'tis the night! Let us have something similar to last year, though this time it is a vatted malt (now called blended malt), rather than a single, and bottled at a (much) higher strength. Also, it is younger.
Rabbie's Dram 8yo (58%, Rabbie's Dram Whisky Co., b.2000s): nose: phwoar! The extra horsepower makes this an entirely different beast, one that boasts heirloom apples, wood spices (ginger, nutmeg), and bold scents of an antique-furniture workshop: brass nails and wheels, and the grease that keeps the latter lubricated. There is also wood lacquer and upholstery that seem to gain the upper hand, after a minute, confining the metal wheels to a distant table, dressed with an oilcloth tablecloth. All in this nose breathes rustic and dated, if not properly ancient. Old hazelnuts from a couple of seasons ago underline that sense of old. The second nose adds cut grass that has not yet turned into hay, dry moss and lichens, old cork stoppers and zinc. Apples have taken a step back, now, but they still lurk in the shadow. There is even a whiff of gunpowder as one tilts the glass. Further nosing hints at citrus, honey and cinnamon -- perhaps a seasonal infusion? Mouth: bold, yet not as bold as one might have supposed, the palate brings back the apples (turning to cider, if not brandy), nutmeg and old hazelnuts. The second sip confirms the nutmeg, adds a sprinkle of ground sumac, and amchur. Generally speaking, it is an armchair with exposed-wood armrests. Cinnamon sticks are to be found on said armrests, as well as bone-dry citrus peelings (grapefruit or pomelo). Finish: subtle a fruity for a second, it is not long before it climbs back up the oesophagus with a vengeance: here are more heirloom apples, juicy and sweet, initially, that then turn to lichen on limestone (that would be the high ABV). It gives a comforting and lasting feeling of warmth, ideal on this drab January day! The second gulp puts the spotlight on the sweetness, and we see the emergence of barley water and orgeat syrup, a jar of muscovado sugar liberally dotted onto baked heirloom apples and cedarwood sheets. An unusual-yet-mighty combo that is more enjoyable with each sip! Here is a very conventional whisky of its era, souped up enough to remain charming today. Perhaps better than last year's twelve-year-old. 7/10 (Thanks for the dram, JS)
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