Lochside 44yo 1967/2011 (41.5%, The Vintage Malt Whisky The Cooper's Choice, Sherry Butt, C#807, 354b): nose: it has been in the glass for a while already, which may be why it is not particularly explosive, but it is fruity anyway. Cranberries, cherries, Cape gooseberries, cloudberries, whitecurrants. Warming up the glass a little bit results in more-tropical fruits rearing their heads, yellow passion fruit in particular, but also dragon fruit, mangosteen or rambutan. Blowing on the whisky (to warm it up) adds a pinch of cigar ash (tOMoH does not smoke, before you jump to conclusions). That dissipates quickly to focus on those tropical fruits -- they become more and more prominent, never shouty. Suddenly, we enter a dunnage warehouse heavy with scents of damp clay floor and lichen on stave. That somehow converges to form freshly-oiled wooden shelves (the posts, to be precise) and a whiff of rancio. The second nose continues the work of the first, with fruits, dunnage warehouse and heavy wood dust mixed with ashes. Mouth: we continue the dunnage-warehouse tour with wood dust, lichens and damp clay floor. Sadly, that is eclipsed by a strong shampoo taste. Another sample gone off! It is strippingly acidic and bitterly soapy. One can still guess the beauties underneath it, which makes the experience even sadder. Repeated sipping does not improve -- on the contrary! Newly-found pieces of fruit float in a bitter shampoo bath. Finish: it reclaims a lot of its appeal, with plums, grapes and purple passion fruits, and little of the horrible shampoo that spoiled the mouth. A medium-long finish with touches of dunnage warehouse again, more staves and lichens than clay floors, at this point, and that ends with a lingering note of rancio. The second gulp puts the spotlight on a lovely fruit paste, passion fruit, pineapple, or even mango, albeit prevented from shining too brightly by a drop of shampoo. Pity about the mouth. 6/10 (Thanks for the sample, OB)
Following a Bunnahabhain and a Bowmore, That is the third sample from the same provider that is likely best poured down the drain. We do not have enough empirical evidence or scientific data to draw a conclusion other than: it is very frustrating.
Lochside 18yo 1991/2010 (50%, Douglas Laing The Old Malt Cask 50°, Refill Hogshead, C#DL6303, 289b): nose: this one is even quieter. It has dried pineapple chunks and haybales -- a strange combination, but why not? Deeper nosing reveals more herbs, from the herbs garden, now: oregano, marjoram, faded thyme, sage roots (the leaves, not so much). It also has a whisper of suede so faded that it hardly smells. Behind that, we sense some tropical fruits, very faint and probably baked, and an empty drinks carton. The second nose sees straw, grist, dried meadow flowers, desiccated yellow fruits and blueberries, virtually unrecognisable, in a wicker basket. A drop of lemon juice later revives those. Perhaps it is lemon custard instead of juice, actually, since it is much subtler. Tilting the glass offers a wave of dry earth too, an unexpected addition. Mouth: woah! this is peculiar. A broth of hay, garden fertiliser, potting granules, lime and pomelo peels, and an infusion that is neither tea, nor coffee, nor really chicory. But what is it? We will see later that the official tasting notes talk about old-fashioned hairdressing (for the nose); is that it, perhaps? There is a bitterness at play that is difficult to identify, and something fresh at the same time... lemon thyme in yoghurt? The second sip does, indeed, have lemon-thyme twigs (no leaves) that were once covered in honey but no more, and preserved lemons. Chewing stirs that up to a point one may be convinced to find shampoo in this too (nooooo!), but that is not really the case. It is only a vegetal bitterness that has no common measure with the abomination of the previous dram. Finish: well, it has fruits frolicking with dryish grass, spilled on a Bulgomme table protector. It is extremely singular. Not particularly long, it leaves the palate feeling as if one had been chewing clay. The second gulp is immensely more custard-y. Vanilla-and-lemon custard augmented with a little thyme, or even some lovage seeds, and desiccated pineapple chunks. Of course, it is very different from the beauties from 1981, but it is also another style than what was being made only two years earlier. Honestly, if is difficult to decide what to make of it. It is at least interesting, I suppose. 7/10 (Thanks for the sample, OB)
Happy birthday, adc.
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