Category Archives: Scotland

Chorlton – Blair Athol 12 years 56.6%

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Next up in our Chorolton evening was another from the Diageo stable – Blair Athol. Over the years, there haven’t been as many Blair Athol experiences as one would expect… Just the Flora & Fauna official bottling 12 year 43%, and two from independent bottlers – Hunter Laing’s “Old Malt” collection 16 year (1997) 50% and Signatory’s 27 year (1988) 55.7%.

So what did we think of this one from Chorlton?

Blair Athol 12 years 56.6% 268 bottles

  • Nose – Chocolate, prunes, toffee, nutty, ginger bread, marmalade, marmite, pink peppercorn, berries, even a hint of apricot?
  • Palate – Delicious! Ginger snap, spice, toasted almonds, a nice oily fullness, fruity and well rounded, with that marmalade quality on the nose eventually coming through on the palate as well
  • Finish – Carries through the depth, character and sweetness

Amusingly we had quite a divergent opinion on this Blair Athol.

While two of us nattered on about its complexity, character and how with each sip, we enjoyed more and more. Our third lady got none of what we found – none.

A couple hours later? She came back with an exuberant – “I finally got it!!!”

What could account for the difference? Likely several factors – not the least of which is glassware. Usually when we taste together it is with glencairn glasses. In the past, I would bring to our tasting sessions in Mumbai. After my move to Germany, the Whisky Ladies of Mumbai invested in a couple sets which get passed from host to host so that consistency remains. We also were tuning in from our homes – from Scandinavia to Bretagne to Bavaria. Each likely having some lingering aromas of our every day indoor life.

What ever the reason – it was most amusing that, in the end, the Blair Athol came through!

What does David have to say?

A complex, earthy and waxy whisky this, in a very old-fashioned Highlands style. The nose has orange peel, malt extract, herbal pastilles and dark berry fruits. The palate has a long development that starts on honey and ginger beer, becomes more nutty, and ends with orange syrup, Blackjack sweets and a touch of salt. Blair Athol isn’t a big name, but this is a delicious and characterful whisky that rewards your attention.

I purchased this whisky directly from the Chorlton website for £62.50 plus shipping.

Here are the Chorlton‘s sampled with the Blair Athol:

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Chorlton – Miltonduff 11 years 62%

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We kicked off our virtual tasting evening with a Chorlton trio! First up was cask strength 11 year old from Miltonduff.

Miltonduff 11 years 62% 176 bottles

  • Nose – It started off as a refreshing melange of pears, apples, apricot… fruity, then came the toffee and nuts, shifting back to the apple with a clear calvados stamp! Apple strudel
  • Palate – Spicy! With an itchy warming… then it eased into quite a bit character. Chocolate gingerbread, even a bit of coconut, then almond paste
  • Finish – Slightly bitter

Let’s be honest… first whiff was ‘woah!’ as it was going from zero to serious alcohol strength without any easing into it! And first sip? Yeah… maybe starting with 62% was a bit much!

However both as we adjusted and the dram opened up more, it was clear there was much going on. We quite enjoyed the contrast  between the fruity nose and the rich palate.

For me, at least, this one demands generous water… only then does the full character come through!

  • Nose – Yum! First it revealed a lovely fresh green apple, then herbal. Then clearly shifted into baked apple pie, vanilla… and dare I say marshmallow?
  • Palate – Given I’m in the heart of “lebkuchen” land, I couldn’t help but think of Nuremburger gingerbread! It also had a bit of orange marmalade ,

So it turns out that the 1st whisky of our evening turned out to be the one we enjoyed the most. It had a certain ‘oomph’ and character that compelled us to come back!

What does David have to say?

A rollicking joint bottling with my friends at The Rare Malt in Hong Kong! The nose is big and bourbon-forward, with marmalade, custard cream biscuits and plum jam. Underneath that you’ll find more subtle hints of dried flowers, cocoa powder and anise. The palate is also bold and rich, with mocha, chewy gingerbread, nutmeg and fudge, balanced by some zingy fruits. Water is transformative and makes everything more citrussy, clean and herbal.

I purchased this whisky directly from the Chorlton website for £62.50 plus shipping.

Here is the other Chorlton‘s sampled with the Miltonduff:

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North Star Series 8 – Glenturret 8 year 58.3%

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The last North Star we sampled was from the Highlands – Glenturret to be precise.

I will admit when I selected this bottle, I was hugely influenced by how spectucular the LMdW Artist Glenturret 30 year was! This impression was further re-inforced by a positive experience with a port matured Glenturret 14 year mini.

When I first opened it went – woah!? This was no lucious peach confection. It was peat.  I paused… and then it clicked! I also had this style of Glenturret – better known as Ruadh Mhor – courtesy of a fabulous evening of Chorlton’s whiskies.

In the past, most Glenturret would go into Famous Grouse. You might come across the occasional independent bottles, however in 2018 it was sold to Glenturret Holding – a joint venture between Lalique Group and Swiss entrepreneur Hansjörg Wyss, from 2020 a new range of official bottling are now available.

I went back to filling up our sample bottles to send to Whisky ladies in Europe, intrigued to explore together. And when we did? Here’s what we found…

Glenturret 8 year (Dec 2010 / Mar 2019) Refill Hogshead 58.3% (North Star 008), 1 of 330 bottles. Price Price with shipping/tax £65.49

  • Colour – Golden hay
  • Nose – Well hello peat! Barbecue pringles, salted cashew nuts, cured meats, burnt bacon drizzled in maple syrup, a bit of charcoal wood chips.
  • Palate – Mmmmm maple bacon… baked apples, chocolate… a nice ‘grown up’ complex sweet peat, oily, think caramelized onions and apple sauce with a nice light gingery spice
  • Finish – Long… a subtle smoked bacon tail with a lingering sweetness
  • Water – Initially it seemed to dampen it too much, losing the lovely balance between spice, sweet and peat… however it did add another citrusy element – grapefruit.

While the aromas swirled about with cured smoked meats, the peat was more nuanced on the palate… a kind of civilized rounded peat. Just the kind of maple bacon that is hard to resist!

Talk turned to peat. One of our whisky ladies has a clear peat preference. Whereas I have to admit,  I have veered away from peat of the last few years. Until now. And I realized it is clearly linked to environment. Living in India in perpetual summer is entirely different than a chilly Germany in November! Whereas this kind of sweet smokey dram is perfection on a cold miserable rainy day.

And what does Ian have to say?

  • Nose – Sweet & salted monkey nuts
  • Palate – Fine virginia tobacco
  • Finish – Medicinal, lemon and burnt orange

What else was part of my North Star latest score?

As for other Glenturret experiences? By far the most outstanding was the LMdW, however the Chorlton was also a worthy whisky!

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North Star Series 8 – Auchroisk 13 year 51.2%

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Next up in our meander through a few North Stars‘ is a cask strength dram from Auchroisk Distillery.

While we tasted blind, with the reveal, our ex-Diageo lady shared how once upon a time it was bottled as Singleton as it was felt Auchroisk (Oth-rusk) would be too difficult to pronounce. This was back in the mid-1980s which also happened to be an early example of finishing as their approach was to decant a 10 year old ex-Bourbon matured whisky into ex-Sherry casks for a further 2 years, before this became a hallmark technique of Glenmorangie.

Was it successful? As a single malt brand, not entirely. And by 2001, bottling under this label stopped with the name changed back to Auchroisk with release of a ‘Flora & Fauna’ official bottling. Followed later in 2008 with release of “The Singleton of Auchroisk.”

In the meantime, the name Singleton was revived as the Diageo ‘brand’ –  The Singleton – which has three distinctly different avatars (and distilleries) depending on the market –  The Singleton of Glen Ord for Asia (fruity), followed by Glendullan for North America (touted as smooth and approachable), and Dufftown for Europe (nutty marmalade).

Confused much?

Auchroisk 13 year (Feb 2006 / June 2019) Oloroso Sherry Hogshead 51.2% (North Star 008)

  • Nose – Wow! Fresh bubblegum, apples – quite a summery greeting. Flower, all sorts of jams, Victoria sponge cake, strawberries and cream, pavlova, marshmallows, cantaloupe… shifting into a touch of port or prunes or something in the darker sherry aromas, perhaps even a hint of sweet tobacco leaf? As it continued to open, just became more and more fabulous in the shifting range of fruity baked deserts with a touch of sweet spices
  • Palate – What a contrast! We hadn’t expected such character – spice, licorice, cheese rinds greeted us with the first sip. By the 2nd sip, the sherry influence was clear. Lots of blackberries, strawberries. Creamy, coating the palate.
  • Finish – Relatively short but satisfying.
  • Water – Definitely has an impact. On the aromas, adding water brought back the floral quality, added mandarin oranges. On the palate it was initially spicier – a lot spicier – with cinnamon, allspice. As it settled down, we thought of old fashioned Christmas oranges with cloves, with a nice dollop of vanilla infused cream!

Overall we were impressed. There was a pleasant complexity to this one.

We returned after sampling the peaty Glenturret 8 year… Sometimes having a sherry dram follow peat, can lead to disappointment. Absolutely not in this case! If anything, we appreciated this Auchroisk even more.

  • Revisit – Gorgeous! Vanilla, tobacco, sweet liquorice, lovely christmasy character without being too intensely sherry. Also had a nice nuttiness. And sipping? Simply delicious. In short – Yum! A delightful dessert-y whisky.

No doubt – we thoroughly enjoyed this dram! And would be interested in exploring more…

This Auchroisk was matured in a Oloroso sherry hogshead which produced 280 bottles. I paid approx GBP 67, ordered directly from the fabulous folks at North Star Spirits.

As for Iain Croucher‘s tasting notes? Here is what he had to say about this Auchroisk:

  • Nose – An oil-burning Rayburn baking an orange sponge pudding
  • Palate – Orangeade Spangles & freshly plundered brambles
  • Finish – Nutty caramel with a plum & vanilla compote

We admit, we had to look up “spangles” to discover they are a British sweet. Just like an oil-burning Rayburn! Once we had a better sense of the references, would agree!

What else was part of my North Star latest score?

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North Star Regions – Speyside 12 year 50%

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North Star has a Millennial Series with whiskies from Scotland’s four main regions – Highland, Speyside, Islay and Island. I started with the Highland and have now cracked open the Speyside! Alas I haven’t been able to get my hands on either the Islay nor the Island, so this will conclude my exploration of this series.

The distillery isn’t directly stated, but the longitude and latitude provided on the bottle brings one to Aberlour distillery in X (N 57° 26’36.14″ by W 3° 14’17.04′). When I think of Aberlour, what comes to mind is a robust sherry bomb – particularly A’bunadh which was once upon a time regular duty free cask strength purchase.

So what about this one? Well… it was sampled over a few sessions – including with our Whisky Ladies of Europe!

The Speyside 12 year 50%

  • Colour – Dark copper
  • Nose – Rich, fruity with apricots, pineapple, heavy with honey or maple syrup, rum raisins, as it opened up some dark bitter chocolate (think 95%), more raisins which were joined by nuts – particularly walnut, dried figs, some cherries…
  • Palate – Very tasty! Pepper, sweet spices of cinnamon and cloves, dark berries, more of that apricot, perhaps a bit of melon? Nice creamy butter that coats the palate with oils, buttered toast
  • Finish – Quite long. There was an almost coffee-like quality or betel nut? A bit bitter, with some chilly spice.
  • Water – Dampens the aromas… however nuts became slightly more pronounced. Less spice, more sweetness, betel leaf and melons. In some cases adding water transforms a dram. In this case? It neither added dramatically nor detracted.

Overall it lived up to its promise of being a proper sherry dram – though not as overwhelming as some cask strength A’bunadh’s I’ve experienced! What was remarkable was the consistency – from 1st whiff to finish – it followed a common theme. I had jotted down a few notes from an earlier solo tasting months ago… to then see notes from the tasting with the ladies was practically identical!

The only shift was after we set it aside and returned after an hour. We immediately found it a bit sour or tart – crabapples with a bit of medicinal sweetness, orange peels and cloves. And yet – even this was all aligned to the overall character of the dram.

Rather than tasting notes, the North Star team share the following quote from Aedan Andrejus Burt:

Speyside is often considered Scotland’s sweetest and most approachable region. Wherever you go, they’ll introduce you to a dram, and probably something the locals call a ‘breakfast whisky’ soon enough. Home to around 50 distilleries, over a third of Scotland’s total, the area covers a 50-mile strip between Inverses and Aberdeen, around the River Spey. For that, most distilleries have their own water source, of which they are immensely proud. The honeyed and fruity character of Speyside whiskies make them highly sought after, and the banks of the Spey accommodate many of the country’s best known stills.

I purchased this bottle in May 2020 during our COVID ‘shut-in’ from Sansibar for EUR 37.82 plus 19% tax. There is zero doubt this is a value for money dram!

Curious about earlier Aberlour tasting experiences? Well… there have been a few…

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North Star European Chapter – Royal Brackla, Fettercairn, Ichgower

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Twas the night before Diwali… also Friday the 13th November… and as dusk fell in Europe, we cracked open a trio of North Star drams.

Our bottles had traversed quite some distance before we could sip together!  Originally from Scotland, they first made their way to me in Nurnberg, Germany… Then re-packaged into small samples, the whiskies continued their journey to Paris, Bretagne and rural Sweden… For one, it was then back to the UK – London to be more precise. For another, it was an even further adventure, flying to Mumbai for quarantine consumption.

So what did we try virtually together?

I had previously sampled all three, but was curious to see how they evolved and the impressions of my merry malty tasting companions!

Royal Brackla 11 year (2018) 55.2%

I will openly admit to being partial about this one! And wasn’t surprised when it was pronounced a ‘yummy’ whisky.

  • Nose – Apples, pears, all those lovely orchard fruits which shifted into spiced pineapple, toffee, nuts, then candied apple, cider, a herbal grassy quality, brioche
  • Palate – Again – quite tasty. A nice spice – think chilli chocolate, some salty caramel
  • Finish – Long and pleasant, a hint of anise

There was a debate on whether to add water or not… those who did were rewarded with maple syrup aromas with the palate rounding out with oils coming forward. The herbal quality took on a vegetal dimension – one mentioned brussle sprouts!

Without water, with water and even after airing for some time, what we appreciated most is how the base notes remained consistent. An enjoyable dram and terrific start to our evening.

Fettercairn 12 year (2019) 57.4% 

Quite a contrast to the earlier dram!

  • Nose – We were greeted by an inviting cognac, then clear shift into grapes, some mint and moss, lots of lovely dark berries – like black current or a blackberry jam, bit of nuts, over time it opened up further rewarding with a lightly floral perfume… after even more time, the caramel of coca cola came out too
  • Palate – Full strength, it packs a punch! From the fruity aromas, the spice initially came on strong! But then as it settled in, juicy grapes with a bit camomile and dandelion tea
  • Finish – Salty spice

And with water?

There were a few different comments – from soap to flowers to almond paste on the nose…. the real change was the palate. Early spring by the seaside.

We had a laugh at Ian’s tasting notes and quipped – less Disco & Funk, more Jazz & Blues in character.

Inchgower 11 year (2019) 52.5%

Our last brought a delicious Speyside peat to the mix.

  • Nose – Petrol and peat, sweet and salty, then also a bit peppery with a hint of licorice, increasingly caramel sweet as it opened up further
  • Palate – Shortbread biscuit, lemon zest, incredibly silky, black forrest
  • Finish – Cinnamon spice

Our peaty lady pronounced this a sweat hairy mechanic… who rises horses! And yet that was only the initial whiff… it mellowed and shifted to something infinitely more complex and subtle. This was clearly no Islay peat.

The kind of dram you would love to have in your hand to sip in a jazz club or coming back from skiing.

Remarkably, one lady was able to guess the exact distillery – long before the reveal – from her days with Diageo.

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Glengoyne 16 year Malt Master “Carissa” Original Cask Strength

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One highlight from our Scotland trip was having a go at crafting my own dram! Spoiler alert – what I’m about to describe can’t be replicated however I would COMPLETELY recommend the “Malt Master” experience at Glengoyne distillery and see what you come up with!

So how did we go about it? I sat in a lovely room filed with a wall of cask samples… in front of me were 5 different casks. Each was numbered from left to right with the distillery tasting notes. The suggested process was to start first by pouring a portion into the small Glencairn glasses from the test tube to try each. Then begin to play around with crafting my own malt… So what did I discover?

Glengoyne Malt Master

#1 – Refill Hogshead Cask 24 (14 Jan 2004 / 2020) 57.8%

  • Nose – Initially very pronounced pineapples, as it continued to open the tropical fruits shifted more into orchard fruits of crisp apple, pears, citrus, banana, light raisins, some candle wax, ever so slightly floral
  • Taste – A bit of spice, grapefruit, pink peppercorns, a bit zesty, thin
  • Finish – Hardly at all discernible

On its own, it was a pleasant way to begin, particularly on the aroma side, but incomplete.

#2 – 1st Fill American Oak Bourbon Barrel Cask 3553 (1 Dec 2004 / 2020) 56.2%

  • Nose – Delightfully fruity with banana, pear, tropical fruits, citrus…. coconut oil, candy
  • Taste – Sweet vanilla custard, banana cream pie, oak
  • Finish – Lighty bitter

Initially I found it a bit too wood forward… however the aromas warmed up and became more and more enjoyable.

#3 – 1st Fill American Oak Sherrry Puncheon Cask 206 (8 Mar 2000 / 2020) 57.5%

  • Nose – Chocolate, hazelnut, caramelized creme brûlée, strawberries and raspberries, rose hip
  • Taste – Just a beautiful mouthfeel, rich, dark coffee, bitter chocolate, wonderfully balanced
  • Finish – Lovely

What a fabulous single cask! It could easily stand on its own… my initial thought was keep it just as is – no need to add anything else! It was like an old friend with subtle different dimensions… sitting beautifully on the tongue.

#4 – 1st Fill European Oak Sherry Puncheon (light) Cask 934 (13 Jun 2001 / 2020) 56.8%

  • Nose – Molasses, bitter orange marmalade, treacle, nuts
  • Taste – Burnt sugar, oily, brazil nuts
  • Finish – Lots of staying power

Whereas the 1st Fill Sherry in an American Oak had lightly roasted hazelnuts, here the nuts were a mix of brazilian, pecan, walnut and more. Interestingly, when I went back to revisit it was a bit shy on the nose. However the oily element on the palate added a solid dimension… and the finish? That was what this cask really brought to the party.

#5 – 1st Fill European Oak Sherry Puncheon (dark) Cask 1927 (2 Jul 1998 / 2020) 56.4%

  • Colour – I just have to say upfront the colour was as intense as the whisky – dark ruby almost to chocolate
  • Nose – RUM! Think rum raisin ice cream, crunchy red apples, dark fruits and berries
  • Taste – Raisins, stewed fruits, lots of tannins and soft oak, drying
  • Finish – Long and quietly sweet

This one could almost be too much of a good thing! Rich, dark and heavy… yet also a bit secretive. It had a wonderful warmth to the palate, yet such intensity I immediately knew this would be a case of “less is more”.

So… what did I decide to do? I began with #3 as a wonderful base (50ml)… however I wanted to bring a bit more fruit into the mix so added some #2 (20ml), a bit of #1 (20ml) to add a little zing, then #4 (20ml) for the oily palate…. swished is around, added more of #3 (20ml), up the fruit with #2 (10ml) before adding the intensity of #5 (20ml).

The aromas were classic, the palate had lovely balance and depth with a delicious long finish. And with that – I had my recipe!

I simply replicated the portions by half – just a bit lighter on the #1 and #2 – played around a wee bit more and there I had my (almost!) 200ml bottle!

I brought it with me to London where my host and I cracked it open one evening to see how it settled in…

Glengoyne 16 year “Carissa Original” Cask Strength

  • Nose – Plum liquor, baked pineapple, sticky toffee, caramelized cream pudding, rum raisins, Christmas pudding, sticky pastries dusted with icing sugar, chocolate, dry herbs, light tangy element – almost a hint of dry mango, back to baked goods
  • Palate – Really coats the palate, a nice oily element, rich plums, dense dates, a chewy combination of chocolate, raisins, nuts…  wrapped in a rewarding spice
  • Finish – Long, warming and dry – really lasts with a delicious dry sweet spice and slightly bitter wood
  • Water – Really brought out the dried fruits, raisins, orange marmalade, some vanilla, a quixotic mix of berries and citrus… quite fabulous with water

Overall I was quite pleased with my creation. Heavier than I tend to prefer these days, it was truly a delicious ode to sherry.

I had planned to leave this as a treat for my host however he insisted I bring it back to Germany. I opened it again today and was surprised by how ‘tangy’ it had become on the nose… still great on the palate with a great chewy quality and holy toledo! What a finish… 10 minutes later and it was till very much there. What a treat to enjoy on my birthday in Nurnberg.

Cask Recipe:

  • 12% #1 – Refill Hogshead Cask 24 (14 Jan 2004 / 2020) 57.8%
  • 16% #2 – 1st Fill American Oak Bourbon Barrel Cask 3553 (1 Dec 2004 / 2020) 56.2%
  • 44% #3 – 1st Fill American Oak Sherrry Puncheon Cask 206 (8 Mar 2000 / 2020) 57.5%
  • 14% #4 – 1st Fill European Oak Sherry Puncheon (light) Cask 934 (13 Jun 2001 / 2020) 56.8%
  • 14% #5 – 1st Fill European Oak Sherry Puncheon (dark) Cask 1927 (2 Jul 1998 / 2020) 56.4%

What about other Glengoyne tasting experiences?

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Dunkerton Drams – Fettercairn 12 years 40%

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These days we don’t often try official bottles. By choice I tend to gravitate towards something just a little more specialized that comes with… say… a single cask from an independent bottlers. However when first learning about a distillery, when there are official bottlings available, such offerings can say a lot about what the distillery is trying to achieve.

Looking back on the Fettercairn’s I’ve tried til date…. One from North Star featuring a cask strength 12 year old from 2019 and another from That Boutique-y Whisky Company with a 21 Year from 2018) 48.6%, I can be forgiven for a little curiosity about what the distillery choses to put out as an “official bottling.”

This one came as part of the 2019 Drinks by the Drams Whisky Advent Calendar… and I’m reasonably sure it is the official Fettercairn 12 year 40%. So what did we find?

Fettercairn 12 years 40%

  • Nose – Lemon varnish, bananas, cereals, cappuccino, lemon mirange, floral and a bit woodsy
  • Palate – Soft on the tongue, a gentle curl of peat, bitter herbs, feels a bit peppery, not a lot of depth
  • Finish – Bitter tobacco and dry

My tasting companion and I had tried the 21 year old together and enjoyed the ‘oomph’ and character we found. This one? A bit of a disappointment.. nothing was wrong and it isn’t a bit dram, I had just hoped for a bit more ‘je ne sai quoi’!

What else do we know? Only that it was aged in American oak ex-bourbon casks…

And the official tasting notes?

  • COLOUR – Sunlight and amber honey
  • TASTE – Vanilla and pear, with soft spices
  • FINISH – Refreshing nectarine and tropical fruit, with subtle roasted coffee, clove, and ginger. A memorable finish of sultanas and black toffee

So there you have it.

What else did we try that evening in Dunkerton?

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Swaggering in a flouncy dress – Longmorn 10 year 48.3%

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Longmorn is one of those distilleries that sometimes gets missed and often over-shadowed by its more prominent neighbour BenRiach. And yet after a particular birthday in Singapore, Longmorn will always be one of the very few distilleries I’ve sampled from my ‘birth year’ – 1969!

As for this particular dram – it came from That Boutique-y Whisky Company. One of the things I get a kick out of from this bottler are their labels and the stories these graphic-novel style images tell:

Back in 1894, the Longmorn distillery was founded in Speyside. Four years later, the founder John Duff founded a second distillery a couple hundred metres from Longmorn, called Longmorn 2: Electric Boogaloo (maybe not that last part, but it was called Longmorn 2 until it became BenRiach). The two distilleries worked together, and eventually had a private railroad built between them to transport barley, peat and other sundries. In fact, if you visit Longmorn today, you’ll find a steam engine in the distillery – a sneak peek of which you can see on our Longmorn label.

For us, as interesting as the story around the distillery is… it is the stuff in the glass that matters most! So what did we find?

Longmorn 10 year Batch 3, 48.3% (TBWC) 1793 bottles (available in 2019)

  • Nose – Toffee, salty, creamy… a lip smacking creme caramel, fruity, apple strudel, carrot cake, freshly baked bread, bit floral too
  • Palate – Unexpectedly lively – fruits come to the fore with more apple, pear and even some berries then the white and black pepper spice kicks up in a delicious interplay
  • Finish – Peppery with a tangy citrus zing that mellows into honey

There was much more oomph and character on the palate than anticipated from the aromas. We found of all sampled that evening, this one had the most ‘swagger’ and ‘spunk.’ And yet was still dressed up in a pretty flouncy dress with all the fruit, floral and baked goods… just strutting about with dock martins!

Here are tasting notes from the chaps over at Master of Malt:

  • Nose: Sponge cake with honey and strawberry jam initially, then a bit of floral barley and toasted oats. A hint of orchard fruit and wood spice underneath.
  • Palate: Baking spice, toffee and dark fruits, with some minty herbal notes, orange zest and drying oak.
  • Finish: Black pepper heat develops alongside white grapes and shortbread.

Would I agree? Pretty much jibes with what we found… Our mini came as part of the Master of Malt 2019 Advent Calendar and was tasted one fine weekend in Dunkerton, Somerset. A full bottle would set you back around GBP 77.

What else did we try that summery evening?

As for other brushes with Longmorn? Just check these out….

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Glengoyne 12 year 43%

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For a week, Glasgow was my ‘base’ of operation – with a couple days off to explore. We took a day trip to Edinburgh and another to Isle of Arran plus I popped over to Glengoyne one day. It was completely worth the trip – though a cool, stormy, wet day – I thoroughly enjoyed the ‘light touch’ tour – all within the limitations of being responsible in these COVID times.

Naturally the highlight was sampling whisky – in my case it began with a wee nip of the Glengoyne 12 year in Warehouse No 1 before I continued to my “Malt Master” experience.

So I followed the same approach with my tasting companion back in London. It had been well over a year since we had sat down to enjoy a mini together and was a perfect way to ease back into whisky tasting.

 

Glengoyne 12 year 43%

  • Nose – Started with a bit of varnish then quickly shifted into vanilla, sweet honey, over ripe fruits, custard… as it opened more there was a dusty powder, then banana cream pie, lots of caramel, all having a light touch, teasing and inviting rather than over powering
  • Palate – Light spice, dry wood, more of the fruit and baked goods.
  • Finish – Again light, closing simply on “yum”
  • Water – Didn’t even try… no need

What is interesting is my impression in Scotland was leaning more to the sherry side whereas sitting in London, I found much more influence of the ex bourbon cask.

Overall we were quite happy with our sample – a nice sipping dram – easy to sit back and enjoy. For my companion it helped dispel a less complimentary experience we had with the Glengoyne 21 years ago.

What do the folks at Glengoyne have to say?

Lemon zest, toffee apples – and a scent of coconut. Our signature sherry wood brings intensity and richness, while first fill bourbon casks add fresh notes of citrus and vanilla. 

  • Appearance – Natural, rich gold.
  • Nose – Coconut oil, honey, lemon zest, dried oak.
  • Taste – Toffee apples, ginger, orange, shortbread.
  • Finish – A hint of sherry, soft oak and cinnamon spice. Very well balanced.

Cask Recipe

  • 20% 1st  fill European Oak Sherry
  • 20% 1st Fill American Oak Bourbon
  • 60% Oak Refill casks

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