Knockdhu 18yo

Knockdhu 18yo

Chorlton Whisky
Single malt - Speyside
Golden
58.9% ABV
Dram

Nose: Smoke, peat, honey, lemon zest, sarsaparilla, fresh cut grass, leather. With water, honey, fresh cut grass, vitamin C tablets. 
Mouthfeel: Heavy body, hot, astringent, syrupy. 
Tasting:  Bitter sour. Lemon zest, peat, smoke, germolene, vitamin C tablets, fresh cut grass, grapefruit. With water, leather, peat, grapefruit, germolene. 
Finish: Medium. Germolene, lemon zest, grapefruit, vitamin C tablets. 

Comments: 

Peated An Cnoc, it’s got a fruity bitterness that’s quite unusual. Grapefruit, honey, grassiness and a baking soda bitter note that reminds me of vitamin C tablets.

Verdict:

I like this.

Knockdhu 11yo 2012/2023

Knockdhu 11yo 2012/2023

Single Cask, Berry Bros & Rudd
Single malt - Speyside
Golden
58.8% ABV
Dram

Nose: Yoghurt, green apples, white grapes, honey, magic marker, rhubarb and custard sweets. With water, green apples, magic marker, wet stones, hints of brown paper. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, loosens, tingly, expands slightly. 
Tasting:  Sour sweet. Green apples, yoghurt, rhubarb and custard sweets, pear drops, honey, gooseberries, hints of malted grains. With water, wet stones, salt caramel, brown paper, green apples. 
Finish: Short. Yoghurt, malted grains, rhubarb and custard sweets, white pepper. 

Comments: 

Cask 7127. Very estery, lots of fruity, almost acetone notes. There’s some feinty notes as well, especially with a bit of water. The finish is surprisingly abrupt, cuts off after a wave of rhubarb and custard.

Verdict:

I like this.

Knockdhu 16yo 2006/2022

Knockdhu 16yo 2006/2022

Hidden Spirits Whisky Company
Single malt - Speyside
Amber
54.2% ABV
Dram

Nose: Demerara sugar, peat, smoke, cinnamon, orange peel, carrot cake, hints of vanilla ice cream. With water, pineapples, toast, malted grains, carrot cake. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, loosens, tingly, astringent. 
Tasting:  Bitter salty. Peat, smoke, orange peel, yoghurt, vanilla, toast, cocoa nibs, hints of cinnamon. With water, smoke, peat, autumn leaves, pineapples. 
Finish: Long. Peat, smoke, orange peel, vanilla, Demerara sugar. 

Comments: 

Cask KN0622. Sweet and fragrant, lots of sugary spicy notes, but all under a light blanket of peat. Opens up with water to become quite pineappley.

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Knockdhu 8yo 2013/2021

Knockdhu 8yo 2013/2021

Single Cask Series, Great Drams
Single malt - Speyside 
Dark gold
48.2% ABV
Dram

Nose: Malted grains, tyre rubber, honey, raisins, milk chocolate, toast, cloves. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, hot, loosens, slightly tingly. 
Tasting:  Bitter sweet. Malted grains, honey, strawberry jam, bubble gum, raisins, milk chocolate, hints of cloves. 
Finish: Medium. Cloves, bubble gum, strawberry jam, honey. 

Comments: 

Decent for the age. A slightly sulphurous nose gives way to sweet jammy notes on the tongue. The spirit is a bit underproof, I think. Or perhaps I need to rest my palate from too much cask strength whisky...

Verdict:

I like this.

Knockdhu Cask Sample 8yo 2013/2021

Knockdhu Cask Sample 8yo 2013/2021

Single Cask Nation, Jewish Whisky Company 
Single malt - Speyside 
Pink
59.8% ABV
Dram

Nose: Sour cream, strawberries, okra, scotch bonnet peppers, raisins, orange peel. With water, cream, strawberries, vanilla sponge, hints of chocolate. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, slippery, mouth coating, warm. 
Tasting:  Sour sweet. Strawberries, orange peel, sour cream, lemon zest, vanilla, sourdough bread, hints of dried apples. With water, more sour, lemon zest, honey, dried apples, vanilla sponge, hints of new plastic. 
Finish: Medium. Sourdough bread, dried apples, vanilla, honey. 

Comments: 

Pomerol Red Wine Barrique 50. This hasn’t been bottled yet, it’s just a cask sample and it’s not ready. Having said that it’s reasonably promising. Vegetal notes on the nose give way to fruity sweet notes, especially with a bit of water. There’s a slightly unpleasant new plastic note though. Not a fan of those. 

Verdict:

I like this.

An Cnoc Peated Limited Edition

An Cnoc Peated Limited Edition

Official bottling
Single malt - Speyside
Chinese tea
46% ABV
Dram

Nose: Leather, peat, raisins, brown paper, marmalade, peanuts, cashews. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, cool, slippery, static. 
Tasting:  Bitter. Raisins, toffee, peanuts, cashews, pears, leather, hints of walnuts. 
Finish: Medium. Peat, mint, leather, walnuts. 

Comments: 

Peated Speyside whisky can be hit or miss. Or hit, and miss, in this case. There's a decent level of peat, leather notes, nuts, but I'm unsure as to what the underlying spirit tastes like. It's sweet for sure, marmalade and pears are present, but it's a bit unbalanced.

Verdict:

Not bad.

An Cnoc 18 yo

An Cnoc 18yo

Official bottling
Single malt - Speyside
Dark gold
46% ABV
Dram

Nose: Butterscotch, fried eggs, tobacco leaf, black tea, hints of honey. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, slippery, loose, turns watery. 
Tasting:  Bitter sweet. Fried eggs, butterscotch, sea salt, black tea, hints of smoke. 
Finish: Long. Peaches, pears, orange peel, hints of black tea. 

Comments: 

A rather robust Speyside, as Knockdhu whisky tends to be. Good tannins, some slight smoke, and rubbery fried eggs. It's not for everyone, but I have a soft spot for eggy whiskies.

Verdict:

I like this.

An Cnoc Rascan

An Cnoc Rascan

Official bottling
Single malt - Speyside
Very, very pale silver
46% ABV
Dram

Nose: Marmite, peaches, leather, walnuts, maple syrup, sea salt, hints of smoke. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, loosens, slightly watery around the edges, slippery. 
Tasting:  Sweet salty. Peaches, maple syrup, marmite, peat, applewood smoke, hints of lemon juice. 
Finish: Short. Peaches, applewood smoke, mint, leather. 

Comments: 

Peated Speyside with an unusual colour. Again, nice leathery, nutty, slightly bitter notes. Plenty of fruit and sweetness, this time maple syrup plays a big role. Salty though, with savoury yeasty flavours of marmite.

Verdict:

I like this.

An Cnoc 16 yo

An Cnoc 16 yo

Official bottling
Single malt - Speyside
Pale gold
46% ABV
Dram

Nose: Plums, photocopy paper, white grapes, cola nuts, honey, hints of vanilla. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, smooth, thickens slightly. 
Tasting:  Sweet. White grapes, soor plooms, photocopy paper, orange blossom, lemon zest, hints of cotton sheets. 
Finish: Short. White grapes, soor plooms, photocopy paper, cotton sheets. 

Comments: 

Papery, fruity and gentle. Subtle whisky, but laid over a base of sweet fruity stuff. Floral too, with plenty of orange blossom. It's taken me a long time to track down my second ever Knockdhu whisky, and I should have tried harder. Won't take me 800 drams to get to the third!

Verdict:

I like this.

An Cnoc 12 yo

An Cnoc 12 yo

Official bottling
Single malt - Speyside
Light gold
40% ABV
Sampler

Nose: Oak, boiled carrots, apples, broccoli, hay, grass.
Mouthfeel: Medium body, slightly syrupy.
Tasting: Bitter sweet. Minty, baked potato, dried fruits, grass, spring flowers.
Finish: Short. Oaky, lemons, peanuts, starchy.

Comments:

The starch and the oak don't make for a very interesting combination. The floral notes and the fruit don't quite help out enough. I do like vegetal flavours in my whisky, but they don't meld very well with the other flavours here. A little too one-dimensional - the oak dominates. Still an acceptable dram, just doesn't reach the heights others have.

Verdict:

Not bad.