Longmorn 2005 13 Year Distillery Labels (Gordon & MacPhail)

Rating: 17/23 2200 distinct boozes reviewed - woohoo! I wanted to pick something special for number 2200 and realized that I've bought 3 Longmorn bottles after being smitten by a single half pour at a bar one time. I think I should try one of these now so that I know if it's a good idea for me to keep buying these. N: There's a nice fullness here with oiliness and nuttiness balanced by some vanilla and restrained fruitiness. Sweet malt. Really nicely balanced and elegant. There's a bit of undercooked meat with light char that I hope doesn't come up in the palate. P: There's a nice richness here were malt, oil, fruit, baking spices, mild wax. This has a nice balance of age and youth, but there's a bit of bitterness that I think is from the lowish ABV, which is unfortunate because I think that upping this from 43% to 46% would fix that. Still, this is fairly full for a 43% dram, so that's certainly nice. There's a nice fullness, richness, and weight here, but it isn't at all overwhelming. I understand why this is a critical component for blends, but it has so much potential on its own that it's painful how difficult this is to come by outside of blends. Overall, this is quintessentially scotchy. It isn't at all smoky, but it has malt balanced by some fresher flavors, with baking spices and light vanilla balanced by fruits and oil. It's just such a great balance. Sure, it doesn't hit the smoky, peaty, or maritime profiles, but this is super approachable, while also being decadent, balanced, and nuanced. Really well done. F: The oil and nut flavors linger, with wood coming in and more of a bitterness. Fruit sticks around, wit a bit more citrus vibrancy. I'd like a bit more sweetness here, but this still nice. - Conclusion - This may be the quintessential Speysider. It's the most balanced, most complex, least challenging, most middle-aged dram. And it's a delight. It's not mind-blowing, but this is a great scotch and an excellent demonstration of a key part of the genre. So how do I rate this? Well, this is dang good, but it does have some limitations. I'm not going below a 15 here, but a 20 seems like the upper limit. I'm guessing that this will be a 17 or 18. As good as this is, a little more proof and age would do this wonders. Coming back to this, it's sweet and rich and full. It's like candy, but not like it's been artificially sweetened. It has some really sweet malt going on though. No off flavors aside from a bit too much alcohol. This is justo decadent and easy to sip. Oily and nutty with some citrus. It's not that old -tasting, but it doesn't taste super young. It's really delicious. I'm thinking at least an 18. A 20 seems like a stretch. I can imagine a 19 for sure, but I think I'll go with an 18. Smoke Wagon Uncut Unfiltered (a high 18/23) tastes less full and rich, but still excels in both areas. The Smoke Wagon has more complexity for sure, but it tastes similarly aged. I actually think that the Smoke Wagon is a little bit better. Bladnoch 17 California Red Wine Casks (a low 17/23)is just too funky for me right now, so I give this the win. Highland Park 16 Wings of the Eagle (17/23) tastes more mature than this does and has more complexity, but is less decadent and more challenging. And the Highland Park is a pretty decadent and approachable dram. It's competitive with this. TheHighland Park has a nice waxiness, which I think is the characteristic that pushes it over the line and makes me give it the win. So I think that this is a 17. I think that this is pretty much what I imagined scotch tasted like way before I tried it. Sweet, malty, rich, decadent, dessert-like. This is really great and it's super approachable.