Etikettarkiv: Highland whisky review

Deanston, Highlands

Deanston Virgin Oak

Lämna en kommentar

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

Lämna en kommentar

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.

Glendronach, Highlands

Glendronach 12 YO

Lämna en kommentar

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.

Highlands, Tullibardine

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

Lämna en kommentar

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.

If you like my reviews and wish to offer a small donation, please click the ”donate” button below!

Small Donate Button

Highlands, Independent bottlers, Timorous Beastie

Douglas Laing’s Timorous Beastie

Lämna en kommentar

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.

If you like my reviews and wish to offer a small donation, please click the ”donate” button below!

Small Donate Button

Balblair, Highlands

Balblair Vintage 1991 – 3rd Release

Lämna en kommentar

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.

Glengoyne, Highlands

Glengoyne 15 YO – Distiller’s Gold

Lämna en kommentar

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.

Glengoyne, Highlands

Glengoyne 12 YO

Lämna en kommentar

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

Lämna en kommentar

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.

Balblair, Highlands

Balblair Vintage 1997 – 1st Release

Lämna en kommentar

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.