Gordon & MacPhail Rare Vintage Collection – Strathisla

Gordon & MacPhail announced a Rare Vintage Collection from Strathisla , a distillery with a long relationship with this bottler. The wooden case features six expressions distilled in 1954, 1957, 1960, 1963, 1964 and 1972. They were bottled between 2011 and 2014 and are now bundled.

Most of the bottles are single cask releases, except for the 1963 which was bottled from two butts. Only 75 sets are available for £ 10,000.

Fettercairn 12 Years / 28 Years / 40 Years / 50 Years

Fettercairn distillery is relaunched with a...

This Bunnahabhain 11 Year Old was recently bottled by That Boutique-y Whisky Company . It is unpeated and from its profile I would guess it relies heavily on spirit from refill sherry casks (no official confirmation though).

Bunnahabhain 11 yo (49,5%, That Boutique-y Whisky Company 2018, Batch #5, 1091 btl.)

Nose: orchard fruits (apple peels, pears) with a nice buttery side as well as hints of damp chalk and hay. A sea breeze. Some leafy notes and winter spice. Marzipan. Bread crust. Rather complex. Mouth: quite a dry profile and fairly coastal, with clear salty notes. There are...

This is the first Glen Garioch ever bottled by the Scotch Maltwhisky Society . A 1976 cask, merely 8 or 9 years old at the time.

Glen Garioch 1976 (50.4%, Scotch Maltwhisky Society 1985, SMWS 19.1)

Nose: entirely on herbal notes, dried grass and minerals. Wet limestone, olive brine, hay, sooty notes and peat. Also lemony sharpness and a bit of lacquer paint and metal polish. Delicate but nice. Light fragrant notes in the background, perfumy but not disturbing. Mouth: more disturbing. Barley sugar, the same coastal sharpness and brine but also plain FWP now. Cologne...

In my latest whisky news overview I talked about the new travel retail whiskies from Highland Park distillery.

Here is my first review of two expressions, the Highland Park Spirit of the Bear (a no age statement releases, primarily aged in sherry-seasoned American oak casks) and Highland Park Wings of the Eagle , a 16 years old whisky matured in both sherry-seasoned European oak casks and American oak casks.

I’ve heard some critical remarks about the distillery’s urge to come up with marketing stories and farfetched names, even when the Norse legends seem exhausted, but let’s discuss that some other...

After the excellent  Irish Malt 1993 for TWE we tried last week, here’s another undisclosed Irish single malt , this time from the 1992 vintage which we hadn’t seen before.

Irish Malt 26 yo 1992 (48,3%, Liquid Treasures ‘Summer Dram’ 2018, bourbon barrel, 172 btl.)

Nose: a very warm fruitiness with lots of beehive notes. Wax, various honeys, pollen. Reminds us of a Caperdonich 1972 in a way. Honeydew melons, mango and banana, hints of kiwi. A whiff of chlorophyll. A very warm expression, quite superb with nice notes of old wood as well. Mouth: sweet and fruity....

Johnnie Walker Blue Label – Ghost & Rare – Port Ellen

After the Johnnie Walker Ghost & Rare – Brora there is now the announcement of a version based around Port Ellen whisky .

It also includes grain whisky from two lost distilleries: Carsebridge (closed in 1983) and Caledonian (closed in 1988), and malt from Mortlach, Daluaine, Oban, Cragganmore and Blair Athol.

It is bottled at 43.8% and available soon for around € 300.

Highland Park travel retail range

Highland Park strengthens its travel retail offering with new expressions that bring back age statements as well as a...

I adored some older 1970s Inchgower but I haven’t found any true highflyers among younger bottlings. We’ll give it another shot with this Inchgower 2002 bottled by Gordon & MacPhail in their Connoisseurs Choice range.

Inchgower 2002 (46%, Gordon & MacPhail Connoisseurs Choice 2015, refill sherry hogshead)

Nose: good, quite rich with fresh oranges and rhubard, as well as dried fruits (sultanas, dried apple pieces, fruit cake). Floral honey. All this on a background of cereals and whiffs of old wood. Mouth: sweet but at the same time a bit thin. Raisins, toffee, orange peels and yellow apples....

This unnamed single malt distilled on Orkney in 2005 was selected from the Signatory Vintage stocks and bottled for a series of whisky shops in Flanders, Belgium.

Orkney 13 yo 2005 (56,2%, Signatory Vintage Un-Chillfiltered for Flanders’ Finest Cask Selection 2018, hogshead DRU17/A63 + 65, 342 btl.)

Nose: excellent balance. There’s a sweet side to it (sweet honey and citrus candy, sugared almonds) but also a nice seaside freshness. Fresh herbs and heather. Vanilla. Apricot skins. An almost medicinal touch of tiger balm. Crushed peppercorns. Mouth: beautiful sooty notes, lots of herbs and mineral notes. Citrus green tea....

After my positive experience with the Dalmore 18 Year Old, I thought I should try the Dalmore 15 Year Old as well. It is initially matured in ex-bourbon casks and finished for three years in three types of sweet (or sweetened) sherry: Amoroso, Apostoles and Matusalem casks. The spirits are then married in an upstanding sherry butt.

Dalmore 15 yo (40%, OB +/- 2017)

Nose: typical oranges, juicy raisins and toffee. Behind it is more obvious wood than in the 18, a slightly peppery kick and cinnamon. Light tobacco. Some apple pie too. Mouth: again less thick than...

Let’s just review the second fruit bomb bottled by The Whisky Agency for The Whisky Exchange right away, why not?  

This is an undisclosed Irish single malt whiskey distilled in 1993 (a vintage we haven’t seen among these undisclosed Irish malts so far).

Irish Single Malt 24 yo 1993 (48,2%, The Whisky Agency for The Whisky Exchange 2018, bourbon barrel, 209 btl.)

Nose: very fruity, but after the Bowmore (which I tried first) this is more on lychee, mango and bananas. Sweeter with more vanilla and honey than the Irish 1991s for instance. Apple rose pastries. Pears...

Early 2018 Old Pulteney announced a trio of new travel retail exclusives. There was a 2002 single cask for the Viking Line, the 1990 vintage (which already existed as a  limited edition ) and this Old Pulteney 2006 vintage .

It was matured in just a handful of first-fill ex-bourbon casks.

Old Pulteney 2006 (46%, OB 2017, 100 cl)

Nose: a young, distillate-driven version. Some fruity notes (apples, white grapes, lemons) with honey, toffee and custard notes but also a light chalky touch. Dried barley. Hints of sunflower oil. Light mint. Mouth: quite sweet now, with pear candy,...