One of the latest Signatory Vintage bottlings exclusive to The Whisky Exchange is a 24 year old Linkwood distilled on 30 May 1997. It was matured in a single ex-bourbon hogshead.
Linkwood 24 yo 1997 (56,6%, Signatory Vintage for The Whisky Exchange 2021, hogshead #7566, 225 btl.)
Nose: plenty of hob nobs and vanilla cake, with some buttery notes and creamy apple sauce in the background. Brighter lemon. Herbal honey and hay. Almonds. Subtle oak polish, as well as some baking spice. Quite rich and imposing, with a punchy alcoholic edge (easily tamed with a few drops of water though).
Mouth: again really thick and creamy, with an aromatic woody side. Sweet toffee, stewed apples, melons and tinned apricot. There’s a bittersweet note in the middle, something hoppy even, with lemon peel and a touch of sour dough. Not a combination I expected. Then leafy notes, maybe even blonde tobacco, with nuts and a charred edge.
Finish: medium, on fresh mint, ginger, nutmeg, citrus and bitter chocolate.
This Linkwood has a firm bourbonny fingerprint, which brings out a specific sweet-and-sour fruitiness but also hoppy aromatics. Interesting whisky, vibrant and entertaining but overall a bit more wood than I was hoping for. Still available from The Whisky Exchange.