26/01/2021 One Invergordon

Invergordon 45yo 1964/2009 (43%, Forbes Ross & Co. Private Cellar Cask Selection): nose: delicately-roasted malt, wood varnish, a cup of cappuccino on a lacquered coffee table, but also corn syrup and dark pouring honey -- or is it maple syrup? Roasted pecans, honey-glazed nuts, old-yet-well-maintained leather sofas, dried dates and something more animal, like a pet rabbit's cage. Caramelised puffed barley, custard-cream biscuits, coated in a honey glazing. Breathing time gives it a more straightforward woodiness, with fudge, butterscotch and furniture wax. Mouth: wow. Syrupy, juicy, quaffable, it frolics on the tongue, silky and seductive, giving ripe-apricot flesh, dried dates, dark honey and maple-syrup biscuits. Roasted pecans come back, giving a slightly toasted edge. Then, it is walnut stain, a polished dashboard (a Bentley's, no less), grilled coconut chunks and coconut oil. The balance seems perfect at 43%, neither too hot, nor weak, with just enough horsepower to keep one engaged. Finish: lovely feeling on the way down, with apricot flesh again, maple syrup, sweet-corn mash, dried dates blended into a pulp, coconut cream, polished dashboards here too, melted fudge and butterscotch. The death has a minute, blink-and-you'll-miss-it bitter note, maybe of a less-ripe nut. Mostly, it is creamy-sweet goodness, with coconut yoghurt, walnut oil and a drop of manuka honey. Love it. 8/10 (Thanks for the sample, PS)