This is such a smooth malt to drink that it’s easy to miss the complex sophistication. The nose is fruity, in a light citrus vein, and there’s just a suggestion of cloves. The palate is sweet with citrus and tropical fruit, and a peppery note, as if someone has dusted grilled bananas with freshly ground […]
This is a big braw* whisky, the one you’d want in your hip flask on a wintery walk. The first impression is of dry peat smoke, but that quickly gives way to lots of fruitcake character, along with a sophisticated woody note which seems as elegant as a fine cognac. Underlying all of these is […]
One of Scotland’s oldest distilleries Glen Garioch (pronounced Geery) has been re-born with a new pair of regular whiskies and the first of a selection of small-batch bottlings, the 1991. Founded in 1797, the distillery is located in the picturesque town of Oldmeldrum, north-west of Aberdeen. Shut in the late 1960s, new owners, Morrison Bowmore […]
Until as recently as 2003 there was no official standard bottling from Clynelish, and even now there are only three. The 14 Year Old is the most widely available. It is an elegant medium-bodied whisky, neither peaty nor overly malty, and thus a good all-rounder. When you nose the whisky at first, the elegance expresses […]
A classically light Laddie, with cereal and citrus notes and a subtle spiciness from the casks, this is the only organic whisky from Islay, and one of only two organic single malts. What’s more, we are told the names of the farms which produced the barley for this whisky, and even the names of the farmers. […]
Light, elegant, and clean, the Bruichladdich 12 Year Old combines delicacy and intensity. It’s pale looking beside other whiskies; no sherry casks here to darken the malt, just light, sweet ex-bourbon barrels. The nose is fairly complex, dominated by ripe fruity notes – we found a hint of peach – but with lighter touches of […]
Brora, a rare dram from a long closed distillery, is one of history’s happy accidents. The old, mothballed Clynelish – renamed Brora to avoid confusion with the newly rebuilt distillery – was brought back into service in 1969 making heavily peated whisky to bolster blends like Johnny Walker. Only after it was again closed in […]
Bowmore is certainly a peated whisky, but not ferociously so, and it has plenty of other aromas to offer. The peat smoke is balanced against a gentle toffee sweetness and maybe a wee bit of lemony citrus. Sometimes a waxy note suggests that maybe the toffee you’re smelling was made with honeycomb. The flavours are […]
A sweet malt, the Arran 14 year old has plenty of fruity notes, given weight by the woody, spicy cask flavours. Mid-amber in colour, much like the 10 year old, there are an array of fruits on the nose – red fruits like raspberries all the way to tropical (bananas!). There is also the characteristic […]
The essence of Irish whiskey is the smooth texture, which comes from the triple distillation process. Bushmills 10 is a fine example; the rough edges, the fiery finish which you might find after just two distillations has been rounded and softened, giving a malt which is all too easy to drink.The nose is super-sweet, a […]
