch of chocolate, but the palate became, dull, flat and watery with a nasty, sugary finish.

Ledaig 1997 (12 year old) 46% – Ian MacLeod Dun Bheagan Bottling
Sherry Butt 800007
An unrefined and torturous nose of murky, earthy coffee and cardboard with added alcohol prickle for good measure! The palate is rough, industrial and totally lacking any cask interaction and features all of the above with some spice and late smoke. A great way to round of a pretty undignified tasting.