five stars – grey whisky

Whisky 2021 – 21-24

21 – Clynelish 1993 26yr by Carn Mor Cask 112115

Nose is full of beautiful intense citrus fruit, fruit fizz, cream and leather. Roses and milk chocolate. And of course wax.

Palate is so elegant. Fruit more citrus and some bruised apples. Cream, honey. Flinty.

Finish is all hot warm double cream and minerality. This is a godlike finish.

5/5 Stars

22 – Blair Athol 1988 30yr by Sansibar 46.9%

Nose is all dusty berries… imagine raspberries and blueberries pulled out of a dusty draw. Warmed butter.

Palate is strawberry jam, chocolate and then gets some lovely savouriness. Some savoury passionfruit vine.

Finish jam, grass, cream… good!

4.5/5

23 – Clynelish 1997 21yr by The Auld Alliance & The Malt Affair 49.9% (10th Anniversary bottling)

Nose is cream, citrus, honey and wax. It’s classic. Squeezed apricots and pears?!?

Palate is honey beautifully with infused citrus and blossoms. Nothing is out of place. It is really balanced.

Finish savoury, baking spices and cream.

4.5/5 Stars

24 – Inchmurrin 1997 23yr by Liquid Treasures 48.5%

Nose is ginkgo nuts and beef marrow. Plastic and funky. Cloves.

Palate beef marrow, light peaches and apricot, tropical and pineapple syrup.

Finish medicinal, grassy and more stone fruit. And chalky?! Weird and wonderful.

Whisky 2020 – 19-24

19 – Glen Elgin 1995 by The Whisky Agency 23 years 48.2%

Nose is beautifully waxy and full of tropical fruits, river stones, marshmallow and green apricots. It is beautifully elegant.

Palate is initially sweet and pure and cheeky like raspberry lollies. Green grass, green mangos, cream which leads to riper mango flavours.

Finish is creamy and loooooong. Slight hints of salt, minerals and fruit.

****^

20 – Highland Park 2003, 14 years bottled for Duty Zero cask 6138

Nose is richly peated and sherried; like a beautiful smoked ham dipped in toffee. Walking through an orchard in autumn.

Loads of minerality on the palate, honey, toffee pecans and green sticks.

The finish is a lovely mix of charcoal and marshmallow

****

21 – Balblair 1990 by Kingsbury 23 years refill sherry cask 10116 52.9%

Nose honey, mandarin, leather, cloves, peanut shells. Very restrained.

Palate is powerful and eye opening. Honey and reserved citrus – like a citrus gel. Toffee and burnt caramel and apricots.

Finish waxy and gentle citrus.

****^

22 – Springbank 1991 by the whisky agency 27 years 46.4%

Nose is beautifully waxy and shows loads of fruit including apples, bananas and apricots. There is caramel and slight spice – some Springbank funk and old whisky smell.

The palate is rich and deep. Old apples, fruity, old and funky, waxy and pristine. Honey and super nutty. Wow there is some interplay between the elements.

But wow this finish is just nuts. It lasts for ever with mango and wax. Old whisky, candles and apples, dusty draws. It is elegant and pristine – the warmth of a smile from a girl in a summer dress.

*****

23 – SMWS 80.10 “Champagne and Roses” Glen Spey 11 years 55.8%

Nose is honey and floral, slightly nutty and toasted, pine resin

Palate is quite dry and hot … super biscuity, loads of shortbread. I understand why “roses” is in the title as it is slightly floral and rose hips.

Finish is green sticks, salt and slight cream

**^

24 – SMWS 9.167 “Part of the furniture” Glen Grant 23 years

I’m digging the nose apricots, hand cream and sticky date pud, maple walnuts

Palate is straightforward coffee, green grass, cream, green mango

Finish of chalk and tropical fruit

***

Whisky 2019 – 100-101

100 – Balmenach 2001 by MASAM cask 06/06081

Nose is like fino sherry. The salt, the spray, the nuttiness. Some oyster shell and leather. With time the caramel, notes ring.

Palate is creamy, burnt wood giving way to stone fruit and camp fire rocks with a driving minerality.

Finish is clear and fun boiled sweets, fruit tingles and sherry saltiness

*****

101 – Bunnahabhain 40 years by MASAM cask 7229

Nose full of fruit and apricots, cream and light caramel, pencil shavings. Would not pick it as a Bunna.

Pencil shavings, candle wax, intense jasmine tea, stewed fruit, and soy sauce on the palate.

Finish of waxed fruit, apples and stewed apricots with cream

****

Whisky 2019 – 88-90

88 – Springbank 1989 bottled 2002 by Cadenhead Sherry Puncheon 56.1%

Nice nose of caramel and furniture polish, bruised apples and salt flakes on chocolate mousse.

A really intense palate… wow! Pencil shavings, toasted coconut, liquorice and molasses. The mouthfeel is intensely thick and honeyed.

With the finish the liquorice lingers on top of an eggy chewy toasted meringue.

****

89 – Springbank 17 Year Old Sherry Wood bottled 2015

Lovely umami like nose – gunpowder mixed with dashi, milk caramels sitting in dusty drawers.

Classic springbank palate; funk, dried fruit and bruised apples. A slight dusty xmas pudding and hints of toasted marshmallow.

The finish is old world charm of sitting in an old leather chair eating the cream on top of a roasted apple.

****

90 – Bowmore 1995 by Wemyss “Nostalgic 70’s Flavour”

An intense nose of spiciness and jersey caramel. I’m immediately thinking freshly grated nutmeg. Pencil shavings on chocolate mango pudding.

On the palate a beautiful whisky, showing balance and charm. Red apple, mangoes, loads of fruit and gentle spice. This is a coconut drenched old whisky. There is real elegance here.

To finish red apples and tropical fruit by the seaside

A dram to return to many times!

*****

Whisky 2019 – 41-42 – Laboratorino, Chichibu, Japan

Yes, I visited the Chichibu. I am writing up a full post on my visit to the distillery. In the mean time here are the two drams I enjoyed at a very nice little Italian restaurant Laboratorino. My partner drank the heavily peated – no notes from me except chocolate and earth with loads of peat.

42 – Ichiro’s Malt Single Cask 2018 rum Cask #5821 9 years old
Nose: Honey icecream, chocolate pudding, malt, dried apricots, prebaked strudel, marshmallow

Palate: juicy raisins, cream, skinned grapes, spice biscuit, melted butter, red wine tannin, honey joys, salt, birthday candle wax

Finish: day old brandy snaps, pepper, grape vines

*****

43 – Ichiro’s Malt Malt Dream Cask for Bar Te Airigh cask #180
Nose: Cloves, hand lotion, pineapple, honey, wood glue, melted chocolate ice cream

Palate: So malty, spice, loquats, persimmons, vanilla, light cream, huge and dominating mouthfeel, grape seed and caramel

Finish: pavlova with fruit and whipped cream, sweet milky tea

*****