Caperdonich 36 yo 1968 (40%, Gordon & MacPhail Connoisseurs Choice 2004, refill sherry)

Nose: the usual fruit basket is slightly less expressive here, it’s more a sherried fruitiness with waves of dried peaches and raisins. Blood orange. Warm oak. More herbal notes than expected (hints of eucalyptus, pine wood, rosemary). Quite some mint as well. Subtle hints of ashes and bread crust in the back. Even some peat shining through. Greater complexity than most 1970’s Caperdonich but oakier and less exhuberant fruits. Mouth: again quite a lot of woody and herbal notes, with a subdued fruitiness as a result. Toffee and raisins. Milk chocolate. Spicy honey. Pine resin. Yellow grapes and candied notes. Finish: dry and oaky, medium length.

Bottled at the right moment, before getting too oaky. It’s clear that 1968/1969 Caperdonich is different from the highly praised 1972 versions. Both periods are great, the older stuff being less tropical and more influenced by the oak. Still available – around € 125.

Score: 87/100

Lonach is a series by Duncan Taylor that blends underproof casks (below 40% alcohol) with higher strength casks to make sure the result can still be called whisky. Although they have a lower strength, most of them are still very full and flavoursome.

Caperdonich 39 yo 1969 (42,2%, Duncan Taylor Lonach 2008)

Nose: instantly more herbal than I expected. The usual tropical fruits are certainly present (mango, pineapple), but they are mixed with sour apples and some mint. Big hints of chamomile. Heather honey. A little grapefruit. Vanilla. Will we ever be disappointed by an old Caperdonich? Mouth: hmmm, it’s very oaky although not too dry. Minty / woody / grassy, some nutmeg but not much more, I’m afraid. The fruit is reduced to a vague sweetness. Finish: not too long, slightly tannic, showing some aniseed.

This is not a bad malt, not at all, but because of the lower strength and the age, the oak is relatively loud. There’s better Caperdonich to be found. Around € 100 at the time but difficult to find now.

Score: 84/100

Caperdonich 36yo 1972 (47,8%,
Duncan Taylor Rare Auld 2009, cask #7449, 158 btl.)

Nose: starts on furniture polish but after a few moments this makes place for a fruitier profile. Prunes and dried apricots. Hints of tangerine and chamomile. A bit of freshly cut mint. Very elegant, very balanced, very superb. Water brings out some wet wool but diminishes the overall power. Mouth: gentle attack but a wonderful development. Fruity and quite minty again, fig marmalade, beautiful tannins and spices (cloves, cinnamon). Some almonds. Finish: smoothly fading, getting more herbal with the wood taking the upperhand (not drying though).

As expected, great stuff. At around € 115, you can’t go wrong. Sold out at most places but Duncan Taylor releases similar cask at regular times. None of them was ever bad.

Score: 91/100

Last February, a Caperdonich 1969 cask #3250 was bottled, as well as the Caperdonich 1972 cask #7460 we’re reviewing here. Earlier this week, cask #7440 was bottled (53,6% as well).

Caperdonich 38 yo 1972 (53,6%,
Duncan Taylor Rarest of the Rare 2011,
cask #7460, 160 btl.)

Nose: very close to the 1972 bottled by Whisky Agency, which is currently my benchmark Caperdonich. Furniture polish and oak (which fades out over time) with tangerine, yellow plums, oranges and a little mango. Very juicy, a tad more citrusy than the TWA version. Maybe a bit more spices: cinnamon and mint, a little pepper. Vanilla. Slightly less beehive notes, although there’s certainly some wax and honey involved. Again very attractive with great depth. Mouth: assertive and punchy. Initially there’s a certain sharpness from the oak but over time it gets smoother. Very fruity: apricots, fig marmalade, honey. Plenty of spices (pepper, mint, cloves) and a faint bitter note from the oak. Finish: ginger and liquorice, mixed with honey.

Another wonderful Caperdonich! One point less for having a slightly less unique nose, but on the other hand this is priced well below the TWA version. Around € 140 which makes it quite a bargain. It seems most of the allocation went to Germany.

Score: 93/100

In case you haven’t noticed already, there’s now a Facebook page for Whiskynotes.be. Head over there if you’re interested in “informal” notes and early suggestions before they appear on the blog.

Luc Timmermans really sparked a hype around this one. One Facebook message was enough to have it almost sell out before this first review shows up!

Caperdonich 38 yo 1972 (58,4%,
Whisky Agency 2011, refill sherry, 145 btl.)

Nose: truckloads of apricot jam, with nice furniture polish and backed up by other juicy fruits like mango, tangerine, pears, quinces, even white cherries. Over time these change slightly towards (subtle) dried fruits (apricot, figs) and almonds. Apart from the fruit basket, it shows a whole range of elegant beehive notes (wax, honey, pollen). Hints of fruit tea and mint, later on soft spices as well. Hints of cigar boxes. Lovely pastry notes (lemon pie) with warm vanilla cream. Some cocoa. Candied, jammy, packed with flavours, and simply delicious! Mouth: starts fruity and rounded (figs, apricot). Then the firm oak comes rushing in (yet never too dry) with plenty of spices and mint. Slightly leathery. Really elegant and a few drops of water keeps the fruitiness alive. Finish: very long, half fruity / half oaky, and polished. Traces of liquorice and vanilla.

Punchy, aromatic, complex, fruity, spicy… The nose alone keeps me happy for a whole evening. The luscious apricots and figs lift it above other great 1972′s like cask #7424 for The Nectar. Last year TWA brought us the famous Longmorn 1972, and this Caperdonich promises to be one of the highlights of 2011 already! Around € 200 but I’m afraid there aren’t too many bottles left.

Score: 93/100

Caperdonich 17 yo 1994 (53,3%,
Malts of Scotland 2011, bourbon hogshead #625, 232 btl.)

Nose: fresh and youthful with clean barley, hay and pleasant estery notes (fruity but hard to pin down, pineapple or pear candy maybe). Yoghurt cake. Crisp floral notes as well. A few lightly roasted grains. Mouth: peppery at first, then growing creamier with some vanilla and apple. Again a sweet and fruity core. Lemon peel. Oak. Aniseed and liquorice. Hints of violets. Surprisingly spicy I would say. Finish: fairly long, spicy with hints of apple cores and ginger tonic.

It may not have the luscious fruitiness or honeyed thickness of older Caperdonich, and it’s difficult to say whether it has the same potential. Anyway it’s still a solid and punchy dram albeit with a naked maltiness and some strange twists. Around € 80.

Score: 83/100

Update: there was also an official Caperdonich 5yo in the 1970′s (now extremely rare). Thanks Luc for informing me!

This heavily peated Caperdonich was released by Single Malts of Scotland and is available at The Whisky Exchange (around € 45).

Caperdonich 10y 1998 (58,5%, SMoS 2008, cask #1277, 251 btl.)

Nose: dry and peaty, but without the usual medicinal / coastal associations that you would find in peated Islay whisky. Smoky, very peaty and slightly farmy (wet wool). Grilled bread. Hints of terpentine (oil paint). Nice. Mouth: there’s peat smoke, oil, soft citrus (grapefruit), some oak and bitter tea. Rather hot. Maybe a bit one-dimensional. Peaty finish, with a dry start but getting sweeter. Medium long. Hints of pear. Big coal smoke.

Unusual for a Caperdonich, that’s for sure. Quite pleasant as well although the dry peat is rather dominant.

Score: 83/100