Bowmore 24 yo 1991 Carn Mor #616 54.9% vs Bowmore 25 yo 1989 Douglas Laing Old Particular #10581 55.1%
Bowmore 24 yo 1991 Carn Mor #616 54.9% It’s a rebound style that leaves behind a decade best forgotten. Can something be both immaculate and peaty? Pure liquid smoke, salt … Continue reading
Irish Single Malt Whiskey 24 yo Batch 1 That Boutique-y Whisky Company 46.8% vs Limerick Slaney Malt Irish 23 yo 1991 / 2005 Adelphi #8585 59%
Irish Single Malt Whiskey 24 yo Batch 1 That Boutique-y Whisky Company 46.8% Brilliantly fruity with a real warmth; And shades of tropical-ness that hearken back to an older era … Continue reading
Isle of Jura 30 yo 1966 / 1996 Signatory #1868/69 52.6% vs Isle of Jura 30 yo 1966 / 1996 Kingsbury #1867 49.7%
Isle of Jura 30 yo 1966 / 1996 Signatory #1868/69 52.6% Love at first whiff. Unbelievable whisky. Deep resinous wood, coal, camphor, oily black leather harnesses, burning caramel, wet tobacco. … Continue reading
Rosebank 1991 / 2009 Gordon & Macphail #2119/2120/2121 55.3% vs Rosebank 21 yo 1989 / 2010 Lombard for Three Rivers #866 58.1%
Rosebank 1991 / 2009 Gordon & Macphail #2119/2120/2121 55.3% Simple, fresh and clean. What more do we need. Soft cream, white sugar, butter on rye bread, plain malt, lemon rind, … Continue reading
Ben Nevis 19 yo 1996 Distiller’s Art 48% vs Ben Nevis 20 yo 1995 Gleann Mor #11308 53.4% vs Ben Nevis 22 yo 1992 Cadenhead 53.5%
Ben Nevis 19 yo 1996 Distiller’s Art 48% Crystal clear and to the point. Poached pears, white wine, gentian root, ivy leaf syrup. An austere and mineral sort of Ben … Continue reading
Lagavulin 25 yo 200th Anniversary 51.7% ~2016 vs Lagavulin 30 yo 52.6% ~ 2006
Lagavulin 25 yo 200th Anniversary 51.7% ~2016 Big meaty nose with sear and burnt bits. A lot of wood in this Lagavulin so much so that its vaunted grizzled oiliness … Continue reading
Craigellachie 31 yo Batch Batch 04-6137 52.2% vs Cragganmore 29 yo 1973 / 2003 Special Release 52.5%
Craigellachie 31 yo Batch Batch 04-6137 52.2% Waxy to a Clynelish-esque extent. It beggared my belief to be sure. Chamomile, hay, sunny days and runny honey. Baked butter tarts and … Continue reading
Convalmore 36 yo 1977 / 2013 Special Release 58% vs Convalmore 36 yo 1977 / 2013 Cadenhead 58.2%
Convalmore 36 yo 1977 / 2013 Special Release 58% Orange chocolate, thick heavy marmalade, loads of cinnamon and cloves, dried apricot, preserved orange peel, touches of astringent and woody petitgrain. … Continue reading
Littlemill 24 yo 1989 / 2013 The Whisky Agency and Acla 52.9% vs Lochside 27yo Single Grain James MacArthur’s Old Master 60.5%
Littlemill 24 yo 1989 / 2013 The Whisky Agency and Acla 52.9% Classic fruity sort of littlemill, with grapefruit and citrons, peaches, passionfruit and rhubarb. More fresh, tart and … Continue reading
Springbank 10 yo 46% vs Springbank 26 yo 1992 / 2019 Whisky Kingdom #153b 47.7% vs Springbank 22 yo 1993 / 2015 The Bottlers #227 51.9%
Springbank 10 yo 46% ~ mid 2010s It’s a lean sort of whisky that’s all very unoffensive though somewhat dull. It’s vegetable peelings. brine, burning butane, working machinery and hot … Continue reading
Imperial 1979 / 1991 Gordon & Macphail 40% vs Imperial 1991 / 2008 Gordon & Macphail 43%
Imperial 1979 / 1991 Gordon & Macphail 40% Honestly a lovely fresh nose with white pepper, cut green fruit, browned grass, rubbed limes, clean clear oil and a touch of … Continue reading
Pulteney 1971 The Piper’s Preferred by Scotchconnection 55.3% vs Old Pulteney 26 yo 1990 / 2017 Cadenhead 175th Anniversary 52.6%
Pulteney 1971 The Piper’s Preferred by Scotchconnection 55.3% A minor German bottler. Nice! Heavily buttered poached pear frangipane. Salt, slight smoke, some engine oil, dried up book glue and pine … Continue reading
Clynelish 26 yo 1990 / 2016 Cadenhead 45.3% vs Highland Park 28 yo 1989 / 2018 Cadenhead 48.8%
Clynelish 26 yo 1990 / 2016 Cadenhead 45.3% Everyone knows 1982 and 1995 Clynelish. 1989 and 1990 were stellar too. Warm fuzzy yellow afternoon hues of hay, honey and toast, … Continue reading
Linkwood 29 yo 1989 / 2019 SMWS 39.180 51% vs Linkwood 11 yo 2007 / 2019 SMWS 39.176 58%
Linkwood 29 yo 1989 / 2019 SMWS 39.180 51% This is a lovely elegant Linkwood, refined by time and wood into a perfectly balanced whisky full of polished wood hues … Continue reading
Strathisla 1967 / 2004 Duncan Taylor 45.9% vs Strathisla 1965 James MacArthur 51.7%
Strathisla 1967 / 2004 Duncan Taylor 45.9% A lot here but its very subtle. Dry aromatic wood notes that can only come from old wood – old cedar panels, pine … Continue reading
Lagavulin 12 yo Carpano Import 43% vs Lagavulin 15 yo ceramic decanter 45%
Lagavulin 12 yo Carpano Import 43% ~ clear glass white label early 70s bottling Big whisky even at 43%. Salty, sooty and greasy. Chock full of little phenolic notes from … Continue reading
Eastern Highland 1975 / 1988 Samaroli Fragments of Scotland 50% (Glen Garioch) vs Glen Garioch 17 yo 1975 James MacArthur’s 54.2%
Eastern Highland 1975 / 1988 Samaroli Fragments of Scotland 50% (Glen Garioch) Just a note that Glen Garioch should not be compared to Islay. Peated with dry earth and chunks … Continue reading
Bowmore 10 yo Devil’s Cask Batch 1 56.9% vs Bowmore 10 yo Devils Cask Batch 2 56.3%
Bowmore 10 yo Devil’s Cask Batch 1 56.9% There’s the 90s Bowmore lime leaf, hot chalk and seared pans. Salt, also cypress and cedar, in fact it is very aromatically … Continue reading
Dalmore 10 yo 2006 46% vs Tomintoul 25 yo 40% ~2014 bottling vs Mackmyra Moments Ledin 48%
Because who says we need to start the year with great whisky? Dalmore 10 yo 2006 46% Fair amount of cask influence. Jammy in a marmalade sort of way, orange … Continue reading
Mortlach 21 yo 1957 / 1978 Cadenhead dumpy 80 proof vs Mortlach 22 yo 1969 / 1969 Cadenhead dumpy 50.5%
Mortlach 21 yo 1957 / 1978 Cadenhead dumpy 80 proof Aha. An ‘old’ nose if there was ever one. Meaning dried chrysanthemum and dried out herbal infusions, lubricants and cold … Continue reading
Ledaig 20 yo 1972 James MacArthur 53.8% vs Ledaig 21 yo 1972 James MacArthur 54.2% vs Ledaig 18 yo James MacArthur 54.4% vs Ledaig 18 yo James MacArthur 55.2% vs Ledaig 23 yo 1972 for LMdW 51.9%
Merry Christmas! Here’s a bunch of 1972 Ledaigs, the high water mark for this behemoth whisky. Ledaig 20 yo 1972 James MacArthur 53.8% This one is clean, maritime and … Continue reading
Aberlour 30 yo 1963 James MacArthur 55.2% vs Aberfeldy 17 yo 2002 / 2019 Distillery Special #20019 54.9%
Aberlour 30 yo 1963 James MacArthur 55.2% Well. An old home with a bit of a tired staleness: Dried lemon slices, old books, old glue pots, dusty dirty paraffin candles. … Continue reading
Dalwhinnie 15 43% ~ 2009 bottling vs Dalwhinnie 27 yo 1966 / 1993 Cadenhead 45.5%
Dalwhinnie 15 43% ~ 2009 bottling Textbook pleasing. Butter on overly burnt toast. Runny honey, fresh cut fruit, bittergourd, museli, the merest hint of snubbed matches that become oddly pronounced … Continue reading
Macallan 30 1963 / 1993 Cadenhead 54.7% vs Macallan 13 yo 1973 / 1987 SMWS 24.6 61.7%
More proof that vintage whisky (and a big name) is not automatically good whisky. Macallan 30 1963 / 1993 Cadenhead 54.7% Old books, dried up glue, even a little cardboard. … Continue reading
Highland Park 33 yo 1977 / 2010 Perfect Dram 52.3% vs Highland Park 10 yo 1973 /1984 SMWS 4.2 57% ~ destroyed label
Highland Park 33 yo 1977 / 2010 Perfect Dram 52.3% Camphor, thin waxes and vitreous resins spread thin and translucent, with a brittle quality to it. Wispy strands of white … Continue reading
Crown Vat 20 yo Blended 27th May 1966 Rotation 66/27 L.W. Cos 169 40% vs Macphail’s 10 yo Pure Malt Scotch Whisky Gold 106 60.5% Meregalli
Crown Vat 20 yo 61% Malt 39% Grain Blended 27th May 1966 Rotation 66/27 Sykes and Co. L.W. Cos 169 40% Retained its freshness despite the age and low abv. … Continue reading
Macduff 21 yo (1970) James MacArthur’s 55.5% bottled Aug 1991 vs Macduff 13 yo 1974 / 1987 SMWS 6.5 58.2%
Macduff 21 yo (1970) James MacArthur’s 55.5% bottled Aug 1991 Almost all the whiskies in this little pocket rocket mini collection have been pure rocket fuel, and this is no … Continue reading
Springbank 15 yo black label 46% vs Springbank 25 yo parchment label 46%
Springbank 15 yo black label 46% One of the cleaner Springbanks. This time some obvious waxy notes, clean sackcloth, a tiny bit of fermenting fruit, fried banana chips, honey, maybe … Continue reading
Bruichladdich 25 yo 1958 Cadenhead, Macallan 15 yo 1946 Securo, Macallan 1962, Springbank 1965 Moon Import The Birds #367, Glenfiddich 29 yo 1956 Intertrade, Clynelish 1974 Modern Masters, Caol Ila 21 yo 1968 for Intertrade, Glen moray 25 yo 1959 Samaroli, Glen Grant 21 yo 1972 Whyte & Whyte, Talisker 1979 Whyte & Whyte
Sample night! So short notes only. Bruichladdich 25 yo 1958 / 1984 Cadenhead Peated yes, but not hugely so. The sort of phenols that’s been transmuted to a secondary level. … Continue reading
Laphroaig 40 yo 1960 / 2001 42.4% vs Laphroaig 28 yo 44.4% (2018)
Laphroaig 40 yo 1960 / 2001 42.4% I avoid using the word smooth, but in this case it seems especially apt. Long age has weathered this whisky into a gentle … Continue reading
West Indies Dark Rum 1948 Samaroli 49% vs Lapalun Rhum Petit-Bourg Vieux Rhum dela Martinique 1952 / 1972 50%
West Indies Dark Rum 1948 / 1991 Samaroli 49% Probably the most nuanced rum I have had the pleasure to taste. In quick succession: molasses, licorice, cedar wood, sweet seaweed, … Continue reading
Dornoch New Make August 2019 60% vs Dornoch New Make 63.5% ~ circa April 2018
Dornoch New Make August 2019 60% ~ from Organic floor malted Plummage Archer, using spent brewers yeast, fermented in open top oak vats 7 – 10 days Thick and oily-sweet, … Continue reading
Tobermory 32 yo 1972 / 2005 49.5% vs Tormore 16 yo 1966 / 1982 Samaroli 57%
Tobermory 32 yo 1972 / 2005 49.5% At first I was taken aback to see that this was an oloroso cask finish, so comprehensively rich was the nose I had … Continue reading
Macallan 17 yo 1965 43% ~ bottled 1983 vs Macallan 29 yo 1965 / 1994 Signatory #1058 49%
Macallan 17 yo 1965 43% ~ bottled 1983 Right. So if you’ve had one of those old sherry matured whiskies where the balance between the sherry and spirit is seamless, … Continue reading
St. Magdalene 26 yo Cadenhead 1982 / 2008 52.7% vs St. Magdalene 32 yo Cadenhead 1982 / 2015 58.1%
St. Magdalene 26 yo Cadenhead 1982 / 2008 52.7% Later period St. Magdalene have this peculiar gasoline note and this is no exception. Linseed oil, dried grass, gasoline and new … Continue reading
Aultmore 2005 / 2018 Gordon & Macphail #15601007 for Whiskywarehouse Exclusive 54.1% vs Aultmore 25 yo 46% ~ 2014 bottling
Aultmore 2005 / 2018 Gordon & Macphail #15601007 for Whiskywarehouse Exclusive 54.1% Young ready whisky. Drinkable now or after another 20 years in the cask. Toasty. Fresh malty flavours full … Continue reading
Longrow 16 yo 1974 46% ~ mini, J & A Mitchell & Co Ltdvs Longrow 21 yo 1974 #1550 46%
Longrow 16 yo 1974 46% ~ mini, J & A Mitchell & Co Ltd Shoe polish, black grease, old camphor boxes stained with incense implements. Soot, old newspapers, gooped up … Continue reading
Lochside 21 yo 1979 / 2001 Silver Seal 50% vs Lochside 37 yo 1981 / 2018 The Whisky Agency 48.6%
The loss of this distillery is heartbreak without mend. Lochside 21 yo 1979 / 2001 Silver Seal 50% Not a common vintage, we know the 1981s. But are these fruity? … Continue reading
Lagavulin 10 yo 1988 / 1998 Horae Solaris Moon Import 50% vs Lagavulin 1988 Samaroli 56%
Lagavulin 10 yo 1988 / 1998 Horae Solaris Moon Import 50% I know the thing about Lagavulin and its consistent style, but there is so very little in this nose … Continue reading
Tomatin 23 yo 1981 / 2005 Whisky Wizard #18244 46% vs Tomatin 34 yo 1976 / 2010 The Whisky Agency & 3Rivers 51.1%
A Japanese owned behemoth that was once the largest producer of whisky with 23 stills, today it just has 12. Tomatin 23 yo 1981 / 2005 Whisky Wizard #18244 46% … Continue reading
Bunnahabhain 26 yo 1987 Highland Laird 51.1% vs Bunnahabhain 25 yo 1988 / 2013 La Maison du Whisky Artist 3 #18745 56.3%
Bunnahabhain 26 yo 1987 Highland Laird 51.1% Bunnahabhain usually comes across as having good weight, and it is evident here with these cold vegetable and nut oils, and congealed fat … Continue reading
Glen Garioch 1993 / 2014 Spirit & Cask Range #1794 52.9% vs Glen Garioch 25 yo 1990 Old Particular Douglas Laing #10989 56.9%
Glen Garioch 1993 / 2014 Spirit & Cask Range #1794 52.9% Very typical of these years. Austere and sharp, yet the wood’s given it sugar, vanilla pods and cream. Charcoal … Continue reading
Laphroaig 9 yo 2004 / 2013 Hunter Laing ‘Advance Sample’ #10054 50% vs Laphroaig 12 yo 2002 / 2014 Distillery only self fill cask #6930 57%
Laphroaig 9 yo 2004 / 2013 Hunter Laing ‘Advance Sample’ #10054 50% An onrush of medicinal iodine, bandages, brine, sea muck, salt crusted clothing, intense peat and raw smoked malt. … Continue reading
Glenfiddich 18 yo 40% vs Glenfiddich 37 yo 1964 / 2001 Ian Macleod #10791 58.7%
Yes, it’s a blatantly uneven match: Glenfiddich 18 yo 40% ~ 2016 bottling Light, supple and clearly well put together. It’s sherry garb colours it fruity with fresh plums, baked … Continue reading
Dalwhinnie Winter’s Gold 43% vs Dalwhinnie Lizzie’s Dram 48% vs Dalwhinnie distillery only 2008 / 2019 American Oak Single Cask 63.4% vs Dalwhinnie distillery only 2008 / 2019 Bodega Sherry Single Cask 63%
It was unseasonably warm in Scotland last week, and the highest, coldest distillery in Scotland was rather baking on a Thursday afternoon. Dalwhinnie Winter’s Gold 43% Exactly what winter’s gold … Continue reading
Domaine Dupont Millésime 1977 Calvados 42%
Domaine Dupont Millésime 1977 Calvados 42% Whiskyrific enjoys Rums and Mezcals on the side – What’s life without a pinch of variety? Calvados however is entirely new to me, and … Continue reading
Benrinnes 28 yo 1984 / 2013 Old & Rare Hunter Laing 49.8% vs Benrinnes 16 yo 1980 / 1996 Blackadder #1350 61.2%
Benrinnes 28 yo 1984 / 2013 Old & Rare Hunter Laing 49.8% It serves well to be reminded that Benrinnes had an atypical double-plus distillation regime till 2007, and one … Continue reading
Teaninich 34 yo 1983 / 2018 Berry Bros for Shinanoya #6729 46.2% vs Teaninich 18 yo James MacArthur (bottled 1991 ~ distilled circa 1973) 58.4% vs Teaninich SMWS 59.5
Teaninich 34 yo 1983 / 2018 Berry Bros for Shinanoya #6729 46.2% Huh! Flaking wax and brittle dried out resins. Bakelite, and something that resembles chemical ambergris (Creed Aventus is … Continue reading
Ben Nevis 19 yo 1996 / 2015 Fighting Fish 52.3% vs Ben Nevis 18 yo 1996 / 2014 The Whisky Agency 53.2%
Old, tatty and honest to goodness Ben Nevis. Ben Nevis 19 yo 1996 / 2015 Fighting Fish 52.3% I am late to the wonders of these 90s Ben Nevis. Wonderfully … Continue reading
Ardbeg 21 yo 1992 / 2013 Hunter Laing Old Malt Cask 15th Anniv. 50.2% vs Ardbeg 21 yo 1993 / 2014 Mackillop’s Choice #1289 54.3%
So there’s going to be a new core range 19 yo Official Bottling? Ardbeg 21 yo 1992 / 2013 Hunter Laing Old Malt Cask 15th Anniv. 50.2% It’s a perfectly … Continue reading
