• 1988 Blair Athol 25 Year Old K&L Exclusive Signatory Sherry Butt Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky 750ml ($154.99) Blair Athol, known mostly for its role in Bell’s Blended, is finally starting to get some recognition as a single malt. Diageo is scheduling a rare expression of the distillery for its next limited release and tourists visiting Edradour in Pitlochry are stopping by the quaint distillery on their way out of town; usually with a positive experience to report back. We’ve purchased a couple of younger hogshead casks in the past, but during our last visit to Signatory we dug out this ancient sherry butt of 26 year old Blair Athol that really blew our minds. The sherry influence is still quite fresh in the whisky as layers of cakebread and Christmas spices come quickly on the entry. That holiday flavor profile then moves into a round, resinous fruit flavor that coats the palate, revealing brandied cherries and oily, earthier notes. We left the Signatory warehouse pretty excited about Blair Athol, driving by the distillery on our way out of Pitlochry. We’ ;re even more excited about this heavenly 26 year old expression now that it’s here. And, trust us, when the word gets about it won’t be here long. This should be one of the first to go.

• 2001 Bowmore 12 Year Old K&L Exclusive Signatory Refill Sherry Butt Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky 750ml ($99.99) We absolutely killed it with the ’02 Hogshead at 46% this year, but we’re not done with Bowmore. This distillery is cranking out the most magnificent malt and Signatory gets these amazing high quality butts. This is more consistent with the house style than the last cask, bringing the nutty sherry slightly more to the foreground. It’s a stark reminder that Bowmore should be considered one of Scotland’s greatest distilleries. Treat this with the reverence it deserves and this whisky will make you feel like you’re the special one instead of the other way around.

• 1990 Bruichladdich 23 Year Old K&L Exclusive Signatory Refill Sherry Butt Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky 750ml ($159.99) Clearly, we went a little Refill Sherry crazy this year, but how could we resist. We’ve been tasting this special cask every year since we first set foot in Signatory’s wonderful warehouses and we finally felt that it had reached it’s true peak. Bruichladdich is probably pretty sore that they don’t own this cask because it’s the perfect example of the unpeated Islay Malt. This hits every note without skipping a beat (while skipping the peat). The perfect amount of ripe round malty spice mixed with zesty citrus fruit. An ever so subtle oceany brine. The subtle nutty oxidative quality of the second fill sherry maturation. It’s a gem and will likely go down as one of our most re-purchased casks (those Bruichladdich fans are loyal after all).

• 1997 Glen Ord 17 Year Old K&L Exclusive Signatory Hogshead Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky 750ml ($79.99) We went crazy for a few casks from 1997 this year and this Glen Ord is top of the top. Classic oily Ord, with tons of wonderful unusual malt flavors. It’s a goofy little whisky that shows all kinds of wild flavors. Tart white fruit on the nose, white cherries (do those exist?), linseed, wild flowers, waxed apples -not wax apples- the finest plum eau-de-vie. That aromatic fruit continues on the palate but is pointed by a spice that’s not altogether oaky. This one is for the real “malt nuts.” You know who you are.

• 1995 Glenburgie 19 Year Old K&L Exclusive Signatory Hogshead Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky 750ml ($89.99) Signatory has an incredible selection of barrels from the mid-to-late 1990s; a number of 16-20 year old whiskies from less-appreciated distilleries that simply shine. We’ve already released a number of them to the pubic (Benrinnes, Glen Ord, Dailuaine), but this marks the first time we’ve ever purchased a cask from Glenburgie distillery; the Speyside distillery owned by Pernod-Ricard that has been periodically shutdown when not needed (most recently from 2000-2004). Few whisky drinkers, if any, expect greatness from Glenburgie, but we wouldn’t be doing our job if we didn’t taste every cask! In this 19 year old hogshead we found heady aromas of toasted oak and candied citrus, supple vanilla on the palate, and a spicy, fruit-forward finish that made us instantly crave a second sip. We don’t usually argue about drinkable, delicious, 19 year old, cask strength whiskies for less than $100, but in this case the three of us couldn’t agree: di d we like it more or less than the Glenlivet 16? David D: yes! Kyle: no. David OG: unsure. In the end, we still bought it because it was too damn good to pass up. Especially for the money.

• 1997 Glenrothes 17 Year Old K&L Exclusive Signatory Refill Sherry Butt Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky 750ml ($79.99) Sherry-matured single malt is big right now and if you can get it at full proof, even better. Glenrothes has always been a fan-favorite at K&L for its chewy, meaty, full-bodied character and rich, supple profile, but lately more folks have been heading for the Aberlour A’Bunadh due to the higher ABV. We thought: why not combine the best of both worlds? Why not buy a sherry cask of Glenrothes at nearly 60% alcohol and give the people what they want? Even better: let’s double the age! Let’s do a monster 17 year old refill sherry cask and bring all that chewy, cakey goodness for all those sherry-heads out there. And the price! Let’s make sure it’s no more than $79.99. Can we do that? Well, we just did. Classic sherry-aged Glenrothes at full proof for about eighty bucks. Sound OK?

• 1998 Mortlach 16 Year Old K&L Exclusive Signatory Sherry Butt Finish Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky 750ml ($99.99) Can we keep the Mortlach momentum rolling? It seems that ever since we released that amazing sherry butt of Mortlach from Chieftain’s all those years ago, we’ve been riding a wave of Mortlach enthusiasm for the sherry-aged Speyside beast. Diageo even released their own single malt version (maybe we had something to do with that, eh?) We’re always on the lookout for more Mortlach, especially sherry-aged barrels, and it turns out that Signatory had a sherry-finished butt sitting in their Pitlochry location just there for the taking. The first sip is all you need to get excited: lots of gingerbread, cinnamon, holiday cookie goodness just explodes on the palate, with cakey, sherry flavor rounding out the back end. At full proof, it’s as much of a beast as ever. But the fact that this cask was simply finished in sherry, rather than aged in the sweet wine from day one, is a big benefit. The maltiness of the whisky is still there at the core and the finish still sings of whisky. It’s going to be a big hit; especially for $99.99.

• 1995 Imperial 18 Year Old K&L Exclusive Signatory Single Barrel Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky 750ml ($84.99) Ok, so it turns out we are bringing you a rare closed distillery bottling after all, it’s just not from a distillery anyone has ever heard! I’m totally in love with this odd little distillery, which was dismantled and eventually demolished in 2013. Plans to build a news distillery are in the works -what a waste- but nothing will be quite like the fine old gentlemen that was the Imperial distillery. This cask was the best of several excellent ones we found in the warehouse. Bone dry, with concentrated nutty flavors, it’s fully bodied and lushes to the max. It’s not altogether unphenolic, with a slight earthy smoke in the background. Incredibly complex and deep, not the sort of whisky you can evaluate in a mere few moments, so be sure to let this one breath in the glass. Give it time and let it expand before you. Perhaps my favorite bottling in this batch and look at the price.

K&L Wine Merchants
http://www.klwines.com
Phone: 877-KLWines (toll free 877-559-4637)
Email: wine@klwines.com
San Francisco, Redwood City, Hollywood CA