We
recently tried several samples from
www.thewhiskyexchange.com. They bottle
under 'The Single Malts of Scotland'
label. Overall, four out of the six
drams were very nice with the highlight
being a 16 year old Caol Ila and a 35
year old Glen Grant. his is what we had:
Caol Ila 1991 16
yr old 57.5% (Single Cask/Cask
Strength) The Single Malts of
Scotland
A nice vibrant Caol Ila that has all
the characteristics that have made
the whisky from this distillery so
sought after. Nice balance of peat
and sweetness with some subtle
spiciness. I really liked this dram
and found it very approachable and
just seemed perfect for a rainy day.
Reminded me of a toned down
Lagavulin.
Nose:
Peat bonfire, sweetness, simple
syrup, anise, floral, cloves
Body:
Light and smooth
Finish:
Dry and medium length, smoky peat,
coastal
Very nice.
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Caol Ila 1982 25 yr old 54.7%
(Single Cask/Cask Strength) The
Single Malts of Scotland
Another example of an over aged
Islay whisky. All of the Islay
character has been replaced with
gauze and brine. Lacked that nice
balance of peat smoke and sweetness
that’s typical of younger Caol Ila’s.
The dram improved with water but
just seemed uninspired.
Nose:
Light and grassy, gauze, peat,
iodine, brine, very light smoke
Body:
Medium
Finish:
Long and sharp, peat, sticky
sweetness
Uninspired.
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Aultmore 1992 15 yr old 46%
(Small Batch) The Single Malts of
Scotland
An easy drinker that wasn’t overly
complex, just pleasant and
unassuming. The nose was the
highlight of the trip with notes of
butterscotch, burnt sugar and
peaches. The body was somewhat light
but still flavorful while the finish
was medium length with more oak
coming through.
Nose:
Deep, butterscotch, burnt sugar,
malt, peaches, touch of oak
Body:
Light and flavorful
Finish:
Medium length, malt and oak,
butterscotch, lemon rind, warming
Approachable. |
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The
Macallan 1990 17 yr old 46% (Small
Batch) The Single Malts of Scotland
A nice tasty dram that had that
everyday dram quality to it. Fresh
and clean with citrus and vanilla
characteristics. The dram had a
classic nose and a short but very
flavorful finish.
Nose:
Fresh and clean, citrus mix, oak and
malt, vanilla, floral
Body:
Thick and sweet
Finish:
Short and flavorful, dry, grassy,
vanilla, caramel, cut grapefruit
Tasty.
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Benriach 1984 22 yr old 53.2%
(Single Cask/Cask Strength) The
Single Malts of Scotland
A Speyside trying it’s
hardest to be and Islay and falling
way short. A one trick pony that was
all smoke and peat but had no
sweetness to balance things out. A
tough one.
Nose:
Smoke, peat, gauze, iodine, dry
packaged cake mix
Body:
Medium
Finish:
Medium length, dry ash, peat, smoke,
gauze aftertaste
All smoke and peat but not in
a good way.
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Glen
Grant 1972 34 yr old 54.9% (Single
Cask/Cask Strength) The Single Malts
of Scotland
Heavily serried and almost chocolate
in color, this whisky is big and
rich with a distinctive perfumed
finish. I loved the nose and the
dram in general. Maybe just a tad
over aged would be my only
complaint. If they bottled this at
say 27 or 30 years I’m sure it would
have been outstanding. Overall, I
enjoyed it but you have to like very
heavily sherried whisky.
Nose: Clean, leather, dry
sherry, oranges, port wine
Body:
Chewy and flavorful, full bodied
Finish:
Long and dry, sherry, perfumed, oak,
oranges, honey
A big and rich sherry monster. |
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Questions or comments are welcome, I can be reached at
glen@whiskyguild.com
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