Tastes

Here we have one of the seemingly endless releases from Highland Park of late. This is a 10 year old that was released to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Inspector John Rebus, a fictional character from Scottish author Ian Rankin. Now, I have absolutely no knowledge of this character or author whatsoever, but a couple years ago I entered into a drawing to win the chance to buy this bottle directly from HP and won. Little did I know at the time, but the distilleries in Scotland won’t deliver to the US. I was a little peeved, but I let it go...until I saw them at auction a while back. I would have my revenge on whoever it was that was responsible for me not being able to have this bottle initially. So for about $45 I was able to get it (I think the price from HP was around $40 so I didn’t pay much of a premium for it on the secondary market). Bottled at 40% ABV and is chill filtered and natural color of yellow gold. I seem to recall seeing something about there being 10,000 bottles released, but I could be way off on that. Speaking of bottles, this is a black bottle, which should be outlawed for obvious reasons. The nose is very earthy with vegetal peat, a very savory/umami profile. Some light sherry, Worcestershire sauce, cooked celery and water chestnuts. Faint smoke, sherried oak, raisins and figs. This is a very odd profile for HP, not like any of the others I’ve had. Pickled ginger, pineapple and teriyaki. It shifts to a more citrus fruit profile with lime, kiwi and lemon custard. Creamy vanilla, grassy/hay, lightly malty at times, heavily at other times. Caramel and Maple notes come and go. There’s also somewhat of a mineral/coastal note like seashells. The palate is very odd. Vegetal, savory, oak and earthy. Very light fruits like raisins, coconut, apricot skins, plums and dried pineapple. Faint smoke - just a whiff. A bit tannic and bitter at times, sweet at other times with hints of toffee and honey. A light bodied mouthfeel that is thin and creamy. The finish is medium short with peat, vegetal and distant fruits. Not at all what I was expecting from HP. Very different than their usual profile. A good value, but an average scotch. At times it showed some good flavors, but mostly it’s anemic and underwhelming. 3.25 Cheers

Stop number 112 on the SDT is Daftmill. This Lowland distillery is part of a working farm and is located entirely within a converted barn. The maximum annual output is an incredibly small 20,000 liters and they claim to only fill roughly 100 casks per year. They only distill twice per year in the winter and summer when the farm production is down. The 2006 Winter batch is their second release and consists of only 6 first fill bourbon casks (080/2006, 081/2006, 082/2006, 083/2006, 084/2006, 085/2006) which yielded 1625 bottles and was bottled on December 16th, 2018. Bottled at 46% ABV and is non chill filtered and natural color of pale straw. The nose starts off as a big ol’ pile of dry grass soaked in lemon/lime citrus. Green grapes, honey, malty, barley sugar. Creamy vanilla with bourbony oak. Pickled ginger, dried berries and a touch of mint. Green apples and underripe pears, pineapple, orange citrus, oranges & cream - very tropical without being over the top fruity. Slightly nutty, like almond flour, biscuity. A light and delicate arrival on the palate, very bright with lemon/lime citrus. A somewhat sharp bourbony oak that is more oak than bourbon, a bit floral. A very clean and pure spirit. Like the nose, this turns tropical, but maybe even more so. Pineapple, ginger, coconut, orange and maybe a little papaya. Some vanilla and a little peppery. A light to medium bodied mouthfeel that is creamy, mouth coating and dry. The finish is fairly short with oak, lime and pineapple. I have to say that at first I didn’t think much of this whisky. It came off as a bit boring. No peat, no sherry, no fancy wine cask finish...what’s the deal? Then I realized that this is simply a more traditional way of producing scotch. Quality first fill casks, aged to a maturity level and not just an age statement. No frills or finishes to cover up any blemishes. Other than wanting the finish to be a little stronger, there’s nothing really wrong with this single malt. I’m sure I’m 5-6 years they will have one fine 18 year old on their hands. 3.75-4 Cheers

Getting back to my fanboy distillery, Tamdhu. Ever since my first taste of the 10 year old I was hooked and have gobbled up as many bottles as my budget has allowed. Here we have the second release in their Batch Strength series, Batch 002. This review has been a long time coming as I’ve been sitting on this sample provided by @LeeEvolved for over a year. This Speyside single malt was bottled at 58.5% ABV, non chill filtered and as all Tamdhu are, this is natural color, a nice dark copper. The nose is full on sherry with mulling spices, especially cinnamon with a little mint as well. Intense sherried oak, anise, licorice root. Spiced fruitcake, dense with dried fruits like dates, cherries and faint apricots. Cocoa powder, orange zest/oil. Somewhat nutty - Brazil and walnuts, honey, malty, tobacco and hay, ginger and leather. Toffee, caramel and a quick hit of sweet vermouth. Amazing. The palate is intensely sweet and spicy. The first sip was heavenly. Dark cherries, sherry and oak. The cherry taste is so intense and I absolutely love it. Fudge, cocoa, hazelnut. Cinnamon, clove anise, nutmeg and cola. I didn’t get a whole lot more than that because I was lost in the experience. A full bodied mouthfeel that is oily with heat, mouthwatering and mouth coating. The finish is long, the kind of long where if you drink it before bed and don’t brush your teeth you will taste it in the morning, maybe even if you do brush, lol. Sherry, cherries, oak, cinnamon and cocoa. Even though drinking this without water was incredibly satisfying I decided to add water to see what would happen. BIG MISTAKE! It brings out a little more fruit in the nose, but completely ruins the palate by muting the intensity that made it so enjoyable. This is a fantastic whisky, the best I’ve had in quite a while. Full intense flavors with a crate full of cherries. The nose was good, but the palate was great. The finish was the “low point” if it could indeed be called low. Best enjoyed 1oz at a time, as any more than that will burn out your palate with flavor overload. At around $80 it’s a great deal. Good luck finding any though, as they are now onto Batch 004. 4.5 and looking forward to getting into my bottle of Batch 003. Cheers

I bought a miniature of this classic Islay single malt a while ago and it got lost in the madness of my sample backlog. After reading some favorable reviews I decided it’s time to move it to the front of the line. Bunnahabhain is the northernmost distillery on Islay and they are the least peated as well (unless you consider their heavily peated line) at 3ppm. This 12 year old is bottled at 46.3% ABV, non chill filtered and natural color of amber honey. It’s a blend of about 70/30 bourbon/sherry casks. The nose has a quick hit of alcohol followed by a wave of butterscotch. It’s very grassy as well. Bourbon soaked oak chips and some dark sherry. A very light peat and wood spice, cloves, nutmeg and allspice, herbal. Very rich, chocolate sauce, raisins, vanilla, pancake syrup and salted caramels. Mineral notes, chalky, also some orange oil and olive brine. A touch malty at the bottom of the glass with more caramel and cinnamon. The palate begins peppery, sweet and savory. A big thick sherry richness with chocolate sauce, raisins, heavy oak. Fairly bitter, oak tannins and walnut skins. Ginger and clove. Vanilla, toffee, salted caramels and root beer. A medium to full bodied mouthfeel that is oily and creamy, very mouthwatering. The finish is long with sherry oak, slightly sour and bitter, chocolate and vanilla with a trace of peat, dry. Solid flavors here, indicative of quality casks and skilled blending of the bourbon and sherry matured components. The bitterness on the palate does hurt things, but otherwise this is a very good single malt, though I think I prefer the heavily peated versions better. 3.75-4 Cheers

Stop number 111 on the SDT is Ardnamurchan. Another newcomer to the scotch game, Ardnamurchan is a Highland distillery that is located the furthest west on the Scottish mainland, on a far reaching peninsula which is also named Ardnamurchan. Its name is Gaelic for “headland of the great seas”. Legally speaking, this cannot he called a scotch whisky, as the 3 year old stock they have was blended with a 1 year old spirit, which makes this a 1 year old spirit and not a whisky (because as everybody knows scotch must be a minimum of 3 years old). Bottled at 55.3% ABV and is non chill filtered and natural color of a dark orange amber. Ardnamurchan splits their distillations between peated and unpeated, but this is a mixture of each, and matured in first fill PX and Oloroso sherry casks. The nose is malty sherry with some light peat. Fruity with oranges, apricots and maybe even some rhubarb. Hazelnut, pecans, salted caramel, chocolate, vanilla and barley sugar. More sherry. Wood spice, cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon and fennel. Some brown sugar. Water brought out orange and raspberry flavored chocolate. The palate has a sweet heat arrival. It’s turns more savory than sweet, and even a little bitter. A nice medium-light peat level, but not quite as smoky as it is earthy. Pepper, nutmeg and chocolate licorice. Water takes the heat out and focuses in on the peat and brings out the smoke. A medium bodied mouthfeel that is very oily and mouthwatering. The finish is long with sherry, oranges and peat, but is also bitter and tannic, dry. If ever there was a waste of first fill sherry casks it’s here. Burning first fill casks on a release that can’t even be called scotch strikes me as foolish. Those should be used for a minimum, A MINIMUM, of 8 years to get real depth of character and not just window dressing. Of course if you have some first fill casks that aren’t the best quality they can be used for a quick 1 year finish, but that’s not what’s happening here. Also, I feel like the peat/sherry combination didn’t really work here and they were at odds with each other rather than working in concert. First fill or even refill bourbon casks are better for the very young peated malts, with maybe a quick sherry or port finish. Now if you are talking about an older peated whisky, sherry may work better. Perhaps in a few years this may turn out to be a real gem, but in its present form it’s not quite ready for the spotlight. Still, it has a good flavor base to work with. 3.5 and thanks to @LeeEvolved for the sample. Cheers

Stop number 110 on the SDT is Littlemill. This Lowland distillery made the claim of having been the oldest officially licensed distillery in Scotland, having been founded in 1772. But it’s life in 1997 when it was dismantled and subsequently burned down in 2004. I was able to procure this 12 year old single malt official bottle by way of auction. I’m not sure what the retail prices were back in the day, but I had to pay over $170 to win it. Yes you have to pay out the nose for these pieces of liquid history. But I digress. Bottled at 40% ABV, chill filtered and I suspect a hefty dose of colorant making it an amber honey. The nose was quite musty at first, like old cardboard in a damp basement. Very malty and yeasty, spirity. Honey and a little lemon and a bit buttery. After settling down it becomes hugely tropical. Apricots, lots of coconut, plums, pineapple, dried strawberries and bananas. Pipe tobacco, oak, herbal - chamomile, grassy. Hazelnut, pecans, Nutella and almond butter. Baked apples, a very light wood spice and vanilla. The palate is very light and soft on arrival, then becomes very fruity. Canned peaches and apricots, cantaloupe, pineapple, oranges and coconut. Very tropical. Vanilla cream, honey, a bit tannic at times with a spice that builds the more you drink it, but never gets out of control. Dried strawberries, caramel, butterscotch, Earl Grey tea and pecans. Everything is good, but has an artificial feel to it, like it’s all swimming in canning syrup. A light to medium bodied mouthfeel that is oily/syrupy, mouthwatering then dry. A medium short finish with honey, oak, vanilla, pineapple, mango and Earl Grey tea. I’ve mentioned this before, but basing an opinion on a 1-2oz sample is a very flawed way of doing these reviews (of course there are exceptions for the exceptionally good/bad drams out there), and this bottle is a prime example. On first tasting I found this whisky to be very odd and confusing, but after a few sessions with it things really came together and made sense. This scotch is incredibly drinkable and it’s a real shame that it’s not widely available anymore. Will it blow your mind? No, but it is very solid. Is it worth $170? No, but I’m glad I bought it and, more importantly, shared it. Ghosted distilleries are always fun. At times this was a 4 star dram, but at other times it was closer to 3. Overall I have to go with 3.75. Cheers

This is my first Smooth Ambler, and also my first whiskey from the state of West Virginia. This Old Scout 11 year old single barrel was bottled at 56.1% ABV and is most likely non chill filtered and natural color of dark copper. The nose starts with big notes of dill and mint right away, followed by rye and toasted corn. The nose predicts a hot palate to follow. Lots of sugary sweetness in the form of bubblegum, cotton candy and candy corn. Rich tobacco, vanilla, strong oak. Brown sugar, maple, caramel, molasses, spicy chocolate. Slightly fruity with cherry hard candies and orange liqueur. Lots of peanuts and some Brazil nuts. A false prediction by the nose as the palate is not nearly as hot as I expected. Big charred oak flavor, rye, mint, peanuts, cloves. Somewhat fruity with apple skins, tart berries, more peanuts. The spice level builds but never gets too hot. Not much in the way of depth for an 11 year old bourbon. A medium to full bodied mouthfeel that is mouth coating and dry. The finish is medium long with peanuts, oak, corn and very dry. The nose showed some real promise and depth, but the palate ended up being nothing but peanuts after a few sips. When just sitting and sipping, and not trying to decipher anything, it’s really not bad and would probably do well with a big ice cube. Not a bad bourbon, but at $54 you could do a lot better for less. Thanks to @LeeEvolved for the sample. 3.75 Cheers

Stop number 109 on the SDT is Kingsbarns. This Lowland distillery is a newcomer to the scotch game, having only been established in 2015. Dream to Dram is their first general release and is a NAS single malt that is basically a 3+ year old. It’s matured in mostly first fill bourbon casks from Heaven Hill, but also a few heavily charred wine casks. Bottled at 46% ABV and is non chill filtered and natural color of a light white wine. This sample was provided by @LeeEvolved who jumped in with me on grabbing some nice bottles for this little bonus round of our journey to try every active (and some inactive) Scottish distillery. Immediately you are hit with a warm, creamy vanilla on the nose. Very fruity, baked pears and apples and some green grapes. Green oak, coconut, lemon, very perfumed and floral as well. Very nice for such a young whisky. Some light barrel char and subtle wine notes. Anise, menthol, herbal, barley sugar. Pineapple and green bananas. The palate is intense and spirity. Slightly rough, but also smooth at the same time. Lots of sharp oak, anise, licorice, ginger, herbal. A bit of toffee and vanilla, honey, slightly malty. Pears, lemon, pineapple. Some chili spice at times A medium bodied mouthfeel that is creamy and mouthwatering. The finish is medium length with pears, oak, vanilla and dry. I remember a few years ago Ralfy, the Exalted One, did a video from Kingsbarns and interviewed the young guys who were running the distillery. I believe one was the master distiller, who said that they were after a lighter style with a pear profile. Well, they nailed it. Lots of pears in here. It’s surprisingly good for a 3 year old and I would love to see what this does with another 5-10 years on it. It’s spirity and young for sure, but also has great flavors. Not too complex, but that’s to be expected at this age. If you want a good, traditional, bourbon matured scotch, keep your eye out for Kingsbarns in the future. 3.75 Cheers

I took count of my backlog of samples, and it turns out I have over 70...SEVENTY!! I’m really slacking. Some of them go back over a year. I really need to put in some overtime on these things. This one comes from by way of @Telex. This Springbank was aged for 12 years in Burgundy casks. Bottled at 53.5% ABV and is non chill filtered and natural color of a dark amber. The nose is sweet on top with the classic Springbank funk underneath. Light vegetal peat, sulfur, very aromatic. Rich burgundy notes as well as salted caramel, chocolate and vanilla. Mixed berry pie filling, raspberries, blueberries and blackberries, maple and toffee. Meaty, more of that Springbank funk and Worcestershire sauce. Mineral notes, herbal, hay. Water isn’t needed but I added some anyway to see what would happen. A bit of orange citrus and not much else. Much better without water. Plenty of heat on the arrival but a good heat. Earthy peat, pepper. Dark berries, dense grain breads, oak, wine notes and red grapes. Salted caramels, mineral funk and a bit of mint. Water brings out something akin to nuttiness, but I’m not sure if that’s it. Also a little tobacco. Again, no water needed here, much better neat. A medium to full bodied mouthfeel that is oily and mouth coating. The finish is medium long with that Springbank funk, winey, grapes, berries, mineral notes and dry. Definitely a Springbank, no doubts there. The question is how I feel about it. I’m constantly barraged with others glowing opinions about this distillery, but I haven’t decided if I like it or not. I didn’t care for the 12 CS, the 13 Green was good but very odd, but I did have a 24 year old from Maltman that was exquisite. I’ve got a bottle of the 10 year old, plus a bottle of Longrow 18, but of course if I open them it will take time away from my samples...decisions decisions. This one was a good variant with the burgundy casks adding a nice level of complexity. I think I just need to try a few more to really make up my mind. As for this one, I’d give it a 3.75-4. Cheers

Stop number 108 on the newly extended SDT is Port Dundas. A Lowland distillery that was built in 1811 and demolished 200 years later in 2011. At one time in the late 19th century it was the largest distillery in Scotland. As it was only recently closed down, there are still some bottles available on the market, but all are from independent bottlers as I believe there were no official bottlings released. This 28 year old single grain scotch is from the Clan Denny line from Douglas McGibbon & Co. A single cask (cask# DMG11753, a refill hogshead) that was filled in October of 1988 and bottled in May of 2017. Bottled at 50% ABV and is non chill filtered and natural color of yellow gold. My bottle is number 6 of 249. Speaking of bottles, the label on this one is quite ornate and comes of as very classy. A word of advise to my SDT cohorts @LeeEvolved @PBMichiganWolverine @Scott_E and @Telex ...like a well aged single malt, this single grain needs time in the glass to compose itself before it is ready for the big show. Would you expect Mike Tyson to roll out of bed, throw on some gloves and go toe to toe with Evander Holyfield? No, he needs to warm up first! The nose has an initial nip of grain alcohol but that quickly subsides. Wood spices follow in the form of ginger, cinnamon, clove, and anise. Light vanilla, toffee, burnt sugar, caramel and maple. After more time the vanilla becomes much more pronounced along with some brown sugar. Caramelized banana, some light pineapple and tobacco and dry grass. Buttery corn and slightly meaty. I get a familiar malty biscuit aroma even though there is no malted barley here, weird. Some faint menthol or eucalyptus rounds everything out. Not too shabby at all. An intense arrival on the palate that has just the right amount of heat, but also quite fruity. Coconut and pineapple aplenty with something like grapefruit but not as sour or citrusy. Possibly kiwi with some honeydew and green grapes. Vanilla and some bitter tannins but I have to say they work with the profile rather than against it. Ginger, oak, toffee, some pepper and a touch of honey. Sweet corn (even though I believe this is wheat based), clove and more ginger. A medium bodied mouthfeel that is both creamy and oily, dry. The finish is medium long with toffee, vanilla and oak, dry. The bar for single grain scotch whisky is low, so low you are more likely to trip over it than hit your head on it. This Port Dundas however, has raised that bar, perhaps knee hight. 28 years did wonders here and it provided further evidence that grain whiskies need 2-3 times the age of their malt whisky counterparts to really shine. The palate reminded me somewhat of the Bowmore Gold Reef and White Sands, which made me imagine that this is what an unpeated Bowmore might taste like. I got this bottle at auction for $85, which now seems like a complete steal. I would recommend anyone out there interested in trying older grain whiskies to seek them out. Stick to over 25 years old though. I kept going back and forth between a 4 and a 4.25, but all things considered I’m going with 4.25. Cheers