And now for something completely different…

The partly wicked and partly genius crew at Master of Malt are always in for a booze experiment. I’ve seen extremely hot vodka, infused gin, blend-your-own-whisky and home-made bitters in the past. Apparently they’ve now bought a small still and had the idea of redistilling well-known whiskies. Thanks for letting me taste your results, guys!

You simply take a few bottles of whisky, pour them into a small still and go ahead. The new “renewed” spirit is then brought down to its original strength. They’ve tried Talisker 10, Lagavulin 16, Ardbeg Ten, Glenfarclas Movember 2011 and Glenmorangie Nectar D’Or. I’ll try three totally different examples.

Redistilled Talisker 10 yo
(45,8%, Master of Malt 2012, experiment)

Compare to my original Talisker 10 tasting notes

Nose: light and ethereal, as if it got shattered: a lot of the flavours are gone, but others are still present, in a sharp and focused way. Flax and seaweed are very noticeable. Bonfire as well. Lots of ashes. On top of this, quite some heady and solventy aromas, or so it seems. Something of lemon refresher. Sage too. After some time these start to dominate my perception. Mouth: rather thin and simple. Cereal notes, a hint of lemon again and a peppery touch. A faint new-makeish banana sweetness in the background. Finish: short, slightly smoky.

Redistilled Glenfarclas Movember 2011 (53%, Master of Malt 2012, experiment)

Compare to my Glenfarclas Movember tasting notes

Nose: funny, while the Talisker still showed some typical aromas, this one would be hard to recognize. There are gas-like aromas (reminds me of some pre-war whiskies), wax and leather, pencil shavings and sour berry aromas. Again a little light-headed. Mouth: quite sweet and rather creamy now, again some berry flavours. Raisins. Evolves on brown sugar and cocoa. Finish: rather short, still sweet and fruity.

Redistilled Glenmorangie Nectar D’Or (46%, Master of Malt 2012, experiment)

Compare to my Glenmorange Nectar D’Or tasting notes

Nose: more new-makeish than the others. Lots of banana and pear aromas, some grapes and kiwi sourness. Simple but nicely fruity and more recognizable as whisky. Mouth: fruity and sweet again, same kind of jelly / fruit gum flavours. Some honey. Finish: medium long, fruity with a soft marmalade bitterness and green tea.

These redistilled whiskies share a lot of similarities with new-make spirit (I mean in general though – I haven’t actually tried new-make from these distilleries). On the other hand, they also show aromas that are linked to wood influence, which are not found in true new-make of course. That leaves us with uniquely hybrid spirits, not entirely enjoyable (on the whole a bit chemical even) but very interesting nonetheless.

They’re not commercially available.

As Bert Bruyneel would say: “who tried more than five Auchroisk expressions so far”? True, they’re few and far between, so thanks for helping us discover this distillery. This Auchroisk 1996 is the latest release under his Asta Morris label.

Auchroisk 16 yo 1996 (53,5%, Asta Morris 2012, cask AM014, 307 btl.)

Nose: malty whisky with quite some heather honey, wild flowers and grasses. Nice coconut and vanilla roundness. Then some apricot jam and sticky toffee. Much more classic and rounded than his Glenburgie 2003 (which once more failed to win me over yesterday), even though the grassiness and oak add a certain nervousness. Mouth: again quite malty (Frosties) with liquorice, aniseed and pepper coming soon after the initial attack. Apple juice. Again that grassiness. Hints of honey and caramel. Fades on oak with some bitterish tea. A few drops of water make the whole slightly more rounded. Finish: quite long, again a tad dry without water. Typical vanilla from the oak.

We’re starting to detect a house style in the Asta Morris releases. Quite a few of them are creamy, malty, rounded drams, and most of them have a certain twist which make them stand out a little. Around € 60, nice price / quality ratio.

Score: 86/100

Nowadays sherry casks tend to be “seasoned” and engineered casks that have been specifically tailored for the whisky industry and never saw the interior of a Spanish bodega. It’s no surprise then that marketing people see an opportunity to highlight the fact that once in a while they bottle a “bodega” cask!

This single cask Knockando 1996 was part of the Manager’s Choice series, one of the least successful Diageo ideas of the last couple of years. Usually good whisky though (check the Cragganmore 1997 for example), but way “ahead of its time” in terms of pricing.

Knockando 12 yo 1996 ‘Manager’s Choice’ (58,5%, OB 2009, bodega sherry cask #800790, 612 btl.)

Nose: heavy sherry, classic style, not unlike some GlenDronachs. Starts in a fairly fragrant and fruity way but grows smokier and drier over time. Raisins, cherries, plums. Chocolate and almonds. Some coffee beans and roasted nuts, with a veil of (clean) smoke. Mouth: punchy and fairly dry, with roasted chestnuts. Plenty of herbal notes too, maybe a tad too bitter and tannic at some point. Cold coffee. In the end the cherries and raisins have a come-back. Finish: long, dry, slightly bitter, with espresso notes and ginger.

For a 12 year-old this Knackando 1996 is pretty woody and slightly on the bitter side for my taste. Other than that it shows a nice sherry character. I liked the Knockando 25yo better in many ways though. Around € 300. Thanks for the sample, Tino!

Score: 88/100

Here’s another Tullibardine I tried some time ago. A very young distillery by the way, founded after WWII. In 1994 it was mothballed under White & Mackay ownership, until it was sold in 2003 to a consortium of businessmen. Since then, they’ve been gradually trying to improve the brand and the products.

Tullibardine 18 yo 1990 (59,1%, A.D. Rattray 2009, bourbon cask #6105, 300 btl.)

Nose: slightly sharp but overall pretty easy, with malty notes, fruity notes (gooseberries, apple, pear) and a slightly grassy / oaky edge. Some orange essence and vanilla. White flowers. Quite mellow if not for the yeasty note in the background. Mouth: rather oily. A slightly strange combination of synthetic fruits (apple / peach), waxy notes and violets / potpourri. Also a peppery heat that’s a bit too heavy. Then lots of grasses, liquorice and young oak, leading to a bitter aftertaste. Finish: medium long, sourish and bitter with the same heat as in the mouth.

No no no, don’t let this waste your time. Around € 60. Guess what, it’s still available.

Score: 75/100

Tullibardine used to be known mostly for its finishes (rum, port, sauternes, Banyuls, you name it). I tried one or two in the past, but somehow I didn’t bother to publish notes.

This should be different. It’s a 44 year-old 1965 distillate bottled in the Dutch Mo Òr Collection. One of the most expensive offerings in their range.

Tullibardine 44 yo 1965 (48,8%, Mo Òr Collection 2009, oloroso sherry butt #959, 197 btl.)

Nose: wide, ranging from dates over apple peel to polished oak and cigar boxes. All very subtle and beautifully layered. Other aromas include walnuts and almonds, raisins, mint, essential orange oils, beeswax, honey… It’s quite grapey and oaky but in a very elegant way. Aniseed and nutmeg. Oak is clearly a big part of this, but it’s quite superb. Mouth: oily and smooth, comes in nicely with oranges, raisins, hints of redcurrant and whitecurrant. Some fruit tea. Hints of rosewater. Cinnamon. Goes on with herbal notes and oak. Ends with bags of cocoa and hints of coffee beans. Finish: dry, still a nice chocolate / herbs combination alongside a soft bitterness of oak.

I think this is quite excellent, showing beautiful old notes with a soft, slightly subdued fruitiness. Add some waxy notes and you have a complex oldie. Around € 480 for a 50 cl bottle.

Score: 91/100

This 15 years old Caroni rum is bottled with a Sansibar label. It’s essentially a restaurant on the Sylt island in the North Sea, but Sansibar is also a stylish brand used for a wine club, fashion products, gourmet food stuff and – since last year – also whisky and rum (in cooperation with The Whisky Agency). There’s even Sansibar sunblock and Sansibar currywurst sauce…

The description for this bottle is “Breeze at the beach”.

Caroni 15 yo 1997 (46%, Sansibar 2012, single barrel rum, 179 btl.)

Nose: a nice mix of molasses and spices (cinnamon, pepper, mint). Overripe banana and a hint of engine oil and smoke. Grated coconut. Hints of patchouli and sandalwood. Typically tropical in a way, but at the same time less sweet and more complex than most other rums. Mouth: quite dry and spicy: ginger, pepper. A lime / mint combination and faintly medicinal hints. Grows fairly earthy for a rum. Hints of smoke. Indeed also a coastal twist in the end, something reminding me of Fisherman’s Friend. Finish: long, dry and slightly mentholated. Liquorice and soft tar.

A nicely dry and spicy after-dinner rum. Around € 70. By the way, similar casks have been bottled by The Whisky Agency & The Nectar and A.D. Rattray lately.

GlenDronach 1990 cask #2966, distilled 30th May 1990 and bottled in June 2012 as part of the 6th batch of GlenDronach single casks.

GlenDronach 22 yo 1990
(55,1%, OB 2012, PX sherry puncheon #2966, 539 btl.)

Nose: quite a punchy nose, with a boost of spices on top of the typical sherry notes. Moscovado sugar, plums, oranges and chocolate. Christmas cake. Honey. Roasted nuts. Cinnamon and nutmeg. It shows a slight sourness of red mosto and wine vinegar too. Mouth: lots of grapes and raisins, pipe tobacco and red fruit jam. Spicy wood. Sweet and sour oranges. Mon cheri and Ginjinha. Again quite some cinnamon, nutmeg and a little pepper. Finish: long, still some cherry brandy notes, with a peppery edge, nutty notes and raisins.

A good one, with a balanced amount of sweetness / sourness / oakiness. Clean, fresh and vibrant. Around € 130, still available.

Score: 88/100

This Tomatin 1965 was bottled in the Old Malt Cask series by Douglas Laing. At that time they already had the typical six-angle box but with another styling than current releases.

Tomatin 36 yo 1965
(49,7%, Douglas Laing 2001, 216 btl.)

Nose: less fruity than I was hoping for. Still some peach and banana but subdued in comparison to other 1960’s Tomatin. Some oatmeal notes and flour. A little dust and leather. Mouth: more typical, with lots of citrus notes (grapefruit, oranges). Hints of vanilla. Then quite some spices from the oak, like nutmeg and a pinch of salt. A little mint as well. Finish: medium length, half fruity, half oaky.

Old Tomatin is never a bad choice, yet this one is a tad disappointing if you’re looking for the typical fruitiness. Around € 200 in auctions now.

Score: 85/100