Springbank 10 year old 100°

Springbank 10 year old 100°
Bottled by: Distillery
ABV: 50%
Other: Non chill filtered, no color added.
Region: Campbeltown
Price: $50
Availability: Readily available

Springbank is the best-known Campbeltown distillery and essentially sets the standard for that small whisky region. In addition to their namesake line of single malts, they produce a highly peated version known as Longrow, named for a nearby distillery that closed in 1896. Springbank is one of few distilleries (if not the only one) these days in which the floor malting, distillation, maturation and bottling are all done on the premises.

This version is bottled at a fairly high 100° which allows you to add water as you see fit (I usually drink neat or with only the slightest drop of water) . Springbank also offers a standard 10 year old at 92°. As with other Springbanks, this is admirably bottled without added color or chill-filtration.

Tasting Notes
Color
pale straw
Nose
Butterscotch and banana notes with modest peat smoke. Buttered popcorn.
Flavor
Medium-bodied. Palate entry is sweet butterscotch again with a tangy mid-palate and a hot, spicy finish with some medium peat. Full flavored and nicely balanced.
Finish
Long and spicy with medium smokiness
Rating
90

Overall impression and notes: I've enjoyed every malt I have tasted from this distillery and this is no exception. While the proof is fairly high at 50% abv, this malt is eminently enjoyable with or without added water and has some very interesting and full flavors for a 10 year old.

Old Pulteney 12 year old

Old Pulteney 12 year old
Bottled by: Distillery
ABV: 43%
Region: Highlands
Price: $30
Availability: Readily available in specialty shops

Old Pulteney, located in the town of Wick, is the most northerly whisky distillery on the Scottish mainland. It sits on the east coast about 40 miles northeast of the Clynelish distillery. Both distilleries produce whiskies praised by connoisseurs as having a "maritime" character. Old Pulteney is known as the "Manzanilla of the North" in reference to the famous, delicate fino sherry produced in the coastal Spanish town Sanlucar de Barrameda.

According to the bottle sleeve, the stills are quite odd: the wash has no swan neck and it is thought that when the original still was delivered, it was too tall for the stillhouse and the manager insisted it was "cut off". The spirit still resembles a "smuggler's kettle" and both undoubtedly contribute to the distinctive character of the whisky. I found pictures of both stills in this informative post here and there is little question that they were jury rigged to fit within the constraints of the premises.

Tasting Notes
Color
Medium amber with a reddish tinge
Nose
Bright and fruity (apricot), light sherry oak. Butterscotch candies
Flavor
Starts out deceptively medium-bodied and round, with a sweet richness which dissolves into a light-bodied, mouthwatering, spicy finish. Some bitter orange, more apricot. Flavors are light and delicate.

Finish
Medium, spicy, warming

Rating
87

Overall impression and notes: This was an enjoyable new Highland malt for me. Not the most complex or flavorful dram, but a very enjoyable nose and a pleasant balance of sweetness and spice on the palate. A nice Highland counterpoint to the typical Speysider.

Highland Park 18 year old

Highland Park 18 year old
Bottled by: Distillery
ABV: 43%
Region: Islands (Orkney)
Price: $100
Availability: Readily available in specialty shops

I first tried Highland Park 18 year old several years back when my scotch-drinking Uncle was in town for vacation. We picked up a bottle at Hi-Time and drank it next to the 12 year old. The differences are quite pronounced. The additional barrel age provides extra richness and brings forth more of the complexities from the sherry wood such as leather and nutty elements.

Today the bottles have changed to the "flask" shape shown in the Highland Park 12 year old post. I still have the bottle like the one shown above which has a nice impression of the Orkney islands molded on the bottom.

See the Highland Park 12 year old post for details of the distillery.

Tasting Notes
Color
Medium-dark amber
Nose
Delicate peat, dried fruits, a floral element. More sherry and oak than the 12y. Even more complexity.
Flavor
Medium-to full-bodied. As with the 12y, an incredible roundness and balance of flavors but richer and more elegant still. Retains the sweet honey, complex dried-fruit character of the 12y, with additional sherry and oak intensity. Some nuttiness. Leather. Vanilla. An endless cascade of incredibly well-balanced and integrated flavors.
Finish
Long, rich, round, oaky
Rating
97

Overall impression and notes: I've had this malt on many occasions now and I'm very comfortable saying that Highland Park 18 year old is the single best spirit of any kind ever to have passed my lips to-date. Period. Reserving the extra 3 points for a perfect score is really only wishful thinking on my part - some motivation to continue the search for something better, however unlikely.

Worth every penny at around $100, but an absolute steal at the $50-60 it was a few years ago...

Highland Park 12 year old

Highland Park 12 year old
Bottled by: Distillery
ABV: 43%
Region: Islands (Orkney)
Price: $35
Availability: Readily available in specialty shops

Highland Park has long been a favorite whisky. Ever since reading about it in the late Michael Jackson's definitive Complete Guide to Single Malt Scotch, I've had somewhat of a fascination with the malt. Its place on top of the pillar was firmly established in my first real blind scotch tasting (many, many moons ago) when both my friend Rob and I picked HP 12 as the undisputed victor among many other respectable malts. Since that time, I've regularly purchased bottles of the 12 and 18 year old versions and never cease to be amazed by the richness and bottomless depth of flavors they possess.

Highland Park distillery is located on the island of Orkney and is the most northerly in Scotland. Aside from their selection of dry Oloroso sherry casks for aging the whisky, the distillery makes much about the malting of the barley and the peat used. According to their website:

Highland Park is one of only a handful of distilleries where the expensive and physically demanding custom of turning malt by hand still takes place. Highland Park malt costs two and a half times as much as industrially processed malt. Some 20% of the malt used to make Highland Park comes from Orkney.

The remainder is either malted at one of its sister distilleries, Tamdhu (to Highland Park specifications), or comes from Simpsons, a high quality malt producer located in the Scottish Borders. The Orcadian malt is 40 phenol parts per million whereas that from Tamdhu and Simpsons is only 1-2ppm. Together they create the balance for which Highland Park is renowned.

Highland Park is one of only five distilleries that continue the tradition of hand-tuning malt on site. This process is very expensive and labour intensive – which is why most distillers have long since abandoned the practice.

Regarding the peat:

Samples of Orkney peat have relatively more carbohydrate derivatives whereas those from Islay have lignin derivatives more prevalent. Overall the conclusion is that there is a different chemical fingerprint in the peat which will probably make a difference to the overall flavour of the whisky.

It is no exaggeration to say that peat is the terroir of (island) whiskies. The smokey notes of Highland Park come from this degenerating plant material that is prevalent on the islands of Scotland. The peats of Orkney are some 9,000 years old (younger than those of Islay) and the deepest bogs are at most four metres deep. Highland Park takes its peat from selected banks on Hobbister Moor, combining cuttings taken from three distinct levels to create the required character. Fogg; the top layer, approximately 1,800 years old is taken from just below the surface is rich in heather and rootlets. Yarphie; the darker, more compacted second layer generates less smoke and more heat. Moss; the deepest and, therefore, oldest layer (approx 9,000 years) is lumpen and almost coal-like.

Following are my tasting notes taken during from a recently purchased bottle of the newer "flask" shaped variety pictured above. I can't speak to specific variations in flavors/quality over time other than to say that every bottle of HP that I've had at any age has the unmistakable richness and complexity that I've come to treasure from this distillery.

Tasting Notes
Color
Medium amber
Nose
Delicate peat, apricot, oak, sherry. Staggering depth and complexity.
Flavor
Medium-to full-bodied. Incredible roundness and balance of flavors. Begins sweet and honey-accented, then waves of rich smoke, flamed bitter orange peel and sherry follow.
Finish
Long, rich, round.
Rating
94

Overall impression and notes: Michael Jackson famously described Highland Park as being the "greatest all-rounder" in the world of malt whisky. There is no question about that. This malt fires on all cylinders - it is all at once characterful, balanced, sweet, smoky, and sherry-accented with some delicious fruit flavors. None of these elements dominate, but rather they're all there in equal measure as part of the overall symphony of flavors.

It's a masterpiece - deep in complexity and worthy of being a permanent fixture in any respectable Scotch collection. This is absolutely the single best under-$40 spirit in the world.

Longrow CV

Longrow CV
Bottled by: Distillery (Springbank)
ABV: 46%
Other: Vatting of 6, 10, 14 year old malts in rum, sherry, port, bourbon casks. Non chill filtered, no color added.
Region: Campbeltown
Price: $50
Availability: Readily available in specialty shops

Springbank is the best-known Campbeltown distillery and essentially sets the standard for that small whisky region. In addition to their namesake line of single malts, they produce a highly peated version known as Longrow, named for a nearby distillery that closed in 1896. Longrow whisky is double-distilled, as opposed to two and a half times for the standard Springbanks. Springbank is one of few distilleries (if not the only one) these days in which the floor malting, distillation, maturation and bottling are all done on the premises.

As with other Springbanks, this is bottled at a respectable 46% abv and without added color or chill-filtration.

I've long wanted to try Longrow, but their 10 and 14 year old bottlings are typically on the expensive side ($100+). This vatting was designed to be easier on the wallet, while still offering some of the complexities of the older age whisky. After reading through several online articles, it appears to be a consensus that the malt is a vatting of 6, 10 and 14 year old malts from port, sherry, rum and bourbon woods.

CV stands for "Curriculum Vitae" which is a common term for a "resume" in the UK. I suppose the idea is that the CV bottling represents a "first look" at the varied attributes of this malt.

Tasting Notes
Color
Medium-straw
Nose
Firm, but not overpowering peat. Some sweet, crisp malty notes. Appetizing. A faint hint of rum

Flavor
Medium-bodied. Nice malty, sweet opening followed by a wave of
complex peat and spice
Finish
Peaty, spicy, long
Rating
91

Overall impression and notes: I really like the sweet malty undertones of this malt - it is reminiscent of the character of Glen Scotia 14 year old - a Campbeltown trademark perhaps? The youth of this malt is apparent but, at the same time, so is its age - there is a lot of complexity for a malt at this price point.

For those looking for a peaty malt off the well-trodden Islay path, this is highly recommended.

Single Malt Port Wood Showdown

During a visit to my parent's house today, my Dad, Rachel, Jeremy and I conducted a Port Wood finished single malt scotch tasting. My Dad has been a longtime proponent of the Glenmorangie Port Wood finish bottling (recently changed) and received a bottle of the Cragganmore Distiller's Edition from me last Christmas. I brought my bottle of Balvenie 21y and we sat down and ranked the whiskies, which were tasted blind.

The contenders:

1. Balvenie 21 year old PortWood
2. Glenmorangie 12 year old Port Wood finish
3. Cragganmore Distiller's Edition (d 1992, b 2005)

Tasting notes:
Balvenie - My detailed notes and info here. Described by Jeremy as more peaty than the others
Glenmorangie - My detailed notes and info here. Described by Jeremy as "flavory"

Cragganmore - My detailed notes and info here. Rachel noted some banana flavors.

It was interesting that we pretty much agreed on the rankings. Overall rankings:

***First Place***
Glenmorangie 12 year old Port Wood Finish
#1 on all of our lists

**Second Place**
Balvenie 21 year old PortWood
Matt, Rich, Jeremy had this #2, Rachel had it #3

*Third Place*
Cragganmore Distiller's Edition
Matt, Rich, Jeremy had this #3, Rachel had it #2

Final notes: It's nice to see that the most outwardly port-influenced malt was the clear winner in this tasting. I was personally a bit disappointed that my bottle of 21 year old Balvenie did not fare better, but such is the honesty of a blind tasting. The other disappointment is that Glenmorangie has discontinued this particular port wood bottling in favor of a much higher priced "Quinta Ruban" bottling. I have not yet tried it.

Glenmorangie 12 year old Port Wood Finish

Glenmorangie 12 year old Port Wood Finish
Bottled by: Distillery
ABV: 43%
Region: Highlands
Price: $35
Availability: No longer bottled in this version. Newer version labeled Quinta Ruban and sold at around $60.

Glenmorangie is a somewhat ubiquitous malt and was sold in all three wood finishes (port wood, madeira wood and sherry wood) at Trader Joe's until the last few years. All were pretty good, but the port wood was always my favorite of the bunch.

Tasting Notes
Color
Distinct rosy hue
Nose
Winey, with dark fruits (plums, berries) and American oak (bourbon, vanilla)
Flavor
sweet floral notes, more dark fruits (plum, raspberry). Medium bodied. Lots going on here.
Finish
Smooth, long, complex
Rating
90+

Overall impression and notes: Tasted as part of the "Port Wood Showdown" this malt was tops on everyone's list. Very interesting and complex. The most overtly port-like in color, aroma and flavors. A shame that it's being sold at such a higher price these days.

Cragganmore Distiller's Edition

Cragganmore Distiller's Edition

Bottled by: Distillery

ABV: 40%

Other: port wood cask CgggD-6557, distilled 1992, bottled 2005

Region: Highlands (Speyside)

Price: $50

Availability: available at specialty stores

I first tried the distiller's editions of all of the 6 malts in the classic malts line as part of a mini bottle set that Jennifer and Don brought back from their first trip to Scotland. All of the malts are finished for a period in a special cask which ideally complements the base malt. The Cragganmore is finished in port wood casks.

Tasting Notes
Color
light gold
Nose
appetizing, barley graininess, malt, subtle oak
Flavor
Delicate malt, an underlying sweetness that never really comes forth. Restrained.
Finish

Dry, a bit short

Rating

84

Overall impression and notes: This malt was tasted as part of the "Port Wood Showdown" and was restrained and light in flavor relative to its counterparts. A pleasant enough dram which is likely more enjoyable on its own, rather than next to more flavorful bottlings. The strength is fairly unusually low - most specialty bottlings are 43-46%.

Balvenie 21 year old Port Wood

Balvenie 21 year old PortWood

Bottled by: Distillery

ABV: 43%

Other: Aged in American oak and finished in port pipes.

Region: Highlands (Speyside)

Price: $150 (now, was about $80 when purchased)

Availability: Readily available

I am a fan of Balvenie's malts. Their DoubleWood is an excellent value and the single barrel 15y is complex and interesting. The port wood is aged 21 years, mostly in "whisky oak" which is Scottish for American oak and finished in port pipes (barrels)

Tasting Notes
Color
medium-dark gold
Nose
sweet, syrupy, some oak influence
Flavor
medium-full bodied, Nice complexity on the front end, some syrupy notes followed by a fairly warm, oaky finale.

Finish

long, but a bit hot

Rating

88

Overall impression and notes: Tasted as part of the "Port Wood Showdown". This malt has a lot going for it - the nose was very interesting and the palate entry is rich and sweet, but utlimately the mid-palate and finish failed to propel this malt to the next level. Quite enjoyable, but there are better values out there. Also, the port-wood influence on this malt is certainly less distinguishable than the Glenmorangie.

Talisker 10 year old

Talisker 10 Year Old

Bottled by: Distillery

ABV: 45.8%

Region: Islands (Skye)

Price: $45

Availability: Readily available

I first tried Talisker 10 year old in a "Classic Malts" tasting set which included it, Lagavulin 16y, Dalwhinnie 15y, Glenkinchie 10y, Cragganmore 12y and Oban 14y. Not a bad set. This was my first real foray into scotch and although I was not necessarily ready for the intensity of the Lagavulin and Talisker malts at that time, they left a strong impression on me.

Tasting Notes
Color
full gold

Nose
winey, very delicate peat
Flavor
from a fruity, winey start, builds into a big and powerful smoky finale. Notions of English Latakia-blend pipe tobacco.

Finish

Spicy, peppery, powerful, long

Rating

91+

Overall impression and notes: I do not remember this malt being so winey - it may be due to tasting it next to the Bowmore and Port Ellen. I went back and forth on whether or not the wineyness in the nose was to my liking, but the flavor and finish on this malt are excellent. The spicy, powerful finish is legendary.

Bowmore 17 year old

Bowmore 17 Year Old

Bottled by: Distillery

ABV: 43%

Region: Islay

Price: $60

Availability: No longer bottled at this age. Now replaced by an 18 year old. Becoming scarce.

My first Bowmore discovery was through a small bottle collection that was available at Costco. If memory serves, it included the legend, 12y, 17y and 21y. My recollection is that Bowmore ages very well, with my favorite being the 21y. The purchase of this bottle of the 17y old was prompted by Jim Murray's (Whisky Bible) proclamation that the 17y is his favorite expression from this distillery.

Tasting Notes
Color
medium amber-gold
Nose
Delicate peat

Flavor
quickly passing notions of sweet fruit, some sherry influence, then some medium-strength peat smoke.
Finish

Tangy, dry, peat smoke

Rating

90

Overall impression and notes: Bowmore is one of the most lightly peated of the Islay whiskies and the delicate peat in this bottling is a pleasure. This is not a big-bruiser, rather more restrained with an interesting fruit, sherry and peat balance.

Port Ellen 21 year old

Port Ellen 21 Year Old
Bottled by: Provenance, Douglas McGibbon (independent bottler)
ABV: 46%
Other: Non-chill filtered, no color added, sherry cask, single cask DMG REF 479, distilled November 1982, bottled August 2004
Region: Islay
Price: $200
Availability: Closed distillery. Rare

After reading about the now closed Port Ellen distillery, I decided that I needed to try a bottling before they became even more scarce. I came across this version at Hi-Time on sale. According to the bottle:

The most sought after lost distillery in Scotland; it's a crime that Port Ellen is closed! Built in 1824 and moved to DCL in 1925 then unceremoniously mothballed in the early 80s recession. Port Ellen never reopened but the large maltings next door continue to produce malt today. Port Ellen holds a special place in the history books as shortly after it opened it was used to test the newly invented spirit safe(invented by Septimus Fox) which is now an industry standard. Keep your Port Ellen safe, drink sparingly as it is fast disappearing.

Tasting Notes

Color

deep mohogany, Spanish brandy (Cardenal Mendoza)

Nose

Oak, sherry, furniture polish, raisins

Flavor

starts off with a dark rich sherry, then lots of peat smoke development followed by oak and mulling spices (clove, allspice)

Finish
Big, huge peat
Rating
89

Overall impression and notes: Tasting this single malt is tasting history. Nothing is as significant as drinking malt from a great distillery which is now closed forever. This particular bottling has seen a heavy influence over its 21 years of age from the sherry cask. Perhaps some of the distillery character is lost in the process, but this is a characterful and interesting dram nonetheless.

Ardmore Traditional Cask

Ardmore Traditional Cask
Bottled by: Distillery
ABV: 46%
Other: Non-chill filtered
Region: Highlands (Speyside)
Price: $35
Availability: Specialty stores with a large scotch selection

After reading about Ardmore's charms in Jim Murray's Whisky Bible I was determined to find a bottle. This and the Whisky Galore 15y (separate post) are the most widely available expressions from this distillery. Ardmore's malt is a component of the blended scotch Teacher's Highland Cream and is notable for it's high level of peating for a Highland malt. This bottling is aged first in American oak (ex-bourbon) and then matured for a final period in small 1/4 casks. No age statement.

Tasting Notes
Color
medium amber
Nose
some bread-dough aromas with a sprinkling of peat and oak
Flavor
starts slightly sweet, then a slightly bitter middle followed by peat

Finish

Spicy, a tad warm and lots of peat smoke

Rating

88

Overall impression and notes: Perhaps a bit young - very full flavored, but the finish is evidence that more time is needed for the flavors to achieve more integration and balance. A malt with a lot of character and a unique level of peat for a Speysider. Also a nice job on the packaging.

Ardmore 15 year old

Ardmore 15 year old
Bottled by: Whisky Galore (independent bottler)
ABV: 46%
Other: Non-chill filtered. No coloring added.
Region: Highlands (Speyside)

Price: $46
Availability: Specialty stores with a large scotch selection. As a vintage dated bottling it will not be around for long.

After reading about Ardmore's charms in Jim Murray's Whisky Bible I was determined to find a bottle. This and the traditional (separate post) are the most widely available expressions from this distillery. Ardmore's malt is a component of the blended scotch Teacher's Highland Cream and is notable for it's high level of peating for a Highland malt.

Tasting Notes

Color

white wine (sauvignon blanc)

Nose

strong aromas of peat smoke

Flavor

creamy, smooth and sweet entry followed by a strong attack of peat. Complex and delicious
Finish
Extremely long, smoky
Rating
90

Overall impression and notes: It's easy to see where Teacher's gets its trademark creaminess. Surprisingly flavorful for such a light-colored malt. Obviously fairly neutral oak to be 15 years of age and be this light without a strong oak flavor presence. If you like a smoky malt, this is uniquely satisfying.

Glen Scotia 14 year old

Glen Scotia 14 Year Old
Bottled by: Distillery
ABV: 43%
Region: Cambeltown
Price: $60
Availability: No longer bottled/scarce

I originally came across this bottling at Hi-Time in Costa Mesa many years back where they offered this single malt scotch in 50 mL bottles for a very reasonalble $3.99. I liked it immediately but did not come around to buying a large bottle until about two years ago when they had already stopped production of this age. Luckily I found 2 bottles at 20-20 in LA and cleaned them out. One of only two Campbeltown distilleries (the other is Springbank) Glen Scotia is far less known.

Tasting Notes

Color

medium-light amber

Nose

complex aromas of delicate peat, oak

Flavor

full, with a sweet, malty entry building to a tangy middle

Finish

long, rich, satisfying

Rating

92

Overall impression and notes: One of my top 5 single malts of all time. It is the full-bodied sweet, malty and complex palate that really puts it over the top for me. A special dram whose loss I mourn, but which I feel fortunate to have been able to enjoy. Now the question is when will I open my last bottle?