May 29, 2015

Three rather extreme Aultmore

We like to try ‘shy’ distilleries as often as we can at WF Towers, and today that’ll be Aultmore. We’ll kick this off with some of these very young and super-potent new ones that are popping out here and there these days, and then try an oldie. Not a weak one either, mind you…

Aultmore 6 yo 2007/2014 (53.7%, Kintra, cask #900026)

Colour: gold. Nose: typical of these good spirits that have matured in rather active American oak, maybe with a little sherry thrown in. I guess we could call this style ‘Starbucky’, because there’s more vanilla, candy sugar, chocolate, hazelnut liqueur and bonbons then normal. And apples. And marshmallows. With water: gets raw, barleyish, a little feinty. Some earth, humus, beer… Mouth (neat): young malt whisky from active oak, with spices that give it a curry-like feeling after a few seconds. Gets a wee tad bitter, perhaps. With water: sweet oak, coconut, sweets, all that. Fanta. Finish: good length. Strawberries, orange squash, sweet barley, sweets. Comments: maybe a little young? But hey, what the distillers do, the indies can do as well. SGP:551 - 78 points.

Aultmore 2007/2015 (67.4%, Archives, sherry butt, cask #900016, 172 bottles)

Most probably a sister cask (yeah, like, that’s smart, S.) Let’s hope that given this strength, this one won’t rip our head off in no time. Colour: deep gold. Nose: wood glue, sawdust and high-strength rye, plus coffee and marshmallows. Let’s not push our luck… With water: same, just mellower. Chocolate, Mars bar, cornflakes, café latte, dried bananas… And of course much less glue. Mouth (neat): pencil shavings and… pencil shavings. And fruit syrups, but at this strength, I couldn’t tell you which ones. Quick… With (a lot of) water: this feeling of rye whisky that we found in the nose. Demerara sugar, even rum… And quite some sweet oak. Finish: same, plus sweets, Haribos’s best of… A touch of muscovado sugar in the aftertaste. Comments: quite simple, very straightforward. Bourbon from Scotland? And I find it pretty good, just a little monolithic. SGP:641 - 81 points.

And now, an old official monster…

Aultmore 16 yo (63%, OB, centenary bottling, 1997)

A monster in what seems to be a Dalwhinnie bottle, launched for the 100 years of the distillery (1897-1997), just before Bacardi bought the distillery and parent company Dewar’s from Diageo. So yeah, this is a Diageo bottling, or maybe a United Distillers one (merged into Diageo in 1997). Colour: red amber. Nose: it’s strange that a feeling of high-end bourbon exists yet again, with these pencil shavings, stewed apples and pears, pears poached in wine, eucalyptus, leather, cigars (Pappy’s)… With water: the sherry comes out more. It’s a clean one, rather fruity then ‘cigary’, with an oak that’s quite in the front. Touches of strawberry jam. Mouth (neat): sherry in full swing, with limestone, rose jelly, Turkish delights, quince jelly, sweet mustard, a bit of gunpowder, more quince jelly… Who could be against quince jelly? And menthol, and a little liquorice again… Attacks your gums a bit, at this strength... Waaah… With water: remains a little aggressive and oaky. Blackberry jam, cinnamon, nutmeg, more cinnamon… Finish: long, compact, on Linzertorte. Comments: a modern style avant l’heure, I’d say. The cask(s) have been pretty active. SGP:551 - 84 points.

Check the index of all Aultmore I've tasted so far

Pete McPeat and Jack Washback