Glen Keith 1995 21 Year (Alexander Murray & Co.)

Smooth. Cherry to chocolate

飲みやすいー。バランタインの後でもスムーズ！

Harsh nose, bit of smoke, dark fruity body, pretty harsh for 21 years. 8/11/19

It’s time for another sample from @Telex, on our Scottish Distillery Tour. This is from the obscure, Speyside distillery of Glen Keith. They originally opened in 1958, directly beside the Strathisla distillery and it was intended to be used by Chivas as an experimental distillery to develop new products and yeast strains. At one point, Glen Keith had the first gas-fired stills in Scotland. They were mothballed in 1999, redesigned with steam-fired stills and reopened by Chivas again in 2013. This sample being 21 years old means it was distilled before the redesign in 1995. This sample was from independent bottler Alexander Murray and comes in at 43%. It spent its entire life in refilled sherry casks. It’s a beautiful, yellow gold and it’s pretty oily with nice, skinny legs. The nose is very fruity: juicy fruit gum, apples and honey sweetness lead the way with some burnt sugar and oak notes creeping in over time. The palate follows the nose with plenty of tropical notes, some ripe bananas before a heavy dose of oak tannins and bitterness wreck things a bit. Odd, for a 21 year old to fall apart like that. The finish is incredibly short (again, odd) with a heavy dryness and bitter bite from the oak. What a disappointment from the way things began. Overall, I wanted to give this one 4 stars because it started so juicy and tropical, but the oak barrel really grabbed this one and wrestled away what could have been a great whisky. At $125, I would expect a much more refined product, but it looks like Murray wanted to just cash in on the age statement. That’s a shame, but already watered down to 43% didn’t give them much wiggle room to try and calm the bitterness. Thanks again to Jason for the pour. I’d like to try another bottling, though, just to see if there’s a better product in the wings. This is just too bitter to rate it very highly. 3.25 stars. Cheers.

Another week. Another Friday night and now winding down. Catching up on Homeland and another SDT sample. This one provide by @Telex. The nose is sweet, tropical and fruity. Honey, juicy fruit gum, pineapples, coconut, cinnamon apples, mango, vanilla, caramel , bananas. Faintest hint of ocean salt: a maritime quality. A good nose that conjures images of a tucked away beach with tiki umbrellas. (A nice escape from this crazy, cold, wintry spring) The palate is a stark contrast of the nose. The thin bodied spirit comes on dry and spicy (like a sunburn from that tucked away beach). Drying oak tannins, crushed black pepper spice mixed with honey and ginger. The palate is bitter and woody dry like chewing on a toothpick. The ginger from the palate carries over. The nose is the strength of this dram; unsupported by the palate and finish which somewhat disappoints the overall experience. Maybe as an 18 year, this whisky would provide a better experience by toning down some of the woodiness. Or maybe finished is a port or bourbon cask to sweeten the palate (this is open for debate). Not a bad dram. The potential is there for something more. [84/100][Tasted: 3/23/18]

Stop number 76 on the SDT is Glen Keith. I really don’t know anything about this Speyside distillery and today was so hectic I didn’t have time to look up any info on them. This bottle comes by way of the independent bottlers at Alexander Murray. A 21 year old that was distilled in 1995. Bottled at 43% ABV and I believe it is both non chill filtered and natural color of yellow gold. The nose starts with honey and lots of oak. Sweet fruity notes. Apples, pears, plums, white grape/peach juice. Almost sticky sweet. Subtle toffee and brown sugar. Powdered ginger, some nutmeg and more oak. Very perfumed. The palate arrives very sweet like the nose. Unfortunately that’s where the similarities ended. Bitter oak with sharp tannins. A little cinnamon, anise and ginger. There are some fruity notes like plums, apples, underripe melons and apricots. That bitter oak comes back and dominates everything. Light bodied mouthfeel, oily, creamy and dry. The finish is short to medium short. The mouthfeel disappears quickly and just leaves that dry bitterness with some oak and a vague afterthought of apricots. I have to say that I was fairly distracted while reviewing this single malt. It’s @LeeEvolved ’s Birthday and we were texting back and forth giving each other the business. Even if that wasn’t the case, I don’t think I could have gotten into this one. That bitterness ruined almost the entire experience. The nose was the only saving grace. For a 21 year old the price of $125 isn’t that bad, but the quality just isn’t there. Oh well, move on to the next one. Thanks to @Telex for the sample. 3.5 Cheers