11/04/2021 Strathisla

Strathisla 24yo 1972/1997 (62.6%, Gordon & MacPhail Cask Strength imported by Giuseppe Meregalli, C#7534-7536, AG/AIJ): nose: without surprise, it smells fierce, with an almighty gingery fire and antiseptic, TCP, ether and mercurochrome, more than tincture of iodine. It also has an undeniable wood influence: cedarwood, ginger and galangal fade out to reveal American cream soda, vanilla yoghurt and baking soda. Not long until that also morphs into Maple Biscuits and spearmint, both fighting with the quietly assertive medicinal side. Surgical spirits, hospital disinfectant, Iso-Betadine. At that strength, it certainly does clear the nostrils! The wood comes back, with dry bark and wood sheets, toffee, and even treacle. Mandarin peels, torn off the fruit and left to dry on the window sill, for a couple of weeks. With water, it turns more brine-y, amazingly, with fresh sea air and capers, alongside peppermint, hot cinnamon sticks, and more of that hospital disinfectant. Dried sage appears too, very much in the background. Mouth: there is hot mixed peel, stewed orange zest, preserved ginger peel, dried apricot... and then, the alcohol comes a-knocking. Boy! does it hit. It feels as though it melts the front of the top gum a little. Mind you, it is strong, yet not so numbing that the tastes become blurred -- oh! no, they remain surprisingly clear. The texture is acerbly acidic, yet there is a discreet bitterness as well; my money s on orange tonic. It is mixed in with a drop of custard cream, though one would be delusional to call this creamy -- it really is not. Each sip seems more acidic than the previous, re-enforcing the impression of orange tonic in my mind. It is as if it were poured in wooden bowls, too, which is original. Water makes this juicier and more acidic, surprisingly enough. The citrus is now fresh, with orange and pomelo segments, rubbing feathers with pressed dried apricot (and why the hell not?) Despite the still-high ABV, the reduced palate is much more easily accessible, I find. Finish: in line with the nose and palate, the finish sees wood and crystallised citrus parade, this time in slow motion. Spearmint, mixed peel (lime, orange, pomelo, mandarin), grated ginger, dried apricot, curry leaves. There does not seem to be much of the medicinal touch left, at this stage. Repeated sipping cranks up the sweetness, which is reminiscent of Sprite or 7Up. It does leave the mouth dry and a tad bitter, however, harking back to tonic instead. The wood becomes more present with the addition of water, not quite splintery, but not far off either, yet it is citrus that steals the show again, with orange and pomelo zest and segments, softened by a few drops of tangerine juice, in which the foliage would have been left to macerate. Excellent, and pretty interesting. 8/10 (Thanks for the dram, JS)