Glen Keith 26yo 1992/2019

Glen Keith 26yo 1992/2019

Celebration of the Cask, Carn Mor
Single malt - Speyside
Amber gold
55.1% ABV
Dram

Nose: Peaches, dried apricots, winter melons, leather, mint, honey, hints of cloves. With water, honey, dried apricots, leather, lychees. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, volatile, loosens, expands. 
Tasting:  Sweet sour. Lychees, cream, peaches, cinnamon, nutmeg, honey, mint, white pepper. With water, leather, lychees, cream. 
Finish: Long. Lychees, mint, dried apricots, honey. 

Comments: 

Cask 102371. Lots of dried fruit notes on the nose, but on the tongue there’s an immediate explosion of lychees. Water brings out a creaminess, allied to leather, showing its age. A pleasant dram.

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Glen Keith 30yo 1991/2020

Glen Keith 30yo 1991/2020

Cask Strength Collection, Signatory
Single malt - Speyside
Golden brown
50.2% ABV
Dram

Nose: Camphor, honey, oak, raisins, white pepper, sandalwood, white grapes, hints of hay. With water, apricot jam, gooseberries, hints of tyre rubber. 
Mouthfeel: Medium, expands, tingly, hot. 
Tasting:  Bitter sweet. Honey, raisins, cough syrup, brown butter, white grapes, sandalwood, fresh cut grass, white pepper. With water, camphor, sandalwood, gooseberries, hints of white pepper. 
Finish: Long. Sea salt, white grapes, white pepper, brown butter, hints of apricot jam. 

Comments: 

Cask 73658. Herbal, grassy and honeyed. Water brings out fruity, jammy notes. It’s still grassy on the tongue as well as the nose. Beautiful long finish.

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Glen Keith 27yo 1992/2020

Glen Keith 27yo 1992/2020

Spirits Shop Selection, Sansibar
Single malt - Speyside
Buttercups
48.4% ABV
Dram

Nose: Pear drops, clay dust, white pepper, apricot jam, white grapes, honey, hints of sarsaparilla, hints of lilies. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, loosens, cool, astringent. 
Tasting:  Sour sweet. Clay dust, vanilla, honey, apricot jam, fresh baked bread, lilies, sarsaparilla, gooseberries, white pepper. 
Finish: Long. Hay, clay dust, white pepper, lilies, fresh cut grass. 

Comments: 

Fruity, slightly dusty, with herbal, jammy notes. It’s very floral, especially on the tongue. Many layered and complex, a great whisky.

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Glen Keith 23yo 1997/2021

Glen Keith 23yo 1997/2021

15 Years, The Nectar
Single malt - Speyside
Golden
49.9% ABV
Dram

Nose: Photocopy paper, lemon sweets, wet stones, magic marker, malted grains, hints of sour cream. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, thickens, slippery, volatile. 
Tasting:  Sour. Malted grains, lemon sweets, wet stones, magic marker, membrillo, barley sugar, hints of cinnamon. 

Finish: Long. Lemon sweets, wet stones, barley sugar, hints of membrillo, hints of sour cream. 

Comments: 

Feinty and malty, and a little bit lactic. That last bit spoils it slightly for me - clashes with the deep jammy fruit notes that characterise this whisky.

Verdict:

I like this.

Glen Keith 28yo Special Aged Release

Glen Keith 28yo Special Aged Release

Official bottling
Single malt - Speyside
Light copper
43% ABV
Dram

Nose: Malted grains, hoppy beer, bananas, honey, cloves, hints of sarsaparilla. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, cool, tingly, mouth coating. 
Tasting:  Bitter sweet. Malted grains, hoppy beer, sarsaparilla, coffee, cloves, barley sugar, hints of dark chocolate. 
Finish: Medium. Cherries, cough syrup, coffee, dark chocolate, vanilla. 

Comments: 

Bottled 2019. Very rich and intense, malty, chocolatey, and herbal, almost everything I want in a Speyside of this age. Absolutely delicious.

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Glen Keith 30yo 1985/2015

Glen Keith 30yo 1985/2015

Jewels of Scotland, Lombard
Single malt - Speyside
Buttercups
41.9% ABV
Dram

Nose: Wet stones, honey, leather, sultanas, camphor, gooseberries, hints of white pepper. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, sticky, cool, mouth coating. 
Tasting:  Sour sweet. Wet stones, lemon zest, sultanas, peaches, honey, malted grains, dried apricots, camphor, ginseng. 
Finish: Long. Ginseng, wet stones, camphor, dried apricots, honey. 

Comments: 

Cask I2299 - I2302. This is magnificent whisky. Hugely malty and flinty, with layers of dried fruit and herbal bitterness. It tastes rather like an amaro, if the base spirit was barley based. 

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Glen Keith 27yo 1993/2021

Glen Keith 27yo 1993/2021

Mission Gold Limited Release, Murray McDavid 
Single malt - Speyside 
Bronze gold 
51.2% ABV
Dram

Nose: Toffee, honey, gingerbread, golden syrup, sandalwood, walnuts. With water, orange peel, sandalwood, hoppy beer, clay dust. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, loosens, expands, hot. 
Tasting:  Bitter sweet. Malted grains, honey, golden syrup, salted caramel, vanilla, cinnamon, gingerbread, hints of orange peel. With water, cinnamon, white pepper, gingerbread, hoppy beer, hints of clay dust. 
Finish: Long. Fresh baked bread, orange peel, golden syrup, salted caramel, walnuts. 

Comments: 

Cask 82838/39. Very complex and well defined, it’s toffee gingerbread in a glass! It also has some welcome spicy and dusty notes, which always makes a whisky taste old (although it may not be). Tasty indeed.

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Glen Keith 23yo 1995/2019

Glen Keith 23yo 1995/2019

Selection, Adelphi
Single malt - Speyside 
Golden
60.5% ABV
Dram

Nose: Peaches, lemon zest, ink, white pepper, honey, sea salt, hints of jasmine. With water, honey, sultanas, sea salt, white pepper. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, loosens, hot, expands. 
Tasting:  Sweet salty. Peaches, dried apricots, oats, jasmine, lemon zest, iron filings, sea salt, hints of fresh baked bread. With water, ink, peaches, sultanas, iron filings. 
Finish: Medium. Peaches, white grapes, jasmine, vanilla, hints of white pepper. 

Comments: 

Excellent ‘old’ Glen Keith. Lots of dried fruit again, but with a steely, metallic edge. A whisper of pepper and a bit of jasmine. Some oats again, just this side of dish soap, but it’s pretty good.

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Glen Keith 29yo 1992/2021

Glen Keith 29yo 1992/2021

Thompson Brothers
Single malt - Speyside 
Golden, hints of green 
46.2% ABV
Dram

Nose: Malted grains, cucumbers, pears, chillies, kombucha, vanilla, hints of sea salt. 
Mouthfeel: Heavy body, tingly, hot, astringent. 
Tasting:  Sweet sour. Desiccated coconut, golden syrup, kombucha, vanilla, hints of chillies. 
Finish: Short. Vanilla, pears, toast, hints of desiccated coconut. 

Comments: 

Sweet, sour, salty and slightly fermented. This oldish Glen Keith nails it - perfectly balanced, lots of interesting flavour notes, and a little spike of chilli heat on the nose and on the tongue.

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Glen Keith 43yo 1973/2017

Glen Keith 43yo 1973/2017

Single Cask, WM Cadenhead 
Single malt - Speyside 
Pale gold 
43.2% ABV
Dram

Nose: White pepper, clay dust, roast beef, orange juice, mint, butterscotch. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, airy, loose, mouth coating. 
Tasting:  Bitter sweet. Clay dust, coffee, wet stones, orange juice, butterscotch, hints of vanilla. 
Finish: Medium. Orange juice, lemon zest, butterscotch, vanilla. 

Comments: 

Something of an enigma, this whisky. It’s old, and tastes old. Dry and dusty, somewhat mouth puckering. But at the same time, it’s rich and sweet, with an alluring bitter edge. Lovely. 

Verdict:

I like this.

Glen Keith 24yo 1993/2018

Glen Keith 24yo 1993/2018

Connoisseur's Choice, Gordon & Macphail
Single malt - Speyside
Dark gold
49.3% ABV
Dram

Nose: Elderflower, pears, apples, strawberries, malted grains, hints of cedar. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, syrupy, sticky, mouth coating. 
Tasting:  Sweet sour. Golden syrup, thyme, pears, vanilla, lemon zest, hints of apples. 
Finish: Short. Lemon zest, cedar, gooseberries, white grapes, hints of cinnamon. 

Comments: 

Quite floral, sweet, and fruity. There's an alluring woody note on the nose and the finish. In between, there's quite a strong note of thyme sandwiched by fruit on the tongue.

Verdict:

I like this.

Glen Keith 21yo 1996/2018

Glen Keith 21yo 1996/2018

Old Particular, Douglas Laing
Single malt - Speyside
Amber
51.5% ABV
Dram

Nose: Lemon zest, cinnamon, rhubarb and custard sweets, black tea, hints of leather. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, loosens, airy, slightly astringent, watery around the edges. 
Tasting:  Sweet. Raisins, black tea, cinnamon, honey, candy floss, hints of ginseng. 
Finish: Medium. Black cherries, honey, candy floss, black tea, cinnamon. 

Comments: 

Cask number 12575. Spicy Speyside whisky, quite sweet, some tannic and bitter notes on the tongue. It's fairly old compared to what I've been drinking recently, and I have a new appreciation of how a whisky's age confers complexity.

Verdict:

I like this.

Glen Keith 42 yo 1968/2011

Glen Keith 42 yo 1968/2011

Connoisseur's Choice, Gordon & Macphail
Single malt - Speyside
Golden
46% ABV 
Dram

Nose: Orange peel, vanilla, grapefruit, lemon zest, hints of pomelo. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, thickens, tingly, warm. 
Tasting: Sour. Orange peel, vanilla, sandalwood, lemon zest, pomelo, hints of cloves. 
Finish: Short. Orange peel, vanilla, lemon zest, bitter grapefruit pith. 

Comments: 

Fresh and alluring, this whisky is strongly citrusy, almost sharp. It's very delicate, and doesn't show its age at all. Quite refreshing.


Verdict:

I like this a lot.

Glen Keith 14 yo 1993/2007

Glen Keith 14 yo 1993/2007

Connoisseur's Choice, Gordon & Macphail
Single malt - Speyside
Pale gold
46% ABV
Sampler

Nose: Raisins, custard, honey, vanilla, orange peel, cream.
Mouthfeel: Medium body, thickens, sticky, mouth coating.
Tasting: Sweet. Vanilla, raisins, honey, sponge cake, cream, orange peel.
Finish: Medium. Walnuts, honey, vanilla, hints of apples.

Comments:

Wow, with around 3 weeks off from drinking whisky, it's a real pleasure to hold the glass in my hand and inhale the fumes again. I chose a nice easy Speyside, and it tasted very good initially. However, on reflection it's a bit too mild, and there aren't many interesting flavours in there. Very pleasurable none the less.

Verdict:

I like this.

SMWS 81.14 (Glen Keith 13 yo 1994/2007)

SMWS 81.14 (Glen Keith 13 yo 1994/2007)

2007, SMWS
Single malt - Speyside
Orange gold
60.5% ABV
Dram

Nose: Vanilla, sponge cake, honey, milk, butter, raisins, cinnamon, black tea.
Mouthfeel: Medium body, watery, static, loose.
Tasting: Sweet. Honey, brown paper, vanilla, sponge cake, cinnamon, milk, cream, butter, black tea.
Finish: Long. Walnuts, cream, butter, vanilla.

Comments:

High tea whisky! Reminds me of eating sponge cake with a cup of tea handy. Very gentle, despite the strength. This whisky is almost bland, and very delicate indeed. Handle with care, don't add too much water.

Verdict:

I like this.

SMWS 81.11 (Glen Keith 32 yo 1971/2004)

SMWS 81.11 (Glen Keith 32 yo 1971/2004)

2004, SMWS
Single malt - Speyside
Mahogany, tinge of rose
56.4% ABV
Dram

Nose: Port, toffee, brandy, raisins, orange peel, caramel, Pedro Ximenez sherry.
Mouthfeel: Medium body, astringent, static.
Tasting: Bitter sweet. Rubber bands, sherry, raisins, red grapes, ba zhen tang, walnuts, hints of chocolate, hints of toffee.
Finish: Long. Spicy, raisins, rubber bands, walnuts.

Comments:

Lovely colour, lovely whisky. Nicely sweet, with all the classic signs of sherry maturation, but shot with interesting bitter threads - walnuts, Chinese herbal soups come to mind. Very good indeed.

Verdict:

I like this a lot.