After the Blair Athol 1993 First Editions, a younger version this time, bottled by Hepburn’s Choice in 2013. Probably not from a sherry cask. They bottled a similar 11yo version earlier this year.
Hepburn’s Choice is named after William Hepburn, the grandfather of Langside Distillers’ director, and it’s part of the Hunter Laing business.
Blair Athol 10 yo 2002
(46%, Hepburn’s Choice 2013, 378 btl.)
Blair Athol 10 yo 2002Nose: rather youngish. Pear drops, apples, cereals and dusting sugar. A bit of popcorn and soft vanilla biscuits. Not bad, but not the nose of a mature Scotch whisky.
Mouth: clean, creamy, but rather flat. Fruity notes again, mainly pears but there’s a faint tropical edge to it. There’s also a milky element, like whipped cream.
Finish: medium long, sweet and fruity, with hints of vanilla fudge.
A bit disappointing, though technically faultless. It’s easy to drink but still too simple and too young to be out on its own, in my opinion. Around € 55.
Score: 76/100