April 2026

GlenAllachie 15 Year Old

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky, Speyside /

The GlenAllachie 15 Year Old
Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky

46% ABV
$100-125
Website
The GlenAllachie 15 Year Old Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky

What the Distillery Says

This spectacular Scotch whisky embodies our unwavering dedication to obtaining Sherry wood of the highest standard. A watchful eye throughout the maturation journey ensures the whisky is bottled at its optimum.

With an intense mahogany hue, this single malt exudes sheer indulgence with layers of cinnamon, orange zest, vanilla toffee and dark chocolate.

We proudly present The GlenAllachie 15-year-old with integrity; at a high strength of 46%, without added colouring or chill filtration, enabling its true charm to shine through.

What Gary Says

Nose: Dried fruit, raisins, figs, cherries, orange marmalade, oak spices and brown sugar.
Palate: Honey and vanilla with cherries, raisins, orange zest, baked apples, cinnamon, nutmeg and pepper.
Finish: Moderate in length, drying with cocoa, oak, brown sugar and spices.
Comments: A nice sipping dram. Sherried for sure but not a ‘bomb’. Fairly well balanced, a bit on the dry side – almost sharp with the spice notes. This is the first GlenAllachie I’ve reviewed, although have some single casks I’ll get to at some point.

Rating: Stands Out

GlenAllachie 15 Year Old Read More »

High West A Midwinter Night’s Dram Act 12 (2024)

/ / Review, Rye Whiskey /

High West A Midwinter Night’s Dram
Blend of Straight Rye Whiskeys Finished in Port Barrels
Act 12, Scene 7 (2024 release)

49.3% ABV
$150
Website
High West A Midwinter Night’s Dram Act 12

What the Producer Says

Dram is our beloved flagship whiskey, “Rendezvous” (a blend of straight rye whiskeys ranging in 4 to 10 years of age), finished in Ruby and Tawny Port barrels.

Nose: Crushed blackberries, mandarin zest, almond shortbread, fig jam, dulce de membrillo, allspice, old vine zinfandel, plum syrup spilled on a mahogany table
Palate: Marionberry preserves, chocolate-dipped cherries, marble rye bread, mochaccino, cinnamon bark, oolong tea, winter pine, smoldering Havana cigar
Finish: Velvety and spiced–chai cold foam, clove-studded orange flesh, soft ginger chew

How to drink: We recommend that you enjoy this special spirit neat, due to its many layers of complexity, next to a warm fire as the snow piles up on the window sill.

What Gary Says

Nose: Dark fruit, plums, blackberries, figs, heavy port, allspice, hint of anise and orange zest.
Palate: Blood orange, plum, cinnamon, bitter chocolate, nutmeg, cloves and sour oak.
Finish: Moderate in length, drying with citrus spice and cloves fading.
Comments: Reviewed this for the first time back in September of 2020, and just late last year I received a sample of Act 13. A few months later, a friend gifted me this sample – and as luck would have it I still had some of the Act 13 to perform a side-by-side comparison. They were incredibly similar. On my first side-by-side, I only detected slight differences; in the next attempt I couldn’t tell any difference. On the nose I found a hint of anise that I didn’t detect on the 13 (and maybe a tad more of orange zest?), although on the palate I couldn’t find any difference. I repeated this a couple more times, with the same results. As I wasn’t terribly impressed with the Act 13, this was a bit disappointing – but confirmed that Act 13 wasn’t an “off year”. And I can’t say that it has changed – for all I know my tastes have changed (and maybe if I had a new bottle of the early ones – I’d find them very similar).

Rating: Stands Out

High West A Midwinter Night’s Dram Act 12 (2024) Read More »