In the impressive stream of (usually excellent) premium releases from Gordon & MacPhail , there was this Glenlivet 1954 , a 64 year old expression bottled at the end of 2018 from a refill sherry butt.

It was launched together with the outstanding Caol Ila 1968, both in the Private Collection series.

Glenlivet 64 yo 1954 (41%, Gordon & MacPhail ‘Private Collection’ 2018, refill sherry butt #1412, 222 btl.)

Nose: delicate but very good with lots of tiny nuances. Waxed papers, stewed pears, orange peel, with cedar wood and an ever so light smoky undertone. Lots...

This Talisker 2009 was bottled at 8 years of age in Douglas Laing’s Provenance Coastal Collection , a series of four bottlings honouring the islands and the seas.

It’s young and comes from a refill cask – that could leave us with the natural character of this distillery.

Talisker 8 yo 2009 (48%, Douglas Laing ‘Provenance Coastal Collection’ 2018, refill hogshead #12611, 319 btl.)

Nose: quite maritime indeed, very spirit-driven with echoes of the newmake. Beach sand, sea breeze and hints of wet shells. Malty notes underneath, a little pear and sweet lemon. Light hints of pencil shavings....

Macallan from the 1970s, matured in sherry wood as stated on the neck label. This seems to be a standard bottle from Macallan-Glenlivet themselves, no mentions of Italian importers in this case.

Macallan 10 yo (70 Proof, OB 1970s)

Nose: great nose, with a whole array of old-style notes like turpentine, furniture wax and just a hint of copper polish, but also juicy plums, raisins, even cooked strawberries. Whiffs of wet wood and old books. Me gusta mucho. Mouth: slightly less convincing. It does show a similar (nice) fruitiness, lots of apricot jams, red berry jams, as well...

Laphroaig 30 Year Old – The Ian Hunter Story

First-fill bourbon casks and filled at “high strength” (just 48%), that’s the recipe for an upcoming Laphroaig 30 Year Old . It has the subtitle The Ian Hunter Story , referring to the last member of the Johnston family to run the distillery in the 1950s, before it was taken over by the manager Bessie Williamson.

It appears to go back to the green bottle of the 25 Year Old, whereas in the past few years limited releases like the Laphroaig 27 Years were mostly bottled in clear glass.

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Old Pulteney 15 Years is a new expression, part of the 2018 overhaul of the core range. Check my review of the newish  Old Pulteney 12 Years for more information.

The 15 Years is matured in first and second fill bourbon barrels and finished in Oloroso sherry butts.

Old Pulteney 15 yo (46%, OB 2018)

Nose: a fresh and rather recognizable Pulteney nose, full of yellow apples, barley notes and heather honey with a lovely coastal side. Sea breeze, pine wood and mint. Soft vanilla and hints of golden raisins. Mouth: juicy and rather bright. A nice sweet...

The new 2018 edition of Laphroaig 25 Years was matured in ex-bourbon casks (earlier versions often had some sherry influence).

The last one I tried was the 2014 edition and that was rather excellent.

Laphroaig 25 yo Cask Strength (52%, OB 2018)

Nose: rather mineral start, pretty punchy for such an old malt. Sunflower oil, ashy notes and carbon paper. Underneath there is a nice layer of grapefruits, lime and grilled pineapple – almost tropical. Also a buttery touch. Top notes of eucalyptus and sea spray. Burnt orange peel. Mouth: very big, with minty smoke and medicinal notes....