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Laphroaig’s stillhouse is a popular part of tours at the distillery, and the stillman you’re most likely to meet is Alan Hyslop. Alan’s been a fixture at Laphroaig for 30 years, and celebrated his anniversary during Feis Ile this year. He’ll share some of his stories with us in this episode. In the news, the defending champion in the Australian Malt Whisky Tasting Championship has been dethroned, Heaven Hill expands its line of Evan Williams bourbon-based liqueurs, and an amazing find at the bottom of the sea between Sweden and Finland.

Visit WhiskyCast at www.whiskycast.com

By Tim Cornwell

IAN Gray has carved out a unique artistic career painting more than 70 whisky distilleries, from Islay to Kentucky.

• Ian Gray’s artworks are created using digitally manipulated photographs, which are printed then painted over in oil and pastel.

Born and raised in Edinburgh and trained as a graphic artist, the 43-year-old does not claim his work is high art; he takes a succession of photographs, merges them digitally, and paints over the prints to heighten colour and atmosphere, with louring Scottish skies. Fine-art critics might blench, but the results are impressive. The paintings – full canvases sell at
around £4,500 – have won legions of fans, including 20 distilling companies worldwide who have commissioned his paintings, from Scotland’s Glenmorangie and Japan’s Suntory, to America’s Maker’s Mark.

Now he’s working on a project for the National Trust for Scotland to paint St Kilda, while a new Scottish tourism website, Bagging Scotland, has also hired him.

At home in Düsseldorf, Germany – he says he “did a runner” from the poll tax – he drinks gallons of his favourite tipple, Irn-Bru, which he stocks up during his frequent trips back to Scotland.

If there’s one lesson in his career worth picking up on, it might be to find your niche and conquer it.

In the past 20 years, his business has thrived on the back of Scotland’s most famous export industry, as well as the world market for whisky.

In addition to his distillery images, and pictures of the interiors of whisky barrels or pot stills, Gray also produces Scottish landscapes. “I do this full-time, nothing else, just creating artwork,” he says.

When we spoke, Gray was working hard producing pictures for three shows: at the Ghent Whisky Festival in Belgium on 6-7 February, then the next week at the importer for the Scotch Malt Whisky Society in Düsseldorf and, later, at an exhibition for spirits connoisseurs at the Deutsches Museum in Munich.

About 20 years ago, Gray was on a camping trip on Islay. He started doing sketches and paintings of the Ardbeg distillery and its surroundings. “When they went on show, people from other distilleries caught on, and it just took off from there,” he say.

“All I’ve been doing for the past few years has been hanging around the distilleries, getting invited into the next one.”

Gray was born in Hamilton to a family with a tradition of creating and working with the arts. His  father was an electrical engineer and inventor of a microwave rotary switch, while his mother was a kiltmaker. His grandfather was a sculptor and potter in his spare time, while his grandmother created pottery designs. He describes his work as “hyperrealism”, in the style of photorealism, but using photographs directly, rather than reproducing them on canvas. He starts with a series of photographs, merges and manipulates them digitally together, prints them on paper and canvas, and then reworks them with inks and pastels. “It adds atmosphere to the pictures, giving it depth,” he says. In one of his his Ardbeg paintings, called Storm is Coming, he has emphasised the louring skies “to sum up the weather on Islay, and the whisky, how robust it is, trying to put that into the painting”.

Gray has faced scepticism from fellow painters over “embellishing” photographs: “I’ve been questioned before by traditional artists. Art at the end of the day is to do something creatively, it’s just creation. That’s all I do, take an idea, take an image, and reproduce it into an artwork.

“It’s taken me about 15 years to perfect it. It goes from taking a photograph, digitialising that image. It is sometimes reproduced on to paper, reworked again with inks and oils, sometimes rescanned back into the computer to be corrected, then printed out again on to canvas or paper, and then reworked again. It’s not just one image printed on to canvas, there are several images and processes involved.

“Islay is a very, very special place, the people on Islay, I’ve had some fantastic experiences there. Every distillery is spectacular, each one has a special romantic location, a special atmosphere. Storm is Coming sums up the roughness of the island, but also the beauty. It was actually a series of
ten photographs I took, getting completely soaked in the process. It was Sunday, the place was closed, it was quiet and peaceful until the storm came up.”

To capture Bowmore Sunset, he got a view of the setting sun reflecting on to the distillery off Loch Indaal. “I was eaten alive by midges, but I managed to have a wee dram with me, which also distracted me from all the bites.”

You’re unlikely to see Gray’s paintings turning up at Sotheby’s. But as he has assiduously plied his trade as an “optimistic Scotsman” selling his wares, they’ve been bought by whisky connoisseurs and collectors, bars, restaurants, whisky workers and distillery bosses worldwide.

Gray says the BBC’s political correspondent, Glen Campbell, from Islay, also bought one, picking it up from his parents’ house in Bathgate. When Gray staged his first small show of work at Ardbeg nearly a decade ago, “every member of staff bought one of his prints of the distillery”, according to their visitor centre manager, Jackie Thomson.

Gray had tackled corporate commissions before he found his way to Islay. The German parliament hired him to paint the opening of the German Centre for Trade and Commerce in Singapore, as an official gift. He created 33 paintings for the headquarters of BYK Additives and Instruments in Germany. But his growing ties with Islay saw him hold his 40th birthday party at Ardbeg. His large paintings now adorn the visitor centre walls. Gray is a regular visitor, arriving with his children in his green camper-van, settling in on Kintra beach. “He captures the mood and feel of a distillery so well, and also the way he paints light is breathtaking,” says Thomson. “This was a springboard for him to paint other distilleries and get absorbed in Islay life.”

Gray says he’s fascinated with production. “If you look at the whisky industry, it’s an industrial process, but a traditional old distillery is hands-on from malting the barley to producing the wash and hand-rolling the casks.” One day, he says, he’d love to get into the Irn-Bru factory and find out how they do it.

Among his biggest supporters has been George Grant from the Glenfarclas distillery, the company’s “brand ambassador” and son of the owner John Grant. He’s also worked closely with Glenmorangie.

But critical to Gray’s international success was meeting Frank Coleman, senior vice-president for public affairs at the Distilled Spirits Council of the US, the distillers’ trade association. “Discus” is based in Washington. Coleman first saw Gray’s work stacked in a bin at the Ardbeg gift shop, while he was on a trip with US journalists to Scotland,. He says: “I noticed they had these lovely watercolour prints of distilleries, and things related to Scotch whisky. I had only been in the industry about a year, and I was trying to revitalise the look of our offices. I just took them all and said, ‘Can you ship them to Washington?'”

The two men met a year or two later, when Coleman found Gray’s stand at a whisky festival in New York. It led to a commission for paintings of the new American Whiskey Trail, modelled on those in Scotland. Gray’s works now hang in the reception and boardrooms at Discus’s Washington headquarters, hosting top US political leaders.

One is a “semi-abstract” picture of a tray with glasses and whisky bottles; Coleman has the original at home. “He has an amazing eye for light, he draws the eye even to mundane subjects from distilleries, the light hits everything he does,” Coleman raves. “It takes a subject that’s popular in a certain universe, a subject that has never really been the subject of artwork, and he’s made it wildly popular. He’s spread it across the globe.”

The American Whiskey Trail starts at the rebuilt distillery at George Washington’s Mount Vernon home; the first president was convinced by his Scottish plantation manager to go into the distilling business when he left office. The place gets a million visitors a year, and sells postcards of Gray’s work. The deal with his American paintings, says Coleman, was that Discus kept the originals, and Gray the reprint rights.

It’s hard not to see him as the whisky business’s answer to Jack Vettriano, who is often scorned by critics as a lightweight or copyist, but makes a fortune from fans of prints and pricey originals. “Ian Gray is great,” says Coleman, with American exuberance. “We love his art, and it’s a remarkable ability to capture our industry in it’s finest essence.”

….Ralfy has published episode #141 which is a review of Talisker Distillers Edition…

See  for yourself at www.ralfy.com

 

In With The New At The Park Avenue  Liquor Shop.

These days everything is old news. Lebron, Oil Leak, Russian Spies blah, blah. So here at the Park Avenue Liquor Shop we thought we’d share some fresh and exciting news in the land of liquor. There’s something here for just about anyone who enjoys good spirits. So turn off the re-runs and check out our new arrivals. We hope you are having a great summer and look forward to hearing from you soon.

As always if you have any questions, feel free to contact us.

Cheers!

Jonathan & Eric
Park Avenue Liquor Shop
292 Madison Avenue
New York, NY 10017
212-685-2442
info@parkaveliquor.com
www.parkaveliquor.com

WhistlePig Rye

WhistlePig Straight Rye Whiskey is a 100 proof, 100 percent rye whiskey, aged for a minimum of ten years in oak barrels. The whiskey was discovered by Master Distiller Dave Pickerell, who spent over a year on an exhaustive search of North America for the best rye whiskey, and he believes that it embodies the perfect combination of
proof, percent, and age — hitting what he calls “the sweet spot” in all three categories. WhistlePig Straight Rye Whiskey is hand bottled at the WhistlePig Farm Distillery in Shoreham, Vermont and is available in a limited initial offering of only 1000  cases.

Our Price: $73

Maker’s Mark 46*

To make “46”  fully matured Maker’s Mark is removed from its barrel. Top hoops are removed from the barrel, and the barrel head is pulled. Ten wooden seared staves  are then affixed to the inside of that barrel. Searing the staves caramelizes the sugars in the wood, adding a unique flavor that finishes on the front of the tongue.

The fully matured Maker’s Mark is then put back in the barrel and aged several more months. When it tastes exactly right, Maker’s 46 is removed from the barrel, bottled, corked and dipped.

The taste is rich, creamy with seared-oak flavors; caramel and vanilla notes linger on the front of the palate, but it is still soft enough to hold on the tongue even at 94 proof.

Our Price: $40

* 46 was the profile number assigned by barrel maker Brad Boswell to the process  used to sear the oak staves that proved successful in creating the taste profile that Master Distiller Kevin and Brad had been working to achieve.

Slane Castle Irish Whiskey

This unique Whiskey blend has been distilled by the nearby Cooley Distillery, which won the European and World Distiller of the Year at the 2008 International Wine and Spirit Competition.  It is a well balanced blend of malt and grain Irish Whiskey which has been aged and matured for at least four years in American oak barrels that previously matured Bourbon. In the traditional Irish style, the malt whiskey is distilled in copper pot stills and no peated malt is used. The whiskey was recently given a four star rating by the leading American sprit critic F. Paul Paucult of  The Spirit Journal who stated that the Slane Castle Irish Whiskey ‘builds nicely and steadily in the glass with time, providing the drinker with whiskey of substance, gravitas and multi-layered aroma and taste.’

Our Price: $33

Jack Daniels: American Forests

Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Whiskey is partnering with the non-profit organization American Forests to release a limited Edition collectible bottle in conjunction with a tree-planting effort. American Forests, a world leader in planting trees for environmental restoration, will plant a tree with the purchase of each collectible Jack Daniel’s bottle. The whiskey is bottled at 90 proof which is higher than the black label’s 80. Consumers who register the special collectible bottle at www.jackdaniels.com will also receive a free copy of the award-winning American Forests magazine.

Our Price: $46

Due to ever changing inventory we cannot guarantee bottle availability. Please call with any questions regarding shipping. We not responsible for typographical errors.

From Johannes at Malt Maniacs central;

“Here’s the latest E-pistle from Joe Barry – about the FIFA Football Cup… It will be posted on the site shortly.

enjoy Joe’s E-pistle…

Sweet drams,

Johannes”

Read Joe’s very funny epistle at www.maltmaniacs.org

EPISODE 269

Tommy Smith worked at Strathisla Distillery in Speyside for 27 years before taking “early retirement.” He’s put in another eight years since then guiding visitors around the distillery and telling tales of the days when coal fired the stills, men ran the stills instead of computers, and “dramming” was part of the job. He’ll share some of his stories with us in this episode. In the news, new releases from Ardbeg, Six Isles, Four Roses, charity events, and competitions, along with your e-mails and ways to keep cool in the summer’s heat .

Visit WhiskyCast at http://www.whiskycast.com/

Whisky Intelligence has reproduced (with permission) The Gauntleys Whisky Newsletter for May 2010, the author, Chris Goodrum, has some excellent insights of whisky, which makes for excellent reading on a Sunday.  However W.I. has carefully excised any mention of r*m or V*dk*.  The full newsletter can be viewed on the Gauntleys website.

Dear Whisky Customers

Well, talk of the newsletter’s demise was a tad premature, but as sure as death and taxes, it will eventually change to a more ‘blog’ format. But for now you lucky people get another edition. And it’s crammed with what I think is interesting stuff.

Chris Goodrum

COMMENT

In the latest issue of the Whisky Magazine (Issue 88, July 2010) Gavin D. Smith asks the question if sherried whiskies are still relevant to whisky drinkers. Although he personally doesn’t proffer an answer to this question the general tone of the piece concludes that sherry matured whiskies have a place in the pantheon of malts.

As you know I am more of a bourbon man, but I will give praise to a sherry casked whisky if I believe that praise is due. In my experience far too many of these bottlings lack complexity. The personality of the spirit is cloaked or in some cases bludgeoned to death by the sherry. Sometimes the provenance of the spirit is totally lost and it would seem to me that the spirit is purely there to add alcohol to the wood character.

In the article Richard Paterson is quoted as saying “I see Sherry wood as a way of dressing my whiskies in the right clothes. If sherry suits your style of spirit then use it – if not, leave it alone”. These are very wise words. He goes on to state that “Dalmore does well with Sherry because there is a citric, lemongrass note in the new make spirit which interacts beautifully with Oloroso sherry casks to give that lovely marmalade and Christmas pudding character.”

Again I can’t argue with that. I think the Dalmore 12, is a classic example of the vatting together of both sherry and bourbon aged spirits which allows the sherry to enhance and compliment the character of the spirit. Other notable similar bottlings are the Macallan Fine Oak and the Balvenie Signature. Again Richard Paterson echoes what I have said for years “However, you must never loose sight of the character of your whisky – you must dress it not drown it.”

When it comes to whiskies that have been solely aged in sherry casks it’s a different matter, especially if we are talking about first-fill Oloroso ones. As my recent vertical tasting of Glengoyne (see later in the newsletter) reveals, these casks swamp any inherent distillery character and lack charm and personality. However this is not true of all their range. The 21 year old is very good and it goes to show that sherry aged malts; with age can often reveal a complexity of flavours, which can mitigate the lack of distillery character. Going back to Dalmore, the 1974 and the 40 year old are excellent examples of what age and good wood can produce. Of course whether the 40 year old is worth its £1000+ price tag is of course open to debate, but as a whisky it’s phenomenal. (See newsletter No36 – July 2009 for tasting notes).

The biggest issue with sherry casks is of course cleanliness, and it’s sad to see that there are still dreadfully sulphured drams coming onto the market, and when I see a deep amber hued less than 10 year old malt, the tasting note will often write itself.

So coming back to the question of relevance. Well of course they have a place in the world of malts, just as wine cask finishes and all other weird and wonderful ones. At the end of the day, the whisky industry is driven by the consumers and currently consumers want choice, and long may that continue.

NASTY BOTTLING OF THE MONTH AWARD WINNER!

Bunnahabhain 9 year old 59.2% – Adelphi-Sherry

The nose is pure balsamic vinegar with some malt and sherry wood tannins. The palate isn’t much better, in fact it’s worse. All one can taste is green wood, tannins and alcohol. This is nasty and unevolved. Shocking!

A COUPLE OF ARRAN’S

Arran 13 year old 57.7% Single Cask £48.95 – Sherry Cask 536

The nose opens with the leafy Oloroso, but it is by no means overpowering. Delightfully fruit, verging on the tropical with a gorgeous liquid orange thread running through the trade mark honeyed cereal character. This is stunningly complex with coastal dark fruits, flowers, liquorice and dry wood spices balancing the honeyed sweetness and even a late subtle peat note wafts in for good measure.

Open with sweet, honey coated banana and apricot along with hints of green fruit – kiwi/ gooseberry plus heather and gorse. The intense alcohol dumps liberal amounts of salt on to the tongue. Very bracing and slightly fishy. Subtle peat notes lurk in the background all the while. Superb bitter-sweet balance as the wood battles the sweet malt. This is entertainment of the highest calibre. Finally the almost youthful cereal note holds the high ground and the after taste is delicately floral.

A drop of water allows the fishy brine character to come to the fore, pushing the already subtle sherry note into the background. Still gorgeously fruity and subtly phenolic. Strangely enough the palate is less coastally. More rounded and honeyed, with the sherry taking on that candied sweet character. Still superbly balanced and long though.

Arran ‘Peated’ 3 year old 57.7% Single Cask £49.95 – Cask 116

Strangely this was bottled 4 days before its 4th birthday (distilled 12/12/05 – bottled 07/12/09), why they didn’t wait I have no idea.

Quite a shy nose. Faintly phenolic and briny notes float over a crisp, youthful honeyed barley and oat biscuit base. Slightly soapy and obviously immature, it takes some serious swirling to tease out the fragrant pine needle infused peat aromas.

Clean and slightly sooty on the palate. Very much like the nose, the trade mark honeyed barley is in its infancy and there is plenty of briny alcohol. Resplendent in its youthful intensity, softly peated and very salty.

With water the peat takes on a more Longrow-esque earthy/ peat character. Still quite reserved though. The palate I probably more complex, although less peaty now. The honeyed cereal character is embryonic and youthful, clean botanical marc-like notes abound. Still very coastal, maybe more so and the slightly phenolic peat puts in an appearance at the death.

It’s an interesting dram, which I’d like to see with maybe a few more years under its belt. However being rather modestly peated I would imagine that like Longrow for example the peated flavours would be eventually overwhelmed by the oak and distillery character. Maybe a CV bottling would be fun, blending both younger peated malt together with older spirits?

NEW DUNCAN TAYLOR

Laphraoig 1997 (12 year old) £55.95 Bourbon Cask 56441

Soft and quite subtle for a phroaig. Seems older than 12. Quite tarry and rubbery with a gorgeous depth of luscious, rich orange/ tangerine fruit. Impressively bold. Over time it develops a candied barley note and some sawdusty oak kicks in which holds the phenolic intensity in check. Surprisingly un-coastal, which leads one to think it has spent much of its life inland.

The palate is buxom and rounded, slightly candied but exuberantly fruity. Phenolic peat builds as does a sweet parma violet note. Very oily now, and the oil seems to have had heather and bracken seeped in it, oh and the peat is just so sweet and carbolic – yum! A really complex spirit with hints of tar, creosote and finally a subtle rubbery note. Superb length, like the nose it seems older, either way it’s an exceptionally good bottling.

With water the nose becomes more bog myrtley and heathery, the oak recedes to release a tad more phenolics and it seems to have metamorphosed into Ardbeg, an un coastal one though. Really honeyed now – in an old Glenrothes style, this is an ever-changing dram, or should that be a schizophrenic dram?

The palate is sweeter and more candied now. Still quite oily and maybe more smoky in an old skool Bowmore peat-briquettes style – see what I mean about schizophrenic! – Yes it’s a phraoig but not as we know it! Great fun!

THE OCTAVE CASK

An octave cask holds around 50 litres of spirit and yields around 70 bottles. These casks are currently being offered for sale by Duncan Taylor in collaboration with a website called quatercasks.com. These range from a cask of 1996 Teaninich for £1610 (ex duty, vat and bottling costs) through to £26,250 for a 1973 Ladyburn and £49,000 for a 1969 Kinclaith.

The basic reasoning behind the use of these casks is that there is more spirit to wood contact in these smaller casks which has been successfully demonstrated by Laphroaig. The smaller cask allows the spirit to take up the oak character quicker, thereby rounding off the rouge edges and giving it a feeling of maturity. Plus in the Laphraoig’s case, also keeping in-tact the youthful peatiness of the spirit.

So, for younger spirit this can be a beneficial process, both in terms of flavour and commerciality. But how about older spirits that Duncan Taylor say “Have not quiet matured [i.e show enough wood character] to the level of quality expected”. In this respect ones cynical hat is on and after tasting the sample of 1972 Glen Grant (£6,300 for an octave) it confirmed that the one possible use is to attempt to restore tired old spirit with a vast injection of oak. As you will see from my notes below the oak is big, brash and in your face. Briefly there is a wow period, but peer past the oak and the cracks appear.

I imagine all Independents face the challenge of what to do with a tired old cask or two. Unfortunately they don’t have the resources or stock that a distillery has, thus the ability to loose a poor cask in a vatting is not available to them. I will say that Duncan Taylor have been in the forefront of experimentation, not only with Quarter and Octave casks, but with the Lonach range as well.

Business however is business and at the end of the day ones investment in the cask must be recouped. Thus in that instance money triumphs over being fair to the customer. I am not singling out any one company here but making a broad observation from my years of tasting. In my experience once a sprit has gone over the edge either in terms of flavour or lack of alcohol, it is very difficult to raise it from the dead, and there always seems to be a compromise. In the Lonach samples I have tasted, they have lacked freshness to balance out the sometimes flabby spirit. I have often postulated that it may be better to vat some young grain spirit into them to at least try and balance out that flatness.

The other point is that these venerable spirits are not cheap. The average retail price, depending upon age from their Rare Auld range is £80-£120. From their Lonach range, which doesn’t appear on their price list anymore you were looking at £130+ and the retail price for the Octave Cask 1972 Glen Grant that I tasted, would be around the £170 mark. As you know I’m a pain in the ass (to the reps that is!). If a customer is going to spend over £100 on a bottle of whisky then I want to sell him or her a bottle that is worth that amount of money. This is why I badger reps for samples and will not compromise my ethics and sell a bottle purely because it is old.

This may make me a bit unpopular with some people but when I taste an old and expensive whisky, the first question I ask myself is would I pay that amount of money for it. If the answer is yes, then I’ll stock it, if not I won’t. If the Independents price these less than perfect spirits more appropriately, say at half the price, we as retailers could be honest with the customer and explain what was being done.

I would be more than happy to say – “Look this is a 40 odd year old whatever that has slightly gone over the hill, but it’s still drinkable. It’s not worth £100+ quid, but at this price it’s not a bad deal.”

I’m sure the ‘top brass’ at Duncan Taylor may feel that I’ve got it in for them, but I’ve not. I praised no end of their bottlings (see the Laphroaig above) and I always try to be fair in my judgments. They have bottled some amazingly memorable sprits over the years, their range of old grains is on the whole stunning, but they know that they have bottled some stinkers!

Also I’m definitely not dismissing the whole idea of octave casks based upon the tasting of just one example that would be crass and unprofessional. But I won’t buy into anyone’s advertising blurb. I will make my own mind up, based upon what is in my glass. And that is what I would like to hear when I am a customer.

Glen Grant 1972 (37 year old) 51.8% – Duncan Taylor Octave Cask Bourbon Cask 44486

A big wow nose. A humongous oak impact – freshly sawn oak, sawdust and marzipan. Subtle it isn’t! There is some herbal honey, menthol and eucalyptus, but the reality is that take away all the fresh oak and the spirit beneath seems somewhat watery.

The oak bites hard to begin with, opening with a bitter salvo of oily sawn oak, the herbal honey fights back with the menthol and eucalyptus notes that were found on the nose and there is a brief cinnamon laced Armagnac-esue dried fruits, raisins, figs and a touch of black pepper on the middle. However the oak returns to crush all in its path and scream ‘look at me’. I think it’s hiding some tired spirit and I would imagine once some water is added we will really find out what is what.

With water the oak retreats on the nose as expected. To its credit the honey
has a crisper, more brittle edge to it but it has exposed the creaking spirit which gives off notes of oily turpentine interwoven with burnt butter. The palate really suffers now. Watery and flat although the peppery spice tries its best to liven things up, but I fear rigor mortis has set in and this sprit expired some time ago.

As Mr Praline, might put it – “This whisky is no more! He has ceased to be! ‘E’s expired and gone to meet ‘is maker! ‘E’s a stiff! Bereft of life, ‘e rests in peace! ‘Is metabolic processes are now ‘istory! ‘E’s off the twig! ‘E’s kicked the bucket, ‘e’s shuffled off ‘is mortal coil, run down the curtain and joined the bleedin’ choir invisibile!! THIS IS AN EX-WHISKY!!”

(This newsletter is so chock ful of interesting bits that it is too large for WordPress to handle in one go and has been arrnaged into four sections).

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!

GLENGOYNE TASTING

This was always going to be an interesting session given the distilleries liking for sherry butts, however what I wanted to try and find out was…… What is the Glengoyne distillery character? Unfortunately we didn’t have a sample of new make, so judgement was made on the basis of the 10 year old and the Lang’s blend.

All the bottlings, to some degree or other displayed that, in my opinion, ‘classic’ highland granity character, but as the 10 year old was from a 5cl miniature, which was very vegetal, thus leading me to believe that this was a less than perfect vatting, it was rather difficult to pin down an exact distillery character. It also wouldn’t be the first time that I’ve tasted a miniature that would appear to have been a repository for less than ideal spirit. The main problem with this practice however is that curious potential customers often just want to try out a whisky before shelling out the hard earned for a 70cl bottle. So if you have put rubbish into your 5cl miniatures then you are ruining any potential further sales as the customer would think that a 70cl bottle would be just the same

At best this practice could be seen as counter productive, at worst a down right cynical approach to customers that purchase miniatures, believing them to not be true whisky aficionados.

So coming back to the main point of this tasting. The distillery character of Glengoyne is granity with some herbal honey and sweet malt. The other salient point is that the spirit tastes a lot younger than its age would suggest. Thus with this snail like evolution it allows casks to age for a number of years.

Aside from the errant 10 year old, the 12 year old cask strength was a bit dull and slightly sulphur tainted, the 16 year old single cask, was all cask and alcohol, which is fine if you like that sort of thing. The 17 year old was interesting. I would guess that it’s a vatting of both European and American sherry casks. It’s pleasant and is of the candied sherry persuasion. The standard 21 year old was for me the star of the show. Again I would assume that it is a vatting of Oloroso and Pedro Zimenez casks, as it displays that lovely, rich, date and prune character that would suggest Pedro Zimenez. It was very complex and I’m sure that I detected some distillery character just poking through. The final bottle a single cask 21 was exactly what you would have expected from a first fill Oloroso cask!

Therefore in my opinion the pick of the bunch was the standard 17 and 21. Oh and I should mention the Lang’s 5 year old which has around a 40% malt content, of which Glengoyne is an integral part, and for a blend retailing around the £15 mark is not too shabby.

Lang’s Supreme 5 year old 40%
Bottled by Ian Macleod Distillers

A crisp nose with beautifully floral young grain and underlying honeyed and malty fruit. Good intensity with a pleasant sweetness and some grain botanicals. The palate is pretty much like the nose. Straightforward, with a pleasant bitter/ sweet balance with a smidgen of oak on the finish.

Glengoyne 10 year old 40% Bourbon (?)/ Sherry (mainly re-fill?)

A touch vegetal on the nose, no it’s actually quite veggy! Some perfumed orange tries to escape. It’s a bit of a messy, schizophrenic kind of nose with rose water and youthful botanical marc notes along with some delightful herbal-honey and over time some rancid butter.

The palate opens with the light, herbal honey and youthful marc notes. It has some lovely malty moments but it’s ruined by the vegetal note. A lovely spicy middle with hints of butterscotch. Quiet a granity hard, almost ridged finish.

Glengoyne 12 year old 100 Proof 57.2% Sherry

A gentle nose of leafy Oloroso, burnt, sweet toffee and rich orange fruit. Lots of wood spices and a touch of pine resin with some late honeyed notes.
Soft and like the palate pretty much all Sherry cask. Slightly leafy with a reasonable amount of tannins, a touch of spice and a sweet-nutty character. A touch short neat with the 10 year olds hard, granity finish.

A drop of water makes the nose a bit sickly sweet and there’s a vague sulphur note hanging around as well. It shows a smidgen more age with the marc like notes a bit more evolved. The palate is like the nose. Very so-so, no sweet malt or honey and no finish. Very disappointing. According to Charles Maclean this is the purest expression of Glengoyne! Hmmm!!

Glengoyne 1992 (16 year old) Single Cask Refill Sherry Hogshead 2078

A big, leafy, dark Oloroso nose with plenty of toffee, chocolate and wood notes. Pretty much all cask and alcohol. Although it’s an exceptionally clean cask.

The palate is broad and soft and like the nose all cask. No subtly, just leafy sherry, bitter chocolate, coffee, loads of tannins and alcohol. Good length with hints of smoked bacon.

A drop of water makes the nose slightly confected and brings out a smoky, charred note. The palate is very similar, very confected. All cask an no trousers but at least the granity finish is there.

Glengoyne 17 year old 43% £60.95 American and European Re-fill Sherry?

The nose is very much in the candied Sherry camp. There’s some lovely orange fruit with hints of orange blossom. Some distillery character – herbal honey comes through as do some American oak vanillins, which is why I’d assume that some of the sherry casks that have been used were American.

The palate is light and gentle with the vanilla and herbal honey first to show fleetingly before the sherry takes hold, dumping a factory full of dark chocolate, coffee and tannins on palate. Good length. It’s seems a bit younger than 17.

Glengoyne 21 year old 43% £106.95 Sherry

A richer, fruitier, rounded nose which leads on to suspect that some Pedro Ximinez casks have been employed here. Soft and enveloping complex aromas of xmas pudding fruits, sweet toffee, honeyed violets, spice and leather.

Soft and generous on the palate. Full bodied, opening with the sweet coffee-honeyed Pedro Ximinez dried fruit – dates, prunes. The herbal honey intermingles with the soft tannins on the middle, but there is plenty of alcohol to balance out tannins and sweetness. Very long with the dried fruit, cinnamon and burnt toffee lingering. I’m amazed that there is a small amount of distillery character present (maybe because of tasting the 10 year I know what I’m looking for and if I was tasting it on it’s own I might have missed it) Again a bit of a granity hard finish with hints of pine needles.
Glengoyne 1986 (21 year old) Single Cask 52.2%

First Fill Oloroso Cask 1391

A big, sweet, full-on, no prisoners taken Oloroso nose. Quite a fresh Oloroso butt, with the expected leafiness along with caramelised dried fruit, burnt toffee, liquorice and dark coffee notes.

The palate mirrors the nose, with a huge amount of wood tannins. Mouth puckering alcohol adds to the severity. A good clean cask though.

A drop of water makes not one iota of difference to the nose or the palate, maybe there’s a touch of sweet orange fruity though, and maybe the palate has become a bit confected, and I wouldn’t have put this down as 21 years old!

BLADNOCH TASTING

Bladnoch No Age ‘Distiller’s Choice’ 46% £30.95

A perfumed and floral nose with a slight hint of rose petal marc. Very fresh with a lovely mature, honeyed core and supporting oak vanillins. Over time a more candied note appears. A lovely vatting of different aged spirits.

Soft and quite fruity on the palate, opening with the youth marc component followed by some honey and an almost ‘grainy’ bite from the alcohol. Lovely length with a grassy/ herbaceous botanical finish. A lovely, crisp aperitif whisky. It seems to me that the older spirits in this vatting have given it a lovely body, and it’s a really good introduction to the distillery at a rather reasonable price!

Bladnoch 8 year old 46%

A quiet heavily oiled nose with a density of honeyed floral fruit with only a soupcon of marc like notes. Soft on the palate with a more marked marc-like youthfulness. Delicately oily with soft, slightly honeyed apricot. Wow! What a finish! A short but intense burst of peppery-cinnamon comes latterly out of nowhere, before fading back as the youthful cereal and botanicals return. The oak sits subserviently in the background adding an unobtrusive structure. Lovely after taste of hedgerow fruits.

Bladnoch 8 year old 55% £38.95

An extremely floral nose – lilies and pungent white flowers. Gorgeously herbal with light straw/ light eucalyptus infused honey. Really very pungent as hints of rose petal marc and manure is added to the mix. Bold and assertive, again the oak supports but adds more noticeable vanillins.

The palate is less oily than the 46% bottling and a lot grassier, almost like pre-Raymond era spirit. The piquant alcohol is mitigated by the bucket loads of honey coated apricot fruit. Excellent length. Develops a late tangerine/ Satsuma note as the marc and botanical notes returning on the finish. A really invigorating dram.

With water the aromas are even grassier, but with a nod towards the dried rushes/ reedy character of old Bladnoch. Poised and balanced, still very honeyed. That ‘reedy’ character is more noticeable on the palate, and the water has made this wonderfully mouth filling and robust. Even the youthful marc notes have faded into the background. Give this another couple of years and this will be the perfect age for the ‘new style’ Bladnoch.

Bladnoch 8 year old ‘Sherry’ 55%

Oh dear, it’s a bit stinky and sulphurous. Although that passes fairly quickly it’s a little bit sickly sweet with lots of green coffee and herbal notes. The spirit seems very young as lots of marc like notes abound and it feels somewhat disjointed.

The palate pretty much follows the nose. Candied and dare I say it a bit plasticy and murky. The intense alcohol combined with the sherry tannins really dries it out. And I’m afraid to say that adding a drop of water only accentuates the sulphur.

Bladnoch 8 year old ‘Lightly Peated’ 58.2% £38.95

Very fishy and phenolic. This must be the heaviest ‘lightly peated’ Bladnoch ever! Beneath the rampaging peat lies some lovely marzipan oak, robust ‘new style’ spirit and honey, but it’s the phenolics that dominate the proceeding. The peat is quiet maritime in character but also has a lovely, soft smokiness. I would hazard a guess that this must have been peated to around 20ppm, so maybe it should have been called ‘Moderately Peated.’
Soft and juicy on the palate, opening with honeyed apricot fruit before the peat comes wading in. The salty-fishiness combined with the alcohol sends the palate into mouth watering over drive! Very Caol Ila-esque in its botanical freshness, but the robust ‘new style’ spirit fights its way back at the end.

With water there is less peat now which allows some gorgeously succulent tangerine fruit to shine and quite a bit of spice too! On the palate it has become more herbal and a touch candied. Again less peaty but still retaining its oily-smokiness. Full, yet gentle, now showing some mature wood notes – liquorice and coffee, whilst the briny phenolics only appear in the finish.

Bladnoch 20 year old 52.4% £50.95

Quiet perfumed and floral with a beautiful depth of mature honey glazed apricot and mandarin. For its age it has a lovely freshness along with hints of white peach, straw, barley and supporting oak. The palate is quite sweet for a Bladnoch. A complex melange of honeyed apricot, mature honey, straw, earth and wood notes. Piquant alcohol cleans the palate and leaves a botanical infused finish.

With water the nose becomes gorgeously honeyed and although it is still perfumed the spirit seems to be showing its age more. The palate has become slightly oilier and maybe a bit more delicate. With some spicy citrus fruit emerging and the oak gripping at the finish. I’m still amazed at how fresh this is for a 20 year old!

RAYMOND’S FORUM BOTTLINGS

Longmorn 12 year old 53.4% Bourbon Hogshead 163303

The nose is peaty and phenolic to begin with followed by juicy tangerine and candied almonds. With time it starts to become winey, an almost Chardonnay/ Chenin Blanc aromas of crisp white peach/ pear, apple and a hint of violets. The apple aromas really start to dominate and the peat is well and truly over powered by the ‘grape’.

Crisp and sweet-ish, a blend of rose water, peat and mature oak (cocoa, liquorice). Salty and intense on the middle with a brief African(?) violet note. This is very different to any Longmorn I’ve tasted. Again it becomes pretty winey with that apple flavour building. A really entertaining dram with a soft spice dusting in the finish.

With water the nose is very violety now and it seems more like a traditional Longmorn now with wonderful soft tangerine, but the peat note has totally disappeared, however a slight balsamic note has taken its place. On the palate the orange fruit has become more candied. Quite earthy now but still the apple character is ever present, and just like on the nose the peat has disappeared. The oak bitters nicely to balance the sweetness.

A definite entertaining dram, but at nearly £62, it’s a bit too expensive! Especially when for less money you could have………..

Cambus 24 year old 53.2% £56.95 Bourbon Cask 18990

A wonderful nose. Opens with a gorgeous array of rum-like dried fruits and sugar sprinkled orange rind before a wave of tropical vanilla oak wades in and we’re in good ole Kentucky now! Big, brash and opulent with a definite corn-like quality of soft candy floss, hints of banana, dry, crumbly spices and liquorice, balanced by a slight, soft rye like nip.

The palate opens with the oiled, dried fruit and crunchy grain, followed by the soft sweet vanilla oak. Poised and not quite as oak dominated as the nose would suggested. The soft yet intense alcohol keeps the balance well. Gorgeous length with violets, mature honey, white liquorice, vanilla pod and demarara sugar. Absolutely stunning! There is no need for water.

Caol Ila 25 year old 54.3% £72.95 Re-fill Sherry Cask 5387

An intriguing, rich and violety nose of sherry re-fruits and dusty almost floral peat. The fresh distillery character begins to emerge trailing a distinct antiseptic note in its wake. This smells mature! Big, bold, juicy malt and oak mingle effortlessly and the peat becomes manureier in character before finally turning more phenolic. The nose is quite un-coastal which would suggest lengthy mainland maturation, but what it may lack in the salt department it sure as hell makes up for it in robustness.

The palate opens with the cask but the gentle sooty-peat brushes it aside. The crisp distillery character builds, adding notes of hyacinth and violet on the middle. The alcohol is quite intense and balances the thick barley honey and smoked bacon ‘meatiness’ of this dram. Lovely length leaving a distinct oily/ sooty coal dust finish. There is an impression of coastalness, but just an impression.

With water the nose display less of the cask and more of the distillery character. Still very juicy and very violety now. On the palate it has become sweeter giving the fruit a candied edge and the wood comes more into play adding a bitter chocolate note and biting at the finish. Gently smoky and phenolic but still meaty and the coal dust is not far away! Exceptionally good!

NEW DEWAR RATTRAY

Balblair 1991 (19 year old) 46% Bourbon Cask 09/0307

A high toned nose of grassy orange fruit and some rose petal marc, which was surprising given its age. Slightly soapy and gristy. Overtime it comes earthier and the oak adds a coffee note. The palate is delicately oily with soft orange fruit, earth and maturing honey. The alcohol for 46% is quite intense. Reasonable length with a pleasant dry, grassy finish.

A drop of water makes the nose very winey, with the grassiness taking on a Sauvignon Blanc character. It has a lovely perfume now and is fresher and more luscious. However the same can’t be said for the palate, it become a tad watery, homogenised and candied.

Highland Park 1998 (11 year old) 46% Bourbon Cask 5789

A sweet and gristy nose bathed in copious quantities of natural caramel. Even the herbal/ heather honey aromas are sugar coated. There’s a vague hint of something fishy but it’s all candied fruit peel. The palate is soft and straightforward, again awash with natural caramel with a delicate heather honey note. The alcohol dives in fairly quickly, leaving a salty finish and a slightly smoky after taste.

Dalmore 1999 (11 year old) 59.1% Bourbon Cask 3080

Whoa! Oak and alcohol city!!! Pervasive aromas of caramel-vanilla-butter erupt like a Scandinavian volcano! Yes there are hints of some maderised fruit, balsamic vinegar, coffee and botanicals but the balance is definitely tilted in the oak direction.

As you would expect the palate follows a similar theme. Yes there is a touch of earthy fruit but it’s instantly pummelled to death by the oak and the alcohol. Adding some water doesn’t really make a whole lot of difference, maybe there is a touch more botanicals on the nose, but the palate just becomes overly candied.

Macallan 1991 (19 year old) 58.8% £66.95 Bourbon Cask 4135

The nose launches straight into honeyed vanilla oak territory. But…….. The citrus fruit, botanicals, barley and malt resolutely fight back. Lovely softens and the citrus takes on a perfumed sheen. Rather attractive for a Bourbon oaked Macallan!

The palate is slightly oily with a lovely intensity and complexity of honeyed apricot, toffee, coffee, gentle cinnamon and pepper. In fact the pepper has a wonderful pure pepper corn taste. The thread of citrus from the nose arrows through bringing with it the oak and malty notes. Fresh and charming, a lovely, spicy Spey.

With water it becomes more delicate, botanical and fresh. The oak has receded leaving juicy, succulent herbal honey scented fruit, and it’s still very peppery!

Mortlach 1990 (19 year old) 58.6% £62.95 Re-Fill Sherry Cask 5950

Deep, oily and honeyed aromas. Exceedingly butch and malty with a gorgeous depth of rich fruit with a waxy perfume, rather well balanced by a citrus freshness. Over time hints of straw and flax emerge.

The palate mirrors the nose. It’s a butch, malty, oily, dense creature with a depth of rich honey fruit balanced by a lovely citrus thread. The oak adds hints of toffee and light coffee. Piquant alcohol cleanses the palate to leave the citrus and a slight saltiness on the finish. A very solid Mortlach!

A drop of water turns the nose into a frenzied gorgeousness of juicy orange/ tangerine fruit! So, so, so juicy now it’s unbelievable. Likewise the palate. A deft combination of robustness and gentleness. This must rank as one the best Mortlach’s I’ve tasted. Funnily enough this is another one of those whiskies that I thought had been aged in Bourbon, but it turns out it’s a sherry one, thus judging by the lack of ‘sherry’ character I assume that it was a well used cask.

Tomatin 1988 (21 year old) 55.2% £60.95 Sherry Cask 1088

A dense, mellow Amontillado lead nose. There’s plenty of dried fruit (apricot, figs, sultanas) nuts and a hint of perfumed orange fruit. Slightly coastal with hints of liquorice and earth. Over time it develops a candied note.

The palate opens with the dense, Amontillado dried fruits, coffee and liquorice. A bit herbal and slightly tannic but very mouth filling. The alcohol bites allowing the sumptuous liquid orange fruit coat the tongue and linger.

With water the nose is stunning. Now it has unfettered itself from the cask the beautifully perfumed honeyed orange fruit really comes out to play, accented by the dried fruit rancio. The palate is much the same with a superb dry spice finish.

Bunnahabhain 1991 (18 year old) 53.7% £64.95 Sherry Cask 5448

A rich deep, treacle toffee nose with a touch of violet. Very dense with slabs of malt, liquorice and burnt toffee. There’s not much in the way of coastal character but the spirit fights back with some perfumed, almost gristy honeyed fruit. Remarkable complexity, the grape and the grain slug it out like a pair of heavyweight boxers!

Soft and gentle, again there’s no shortage of treacle toffee, liquorice and soft spices. The sherry cask is subtler and violet and floral notes abound. Still thick and chewy! A real malty mouthful. Nevertheless there is a pleasant freshness and a nip of salted nuts, which probably comes from the cask rather than a coastal environment. However the alcohol keeps it lively and there’s a suggestion of salted kippers on the finish.

With a drop of water it emphasises the cask, bringing out burnt, raisinated fruit, caramel and toast. It does the same on the palate, and scales down the complexity. So I would go for it neat.

Glen Scotia 1977 (23 year old) 57% £122.95 Sherry Cask 985

Big, and juicy. These aromas are more Gascony than Campbelltown. A seriously complex nose of dried fruit – figs, prunes and raisins. This is definitely Armagnac! However there is a gorgeous, earthy, salt encrusted venerable honey strata of phenomenal depth. This is so deep and so good it’s frightening. All rounded off with soft, gentle dried coriander, dry heather and a smidgen of liquorice.

Succulent, gentle and venerable. There’s no shortage of dried raisins, figs, runes along with hints of old walnuts and spices to die for. This is followed by a short, piquant burst of alcohol before on we go into mature honey and treacle toffee laced old exotic fruits. Good grief, this just keeps going on and on until it signs off with a tobacco/ coffee finale. Stunning, absolutely stunning and absolutely no need for water.

Stronachie 18 year old 46% £38.95 Re-Fill Sherry Batch 18-10-01

Lovely deep aromas of sweet-ish, juicy fruit and subtle sherry notes. Slightly candied with some gristy barley lurking beneath. It has a good balancing crisp almost grainy note and a subtle floralness.

Very soft and juicy on the palate. Full of succulent apricot, honey and subtle sherry. This opens into an exceedingly malty middle followed by that balancing granity/ grainy note before finally moving into herbal territory. This has a lovely texture as the sherry returns adding liquorice and candied burnt chocolate notes. A real bargain!

A COUPLE OF GOOD OLE AMERICAN BOYS

Burnheim Original Small Batch Wheat Whiskey 45%

A rich, sweet and smoky nose with that cotton candy/ candy floss wheat character, some chocolate orange and sweet coconut. Big, bold vanillins leading into burnt caramel. The rye grains add a late nip.

On the palate the oak sets out it’s stall with a definite toasty character along with candy floss and grippy rye building to a mouth watering mentholated finish with a pretty almost coastal finish,. Pleasant but lacks the complexity of say William Weller.

Noahs Mill 15 year old Bourbon 57.15% £52.95 Batch QBC No 02-103

Intense, earthy and visceral. Robust aromas in a Bardstown style. Softly grainy and violety before there’s an explosion of toffee/ coffee-caramel oak. The palate opens with the sharp rye grains. The oak s more controlled adding a serious spicy kick to the proceedings. Intense alcohol adds a herbal, almost minty fresh, palate cleansing feel before releasing the violet and earthy notes, before the oak returns with a drying coffee finish. Robust, primitive and elemental.

Water lifts the nose; now some lime rind can be detected as the oak is pushed back a bit. Still robust and toasty though. The palate is softer, with more of a candied corn character. The oak adds hickory, dark liquorice and pure coffee bean notes before bittering out the finale.

Evan Williams Honey Reserve 35%

Pure acacia honey aromas. Slightly sweet and floral with ginger and tangerine over riding any Bourbon character, although it does come back with hints of vanilla, coffee and liquorice.

The palate is very sweet. A mixture of acacia and natural opaque honey. Mouth coating and candied with hints of tangerine and violets. The spirit however doesn’t come through enough to balance the confected character and as such the finish is a bit cloying. Maybe an extra 5% abv might have helped.

GENERAL ROUND UP

Kilchoman ‘Spring 2010 Release’ 46% £SOLD OUT
3 years in Bourbon, 3.5 months in very active Oloroso

A soft, yet intensly phenolic nose, lovely peat reek which is slightly medicinal in character with hints of carbolic, charred oak and saline. The sherry influence is restrained and sits in the background adding a lovely sweetness, mingling with a late wood smoke.

Quite sweet on entry and extremely sooty. Peat smoke and dust run rampant along with hints of ‘new make’ cereal, followed by more soot! And……….. more soot! The alcohol hits the mid palate with some intensity and when it passes there is a faint suggestion of the sherry cask. Very long with a distinct scrubby/vegetal (not a sherry vegetalness)/ undergrowth/ bog myrtle character. Fishing with hints of dark fruit and wood smoke.

With water a great deal of the peat reek and sherry cask are stripped away leaving the youthful cereal as the predominant character, however some delightful candied orange puts in an appearance and the soot only really comes through on the finish.

One can see why it has not been bottled at 40% as the elevated alcohol is key to its intensity, and the brief flirtation with the sherry cask rounds it out nicely. It’s very enjoyable and unlike any other of the Islay distilleries, and that’s a compliment.

Douglas Laing Big Peat 46%
A vatting of Caol Ila, Ardbeg, Bowmore and Port Ellen

Opens up with a briny, youthful, slightly soapy Caol Ila freshness with hints of bog myrtle underpinned by the Ardbeg fruit. There’s plenty of slightly retrained and civilised peat smoke, which becomes more medicinal given time.

The palate is quite youthful with hints of new make cereal. Sooty and oily combination of Ardbeg and Bowmore with the Coal Ila freshness following on the middle along with some lovely rubbery notes. Generous and mouth filling, so oily now it coats the mouth. Good depth, not overly coastal, again one suspects that these casks have been on the mainland for some time. In saying that it the saltiness kind of lurks at the edges, and it has a good peat intensity, so I think the name is justified.