
July 11, 2016

Vatted stuff

Yeah, stuff. Scottish stuff.

Glen Calder (40%, Gordon & MacPhail, +/-2015)

A bizarre bottling, earlier bottles had ‘Fine Old Blended Scotch Whisky’ but this very recent one says ‘Fine Old Scotch Whisky from the Glenlivet District’. So blended malt? Not too sure… Colour: gold. Nose: It is rather Glenlivety indeed. Overripe apples, crumble, a bit of burnt wood, a little chocolate, some roasted malt… Mouth: a little sour wood, malt, apple compote, toasted bread… I do find it rather ‘blendy’. Some English tea. Finish: medium, with notes of sawdust, cinnamon, a little caramel… Nicer notes of apples in the aftertaste. Comments: totally ‘75’. Decent whisky for a decent price. Relatively dry. SGP:351 - 75 points.

Atholl Highlanders (43%, OB, blended malt, +/-2015)

Bottled for the Atholl Highlanders, the only private regiment in Scotland if I’m not mistaken. This bottle may be found at Blair Castle. Colour: gold. Nose: very nice malty nose! Could be Blair Athol indeed. Cereals, apple juice, light honey, pastries, vanilla, barley, a wee touch of mint… All fine, smooth, easy, and certainly not dull. Well balanced. Mouth: yes, it’s pretty good, starting with oranges and apples, going on with a little honey and lemon curd, and getting then even maltier than before. Cornflakes and marmalade. Finish: medium, with a little mint again, which adds even more freshness to this, well, this fresh Midlander. Comments: really good, not just whisky for tourists. SGP:441 - 81 points.

Rìgh Seumas I 10 yo 2004/2015 (46%, Murray McDavid, blended malt, 882 bottles)

A vatting of Auchentoshan, Arran, Tobermory and Rhosdhu. Strange combo. Colour: pale gold. Nose: soot and gravel, then burnt breadcrumbs, fresh concrete, then porridge and muesli, as well as a little lapsang souchong and coal. Totally unusual, which, in this case, sure is an asset. Mouth: totally unusual indeed. Notes of Swiss cheese at first, yoghurt, polenta, then sawdust and tapioca, then an even sootier smokiness, some green pepper, then lemon and bread… Almost unknown territories, quite fascinating. Okay, I may be exaggerating a bit, but I do like this indeed, it’s so unusual. Loch Lomond and Tobermory’s porridgeness (?) is well there (Rhosdhu). Good body. Finish: quite long, perhaps a little drying and plankish. Eating English bread without anything on it. Comments: a blended malt unlike any other. Some action, at last! SGP:452 - 84 points.

Light Creamy Vanilla 23 yo (51.6%, Cadenhead, Creations, No.2, blended malt, 2016)

Someone just asked me why I was tasting so many Cadenheads. I replied that that was like asking a test driver why he’s trying so many Porsches. Colour: gold. Nose: pure custard, compotes, ripe plums, acacia honey, and barley water. Creamy vanilla indeed. With water: totally on barley syrup, crème, butter croissants, and perhaps oriental pastries. Baklavas and such. Mouth (neat): very good. Something that you would make by blending Glentauchers, Imperial, or Glen Keith, stuff like that. Crystallized oranges, vanilla, quite some white pepper, drops of limoncello, orchard fruits… Now the oak’s a tad ‘bitterly green’, hope it’ll swim well on our palates… With water: quite a miracle, the oak got gentler, while the fruits came further out. A notch more citrusy (tangerine liqueur). Finish: medium, rather fresh, fruity. Comments: does this count as one of the 5-a-days? Very good. SGP:651 - 87 points.

Check the index of all vatted malts I've tasted so far