ContemplativeFox
Craigellachie 2004 9 Year (Hepburn's Choice)
Single Malt — Speyside, Scotland
Reviewed
January 1, 2022 (edited November 14, 2022)
Rating: 13/23
N: Wow, and I thought that Craigellachie 13 had a lackluster nose. This has socks that are actually more like jicama. So much jicama. Gradually, a little bit of candied orange and faint melon come out. So gradually though and so faint. A little earth and jalapeño. A little sweet creek water. There's really not much happening here though and I don't like it. This is actually an unpleasant nose.
P: Fortunately, this is much tastier than the nose suggested. There's a lot more sweetness with a nice malty richness that's enhanced by some spices (cinnamon, black pepper, clove, jalapeño). A full, sweet vanilla backing. Occasional hints of melon and orange. A sort of farmyard funkiness that makes me think of Springbank with some sulphur. This farmyard is more muddled though. I get some sort of dry grass and vegetal grass that isn't quite rotting.
F: There is something funky going on here. Tragically, this is much more like the nose than the palate. I get the dusty socks with jicama and jalapeño.
- Conclusion -
This is a wannabe Springbank. In that regard, it's much like Loch Lomond 12 (16/23), though the Loch Lomond is substantially better.
This is kind of in the ballpark of Highland Park 12 (12/23). Between the two, this is less sulphuric, but also lighter and more youthful. I think I'd take this.
This is pretty competitive with Dewar's 15 The Monarch (13/23), though they're obviously quite different in style.
Regular Craigellachie 13 is substantially better than this is in pretty much every way.
I think I'm going to land on a 13 here. It could have been a 12 or 14, but the middle seemed about right.
48.0
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per
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