A classic European Oak profile and a wonderful digestif; big and sweet then mouth drying and just very, very good. There is something deliciously festive about this whisky. It’s redolent of a log fire in the library, buttered crumpets and candles on the Christmas tree.
Rich, deep mahogany with good beading.
Classic, muscular Benrinnes with an added and immensely seductive sweetness rippling through it. Crème brulée with a highly caramelised surface. Intense black fruits (prunes), Christmas cake and dates, laced with rich sherry. Behind, a beefy note with some allspice, like a touch of gravy left in the meat pan. Water (just a splash) initially brings the toffee-apple sweetness even more into focus above such meatiness. As it becomes waxier the fruity notes withdraw, yet some moist Christmas cake remains - much later, the meatiness reasserts itself. Superb balance and complexity.
Heavy. Full. Immediate grip.
Big, powerful and immediately assertive. Sweet, then mouth drying, yet not astringent because that concentrated sweetness remains. Waxy-viscous texture; slight traces of brimstone. Raisin and lots of date. Softens as it moves slowly across the tongue. Water lightens the grip and introduces a lightly smoked character. The voluptuous texture is countered by tannic dryness. Sweet to start and beefy, in all senses. Very, very good.
Exceptionally long, dry and warming, leaving a mellow, lingering aftertaste of treacle and sandalwood.
Another fine Brora: deep, sweet and rich; yet with great delivery of smoke, as from camp fires in the late summer. Indisputably Brora, yet in an attractive, softer guise.
Big and resolutely oily. Evoking a wind-surfers’ camp fire in the dunes – wet saltiness and dry, grassy wood-smoke. The herbal element here is soon joined by lychee, black pepper and meaty notes. Clean, but rich, robust and deep as well. With water there’s a touch of American oak butterscotch softness, which in true Brora fashion then gives way to waxier notes, as with a waxed country jacket. Gentle and soft, yet with a brooding edge.
Medium to heavy. Oily, smooth.
Tongue-coating and surprisingly citric. Firm oak. Shows its refined maturity in waves of flavour that surge across the tongue. It needs water, but just the merest drop, which allows the texture to show itself. Full fleshy fruits. Rich and smooth, with hints of smoke.
Long, pleasingly nutty and smoky.
Vibrant, summery and a sure-fire summer hit. Reveals the basic structure of the malt, without the flavours being covered with smoke: plenty of sea-side character, interesting to compare both with recent 8 year old unpeated bottlings and with the peated 12 year old.
Pale gold. Little beading.
Great intensity and youthful brio. Very pure, clean and punchy, with plenty of alcohol. Green melon, grass clippings and as the alcohol lifts just a little, traces of fermenting pear juice. Over time there’s the sweetness of sherbert, lime and fresh mint, plus just the tiniest charred hint of smoke or toast in the background. Rather than bring out an older Caol Ila’s “fire in the hospital” character, water transforms it into an artist’s studio: a fresh painted canvas set to dry, with beautiful vanilla notes. Summery sweetness too; sugary candy floss and soft fruits.
A grassy picnic by the sea. Vibrant, hot and clean with a spring-like abandon: all flowers, grass and green fruits (fresh apple). High acidity increases the mouth-watering impression and there are notes of lime and even petrol here too. Water makes it succulent; intense in character but also fresh and mouth-cleansing. Sweeter than expected, as some banana emerges. The balance is restored by good acidity and saltiness: there’s no smoke.
Warming and gentle with great length.
An elegant classic; massive smoke and purity of flavour supported by complex aromas and delicious sweetness. Less rich and plummy than the 16 year old yet every bit as refined, with all the hallmarks and a fine, complex nose.
Huge, fine and complex. Intense, abundant smoke surges out of the glass, yet it’s fragrant smoke that doesn’t obliterate the softer mossy scents here. After a while carbolic soap, lightly smoked haddock and an intensely sweet and fruity tinned fruit salad. The onslaught continues with wasabi on fresh herring, or ozone in a gale on the pier. Lightly sooty, developing smoked cream cheese. Water surprisingly softens the gale to a breeze, easing back on the medicine and allowing mineral and woody notes to emerge, with some bath salts.
Starts dry and vibrant, with masses of intense smoke. Again smoked cheese, softer now, under that fresh young character. Sooty, yet so sweet! Uncompromising, yet ebullient and hugely fragrant. In time there’s a hint of violets, before pipe smoke appears. Water allows the sweet centre to show. The taste now is even more youthful - surprisingly sweet, with nice acidity, it leaps all over your tongue. All this softens with further sips and an elegant balance shows through. A classic!
Medium to long. Firm and dry, a final blast of smoke.
Rounded, delicious and elegant - a fine apéritif malt, which strikes an appealing balance between silky, oily smoothness and flightier, more aromatic characteristics.
Rich amber, polished bronze. Very slight beading.
Slow to rise. At first, a forest floor in autumn: damp air, earthy and wet. Above this, sweeter notes, soon developing into a compote of fresh autumn fruits; ripe berries, with some red apple. Later, very distant smoke and hints of antiseptic. Later still, a surprising and sparky orange zest. Overall, quite light and well structured. Water makes things softer and more elegant, bringing forth gentle orange fruit gums over hints of creamy caramel.
Light, yet also lightly oily and tongue-coating.
Very hot, powerful and urgent at full strength. Immediate orange oil, then a developing complexity. Toasted cereal notes, tarte au chocolat scented with orange and a little ginger, the bite of a fruit compote. At once light and drying, yet deliciously oily with a particularly well balanced acidity. Very late and subtle cocoa with hints of cigar box cedar. Water cools things down; it’s all lighter, cooling and minty now, with some boiled fruit-sweets.
Long and persistent. Although hot and drying, remains smooth, silky, warming and delicate, with a sweetly fragrant rose-water aftertaste.
The clean freshness makes this an unusual apéritif malt. Relatively straightforward, this is an interesting example of a make from a closed distillery that is rarely seen, especially at this age.
Pale Gold. Light beading.
Green, olive-oily then immediately fruity (oranges, white peaches), but soon develops a milk chocolate note. As it begins to open there’s a fleeting, mineral aroma, which adds a racy air, before it settles down as orange cream filling in milk chocolate or perhaps angelica cake decoration. Water improves things significantly, raising the mineral note again – grassy, and fresh cut grass at that - then introduces a fruity note, suggesting pineapple or green apple.
Appetising. There’s plenty of crisp, clean grassiness on show here. Sweet, but also slightly sharp (crisp green apples, surprising in such a long-matured malt). Again water helps, making it all clean, fresh and acidic, with a surprising trace of salt. At its heart, the mineral taste dominates. Very slightly oily.
Short to medium, then warming.
Benrinnes 23 Year old - 1985
REGION:SPEYSIDE
A limited edition, natural cask strength single malt.
From Benrinnes, an active distillery on Speyside.
The first limited release from the distillers for twelve years
From European Oak sherry wood casks filled in 1985.
Just 6,000 individually numbered bottles worldwide.
Interesting for Benrinnes enthusiasts to compare with a previous Rare Malts 21 year old release.
A classic European Oak profile and a wonderful digestif; big and sweet then mouth drying and just very, very good. There is something deliciously festive about this whisky. It’s redolent of a log fire in the library, buttered crumpets and candles on the Christmas tree.
Brora 30 Year old
REGION:COASTAL HIGHLAND
A limited edition, natural cask strength single malt.
From a closed distillery at Brora on the Sutherland coast.
Very rare at this age.
Eighth of a very limited series of annual releases.
Annual allocation has extended availability of this irreplaceable malt but stocks have depleted.
Vatted from a mixture of American Oak and European Oak refill casks, at least 30 years old.
Only 2,958 individually numbered bottles worldwide.
Another fine Brora: deep, sweet and rich; yet with great delivery of smoke, as from camp fires in the late summer. Indisputably Brora, yet in an attractive, softer guise.
Caol Ila Unpeated 10 Year old - 1998
REGION:ISLAY
A limited edition, natural cask strength single malt.
From Caol Ila, an active distillery on the Isle of Islay.
A fourth limited release of unpeated Caol Ila, the first at ten years old.
From a batch made only once a year, from unpeated malt, for blending in the “Highland Style”
From 1st fill Bourbon oak casks filled in 1998.
Only 6,000 bottles worldwide.
Vibrant, summery and a sure-fire summer hit. Reveals the basic structure of the malt, without the flavours being covered with smoke: plenty of sea-side character, interesting to compare both with recent 8 year old unpeated bottlings and with the peated 12 year old.
Lagavulin 12 Year old
REGION:ISLAY
A limited edition, natural cask strength single malt whisky.
From the essential Islay distillery, Lagavulin, on Islay’s rocky south coast.
Eighth of a series of special 12 year old releases from the original distiller’s stocks.
Vatted from refill American Oak casks, each at least 12 years old.
Available in limited quantities worldwide.
An elegant classic; massive smoke and purity of flavour supported by complex aromas and delicious sweetness. Less rich and plummy than the 16 year old yet every bit as refined, with all the hallmarks and a fine, complex nose.
Mannochmore 18 Year old - 1990
REGION:SPEYSIDE
A limited edition, natural cask strength single malt.
From Mannochmore, an active distillery on Speyside.
A first limited release in this series.
From an unrepeatable, intriguing and unique mix of re-charred ex-sherry bodega European Oak with re-charred ex-Bourbon and new American Oak casks that had also held sherry, filled in 1993 after a short initial ageing in normal refill cask.
Only 2,604 individually numbered bottles worldwide.
Interesting for Mannochmore enthusiasts to compare with the 1997 Rare Malts 22 year old release.
Rounded, delicious and elegant - a fine apéritif malt, which strikes an appealing balance between silky, oily smoothness and flightier, more aromatic characteristics.
Pittyvaich 20 Year old - 1989
REGION:SPEYSIDE
A limited edition, natural cask strength single malt.
From Pittyvaich, a short-lived, now closed Speyside distillery.
Unusually, this whisky has already survived longer than the distillery that made it.
A first limited edition release.
From refill American Oak casks filled in 1989.
Only 6,000 individually numbered bottles worldwide.
The distillery produced for just eighteen years so single malt releases are very rare.
Previous Pittyvaich bottlings were few and sherried in style, so this is a first-time opportunity to experience Pittyvaich’s true distillery character in a mature single malt bottling.
The clean freshness makes this an unusual apéritif malt. Relatively straightforward, this is an interesting example of a make from a closed distillery that is rarely seen, especially at this age.
