TRENDS FOR 2023
One trend clearly visible in the whisky world is rising prices. As the whisky industry continues to expand at a rapid clip, that trend is unlikely to reverse. In fact, the global whisky market is expected to be valued at 100 billion by 2029! That should provide the impetus to delineate some nuanced trends in 2023. This article is a follow-up to an earlier post on this link.
Making Whisky Accessible: The industry is eager to
attract a new generation of drinkers. One result of this is new releases of
budget-friendly malt whiskies promoted as ‘accessible’, easy and enjoyable to
drink for a beginner while still retaining some degree of complexity. William
Grant’s new Aerstone malts are a great example, as well as the new ‘Discover’
selection from the revamped Gordon & Macphail range.
The Beginning Of A Scotch Rye Craze:
Microdistilleries: Loads of new microdistilleries have
been popping up across Scotland, and they are just now beginning to release new
products. Though some of these can’t yet be legally called whisky, many of
their first single malts will be on the market soon, and the whisky world will
be watching their development closely. For example, the Fife distilleries of
Eden Mill and Kingsbarns have seen an enormous demand for their budding young
malts, while Ncn’ean and Lindores have produced a new whisky/gin hybrid,
infusing their malt spirit with botanicals until their stock ages long enough
so it can legally be called ‘whisky’.
More Maturation Experiments: Scotch distilleries are
incorporating more casks outside of the traditional bourbon or sherry into
maturation. With the launch of its Captain’s Reserve a couple of months ago,
Glenlivet may be the first Scotch whisky distillery to have a core range bottle
involving Cognac maturation.
Whisky aged in wine and port casks are also not too
hard to find these days. One interesting recent experiment was the Glenfiddich
Winter Storm, aged in Canadian ice wine casks made from French oak. By bringing
in new and unusual casks, distilleries are looking to stand out from what is
‘usually done’, so these new releases often have a fair amount of promotion
behind them too.
Focus on Sustainability: Millennial and Gen-Z consumers
have now firmly established that they are willing to pay more for sustainably
produced goods. These groups gravitate toward locally-sourced ingredients,
which accounts for the rising interest in grain-to-glass distilleries. For a
generation that is younger, it is less about quantity and more about quality.
The idea of better ingredients that are also produced through a responsible
process is a priority and a must for the younger generations who are more
educated about carbon footprints.
Premiumisation, or the rise of higher-priced spirits (another trend
we’re likely to see continue in 2023), will ease the pressure on producers who
face rising costs as sustainability initiatives demand additional investment.
Investment in Social Media:
Diversity: Many whisky brands are already taking
strides to create more diverse workplaces and combat the stereotype of whisky
drinkers only looking a certain way. This momentum will pick up steam in 2023. Diversity
just makes good business sense. If you want a business that will be relevant in
20 years, you’ve got to recognise that this country is changing, and has
changed, and the younger generation wants a product that reflects their values.
Innovation Through Barrel Finishing: Also known as secondary maturation, barrel
finishing is a tool that distillers use to fine-tune the flavours of their
finished whiskies. After ageing in one barrel, the whisky is transferred to a
different, previously-used barrel to take on some of its flavours and aromas.
This practice is not new, but as consumers continue to demonstrate a taste for
more complex flavours, the technique will increase in popularity. Some experts
warn that too much barrel finishing could be dangerous for the industry because it can be used to mask the flavour of an inferior product. But for
distillers who have mastered their craft, barrel finishing an established
product is a sophisticated way to appeal to the most discerning whisky
lovers.
More American Single Malts:
After years of such lobbying
by distillers, the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) has
officially set proposed standards for American single malts, aiming to put them
into effect in April 2023. “The mash is 100% malted barley,” states TTB documentation.
“It must also be distilled and aged at a single distillery in the U.S. at a
distillation proof of 160 or less and stored in oak barrels at a maximum size
of 700 litres.”
Ready-To-Drink Category:
Data analyst IWSR projects that it will maintain a
compound annual growth rate of +21.8% up to 2025. What is more, these pre-mixed
drinks are predicted to steal market share from beer, not spirits – so there is
less chance of 'cannibalisation', where one brand iteration simply steals sales
from another.
There are multiple reasons why RTDs are popular with
consumers, not least their sheer convenience: just open, pour and drink.
They're also usually low in alcohol, calories and portion size (typically 35cl
or smaller) – all attractive attributes for consumers who are increasingly
concerned about health and wellness. And cans – the dominant packaging format –
are better for the environment than glass bottles.
Not only are these aspects a draw for consumers, but they're also a draw for millennial consumers in particular – an audience with which
Scotch sometimes struggles to connect. And here is the point of RTDs: they
offer an approachable, low-risk (in terms of expense) entry point into the
world of Scotch whisky. In pre-mixed cocktail form, they can also showcase
Scotch's mixability, priming Covid consumers for a time when the bars of the
world can reopen.
Winding Down
Single malts are the
current mode in Scotch. Rightly or wrongly, they have garnered a reputation as
being higher-quality spirits than their blended cousins and now in Scotch, it
is the master distiller who reigns. This trend is evidenced in most bestselling
lists, where at least two thirds of the top dozen are single malts.
Drinks International
publishes The Annual Brands Report, the results of which are the culmination of
a survey of 100 bars from thirty diverse countries around the world which have
been nominated or won international awards. The report offers a picture of the
buying habits of the world’s best bars – not only which brands sell best, but
also what’s trending to indicate the brands that are hot right now.
That said, we could look
at my selections in Scotch Whisky. These are mine-you could make up your own
list if you so desire.
MY RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THIS YEAR
1. BRUICHLADDICH
PORT CHARLOTTE PC 10
This Port Charlotte 10-year-old has been conceived,
distilled, matured and bottled on Islay alone. We are a young team with
deep-rooted values, and an ambition to make the ultimate “Islay” Islay whisky.
A whisky made by people, not software; a whisky watched over every day of its
maturing life by those who made it; a whisky born of a community with a vision
and a mission to kick start a single malt whisky revolution, this Port
Charlotte 10 year old is who we are. This is where we’re from.
Port Charlotte whisky gets its name from the village of
Port Charlotte, a white-walled and windswept sort of place just a couple of
kilometres down the road from Bruichladdich. This release, Port Charlotte 10,
is distilled from 100% Scottish barley peated to 40 ppm. Ppm stands for parts
per million phenol, a common method for gauging the smokiness of malted
barley that isn’t always useful for consumers. The distillate ages at least 10
years on Islay in a mix of first- and second-fill American whiskey casks, and
second-fill French wine casks. It’s bottled at 50% ABV and, like all of
Bruichladdich’s whiskies, without colouring or chill filtration.
The Bruichladdich Distillery produces three different
labels. There’s the eponymous Bruichladdich, which is entirely unpeated.
There’s Octomore, which is extravagantly peated (and unconventional in other
ways). And there’s Port Charlotte, which offers what’s probably closest to the
canonical Islay style: robustly smoky whiskies with a maritime tinge. A focus
on island-grown barley and barley provenance, on-island warehouses, and
environmental sustainability remain an unconventionally central component of
Bruichladdich’s operations.
Bruichladdich Port Charlotte 10 Year is a readily
available and award-winning 10-year-old Islay Scotch. The breakdown of the
blend is
– 65% 1st fill
American whiskey casks (probably bourbon)
– 10% 2nd fill
American whiskey casks (probably bourbon)
– 25% 2nd fill
French wine casks (unclear if it’s red or white wine)
When it comes to peated Scotch, Bruichladdich Port
Charlotte 10-year-old is a drastic change. It’s a more delicate smoke with some
mesquite, dried mushrooms, and charcoal with proportionally more bright honey,
flowers, vanilla, and grapefruit. A floral peated whisky with something dark
underneath that’s tough to identify, maybe it’s the wine influence. The nose
overall is round with a lot of character and not much heat; this Bruichladdich
is not big, but more subtle and delicate.
Nose: Swirling brings out a tad more alcohol prickle,
but also a bright, sweet, and floral nose with less smoked wood and mushroom
this time as the peat provides gentle smoke, barbeque, and fungal sensations.
There’s bright honey, vanilla, ripe peach, green apple, a squeez of citrus and a
bouquet of flowers.
Palate: The PC 10 initially has slightly ashy and smoky
honey, vanilla, citrus, and lightly toasted wood flavours that are equally
balanced between the peat and sweetness. The peat does not take over at any
point: it’s very much a supporting actor. The mouthfeel is also quite viscous
and nice (probably because it's non-chill filtered), and without a ton of heat.
“Chewing” still provides lightly smoky and very sweet
flavours of honey, pear, apple, vanilla, a little oak, char, and dried mushroom,
with just a little bit of fresh spring greens from the peat. The peat is not
very vegetal or ocean-y, but instead earthy and barbeque-y.
Even without all the heft behind it, Port Charlotte 10
is still round and flavourful, especially the fruity splash. It’s more bright,
lively, and savoury, and less dark and smoky.
Finish: A light smokiness follows into the finish with
honey, grapefruit, flower, and peach. Slightly fungal mushrooms appear after some
seconds, making it a barbeque-y and floral finish. “Chewing” culls out sweet
barbeque sauce
Bruichladdich Port Charlotte 10 Year tastes like a
smoked and oaked white wine, but a little darker with a hint of dark fruit, so
maybe an extra-aged Fino sherry. This really isn’t that peaty, but just
adequate. Peat can be easygoing, letting the softer honey and fruit notes shine
instead. With honey, peach, onion powder, garlic powder, smoke, and wood char,
it’s a savoury yet sweet finish that leaves a nice tingle on my tongue and also
provides some spring green-like vegetal hints after a minute as everything
fades. The smoke and wood tannin build with each sip, which is very pleasant.
This Port Charlotte 10-Year-Old has the right mix of bourbon-aged Scotch and peat that can convert people to peated Scotch. Doing some reading after the fact, Bruichladdich mentions that their Scotches are very floral, something easily confirmable.
2. BENROMACH 10 YO
When it came under Gordon & MacPhail’s ownership, the
firm decided that Benromach should make an older style of Speyside malt – one
with a little touch of smoke, medium in body and fruity – with the new
equipment they had installed.
Distillery building started in 1898, but the distillery didn’t start making whisky until 1900. Its production was intermittent after that, with the distillery passing through a number of hands: Macdonald Greenlees, Joseph Hobbs, National Distillers of America and, finally, DCL. The industry giant kept it running until 1983, when it was closed, one of a large number of distilleries which were shut as a result of an industry-wide stock surplus.
After 11 years of silence – during which its interior had been cannibalised for parts by Diageo – it was bought by Elgin’s Gordon & MacPhail. The firm then set about building what was effectively a new
distillery in the shell of the old. It took the firm five years of trials
before the first spirit was made.
Benromach 10 is the starting point in the Benromach range. It is aged mostly in ex-bourbon American oak barrels and some Sherry barrels for 9 years. Later on, it is married for a year more in Sherry barrels. It is bottled at 43% ABV. Benromach is a traditional Speyside distillery owned by a family of whisky-lovers intent on making single malt the right way with true character. This is done by keeping things simple. A handful of distillers relying entirely on their expertise and senses to make the finest handmade whisky; Speyside single malt matured exclusively in first-fill casks, with a subtly smoky character. It takes just four ingredients – barley, water, yeast and a human touch. No artificial colouring is added.
All casks are hand-filled, individually weighed, stencilled by hand and stowed in their traditional dunnage warehouses. This is because
Benromach believes making whisky by hand guarantees genuine character. Recalling the Speyside tradition of topping up fires with cuts of peat when coal ran low, Benromach’s Scottish barley is grown locally and malted with a little peat smoke to exact specifications before being ground into grist in their 120 year-old four-roller Boby Mill. A a lightly peated barley is specified (12ppm), giving the whiskies their distinctive Speyside character. In the mash, they mix the grist with water drawn from the same source used by Benromach for 120 years. Their pure soft water rises in the Chapelton Spring in the Romach Hills, just a couple of miles behind the distillery.
Despite the stills being smaller, Gordon &
MacPhail’s new make bears a striking resemblance to that made under DCL’s
stewardship. Quite how this happened is one of the mysteries surrounding Scotch
and goes some way to adding to the belief that there is something about a
distillery’s own microclimate which influences the character of the spirit.
Since then, it has appeared in peated guise, as an
organic release, a 100% Golden Promise release, and in a succession of finishes
in fortified and wine casks. With more time under its belt extra weight is now
being shown by the maturing spirit.
Double distillation through two bespoke copper pot stills creates a medium bodied spirit suitable for variable lengths of maturation. The wash still is settled by hand, using the expertise and experience of their distillers and a traditional water test used to gauge purity. The skill of their dedicated distillers is especially critical when it comes to cutting the spirit, the moment when they consider the new spirit to be of the highest quality. This ‘sweet heart’ of the run goes to spend years maturing in their first-fill casks.
Benromach is easy to drink with a range of fruits from
summer berries to apples and citrus. Don’t expect much barrel influence as the
sherry casks are only used for a short finish. The Benromach carries all of the
warm spice one would expect of whisky aged in oak barrels.
It also has a very slight peaty quality, making it the perfect gateway to Highland Park or the Islay distilleries for those apprehensive about smoke. Benromach is emerging from the shadows of a lesser-known distillery and is finding its feet in the whisky market with a number of rebrands under its belt, all of which are better than the previous. It is likely to reach the upper tiers soon.
Finish drifts off into the night on a smoky ashy trail leaving the drinker wondering what exactly happened… on first sniff and sip that is. Once you know what to expect and settle in, this whisky shows a nice complexity and the ride becomes less jarring, more even and more enjoyable. The Benromach 10 YO is a great sipping malt.
Distillery Tasting Notes
Colour: Golden Amber
Aroma: Sweet green apple and pear complement creamy
dark honey. Soft vanilla develops alongside gentle smoke.
Palate: Smooth flavours of malted cereal and stewed
fruit combine with warm toffee and a hint of black cherry.
Finish: Full-bodied finish with malted cereal and soft
smoke.
Benromach Contrasts: Limited Edition Peat Smoke Sherry
Cask Matured Single Malt
Only ever produced in limited runs, Benromach Peat
Smoke Sherry Cask Matured Contrasts 46% ABV uses the finest Scottish barley malted with
high levels of peat smoke at 67ppm at the kilning stage, reducing to 55 ppm at
the bottling stage. Laid down in 2012 before being bottled in 2021, this
expression is natural in colour and non-chill filtered. It has been matured
exclusively in first-fill sherry hogshead casks which results in cinnamon and
ginger aromas with rich dark chocolate and stewed red berry flavours. This
leads to a full finish of peat smoke and sweetness.
This small-batch vintage expression has been created in
a style which is deliberately different to the subtle smokiness Benromach is
well-known for. This is only the second time they’ve released a heavily
sherried peat smoke expression and are very proud of its unique flavour
profile. Although it is different from the first sherry-matured peat smoke
expression released in March 2019, given the enthusiasm received from whisky
fans this release is expected to be very popular.
Benromach Contrasts: Peat Smoke comes in two versions, one
matured in 100% first-fill ex-bourbon casks and this one, matured
in 100% first-fill Oloroso sherry casks. There is no age statement, but we
do get a distillation date of 2012 and a bottling date of 2021. Therefore, it
is safe to assume this is either eight or nine years old. It’s peated to 55ppm,
which, for reference, is similar to Ardbeg.
Colour: Rusty.
On the nose: Rich, creamy toffee, demerara sugar and
bonfire smoke, with one of the biggest smoked bacon notes in a whisky for some
time; rub a little on your hands for the full effect! Judged blind, one could
easily think one was trying a sherried Caol Ila. There’s a bit of a medicinal
nature to the peat influence, with deep heat and sticking plasters. It’s not
all sweet toffee and smoke, it’s fruity too, with peaches along with caramelised
banana and citrus. A hint of rubber and damp hay.
Palate: In the mouth, more of the rich toffee from the
first fill sherry, with a luxuriously thick mouth feel. It’s a very fatty,
estery spirit, and the addition of just a few drops of water turn the whisky
lovely and cloudy. Bonfire smoke and ash, which builds in its ashiness through
the development. Sour cherries, red apple, charred barbecue meats and peppery
spice, which soon moves to warming ginger and wintergreen. There’s also cinder
toffee and a stony pebble earthiness.
Finish: Increasingly
ashen, with toffee apple, vanilla cream and salt.
Conclusions: Funky and a little bit dirty, which is a
fantastic combination of sherry and peat. It’s sweet, but not as
sweet as expected on the palate from the first fill sherry, with the sour
fruit, meaty flavours, and salt giving it a nice balance.
Previous incarnations of this under the old branding
have been bottled at cask strength, don’t let it hold you back from buying a
bottle if that is the only reason. This is a very good whisky at the lower
ABV and is priced right, too.
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3.
Johnnie Walker Swing is an
exceptionally smooth Scotch whisky created in the early part of the twentieth
century by Alexander Walker, the world-renowned whisky master blender and
connoisseur. This bottle of was named Swing after the rocking motion the bottle
makes when pushed. Naturally then, this is a collectable.
Johnnie Walker Swing is one of the lesser-known
offerings in the Johnnie Walker brand product line. This no-age-statement blended Scotch whisky
was first launched in 1932. While Swing
Superior was certainly one step better than this one, it has gone off the Johnnie
Walker inventory.
Usually only available through Duty-Free shops at
airports around the world, this particular bottling is available at diverse brick-and-mortar stores.
The Name: Swing
Legend has it that Alexander Walker (grandson of John
Walker), on one of his transatlantic voyages, noticed in the bar how the
bottles would move and shift due to the movement of the ocean liner upon the
seas. The bartender struggled to keep
the bottles in racks in an effort to prevent breakage. Sir Alex got to thinking that there had to be
a better way. So, he ordered his minions to design a bottle that would not be
caused to fall over in such a nautical
setting.
The solution was simple. The base of the Swing bottle was
made convex. So, it rocked back and
forth, if there was any movement of the surface it was resting upon and remained
upright.
The Blend: 75 Cl 40% ABV
Nose (neat): Invitingly floral with gentle sherry notes,
followed by a wisp of smoke. There is also some mild smoke and spice. The nose has an old-world malty feel to it. Hints
of dried fruits, tobacco and leather.
Palate (neat): Sweet wild honey smeared on dark
toast. Light sherry notes (think dark
red fruit) make an appearance before a transition to spiced vanilla and
butterscotch. Very smooth and quite oily.
Spicy notes balance the sherry sweetness. There are notes of smoke and
faint peat, probably from the Caol Ila.
Finish (neat): Long and rich. Sherried. Some oak comes
to the front before fading to a final dark red fruit note (due to the sherry
influence). It ends in rich notes of spice and oak with a hint of cloves.
Overall: Swing is an easy-drinking whisky. The
Johnnie Walker Swing is a blend of 35 whiskies with a high proportion of
Speyside malts. Unmistakably Cardhu. These are complemented by malts from the
northern Highlands and Caol Ila. There are also whiskies matured in sherry casks. A simple but solid
12-year-old single malt, if there ever was one. As the core malt of this blend,
Cardhu really dominates the palate.
Johnnie Walker Swing is sweet and smooth, with some honey
and sherry accents. A taste a bit of old
oak, and wonder how great the selection of casks of the single malts making it
into this blend was. Highly quaffable and not offensive in the least, targeting
a very mainstream, non-connoisseur whisky segment. Best had neat at its low 40% ABV.
Cost: Value for money. ~$50 for this bottle. In terms of blended Scotch whisky comparisons, Johnnie Walker Swing is similar in taste to Dimple Pinch 15 and Chivas Regal 18. A must-have. A good gift for someone who likes blends a lot, and does not enjoy the taste of peat, big smoke and other classic Islay flavours.
BUY IT WHENEVER AND WHEREVER YOU SEE IT.
4.
LEDAIG 18 YO
Tobermory is a dark
horse of a distillery. Sitting on the seafront in the town of Tobermory on the
Isle of Mull, it has historically suffered from financial troubles and long
periods of closure. However, under current owners, the South African giant Distell,
Tobermory’s fortunes have totally changed.
Ledaig (pronounced "led-chig") is Gaelic for
"safe haven," and refers to the natural harbour around which Tobermory
Distillery is built. Whisky drinkers around the world have embraced the
distillery’s two very different whiskies produced there – the fruity yet
coastal Tobermory and the powerful, smoky Ledaig.
Ledaig, the peated alter ego of Tobermory single malt,
is owned by the Distell Group, which also brings in Bunnahabhain and Deanston.
The peated expression produced at Tobermory is heavily peated, with Ledaig
becoming a brand of its own in 2007. Tobermory’s malt whisky is being used for
blends Scottish Leader and Black Bottle. The latter is core Bunnahabhain malt, but peated Ledaig is also in the recipe. That’s because they all belong to Distell.
Even so, it's a delicious heavily peated whisky that gives the Islay
heavyweights a real run for their money.
It may be placed ahead of Laphroaig 10 & Lagavulin
16 thanks to the low bottling strengths of the pair, especially if you also
factor in pricing. Actually even without prices factored in it is still from
the enthusiast's perspective, given the Ledaig being bottled at 46.3% without
chill filtration or added colouring, aspects that only a couple of the
entry-level Islays can boast about, and only Ardbeg is at a similar price
point. Ledaig can be just as medicinal and peaty as most of the Ileachs, and
more so than Talisker, but it's still very much the underdog compared to both
its Hebridean neighbours to the south & north.
There are only two Ledaig official bottlings that are
reasonably easy to get: the 10 and 18YOs, although the latter now seems to be
getting more scarce. There are no non-age statement expressions to fill the
gaps, and the price difference between the two is very substantial which
certainly wouldn't help. The distillery looks to be pumping out a lot of new
limited releases at the moment, both of un-peated Tobermory & Ledaig, and
all with age statements (which is impressive). That's partly because of the
pending shortages since the distillery is currently not producing any spirit,
and won't be for almost another two years while the site undergoes substantial
refurbishment. Strangely though, that does not include any steps to increase
production capacity, with the visitor's centre being the main recipient of the
renovations.
The Ledaig 18-year-old has spent most of its life in
ex-bourbon casks, before being finished in Oloroso sherry casks. There are no
official figures on how long it spent in those sherry casks, but a good guess would
be around 12 months. It's bottled at 46.3%, without chill filtration or added
colouring. Like at least 99% of Ledaig & Tobermory whisky, it was matured on
the Scottish mainland, since the distillery's warehouse was sold off and
converted to apartments during a downturn in the 1980s, although it's still a
noticeably coastal whisky despite that.
This Ledaig was tricky but after a while, it managed to
deliver the quality hoped for. Remember to let it rest in your whisky-nosing
glass – to really open up and give off that renowned smoke. It’s surprising
that a peated whisky this old still has a fiery peat and smoke flavour. The
peat of other 18-year-old peated whiskies usually mellows down to nuttier notes.
Colour: Gold copper
Nose: A rich sherry nose. Dark chocolate and raisins.
Smells like a baked apple with mango and apricots all baked in an oat crumble.
More oats with granola and some dried cranberries. Big sherry blast in this
glass. Some damp wood and moss. Smoke and brine are for sure taking a step back,
but it’s a little refined. Mint leaves are in the mix. Stone fruit juiciness.
Cola cube hard sweets, like an artificial cola. Back end you can find cinnamon
spice and dry roasted peanuts.
Palate: Vanilla custard. Parma violet sweets. Floral
taste on the initial sip. A much dryer peat smoke coats the tongue nicely. There’s
some charred oak here. The finish and flavour last so much longer on this dram
and comparing it to the 10 YO. Velvety dark chocolate and a hint of cherry.
Some delicious stroopwafel. Smoked ham and fried Brussels sprouts with
hazelnuts. A wee hit of redcurrant bitterness develops after a while.
Finish: Starts with crispy smoke. Stingy and fruity.
Drops of water add more smoke and make the aftertaste peppery.
Overall: A few drops of water make this Ledaig much
better. Water takes some edge off and gives room for the sophisticated smoke.
Tasty dram if you let it breathe and give it some water.
This award-winning whisky was first matured for 16
years in ex-bourbon casks before being finished for 2 years in the finest
sherry casks, giving the whisky delicious sweet and fruity notes. Like all the
whiskies produced at Tobermory Distillery, this is non-chill filtered and
natural colour. Bottled at 46.3% ABV,
this sits in the Ledaig (peated whisky) core range, alongside Ledaig
10-Year-Old and Ledaig Sinclair Series: Rioja Cask Finish.
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5.
THE GLENALLACHIE 15YO SCOTTISH VIRGIN OAK
Scottish Sessile oak, so-named because its acorns are not held on stalks like those of the English (Pedunculate) oak, but are attached directly to the outer twigs, is incredibly challenging to work with at all stages of production; growing, milling and coopering. Its rarity, costliness and tendency to knot mean it is scarcely used for whisky maturation. GlenAllachie has mastered this art.
GlenAllachie released
Batch One of 12 YO bottlings in its Virgin Oak series in 2021. These were the
Spanish, French and Chinquapin Virgin Oak expressions released as coming-of-age
bottlings to add to their core range and three special expressions In celebration
of Master Distiller Billy Walker’s half-century-long career in the whisky
industry, The Past, Present and Future Series, including two 16 YOs and a
peated 4YO, their first ever peated expression. These proved to be highly
popular and prompted the makers to release another batch of their Virgin Oak
Series, Batch 2, which comprised two 10 YO and one 15 YO edition. This last one
is worth the while and the money.
This single malt was
matured for 13 years and 6 months in ex-bourbon American Quercus Alba oak
barrels. The remaining 18 months were spent in specially selected Scottish Sessile
oak barrels. This very rare single malt gets its sophisticated taste from this
Scottish Sessile Oak (Quercus Petraea), sourced from the Atlantic coast. The
legendary Billy Walker oversaw the entire production and maturation process.
This is a limited edition; only 2,250 bottles were produced. The whisky comes
in a very nice gift box.
Before being filled, the
wood was air-dried for 36 months, then toasted and charred to a medium level.
Using just a handful of casks, the resulting spirit delivers a truly
exceptional drinking experience, oozing with vanilla and butterscotch,
perfectly balanced with rich notes of cinnamon, ginger and cloves. Bottled at
48%, natural colour and non-chill filtered.
Tasting Notes
Appearance: Golden Sunset.
Nose: Bursting with
honeycomb, vanilla pods and citrus fruits, with butterscotch, orange zest and
white chocolate.
Palate: Lashings of
heather honey, caramelised pine nuts, cinnamon and toffee, followed by orange
peel, lemon zest, banana and ginger.
Finish: A little crushed
raspberry and red apple peel; medium in length, with some coffee grounds and a
little fruity funk.
6.
THE GLENDRONACH REVIVAL
The name Glendronach derives
from the Scottish Gaelic Gleann Dronach which means ‘valley of the brambles’ or
‘valley of the blackberries’. Founded in 1826 by James Allardes (referred to
often as Allardice) Glendronach was the second distillery to apply for a
licence to legally produce whisky under the Excise Act of 1823, which allowed
for the distilling of Whisky in Scotland. Silent in 2016, it returned in triumph as The Revival in 2021
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Big, bold and most commonly Sherried, Glendronach is an
old-style whisky which echoes the substantial Victorian buildings in which it
is made. The distillery draws its water from the Dronac burn within the distillery grounds. It has its own floor maltings and two wash stills in addition to two spirit stills.
Inside the distillery are a traditional rake and plough
mash tun, wooden washbacks and four stills which were coal-fired until 2005,
the last in Scotland to be heated in this way. Today there is just a quiet
susurration of steam in the stillhouse, but the oddly shaped wash still and the
plain sides of the spirit still cut back on reflux, helping to build weight in
the spirit.
These days, ex-Sherry casks are the distillery’s
signature style. Some are 100% Sherry matured, and some started in ex-Bourbon
casks to pick up vanilla sweetness before being racked into ex-Sherry.
Part of Benriach, it was purchased by Jack Daniel’s
Tennessee whiskey producer Brown-Forman in 2016, when it fell silent for five
years, supposedly for lack of maturing stocks before coming back into a welcoming
market as The Glendronach Revival 15 YO. Some Glendronach 15 YO bottles were
available in and through 2017, created with older malts, yet sold as a
non-chill-filtered 15 YO at 46% ABV.
The smooth scotch embodies The GlenDronach’s signature
style of Spanish Sherry Cask maturation in fine Pedro Ximénez and Oloroso
sherry casks from Andalucía, quietly growing in stature for 15 years in the
darkness of dunnage warehouses.
Tasting Notes
Colour: Vivid coppery orange
Nose: Big sherry aromas, along with cocoa powder, malt,
and slightly savoury honey. Water brings out a bit of sharpness to the nose as
well as damson jam and raisins.
Palate: The mouthfeel starts off dry and acrid, but
it’s a mixture of oak types creating this sensation. Black peppercorn heightens
the palate before moving forward to make way for bold roast espresso beans.
Sweet, jammy fruit turns drier the longer it’s held on the tongue, allowing
rich, nutty PX sherry notes to come to the fore. Spice, citrus, and leather
lurk deep in the background. With water, more nuttiness and some additional
baking spice.
Finish: Sweet malt, oak, almonds, and a bit of dried
fruit, all of which linger, linger, and linger some more. Ends with cocoa
nibs lingering on the tongue. Water adds some lemongrass, anise, and a touch of
baked apples. A very long and pleasant finish.
Overall: The GlenDronach 15-Year-Old is a straight-up
representation of the distillery. Once you nose and taste it, you’ll realise
why it had a cult following and couldn’t keep up with demand. You get the
sherry, but most importantly, you get a specimen that shows off the patience of
maturity. Revival 15 is a better whisky than GlenDronach’s previous 15-year-old
expression, and it’s a step up from its 12-year-old as well. It holds up well
both flavour and price-wise compared to other sherried malts of similar age.
GlenDronach’s 15-year-old expression returned in 2020
with a new twist: Whereas it previously had been aged entirely in Oloroso
Sherry casks, it’s now aged in a mix of Oloroso and Pedro Ximenez Sherry casks,
with the PX casks imparting a bigger and sweeter fruitiness to the whisky. For
newbies and lovers of sherried malts alike, this is one of the best whiskies
around for under $100.
It also shows what a difference three extra years of
cask ageing can make. GlenDronach’s 12-year-old expression is also aged in the
same types of cask, but Revival has a bigger, deeper, and richer flavour in
comparison. The Revival is consistent, deliciously so. A few drops of water
won’t totally destroy this whisky; some may find it enhancing the profile, but,
all in all, they’re not needed. The flavour is full, but not overly spicy or
hot. There’s no need to dull it down.
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| THE STANDARD PORTFOLIO |
7.
CAOL ILA 18 YO
The highly anticipated reopening
of Caol Ila Distillery on the Isle of Islay finally took place last August. The
island venue which has been closed since 2019 has seen an extensive renovation
throughout its premises, welcoming guests back for the first time to its global
visitor attraction, hampered as it was by the global pandemic.
Caol Ila's distillery character manages to combine a fresh pear note, grassiness, a hint of juniper and distinct notes of the seashore – lobster shells, crab creels and gentle smoke. Maturation for the single malt is in refill casks. The unpeated variant is equally delicate, with a fresh, estery and almost floral lift. Its importance for blends meant that malt lovers had to wait for and seek out independent bottlings. The brand was a must-have in Diageo’s blends, every Johnny Walker blended Scotch below 18 years. Now there is a range including no-age-statement Moch, 18-year-old and 25-year-old, a finished Distiller’s Edition and annual special releases.
When the downturn came in the 1980s, Caol Ila began running unpeated ‘Highland style’ for blends. Not only did it have the capacity, but doing so allowed the distillery to stay open. Unpeated is still made every year, with volumes dependent on the forecasts of Diageo’s blending team. A powerhouse it might be in terms of volume, but Caol Ila always seems to manage to hit the perfect balance between maturity and distillery character, no matter whether it is in official or independent bottlings.
Palate: Medium-weight, almost oily mouthfeel. Sweet
upfront (more pudding), with a sedate tongue burn. Sweetwood, pungent peat
smoke with herbal notes.
Finish: Long. Caramel or nougat, charcoal, bitter herbs
(like cocktail bitters) that linger for basically ever, along with the
remaining wisps of smoke.
With Water: The addition of a few drops of water seems
to initially mute the aroma, requiring a rest in the glass. After, the aroma
seems unchanged by the water. The palate might be thinner and offers slightly
more tongue burn. The water adds a menthol note to the finish. Skip the water
with this one.
Overall: 18 years in oak has not seemed to dull the
Caol Ila peat like it does in other Islay malts. That same vanilla-laden peat
smoke is accompanied by a greater amount of wood sugars and caramel notes than
younger Caol Ilas, and they meld harmoniously. That sandalwood note on the
aroma, the vanilla throughout, and the oily mouthfeel are highlights. The
finish could have a little less of that bitter herb flavour, but it is really a
problem easily solved by taking another sip. Deserves a higher ABV, as 43% is timid
for an 18-year-old release. That said, the price is not outrageous.
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8.
BRUICHLADDICH THE CLASSIC LADDIE
Their signature bottling and
the definitive Bruichladdich. Showcasing the classic, floral and elegant
Bruichladdich house style, The Classic Laddie is made from 100 per cent
Scottish barley, trickle distilled, non-chill filtered and artificial colour
free. They proudly retain their ancestry as progressive Hebridean distillers.
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| LOOKING INWARDS AT LOCH GORM |
There are many attributes Bruichladdich shares with their
distant Gaelic forefathers: stubborn, resolute, self-sufficient, hard-working,
enduring, straight-talking, passionate and philosophical, albeit with a certain
roguish quality. They are proudly nonconformist, as has always been the way in
these Western Isles. Oirthir Gaidheal, the Coast of the Gaels, the 'land of the
outsider'. They passionately believe in terroir - in authenticity, place and
provenance, and ultimate traceability.
Bruichladdich seeks to produce the most natural,
thought-provoking and enjoyable spirits possible. But if all you want is
generic spirit, the world is awash with the stuff. They are Progressive
Hebridean Distillers. This isn't just a form of words. It is who, what and
where Bruichladdich is.
Unlike neighbouring distilleries from the island of
Islay, the Bruichladdich range is made without peat. Without the influence of
smoke, they expose the brilliance of the raw ingredient – barley. Stepping
further outside of whisky tradition, they have traced ingredients from origin
to bottling, embracing every growing season, the subtlety of changing barley
varietals and the methods applied in growing them.
With the same vigour, they are patient and purposeful in the distilling process; with a slow fermentation in wooden washbacks, trickle distillation through tall, narrow-necked stills before filling this 100% Scottish barley distilled spirit into an ever-evolving suite of top-quality casks.
As a final commitment to quality and community, Bruichladdich
bottles its whisky unchill-filtered and colour free, inside the distillery
gates, using Islay spring water. For over two decades now, they’ve stowed their
warehouses with these high-provenance single malts, all the while guarding the
quality of the ageing Bruichladdich stocks made by a previous generation of
distillers.
The Bruichladdich mission has evolved in this passion
project. What started as a pursuit of flavour, bringing terroir to whisky, has
evolved into a deep understanding of how whisky and agriculture are
intrinsically linked. On their journey, they’ve learned how whisky can be a force
for positive change, as they continue to reconnect land, community and dram.
The foundation for the Classic Laddie is not a recipe set in stone, but a distilling philosophy. Bruichladdich professes no interest in precise uniformity, instead - year by year - the variety and provenance of their barley shape their spirit, and an ever-increasing range of casks are sourced to evolve the variety of flavours in our warehouse. Never striving for absolute consistency, each batch of The Classic Laddie will, by nature, be unique and subtly different.
In its flagship Bruichladdich single malt range, the
infinite possibilities of what whisky can and should be are explored. In a mission
to uncover flavour at every opportunity, their bottlings have become a liquid
embodiment of unrelenting curiosity. The depth of the range is complex yet
rewarding, in celebration of the variety and nuance of every fruitful drop.
Creating the Classic Laddie is one of the most complex
and demanding responsibilities bestowed upon their Head Distiller, who curates
this assemblage of our finest spirits by hand to achieve our signature fruity
and floral Bruichladdich house style. Composing each unique recipe is a
rigorous process. He must systematically sample and evaluate every spirit by
nose, taste and mouthfeel.
It is painstaking and difficult work, requiring a clear
head and many checks, pauses and re-evaluations over many weeks. The final
formula is decided in the quiet of the sample room.
The suite of casks selected for each batch of The
Classic Laddie has been filled with the spirit distilled from 100 per cent
Scottish-grown barley. It is undeniable that there is a romantic element in the
determination to source their core ingredient from Scotland; after all, there
is no requirement to make it so. But this is not simply sentiment; the unique
combination of an ideal climate, high latitude and the soil types found in
Scotland makes the Scottish barley crop perfect for creating the optimum
flavour profile during distillation.
Bruichladdich bottles their Classic Laddie at 50% ABV
as opposed to the average of 40-46%. The flavour of our spirit at 50% ABV is
barley forward, meaning you taste more of the Scottish malt they have worked
hard to trace. They will not stretch their spirit and compromise on quality for
the sake of profit.
Official Tasting Notes
CHARACTER: Clean, fresh and lively. The oak and the
grain work in perfect harmony.
COLOUR: Summer barley
NOSE: Barley sugar and a hint of mint open before
moving into freshly cut wild flowers; buttercup, daisy, meadowsweet, myrtle,
primrose and cherry blossom. Delicate zephyrs of spindrift and sea pinks are a
reminder that this spirit is matured exclusively beside the sea. Over time, and
with the addition of a little water, caramelised fruit notes come to the fore,
with hints of lemon drops, honey, tangerine and tablet.
PALATE: Refined and refreshing, sweet oak and barley
notes come together in perfect harmony. Ripe green fruits, brown sugar and
sweet malt follow, showcasing the remarkable flavour of the Scottish barley
used in this single malt.
FINISH: Smooth and well-rounded, the finish showcases
the elegant balance between the sprightly, vibrant fruit and the subtle
sea-spray notes.
MALTING: Unpeated.
DISTILLATION: Recipe specific.
AGE: Minimum age dependent on individual recipe.
MATURATION PROFILE: The recipe varies from batch to
batch and has no set maturation profile.
