Review: Longmorn The Distiller’s Choice (vs. 16yo)

Posted on 7th Mar 2016 by Steve Prentice

Longmorn Distiller’s Choice vs. Longmorn 16 Year Old

Longmorn – The Distiller’s Choice – 40% abv

Info: No Age Statement. Aged in a combination of hogsheads, sherry casks and bourbon barrels.
Colour: Lightish golden, ripe corn.
Nose: Distillery character evident, it’s good to smell whisky that smells like… whisky, if you get what I mean (you probably don’t, I’m rambling). There’s caramelly toffee notes, cracked dried nuts and hints of oaks and hessian and a handful of spices. There’s a slight spirit nip, even at 40% which might indicate (along with the distillery character) that this is a younger whisky.
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Review: Douglas Laing’s Rock Oyster Cask Strength

Posted on 6th Mar 2016 by Steve Prentice

Rock Oyster Cask Strength – Douglas Laing – 57.4% abv

Info: Contains Island malts, including those from Islay, Arran, Orkney and Jura. No colouring or chill-filtration.
Colour: Light straw, nice and honest.
Nose: Sweet and punchy barley spirit with nicely present, but gentle peat. Some younger distillery notes poking out which help to round the dram into something great.
Palate: Thick and oily, but quite easy on your tongue considering the high strength. It’s sweet, lightly peaty, some burning embers, and some green berries.
Finish: A finish that builds and builds, a really fresh almost eucalyptusy thing, leading into a sweet ending with just enough hints of peat to keep it going for ages.
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Review: Douglas Laing’s Yula

Posted on 5th Mar 2016 by Steve Prentice

Yula – 20yo – Douglas Laing – 52.6% abv

Info: First of a three part trilogy, 900 bottles. Cask strength maritime malt distilled in 1995, combining Islay and Island whiskies.
Colour: Ripe straw to light golden.
Nose: Instantly you’re into a gentle nose, the sort that you only get with a bit more age in good casks. There’s floral hints there, along with a note of coal and older peat, the sort of peat that’s lost some of it’s instant fireyness and toned down a little. It’s fruity with notes of grapefruit and gooseberries.
Palate: The palate is lovely and thick, with a little bit of drying wood tannins hitting you quite quickly before settling down with the floral notes coming forward (90’s Bowmore?). There’s reminiscent sweets here of things like Parma Violets, love hearts and refreshers, however they’re all there with an older edge to them.
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Review: Glenmorangie Milsean

Posted on 4th Mar 2016 by Steve Prentice

Glenmorangie Private Edition VII Milsean – 46% abv

Info: Matured in ex-bourbon casks and then extra-matured in former wine casks, re-toasted for the purpose.
Colour: Bright golden with slight caramelly orange tints.
Nose: With some attention you can find the Morangie notes there, but at first it seems a bit of a different beast. It benefits from a few moments in the air to open up. There’s sweet nutty notes, candy floss, barley and spices (sweet spices, cinnamon, etc). Pleasant stuff.
Palate: Fairly thick and really quite easy, I was expecting it to be introduced more sharply. However, with a bit of time the spices build a little, but it stays thick and fairly sweet… we’re talking a balanced sweetness, not too much. Barley notes not so evident at this point.
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Review: Yoichi

Posted on 21st Feb 2016 by Steve Prentice

Yoichi – NAS – 43% abv

Info: A no age statement single malt produced by the Yoichi Distillery, the first distillery established by Nikka in 1934.
Colour: Golden.
Nose: Hints of peat and citrusy boiled sweets. Light tropical citrus fruits and some sweet grass notes.
Palate: Thicker than expected. Tiny pinch of spices, lots of citrus sweet malt and the most gentle peaty hints.
Finish: Hints of younger malt notes, medium lasting length.
Thoughts: Easy, enjoyable, fresh and a little different! Nice.
Available: Master of Malt £39.25, or ministryofdrinks.co.uk

Thanks to Master of Malt for the sample.

Review: Glenfarclas 25yo

Posted on 26th Jan 2016 by Steve Prentice

Glenfarclas 25yo – 43% abv

Info: It’s Glenfarclas, and it’s 25 years old!
Colour: Early sunset orange.
Nose: Big, rich and classic, just what you’d expect and hope for from this malt. Gentle malt, big sherry, the gentle sort of sherry, not the dark PX types. The orange colour follows to the nose, there’s a citrusy orange peel.
Palate: Instant candied citrus sweetness meets you with a very approachable and smooth palate. Sometimes sherry matured whiskies of this age can get a little too spicy for me, but this is a lovely balanced palate with just a pinch of spices to give it some gravitas. It’s creamy, with oaks after a while.
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Review: GlenDronach Peated

Posted on 12th Jan 2016 by Steve Prentice

GlenDronach Peated – 46% abv

Info: Peated, unusually for GlenDronach. Initially matured in bourbon casks before being finished in Oloroso and Pedro Ximénez Sherry casks. NAS.
Colour: Ripe straw to light gold.
Nose: Instant peaty hit, we’re talking a smoked peat, a lightish mossy highland peat rather than a punchy coastal TCP island style. There’s rich malt playing nicely with a medium level of peat, both complimenting each other with good level of sweetness from some sherry cask influence. The peaty malt has a dusty quality with a sweet toffee fruit note. A very smellable dram!
Palate: Sweet peaty malt covers your tongue with nice thick oils. It’s not over powering, meaning that you can hold it on your tongue for a long time to enjoy and explore the flavours.
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Review: The GlenDronach 12 Year Old

Posted on 5th Jan 2016 by Steve Prentice

GlenDronach 12yo ‘Original’ – 43% abv

Info: Matured for at least 12 years in a combination of Spanish PX & Oloroso sherry casks. Non-chill filtered, natural colour.
Colour: Rich sunset gold, rusty orange tints.
Nose: Instant rich and deep sherry bomb tones on this fine malt. Plenty of ripe plump winter fruits and packed with nuts. Hints of menthol and gentle oaks.
Palate: Fairly oily and easier on the palate than expected; sweet, honied and wonderful with the Christmas / Dundee type of fruit cake notes coming out.
Finish: Long with brown sugar caramel and honeyed fruits.
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Review: Girvan 25yo Old Particular (vs Girvan 25yo Proprietary)

Posted on 29th Dec 2015 by Steve Prentice

Girvan 25 Year Old – Old Particular – 51.1% abv

Info: Distilled by Girvan grain distillery in December 1989 and filled into cask 10805. Bottled by Old Particular (Douglas Laing) in June 2015.
Colour: Ripening straw.
Nose: Nice, light and sprightly… fairly spirity with a great grain nose, slightly closed, but opens up with time and a bit of warmth. Lovely old, subtle nut tones from the cask. Sweet vanilla and milk chocolatey hints.
Palate: The higher abv is fairly easy going on your palate – very slightly hot maybe, but the age helps to make it rounded and creamy. It’s medium thick feeling, and fairly sweet.
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Review: GlenDronach Cask Strength Batch 5

Posted on 20th Dec 2015 by Steve Prentice

GlenDronach Cask Strength – Batch 5 – 55.3% abv

Info: NAS, cask strength, non chill filtered and natural colour. Matured in a combination of PX and Oloroso sherry casks.
Colour: Vibrant autumnal gold.
Nose: Rich, punchy deep sherry nose. There’s winter fruits in abundance, blackcurrants, redcurrants, loganberries, cranberries, fat juicy currants, sultanas and raisins. All underlined with a buttery creamy malt and hints of oak wood.
Palate: Instantly a great crushed nut and gentle oak note which leads into the sweet deep malty fruits. It’s a bowl of stewed winter fruits with thick Birds vanilla custard on it. Thick and enjoyably oily.
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