Meikle Toir | Whisky Lady

Call this the “Odd Bins” section of my London’s Whisky Show 2023 tasting notes. Part of the fun of exploring whiskies with a regular tasting companion is the convergence and divergence of tasting experiences.

I had an opportunity to introduce a new Lowland distillery – Lindores Abbey – to my tasting companion, building on my experience from a Masterclass at The Messe in Nurnberg.

Equally, my companion shared the craze around the latest Balvenie 19 year “A Revelation of Cask and Character” which had completely sold out in London over the hype!

We also found ourselves distracted near the end of our day together with a detour to Helsinki, Finland before settling on our final dram of the day – GlenAllachie’s new peat expression Meikle Toir!

Ready to join us on our wanderings? Warning – none are proper tasting notes, instead mere documentation of our tasting travels…

We began with a newer Lowland distillery with their latest limited release. Their first “The Friar John Cor” expression sold out immediately! I had a chance to try at The Village in Nurnberg earlier in the year, but was suffering so much from dental issues that I headed practically straight home after the Lindores Abbey masterclass.

Lindores Abbey The Friar John Cor “The Cask Strength Congregation” Chapter 2 Bourbon, STR & Peated Rum casks 60.9%

I skipped tasting this new The Friar John Cor however was happy my companion tried both their core expression and this one. At cask strength, it could pack a punch however my tasting companion found it surprisingly approachable. It took a whiff and thought it had a lovely sweetness with some earthy peat elements too. This comes from the cask combination of ex-bourbon, STR, and peated rum casks.

The Balvenie 19 year “A Revelation of Cask and Character” 47.5% GBP 309

We then moved on to the latest craze – a new 19 year old release from Balvenie. Curiously this whisky apparently sold out as soon as it was released! Sometimes whisky hype surpasses reality. In this case, knowing we would be tasting this dram the next day at home, I didn’t even attempt it – just took a whiff and thought “pas mal”, preferring to wait another day to give it proper attention.

And we closed our day, we snuck in two more drams.

Helsinki Rye Malt Release #14 American Virgin Oak + Rum Cask Finish 47.5%

What did we find? It was unpeated, a bit funky but fun. Think of rye bread with some caramel. Then joined by fresh pine? On the palate, it was quite heavy and oily, revealing a decided rum quality – reminiscent of an Agricole rum. Quite different.

Meikle Toir 5 year The Chinquapin One 48%

GlanAllachie has decided to go in a peaty direction – in a consistent way with their Meikle Toir brand. With a completely separate website. it is their new big pursuit (ie Meikle Toir) with a focused devotion to peat. As I knew trying all four wasn’t going to happen, I asked which is the ONE to be tried above all others? And was directed to The Chinquapin One.

What did I discover? A lovely sweet peat – quite a gentle smoke. It reminded me a little of toasted raisin bread with a dash of cinnamon. I would certainly need to spend more time and a different setting to discover more.

Here is what they have to say:

Coming in at 35 PPM, the whisky has a sweeter style of smoke character owing to the mainland peat from St. Fergus used to kiln the barley. After a lengthy 160-hour fermentation, the whisky has a complex character which stands up well to ageing in virgin oak casks.

Nose: Smoldering oak embers, burnt liquorice and honey, with ginger, butterscotch and orange peel.
Taste: Cocoa, crème brûlée and toasted almonds, with cinnamon, aniseed and campfire smoke.

As for the others? They will simply have to wait another time to be explored…