Looking at my cabinet of open bottles, I noticed I did not have any younger sherried whiskies open that do not have any peat involvement. It’s not that I have anything against peated and sherried whiskies—why, some of my best friends are peated and sherried whiskies; it’s just that it’s nice to have some variety on hand. And so down I went into my whisky dungeon to see if there were any candidates for opening. There was this bottle of Glengoyne 12 CS. I remembered where I’d purchased it—Lowry Hills Liquor in Minneapolis—but not when. My spreadsheet—very assiduously updated in those days—tells me it was in 2012. I then looked for a bottle code to see if I could pin the release year down further and this is what I found etched towards the bottom of the bottle: L5109BB and below it, 3 15:46. Normally I would guess this meant it was bottled on the 109th day of 2005 at 3.46 pm but I confess I don’t really know how Glengoyne’s bottle codes worked then (or now, for that matter) and there does not seem to be any intel on that online. If you know more about it, please write in below. What I can tell you is that I don’t have so very much experience with Glengoyne; I’ve reviewed very few—the last almost exactly three years ago. But I’ve generally enjoyed what I’ve had even if I have not yet encountered one I thought to be remarkable. I can tell you that this bottle is not going to break that streak (I had purchased more than one back then and I have the score I’d assigned then, in my pre-blog days, recorded in my spreadsheet). But I’m glad to make its acquaintance again anyway. Continue reading
Tag Archives: Highlands
Ben Nevis 22, 1991 (Signatory)
May was going to be a month of single malt Scotch reviews but it turned more specifically into a month of reviews of sherry cask single malt Scotch whiskies. Things kicked off with an Ardmore 1977-2003 bottled by Scott’s Selection; next up was the 2011 release of the Glendronach 21, Parliament; last week I reviewed the 2018 release of the Springbank 15. And here now is a review of a Ben Nevis 22, 1991 bottled by Signatory. Whiskybase lists seven different casks of Ben Nevis 22, 1991 bottled by Signatory, but only two were at cask strength. This is one of the two. I’ve actually reviewed it before, back in 2020. That review was of a sample that had come to me from Michael Kravitz of Diving for Pearls (whose reviews I hope you are all still reading). I have to admit I had forgotten that I had already reviewed this but I’m always happy to re-review whiskies, especially when the first set of notes had come from a sample. Well, I really liked it back in 2020 from the 2 oz sample bottle and—spoiler alert—I can tell you that I really like it now that I have my own bottle open. These notes are being taken from the fourth pour from the bottle. Let’s get right to it. Continue reading
Glendronach 21, Parliament (2011 Release)
No, you’re not experiencing deja vu: this is my second review this year of a Glendronach Parliament from the early 2010s. Back in February, I reviewed my bottle from the 2012 release, which was the second year that Glendronach released the Parliament—a 21 yo named, if I remember correctly, for a parliament of crows that perched somewhere near the distillery. In the introduction to that review I’d noted that I had emptied a bottle of the original 2011 release a few months before launching the blog, and wondered if I might have put away a reference sample from the bottle—as used to be my practice at the time. Well, it turns out I did. Past me saved 4 oz for future me to drink. Future me is now present me and I have now enjoyed past Glendronach 21. I drank half of it yesterday to make sure it was still in good shape—it was/is—and here now are my notes on the remaining 2 oz.
Glendronach 21, Parliament (48%; 2011 Release; from a reference sample saved from my own bottle)
Nose: A big rich sherry nose with leather, figs, damp earth and a touch of apricot jam. On the second sniff there’s a fair bit of salt and a little ham. Continues in this general vein with a bit of pencil lead popping out as well. With a drop of water the fruit expands (plum and apricot and dried orange peel) and the ham turns to beef broth. Continue reading
Ardmore 1977-2003 (Scott’s Selection)
After a month that featured no whisky reviews—instead, I reviewed a rum, an Armagnac, a Calvados, and a mezcal—let’s do a month of nothing but whisky reviews. Don’t get too excited now—it’s still just going to be one whisky review a week.
First up, is an Ardmore bottled by Scott’s Selection in 2003. It was distilled in 1977 and so would have been either 25 or 26 years old. Scott’s Selection was always reticent with detail on the label. Though in this case they somewhat unusually specify that the cask type was “sherry wood”. They don’t say it’s a single cask, mind you. In fact, I can’t remember if Scott’s Selection ever released any single casks from this era. Or at least any that they marked as such. There was another 1977-2003 “sherry wood” Ardmore, by the way, that was released in Europe at a different strength; this is the one that was released in the US. 15 odd years ago, you could still find bottles of this—and several other Scott’s Selection releases of whiskies distilled in the 1960s and 1970s—hanging around in whisky stores for prices that now seem like they must have been out of a fantasy. Those days are long gone. But at least I have a bottle of this left and now it’s open. Continue reading
Glendronach 21, Parliament (2012 Release)
I reviewed an 11 yo Glendronach back in August. Six months later, here is one that’s almost twice as old. This is the Glendronach 21, Parliament, specifically from the 2012 release. If I’m remembering correctly, the Parliament was launched in 2011. I was under the impression that I had reviewed a bottle of that 2011 release in the first year of the blog but I see now in my spreadsheet that I emptied that bottle two weeks before I launched the blog. Back in those days I did used to save large reference samples from bottles for future tastings; I wonder if one might be kicking around somewhere in my hoard or if I finished that as well at some point! Anyway, here is the 2012 release. The Parliament is unlike the more sought-after single casks Glendronach had begun to release around that same time in that it is a vatting, did not bear a vintage statement and was not bottled at cask strength. It was, nonetheless, usually better than many of those so-called single casks. Of course, I am referring to the earlier releases: I’ve not kept up with the distillery and have no idea if the 21 yo is still bottled or if not, when it was pulled. If you know more, please do write in. Continue reading
Ben Nevis 21, 1997 (Maltbarn)
Here is my last whisky/booze review of the month and also of the year. (Yes, there are five Mondays this December but I’m sticking with my regimen of only opening four bottles each month). I’ve not chosen anything particularly special to close out the year but I’m looking forward to this one anyway as well-aged Ben Nevis from a bourbon cask is usually a good bet. This one was distilled in 1997 and bottled in 2018 by Maltbarn, who’d then been on the indie bottling scene for almost a decade and had built a strong reputation over that time. They’re still around but, as I’ve not kept up with the whisky world in the last few years, I’m not sure if they’re still releasing whiskies at the clip they had been at the end of the previous decade. For that matter I’m not sure how many of the other stalwart European indie bottlers who came to prominence in that decade and the one previous are still as active as they used to be. I’m no longer in the whisky accumulating business and no longer a good source of information—if I ever was one—on what’s being released and by who. But I am glad to have a number of good bottles on my shelves from my whisky accumulating days to drink now. Let’s see if this is one of them. Continue reading
Glendronach 11, 2002 (for Whiskybase)
This week’s booze review is of another young whisky released about a decade ago. A little over a decade ago in this case. This Glendronach 11 was distilled in May 2002 and bottled in December 2013. The label on my bottle says that it was “specially selected by and bottled for Whiskybase.com”—and that is indeed where I bought my bottle in early 2015—but I think this was a split cask, with half going somewhere else. I don’t think Whiskybase bottled all 701 bottles that came out of this oloroso sherry cask. Now, you may be thinking that 701 bottles is a lot at 57.2% even from a sherry butt and all I can say to you is that this is Billy Walker era Glendronach we are talking about. The whisky was bottled from a single oloroso cask but that doesn’t mean that all of it spent all 11 years in it or that multiple casks of different types didn’t get re-racked together into this oloroso cask for a short while before bottling happened. Of course, we’ll never know. On the plus side, Whiskybase did always make good selections. I will say though that the first few pours from this bottle—which I opened a few days ago—were not very promising, with the whisky tasting quite oaky and raw. Let’s hope it’s calmed down now as I take my notes. Continue reading
Littlemill 24, 1990 (Alambic Classique)
Alright, after two Armagnacs in a row (here and here), let’s get back to single malt Scotch whisky. And after four reviews of whisky samples let’s get back to the business of opening and finishing bottles I’ve been hanging on to for a very long time. Today I have for you a Littlemill that has been on my shelves for almost a decade. This is a 24 year old bottled by the German outfit, Alambic Classique in 2015 from an oloroso sherry cask. There were 295 bottles released, which is too small a number for a regulation sherry butt and just a bit too high for a hogshead after 24 hours. Maybe a butt split with someone else? Or was some of it held back for a later release? I’m not sure—if you know more, please write in below. Anyway, this was another of the many casks of late 1980s, early 1990s Littlemill that were released in the early-mid 2010s and which were key to the rehabilitation of the reputation of the distillery. The distillery, of course, had long been closed by then; indeed, what was left of the distillery was destroyed by a fire in 2004. So this improvement to its reputation has not been damaged again by official releases the owners might have continued to put out. Anyway, let’s see what this one is like. Continue reading
Ben Nevis 18, 1995 (The Whisky Agency)
Next up in my “Open ’em and drink ’em” campaign is an 18-year old Ben Nevis. This was distilled in 1995 and matured in a refill bourbon hogshead till 2013, when it was bottled by the boutique German independent bottler, The Whisky Agency. As I haven’t followed the whisky world closely in some years now, I had to look at Whiskybase to confirm that The Whisky Agency are still around—though they don’t seem to be releasing quite as much as they once did (if this is an incorrect impression, please write in below to correct me). I remember when, along with fellow German concern, Malts of Scotland, The Whisky Agency were one of the most reliable, most prolific and, it must be said, one of the more expensive (and yet sought after) bottlers. Of course, what seemed like high prices 10-15 years ago would seem like utter bargains in this insane market. My spreadsheet tells me I paid $92 for this 18 yo in 2015. That’s another way the market was different, of course: bottles from this single hogshead from a name bottler hung around for almost two years. Anyway, after sitting on the bottle for almost 10 years, I opened it a week ago. I enjoyed the first few pours very much and now it’s time for some notes. Continue reading
Teaninich 10, 2007 (Signatory for Binny’s)
This week of reviews of malts from highlands distilleries began on Monday with a young release from a new distillery I had never tried before: Ardnamurchan. It continues today with a malt from a much older distillery: Teaninich. I’ve not reviewed so very many malts from Teaninich either—there is not a massive amount of it about—but I’m always happy to have encounter one of them in my glass. This one is another single cask bottled by Signatory for Binny’s in Chicago. It’s a hogshead, which is good news as that austere northern highlands style that Teaninich is part of shines best from bourbon casks. Anyway, let’s see if it’s shining here.
Teaninich 10, 2007 (58.5%; Signatory for Binny’s; hogshead 702710; from a bottle split)
Nose: A sweet arrival with cereals and apple; some wet wool in there too. On the second sniff there’s some honey and some simple syrup; behind it there’s some hot tarmac and some wet stones. With time the simple syrup trumps the fruit. Water tames the simple syrup a bit and brings out some cream. Continue reading
Ardnamurchan AD/ 04.21:03
March began with a week of reviews of single casks from Ben Nevis (here, here and here). Let’s keep things in the highlands for a second week. This week’s reviews, however, will be of whiskies from three different distilleries. First up, a release from a distillery I don’t have any prior experience with: Ardnamurchan. It is actually located only about 45 miles from Ben Nevis, a little to the southwest. It’s owned by Adelphi, the well-known independent bottling concern. The distillery was constructed in 2013—this is around the time, I think, when a number of the major independent bottlers began to get into the whisky production game, as the continued supply of casks from the usual sources began to look more questionable in the future. The first batch of spirit at Ardnamurchan was distilled in 2014. I believe the first official single malt was released in 2020, at the age of 5. If I’m understanding the release numbering system correctly, the one I’m reviewing today is the third release and came out in April, 2021. As to whether this is a year older than the 2020 release or distilled a year (or more) later, I don’t know. I do know that it’s a vatting of 65% ex-bourbon, 35% sherry (px and oloroso) casks and that it contains equal partsof peated and unpeated spirit. I am very curious to see what it’s like. Continue reading
Ben Nevis 24, 1996 (Single Malts of Scotland)
Ben Nevis week has so far featured two young casks from the Scotch Malt Whisky Society. Monday’s 9 yo was from a first-fill hogshead; Wednesday’s 8 yo spent its last three years in a second-fill oloroso hogshead. Here to close out the week now is another bourbon hogshead, this time from the Single Malts of Scotland. This is older than the previous two combined. It was distilled in 1996 and bottled in 2021. As per Whiskybase, the bottlers seem to have got their hands on a large parcel of these 1996 casks of proximate age bottled across both their Single Malts of Scotland and Whisky Trail lines. This one was bottled for the American market. Let’s see what it’s like.
Ben Nevis 24, 1996 (48.8%; Single Malts of Scotland; hogshead 1730; from a bottle split)
Nose: Everything Ben Nevis: salted nuts, powdered ginger, Makrut lime, a hint of mineral peat, sweet floral notes. Continues along these lines, with the fruit becoming more acidic as it goes. With water the acid recedes and there’s more floral sweetness. Continue reading
Ben Nevis 8, 2012 (SMWS 78.53)
Ben Nevis week started on Monday with a 9 yo from the Scotch Malt Whisky Society; it continues today with a 8 yo from the same bottler. Monday’s 9 yo was from a first-fill hogshead. Today’s 8 yo, dubbed “Death in the Afternoon” by the society’s tasting panel, also started out in a bourbon cask but after five years was transferred to a 2nd-fill oloroso hogshead. So probably more of a double maturation than a finish. I do enjoy bourbon cask Ben Nevis a lot—as the less assertive wood lets the distillate’s idiosyncratic character take centerstage. But I’m not opposed to a good sherry cask either. Let’s see if this is one of those.
Ben Nevis 8, 2012 (60%; SMWS 78.53; 2nd-fill oloroso hogshead finish; from a bottle split)
Nose: Rubber gaskets, roasted malt, orange peel and that nutty-beany thing. On the second sniff the citrus begins to brighten and come through to the top. Gets more mineral as it goes. As it sits the citrus and the mineral notes blend into something like orange soda with a Dispirin tablet dissolved in it. Not much change with water. Continue reading
Ben Nevis 9, 2012 (SMWS 78.59)
Okay, Ben Nevis to start the month. First up is a young one from the Scotch Malt Whisky Society, bottled after 9 years in a first-fill hogshead. They gave it the name “Burning berries”, which is both downright prosaic by their usual whimsical standards and also, I must say, promising. Let’s see if that promise is kept.
Ben Nevis 9, 2012 (57.8%; SMWS 78.59; first-fill hogshead; from a bottle split)
Nose: Quite closed at first, with none of that Ben Nevis funk in evidence. After a bit of airing some fruit begins to emerge: lime, tart-sweet apple; some wet concrete as well. Opens up further as it sits: the lime expands and here finally is some of that Ben Nevis powdered ginger and yeasty dough; a bit of roasted malt in there too. With a few drops of water there’s a fair bit of vanilla and cream but the lime is still quite strong (and mixed in with some floral sweetness). Continue reading
Ardmore 23, 1997 (SMWS 66.191)
2024 got off to a smoky and tasty start with Wednesday’s Croftengea. Here now is another peated malt from a distillery elsewhere in the highlands: Ardmore.
I’ve previously reviewed a number of these Ardmore 23, 1997s bottled by the Scotch Malt Whisky Society and liked them all. This despite the fact that none of the previous have been from straightforward ex-bourbon casks, my preferred incarnation of Ardmore’s spirit. All spent the first 21 years in ex-bourbon and then the final two in another type of cask. 66.199 came closest to being ex-bourbon, having been matured for 21 years in ex-bourbon before receiving a finish in an engineered HTMC cask (high-toast, medium-char, I think). 66.198 spent its last two years in a French oak barrique. 66.195 and 66.197 were both finished in sherry casks, the former in a first-fill oloroso barrique and the latter in a refill Spanish oak hogshead. This is another of those oloroso barrique finishes, a first-fill STR oloroso barrique to be exact (STR= shaved, toasted, re-charred, I think). The SMWS gave it the name “Smoky Cajun Roux”. As good as the others? Let’s see. Continue reading
Croftengea 12, 2006 (First Editions)
Let’s get 2024 off to a smoky start. My first whisky review of the year is of a Croftengea, one of the peaty brands produced by Loch Lomond. I’ve really enjoyed most of the Croftengeas I’ve had in recent years; that mix of Loch Lomond fruit and heavy peat is a very nice one. Let’s see if that’s in evidence here.
Croftengea 12, 2006 (53.9%; First Editions; refill hogshead 15540; from a bottle split)
Nose: Big farmy peat with some rubber mixed in; some citrus and salt in there too. The salt expands as it sits and more fruit begins to emerge with it (tart apple, Makrut lime). With more time there’s some vanilla and some cream as well. A few drops of water make the whole sweeter. Continue reading
Oban 11, Special Release 2023
I’m almost to the end of my series of reviews of Diageo’s 2023 Special Release slate. For the most part, it has been a somewhat mundane experience. However, Monday’s Clynelish 10 was a true highlight. We’ll remain in the highlands for this penultimate review. Will this Oban, just a year older, be in that general ballpark of quality? Like many of the others in this year’s Special Release, this one received a finish. The Talisker, you will recall, was finished in port casks, the Lagavulin in tequila, the Glendullan in chardonnay and the Mortlach in a mix of Japanese whisky and pinot noir casks. This Oban was finished in casks that had previously held Caribbean pot-still rum. I’m not sure if they said which distillery or even island the relevant pot-still rum was from—at any rate, I don’t have that information. I also rather doubt that this brief finish has been enough to impart “The Soul of Calypso” to this Oban but that is what Diageo has chosen to call it. Anyway, let’s see what it’s like. Continue reading