My second week of reviews of older single grain whiskies got off to a decent start with the Cameronbridge 27, 1990 bottled by Jack Wieber for their 20th anniversary. Here now is another sherried single grain bottled for another German indie, Alambic Classique. Where the Cameronbridge was a sherry finish, this 30 yo Cambus was entirely matured in a sherry cask (or so I think anyway). The Cameronbridge was let down a bit by sherry separation; in theory at least that shouldn’t happen here. Let’s see if that’s the case.

Cambus 30, 1989 (61.1%; Alambic Classique; sherry cask 19094; from a bottle split)

Nose: Bright orange and polished oak on the first sniff; some brandied raisins on the second. The oak expands a little as it sits and then there are hints of sweeter, muskier fruit (roasted pineapple?) and some cereals. Bitter caramel here too with time. A few drops of water push the oak and caramel back and bring out some apricot and more orange and also some toffee. Continue reading →