Here’s my official short description as printed on the label:

Fruit cocktail with tangerine, candied pineapple and a sprinkling of strawberry marshmallows. Warming vanilla and delicate heather honey.

BenRiach 32 yo 1979 (47,3%, OB for
Asta Morris 2012, refill bourbon barrel
#8507, 192 btl.)

Nose: starts on a fruit cocktail of tangerine, green banana and gooseberries. Grows sweeter with a luscious layer of candied pineapple and papaya cubes. Quite some creamy vanilla and honey. After some time it even shows strawberry marshmallows – love that! All this sugary elegance is balanced by delicate heathery notes and sprinkles of freshly sawn oak. Ambrosial stuff really with a little more vanilla than most other 1970s BenRiach. Mouth: creamy mouthfeel. The same kind of sweet fruitiness (apricot jam, banana and more citrus now) with a candied coating (honeysuckle). A nice pineapple / coconut combo as well, and hints of vanilla pudding. It shows gentle spices from the oak but the fruits are much stronger. Lovely profile. Finish: long and smooth with plenty of sweet citrus.

Compared to the 1977, this is more candied (but certainly less so than the 1978), with more vanilla and less polished oak. If the 1977 is spring then this is summer. Excellent whisky and a worthy end of the 1970s series. Bring on the 1980s, Bert!

Score: 92/100

Our friend and BenRiach collector Serge Reijnders is behind the tasting.

His collection contains the well-known casks such as #8079 for Craigellachie and #8080 for The Nectar, as well as lesser known casks for Asia (#3029 for Shinoya, #3041 for BBI, #3010 for Auld Alliance…) and of course the casks for Germany and France (#3550 / #3558 for The Whisky Fair and #3551 / #3557 for LMdW). There’s also a couple of 1976s bottled by Signatory and in between the flights there will be a peated whisky to balance the fruit galore.

Quite an unbelievable line-up. The tasting will be held in Mol, Belgium on June 23rd 2012. A barbecue and homemade desserts will round it off.

In case you’re interested, check out the Facebook event page. Even though the entrance fee of € 200 may seem high, it will be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. See you there!

Happy New Year everyone!

GlenDronach 39 yo 1972 (49,9%, OB 2011, oloroso cask #712, 466 btl.)

Nose: strikingly fresh and floral – the first thing I get are lovely roses and passion fruit ganache. A nice addition to the usual raisins, dried berries, cocoa and leather we were expecting already. Raspberries and redcurrant jam. Cherry plums. Big oak polish. Hints of mint. Underneath is a layer of darker aromas, blackberries and something vaguely meaty with a hint of clean gunpowder. While I’m usually struggling with these notes, they are so tiny I’d say it’s an asset. Simply excellent: very wide, luscious and juicy. Mouth: starts in a classic way, with Christmas cake, dates, sultanas… Rather dry with a velvety mouthfeel. After a few moments, a wave of superb tropical notes comes rolling in. Tangerine, guava, passion fruits again. As if they poured a few litres of BenRiach 1976 in the cask. Wow! It doesn’t last too long though, it returns nicely on chocolate, liquorice and very soft spices. Tiny hints of camphor / mint. Finish: very long, still a tad fruity but it’s mostly leather and spices now.

What a great dram to round off this year. It definitely needs time to open up and unfold the deep, almost oriental fruitiness that was hidden in the first few sips. For me this deserves a bonus point, I’ve rarely seen sherry and tropical fruits combined so beautifully, not even in other GlenDronach single casks. I’m stunned Serge chooses a GlenDronach 15yo (WF92) over this masterpiece (WF91). Around € 380, still available in some places. Many thanks for the sample swap, Mars!

Score: 93/100

The distillery is owned and operated by independent bottler Gordon & MacPhail. It’s small (only 2 employees) and had a history of ups and downs – between 1983 and 1998 it was closed altogether.

This 1977, bottled for the Belgian importer Premium Spirits, is pre-G&M distillation, made with equipment that has been replaced in the 1990’s.

Benromach 34 yo 1977 (48%, OB for Premium Spirits Belgium 2011, refill American hogshead #1470, 249 btl.)

Nose: elegant nose on raisins and honey with some polished furniture. Jammy, juicy fruits (peach, pear, melon) and some floral notes. Notes of honeysuckle. Distant hints of library dust, cinnamon and vanilla. Fresh and attractive, although not very complex. Mouth: smooth, fruity start (citrus, peach again) with some waxy notes – not as sweet as the nose suggested. Barley. Evolving quickly on spices from the oak (ginger and pepper). Roasted notes, even a vague hint of smoke. Finish: medium long, on natural caramel and a herbal touch of oak.

A nice surprise. Not much to complain although it’s not exactly unique. G&M is probably not doing enough to promote Benromach, this deserves some praise. Around € 165.

Score: 88/100

La Maison du Whisky

I suppose all these single casks will be quite limited.

Miyagikyo 23 yo 1988
(57%, OB 2011, cask #92414)

Nose: exotic fruits (ripe pineapple, banana) and mirabelles come out first, together with cigar boxes. Then a lot of vanilla, sawdust and beeswax. Hints of eucalyptus and white pepper. Lusciously warm. Mouth: punchy with a fine layer of oak. Still quite creamy and fruity at first (blackcurrant, apricot, plums, hints of Turkish delight) but quickly developing on spices (vanilla, pepper, light ginger). A slightly sharp peatiness as well. Light grassy / leathery notes in the end. Finish: long, spicy with vanilla and light peat. Again these notes of oak shavings.

A very fine Japanese malt, with traces of peat and some very prominent new oak notes. Exclusively available from La Maison du Whisky but I’ve noticed a few bottles are on their way to Holland as well. Around € 145.

Score: 88/100

Glen Garioch 1971 (43,9%, OB for The Whisky Exchange 2011, cask #2038, 194 btl.)

Nose: gentle but also very complex. First there’s a discreet and slightly tropical fruitiness (passion fruit, grapefruit) mixed with fresh eucalyptus, hay and a velvety, sooty smokiness and soft peat. Quite some leather, wax and mineral notes. Wet leaves. A smooth and worthy 1971. Mouth: not extremely punchy but quite boldly peated for a Glen Garioch (closer to Port Ellen than Brora for instance). Hints of mustard cress and bitter oranges, as well as some sourish oak juices that are a little too prominent maybe. Heather. Lapsang tea. Liquorice. A little austere although there are traces of sweeter citrus fruits. Finish: very long with plenty of sooty peat, liquorice and bitter oranges.

With its relatively heavy peat, waxy nose and a slightly austere and mustardy palate, this comes really close to the late 1970’s – early 1980’s Brora profile in my opinion. You have to like this style and spend a lot of money though. Available from TWE for around € 470.

Score: 91/100

BenRiach 26 yo 1984 (54,1%, OB, cask #7193, peated, Virgin oak finish)

Nose: is this a sherried Ardbeg? Or Karuizawa? Nice anyway, I really like the combination of sweet peat, embering fires and punchy spices. Smoked ham and sweet tobacco. Blackcurrants and dates. Pepper and nutmeg. Some cedar wood. It’s big in different directions and the balance is spot-on. Mouth: punchy, still quite smoky, spicy and sweet, only now there’s also a slightly disturbing sourish element (raspberry vinegar maybe). Dry oak as well. Growing herbal notes. Anything but subtle, even a bit over the top now. I’d suggest a few drops of water. Finish: long, spicy, drying and peaty.

I thought we had an absolute cracker based on the nose, but on the palate it gets a little out of balance. Recommended for fans of extreme whisky. Around € 125.

Score: 86/100

Asta Morris

I had an early look at this brand-new 1977 bottling as Bert asked me to write tasting notes for the tube and bottle. Here’s a more elaborate version of these notes.

BenRiach 33 yo 1977 (45,7%, OB for Asta Morris Belgium 2011, refill bourbon cask #9119, 175 btl.)

Nose: fresh spring fruits (tangerine, pear, nectarine) sprinkled with lime and orange juice. A crisp and ‘indigenous’ fruitiness rather than the warm, exotic, marmalade-type fruitiness we’ve come to expect from 1975-1976 BenRiach. This one is more subtle, more interwoven with oak. There’s also a layer of spearmint / eucalyptus notes which adds to the fresh appeal, as well as some flowery notes (orange blossom, honeysuckle) and hints of pollen. Soft ginger and vanilla notes. A true gentleman – a little reticent at first but complex and very refined. Mouth: fresh with big fruity notes (yellow plum, kumquat, pink grapefruit, peach), again slightly “green” and definitely not cloying. There’s a fine exotic fruitiness (banana, passion fruits) but it’s in the background. Almond notes. Then the spices from the oak kick in (ginger, mint). Develops on fruit tea and heather honey. Citrus zest. Very smooth. Finish: long and clean, balancing between fresh fruits and soft oak.

Not just a benchmark for the 1977 vintage, but an exquisite BenRiach in general. Interesting how its profile is yet again different from both the 1975 and 1978. Arriving in stores any day now. Around € 230.

Score: 92/100

This Ben Nevis was matured in a sherry cask for 13 years, then watered down, then further matured for one year and finally bottled at 46%. On the label they call this “double maturation”.

Ben Nevis 14 yo 1992
(46%, OB 2007, sherry cask #2623, 815 btl.)

Nose: starts a little sharp and not as sherried as I had hoped. Plenty of orange peel, liquorice and some mineral notes, even a few coastal hints. It takes a while, but it opens up nicely with rounder chocolate and nutty notes. Some leather. Soft herbs. Mouth: good strength, with more sherry notes now. Sweet raisins, kumquats, chocolate. Orange liqueur. Hints of ginger. Something delicately smoky in the background. Still a surprising coastal hint. Finish: medium long on rounded sherry, spices and a bit of wood.

Not an easy one to describe or score. Don’t be fooled by the first impression – it takes a very long time to display its full potential. Around € 100 if you can still find a bottle.

Score: 87/100

Actually I didn’t completely forget, but I felt a little unimpressed with this year’s single casks. Let’s hope they still have some great casks lying around, because upping the price each year and lowering the quality doesn’t make much sense.

GlenDronach 40 yo 1971
(48,5%, OB 2011, PX sherry puncheon #1436, 583 btl.)

Nose: meaty start with some gravy notes and Oxo. Dark crispy bacon. Dried fruits as well (blackberry jam) but none of the fresh fruitiness that we’ve seen in previous 1971 and (especially) 1972 casks. If you wait long enough, there are some nice tobacco notes, roasted nuts and moccha. Disappointing in terms of freshness and complexity. Mouth: perfect drinking strength but an unusual mixture of sharp, slightly vinegary notes and dark, sticky plums, with nothing in between. A little incoherent and too sweet I’m afraid – think actual PX sherry or Greek raisin syrup. After that it becomes spicier (pepper), nuttier but woodier as well. Finish: dry, with walnuts and the return of tobacco notes.

A collector’s item maybe, but not the most rewarding GlenDronach for whisky drinkers in my opinion. Around € 450, still readily available.

Score: 83/100

BenRiach 28 yo 1976 (57,6%, OB for Craigellachie Hotel 2005, cask #8079,
144 btl.)

Nose: a sweet and surprisingly creamy 1976, with peach yoghurt and strawberries with clotted cream. Lots of banana aromas. Hints of coconut and vanilla. Some guava and melon. A very seductive fruit salad which gets more tropical by the minute. Hints of marshmallows. Soft oak and very gentle spices with a very faint earthy / mossy undertone as well. Maybe not the most complex, but warmer and more velvety than I remember other 1976’s. Mouth: plenty of oak now, with some pine resin and spices. Then it develops the creaminess again with coconut oil and vanilla. The tropical fruitiness is less impressive now and has changed into fruit tea rather than a fruit salad. Some green, leafy notes as well. Liquorice and eucalyptus. Some late toffee. Finish: stretches the wood resin a little further, with some bitterness now. Liquorice. Maybe traces of smoke?

A great nose on this BenRiach 1976 for Craigellachie Hotel, but I found it slightly disappointing on the palate because of the subdued fruits and fierce oak. Later 1976 bottlings were better in my opinion – this one doesn’t reach 90 points in my view. Slightly over-hyped (and over-paid at auctions) maybe, but still a nice classic. Long gone of course.

Score: 89/100

GlenDronach 19 yo 1991 (50,4%, OB for The Nectar & LMdW 2011, Pedro Ximenez sherry puncheon #3181, 624 btl.)

Nose: nice sherry, powerful and round. Dried fruits, some nutty notes. Very polished with some waxed furniture, similar to the great GlenDronach 1992 cask #161 in that respect. Blackberry jam and figs, maybe even some black cherries. Sparkling top notes of orange liqueur and mint as well. Rum & raisins. Plenty of good sherry associations. Mouth: rather oily, not really thick or powerful. Starts on dried fruits again, with some added herbal notes and polished oak. Plums. Cocoa. Not extremely complex, but very pleasant. Nice gingerbread and aniseed in the end. Finish: quite long, a little drier, with some tobacco now and some oak and spices.

This cask was a safe choice. It has a few nice touches (oak polish, gingerbread) while remaining within the “classic” profile everyone has come to expect from GlenDronach single casks. Around € 105.

Score: 88/100

GlenDronach 17 yo 1994 (60,1%, OB 2011, oloroso butt #97, 617 btl.)

Nose: similar. Very mushroomy start, with lots of caramel. Some vegetal and meaty notes (oxo). Lots of roasted hazelnuts. Caramel again. Adding water doesn’t help this slightly sulphury profile, on the contrary. Not my type of whisky, although I want to repeat that these notes can be temporary and letting the bottle breathe for a couple of months can make them disappear. Some pear syrup in the background as well. Mouth: sweet at first, but quickly overtaken by spices and herbs (cloves, pepper, liquorice). Then a wave of wood and dark chocolate. Dry and nutty aftertaste. Water does help on the palate, making it rounder and slightly more fruity. Finish: quite dry and quite long with spices and wood.

I can’t really recommend this one, unless you’re familiar with this style and like your sherry a little dirty. Around € 100.

Score: 77/100

Eight of them were finished, two were peated. The oldest casks were classic Speyside style, like this BenRiach 1976 cask #6942. Always a highly anticipated vintage for this distillery.

BenRiach 34 yo 1976 (57,8%, OB 2011, butt #6942, 469 btl.)

This one has a more tawny colour than most 1976′s. I reckon it was a sherry cask? Nose: indeed not the classic 1976 (tropical) fruitiness. More polished oak to begin with. Cedar wood. Leather and some wax. Tobacco. Then the fruit comes out. A lot of juicy plums and raisins. Black cherries. Pastry with apricot marmalade. Whiffs of eucalyptus. A little pepper and cinnamon. Subtle roasted almonds and hazelnuts, maybe even traces of peat smoke? Very faint turpentine. It needs some time but it’s certainly high-class. Mouth: snappy, with roasted nuts again and dried fruits. Quite some spices (cinnamon and nutmeg), herbs and wood. Hints of orange marmalade and Christmas cake. Cherry brandy. Dark chocolate. Works well, juicy enough and none of the components gets too loud. Finish: drier now, balancing between dried fruits, grapefruit and spices.

This BenRiach 1976 requires a totally different point-of-view than the legendary tropical versions. Then again it’s a pretty great example of its sherry style. Around € 230 – already hard to find.

Score: 91/100

GlenDronach 20 yo 1990 (50,1%, OB 2011,
PX sherry puncheon #1032, 728 btl.)

Nose: this one seems a bit duller and flatter than the 1989. It has more typical, sticky Pedro Ximénez elements with dried fruits and moscovado sugar. Dark polished wood. Some leather. Thick and jammy (blackberry or plum jam). Mouth: sweet cocoa flavours. Almonds and honey. Red fruit candy. Plums. Different types of jam again. Spices are quite delicate, and there’s not a lot of wood. Some sweet tobacco. Sweetness all over actually. Finish: still quite sweet and rounded, medium long.

This 1990 may be a more coherent package than the 1989, but you have to like a sweet and sticky malt. Rather faultless but slightly overdone for me. Around € 120.

Score: 84/100

GlenDronach 21 yo 1989 (54,1%, OB 2011, PX sherry puncheon #2917, 618 btl.)

Nose: nice sherry, with the obvious dried fruits (mainly dates but also dried prunes and raisins) as well as some sparkling, fresher elements (clementine, strawberry, fresh figs). Something muscaty. Faint hints of rosewater lokum. Rich with a big base of aromas but lots of subtle layers as well. Mouth: quite heavy and sticky now. Dried fruits (dates, raisins). There’s also a more sourish side (balsamic) but this disappears after some time in the glass. A little pepper, followed by liquorice. Some tannins as well towards the end. Finish: medium length, with a more classic cocoa / roasted nuts combination. Still a sourish element.

I really like the nose of this GlenDronach 1989 but the palate seems a bit schizophrenic (heavy stickiness on one hand, slightly sour on the other). Not a bad start of this series but I prefer the 1989 cask #3315 which I tried last year. Around € 125.

Score: 86/100

Glenfiddich Private Vintage 34 yo 1973 (46,6%, OB for LMdW 2007, hogshead #28563, 209 btl.)

Nose: starts fruity (big apricot aromas, oranges, grapefruit) and oaky (polished oak). Orchard fruits, some honey as well. A gentleman but really wide and complex. Soft spices (pepper, vanilla, subtle gingerbread) as well as some waxy notes. Very light nougat. Mouth: smooth and citrusy (grapefruit) with a herbal oakiness (soft tannins). Develops on dried fruits. Bittersweet with a minty edge. Bergamot tea. Finish: rather long, fruity with a bitter touch.

Starts great but the score is brought down by the slightly oaky palate. Around € 390 at the time, now sold out.

Score: 89/100

The range is made up of the Special Reserve (40%), Original Single Barrel (46,5%), Gold Edition (51,5%) and Straight from the Barrel (cask strength). Regardless of the bottling strength, all versions have the same mash type, cask charring and maturation.

Blanton’s Original Single Barrel (46,5%, OB 2007, barrel #158, warehouse H, dumped 1/2/2007)

Nose: fairly dry for a commercial bourbon and quite spicy (cinnamon, pepper), with leather and maple syrup standing out. Almonds and marzipan. Burnt sugar. If you swirl it around, sweet marmalade and toffee appears. Fresh oak and hints of mint as well. Less sweet and less vanilla than I expected, but very good. Mouth: a weak and rather vague attack, smooth but not as full as I hoped (maybe a higher strength could solve this). Very minty with other spices following quickly (pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg). Cough sweets. Big (charred) oaky flavours. Tobacco. Missing some roundness. Finish: dry and spicy.

Pleasantly dry, oaky and spicy on the nose, but maybe a tad too much of all that on the palate. Still a nice bourbon. Around € 35.

Score: 80/100

Note the enormous 74% alcohol. It’s probably the strongest drink I’ve ever had. By the way, are there rules about maximum strength or can you just distill 99% of alcohol and claim it’s whisky as well?

Belgian Owl 53 months
(74,1%, OB 2010, cask #4275986)

Nose: freshly cut oak and hay, lots of mint and lemon. Some vanilla custard. Spiced honey. Hints of apricot sweets and dried banana. Water brings out a slightly dusty muesli aroma. Mouth: sharp, grainy / grassy attack. Develops a bubblegummy flavour after the alcohol fades. Difficult to taste straight of course, so let’s add water. Much more creamy, but still quite grassy and gingery, with a bitterness that I find a little disturbing. Citrus again. Oak and nutmeg, other spices as well. Pears and vanilla. Not the fruity spirit I expected. Finish: long, half fruity, half bitter. And grainy.

Not bad, but no highflyer either (not yet?). Around € 65 but very limited so it’s hard to find.

Score: 71/100

This single cask was bottled for the Belgian whisky festival Spirits of the Sea. It was distilled on the 10th of October 2007 and bottled on the 14th of October 2010, perfectly timed to call it whisky.

Kilchoman 3 yo 2007
(62,4%, OB 2010, bourbon cask #334)

Nose: starts peaty and sweet with remarkable notes of olive juice and mild green chilli pepper. Quite oily as well. None of the synthetic sweetness that we disliked in earlier Kilchoman. Water brings out ashes and walnuts. Mouth: hugely peaty and smokey with a citrus sweetness and big briney notes. Salt water. Olives again. Water highlights the smoke again. Like a concentrated Laphroaig. Finish: long, half sweet, half briney with a few hints of dark smoked tea. Ashes.

This is one of the best releases I’ve tasted from Kilchoman. It’s also one of the first to hide its age. I would say they’re on their way to success if not for the price: around € 75 seems to be a standard price for recent single casks.

Score: 85/100

ps/ Even though the original price was very heavy already, soon after the festival it was being offered on different websites for € 149 and € 170. You have to be out of your mind to pay such prices. It’s not worth it and I seriously doubt it will become a valuable collectors item if so many are dumped on the market and collected by so many people.