Auchroisk 27 Year Old 1990 (Cask #13827) - Signatory Cask Strength

I’ve only had one other Auchroisk expression that was 10 years old and was a youthful aggressive sherry bomb that didn’t work for me. I saw this one online and decided to give the distillery another chance with an older expression that was matured in a refill sherry butt for 27 years that was distilled on 15th August 1990 and bottled on 25th July 2018 at 53.7% ABV. The nose starts with a moderately sour mix of smashed gooseberries, green grapes and ashy old oak then dark chocolate cocoa powder dusted raisins followed by a pith melody of grapefruit, lemon and lime that transitions to dusty old books and worn barn floors with high ethanol burn. The taste is a thin mouthfeel starting with a moderate sour mix of smashed gooseberries, green grapes and ashy old oak then dark chocolate cocoa powder dusted prunes followed by a pith melody of grapefruit, lemon and lime that transitions to dusty old books and worn barn floors with high ethanol burn. The finish is medium length with bitter pithy fruits of grapefruit, lemon and lime, ashy oak and chalky dark chocolate cocoa powder. This is a mix of sour pithy fruits, light sherry influence and old oak that is thinner than I’d expect for the 53.7% ABV. I played around with some water to see if that would improve the sour fruits, but no matter how much water I added, they remained just as strong as the full strength. Overall, not a terrible drink, but I think the Auchroisk character just isn’t for me at any age.