September 2016 Outturn Offerings 

Cask No. 35.142                                     $175

Sweet treats and forbidden pleasures

Speyside, Lossie

On the nose – fudge, pecan pie, crème caramel, marzipan, set honey, banoffee pie, rum-soaked raisins; waxed jackets, incense smoke, toasted oak, tobacco pouch, sweet mint. And here are some of our comments – Amazing. Fantastic. Deeply satisfying. Complex. Rewarding. Can’t put it down. Sweet treats. A sniffer’s dram. On the palate – dark Madeira honey cake, Jamaican truffles, Moroccan spice markets, buttered toast, marmalade, treacle, rich caramel, spiced almonds, maple syrup, ginger biscuits. Yet more comments – Forbidden pleasures. Manna from Heaven. Moreish. A voyage of discovery. Sometimes being on the panel is not so bad!

Drinking tip: To impress someone – or simply as a canvas on which to paint the dreams of a good life.

Colour: Burnished copper

Cask: First-fill toasted oak hogshead

Age: 21 years

Date distilled: November 1994

Alcohol: 56.2%

USA allocation: 90 bottles

Flavour profile: Spicy & sweet

Cask No. 85.32                               $100                       

Grannies behaving badly (and madly!)

Speyside, Lossie

A teatime treat for cheeky grannies in pursuit of their youth. A veritable feast of goodies to indulge: bubble gum, apple chews, apricot sweeties and vanilla fairy cakes. They nibbled at Empire biscuits and raspberry tartlets while dabbing their lips with apple lip balm. Our guzzling grannies slurped cheap peach ice cream, cherry lips and melon balls. They nonchalantly flicked through glossy magazines while sipping gin and tonic and eating Cape gooseberries. An indulgent bathtime left the lassies sudsy with apple and vanilla soap and sleep followed in orange blossom scented sheets. Sweet dreams of times gone by!

Drinking tip: For feeling sprightly whatever age you are

Colour: Straw bonnet

Cask: First-fill barrel

Age: 9 years

Date distilled: June 2006

Alcohol: 60.6%

USA allocation: 114 bottles

Flavour profile: Young & spritely 

 

Cask No. 28.27                       $105

Autumn feelings

Highland, Southern

This dram evoked autumnal feelings in us all, even though slightly different ones. From walking in woodland searching for blackberries and mushrooms to grape harvesting on a warm afternoon and picking apples in an orchard; eventually we all celebrated harvest festival. For that we were eating plum, orange and almond cobbler, toffee apples, caramelised pears and pumpkin pie. With water the first signs of winter appeared, the cool wind and the comforting aromas of spiced hot apple cider and vanilla scented candles drew us inside enjoying a cherry pie with a nutty crumb crust and real whipped cream.

Drinking tip: After a good days work

Colour: ‘Loonie’ – Canadian one dollar coin

Cask: Refill barrel

Age: 10 years

Date distilled: March 2005

Alcohol: 61.6%

USA allocation: 90 bottles

Flavour profile: Sweet, fruity & mellow

 

Cask No. 9.89                         $220  

Balanced and harmonious

Speyside, Spey

The nose began slightly sharp and spirity (hot lemon sauce, brambles, nettles, balsam and pine) but lots of goodies too – coconut, liquorice allsorts, tinned pineapple, dried fruit, vanilla. With time and a little water it became dusty and woody (newly sawn wood, workshop shavings, tea, hay, pepper) – but with teasing sweetness (honey, chocolate, orange jelly) and delicate roses. The palate flooded the mouth with flavour – dark cherries, dark chocolate, strawberry jam, blackberry, lemon and lime – all nicely agitated by tongue-tingling peppery spice. In reduction, bitter fruits see-sawed with honey, raisin and creamy custard sweetness – bringing balance and harmony. Rothes’ oldest distillery.

Drinking tip: A contemplative dram – or for a special occasion – easy on the water.

Colour: Buccaneer gold

Cask: Refill butt

Age: 25 years

Date distilled: April 1988

Alcohol: 57.5%

USA allocation: 90 bottles

Flavour profile: Spicy & sweet

 Cask No. 53.233                             $160

Fireman’s gloves on a mermaid

Islay

Our noses found nutty, leathery, woody smoke – bonfires from first touch to dying embers – fireman’s gloves after a hard shift; then we got medicinal stuff (first-aid box, bandages, Savlon) and finally fish boxes, shellfish, citrus and celery salt. The palate was a Wowee! hit of wood extract, tar, salted treacle scones and smoke (puffing a big cigar) – hints of fried bacon and salted cashews. The reduced nose was ‘salty as a mermaid in a rock-pool’ – salt-encrusted boat decks were also mentioned – and some savoury notes. The palate remained chewy and substantial – a candy floss of smoke and tar on a stick.

Drinking tip: To impress your friends, or just as a nightcap for any salty old dog, reading himself to sleep with an Irvine Welsh novel.

Colour: Aztec necklace in the sun

Cask: Refill hogshead

Age: 19 years

Date distilled: September 1996

Alcohol: 60.0%

USA allocation: 120 bottles

Flavour profile: Heavily peated

Visit the Scotch Malt Whisky Society of America at www.smwsa.com