Category Archives: Cadenhead

Auchroisk 12, 2001 (Cadenhead’s)

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Cadenhead's, Auchroisk 12
This Auchroisk is yet one more from my ongoing series of reviews of Cadenhead’s bottles I split with some friends. I’ve quite liked the few Auchroisks I’ve tried so far. Those were both middle-aged (see here and here). What will the story be with this not quite teenager from 2001? As per Cadenhead’s, “[I]n 2011 the character of Auchroisk was changed” with a 72 hour fermentation now employed in place of a 48 hour fermentation. They say that this bottle is “from the old style”. Unless I’m misunderstanding, surely no one has yet tried the new style. If the new fermentation regime was put into place in 2011, nothing distilled from it could be bottled as Scotch whisky till 2014 at the earliest. Or is this a typo and did the fermentation time change in 2001? Does anyone know?

Auchroisk 12, 2001 (59.3%; Cadenhead’s Small Batch; bourbon hoghshead; from a bottle split with friends) Continue reading →

Ledaig 16, 1997 (Cadenhead’s)

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Cadenhead's, Ledaig 16The procession of Cadenhead’s Small Batch reviews goes on. This is the oldest modern era Ledaig I’ve had (the very oldest I’ve had, a senior citizen from 1972, was my favourite whisky bottled in 2013). I doubt this will approach those heights but am hoping that it will be good nonetheless. Despite Ledaig’s general iffy recent reputation some very good stuff has been available from indies of late.

Ledaig 16, 1998 (56%; Cadenhead’s Small Batch, bourbon hogshead; from a bottle split with friends)

Nose: A dense fog of farmy peat; lots of rotting organic material–pungent, almost sweet. Gets increasingly rubbery (bicycle inner tube). With a little more time there’s a fair bit of salt. Not much change after 15-20 minutes. Okay, let’s take another sip and add some water. Water brings out a minerally sweetness and then some lemon begins to emerge behind some ashy smoke. Continue reading →

Braes of Glenlivet 16, 1997 (Cadenhead’s)

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Cadenhead's, Braes of Glenlivet 16Braes of Glenlivet was the old name of the distillery now known as Braeval (read more about its history and change of name at Malt Madness). As with so many distilleries, Braeval’s malt goes almost entirely into blends and there are no single malt releases available other than from the indies. I’ve not had very many Braevals, and while none of the ones I’ve tried so far been bad, none have got me very excited. Let’s see where this one falls.

Braes of Glenlivet 16, 1997 (56.9%; Cadenhead’s Small Batch; bourbon hogshead; from a bottle split with friends)

Nose: Lime zest, kiwi, gooseberries. Some peppery wood below that and some malt as well. Quite floral too. With more time there’s some vanilla as well but also a slight grassiness. Not much change with water. Continue reading →

Ben Nevis 17, 1996 (Cadenhead’s)

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Cadenhead's, Ben Nevis 17
I am somewhat unusual, I gather, in having liked every Ben Nevis I’ve tried. It probably helps that I’ve tried very few. The last Cadenhead’s Small Batch I tried (Friday’s Auchentoshan 14) reversed a negative trend; I hope this Ben Nevis 17 won’t reverse a positive one. Let’s get right to it.

Ben Nevis 17, 1996 (55.2%; Cadenhead’s Small Batch; bourbon hogshead; from a bottle split with friends)

Nose: Wood glue and musky fruit (apricots, a bit of stewed apple). Some raisins too and something vaguely savoury. Gets brinier as it sits. With time there’s some peppery melon a la some Littlemills I’ve tried. The fruit gets richer and richer with time and water gives it tropical accents on the nose as well. Continue reading →

Auchentoshan 14, 1999 (Cadenhead’s)

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Cadenhead's, Auchentoshan 14
The second in a series of eight reviews of recent Cadenhead’s Small Batch releases. I have to say I’m not the greatest fan of Auchentoshan–not that I’ve had that many–and I’m hoping this 14 yo will be to my liking and at least better than the Valinch (2011) that I reviewed some months ago.

Auchentoshan 14, 1999 (55.1%; Cadenhead’s Small Batch; bourbon barrel; from a bottle split with friends)

Nose: Malt, citrus and candied ginger. Some sharp wood below that. Smells younger than it is but smells good. With more time the wood is pine/eucalyptus. Very fresh even as it gets sweeter. And I may be dreaming but I think I’m getting clear notes of juniper now too. Water brings out some vanilla. Continue reading →

Glendullan 17, 1996 (Cadenhead’s)

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Cadenhead's, Glendullan 17The venerable independent bottler Cadenhead’s is back in the US. Let there be rejoicing. There’s been a general revamp at Cadenhead’s with a new boss and new packaging. I don’t have anything interesting to say about the former, and I am agnostic on the latter. I quite liked the old, green bottles from when Cadenhead’s were last in the US and don’t mind the new dumpy bottles. I wouldn’t be me if I didn’t complain about something though so I will say that I wish that the distillation years were on the labels and not on the little thingamajig on a string around the neck (is there a name for that thing?). In stores where these bottles are kept behind glass it’s annoying to have to call someone over just to find out what years particular bottles are from. But this is a minor issue.

The more important thing is that the prices are generally reasonable. I found eight of the Small Batch Collection releases in a store in a Minneapolis suburb and only one (the Caol Ila 22) was above $100. Of course, not all stores selling these are being quite as restrained with the prices but it suggests that they’re not starting out high straight off the boat. I bought all eight bottles to be split among some members of our local tasting group and will be reviewing them in sequence, starting with this Glendullan. After that I will return to my usual diet of largely untimely reviews. Continue reading →

Ardbeg 10, 1993 (Cadenhead’s)

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ardbeg10cadenheads
I first tasted this beauty of a sherried Ardbeg at a somewhat decadent tasting of sherried whiskies in St. Paul this past February. I may have mentioned this tasting before–a number of whisky enthusiasts got together and each brought at least one non-standard bottle of sherried whisky. There were a number of standouts that evening, including a very old G&M Longmorn and a quite young SMWS Bowmore that one of the hosts brought out as a special “dessert” treat. I thought this Ardbeg was not very far behind. My friend Rich, who brought it, included a sample in a swap we conducted the same evening–a swap in which I sent out far more samples than I got back but came out much further ahead. (More on Rich’s generosity in the coming weeks.) I’ve been both looking forward to trying it again and feeling reluctant to then be in the position to not be able to try it again. This run of sherried whiskies, especially this mini-run of sherried and peated whiskies, seems like as good a time as any to renew the acquaintance. Continue reading →

Quick Hits: Two Older Inchgowers

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Inchgower
“Quick Hits” will cover tasting notes of whiskies I have small’ish samples of that are not sufficient for me to draw detailed notes from. They should be taken with a larger pinch of salt than my other notes are. They do not include ratings.

First up, two Inchgowers from the 1980s. I know very little about Inchgower and indeed these are the first whiskies I’ve had from this distillery. I gather the profile is generally sherried; these however are both from bourbon hogsheads. Will they make me want to try more?

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Ardmore 18, 1977 (Cadenhead’s)

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Ardmore 18 1977
Ardmore, located in the Highlands (as per the SWA; some still list in the Speyside), is one of a handful of distilleries outside Islay known for producing peated whisky. I’ve not had very many Ardmores but I’ve not had a bad one. There’s not very much available as official bottlings: there’s the Ardmore Traditional, which is a very good value when found in the neighbourhood of $30, but not so much when found in the neighbourhood of $50 (it depends on where in the US you are); and there’s a very expensive 30 yo–I don’t believe I’ve seen any other official bottlings in the US. But the independents, as always, do a good job of supplementing the negligence of the owners. In the last year or two, in particular, a large number of expressions from the early 1990s have come on the market and this distillery’s stock has seemed to be on the rise among the general populace of whisky geeks.

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