Many are still on holiday, or already back at work. OB, SOB, JS and I meet for drams nonetheless. Since it is few of us, we have small bottles and samples, and no particular theme.
SOB has early plans and joins us a little later.
The soundtrack: Cthulhu - Memories of Indochina
As an apéritif, OB has Glenrothes-Glenlivet 8yo (70 Proof, Gordon & MacPhail, b. ca. late 1970s), while I pour JS Tamdhu-Glenlivet 8yo (70° Proof, Gordon & MacPhail, b. ca. late 1970s).
SOB arrives, we tidy up the line-up, then start the real thing.
The soundtrack: Florence + The Machine - Ceremonials
OB observes that he met SOB for a Halloween tasting, so he brought two Glencadams -- for the Glencadams Family. Except he only has one, and his joke no longer works. JS comes to the rescue with a Glencadam of her own. Phew!
Glencadam 14yo 1964/1979 (45.7%, Cadenhead) (JS): nose: fresh, lemony, it has lemon mint, Mentos lozenges, a whiff of blonde tobacco, then blueberry Gummibärchen. Mouth: absolute perfection. This is a masterclass in balance, with lemon, tarragon, and mint freshness. Finish: extremely long and softly spicy. SOB finds it a lot of fruits and OBE (old-bottle effect). Coming back to it after the next dram underlines a certain bitterness, but all in all, there is little to argue about. I hope we have not peaked too soon! Full notes here. Today, it is... 10/10
vs.
Glencadam 39yo 1973/2013 (44.1%, The Whisky Agency The Perfect Dram, Bourbon Hogshead, 221b) (OB): nose: a lot more expressive and pungent, rich with tobacco, smoked blueberries, and strawberry liquorice. It also has straw, dried raspberry slices, and mushroom-y mint drops (of the crumbly kind). Further nosing brings out Tubble Gum, and, in the back, something almost fishy (I am somehow reminded of salty fishbones), as well as herbs (tarragon, mint). Mouth: mellow, and oh! so sweet, here are honey-glazed mint lozenges, and candied pistachios. Later on, it is chewing tobacco, and cough-relief eucalyptus powder. Finish: sweet again, it feels more compact and more concentrated than the 1964. That makes it a very long finish, teeming with dusty fruit, or ground fruit stones, which imparts a soft bitterness. Spectacular! 9/10
The soundtrack - FYC - The Finest / The Rare And The Remixed
Bowmore 10yo (43%, Prestonfield House Malt, b.1980s) (tOMoH): nose: mud, cockles, whelk, then a drop of brine or vinegar, and moist peat. There are some fruits too, mostly berries. Soot appears on the late tip, proper old school, like. Mouth: that ancient-whisky impression that only comes from glass ageing. Here are marmalade wet, hot metal spoons, and sooty fruits. Finish: big and bold (this is 43%!?), this is earthy and almost dry, now closer to scorched earth than to mud. Full notes here. 9/10
JS: "OME? What's that?"
tOMoH: "Old Miniature Effect."
JS: "I only know OBE."
OB: "tOMoH uses it all the time."
tOMoH: "That's how I can tell who reads me and who doesn't. And you don't."
JS: "What's that chemical smell?"
SOB: "That's the OME."
tOMoH: "I'm happy with that."
The soundtrack: New Wave Hits Vol. 11
 |
| JS attacks OB's delicious flan tart. We soon all follow her lead. |
SOB brought a Glengoyne. Incidentally, I pulled one out before he arrived. We will have them at the same time.
Glengoyne 14yo b.2019 (unknown ABV, OB, Refill Hogshead + 1st Fill American Oak Bourbon Barrel + 1st Fill American Oak Sherry Puncheon + 1st Fill European Oak Light Sherry Puncheon + 1st Fill European Oak Dark Sherry Puncheon, C#24+3553+206+934+1927, 1b) (SOB): a vat-your-own Glengoyne from when SOB visited the distillery. He went heavy on the Bourbon casks, using very little of the Sherry-cask samples. Nose: although there is virtually no whisky from a Sherry cask in this SOB-special vatting, I find it richer than I expect from a Bourbon-matured whisky. It is buttery as a Glenrothes. Perhaps that is where I draw the (wrong) parallel with Sherry casks -- Glenrothes's buttery character comes from the spirit, rather than the cask, yet, since it is often matured in Sherry, I may associate that butter with Sherry casks. A dumb neural shortcut. Anyway, it opens up to reveal toffee, slightly overdone croissant, then sawdust. Mouth: fairly intense, with milky custard. The second sip feels a tad spirit-y, though aged spirit, if that makes sense. Cassia bark, burnt cake crust, and a lick of wood. Finish: long, coating, cinnamon-y, and gingery. The final note is that of a chicory infusion with oat milk. 8/10
vs.
Glengoyne 30yo 1973/2003 (52%, OB Single Cask, C#1540, 170b) (tOMoH): nose: it is an entirely different expression, at first sniff. Pine sawdust, yellow fruits... A few minutes in, berries invade -- strawberries, fresh and dried. The second nose has extremely-mild smoke, and forsythia, as well as a drop of mint-y gel. Mouth: ooft! So bright. Peach nectar, some distant funk, and pressed fruits (plum, mirabelle plum, peach, white peach, unripe apricot, even greengage) are augmented by a lick of nail varnish. Finish: peach, apricot, mirabelle plum, quince paste, and jellies of all sorts. This is wonderful. Full notes here. 9/10
tOMoH: ""Me neither."
JS: "Does it read, 'marmalade'?"
tOMoH: "'Marmalade wet'. Like pea wet, in mushy peas."
JS: "The water that seeps out of the peas?"
tOMoH: "Yeah."
SOB: "Jus le Pea."
SC 73 10yo b.2023 (58.2%, SMWS The Society Cask, 1st Fill ex-Wasted Degrees Table Beer Quarter Cask Finish) (SOB): nose: it is a table-beer smack in the face to me, whilst JS thinks it is growing between FWP and soapy 1972 Edradour. Later on, I have gingery strawberry bubble gum, sweet, sparkly, and fruity at the same time. JS adds that it smells like liqueur. I spot a very faint, distant sense of nappy glue (which has everyone in stitches). It is a blink-and-you-miss-it thing, though. Soon, we are back in strawberry territory. The second sniff has lemony sparkling water. Mouth: potent, obviously (look at that ABV), it seems closer to a gin than to a whisky. Let us take stock, for a bit... Liquorice, rubber, menthol, juniper and cubeb pepper, candied pineapple cubes, dusted with a pinch of grated chalk, topped with myrtles. How interesting! Finish: the beer comes back and sparkles on the tongue, backed by a dose of wood. Warm beer, warm ginger beer, cinnamon, and a twist of lemon juice. This (likely/unlikely) Aultmore is divisive to say the least. Who else would release something like this? I like it a lot. Sadly, SOB does not. 8/10
The soundtrack: OMD - Dazzle Ships
Caperdonich 27yo 1974/2001 (50%, Douglas Laing The Old Malt Cask 50°, Refill Hogshead, C#DL475, 300b) (OB): nose: reminiscent of the 1973 Glengoyne from earlier, though hairier (OB says it is because of a heavier spirit; I only go with my instinct), warmer, almost uncomfortably so. We have straw bales, hay, menthol ('tis the day, innit!), and clods of earth and grass. Crummy Marseille soap also rocks up. Belatedly, we spot something plant-like, yet it is hard to identify. Mouth: more mineral than expected, and a lot bitterer too. We have black marble, beach pebbles (no other maritime note, however), perhaps liquorice. Later on, we see watercolour, and a spoonful of elderberry cordial. Finish: gently explosive, bright, it has honey and dark clay. The soft back of the palate throbs with desiccated stem ginger. This is very good, yet it is in the shadow of the competition, today. Still, I find it better than the sibling we had at CYWL. 8/10
The soundtrack: Zanias - Chrysalis
OB: "My full initials are OMB."
Scapa 25yo 1975/2001 (50%, Douglas Laing The Old Malt Cask 50°, Sherry Cask, 540b) (tOMoH): nose: nail varnish and fermented prunes, a bit smothered by the Sherry. Mushrooms, marzipan, tree bark, dried peach peels. Mouth: chewy dried berries, sultanas, currants, elderberries, and blackberries, which bring a certain bitterness. Finish: dark-chocolate coulis, blackberries, blackcurrants, and shards of cassia bark. Lovely drop, not stellar. I feel more generous than the other time I had this. 8/10
The soundtrack: Der^ek Mar^in - Midnight Affair 3
Springbank 24yo (47.6%, OB for Springbank Open Day 2023, Oloroso & Port Oak Casks, 1920b) (SOB): nose: a farm-y Springbank! Concrete farm paths beaten by the sun, dust and dirt, crumbly earth and peat, hay bales, and... flexible glowsticks sold at a fun fair. Water mutes it a bit, but it ends up giving papier mâché, and it seems more lemony too, without being frankly fruity. Mouth: fairly intense, it glows on the tongue like embers, desiccates the gums, and melts the teeth. That is caused by a clear acidity that walks hand in hand with a nice fruitiness, unripe gooseberries and blackberries. Water makes it more accessible, with a dollop of peach jelly. Finish: again, citrus accompanies a combination of ashy embers, squashed plums, and pressed currants. SOB finds it a dank finish of mouldy warehouses, but I am not convinced. In any case, it warms one up, that is for sure! Water allows sooty fruit jams to shine -- always a great touch. It is stupendously drying too, yet remains excellent. 9/10
OB and SOB have to leave shortly, so we shrink the line-up to try just this one.
Linkwood 26yo 1975/2002 (56.1%, OB Rare Malts Selection, b#5373) (tOMoH): nose smoke from an old, dusty boiler. Mouth: drying AF, and hot. Once past that, we have hot jam from a red-hot cauldron. Finish: much fruitier than one would have thought, with all sorts of jams again, wrapped in a coat of hot embers. Lovely whisky. Full notes are here. I will miss this bottle when it is empty, which is imminent, now. 9/10
Another terrific afternoon.
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