Tastes

Growing up the only subject I hated worse than English was foreign language. Ten years of studying French in grade schools only to be left feeling betrayed after learning in college they were holding out on all the good stuff: Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, and the French tickler. Entering the business world thereafter was equally shocking after realizing one’s income was predicated on dumb luck and the ability to string words together. A melding of Shakespeare and Ecclesiastes says it best: “Some rise by sin, and some by virtue fall; for time and chance happens to them all." So, now, here I sit happily retired after a career of loquacious drudgery still trying to please my customers. Today’s attempt at this is GlenDronach 15 Tawny Port. I've been on the lookout for this bottle ever since reading @LeeEvolved state he would pay a king’s ransom for the hard-to-find offering. Well, I’m here to report that said whisky is in my possession and awaiting shipment. I could wax (my car) poetically about this expression and its greatness, but would rather simply point to Lee’s 5-star review for all of the pertinent details. The nose and dry port finish on this one are spectacular and I would rate it at 4.75 stars.

Christmas and Hanukkah have finally come and gone. It’s now time to relax and assess the casualties of our yearly Christmas party, while getting ready for the new year. When you own a centuries-old home, it’s only fitting it be appointed with a complement of antiques appropriate to its heritage; however, you come to learn that “everything” has a shelf life. I find this is especially true when you congregate 18 children under 7 together without adult supervision. Parents’ good intentions seem to wane relative to alcoholic intake, and, frankly, we would have it no other way. Family get-togethers are precious and no better time to observe the rambunctious cycles of life; a heavenly mix of young and old all blending in perfect harmony. Holidays are also a period of overindulgence. A moment when a flake of this or a small piece of that just won’t do. This is a time for Stagg Jr; a bold and uncompromising creation that bites hard at 63.2% ABV. Despite its fangs, it’s amazingly smooth once you survive the first onslaught of anesthetizing ethanol. Dark amber in color, the spirit is a mix of bourbon having spent 8-10 years in new-charred American white oak. This amount of aging gives the wood ample time to imprint its rich vanilla properties into the liquid. Buffalo Trace uses the same mashbill for this whiskey as big brother, George T. Stagg. The recipe calls for less than 10% rye, but its impact is noticeable. A heat-dried palpate is mixed with cinnamon, caramel, and cherries jubilee. The finish is peppery hot with more baking spices and a splash of oak. Nothing about this dram is subtle; it’s rich, abundant, and undaunted. A true American treasure and perfect for the holidays. 4.25 stars.

I’ve been a fan of Jim Murray’s Whisky Bible for a while now, so when he rated Glen Grant 18 “Scotch Whisky of the Year” these last 3 years in a row, I felt it time to give it a try. Additionally, over this same period, he also awarded this spirit two 2nds and a 3rd for his top honor of “World Whisky of the Year.“ Maybe it’s a coincidence, or maybe it’s the product of his refined palate, but over the years many of Mr. Murray’s top selections have become highly collectible, and I often times find myself agreeing with his assessments, similar to what I once recall @cascode stating. The Glen Grant 18 turns out to be a class act. Considering the time spent in ex-bourbon casks, it appears surprisingly light and reminiscent of Chardonnay. One would have to assume these barrels to be treble-filled to impart such a delicate shade of distinction after so much time. Tall, slender stills turn out this expression, so a soft, fruity, and fragrant speyside nose seems befitting for the first pass of the glass. Bottled at 43% ABV, and sporting viscous legs, the whisky rolls over the tongue in smooth and satisfying fashion. Well delineated, flashes of sweet vanilla are mixed with malt and baking spices in such a way that the overall effect seems to vacillate between good scotch and good rye, as its fragile elements pop into and out of existence like photons at the quantum level. Unique and intriguing, I can understand Murray’s fascination with this complex offering as it challenges one’s sensitivities to its various nuances. Every sitting with this whisky seems like a new episode in discovery and I would recommend it with a rating of 4.25 stars.

Recent favorable impressions of Macallan’s Rare Cask and 18yo Fine Oak helped persuade this purchase. When it comes to single malt scotch whisky, 18 is a “prime” number despite its divisibility. There are many highly rated and affordable in this category. Highland Park 18, Dalmore 18, Springbank 18, Glen Grant 18, Talisker 18, and the current 2 Macallan 18s, to name a few. Add a couple of years to this formula and prices can double or triple detracting from their attractiveness. Macallan was acquired in 1996 by Highland Distilleries, now known as the Edrington Group of Scotland. Highland Park distillery had already been under their umbrella since 1937. Considered the Rolls Royce of whisky, Macallan continues to break auction records with a 60yo Valerio Adami selling for $1.1 million last month. Macallan recently opened their new £140 million distillery that was 6 years in the making. Architecturally significant and aesthetically pleasing, it’s worth a visit to their website to see what your hard earned money is subsidizing. Throughout their history, Macallan has specialized in sherry cask aged whisky until more recently when bourbon barrel integration was introduced around 2004 with their Fine Oak series. This particular Jerez sherry cask 18yo has been a yearly staple now for several decades and is quite good. Its color is a rich amber and a spin of the glass will produce viscous, hard forming legs commensurate with age. The nose is supremely elegant and moderately intense, with doses of dried fruits, vanilla, baking spices and a twist of citrus. A rich and smooth delivery carries more of the same with the addition of toasted almonds and a touch of caramel. A superb finish is highlighted by the expensive European oak and its drying tannins that fade with satisfaction. A solid 4 stars.

We took a Saturday off during our golf trip to attend the world’s largest arts festival held in Edinburgh. It runs for 25 days every year in the month of August. The Royal Mile was packed with people and street performances for its entire stretch. Looming above the festivities was Edinburgh Castle. Considered one of Scotland’s most important strongholds for over a millennium, this structure holds the title for the most besieged fortress in all of Great Britain with over two dozen power struggles to its credit. After a hectic day we found a great old bar and restaurant called Café Royal, and an ideal setting for a Highland Park 18. Years ago, in my search for the perfect dram, I must have consumed a bottle of HP 12 & 18, since I still have their containers in my box collection. At one time, I thought these whisky boxes made for good garage trophies, but as the collection has grown I now see them as potential evidence in divorce proceedings (only kidding honey! 😊). Furthermore, a Distiller rating of 99 and rave reviews from the site’s intelligentsia (yes, you guys), prompted another taste. The dram did not disappoint. A restrained and elegant nose lit up my smile. I knew it was a good one before the first taste, and I could still recall @cascode ‘s comparisons to heaven and his envious poetry. Subtle was the theme for this whisky and the thought that less is sometimes more. Subtle peat, mild fruitiness, a touch of nuttiness, a twist honey, a tad of spiciness, a bit of this, a smidge of that, and a smooth and harmonious composition of perfection. 5 stars and the promise that I will someday lay siege to the isles of Orkney to experience this whisky firsthand.

One of the highlights of our recent golf trip to Scotland was visiting the St Andrews area and playing several of the courses making up St. Andrews Links. We also played the highly-rated and spectacular links course of Kingsbarns, situated along the coast nearby. The course itself is relatively new at 20 years old and one of its caddies, Douglas Clement, helped found Kingsbarns distillery only a mile away. Clement invested 65k pounds of his own savings coupled with a grant of 650k pounds from the Scottish government to seed the operation. Also investing in the project was the entrepreneurial Wemyss family, prominent in Fife for over 6 centuries with a similarly aged castle to prove it. Prior to this, the family created the independent bottling company, Wemyss Vintage Malts, around 2005. Several of their offerings were on display and for sale in Kingsbarns’ visitor center and distillery building. The structure is a stone-by-stone restoration of a freestanding building on the farm purchased for this purpose. It was tastefully fashioned and appearing like a fortified fortress. Distillery operations began in 2015 and its first bottling is expected shortly with aging requirements of 3 years and a day. We took the tour which culminated in a sample of their new make spirit and also a taste of the soft water used in its process. The water is drawn from layers of sandstone formed 100 million years ago and 100 meters below the farm. Rainwater takes a decade or more to penetrate this deeply being filtered along the way and removing any minerals. It tasted like distilled water having a slippery feel of alkalinity and ideal for whisky making. At 63.5 ABV, the new make was incredibly smooth and having an effervescence reminiscent of high quality vodka. Jim Murray graded the new make at 95/100. 85% of their whisky is being aged in first-fill bourbon barrels sourced from Heaven Hill of Kentucky with the remaining 15% being aged in ex-port and ex-sherry casks. Long-necked stills will aid in the removal of volatiles helping to create what the company hopes to be a dry, light and fruity style of whisky in the lowland tradition. A class act, I would expect this whisky to be of a very high quality.

[Troon, Scotland. 8/16/18] Off to play Championship Course at Royal Troon on Friday. Starting golf trip off on world class course; might as well couple this with world class distillery. The Macallan 1824 series is a grouping of NAS expressions predicated on color and not age. This whisky‘s name is a good indication of such, and it consists of sherry aged product having slept in a combination of American and European oak for 9 to 15 years. The nose is elegant with a constrained measure of sherry. The palate is also balanced with proper levels of both fruitiness and sweetness. A medium finish is smooth and satisfying. Macallan fans will not be disappointed in this offering, but neither will they be inspired. I would rate this at a high 3 to 4 with our current venue giving them the extra nudge. :)

Historical Footnote: I recently contacted the Lagavulin distillery seeking information on Lagavulin 16, first introduced in 1988. They confirmed what I had learned earlier, but offered some additional details. Since 1974, all Lagavulin distillates have utilized the same malted barley sourced from nearby Port Ellen Maltings. The malt comes in with a phenol count (smokiness) between 34 and 38 ppm and does not vary outside this range. This expression has enjoyed a nice 30-year run; however, the distillery has made little effort differentiating between bottlings, and this has left whisky enthusiasts scrambling to zero in on the different eras of production. The name "White Horse Distillers" traces its roots back to 1924 when the distillery was owned by the Mackie family. The "White Horse Distillers" designation has remained on Lagavulin products well into the 20th century despite ownership changes. Its removal from product labels and boxes has been a source for debate here recently on Distiller. Since this occurred during the lifespan of Lagavulin 16, knowing the actual year would become a good point of demarcation for gauging release dates. For this information, Lagavulin recommended I contact a couple of UK auction houses whose names they supplied. I contacted these 2 along with 6 others and received responses from 6 of the 8 within 24 hours, so many thanks to Whisky Auctioneer, Whisky.Auction, Whisky Hammer, Just Whisky, McTear's Auctioneers, and Scotch Whisky Auctions for their prompt replies. The findings were very consistent. The "White Horse Distillers" designation was removed from the Lagavulin box and label circa 1999 and not long after the Diageo merger of 1997. Bottles from the late 80's and early 90's are considered the most desirable, since they likely contain whisky made from malted barley dried in-house when Lagavulin hosted their own floor malting operation and kilning. They can be distinguished by gold lettering on bottle at both sides of narrow vertical label. The gold lettering spells "1816" (left) and "Isla" (right). The earliest bottles do not display the "Classic Malts" logo at top of bottle’s green carton. The next oldest show "Classic Malts" logo on top-left of box (mid-1990's). The late-90's releases of White Horse feature "1816" and "Isla" lettering molded/embossed into glass and "Classic Malts" logo on top-middle of box. The Lagavulin 16, White Horse edition, I reviewed earlier was part of the later bottlings.

This Fine Oak offering was far more impressionable than the Macallan Rare Cask, which I found to be too heavy on the sherry influence. Here the introduction of ex-bourbon cask aged whisky into the mix makes a big difference. They vat it along with whisky aged in sherry seasoned American and European oak. The American oak to be sherry seasoned is cut and dried in Kentucky then shipped to Jerez, Spain for 18 months of saturation prior to being sent back to Scotland for filling and aging. This Fine Oak series is now discontinued and replaced with their new Triple Matured release that uses the same 3 barrel types; however, the 21, 25, and 30 year olds are no longer available. If you can find this bottle for around $220, I would buy two and stuff one away somewhere. Owning bonds paying a 5% dividend will double your money in 14 years, whereas a Macallan 18yo purchased 14 years ago has appreciated 1,000 percent! This is a great whisky! A sherry and bourbon laced ethanol makes for an elegant nose. A tad of bourbon spiciness on the palate keeps the sherry restrained and allows hints of dried fruits, hazelnuts, citrus, and sweet vanilla to all come through in perfect harmony. A long, smooth finish is filled with lemon and orange citrus, and just enough sweetness to take the curse off a touch of the expensive oak that Macallan sources. The quality is very evident. A solid 4 stars.

See dual note on Ardbeg Twenty Something.