Springbank 11yo 1997/2009 ‘Madeira Wood’ (image reference http://chwisgi.com/)

 A new bottling released by Springbank Distillery at the same time at the 18yo, while many distillers have finished their whiskies in ex Madeira cask Springbank have opted for the entire maturation to be in Madeira wood. The nose is very sweet and rich with a background of tea, mild damp tobacco and a slight rich mustiness. Traces of peat smoke or bandages? The nose is very complex and sweet (as usually is the case when single malts and Madeira wood meet) and pleasant. The taste is strong with the distinctive Springbank flavour (almost like wet cotton) jumping out layered with intense sweetness (fruit cake, mild smoke & apricots). The finish is very sweet at first followed by malt, mild smoke and a creamy mouth feel plus citrus, dryness and oak. The experience is quite long and warming. At the very end you are left with mildly bitter oak and malt.

 Bottled without chill filtration or the addition of caramel

C$84 

Score 86 Points

An unusually old bottling from the famed independent bottlers in Elgin, Gordon & MacPhail, an aged Strathisla-Glenlivet. The nose has slight marmite, tinned fruit, cherries, damp leather, honey and jam. The taste is of black pepper, fruit, wet straw, Oxo cubes, tobacco, diesel and oak followed by a very slight hint of cheese, lychee and fruit tarts. The finish is minty intermingled with oak and the resurfacing of the slight hint of cheese. The finish is very long and after a few minutes the predominate characteristic is very dry bitter oak with a mild hint of soap.

Score 82 Points

£143 at the Whisky Exchange http://www.thewhiskyexchange.com/

A single cask release from the independent bottler A. Dewar Rattray of Clynelish 10yo from a refill sherry cask and bottled at cask strength of 59.7%. The nose is sharp with notes of a lumber yard along with sweet fruit (raisins & oranges), malt, sweet peas, alfalfa, leather and vanilla honey. The alcohol is quite strong. With water the ‘green’ notes of sweet peas, alfalfa etcetera are heightened with a back ground of more fruit, jam and citrus. After a few minutes in the glass the fruit notes grow along with the back ground leather notes. The taste is quite strong with malt, fruit and leather, also clover honey arriving late in the taste which is a pleasant surprise and immediately followed by a great delivery of honeyed malt which follows by a reappearance of the green notes. Multi faceted! The taste with water is distinctly more mellow and rounded with a good mouth feel and shades of tobacco and oak. The finish is quite long with a jumble of the afore mentioned characteristics, sweet malt and a pungent dry oak are in evidence. A final appearance by the green malt.

C$85

Score 86 Points

http://www.adrattray.com/

A. Dewar Rattray, the independent bottler, has released this old individual cask bottling of Bunnahabhain without any tinkering (no chill filtration or adding caramel for color).  A wonderful nose of fragrant delicate oak, sweet sherry wine, Christmas cake, toffee and rich fruit. Very mild tea and dark chocolate. This is by no means a typical Islay nose however it is sensational. The taste is warming with sweet cherries (and also slightly sour), banana, orange, tobacco and a slight hint of leather. The finish is very long with the oak being slightly dominate over the sweet fruit and sherry backed by slightly sour cherries. A distinct absence of any off notes and a great example of a great cask.

529 bottles worldwide, pity.

C$240

Score 90 Points

http://www.adrattray.com/

Glenturret Distillery by A. Dewar Rattray, the independent bottlers come another single cask offering from a bourbon cask and bottled at 56.4%. The nose is at first from the fragrant slice of the flavour wheel with varnish and then some un defined sweetness, other wise quite closed. However a slight hint of unhappy funkiness, a bit like wet wool followed by some sourness and very light juniper. With water the nose opens up to reveal cut grass and after a short while brown sugar (Demerara). The taste is oddly fungus like in the beginning and then sweet malt takes over and quite strong with strong leather notes followed by a blue cheese like funk. Later stages of the flavour bring out sweet malt. The finish is very long and warming with leather being the strong flavour until the end. A malt that improves with a great deal of water. After a few minutes the finish changes to green malt.

It was originally scored some what higher however in this tasting session it only scores an 78 but still interesting. Still has ‘elbows’ after 13 years; interesting! Complex, a bit Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde; an eternal struggle between the funk and the sweet malt.

C$80

http://www.adrattray.com/

A single cask bottling from A. Dewar Rattray “Specially selected and bottled for Alberta, Canada; why the Province of Alberta deserves their own cask of Laphroaig has never been explained, however…..the nose is a mild mix of peat smoke and sourness with maritime notes, slight varnish and a very faint mustiness. After a minute or two the sweetness comes out which is more fruity than toffee however the mustiness persists. With water the change is dramatic as coal smoke, seaweed, iodine, varnish and heavy peat smoke, this is a whisky that benefits from the addition of water. The mustiness is gone but there is an ever so slight hint of spent matches. The taste is very strong with lashings of peat smoke, dry oak, and slight pine and citrus. The peat smoke is very much in evidence and is the predominant characteristic. With water it is very sweet at first followed by a more subtle peat smoke but still quite peaty. Peat heads will love this. The finish is very long and consists of peated malt, oak and an ever so slight mouth feel coating. The malt is very chewy & dry; the peat smoke keeps on appearing.

A bit of a peat reek roller coaster. 

In many ways not your typical Laphroaig but a cracker. Score 90 Points 

C$220

For more on A. Dewar Rattray http://www.adrattray.com/

Released in late 2008 this new variant of Arran is made with peated malt; the original owners of the distillery simply did not believe in peated whiskies and never made a peated whisky. The current owners feel differently. At 4 years old this single malt follows two recent trends; a move towards selling whiskies at a youngish age and of describing them as a work in progress although the later descriptor is my own observation. As a bonus to a rare variant this bottling is also from a single ex American bourbon cask. “The Peated Arran”. The nose is fragrant with heather, sweet wine, mild juniper, sea breeze, malt and peat smoke (also bandages and green cereals). With water there is increased peat smoke characteristics and a dramatic jump in the green notes; sweet cut grass, muesli and fresh hay and tea/leather however neatly integrated is vanilla and honey. The taste is strong revealing peated malt in spades with a hint of varnish followed by crisp dry clean malt with a cut grass ending. With water warm oily sweet notes are in the foreground to start followed by a gentle peat smoke delivery and then good malt. This is very nice with loads of character; no a boring dram and no signs of any problems (no off notes). The finish is quite long and is of light peat smoke, vibrant crisp clean malt and at the very end more peat smoke and bitter tea/wood/oak.

It speaks well of Isle of Arran Distillery that such a young whisky has so much character and a lack of off notes.

Score 85 Points

£42 at Loch Fyne Whiskies http://www.lfw.co.uk/

From the north east of Scotland facing the Moray Firth is Pulteney Distillery in the town of Wick. The nose is a pleasant mixture of honey, dry dusty malt,varnish, oats, cut grass and pizza dough. In the later stages mild juniper and heather. The taste is immediately sweet and much like toast or twice baked cake (like the dry cake you use to make English triffle) followed by loads of malt and dessert wine. The finish is at first quite sweet and then changes to become much drier with oak tinges and a mild over steeped black tea flavour and then a final crash of malt. After five minutes a wee hint of the green notes; cut grass again.

A good solid single malt from a distillery that deserves to been seen a lot more.

A great value at C$80

Score 87 Points

For further details on Pulteney Distillery visit them at http://www.oldpulteney.com/

Two casks married to make this bottling from Signatory Vintage and their Un-Chillfiltered Collection bottled at a reduced strength of 46%. The ‘water mark’ on the label states “HEAVILY PEATED”; fasten seat belts please. The nose is a little sharp with loads of peat smoke characteristics, mild roofing tar and creosote that quickly becomes sweet but the peat smoke predominates and is the main delightful characteristic. The taste reveals a huge sweet peat attack followed by Chinese food style malt. Bizarre I know but it briefly reminded of Chinese food; perhaps mild Soya sauce? After a few moments the green notes take over, fresh hay backed by chewy malt. The finish is quite long; at first there is a mild battle between the sweet honey and the malt however both are swiftly over taken by the peat smoke which is quite strong. The malt however refuses to pass into the night and makes a chewy peaty reappearance.

£27.50 at http://www.lfw.co.uk/Cheap as chips for an interesting dram such as this.

Score 86 Points

The third in the series to date from Bruichladdich Distillery, a mixture of bourbon and sherry casks and limited to 24,000 bottles world wide. The nose is creamy sweet with layers of wonderful peat smoke and despite the high ABV this does not readily present on the nose. Hints of the sea however not low tide, clean ocean but very slight. Without the addition of water it’s not overly complex but still, very good. The taste is quite strong, the peat and the sweetness jump out immediately and there is a very strong coating mouth feel. Chewy malt and peat smoke, tinned fruits, banana and smoked lychee. The finish is very long and warming, the coating in the mouth persists for a long time. Water open up the whisky and while the above characteristics are still present new notes of acetone, plasticine, peanut butter, Neutrogena sun screen and paint make an appearance. Peat reek continues for a very long while.

C$160

Score 88 Points

Visit http://www.bruichladdich.com/ for further information.