Auchentoshan Distillery Cask

A review of the hand poured distillery cask aged in bordeaux barrels (specifically cask #670) 62% ABV. Distilled 4/12/2010 and bottled 18/7/2021. A beautiful deep blood gold, this dram was a wild ride. First aromas were a nutty muesli, pleasant and smooth. Once on the palate it warmed my mouth immediately. Suddenly I was eating a super spicy beef Thai curry, whose heat stayed with me long after I’d finished my tasting. A long finish with hints of the tannins from the Bordeaux. If you get a chance to try this single malt definitely give it a go, but not one I’d reach for on a frequent basis.

Review for the 11 year old, Bordeaux cask, distilled 2010, 62% abv. This was a very interesting taste. A bit sweet, spicy, berry. Long finish. Had some sediment in it from the cask. Would not add water, just muted the berry notes and increased the burn.

Review for the 24 year old, Oloroso cask, distilled 1997, 57.1% abv. Very complex, but a lot less smooth than Auchentoshan’s usual lines. Heated my whole mouth. Had a similar taste complex to their new make spirit, which is interesting having aged for 24 years. A little water mellowed this out, bringing forward some additional flavours.

A review of the 24 year distillery cask. 57.1%, distilled in 1997 and aged solely in Oloroso casks. This dram was incredibly complex, with honey, pecan, and granola on the nose, but tobacco, leather, and old shoe on the palette. Quite a long finish, and by far the least smooth of the drams we tried. Addition of water did cut the burn without diminishing the flavours, but probably not necessary.

This was a lovely dram that one friend shared me a glass of it, you can only get it in the Auchentoshan distillery. They even bottle it in your presence. This is a 54.2%abv cask strength, bordeaux cask, distilled on 25.09.2008 and bottled on 14.02.2018; beautiful chesnut color. On the nose is quite appealing. I am not a fond fan of Auchentoshan, i find it to be a little too "irish" in its style, but this is definitively my favorite one. Coffee, Chocolate, Lemon, Merthiolate, Super powerful aroma, Lavender, Oranges, Milk chocolate, Floral. Everything is going on here. On the palate is also very nice, like Lemonade with spices. Pepper bomb, Malt, Chocolate, milk powder. A very short clove finish, cost it some points on my chart. Nicely balanced. Overall this is a nice dram, i dont think its very accesible, but it is my first bordeaux cask, so if you ever get an auchentoshan matured in a bordeaux cask, it should be like this one. 87 /100. Nice.

Oloroso sherry cask, 10 years old, 2009-2019.