Die letzten Feiern nahmen sich entweder ein Thema (Whisky, Craft Beer, Rum, Cognac/Brandy, Wein, begleitende Speisen, etc.) in seiner ganzen Tiefe vor oder mischten, damit für alle Teilnehmer etwas dabei war. Diese durchweg sehr schönen Abende waren stets kurzweilig, lustig und brachten unserer Sache wiedereinige neue Interessenten. Dabei arbeiten wir non-profit.

Vielleicht ist so ein Event mit Niveau und edutainment auch etwas für Ihren Anlass – sprechen Sie mit uns (auch die Dauer und die Location wären flexibel, evtl. auch im Whiskymuseum, einer privaten Bar oder der Kochschule). Es moderiert immer ein Experte, der mit Herzblut in seinem Feld unterwegs ist und besondere Tropfen kredenzt, die Sie begeistern werden.

Hier ein paar Impressionen:

Glentauchers 8 y.o. Hepburn’s Choice 2005 – 2014, sherry butt, 310 btl., 46%

Comment: A creamy and fat dram with a wonderful sherry influence (Pedro Ximenez?) and counterbalancing spice combo. I am getting maraschino cherries and cherry juice, ginger bread, tangerine, fudge (Werther’s Echte) and vanilla. My favourite in this batch.

Score: 89

Fettercairn 8 y.o. Hepburn’s Choice 2005 – 2014, refill hogshead, 377 btl., 46%

Comment: A malty and nutty whisky that still has some green elements of shrub wood. The leading aromas are toffee, apples and pears, pineapple, dried flowers and CO2 carbonation smells (yes, unusual).

Score: 83

Glenallachie 9 y.o. Hepburn’s Choice 2005 – 2014, sherry butt, 299 btl., 46%

Comment: Something went wrong in filtering this one, it is a bit cloudy, but this doesn’t impact the flavour. Raisins, dates and sherry cask aromas dominate the nose (better than the palate), a Christmas cake with peppery and fresh elements as well, good balance, but not very complex.

Score: 84

Braeval 12 y.o. Hepburn’s Choice 2001 – 2014, sherry butt, 660 btl., 46%

Comment: Hello smoke, peat and moss, I didn’t expect you in this concentration. A complex and powerful yet elegant dram with goarse, sweet fruits (maraschino) and apricots plus the ‚Island-esque‘ touch on the side. A great learning experience, hard to guess in a blind tasting.

Score: 87

Glen Grant 10 y.o. Hepburn’s Choice 2004 – 2014, refill hogshead, 390 btl., 46%

Comment: A very typical example of this reliable distillery. Nicely fruity, mature and fat with quite some bourbon cask influence, like a cream toffee. There are traces of tropical fruits and dextrose in the aroma while the palate seems to be spicier and greener than the nose suggested.

Score: 85

Dailuaine 8 y.o. Hepburn’s Choice 2005 – 2014, sherry butt, 393 btl., 46%

Comment: A good nose, although a bit on the raisiny side of the sherry world. This is a round and sweet dram with good integration of cristalline flavours and some more spice on the palate than I expected, already mature.

Score: 86

Blair Athol 11 y.o. Hepburn’s Choice 2002 – 2014, refill hogshead, 421 btl., 46%

Comment: Its predecessor was a winner and this one doesn’t fail either with this discrete Highland understatement. Soft, round and complex (like me) displaying notes of moss, tea, pear, vineyard peaches paired with good acidity. A real steal.

Score: 88

Glencadam 10 y.o. Hepburn’s Choice 2004 – 2014, refill hogshead, 46%

Comment: Mashy and malty start, the leading aromas are pear (!), caramel, vanilla, nougat, coffee, oak, ginger bread, pistachio and flowers. With time, Asian spice and fruity elements surface.

Score: 85

Tamdhu 12 y.o. Hepburn’s Choice 2001 – 2014, refill hogshead, 153 btl., 46%

Comment: Tarte tatin (Calvados)! Funny at first, a round and sweet dram with good length. After the ‚tarty‘ start it settles to reveal dough, caramel, moss, green grapes, canned pears, malt, ginger, almonds, white oak and white pepper.

Score: 84

Jura 8 y.o. Hepburn’s Choice 2006 – 2014, refill butt, 598 btl., 46%

Comment: Quite complex for its age – leather, spices (chili, too), mashy malt, coffee, maritime ozone, joghurt, pistachio, polished oak, peaches and more.

Score: 86

Ledaig 6 y.o.  Hepburn’s Choice 2008 – 2014, refill hogshead, 46%

Comment: As a fan of Ledaig, I was curious to try a younger vintage before the often released 2005. This one is still close to a new make (wild ride, baby), but with huge potential. Despite its young vegetal peatiness, the emerging complexity already shines through: shoe shine, iodine, suede, green apples and smoke are leading elements. These 2008 Ledaigs seem to be as peaty as 2005, maybe even more phenol ppm in action. Promising stuff.

Score: 86

After these releases came out, there also were a young Talisker, Caol Ila and a Laphroaig, all of which I haven’t tried yet. Overall, these drams without colouring (not chill-filtered) are a reasonable choice among the many ’no age statement‘ or finished bottlings we see at weird prices these days, I think. Honest stuff, nothing fancy, some better, some worse, but real whisky to understand the product without mascerade – which we like.

Now, everything is back on track, so let’s  tackle the fine Portsoy whisky finished in Crimean sweet wine casks in a head to head. They spent most of their time in refill casks before, then about 18 months of finishing was conducted.

Glenglassaugh 45 y.o. Massandra Collection 1967 Red Port Style Finish, 50,2%

This oldest version reveals the same style like the other 1960ies distillates, which is more than a good thing. It is by far the deepest, most balanced and noble expression of the pack with a medium influence of the cask (18 months) on rather dark wood. At the core of this complexity I am getting  dark fruits (cherry, plum, cake soaked with Port, rum raisins), dried fruit, cotton candy sweetness and Asian spices (incl. sandalwood) paired with white and black pepper – all in this subtle and deep manner, really amazing and flawless. 92+ points.

Glenglassaugh 39 y.o. Massandra Collection 1972 Sherry Style Finish, 53,3%

The cask influence on this whisky is rather discrete. However this fruity and slightly dry Glassa is a banana bomb. Really, I have never tasted a whisky more Chiquita than this one (not even old Tomintoul), it reminds me of the Arcane rum somehow or even resembles a banana milk shake in taste. And these notes grow bigger with time. Before embarking on the banana boat there was lemon zest, apple and pear (in a dextrose-like crystalline way), ginger, white pepper, lavender and jasmine. What a fun dram, yet not my favourite 1972 Glenglassaugh. 90 points.

Glenglassaugh 39 y.o. Massandra Collection 1973 Aleatico Finish, 50,7%

This is the most expressive and unusual one in the bunch, rather spicy (chili, black pepper)with dry tannins. It comes across winey, also a bit like a Spanish Brandy. Does this come from the sweet wine made from formerly Italian grapes? There are aromas of coffee, canned milk, beef jerky, nougat crème, dark fruits (raisins, cherries, dried apricots), toffee and woody notes (resin, tannin). The Aleatico is hard to judge because it is so full of life yet not as round as other old Glassas. The spices prevent the subtle dextrose-like fruitiness to unfold. Some might love it, some will find it okayish and interesting. Let’s settle at 89+ points, some might go higher here.

Glenglassaugh 39 y.o. Massandra Collection 1973 Muscat Finish, 44,1%

I expected the least of this one because I am not a fan of the wine not this way of finishing. And at my first whiff I felt reassured: there were rosewater, petals, litschi, all quite unusual for this distillery. But there was more and I saw that I judged too quickly: the flowery notes from the wine finish went away after a minute and gave room for the most stunning ‘1960ies-Bowmore-esque’ profile I had in quite a while: cassis fruitiness, berries, wine gum, herbs of the Provence, forest walk (leafs, pine needles, etc.), lemon skin, pears, candy floss, canned milk, rising dough, caramel and vanilla, all discrete and in perfect balance. What an elegant surprise! 92 points.

Glenglassaugh 33 y.o. Massandra Collection 1978 Madeira Style Finish, 44,8%

The last one also doesn’t disappoint but has a greener and more malty profile with less fruit than its predecessors. Its aromas are based on dry and peppery elements, nettles, chili, ginger, smoke from burning pine needles and raisins. 89 points.

Summary: In a nutshell, this collection is great for Glenglassaugh connoisseurs who want to experience different vintages and the wood influence on their dram. None of these whiskies is a let-down, but I clearly favour the noble 1967 Port version followed by the quaffable 1973 Muscat finish with its fruity tail. The Aleatico is for cowboys who like their dram wild and spicy, rum lovers will enjoy the 1972 Sherry most and the Speyside purists go for the Madeira from 1978. However, if you are new to vintage Glenglassaugh prior to the 1980ies, I recommend going for the recent 1972 releases (like the one from winter 2012/13 released for Germany which scored 93 points in my books) because they are more typical. Thanks to Andrea Caminneci for providing me with these nectars.

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