Adelphi Selection is one of the independent bottlers that I followed closely when I started my whisky journey about 20 years ago. They had a good selection, fair prices and they seemed to be promoted heavily in Belgium. Nowadays this is far less the case, I just don’t seem to come accross them much.
Today I’m looking into a Glen Elgin and German St. Kilian, both with a rather dark colour.
Glen Elgin 16 yo 2009 (57,1%, Adelphi Selection 2026, refill Oloroso sherry hogshead #806922, 235 btl.)
Nose: rather fruity, with a pleasant acidity and lots of red berries, red apples, orange peels and raisins. Also a hint of apricot jam and prunes in armagnac. Then great whiff of polished furniture, a bit of leather and rancio. Mild camphory notes and chocolate in the distance, even a touch of Coca-Cola.
Mouth: very rich and punchy. Brandy-like notes, quite a bit of toasted wood, alongside walnut wine. Then brown sugar, more prunes, dried figs and red berries, followed by herbal tea and a little camphor again. Caramel, roasted nuts and a hint of black pepper and cinnamon.
Finish: long, with warming spice, roasted nuts and polished oak.
I really like this type of sherry bomb, with generous fruit acidity and polished oak. It’s very rich but rather bright at the same time. Well worth the price. I found it at Whiskysite.nl.
St. Kilian 6 yo 2017 (59,7%, Adelphi Selection 2026, Moscatel wine butt #5161, 694 btl.)
Nose: unpeated but there’s a quick whiff of unlit matchstick heads. Then dark honey, dried apricots and a hint of orange blossom. Raisins and a thick layer of caramelized almond, dark baked biscuits and milk chocolate too. Tobacco leaves and light pepper in the background.
Mouth: the Moscatel left the typical apricot and grape (skin) notes, in a nicely balanced way. Vanilla pastry and chocolate as well. Then big hints of toasted malt, dark caramel, candied ginger and a lot of black pepper. The woody notes are a tad too strong here.
Finish: medium length, not the best part. Now the youthful roughness and the oaky spice takes over. Almost an unfortified wine cask now.
Another whisky dominated by the cask. The Glen Elgin was clearly superior but this isn’t bad at all, especially if you take the age into account (which we rarely do, to be honest). This is also available from The Whisky Exchange or Master of Malt. Score: 86/100