Cognac 49 y.o. ‚Petite Champagne‘ 1970 – 2019, barrel, 49,2%

Comment: We don’t know the producing house but I have a hunch. It is very well-balanced, and no overboarding wood disturbs the pleasure full of nuts, plums, pineapple skin, tobacco smoke, Oyster Sauce, flowers, Asian spices, fruit cake with dried and caramellized fruits. Medium rancio though, this is more on subtleties on the lighter side – it unfolds lik an onion, give it time..it gradually becomes darker in character. medium-long finish. A high class Cognac, very typical. Not a 1960s-Bowmore-esque Berry Bomber, though (if you search for that unsusual profile).

Score: 89 – 90

Irish Single Malt 29 y.o., 1990 – 2019, barrel, 48,5%

Comment: When Irish Malts become this old, they become rare and expensive. Also did the load of older Emeralds dry recently, so this is really cool. This dram is still malty and has some wood spice to counter enormous tropical fruitiness, berries and lemongrass. Creamy, milky too, somehow: pineapple-vanilla milkshake, anyone? On the palate it plays out its strength the most: Mangos meet berries and blackcurrant. Yeah. I am a sucker for uber-fruitiness. Medium-length finish. Maybe not the best Irish from these years but certainly a great one. Got me a bottle…

Score: 91

Irish Single Malt 21 y.o., 1998 – 2019, barrel, 51,3%

Comment: A good age when usually fruitiness explodes in Irish drams. Is this in its prime yet? Yes. Wow, I like it. Bushmills 21, but more naked. Fresh and fruity, berries, vanilla, blackcurrant. All the way well-balanced, icecream topping quality. Absolutely typical, recommendation.

Score: 90 – 91

Irish Single Malt 16 y.o., 2003 – 2019, barrel, 51,9%

Comment: How does the youngest Irish contender hold its own? It is a nice example of a grassy and lemony version, discrete oak influence (spice), coconut too. Creamy, fruity, smooth, honest. Pistacchio. A good dram.

Score: 88

Littlemill 27 y.o., 1992 – 2020, hogshead, 52,3%

Comment: Thyme on roasted lamb, other Mediterranean herbs, pineapples, apple juice, Pak Choi, vanilla pod, pine cone, traces of Bourbon. Fragile and elegant all the way.

Score: 91

Secret Highland 34 y.o.,  1985 – 2019, hogshead, 47,0%

Comment: I like the pink grapefruit in this (hint – hint), nice old profile with big fruitiness and no offnote, fresh too, so spirit driven. Mangos, berries, blackcurrant, pineapple, maracuja and what not. Is there a smoked pink grapefruit? It would taste like this. Who needs distillery names

Score: 91+

Arran 17 y.o.,  2002 – 2020, Barrel, 49,2%

Comment: Spices on apples and pineapples, coconut, cappuccino froth, vanilla, peaches, Tarte Tatin, honey, pear cider, rosemary, Marshmallows, ozone, mossy brine. A fine Arran.

Score: 88+

Ben Nevis 23 y.o., 1996 – 2020, hogshead, 47,6%

Comment: Lychee sweetness, peaches, mango, herbs, roses, Alpine cheese, vanilla, apple crumble, sugar-coated nuts, honeyed malt, sandalwood candle, almost no wood. Amazing Ben Nevis from a great vintage for this distillery, fruitier than usual. Wow. This is en par with the Maltbarn release from last year which I adore as well.

Score: 92

Ledaig 25 y.o., 1995 – 2020, hogshead, 48,5%

Comment: Quite an aged Mull malt, rare indeed. The peat is secondary here, broken down into coastal aromas now. Malty, chalky, mineral, salty, briny. Air-dried ham, kiwi, peaches, melon, Atlantic seabreeze, wool, windswept sheep shack wood (sorry :)), leather, pepper. A pan of scallops deglazed with Vermouth and whisky. Aaah, this grows on you with every sip.

Score: 89+

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 let’s talk about the bottlings in brief fashion. The first batch has gone rather quick, so let’s just give an overview.

Batch Dec. 2013 / January 2014:

Auchentoshan 11 y.o. (2001): Very typical yet better than the original, somewhat bigger and oilier, nuts, grass, lemon zest, herbs, vanilla, spring onions and more soft spice elements, long finish. 87 points.

Blair Athol 10 y.o. (2002): Great allrounder qualities, fruity tail, the favourite for many tasters among this batch. 88 points.

Braeval 12 y.o. Sherry Butt (2001): 87 points.

Tamdhu 12 y.o. (2001): Very typical of Speyside, straight and honest dram. 85 points.

Benrinnes 10 y.o. Sherry Butt (2003): 86 points.

Ledaig 8 y.o. (2005): We all love the 2005 Ledaig with its huge peaty tang and the leather – shoe shine – apple aromas. This one makes no difference. Another favourite among the tasters: 88 points.

The new batch was just released in February 2014 and I expected the quality to drop a bit, but again these are bangs for your buck, really good quality and fair value. Check it out:

Batch February 2014:

Auchentoshan 12 y.o. (2001 – 2014): A fruitbasket of a Lowlander, then green apples, lemon zest, grass and vanilla. It drinks softly yet chewy, fruity and big with a good balance. 87 points.

Craigellachie 9 y.o. Refill Sherry Cask (2004 – 2014): Hay, dried flowers, maltiness, ginger bread, pumpkin pie spice, licorice, pineapple and white pepper at nosing; drinks sweeter as expected, great spiciness with a soft body and impeccable balance. 87 points.

Balmenach 12 y.o. (2001 – 2014): A mix of regional and tropical fruit, rather fruity overall, amazingly mature for its age, plus canned milk. Nice finish. 88 points.

Benrinnes 11 y.o. Refill Sherry Cask (2002 – 2014): Honey, dried flowers, malt, hay, ginger, lemon zest; tastes okayish but has not settled in balance yet, it could add complexitiy, too. 82 points.

Speyburn 9 y.o. Refill Sherry (Fino?) (2004 – 2014): My favourite bottling of the bunch – it really smells and tastes like the water inside the mushroom glass, then apple compote, grapes, fino sherry, canned milk, brine, tropical fruits (pineapple, guava) and spices (chili, pepper), deep and unusual yet mild. Amazing. 89 points.

Glenrothes 9 y.o. 1st-fill Sherry Cask (2004 – 2014): nice sherry nose, not too raisiny, grapes, blood oranges, cola mix, black pepper, Asian spice; mild taste; a wondeful sherry cask bottling. 88+ points.

So get your hands on some of these drams for daily pleasure or for learning whisky and single casks. Recommended stuff!

1) Ledaig 1998 for Malts of Scotland, 13 y.o. around 59% – exact dates coming soon (no label exists yet)

A wonderful drinking whisky in the peated genre – only few people wouldn’t put this on Islay in a blind tasting. This expression is significantly older and more mature than the recent Berry Bros. & Rudd releases of Ledaig, but surprisingly also a bit less complex. However, it still is a buy for me at a fair price – but hurry, these are quite limited- This is the second half of a Sherry Butt 800025, 256 btl. released by MoS in 2010.

Score: 88+

2) Maggie Miller’s new Port Ellen for the Scotch Single Malt Circle, 1982, 28 y.o., Cask 2860, 63,6%

This is a classic Port Ellen but nothing expressive or magical to it. Straight and honest bottling here, but not a must-have.

Score: 87

3) Bunnahabhain 1991 SSMC, 18 y.o. Sherry Cask 5447, 312 bottles, 54%

This SSMC bottling is a real stunner and worth more than the PE in my eyes – drink more Bunnahabhain, guys, there are beauties out there. This is wonderfully sherried and perfectly aged. People drank this big sweetie quickly at my stand.

Score: 90

And if you like your Ex-Sherry Bottlings even more complex and ‚old-time‘ get Maggie’s bang for a buck:

4) SSMC Glenlossie 1984, 25 y.o. , Sherry Cask 2534, 60%

L_O_V_E    I_T ! It is as good as  e.g. old Glenfarclas bottlings around the age of 30 and reminds me of classic mature Speyside Whisky from way back…the ones we hunt for at auctions. No offnote here, this is a classic! Don’t miss out on it! A big recommendation and this article’s second-highest score!

Score: 90+

5) Bunnahabhain 1997 – 2010 Octave (Duncan Taylor) for Malts and More, Sherry, 51,2%

This is a peated version that many people liked: big Sherry meets peat and Bunnahabhain’s style adds to the combo. More on primary notes but punchy and well-priced – another ‚easy-to-sip peater‘ like the Ledaig MoS. Mention our name to our friend Thomas Mansen for a little discount on this one.

Score: 87+

6) Glenglassaugh 1978 for Villa Konthor, 32 y.o., 46,2%

This I could try at the Whisky Agency stand, it was bottled for Villa Konthor (which we inaugurated in its basement with a memorable Slowdrink.de-Event!). A well-made Glenglassaugh, but not as magic as others from that time, rather fruit-driven with malty and woody sidekicks. But this is nit-picking: undoubtledly great whisky.

Score: 89+

7) Glen Grant 1972 MoS, 38 y.o., Sherry Hogshead Nr. 8235, 148 btl., 48,2%

Despite a different cask type, it resembles the style of the 1969 Lonach from my tasting (see article about Biberach tasting), which was also 38 y.o. – this one is a bit more fragile and not as strong on the mid-palate, but the complexity is just as great. Mature whisky of a fine distillery.

Score: 90-

8) Laphroaig 1996 – 2010, ‚Rolf’s No. 2‘, 14 y.o., matured in Bourbon Cask, finished in ex-Springbank Sherry Bloodtub, 66 btl., 58%

Last but not least, my favourite find of the day: this Laphroaig has been finished in an Ex-Spingbank Sherry Bloodtub which Rolf had bottled before as his ‚No. 1‘ (89/100). It has all the elements of a powerful Laphroaig plus another dimension given by the Sherry, perfectly integrated and without the blue-cheese that often goes with it in sherried Laphroaigs. Great balance, secondary and tertiary aromas have developed, rendering a wonderful maturity – therefore it is high quality stuff and dangerously drinkable! It somehow is bigger than other Laffis from that time. Mmmmmh. I could convince Rolf to sell me bottle 6/66

Score: 91-

However, one beauty has unjustly been forgotten – maybe because bottles are rarely seen: Ledaig, especially the ones distilled in 1972. Only few other whiskies offer such complexity paired with heavy peat – and high ‘drinkability’. The quality of the barley malt used at Tobermory/Ledaig was comparable to Talisker and Brora (same source) in that year and has been delivering equally stunning results. In my eyes, good 1972 Ledaigs rank up as high as some fine Ardbegs of this period. I would trade some Islay Malts of the 70ies any time for a nice Ledaig!

Unfortunately, more recent Ledaigs fail to reach the level of quality the proprietors achieved between 1972 (reopening) and 1975. One can already see a decline after 1972. Only the 1972s possess this elegant maritime character of salt, spices, iodine, tar, a hint of sulphur, peat and smoke along with peach, gorse, vanilla, and numerous other aromas in perfect balance. Later in 1974, the peat levels were decreased which made briny fruits come forth in the whiskies of this time. Nowadays, the leading aromas of this Mull Malt are farmyardy and vegetal with more peat again since the 90ies. But now Ledaig seems to be back: Recently there were a few great young Ledaigs, e.g. by Berry Bros & Rudd, real peat bombs. You should give those a try if you are into the described profile.

Having been a fan of Ledaig for quite a while now, I keep trying expressions of 1972 and the years after, although bottles are hard to get. The photo shows some of my 1972 Ledaigs (I added a few and have no recent picture), and some of them are not yet sampled or opened (e.g. the Moon Animal Series (soapy!), the black labeled G&M, etc.). The following list shows my personal favourites which I have tasted until now – and is, of course, open for discussion.

1. 95 – Ledaig 18 yo 1972 (55,9%, James MacArthur, 75cl)
2. 94 – Macnab 15yo (43%, Unknown Bottler, Unknown bottling year, 75cl, Rumoured to be Ledaig distilled in 1972)
3. 94 – Tobermory (Ledaig) 1972/1995 (50%, Moon Import, ‚De Viris Illustribus‘)
4. 94 – Ledaig 1972/1997 (49,8%, SMWS, 42.8)
5. 93 – Ledaig 22yo 1972/1995 (51.3%, Cadenhead’s)
6. 90 – Ledaig 32yo 1972/2005 (48,9%, Alambic Classique Coll., Sherry Butt – same content as Curious Birds-Bottling by Bernd Wolf)
7. 90 – Ledaig 1974/1992 (56%, OB)
8. 90 – Ledaig 1972 (40%, G&M Conn. Choice, old cream label miniature, different ages)
9. 89 – Ledaig 14yo 1973 (Red Sestante label, 56,3% – watch out, this one exists with 40% as well)
10. 89 – Ledaig 31yo 1973/2004 (54,8%, Chieftain’s Choice Sherry Hogshead 1710)
11. 89 – Ledaig 32yo 1972/2004 (48,5%, OB, Oloroso Sherry Butt Finish)
12. 89 – Ledaig 30yo 1974/2005 (48,7%, Signatory, Sherry Cask 3223)
13. 89 – Ledaig 1973/1995 (53,4%, Cadenhead)
14. 88 – Ledaig 32yo 1973/2005 (45%, Chieftain’s Choice, 240 btl.)
15. 87 – Ledaig 1974/2000 (40%, G&M Conn. Choice, map label)
16. 87 – Ledaig 1974/1992 (43%, OB)
17. 86 – Ledaig 30yo 1974/2005 (48%, Signatory, 204 btl.)