Bladnoch Talia

Bladnoch Talia

Official bottling
Single malt - Lowlands
Dark yellow gold
45.5% ABV
Dram

Nose: Nectarines, magic marker, clay dust, malted grains, fresh cut grass, white pepper, glue. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, cool, tingly, expands. 
Tasting:  Sweet sour. Nectarines, lemon zest, honey, fresh cut grass, white pepper, nutmeg, pears, hints of apricots. 
Finish: Medium. Malted grains, apricots, white pepper, honey, lemon zest. 

Comments: 

Dusty and old, lots of stone fruit, honey, esters and white pepper. Beautiful sweet sour finish, with plenty of barley maltiness and more stone fruit.

Verdict:

I like this.

Lowland 10yo 2013/2023

Lowland 10yo 2013/2023

Rare Find, Gleann Mor Spirits
Single malt - Lowlands
Dark amber
63.9% ABV
Dram

Nose: Dark chocolate, honey, butterscotch, toffee, raisins, condensed milk, brown paper, hints of cloves. With water, milk chocolate, condensed milk, butterscotch, vanilla. 
Mouthfeel: Heavy body, loosens, hot, tingly. 
Tasting:  Sweet. Dark chocolate, digestive biscuits, butterscotch, coffee, condensed milk, raisins, hints of cinnamon. With water, brown paper, aluminium foil, milk chocolate, black tea. 

Finish: Medium. Black tea, dark chocolate, condensed milk, butterscotch. 

Comments: 

I was told this is Bladnoch. It’s sweet and chocolatey, very Christmassy. Lots of feinty notes then appear when a little (a lot of!) water is added. Great cask, but I can’t tell what the distillate is like.

Verdict:

I like this.

SMWS 50.88 (Bladnoch 25yo 1990/2015)

SMWS 50.88 (Bladnoch 25yo 1990/2015)

2015, SMWS 
Single malt - Lowlands
Amber gold 
58.7% ABV
Dram

Nose: Honeydew melons, lemon zest, white grapes, hay, hints of fresh cut grass. With water, honeydew melons, rambutans, white grapes, honey, hints of broccoli. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, thickens slightly, hot, expands. 
Tasting:  Sweet sour. Rambutans, yoghurt, lemon zest, hay, fresh cut grass, hints of broccoli, hints of honeydew melons. With water, sweeter, honey, lemon zest, rambutans, fresh cut grass. 
Finish: Medium. Lemon zest, fresh cut grass, honeydew melons, hints of malted grains. 

Comments: 

Quite a vegetal Bladnoch, there’s a cabbagey green note that I’ve written down as broccoli, alongside some more familiar grassiness. Plenty of grain and tropical fruity too. Highly enjoyable.

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Bladnoch 16yo 1980/1997

Bladnoch 16yo 1980/1997

First Cask, The Malt Whisky Circle 
Single malt - Lowlands 
Golden
46% ABV
Dram

Nose: Pineapples, cream, fresh cut grass, brown sugar, hints of apricots. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, thickens, mouth coating, cool. 
Tasting:  Sweet sour. Pineapples, leather, raisins, barley sugar, winter melon, hints of white grapes. 
Finish: Medium. Sunflower seeds, raisins, white grapes, pineapples, orange peel. 

Comments: 

Cask 89/591/12. Sweet sour and fruity, like eating pineapple upside down cake huge amounts of old bottle effect, there’s a leather strap or two baked into that cake! There’s a herbal, seedy finish as well. Gorgeous.

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

SMWS 50.63 (Bladnoch 24 yo 1990/2015)

SMWS 50.63 (Bladnoch 24 yo 1990/2015)

2015, SMWS
Single malt - Lowlands
Copper
58.3% ABV
Dram

Nose: Chocolate, honey, peaches, mangoes, cinnamon, hints of ginger. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, thickens, tingly, hot. 
Tasting:  Sweet sour. Mangoes, peaches, honey, ginger, watermelon, hints of white grapes. 
Finish: Short. White grapes, peaches, cinnamon, tobacco leaf. 

Comments: 

Incredibly fruity, with spicy warm ginger notes. Lots of complex flavour, which unfortunately collapses once water is added. No water in this. Not that it's hard to drink even at 58.3%, I love the tingly mouth feel.

Verdict:

I like this.

SMWS 50.65 (Bladnoch 25 yo 1990/2015)

SMWS 50.65 (Bladnoch 25 yo 1990/2015)

2015, SMWS
Single malt - Lowlands
Silvery yellow
52.5% ABV
Dram

Nose: Pineapples, orange juice, strawberries, peaches, vanilla, lemon zest, hints of papayas. With water, sweeter, yoghurt, more vanilla, hints of mint. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, thickens slightly, volatile, slightly gritty. 
Tasting:  Sour . Peaches, lemon juice, pineapples, limes, vanilla, hints of mangoes. With water, yoghurt, vanilla, green tea. 
Finish: Short. Green tea, lemon juice, vanilla, limes. 

Comments: 

Tutti frutti whisky, full of esters. It's good stuff, like drinking a cocktail in a dram. Very tart. With water, it loosens up, becomes sweeter and much more gentle. I can never really pin down what Bladnoch tastes like, it's quite a varied whisky. This one is another different experience.

Verdict:

I like this.

Bladnoch 20 yo

Bladnoch 20 yo

Official bottling 
Single malt - Lowlands
Pale green
46% ABV
Dram

Nose: Honey, grass, hay, lemon zest, vanilla, custard, hints of leather, hints of brown paper.
Mouthfeel: Light body, slippery, watery, tingly.
Tasting: Sour. Honey, grass, lemon zest, vanilla, custard, hints of white grapes, hints of leather.
Finish: Medium. Bitter ginseng, lemon zest, white grapes, honey.

Comments:

Light, sweet and fragrant on the nose and on the tongue. But once swallowed, the finish hits like a freight train - bitter ginseng, not unpleasant, but with fruity grapey notes. Quite unusual, I don't often find ginseng in whisky.

Verdict:

I like this.

SMWS 50.38 (Bladnoch 16 yo 1992/2009)

SMWS 50.38 (Bladnoch 16 yo 1992/2009)

2009, SMWS
Single malt - Lowlands
Pale gold
54.4% ABV
Dram

Nose: Peaches, marshmallows, vanilla, plums, lemons, hints of raisins, hints of oak.
Mouthfeel: Light body, hot, tingly, volatile.
Tasting: Sweet. Marshmallows, plums, peaches, honey, vanilla, white grapes, hints of raspberry jam.
Finish: Long. Chillies, honey, lemons, aluminium foil.

Comments:

Light and refreshing, with a long drawn-out spicy finish. There's a metallic tang in the finish which is not unattractive. On reflection, I guess many Bladnochs have a hint of aluminium in the finish, like a spark, but it's quite obvious in this one.

Verdict:

I like this.

Bladnoch 17 yo Spirit of the Lowlands

Bladnoch 17 yo Spirit of the Lowlands

Official bottling
Single malt - Lowlands
Bright gold
46% ABV
Sampler

Nose: Lemon sweets, malty beer, pine, freshly squeezed lime juice, vanilla, antiseptic .
Mouthfeel: Medium body, spicy, thickens, expands a little.
Tasting: Sweet sour. Vanilla, cookie dough, limes, lemon sweets, hints of honey, hints of raisins.
Finish: Long. Peanuts, cookie dough, lemon sweets, vanilla.

Comments:

Tastes more alcoholic than it actually is! It's a little hard to discern the notes in the nose - maybe Germolene, Listerine? But it doesn't take water well. Best had strong, that way the lemony sweet notes still show through.

Verdict:

I like this.

SMWS 50.37 (Bladnoch 16 yo 1992/2008)

SMWS 50.37 (Bladnoch 16 yo 1992/2008)

2008, SMWS
Single malt - Lowlands
Pink gold
60.4% ABV
Dram

Nose: Marzipan, brass polish, rhubarb, lemon sweets, hints of lime, hints of meringue.
Mouthfeel: Light body, slightly astringent, watery.
Tasting: Sweet sour. Lemon sweets, lime, vanilla, rhubarb, hints of almonds, hints of caramel, hints of broccoli.
Finish: Short. Astringent, peanuts, lemons, rhubarb.

Comments:

Tart, fruity, and slightly vegetal. Light and watery, with a slight bite on the tongue (battery acid? It's too nice to be that). A little nutty, but mostly tart. Rhubarb tart? Exactly that in more ways than one.

Verdict:

I like this.

SMWS 50.34 (Bladnoch 15 yo 1992/2008)

SMWS 50.34 (Bladnoch 15 yo 1992/2008)

2008, SMWS
Single malt - Lowlands
Straw
56.3% ABV
Dram

Nose: Raisins, butter, peaches, chocolate, blueberries, floral lightness.
Mouthfeel: Light body, watery, quite smooth.
Tasting: Sweet. Bread, cookie dough, grassy, chocolate, lettuce, lemons. With water, sweeter and more savoury, like a good carrot cake.
Finish: Medium. Dark chocolate, grapefruit.

Comments:

Light and subtle, this. Instantly identifiable as Lowlands, even though this is my first dram from this distillery. Gets more rough and heavy with water though, a little less enjoyable in my opinion.

Verdict:

I like this.