Bunnahabhain NAS ‘Toiteach’ (46%, OB, +/-2010?)

A peated Bunnahabhain which one has to presume is made up of mainly younger whiskies other wise there would be an age statement. Un-chillfiltered however which is a very good way to start and “Toiteach” is Gaelic for Smoky. On the nose there is peat smoke like peanut butter (think of the natural version, not the versions with sugar and lard), some hints of juniper and a little caramel sweetness. Quite vibrant and lively. And nice. Pleasant. After some time in the glass there are also some hints of smoky bacon. The taste is gentle at first and then some very nice peat smoke (and the bacon) takes over along with some vegetal hints and also hints of the juniper (not too much, just a little). And then some really good cereal/grain/malty moment. The finish is a good reflection of the nose and the taste with the peat smoke and grains holding on well and not falling apart into something unsavory. After some moments some really good smoked grain appears to finish things off.

Surprisingly good.

£53 at The Whisky Exchange

Score 85 points

Glenrothes NAS 1988/2011 (43%, OB, 2011) 

On the nose there is some very light fruit (which grows with time in the glass), a good dollop of citrus, hints of leather and tobacco, a little lumber yard. When all are taken together it makes for a heady and pleasing combination. The taste leans towards the leather and tobacco followed by the fruit which is now in the form of stewed prunes and raspberries along with some of the citrus, orange zest? No matter it’s quite good and solid. The finish warming and a very good reflection of the nose and the taste and therefore quite well balanced. There’s a little more of the leather and tobacco with some spice in the finish which is a good addition to the mix. 

Well done Glenrothes! 

$115 

Score 85 points

Sample kindly provided by David King of Anchor Distilling, Whisky Intelligence recently had a chance to chat with David and covered the follwing topics;

David has been in the whisky industry since 1989 and his father was a customs officer in a scotch whisky distillery.  In ’95 he first came across The Glenrothes and in 1998 he started working full time with The Glenrothes. The distillery only uses 2% of liquid for bottling as The Glenrothes (the rest goes into other blended whisky). The 1988 Vintage, which is jsut now arrving in the USA, is different from the predecessor vintages. The spirits used for the Glenrothes single malt is determined by cask selection and not by an age statement hence the use of vintages.

The Glenrothes is now with Anchor Distilling (a boutique craft international group) and The Glenrothes is the biggest brand in the portfolio.  The Glenrothes works well for Anchor’s portfolio because of the evolving market place – consumers want education and smaller craft products – “maturity not age”  The Glenrothes motto really works well in this market place. David’s also said that they plan to have a significant commitment to focusing on events and festivals in order to talk directly to consumers. 

Ben Nevis 15yo 1996/2011 (55.4%, C of Q, C#911, 231 Bts., HHD) 

A private bottling of a cask with a history of being embroiled in a massive fraud in the UK, the owners had thought they had lost it in the ensuing legal wrangling. However all was well in the end; the cask was quietly maturing in the Ben Nevis warehouses along, their ownership of the cask never in question. Now it’s been safely bottled for the Companions of the Quaich to enjoy. So with the legalities safely behind it on the undiluted nose there is some good creaminess with some small showing of malt but there is a very good showing of vanilla creams with a hint of mocha. Delicious! With water the creaminess evolves and reveals some very pleasant malt, some good notes from the oak (spiciness & unlit cured tobacco) and some sweet citrus (slightly over ripe orange perhaps). The undiluted taste is solid and very active, some good cask influence along with the malt and a little of the sweetness in the back ground but all in all quite excellent and very drinkable. Luscious. Hints of root beer in there some where. With water a some what tamed dram and perhaps a little less fun but still all the solid bullet points as previously described are present. The finish is bang on with the nose and the taste with good sweet malt and some tobacco, some light fruit and some dried liquorice root. 

Ben Nevis at its best but a departure from the official bottlings. 

$85 

Score 90 points

Invergordon 18yo (65.6%, Scotch Malt Whisky Society, G5.4, 247 bts., +/-2011)

“Sweet Treats” and a bottling for the UK hence the  £ in the price! Aged in new toasted oak hogshead, distilled May 20th, 1993. Scottish grain Whisky. On the nose it is some what ‘American’ and also at the same time very, very Canadian; bourbon notes, high sweetness with a rich syrupiness in the back ground. Hints of subtle grains and moments of strong grains, also coffee grounds all taken together and it’s a heady mixture and it’s really quite excellent. The taste is sweetness, the coffee and some really sensational rich notes with fruit and bourbon. With water it becomes very ‘dusty’ and the syrupiness increases but don’t drown it; too much only lessens the impact and this is best taken with as little water as possible. Having said that it holds together very well. The finish is intense, powerful and quite frankly also very good. It’s also long and filled with sherbet and cream soda.

Not an off note to be found and very well balanced.

£58

Score 90 points

Many thanks to Rich L. for the sample…

Highland Park NAS “Leif Ericksson Release” (40%, OB, +/-2011)

A limited edition release exclusive to global travel retail and wholly matured in American oak casks. On the nose there are some immediate hints of diesel (hints not lashings…), some slight green notes, some malt and then some very welcome peat smoke. After some moments in the glass the Highland Park character begins to surface however it does take a moment or two. The taste is gentle and has some good malt and a little peat smoke but some green twig/bitterness is apparent along with a little oak spice and a little bit of fruit. The finish is quite malty and astringent with more of the oak spice and pepper. The malt is backed by some good sweetness (happily) and the finish is mildly industrial and long (unhappily).

Sigh.

£75 at the Whisky Exchange and Global Travel Retail price unknown; not currently available in Lunar or Martian Travel Retail.

72 points

Tullibardine  NAS “Aged Oak Edition” (40%, OB, +/-2011) 

At first a little loaminess on the nose with a tinge of bitters; after some time in the glass some rich sweetness begins to show itself. There is also a slight hint of wet card board in the back ground however it comes and goes. Where is the maltiness of Tullibardine? The taste is more woody than the nose but the other characteristics are there and quite frankly it’s all becoming a little bit of a problem, juniper, the cardboard (wet) and finally some maltiness comes out towards the end. The finish shows some of the malt and the sweetness but the juniper lingers some what and it’s a little out of place. The bitterness really is a bit of a challenge. 

$45 

Score 65 points

Hazelburn 8yo (55.9%, OB, Sauternes Wood, 9180 bts, D’ 06/08 B’ 02/11)

A young Hazelburn (distilled at Springbank Distillery). Hazelburn is Springbanks 3 x distilled unpeated whisky and this has spent the fist 5 years in refill bourbon cask and 3 years in Sauternes casks. Happily the math works. On the nose there is an initial sweet and sour and then (pow!) some really rich raisiny richness followed by the characteristic Springbank ‘wet cotton’. All in all it’s very rich and luxurious however the Springbank character is still quite evident. The taste is dry with lots of wood notes and some hints of leather and tobacco and then after a moment or two the rich raisin is very much in evidence and the dryness is quite enchanting since it is not overly oaked but just nicely dry. A bit of a departure from the nose but still quite excellent. The finish is warming with the sweet and sour as mentioned on the nose and it’s very long and good. Perhaps a bit closer to the taste than the nose but no matter since it’s very “moreish” and after a moment or two some really excellent malt comes bashing through.

Really quite excellent.

$84 or £49.99 from the Whisky Barrel

Score 89 points

Willie Napier Pure Pot Still 44yo. Distilled by B. Daly, Tullamore Distillery, Co Offaly, cask “acquired” in 1945 by W. Napier, The Central Bar,Lisburn,Northern Ireland (possibly distilled prior to 1945). Bottled 1989. 40% 114 bottles. 

“One of the best Irish Whiskeys ever released. Distilled in 1945 at the old Tullamore Distillery and aged for an incredible 44 years. Sadly the distillery closed for good in the 1950’s and this is one of just a few remaining bottlings from that era. This whiskey was drawn from a cask originally bought by the owner of the Cellar Bar in Lisburn. After being forgotten about it was finally bottled in 1989 and then only released for sale in the last decade. It is named after the former owner of the Cellar Bar, Willie Napier”. – Celtic Whiskey Shop 

On the nose there is an immediate sense of age, dusty grains, oak spice and a touch of vanilla at the last; all very nice and very pleasing. After some time in the glass there are hints of some good sweetness (further to the vanilla). The taste is slightly aggressive, diesely malt, some good black pepper and then some fruit along with the oak spice. All very pleasant and warming and quite unlike Irish whiskies of today (which, to be fair, are much younger). The finish is black pepper, grain and oak spice in equal measure with the diesely notes supporting the other characteristics. After a few minutes the grain rises to take the pole position and that is the final memento of a sensational old dram. 

A nice treat to try such a rare sample; many thanks to Joel Mullin for the generous sample. 

€499.99 at the Celtic Whiskey Shop http://www.celticwhiskeyshop.com/  

90 points

Scapa 16yo (40%, OB, 2010) 

The replacement for the official bottling of the much loved 14yo (which was priced some what lower). None the less on the nose there is some very nice maltiness (lots of grain notes and very much the malt barn memories or even sweeping up split grain at Springbank; up on the top floor where the pigeons roost). There’s also a herbaceous note behind the malt and some nice sweetness, perhaps from some ex- American cask influence? The sweetness is quite fruity; lychee and marmalade. The taste is much like the nose but leans a little more to leather and tobacco with the ever present malt, the sweetness has vanished some what but what’s left is very good. All in all very enjoyable. The finish is an even mix of the malt and the leather and tobacco with some good black pepper and what not towards the end. Lots of mouth smacking malt and some bourbon notes and even a few hints of juniper. Long. 

Very nice, much drier than the 14yo which was very sweet but no complaints. 

C$110 (in some markets) 

86 Points

Tullibardine 1992/2011 (46%, OB, 1Er Cru Classé  Bordeaux Finish) 

On the nose there is the classic ‘green’ notes one often encounters in Tullibardine which quickly is surpassed by some good rich notes which must be the 1Er Cru Classé  Bordeaux making itself known to the whisky. However after a while the ‘green’ notes (this is not an attempt to be derogatory but merely a descriptor of cereal, pizza dough, bread, green peas and Weetabix characteristics. The taste is very good, a nice tussle between the ‘green’ notes and the 1Er Cru Classé  Bordeaux finish along with an astonishing mouth sucking dryness that is quite unique. Then after the shock of the dryness comes some really nice sweetness which works really well with the other flavours. The finish is malty and dry with some briny and Marmite notes thrown in at the last, for good measure. An exceedingly long and active finish. 

A multi faceted dram to be sure and quite good.And different. And the colour of Iron Bru.

 $72 

Score 82 points