Arran 21 Year

Butterscotch and toffee apple nose, nice and bright. Smooth and easy drinking but a real depth of flavour - creamy, toffee, touch of citrus.

Butterscotch. Very easy to drink, apple, very fruity.

So due to price and at least bare min quality standards I figured I' give this one a go. Shockingly little detail is out there on this bottle. Their is ZERO information about the whisky in the bottle on the fairy large all be it not great box. It's so bad that I'm kinda annoyed. Nose - orchard fruits, saw dust, and some hints of a wine cask but not getting there. Normally, I'd be concerned that this is closed off as i'm just opening it but I don't get that impression from arran's and it doesn't smell closed off. Overall it is like a lot of independent bourbon cask only bottlings from spey or highlands, just light fruits and some oak notes. But it's soft and lacking some of the better qualities. Taste - Up front there is almost nothing to talk about. It's sweet and has some fruity elements. It's boring as it can be. But then you swallow and things change. Salty elements come out, hints of peat, tannins and custards and rich vanilla. The finish is really complex and doesn't just save this whisky but pulls it from the brink of mixer status and turns it squarely into a high quality dram. The finish is legit long which is crazy at 46% and the finish brings me into this springbank kinda world. I'm a bit torn on the score. The finish is that of a 4.0 whisky. The rest of this thing however is struggling for a 1. Even the nose is insanely boring. The mouth feel is ok, but not great. Normally, I pass on the water with 46, but for the review. Instantly it's bringing out more fruits and improving the nose. Still nothing special coming out, just the same notes but more of them and a bit more alcohol. Similarly I'm getting more sweetness but the finish is fading a bit and that's the show. Yeah I'm going with a 2.75. I thought I was going 3.0 but nope.

Nose – Apples, pears, strawberries, dark chocolate, cereal, menthol, lemons, tobacco, and toffee. Palate – Medium mouth coat. Oranges, mango, watermelon, cocoa beans, red chilis, leather, slight smoke and basil. Finish – Cedar wood, plums, apricots, with a little oak. Water – N - Pencil shavings, white grapes, florals, and straw/hay. P – More spiciness, cinnamon, thai chili, caramel, and white pepper. F – Still Long. Heavier mouth coat, waxiness, ginger, leathery. No bitterness. The theme to this dram should be a good one since I feel the need to keep going back for more. "Turn It On Again" by Genesis will do.

One of my faveorite surprises of 2020. Delicious!

Now that the nice staff of @Distiller added this bottle I will use that occasion to put out my review. I have this bottle for a while now and had a few drams already. I got this bottle after I had a sample of the 18y which I really liked. I also have other Arran whiskies because I am starting to become a little fanboy for them. Really nice distillery and whisky. Nose: wine gummies, red sour grapes, marzipan with honey, mixed citrus fruits, white chocolate, grains, close to become turned yellow autumn apples, white nougat / Turkish honey. Even if this is what a lot of whiskies offer on their nose Arran has something special in between it all which I can’t really define but is what I really like about it. The alcohol isn’t very present but that is probably result of the Norlan glass I use at the moment. A really well put together collection of aromas. James Mac Taggart knows his stuff. It a nose that you simply like. Palate: starts of really mild and mellow / smooth. Then it puts an interesting coat on your tongue that is made of dates, chili, dried green herbs, dark chocolate and a bid of earthyness (mushrooms) which in combination is very pleasant. It becomes more woody / oaky later and goes down with a warming sweet and cotton-like chili burn. The finish is great. Caramel, dried fruits, herbs and some fruity orange-like sourness while being all smooth and oily. Water release more sweetness and also more alcohol on the nose. Recommended but I have to say the 18y from what I remember it was nearly equally good. The 21y is smoother though, goes deeper in its aromas and has a longer finish.