Scottish Whisky

Girvan 24 Yr Single Grain Scotch Whisky

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky, Single Grain / ,

Girvan 24 Year Old Cask Strength Single Grain Whisky
Sovereign K&L Exclusive Single Cask

50.3% ABV
$100
Website
Girvan 24 Yr Old Single Grain Scotch Whisky

What the Reseller Says

Our grain whiskies from the Sovereign label have been some of the most beloved in our store’s history, which is why we’re back with another fabulous Girvan; the William Grant Lowland distillery located in the South Ayrshire (where Ladyburn distillery was once located). Remember that grain whiskies are not single malts, but rather column-distilled whiskies usually made from corn (like Bourbon). The Girvan 24 year is full of soft vanilla right off the bat, almost like an older version of the Nikka Coffey expression, but with more pop due to the higher proof. The vanilla turns into caramel on the mid-palate and it finishes with more soft sweetness before the alcohol comes roaring in. With grain prices as low as they are, expect more outstanding values like this in the near future.

From the bottle:
Distilled 1990, Bottled September 2014
A robust, sweet nose is slightly peppery with toffee apples.
Buttery on the palate with vanilla and chocolate,
followed by a long, nutty finish
Cask Ref: HL10574

What Gary Says

Nose:  Sweet, subtle honey with musty oak, hints of vanilla and baked apples.
Palate:  Sweet start with a viscous, buttery mouthfeel, vanilla and almonds before pepper spice.
Finish:  Long, nutty and peppery, drying as it goes.
Comments:  Full disclosure – single grain isn’t my favorite category of whisky. There isn’t anything objectionable about this dram, but also nothing really stood out for me compared to other similarly aged single grain Scotch whiskies. For my palate, single grain is a very gentle, subtle, nuanced pour – typically on the sweet side with a buttery mouthfeel. Very drinkable, and while there’s pepper spice it is somehow softer than you might expect (not a ‘sharp bite’). Hard to find a 20+ yr old anything in this price range.

Rating: Average/Stands Out

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Compass Box Great King Street Glasgow Blend Single Marrying Cask (2018)

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky /

Compass Box Great King Street Glasgow Blend Single Marrying Cask

Selected by The Whiskey Library DC, Scotch Trooper &
Dekalb Bottle House, Cask No 5
49% ABV
$50
Website
Compass Box Great King Street Glasgow Blend Single Marrying Cask

What the Blender Says

(Referencing the bottle details):
French Oak Barrel
Married 1/24/2017
Bottled 7/16/2018 (married 18 mos)
192 bottles
The Great King Street range from Compass Box is dedicated to creating contemporary Scotch Whiskies in the full-flavoured style of the great 19th Century blending houses. In creating these blends, we drew upon archive recipes from the golden age of whiskymaking then updated them with our own 21st Century custom cask maturation techniques. The result is a style of Blended Scotch unlike anything else available today.
Bold, Peaty, Sherried

What Gary Says

Nose: Thick peaty goodness, raisins, roasted marshmallows, subtle sea air with baking spices, wisps of barbecue sauce and rubber bands.
Palate: Thick and oily mouthfeel, peat with medicinal notes and dark fruit, vanilla, cinnamon, a hint of curry spice.
Finish: Moderately long, oily with lingering peat and subtle spice.
Comments: Third of these ‘single marrying casks’ I’ve bought, and only regret is not grabbing multiples. While I would buy any of them again given the chance at retail, this is my favorite. Just a lovely, intense, robust whisky with spice notes from the french oak. Compared to the standard Great King Street lineup, the additional proof points and marrying casks make more of a difference than you might suspect.

Rating: Must Buy

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Compass Box Great King Street Artist’s Blend Single Marrying Cask (2018)

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky /

Compass Box Great King Street Artist’s Blend Single Marrying Cask

Dekalb Bottle House Exclusive, Cask No 27
49% ABV
$50
Website
Compass Box Great King Street Artists Blend Single Marrying Cask

What the Blender Says

(Referencing the bottle details):
American Oak Hogshead
Married 1/18/2017
Bottled 7/16/2018 (married 18 mos)
162 bottles
The Great King Street range from Compass Box is dedicated to creating contemporary Scotch Whiskies in the full-flavoured style of the great 19th Century blending houses. In creating these blends, we drew upon archive recipes from the golden age of whiskymaking then updated them with our own 21st Century custom cask maturation techniques. The result is a style of Blended Scotch unlike anything else available today.
Rich, Round & Fruity

What Gary Says

Nose: Rich, baked apple chips, vanilla, biscuity, rickhouse oak, bits of apple cider spices (cinnamon, clove, nutmeg).
Palate: Rounded, slightly waxy mouthfeel with apples, pears, vanilla, honey, allspice, nutmeg, a hint of cinnamon give way to freshly cracked pepper.
Finish: Moderately long, damp with building pepper spice and over-ripe pears.
Comments: This is the 2nd Compass Box Great King Street Marrying Cask I’ve bought, and they’ve all punched well above their weight for the money. I had an opportunity to try this at the launch party, and immediately bought one. Unlike private barrels, these aren’t everywhere you look – but I wouldn’t hesitate to pull the trigger on one.

Rating: Must Buy

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BenRiach 10 Years Old Single Malt

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky, Speyside /

BenRiach 10 Years Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky

43% ABV
$55-$65
Website
BenRiach 10 Yr Single Malt Scotch Whisky

What the Distillery Says

Bottled at 43% vol, the BenRiach 10 Years Old is Classic Speyside in character. The cask formula focuses on ex-bourbon and ex-sherry casks – exactly the types of wood we favour at BenRiach. This fresh, lively, fruit-laden single malt captures WARM OAK SPICES, GREEN APPLE, DRIED APRICOTS, PEACH and BANANA with subtle touches of ANISEED, LEMON ZEST and BARLEY.

TASTING NOTES
COLOUR: Crisp summer gold.
NOSE: A fresh and lively combination of crisp, green orchard fruits, stem ginger and hints of tangerine mellows to creamy vanilla with a delicate note of mint and a gentle twist of citrus, all held together with a sweet barley back note.
TASTE: Warm toasted oak spices flood through green apple skins and dried apricots, ripening to hints of peach and soft banana. Subtle touches of aniseed and lemon zest create a contrasting edge to the fruit and add an intriguing character to the long, crisp barley finish.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Floral and cereal with honeysuckle, apples, pears, peaches, vanilla with a hint of lemon and cinnamon.
Palate:  Cereal sweetness with vanilla, honeyed-malt, a hint of spice (nutmeg).
Finish:  On the short side, drying with a bit of spice.
Comments:  Not objectionable, but a bit uninspiring. I prefer the nose over the palate by a fair margin. While it definitely fits into the Speyside character, it is on the thin end of that spectrum.  For the money, I’d go for a Balvenie 12 yr Double Wood or Macallan 12 yr, both of which are within $5 of the same price here in Atlanta –  but obviously different strokes for different folks.

Rating: Average

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Tamdhu Dalbeallie Dram

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky, Speyside /

Tamdhu Dalbeallie Dram

62.1% ABV
$160
Website
Tamdhu Dalbeallie Dram
We would like to thank Paul (check out his reviews here, or on Dapper Drams) for sending us a sample to review.

What the Distillery Says

Tamdhu Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky has launched an exclusive limited edition malt, the Tamdhu Dalbeallie Dram, at the 2018 Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival.

The bottling honours Dalbeallie train station, and the part the Victorian railway played in receiving Tamdhu’s precious sherry oak casks from Spain. Dalbeallie Dram is 100% matured in Oloroso sherry casks from Jerez in Southern Spain, bottled un-chill-filtered at cask strength (62.1% ABV). Only 1,000 individually numbered bottles will be made available of Collectors Journey 01 with future limited edition Dalbeallie Dram Collectors Journey releases planned annually for each Speyside Festival.

Carefully chosen by a team at the distillery, Tamdhu Dalbeallie Dram has notes of blackcurrant jam, mint tea and Bakewell tart on the nose, with sherry oak, cream soda, orange and nutmeg on the palate – then a finish of malt biscuit, dark chocolate and cinnamon. Like every bottle of Tamdhu, the rich natural colour comes from sherry casks alone.

Sandy McIntryre, Tamdhu Distillery Manager, said:

Having a new expression of Tamdhu is always exciting, and launching to guests during the Speyside Whisky Festival makes it all the more special. John Glass, our Master Blender, prepared a selection of drams for the team to nose and sample before we decided what we thought would best compliment the current Tamdhu range. We are absolutely delighted with the end result.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Rich and thick, chockful of sherry with raisins, plums, dates, figs, clove, nutmeg, allspice, worn leather, old books, pipe tobacco, mixed nuts. A bit of water brings out some caramel fudge and toffee notes along with hints of pears and apples.
Palate:  Luscious, rich and creamy with dark fruits, honey, chocolate, anise, clove, walnuts, cherries, and bits of melon. Some water brings out more chocolate with pecans and a bit of caramel.
Finish:  Long and gently drying with nutty chocolate and dark fruit.
Comments:  Wow. Just wow. This is only the second Tamdhu offering I’ve tried, and damn – this is just as delicious (maybe a touch better – and retailed for roughly half the other!). Easily one of the top three drams I tasted in 2019 (when I started my review notes). This whisky has such a rich and dense flavor, with a thick and creamy mouthfeel. It reminds me a bit of Macallan cask strength (in the glass it has that super-dark color, although a bit more brown than red by comparison), which is one of my favorites. If I had the opportunity to snag one at the $160 it was sold at, I think I’d buy multiples. Sadly unlikely to ever have a chance to buy one at anything close to that (or buy one period). This would be a contender for my Top 5 of all time, with the likes of Compass Box The General (and for those familiar with that dram and me, yes . . . it’s that good).

Rating: Must Buy

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