Some descriptive statistics

Heads up: a very different sort of content. Quite technical. Anyway, now that I’ve got a reasonable set of reviews to work with I thought it might be interesting to do a bit of statistical analysis. I’ve been meaning to try out the new pipe and lambda syntax in R 4.1 too.

Linkwood 2006 Infrequent Flyers 14 years 54% (virgin oak barrel)

Linkwood, this time in virgin oak. Usually I leave this sort of cask for our friends in America…

Bruichladdich "X3" 2005 15 years 69.3% (first fill bourbon, Feis Ile 2021 masterclass sample 6)

Sixth and final of the 2021 Feis Ile masterclass drams from Bruichladdich. Triple distilled – the first time Bruichladdich did it, so told. If I had to sum up the masterclass: terroir is absolutely a thing, from geography to barley varietal.

Bruichladdich "Black Isle Regional Trial" 2014 7 years 61.5% (first fill bourbon, Feis Ile 2021 masterclass sample 5)

Fifth of the 2021 Feis Ile masterclass drams from Bruichladdich. Barley grown on the Black Isle near Inverness, part of the “Regional Trials” experiments. It’s all about terroir for this one (well, perhaps moreso than the others).

Bruichladdich "Biodynamic" 2011 9 years 60.9% (first fill bourbon, Feis Ile 2021 masterclass sample 4)

Fourth of the 2021 Feis Ile masterclass drams from Bruichladdich. Biodynamic barley. I didn’t know what biodynamic farming was, so I googled it… turns out it’s mostly mysticism. Disappointing, but is the whisky?

Bruichladdich "Bere Barley" 2009 12 years 59.8% (first fill bourbon, Feis Ile 2021 masterclass sample 3)

Third of the 2021 Feis Ile masterclass drams from Bruichladdich. Not the oldest harvest of Bere, but the oldest in the warehouses. Grown on Orkney.

Bruichladdich "Islay Barley" 2004 16 years 58.4% (first fill bourbon, Feis Ile 2021 masterclass sample 2)

Second of the 2021 Feis Ile masterclass drams from Bruichladdich. The first harvest of barley on Islay.

Bruichladdich "Organic" 2003 17 years 57.1% (second fill bourbon, Feis Ile 2021 masterclass sample 1)

First of the 2021 Feis Ile masterclass drams from Bruichladdich. Cask 1660, organic Chalice barley from Mid Coul farm in Inverness. The theme of the masterclass is origins – all the samples are (single casks of) Bruichladdich firsts, centring around terroir and different forms of barley.

Secret Islay 2008 Sansibar 8 years 52.8% (probably exbourbon)

As usual, suspect Caol Ila. Bottled for the Dutch Whisky Association in 2016. Sansibar have slapped a Geisha on it for some reason.

Tormore Gordon & Macphail 13 years 43% (exbourbon)

From the Discovery series, bottled 2018. Can we discover higher ABVs please…

Convalmore 1975 Enjoy Whisky 31 years 46.9% (probably exbourbon)

Sort of a lame label, but I suppose they didn’t care much back in the day. That’s 2006, for the record. Closed distillery.

Aultmore 2006 Hidden Spirits 12 years 51.4% (red wine finish)

Finished (for 28 months, I think) in a ex-Bolesna red wine cask (that’s Italy, folks). On that account, I’ll put away my Hawaiian shirts. Cask AU619.

Amrut "Madeira Finish" 50% (Madeira finish)

Can Madiera redeem itself after that shocker Bruichladdich? Spoiler: yes. Batch 1, bottled 2018.

Shinshu "Komagatake IPA Cask Finish" 3 years 52% (IPA finish, bottled 2020)

Peated to 3.5ppm. Finished in an IPA cask from Minami Shinshu Brewery. Apparently on the distillery’s grounds – do they make the wash, too?

Mannochmore 2006 Gordon & Macphail 10 years 59.4% (refill sherry butt)

Let’s wash our mouth out, shall we?

Bruichladdich 2003 Valinch and Mallet 15 years 54.1% (Madeira butt)

This one has a bit of a reputation.

Craigellachie 1995 Douglas Laing 20 years 59.1% (sherry butt)

Bottled for Shinanoya in Japan, cask DL10962.

Port Charlotte (Bruichladdich) 2011 The Character of Islay Whisky Company 9 years 50% (probably exbourbon)

Absolutely shocking price, and for something not even cask strength. Islay is getting ridiculous.

Bowmore "Laimrig" 15 years 53.7% (sherry finish)

Batch 3, apparently. Named OB, not inspiring confidence, but there’s an age statement and it’s cask strength…

Westport 1997 Wilson and Morgan 18 years 58.5% (sherry butt)

Teaspooned Glenmorangie.

Arran "Kildonan & Pladda Island" 21 years 50.4% (assorted fortified wines)

Old Arran – one of their Explorer series (no relation to the Claxton’s). Scary colour.

Ardnamurchan "AD/CK.335 07:15" 2015 58.5% (refill oloroso puncheon)

One of those hype distilleries. Single cask, probably sold out within minutes and flipped for ten times the price. It’s good though. If I understand the cryptic code correctly, it’s from cask 335, distilled July 2015. And bottled 2020.

Glenlossie "An ode to refill" 1997 SMWS 46.101 22 years 54.3% (refill ex-bourbon hogshead)

By my count, this is whisky review 100. Triple digits! Totally unintended, but let’s celebrate in the most appropriate way: with an ode to refill (casks).

Ben Nevis 2015 The Good Spirits Co. 4 years 61% (sherry hogshead)

A 2015 vintage, so I’m expecting peat and sherry. This one was bottled for that alliteration aficionado over at ralfy.com.

Laphroaig 1998 Archives 14 years 53.8% (bourbon hogshead)

Just in case you (or your bespectacled great-grandmother) were wondering as to the vintage, a 1998 is printed on the bottle in size one billion. Oh, and something about an anniversary release?

Croftengea (Loch Lomond) "Railway track to a log cabin" 2014 SMWS 122.34 6 years 62.2% (second fill ex-bourbon barrel)

What if we took a melon and turned it into a bomb?

Bowmore 2002 Ian Macleod 14 years 46% (hogshead)

Unrelated, but fake handwriting typefaces are lame.

Glenburgie 2004 Samaroli 53.3% (bottled 2020)

Weird spherical bottle. Pretty tight lipped on the cask.

Ben Nevis 2010 Signatory Vintage 9 years 46% (refill butt)

Refill butt 128.

Miltonduff 2008 Cadenhead's 11 years 56% (hogsheads)

Another Miltonduff, similar specs, although this one’s a vatting of four hogsheads.

Miltonduff 2008 Blackadder 10 years 60% (hogshead)

Typo on the bottle, says 2006. Hogshead 700950.

Linkwood 1987 Signatory Vintage 16 years 43% (refill sherry butt)

Shame about that ABV, but Linkwood is Linkwood.

Nc'nean "Batch 5" 46%

Relatively new distillery. 65 per cent STR and 35 per cent ex-bourbon, so told.

Croftengea (Loch Lomond) 2007 High Spirits 12 years 46% (undisclosed)

Magical label.

Glentauchers 1992 Acorn 21 years 57.1% (hogshead)

For the Whisky Festival 2019 in Tokyo. Hogshead 6028.

Glen Moray 2007 Blackadder 10 years 57.6% (hogshead)

Raw cask, so mind the bits. Hogshead 5688.

Miltonduff 2007 Cooper's Choice 13 years 51.1% (milk stout finish)

For the record, milk stouts suck.

Glenallachie "Single Cask" 2005 15 years 60.7% (Madeira barrel)

Alright… full term Madeira.

Craigellachie 2009 James Eadie 11 years 53.6% (first fill oloroso finish)

Cask 354551 (is that the oloroso?).

Imperial 1989 North Star 30 years 52.8% (bourbon barrel)

The rebels won, so Imperial closed.

Caperdonich "Lust for must" 1994 SMWS 38.29 25 years 53.2% (second fill ex-bourbon barrel)

Silent distillery. Weirdo bottling name. Apologies for the length.

Teaninich 2010 James Eadie 9 years 46% (ex-bourbon)

Vatting of first fill and refill ex-bourbon. Casks 718018, 718019, 721587.

Akkeshi "Kanro" 55% (bottled 2020)

Apparently a vatting of bourbon, sherry, wine, and Mizunara casks. This is the 2020 bottling, titled “cold drops of dew”. Prepare to feel a few cold drops of dew in the morning on account of the cost of this bottle.

Secret Highland 2010 Watt Whisky 10 years 58.4% (hogshead)

My bet is Clynelish.

Linkwood 2008 Maltbarn 12 years 52.9% (sherry cask)

Sherried Linkwood. Maltbarn 161.

Secret Lowland 2011 Liquid Treasures 8 years 54% (barrel)

Shh… more secrets.

Aultmore 1997 Maltbarn 23 years 49.9% (bourbon cask)

Flight Maltbarn 158. Destination: Aultmore. Sit back, relax, and our in-flight service will begin shortly…

Secret Islay 2011 Jack Wiebers 7 years 60.3% (first fill moscatel)

Haha, there’s a dog with a pirate sword on the label.

Ardmore "Flambé away" 1997 SMWS 66.145 21 years 53.8% (refill ex-bourbon hogshead)

More old Ardmore please. This time with the funky SMWS name. Only one place to get that…

Ardmore 2002 Hidden Spirits 17 years 52.7% (ex-bourbon hogshead)

I really, really like Ardmore. And I really, really like Hidden Spirits. And I really, really like refill hoggies. What could go wrong? Cask AM219.

Starward "Single Barrel 4302" 3 years 55% (Barossa barrique)

French oak barrique this time. More porous, I think?

Starward "Single Barrel 4048" 3 years 56% (Barossa barrique)

Another Starward single cask.

Starward "Single Barrel 3817" 3 years 56% (Barossa barrique)

Australia doesn’t really have a cask picking culture, so this one’s from the US. If the 750ml didn’t give that away… anyway, 225L American oak ex-Barossa red wine barrique.

Starward "Fresh and Charred Cask" 48%

Heading Starward. Collaboration with Myer or David Jones or something if I recall correctly. Create your own label sort of thing. A vatting of a bunch of fresh casks and charred casks.

Loch Lomond "Organic" 12 years 48%

A limited edition from 2013 if the internet is to be believed. Organic. One for the terroir fans.

Dailuaine 2000 Berry Bros. & Rudd 11 years 56.6% (unspecified, cask 811647)

How mysterious… meet cask no. 811647. They fill a lot of casks at Dailuaine, don’t they?

Glendullan 2010 Liquid Treasures 10 years 55% (sherry butt)

Alright, back to something a little more conventional and less controversial after those Juras.

Jura 1992 Liquid Treasures 28 years 49.7% (barrel)

Alright, take two.

Jura 2006 Douglas Laing 12 years 48% (refill butt)

Provenance series. Presumably a refill sherry butt. Are we ready to find a hidden underrated gem?

Bowmore 2001 North Star 18 years 55.2% (refill barrel)

Series 10. No surprises, but the line of stellar Bowmores continues. In the case of North Star, I think they call that nominative determinism? Anyway…

Bladnoch "Samsara" 46.7% (Californian red wine and bourbon)

One of Bladnoch’s many bottlings… can’t keep my head around it all.

Linkwood 1997 Signatory Vintage 20 years 54.1% (hogshead)

An older Linkwood. One of Signatory’s cask strength bottlings.

Deanston 2013 Adelphi 7 years 58.1% (bourbon cask)

Deaston, but not really an Adelphi… young and bourbon cask.

Bowmore 1996 Càrn Mòr 23 years 53.4% (PX sherry butt)

Have I mentioned how much I like Bowmore?

Loch Lomond 2009 bottling for dramtime.nl 10 years 53.2% (muscat finish)

An OB Loch Lomond bottled for dramtime.nl.

Old Rhosdu (Loch Lomond) 1994 Cooper's Choice 25 years 48.5% (bourbon cask)

Old Rhosdu – an oldschool malt, unfortunately lost, from everyone’s favourite chameleon distillery. Loch Lomond! Will there be melons…?

Bruichladdich 2011 Lady of the Glen 8 years 65.8% (bourbon barrel)

Gregor’s back at it, this time with a Laddie.

Bruichladdich "Black Art 4.1" 1990 23 years 49.2% (undisclosed)

Final dram of World Whisky Day 2021. Shared the first dram (of my first bottle) of this one back with Simon Coughlin. Anyway, Bruichladdich’s undisclosed vatting. Witches and wizardry, black magic, alchemy, major and minor arcana, thirteen black cats, so on and so forth… A rather good vintage.

Miltonduff 1983 Adelphi 33 years 50.5% (refill bourbon barrel)

Big age statement here. High ABV for the age, too.

Glenlossie 1997 Rest & Be Thankful 18 years 53.1% (bourbon)

Another Glenlossie! Big fan of the Chorlton. This one’s a little younger.

Fettercairn 2007 Rest & Be Thankful 12 years 57.2% (bourbon)

More World Whisky Day! Fettercairn. Not a great OB rep…

Arran 1996 Rest & Be Thankful 18 years 55.3% (bourbon)

Third for World Whisky Day! A 1996 Arran (a few out there…).

Caol Ila "Titillated by ten tickles" 2010 SMWS 53.354 9 years 60% (refill exbourbon hogshead)

Second for World Whisky Day! A Society bottling of Caol Ila. Titillated by ten tickles..?

Benriach 1996 Cadenhead's 19 years 47.1% (undisclosed)

First up for World Whisky Day! Labelled as Benriach-Glenlivet. Cadenhead’s certainly loves that old (auld?) school naming…

Tamdhu 2006 Douglas Laing 11 years 48.4% (refill hogshead)

The next Old Particular – Tamdhu! The Can-dhu spirit (TM)! Love that little marketing line. Reference DL12577. Anyway, this one’s bare: not a hint of sherry…

Bunnahabhain 2007 Douglas Laing 12 years 48.4% (refill hogshead)

Refill hoggy Bunnahabhain from Douglas Laing’s Old Particular series. Cask reference DL13777.

Linkwood 2011 Lady of the Glen 10 years 57.8% (Marsala finish)

Linkwood! How could I say no? Eight years in a hogshead followed by two in a Marsala barrique from Vino Marsala in Sicily. Blackcurrants are mentioned on the bottle, and I must agree…

Glen Moray 2008 Lady of the Glen 12 years 57.1% (first fill exbourbon barrel)

First fill exbourbon! Full term. I’m expecting something sweet…

Bruichladdich "Islay Barley" 2010 50% (exbourbon and wine casks)

One of Bruichladdich’s uber-provenance/terroir bottlings. Distilled from Optic and Oxbridge barley grown on the following farms: Coull, Cruach, Dunlossit, Island, Mulindry, Rockside, Starchmill, and Sunderland.

Clynelish 1995 Signatory Vintage 20 years 43%

Nice bottle. Part of Signatory’s “Decanter Collection”. A lot of what I assume to be floccing in the bottle, so unlikely to be chill filtered, even at 43 per cent ABV. Bottled in 2016, before Clynelish got weird about people using their name.

Glen Flagler "Rare All-Malt Scotch" 5 years 40%

Silent distillery. Bottling apparently for the Italian market. Parafilmed and everything!

Bowmore 2001 Hunter Laing 13 years 58.5% (refill hogshead)

OB Bowmore gets a bit of a bad rep. Luckily this is not OB. Bottled for Shinanoya in Japan under Hunter Laing’s “Old Malt Cask” label.

Aultmore 2010 Infrequent Flyers 10 years 58.5% (refill barrel)

One of Alistair Walker’s Infrequent Flyers – a relatively recent independent bottler. Now, picture a sunny day, a swim-in bar…

Highland Park 2006 Gordon & Macphail 14 years 58.5% (refill sherry puncheon)

A recent non-secret Orkney.

Baron Gaston Legrand 1987 Armagnac-Ténarèze 46%

Bottled 24 February 2015.

Ardbeg "An Oa" 46.6% (virgin oak, PX, first fill bourbon)

NAS Ardbeg. Core range. Hype casks.

Octomore (Bruichladdich) "X4+10" 10 years 70% (bourbon, sweet wine, sherry)

The second Octomore concept release: Octomore X4+10 Concept 0.2. Let me draw attention to the ABV: 70 per cent. Let me draw attention to why that is: quadruple distilled. Let me draw attention to the age statement: 10 years.

Octomore (Bruichladdich) "OBA" 59.7% (undisclosed)

First of the Octomore Concept releases: Octomore OBA Concept 0.1. Bruichladdich will not disclose anything about this except the ABV. Basically: Octomore Black Art.

Port Charlotte (Bruichladdich) 2002 Rest & Be Thankful 13 years 63.5% (exbourbon)

Early Port Charlotte – the spirit profile was not even a year old as of this run (25 April 2002). Bottled 2016 from cask 7. From the same outturn as the 2002 Bruichladdich, but couldn’t be more different…

Bruichladdich 2002 Rest & Be Thankful 13 years 57.1% (exbourbon)

A couple of early neo-Laddie bottles today, both from Rest & Be Thankful. Distilled in 2002, just after the distillery’s reopening in 2001. Bottled 2016 from cask 454.

Ben Nevis 2015 Càrn Mòr 4 years 47.5% (sherry hogshead)

Ben Nevis again! This time another youngster. A vatting of two casks, presumably both sherry hogsheads. Weirdly high outturn of bottles though, 900 bottles. Aren’t hogsheads around 250 litres? Even assuming zero angel’s share…

Tobermory "Ledaig Unpeated" 1995 Hidden Spirits 25 years 50.2% (refill exbourbon hogshead)

Tobermory… tick… Hidden Spirits… tick. Wait. “Ledaig Unpeated”? Shouldn’t Ledaig be “Tobermory Peated” if anything? According to Andrea (London Whisky Club) of Hidden Spirits, this might have been a cleaning run through the stills after a run of peated spirit. Apparently Ledaig was less peated back then, this this could easily be confused with the cleaning run. Anyway, Ledaigamory.

Montilla Oloroso NV North Star 16.9% (Scotch cask)

Ever wonder what happens to the sherry used to season your cask? Usually it’s poured down a drain, but North Star bottled this one. Although it’s not technically sherry because it was made in Montilla. Anyway: from what I gather, used to season a barrel that once held whisky. So think of it as Scotch finished oloroso, not oloroso finished Scotch.

Ledaig 2010 Chorlton 10 years 57% (bourbon barrel)

Final dram of the Chorlton night. Ledaig, of Tobermory fame. Or should that be Tobermory, of Ledaig fame? Anyway, absolute heavyweight. Tasted virtually with David Bennett (Chorlton) and the Whisky and Alement team.

Lochindaal (Bruichladdich) 2007 Chorlton 12 years 61.9% (bourbon barrel)

Lochindaal was a peated spirit made by Bruichladdich shortly after they opened. More heavily peated than Port Charlotte. David says that it’s more like a peated Laddie spirit – it’s got that clarity we’d associate with it. I agree with him. Unfortunately, Bruichladdich is no longer making Lochindaal. Perhaps not a lost distillery, but a lost malt! Tasted virtually with David Bennett (Chorlton) and the Whisky and Alement team.

Orkney 2005 Chorlton 15 years 57.1% (refill bourbon hogshead, apparently)

A lot of secret Orkney casks lately. No surprises: Highland Park! Are they having a sale or something? And what’s with this cask? Tasted virtually with David Bennett (Chorlton) and the Whisky and Alement team.

Bunnahabhain 2002 Chorlton 18 years 53.4% (sherry butt)

A Christmas release for Chorlton. Apt. Sherry, but the complete opposite of a sherry bomb. Tasted virtually with David Bennett (Chorlton) and the Whisky and Alement team.

Glenlossie 1992 Chorlton 27 years 51.2% (hogshead)

Early 90s Glenlossie. Reportedly (from David) amazing, underrated, the golden years. Also, I’m told, needs this kind of age. Tasted virtually with David Bennett (Chorlton) and the Whisky and Alement team.

Croftengea (Loch Lomond) 2007 Chorlton 13 years 53.9% (hogshead)

Croftengea is one of Loch Lomond’s many spirit profiles. Heavily peated. This one, not so much. Tasted virtually with David Bennett (Chorlton) and the Whisky and Alement team. First cab off the rank.

Longmorn 2002 "The Ten" LMDW/Signatory Vintage 40.1%

Apparently bottled by Signatory Vintage for La Maison du Whisky as part of “The Ten” series. Label reads: “A distinctive range of 10 young Scotch Whiskies profiling classic characteristics”. Intro range? Anyway, this is Profile #4, “Medium Speyside”. Not sure if Medium is apt…

Glen Elgin 2004 Lady of the Glen 16 years 51.3% (Rivesaltes finish)

Fifteen years in a hogshead, finished in a Rivesaltes cask and then charged into a rather attractive bottle. Rivesaltes is a French sweet fortified. And that cask did a number on this one.

Dailuaine 2007 Douglas Laing's Provenance 9 years 46% (sherry butt)

Kind of obscure Diageo malt, which means they’ve got a Flora and Fauna bottle. Instead of a cute animal this one is from Douglas Laing’s Provenance lineup and was aged in a sherry butt.

Blue Hanger "11th Limited Release" Berry Bros. & Rudd 45.6%

Berry Bros. & Rudd’s blended malt whisky. Unknown to me before I tasted: apparently 8 casks in this blend, 4 hoggies, 3 sherry butts. Peated and unpeated Bunnahabhain. Glad to know I wasn’t going insane tasting peat and dried fruits.

Tobermory "Manzanilla Finish" 12 years 46.3% (exbourbon and manzanilla)

Official bottling from Tobermory. From what I gather, spent ten years in exbourbon casks and two in manzanilla casks. For those playing at home, manzanilla is a dry sherry similar to a fino, known for its freshness and salinity. Unusual, as most sherry casks used for whisky are oloroso or PX.

Deanston 2009 Rest & Be Thankful 10 years 57.1% (exbourbon)

Here’s a recent bottle from Rest & Be Thankful (great story behind that name). I’m personally enjoying what Deanston has to offer these days. Read on if you like oranges.

Caol Ila "Unpeated Style" 18 years 59.8% (refill exbourbon hogsheads)

Picture this: Caol Ila. Now remove the peat. Hard, no? Let’s see. This one was bottled in 2017 for Diageo’s special releases.

Ben Nevis 1996 The Whisky Agency 23 years 47.6% (hogshead)

Back to back Ben Nevis. This time from The Whisky Agency. Presumably a sherry hogshead, but not specified beyond cask size.

Ben Nevis 1996 Thompson Bros. 22 years 44.4% (refill sherry butt)

From cult indie bottler comes a cult distillery in a cult cask. At a cult price too!

Teaninich 2006 Hidden Spirits 13 years 51.7% (exbourbon)

Another Hidden Spirit, this time from Teaninich. Not quite as obscure as Balmenach, but not exactly hyped… hope you like salad.

Springbank "Cask Strength" 12 years 55.3% (2020)

The 2020 release of Springbank’s cask strength 12 year old. From what I gather, it’s 35 per cent sherry and 65 per cent exbourbon.

Glenrothes 2006 Wilson and Morgan 48% (first fill sherry butts)

A vatting of three casks. First fill sherry butts.

Blair Athol 2003 Douglas of Drumlanrig 12 years 46% (refill hogshead)

Presumably an exbourbon refill hoggy. One of Diageo’s blend focused distilleries.

Ben Nevis 2015 Adelphi 5 years 61.3% (first fill sherry)

Adelphi! I got the email for this outturn at ten in the morning, I believe. Three minutes later, this was sold out (alongside most of the other bottles in this outturn). Oh well, c’est la vie. The people love the colour. Judging by the number of bottles (622), probably a sherry butt.

Balmenach 2004 Hidden Spirits 13 years 51.2% (exbourbon)

An honest little exbourbon malt from Hidden Spirits, one of my favourite bottlers. From a rather obscure distillery.

Secret Highland 2010 Claxton's Exploration 10 years 50% (tawny port butt)

Another Claxton’s Exploration bottling. This time a secret highland. Coordinates are 58.02N, 3.87W.

Secret Islay 2012 Claxton's Exploration 8 years 50% (refill sherry butt)

The final Claxton’s Exploration I’ll be looking at for now. We’ve got another blended malt – presumably teaspooned. Coordinates are 55.63N, 6.15W. This one leads to a quite legendary south coast Islay distillery. Thoughts on the bottling series itself also after the fold.

Ardmore 2009 Claxton's Exploration 11 years 50% (refill PX hogshead)

Continuing on our Claxton’s Exploration. We’ve got an Ardmore – single malt, very much disclosed distillery. There’s no mystery this time, but the coordinates are 57.35N, 2.74W.

Campbeltown Blend 2015 Claxton's Exploration 5 years 50% (PX hogshead)

Part of the inaugural outturn of Claxton’s Exploration series comes a blended malt from Campbeltown. As I understand it, this is a teaspooned malt. It spent only five years in a PX hogshead.

Bruichladdich "The Ternary Project" 52.1%

Bruichladdich’s March (April, really) ballot bottle, capping off the Valinch ballots due to the distillery’s COVID closure. The pricing on this one caused quite a stir round the whisky groups. I think price expectations were much lower for the ballot and Bruichladdich might have been better served with this as a Fèis Ìle bottle. That said, if you’re willing to buy Black Art, you should probably be willing to buy this. And wow – does it deliver.

Springbank (Longrow) 1994 North Star 25 years 48.5% (refill exbourbon hogshead)

Part of North Star’s recent Springbank lineup. Labelled as Springbank, peated and double distilled. Both Springbank and North Star are highly respected and popular, so as expected, it flew off the shelves…

Secret Highland 2010 Hand-in-Hand 10 years 52.4% (refill exbourbon hogshead)

Bottled by a triumvirate of Australian whisky institutions: Whisky and Alement, the Oak Barrel, and Casa de Vinos. Titled “Bees & Fruit Trees” with a cheeky wax-on-wax-off reference label by Blake Wilson. Thoughts jump (like a cat) to mind of a distillery associated with wax…

Arran 2013 Fisherman's Retreat 7 years 50% (Yalumba Viognier cask)

A cask you don’t see every day. Distilled by Arran and put into a Viognier cask from Yalumba (South Australia). Bottled by the Fisherman’s Retreat as part of their limited edition series. I do have the cask strength bottling, but today I’m looking at the 50%.

Linkwood 2009 Single Malts of Scotland 10 years 48% (seven cask vatting)

Another Linkwood. From Elixir Distillers.

Linkwood 2007 Hidden Spirits 13 years 54.1% (refill exbourbon hogshead)

Linkwood is a distillery you don’t see often bottled by Diageo themselves. Fortunately it is a relatively common malt among independent bottlers. Here we’ve got one from Hidden Spirits, a small Italian independent bottler.