Category Archives: Speyside

The Glenrothes 21 year Minister’s Reserve 43%

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The Glenrothes is one of those distilleries that you know what you are likely to get – strong sherry influence, robust and full.

It is what one of our samplers called a “Ronseal” after a well-known UK ad for varnish that came out over 21 years ago… The brand was known for its simple ad line “Does Exactly What it Says on the Tin” which soon became synonymous with anything that is what it says it is.

And what did we think?

The Glenrothes 21 year Minister’s Reserve 43%

  • Nose – Spice, sherry, fruity, sweet cinnamon, cloves, chocolate, plus fruit cake and icing, old raisons, tinned fruit, nutty, some berries, more vanilla cake, dash of mocha chocolate
  • Palate – Desert in a glass! Dangerously easy to drink, soft and smooth with some Christmas spice, a very classic sherry on all accounts, enjoyable and full
  • Finish – Fab long finish with tobacco

Nice and classic, and so sweet it was almost like sipping rum. In short, it was exactly what you expect from a quality sherry matured whisky.

While I preferred the Highland Park solo without a cigar, The Glenrothes was a perfect cigar partner!

What do The Glenrothes folks have to say on the box?

Distillation is unusually slow and takes place in unusually tall stills which deliver a sweet, clear, fruity spirit. Maturation is in American oak and Spanish oak casks, a combination designed to deliver a perfect balance of flavours associated with our award-winning Speyside single malt; ripe fruits, juicy citrus, creamy vanilla and complex spices.

Would we agree? Yup!

And what would this set you back? These days, it would be about £155.46 online at Master of Malt. We opened our bottle in September 2018.

In our latest greatest adult evening, what all did we try?

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21 years – Aberfeldy, The Glenrothes, Highland Park 1991

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Sometimes you just want to go classic, returning to the days of age statements… or at least an aged dram known by vintage!

That is exactly what we did with our evening trio of “21s” – each whisky was matured for 21 years, an increasing rarity with ever increasing prices in the world of whisky.

In our latest greatest “adult” evening, what all did we try?

Want to know more? Just check out the links above and read on….

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North Star Discovery – Ardmore Peat 8 year 58.7%

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Next up in our North Star Discovery was another from their inaugural series… this time from Ardmore. We’ve not come across much Ardmore in our whisky explorations – my only brush has been a speed sniff and swish of the Ardmore 1997 45% (G&MP)  at Whisky Live Singapore at the Gordon & MacPhail booth.

Ardmore Peat 8 year (June 2008 / Oct 2016) 58.7% 1 of 198 bottles

  • Nose – PEAT, oily, sulfer, soapy, capsules… like walking into a doctor’s or chemist shop, iodine, steam engine, musty… then started to shift character revealing waves and waves of cinnamon, plums, mosambi juice, dark juicy fruits, black cherry, cinnamon apple juice, sour cherries…. kept evolving shifting from fruits to a slightly oily soot, like sacred ash, then a bit lactic, old flowers like malas after a day or so… then dark chocolate… and yet another element revealing such a delicious BBQ honey bacon, lots of smoked meats, light tar… followed by coffee, creamy yoghurt… an absolutely unbelievable nose
  • Palate – Sweet roaring spice, lots of sweet peat, stewed chewy fruits, then sweet meats and BBQ. Has good body, lots of character, oodles of spice yet still beautifully balanced between all the elements.
  • Finish – Chocolate cinnamon with a slight orange zest with a “hold” that really stays… dry
  • Water – Brilliant with! Becomes so sweet, lovely honey bacon with a mandarin perfume twist on the nose, silky smooth with a lovely rolling cinnamon sweet on the palate and fantastic finish.

We began to speculate, while it clearly had peat, we thought it wasn’t an obvious Islay dram, yet still likely Scottish. It has a gentle peat quality, pronounced, firmly there but with a subtle hand.

Thinking about the cask, we wondered about french oak? Something that gives a good kick like the way the virgin oak does for Spice Tree.

Again we guessed cask strength and absolutely loved the way water gave it even more “something.”

One remarked that it was a bit “naughty” in the nicest possible way…

Could any of us pick out that it was Ardmore! Not a chance… and that too from a new independent bottler? Impossible.

Which made the reveal all the more enjoyable.

And what about the official tasting notes?

  • Nose: Delicate peat, smoked meats & iodine
  • Palate: Sweet fruit juices & smoke from a BBQ
  • Finish: A great balance of savoury, smoke & chocolate orange

What were we fortunate to sample in our introductory North Star Trilogy?

Unfortunately North Star bottles fly off the online “shelves” quickly!

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North Star Discovery – Glenrothes 20 year 54.6%

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This was an evening of discovery… starting with tasting completely blind a mystery malt… which turned out to be a 20 year Glenrothes from North Star’s Cask Series 001…

Glenrothes 20 year (Oct 1996/Oct 2016) 54.6% 1 of 198 bottles, Refill sherry

  • Colour – Yellow gold
  • Nose – Light varnish, heavy honey, citrus lemon, then marmalade, apricot, like breakfast cereal, sense of being very “full”, dry fruits, creme rum and raisin, sense of high alcohol, creamy toffee, chocolate chips, shifting into a curl of tobacco, black ‘bara’ elichi.  After time it shifted into molasses and powdered icing sugar with sweet spices
  • Palate – An explosion of flavour. Salty caramel, completely matches the nose with force… sharp then diffuses into fruity deliciousness. The 2nd sip was much spicier with a creamy quality. And the 3rd revealed tobacco, tannic and dry… then shifted into a sweet perfume palate. Simply “yum!”
  • Finish – Bitter with a ‘khatta‘ sourness like tart apples, initially seemed short, then we realized it is quite the opposite – a lovely long finish with hazelnut pepper and red fruits
  • Water – Kicked up the spice – particularly on the finish, changed and holds. Normally we find water can initially notch up the spice, then mellows. In this case, it remains – lots of peppers, really holds its own with water, reveals a lovely mocha coffee

We joked that it “Tastes delicious on the nose!” like walking into a cookie store! It really teases, from sweetness to bitter with a beautiful balance. Another thought it would make a great “cigar” malt….

We speculated it must have a high alcohol content – likely cask strength, definitely  Scottish, well constructed though we thought perhaps it may not be very old – perhaps 8 – 12 years? We really appreciated its fabulously long finish.

We also observed it had a terrific synch between its aromas and palate – both delicious and mirroring their notes.

The reveal was such a surprise. None of us would have guessed it could be 20 years. Some remarked their mixed experience with Glenrothes, finding it sometimes over-priced for what it delivers.

In this case, it was a fabulous dram.

And what about the official tasting notes?

  • Nose: Ginger biscuits, cinnamon & sultanas
  • Palate: Apple pastries, pear juice & toffee
  • Finish: A dry finish with cocoa nibs & caramel

What were we fortunate to sample in our introductory North Star Trilogy?

Unfortunately North Star bottles have a tendency to fly off the online “shelves” quickly!

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TWE Cask Strength – Glen Moray 8 year 57.8%

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To kick off our trio personally selected by The Whisky Exchange’s owner Sukhinder Singh for our Whisky Ladies of Mumbai as affordable, quality whiskies, each representative of their distillery’s style.

Glen Moray is not on most of our merry Mumbai malters top hits list… in part as they tend towards affordable NAS whiskies with finishes… It also isn’t so often you will come across a cask strength avatar either… so we were primed to dive in and discover!

And were rewarded by a rather marvellous most enjoyable malt.

Glen Moray 8 years 57.8% 251 Bottles

What did the ladies think?

  • Nose – Is that bubblegum? Loads of pear, even that hybrid apple snow pear, the perfume of flowers, vanilla, lavender, crisp and crunchy apples, then shifts into baked apple pie and ice cream
  • Palate – 1st sip at cask strength was fire and heat. The it shifted into cinnamon and chilli… with  water it was transformed into a yummy baked delight, pure desert
  • Finish – A delicious fresh fennel or pastise element, then lightly bitter with a citrus twist
  • Water – An absolute must for this dram. All the spice morphs into a very tasty, fruity, honeyed whisky, soft and gentle, smooth and inviting with just the right balance of fruit, flowers, a light touch of sweet spices

Overall we loved it. With water it took us to our “happy place”, nice and relaxing. Something to sit, sip, enjoy with friends or solo. An eminently approachable and enjoyable whisky.

Here is what Billy Abbott at The Whisky Exchange had to say:

  • Nose: Candied lemon peel and lemon jelly are backed up by biscuity grain, soft spice and vanilla cream.
  • Palate: Lemon zest, vanilla toffee and butterscotch to start, with citrus building on the tongue. Lemon sherbet sparkles before darker notes of chocolate and liquorice roll in, along with clove and dark spice notes.
  • Finish: Dark and spicy, slowly lifting to reveal dried lemon peel and freshly milled malt.
  • Comment: Youthful and zesty, with an excellent balance of spirit and cask character.

Did we agree? Overall yes. What we unanimously agreed is this was one fine dram, most enjoyable.

What else did we sample in our TWE cask strength evening?

This whisky was purchased at The Whisky Exchange in London in June 2017, under the owner Sukhinder Singh’s guidance for a mere GBP 46. It was opened from a fresh bottle on July 2018.

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Whisky Ladies TWE Cask Strength Night – Glen Moray, Arran, Ledaig

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This was not our first evening devoted to high alcohol strength whiskies… Last time, our Diwali celebration featured Glenfarclas 105 60%, Chichibu 2009 63.1%, A’bunadh 35 (2011) 60.3% and we’ve certainly sampled other Cask Strength drams including our Bruichladdich peat progression session.

So what made this session distinctive? This time our selection had a decidedly independent bent, all purchased through The Whisky Exchange in June 2017, personally recommended by Sukhinder Singh as affordable quality drams:

What did the ladies think? We had a range of reactions. Curious to know more? Click on the links above and read on!

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North Star Discovery – Glenrothes, Ardmore + Islay

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There is something so fabulous about being truly surprised.

Which is why our original Mumbai tasting group keeps to its habit of tasting blind. Sometimes we reveal each whisky immediately after tasting, other times we wait until we have sampled all three whiskies.

In this case, it was after tasting all three drams and what a reveal! Why?

As it introduced North Star Spirits, a new independent bottler based in Glasgow. Starting in just 2016, we understand it is a “one man” operation by Iain Croucher, earlier part of A.D. Ratraay group.

Interestingly, he has a distribution relationship in Germany with Sansibar – which is another independent bottler that caught my attention recently for its ability to spot good casks for relatively reasonable rates.

My photos do not do justice to their packaging which is eye catching and filled with details about the cask type and inventive tasting notes too!

What did we sample?

All are cask strength, from a single cask, with natural colour and no chill filtration.

As North Star bottles have already captivated attention, we understand it is best to pre-order online as they seem to be snapped up quickly!

I’m now on the hunt to find more North Star whiskies to share with our other whisky tasting groups in Mumbai.

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Chieftain’s Choice 22 years (1993/2015) 52.7%

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There are an increasing number of independent bottlers putting out single malts with the distilleries kept deliberately undisclosed. In this case, the bottle was part of Chieftain’s Choice, from Ian Macleod, which tend towards rare whiskies  – be it the distillery such as ones that are now closed, age or something specific that makes it unique.

Chieftain’s Choice 22 years (1993/2015) 1st Fill Sherry Cask No 3612 52.7%, 579 Bottles 

  • Colour – Bright ruby
  • Nose – Pure sherry bomb – in every way. Press hard and the different dimensions of prunes, raisins, bitter, rum soaked tart, stewed brandied fruit, then even sweet almond milk is revealed.
  • Palate – Honey sweet with spice then pure sweet with some tannic woods – again perfect sherry balance
  • Finish – Exceedingly sweet

We pronounced it “Pure desert!” And while it reminded us a bit of a Glendronach, that is pure speculation and we could be off completely.

What do we know for certain beyond it being matured in a 1st fill sherry cask? Only that it is from Speyside… and it is an exceptionally good example of an unadulterated sherry cask.

If ever anyone is able to share more, we would be most curious to know!

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An evening with Krishna Nakula

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Evenings with Krishna Nakula, India’s Malt Maniac are always a pleasure. This time we meandered through a malty mix.. with our evening featuring a duo from Amrut!

Added to the mix was an amiable amble through the contrasting:

Plus a sniff and swish through:

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Vault Collection – Benromach 10 year 43%

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Next up in our original club’s “The Vault Collection” trio was a single malt from the Speyside region. Our guest writer Nikkhil had the following tasting notes to share.

Pour 2: Benromach 10yr 43%

  • Color: Gold
  • Nose: Red fruits, buiscuity and an immediate waft of gentle peat smoke. Lovely! With time honey ham, lightly smoked apples and sweet meats. Something immediately familiar about this one.
  • Palate: Lovely sweet sherry notes with the gentlest lick of peat. I’m a sucker for this style and balance. Nice mouthfeel despite the low abv. That irresistible sweet savoury note of a bacon and honey combo! Lots of complexity for a 10yr old and top class stuff. This is just a breath behind the Kilkerran 12 which is saying a lot. Now only if it were bottled at 46% and naturally presented!
  • With Water and 20 mins rest, lovely notes of coconut, roasted walnuts and gentle spice along with light bonfire smoke.
  • ​Finish: ​Long with smoke that just lingers along with sweet sherry fruits.

Our guessing game to reveal?

This was a class Scottish act and all of us were unanimous on that. There was a tossup between Benriach and Benromach. One member was bang on with Benromach and sure enough it was that. It just proves yet again that if the focus is on quality and if it is followed up with the right decisions in production (local barley, long fermentation times, top quality wood) then it’s very hard not to have a cracking dram on your hands. It is little or no surprise that the distillery is owned by Gordon & Macphail who in my opinion are the finest independent bottlers in Scotland. Keep up the good work!

Official notes:

  • Nose: Rich sherry with fruit & nut chocolate, delicate spice, green apples, malty biscuit and a touch of light peat smoke.
  • Palate: Juicy raspberries and brambles, sherry, creamy malt and a light peat

The Vault Collection trio:

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