Balvenie 25yo DoubleWood

Balvenie 25yo DoubleWood

Official bottling 
Single malt - Speyside 
Amber, hints of green
43% ABV
Dram

Nose: Raisins, strawberry jam, orange peel, manuka honey, cloves, cinnamon. 
Mouthfeel: Heavy body, loosens, cool, slippery. 
Tasting:  Sweet salty. Damson jam, strawberry jam, cinnamon, cloves, cocoa powder, manuka honey, hints of black pepper. 
Finish: Long. Black pepper, manuka honey, cocoa powder, strawberry jam. 

Comments: 

This whisky showcases another aspect of Balvenie, that of spiced honey. It’s very jammy and sweet, as one might expect of sherry cask stuff, but it’s also chock full of spices, and intensely fragrant honey.

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Balvenie 21yo Single Barrel

Balvenie 21yo Single Barrel

Official bottling 
Single malt - Speyside
Pale green 
47.8% ABV
Dram

Nose: Mint, white grapes, vanilla, soursop, passionfruit, lemon zest, hints of orange blossom. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, loosens, warm, slightly sticky. 
Tasting:  Sour. Mint, white grapes, pineapples, vanilla custard, soursop, lemon zest, hints of orange blossom. 
Finish: Medium. Soursop, pineapples, lemon zest, vanilla custard. 

Comments: 

Cask 3742. More tropical than the usual Balvenie, lots of passionfruit and even soursop. The main note though is a lovely vanilla custard. It’s fruit salad whisky! And very nice for all that.

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Balvenie 17yo Islay Cask

Balvenie 17yo Islay Cask 

Official bottling 
Single malt - Speyside 
Golden 
43% ABV
Dram

Nose: Leather, fresh cut grass, honeydew melons, white grapes, orange peel, liquorice, celery salt, hints of peat. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, loosens, cool, tingly. 
Tasting:  Bitter sweet. Orange peel, honeydew melons, autumn leaves, liquorice, celery salt, chocolate, hints of peat. 
Finish: Short. Leather, peat, orange peel, autumn leaves. 

Comments: 

Having been Islay cask finished rather than aged, this isn’t like Peat Week Balvenie. The peat is just a whisper, instead it’s leathery and earthy, with a lot of celery and liquorice notes. Quite tasty.

Verdict:

I like this.

Balvenie 15yo 1974/1990

Balvenie 15yo 1974/1990

Vintage, Signatory
Single malt - Speyside 
Pale green
57.1% ABV
Dram

Nose: Honeycomb, honeydew melon, greengages, lemon zest, candle wax, verjus, orange blossom. With water, cream, marzipan, honeydew melons, vanilla. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, thickens, tingly, warm. 
Tasting:  Sweet sour. Honeydew melons, white grapes, greengages, lemon zest, barley sugar, candle wax, hints of orange blossom. With water, vanilla, marzipan, orange blossom, candle wax. 
Finish: Medium. Barley sugar, candle wax, honeydew melons, verjus, orange blossom. 

Comments: 

Luscious and lovely, hugely floral, and quite unlike Balvenie as I know it. 1970s distillate is usually a treat, it’s puzzling and interesting. I would have said this whisky was more Clynelish-ey than anything else, although it is much more floral and lacks the intensity of Clynelish. Amazing stuff.

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Balvenie 12yo Single Barrel First Fill (Cask #12790)

Balvenie 12yo Single Barrel First Fill (Cask #12790)

Official bottling 
Single malt - Speyside 
Green gold
47.8% ABV
Dram

Nose: Orange peel, white grapes, lemon zest, acacia honey, orange blossom, fresh baked bread. 
Mouthfeel: Heavy body, airy, loosens slightly, tingly. 
Tasting:  Sweet. Barley sugar, lemon zest, acacia honey, vanilla, malted grains, hints of cinnamon. 
Finish: Short. White grapes, orange blossom, barley sugar, orange peel. 

Comments: 

Cask 12790. Floral and full of honeyed sweetness, I’d have pegged this as the quintessential Balvenie - except that it’s not quite, of course. This was the first dram of a Balvenie verticale, and a single cask to boot. But it was a classy classic.

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. 

Linkwood 25yo 1993/2019

Linkwood 25yo 1993/2019

Limited, Adelphi
Single malt - Speyside 
Pale gold
50.4% ABV
Dram

Nose: Honey, white wine, lemon zest, white grapes, cotton candy, hints of toffee apples. With water, pear drops, toffee apples, honey. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, thickens, tingly, cool. 
Tasting:  Sour. White wine, oats, lemon zest, peanut brittle, cotton candy, fresh baked bread. With water, oats, vanilla, fresh baked bread. 

Finish: Long. Peanut brittle, oats, toffee apples, fresh baked bread. 

Comments: 

A great nose, lots of fruit and lemon, and a wonderful toffee apple note. It devolves slightly on the tongue, becomes cereally and oaty, maybe just this side of soapy. One or two points deducted for that :).

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Glen Esk 12yo (bottled 1980s)

Glen Esk 12yo (bottled 1980s)

Official bottling 
Single malt - East Highlands
Amber
40% ABV
Dram

Nose: Honey, white grapes, orange blossom, vanilla, dried apricots, dried pears, leather, hints of candle wax, hints of dust. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, cool, loosens, slightly tingly. 
Tasting:  Sweet sour. Candle wax, dried pears, dried apricots, orange blossom, lemon drops, vanilla, celery salt, leather, hints of fresh baked breads. 
Finish: Medium. White wine, dried apricots, white grapes, honey, lemon drops, hints of celery salt, hints of dust. 

Comments: 

This was a lucky find. Very good 1970s distillate, already complex and intense, allied to flavour enhancing old bottle effect. Lots of dried fruits, leather and a whisper of celery salt. Awesome.

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Cotswolds Hearts and Crafts Batch 1

Cotswolds Hearts and Crafts Batch 1

Official bottling 
Single malt - Warwickshire 
Golden, hints of bronze
55.2% ABV
Dram

Nose: Limes, apricots, vanilla, white grapes, peanuts, grapefruit, hints of saffron. With water, orange peel, tonka bean, grapefruit. 
Mouthfeel: Heavy body, sticky, thickens, syrupy. 
Tasting:  Sour sweet. Apricots, limes, honey, fresh baked bread, grapefruit, saffron. With water, limes, orange peel, grapefruit, tonka bean, hints of fresh baked bread. 
Finish: Short. Vanilla, apricots, tonka bean, fresh baked bread, hints of limes. 

Comments: 

Sauternes cask finished whisky. It’s fruity, but surprisingly, not too sweet. Lots of apricot and limey citrus, lots of vegetal vanilla that I interpret as tonka bean. There’s a spicy edge to it as well, that’s saffron. Very interesting, and very tasty.

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Ardnamurchan 5yo 2015/2020 AD/CS.335 07:15

Ardnamurchan 5yo 2015/2020 AD/CS.335 07:15

Official bottling 
Single malt - Western Highlands
Copper
58.5% ABV
Dram

Nose: Leather, smoked bacon, raisins, five spice powder, damson jam, dried figs, hints of cumin. With water, raisins, damson jam, five spice powder, hints of smoked bacon. 
Mouthfeel: Heavy body, thickens, tingly, slightly astringent. 
Tasting:  Bitter sweet. Smoke, peat, raisins, mint, dried figs, black tea, sea salt, hints of cumin. With water, raisins, damson jam, five spice powder, smoke. 
Finish: Medium. Sea salt, mint, raisins, five spice powder. 

Comments: 

A little bit more smoky than other Ardnamurchans, this one also has some sweet jammy notes, coupled with five spice powder, and oddly, cumin. It’s quite savoury as a result, bringing forth notes of smoked bacon and impressions of roast lamb and char siu pork. 

Verdict:

I like this a lot.