Kategoriarkiv: Highlands

Highlands, Independent bottlers, Staile Uisge

Staile Uisge – The Drum

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ABV: 40 %
Origin: Highlands
Type: Single Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is sour and young. At first, there’s a big basket of lemons and a splash of vinegar. There’s also green grapes and a white wine aura surrounding everything. In the background there is a honey and vanilla sweetness, but it’s very discreet. This is very fresh and the sourness is the main character throughout. It becomes sweeter with time in the glass.

Mouth: It starts out a bit watery and then it becomes very sweet and malty. There are vanilla and honey notes as well as sweet liquorice all mixed up in the center. The white wine notes are still in there but the lemons are now reciding in the background. It needs time in the mouth to reach its potential and when it does it’s actually pretty rich and tasty.

Finish: It starts out with the sweet liquorice and the lemon notes return to the front. It’s not as sweet anymore and there’s not much happening in the finish. The liquorice stays all the way through and an anonymous and rather flat oakiness appears for a short time, but it disappears rather quick. This is a nice whisky for its price, but it feels a bit incomplete and ambigous.

Additional information
Staile Uisge is a brand of the swedish independent bottler Granqvist Beverage House. The Drum is a NAS whisky sourced from an undisclosed highland distillery.

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Deanston, Highlands

Deanston Virgin Oak

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ABV: 46,3 %
Origin: Highlands
Type: Single Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is young and spirity. At first there’s a vanilla and honey oakiness and a clean young distillate coming through. There’s a green apple note but it’s very feint and it sits in the center together with an equally thin toffee note. After some time in the glass there are notes of lemongrass and liquorice appearing. This is not a complex nor especially interesting nose.

Mouth: It starts out with a honey sweetness and a fresh maltiness. There’s a toffee layer and a tang of sour lemon on the sides. The oak is ever so present and gives it a nice fresh frame. It’s got some ABV spiciness together with a mix of kitchen spices and a hint of cinnamon. It doesn’t hide its young spirit, but it’s a clean and well made distillate.

Finish: The toffee and the maltiness is first to come through and the lemon sourness is still covering the sides. After a second or two the oak completely takes over. It’s still a very fresh woodshop oakiness. It becomes slightly astringent down the line. When the oak flavours start to subside the maltiness returns once again and gives it a beer like finish. This is a rowdy, young and unapologetic whisky. It’s not complex, but it covers some ground by being well made and nicely presented.

Additional information
This whisky is first aged in american ex-borubon casks for an undislosed amount of time and then finished in virgin oak casks for 6-9 months. It’s unchillfiltered and has natural colour.

Fettercairn, Highlands

Fettercairn 12 YO

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ABV: 40 %
Origin: Highlands
Type: Single Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is sweet and floral. At first it comes through as very low key and everything seems to be a bit distant. There’s a thin layer of butterscotch and heather. It’s a very clean nose and after a few minutes in the glass there’s a lemon note starting to emerge, but even the lemon sourness is not daring to take the main stage. It get’s more floral with time. This is a quite thin, but nice nose.

Mouth: It starts out much more flavourful than on the nose. A big bucket of butterscotch with a floral touch to it, with scents of assorted wild flowers. There’s lemon, some vanilla and a dusty oakiness peeking through. There’s a gentle spicyness on the tip of the toungue. After a while, a nice malty note appears in the center of it all.

Finish: A honey sweetness flares up and then it turns into the same butterscotch as before. There’s a nice gentle spiciness. The main character persists and still just sticks to the mellow floral and lemon character until the oak arrives. It’s a dry oakiness with a savory note and a walnut nuttiness. The finish is quite nice. This is too mild and it’s rather uninteresting until the finish. It’s a decent background sipper and ought to be a great gateway whisky for beginners.

Additional information
This 12 YO standard expression was first released in August 2018. It’s aged in american ex-bourbon casks.

AnCnoc, Highlands, Knockdhu

AnCnoc Peatheart

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ABV: 46 %
Origin: Highlands
Type: Single malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is sweet and peaty. Thick honey and savory peat are both very pronounced from the start. There is also a hay note coming from within the peatiness. In the background there are green fruits and yellow pears with some dust on top. After a few seconds vanilla and mint start to appear. The fruitiness keeps on moving forward until the whole thing almost becomes a peated dessert. This is a very pleasant nose.

Mouth: It starts out quite spicy and it takes a second or two for the main flavours to push through. There’s a savory peatiness and dry soil and they both help create an outer layer. On the inside there are yellow juicy pears and lemons. The desserty notes are still there and the vanilla is now joined by butterscotch and a hint of the oakiness. It’s not as sweet as on the nose.

Finish: The spicy mouthfeel doesn’t carry over to the finish. It starts out quite dusty with dry soil and the savory peat as main flavours. The fruitiness is almost completely gone. After a few seconds a very clean and fresh oak note appears and basically takes over everything except a thin peaty layer on the outside. It’s a freshly cut oak with hints of hazelnuts. It’s still very juicy and there’s no astringency. This is a solid peaty whisky with a fruity heart, but it feels a bit undecided on what it’s supposed to be.

Additional information
This is made by the Knockdhu distillery and it’s part of the AnCnoc core range. The barley used has 40 ppm. It’s aged for more than 10 years in american ex-bourbon oak barrels.

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Highlands, Royal Lochnagar

Royal Lochnagar 12 YO

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ABV: 40 %
Origin: Highlands
Type: Single Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is fresh and fruity. Apples and pears sit together with red berries on top of butterscotch and vanilla. As time passes in the glass the vanilla moves to the sides and the fruitiness stays in the center. There’s a pine note coming through the fruitiness and a honey sweetness adding to the vanilla. This is very mild on the nose and there’s no complexity. It’s very straight forward.

Mouth: It starts out quite spicy with a thin taste of cardboard and it takes a while before other flavours start to come through. It’s a touch bitter and not as fruity as on the nose. Butterscotch and a small dark fruitiness with raisins and prunes is in there as well as vanilla and honey, but all those flavours are quite muted. The oak is also present and it’s a bitter oak with notes of coffee. It feels a bit medicinal and sharp and it doesn’t mirror the nose very well.

Finish: The spicyness stands alone once again and there’s almost no flavours coming through before the oakiness takes over. It’s a slightly dry, quite tasty oakiness with coffee and walnuts. In the tail end the dark fruitiness and butterscotch slowly return. This is not bad but it lacks some balance. The nose is by far the best thing about it.

Additional information
Made at the smallest of Diageo’s distillery this 12 YO is the only single malt in its core range. It’s aged in a mix of american ex-bourbon barrels and ex-sherry casks.

AnCnoc, Highlands, Knockdhu

AnCnoc Cutter

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ABV: 46 %
Origin: Highlands
Type: Single malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 4/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is leather and fruits. There’s a quite hefty peatiness up front with green fruits in the background. There’s leather and a warm burning wood fire together with green apples and pears. It’s very bright and the oak is clearly detectable from the start. It’s a fresh oakiness. There’s a thin veil of vanilla appearing after some time in the glass.

Mouth: A peat cloud rolls by, then spicyness and yellow pears take over. The peat comes with notes of leather, grass and dry soil. There’s also a medicinal note. The vanilla is more pronounced now and tvhere’s a dustiness on top of everything. It’s well rounded and well balanced.

Finish: The peatiness moves forward once again and it’s got the same character throughout. The fruitiness is now a bit muted. It moves over to a dry, freshly cut oakiness. A touch of vanilla and a tiny note of honey comes through with the oak. There’s a very nice touch of a nutty bitterness. This is a well made whisky.

Additional information
This is made by the Knockdhu distillery and it’s a limited release. The barley used has 20.5 ppm. It’s aged in american ex-bourbon hogsheads. It’s unchillfiltered and it has natural colour.

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Glendronach, Highlands

Glendronach 12 YO

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ABV: 43 %
Origin: Highlands
Type: Single Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 1
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
Nose: At first there are dark and dried fruits together with some sweet black liquorice and a hint of anise. It’s filled with raisins, dades and ripe plums soaked in liqueur. The sweetness is thick with brown sugar and honey notes. There’s also a more floral side to it. After a while the fruitiness moves more towards fresher red berries.

Mouth: At first there’s a hint of lemon but when it settles it moves back towards red and dark fruits. It’s got some dust on top and a nice vanilla note within. It’s really heavy on the raisins. After a while a thin bitter note comes through with a slightly astringent oakiness.

Finish: The lemon note comes back for a second or two before the fruitiness comes back. It’s now back to more of the red berries and the darker fruits resides in the back. Everything disappears quite fast and that leaves the oak to do a solo exit. It’s a very nice oakiness, but a bit laid back. A metallic note coates the mouth after the oakiness is gone which brings it down a little. All-in-all it’s a nice dram but it’s a bit subtle to be a ”sherry bomb”.

Additional information
The Glendronach 12 YO is matured in both ex-Pedro Ximenez sherry casks and ex-Oloroso sherry casks. It’s unchillfiltered and has natural colour.

Glenmorangie, Highlands

Glenmorangie Legends – The Cadboll

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ABV: 43 %
Origin: Highlands
Type: Single malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 4/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is sweet and fruity. At first there’s a layer of vanilla and honey and a good amount of bright fruitiness. There are lemons, orange peel and a tiny hint of watermelons. A speck of dust is sitting on top and in the middle of everything there’s a sugary plum note, which sort of sits by itself surrounded by everything else. There’s also a mild menthol note in the background. It’s very rich and aromatic and very pleasant on the nose.

Mouth: It starts out sweet and dusty with a nice gentle spicyness to it. The flavour in the center gets wider and the plums are joined by raisins and red apples. The honey and vanilla is still very much in the forefront. The lemon and orange peel is still present and when the oak appears, the bitterness from the peel merge with the oakiness. The oak also brings bitter almonds and dark chocolate.

Finish: The fruitiness gets a little brighter and now there are tropical fruits mixed in. It’s still very sweet even though the oak arrives with a bitter tang. There are walnuts and freshly brewed coffee. There’s a tiny hint of leather and old dusty books coming through from the background. The oakiness is very nutty and the walnuts stay a long time in the finish. The sour lemon note returns in the tail end of the finish together with the remains of the tropical fruits. This is a very interesting yet easy sipper.

Additional information
The Cadboll is a part of Glenmorangie’s travel retail exclusive Legends series. It’s matured in american ex-bourbon barrels and then finished in ex-wine casks that preciously held Muscat and Sémillion wines.

Highlands, Tullibardine

Tullibardine The Murray Marsala Cask Finish 2006/2018 – The Marquess Collection

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ABV: 46 %
Origin: Highlands
Type: Single malt
Bottles in collection: 1
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 5/5

Tasting notes
Nose: Floral honey, vanilla, toffee, ripe red berries and plums. A nice funky complex note shows through. Reminds me of a liqueur soaked sponge cake.

Mouth: Sweet and dusty, astringent, spicy, ripe fruits mixed with custard. Very well balanced.

Finish: A spice burst turns into a tropical fruit note and a nice oak flavour. The ”funky” complex note follows all the way through to the finish. After a while the oak finish switch to coffee note.

Additional information
This version of The Murray is distilled in 2006 and aged in first fill american ex-bourbon barrels and then under a finishing period, about a year, in Sicilian Marsala wine casks. It’s bottled in 2018 which gives approximately 12 years of maturation. It’s a limited edition.

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Highlands, Independent bottlers, Timorous Beastie

Douglas Laing’s Timorous Beastie

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ABV: 46,8 %
Origin: Highlands
Type: Blended Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
Nose: It starts out with a nice vanilla and honey sweetness, yet it still is very bright and shiny. Green apples and a hint of raspberries creates a fruity center within the sweetness. The distillate seems a bit young and a tiny ”cardboardy” note comes through from behind.

Mouth: It’s very different than the nose. It switches from bright and shiny towards a darker fruitiness together with a funky complex note. It’s oily and turns slightly bitter when the oak appears. There’s also an overlay of lemon and lime.

Finish: The finish starts out very sweet with sugar coated ripe plums and vanilla. When the sweet fruitiness subsides the oak reappears. It ends with a nicely balanced bitterness with hints of coffee and hazelnuts.

Additional information
Timorous Beastie is part of Douglas Laing’s ”Remarkable regional malts of Scotland” series. It’s a blend of malts from distilleries located in the Highlands. Douglas Laing mentions Dalmore, Glengoyne and Glen Garioch as components. It has natural colour and it’s unchillfiltered.

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AnCnoc, Highlands, Knockdhu

AnCnoc 35 YO – 2nd Release

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ABV: 41 %
Origin: Highlands
Type: Single malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 4/5

Tasting notes
This was tasted at a whisky festival. No tasting notes were recorded during the tasting, so just the impression was noted as a 4 out of 5.

Additional information
This limited 2nd release is made by the Knockdhu distillery. It’s been matured for 35 years in american ex-bourbon barrels and it’s unchillfiltered and with natural colour.

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Balblair, Highlands

Balblair Vintage 1991 – 3rd Release

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ABV: 46 %
Origin: Highlands
Type: Single malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 4/5

Tasting notes
This was tasted at a whisky festival. No tasting notes were recorded at the time.

Additional information
This is the third 1991 release. It was released in 2018. First it was matured for 24 years in American ex-bourbon oak barrels and then finished for 3 years in first fill ex-sherry spanish oak butts.

Highlands, Old Pulteney

Old Pulteney Ambassador’s Cask 2004 #196 047/300 Selected by ”Allt om Whisky” 2018

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ABV: 50,2 %
Origin: Highlands
Type: Single malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 5/5

Tasting notes
This was tasted at a whisky festival. No tasting notes were recorded.

Additional information
This Ambassador’s Cask is a single cask selected by the swedish magazine ”Allt om whisky” and two of its readers. 300 bottles were filled from the cask in 2018. The cask type information couldn’t be found.

Glengoyne, Highlands

Glengoyne 15 YO – Distiller’s Gold

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ABV: 40 %
Origin: Highland
Type: Single Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
No tasting notes were recorded during the tasting.

Additional information
The 15 YO Distiller’s Gold was released as a travel retail exclusive in 2011. It’s aged in mostly ex-sherry casks but also in american ex-bourbon barrels. It has natural colour.

Dumbarton, Highlands, Independent bottlers, The Sovereign

Hunter Laing’s The Sovereign – Dumbarton 30 YO

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ABV: 50.2 %
Origin: Highlands
Type: Single grain
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
Nose: At first, there’s a whiff of nail polish remover which soon changes into a mix of tutti frutti and menthol. It’s creamy with honey and vanilla notes. Altogether it creates the image of a sponge cake. There’s also notes of breakfast cereals coming through.

Mouth: It’s very ”bitey” and there are hints of an entire breakfast with cereals with honey, and cream. The oak comes through and brings some coffee to the table. It’s very bitter. It matches the nose pretty well.

Finish: The finish is very oak forward and the age really comes through. There’s grey wooden planks and espresso. It comes with walnuts and hazelnuts and it’s quite bitter. The sweet grainy notes resides in the background, but the oak completely takes over.

Additional information
This grain whisky from the closed distillery Dumbarton is unchillfiltered and has natural colour. It’s from a single cask (HL 14327) filled in 1987 and there was with 135 bottles produced.

Glengoyne, Highlands

Glengoyne 12 YO

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ABV: 43 %
Origin: Highlands
Type: Single Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
No tasting notes were recorded during the tasting.

Additional information
The Glengoyne 12 YO is Matured in a combination of european ex-sherry casks and first fill american ex-bourbon casks. It has natural colour.

Glengoyne, Highlands

Glengoyne 10 YO

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ABV: 40 %
Origin: Highlands
Type: Single Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
No tasting notes were recorded during the tasting.

Additional information
The 10 YO is the entry level expression in the Glengoyne core range. It’a aged in a combination of european and american oak casks seasoned with sherry from Jerez in Spain. There are both first fill and refill casks used.

AnCnoc, Highlands, Knockdhu

AnCnoc Black Hill Reserve

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ABV: 46 %
Origin: Highlands
Type: Single malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
No tasting notes were recorded during the tasting, so just the impression was noted as a 3 out of 5.

Additional information
This is a travel exclusive release from the Knockdhu distillery. It’s matured in a mix of new american oak barrels and american ex-bourbon barrels. It has natural colour.

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Balblair, Highlands

Balblair Vintage 1997 – 1st Release

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ABV: 46 %
Origin: Highlands
Type: Single malt
Bottles in collect.: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 4/5

Tasting notes
No tasting notes were recorded during the tasting.

Additional information
This is the first release of the 1997 vintage. It’s aged in first fill american ex-bourbon oak barrels for 10 years. It’s unchillfiltered and has natural colour.