Scottish Whisky

anCnoc 12 Year Old

Reviewed by: Ted

During the warmer months a beer drinker will often turn to a lighter, more refreshing beer such as a pale ale. Well, for whisky drinkers that desire likely still holds true, and thus is created the perfect moment for the subject of this review: the anCnoc 12 year old.

Pronounced a-nock (or as we like to say… oh-cock), this summery little number is produced by Knockdhu distillery, found resting in the shadow of Knock Hill in the Highlands of Scotland. A bright clear gold in colour, the nose is light and dusty with a nice scent of grain that brings to mind fields of drying barley waving under the summer sun.

Slightly detracting from the bouquet is the occasional whiff of raw alcoholic notes, particularly when cold, but it isn’t disastrous and doesn’t spoil the overall experience. The taste is light and initially sweet, followed by more of those good dusty grain flavours and a pleasant sharpness that hits you on the middle of the palate and at the back of the nose.

If you find yourself basking in the remains of a warm summer evening and feel like relaxing with a dram, then you will find good company in the anCnoc 12. Drink with friends and with a damn good sunset on the horizon.

★★★

Talisker 10 Year Old

Reviewed by: Nick

I will forever be filled with immense amounts of good will towards Talisker distillery and with good reason, as mentioned in this ‘whisky musing’ post. Of course, this could potentially leave me viewing their products through ruby-tinted glasses. However, my love affair with Talisker whisky began long before my visit, and was initially kindled by the quality drop that is their flagship release, the 10 Year Old.

There is something special about the way the Talisker balances smoke with sweetness. In fact, if this review were written on a more succinct whisky review site then it may be summed up in two (conveniently rhyming) words: sweet peat.

It’s there immediately on the nose. It doesn’t hit you over the head with smoke, but you know it’s there. The sweetness is akin to the scent of melting brown sugar. It’s spicy when it first hits the palate; a subtly higher bottling strength of 45.8% gives this whisky an extra layer of complexity. The flavours in the mouth are full and confident with notes of oak and pepper before the smoke makes a welcome return.

The finish is perhaps the highlight of this whisky. It’s lengthy and peaty, full of hints of the distillery’s island location and yet does not lose the toffee caramel notes. It’s memorable and long lasting, and certainly a more than appropriate selection to conclude a night of tasting.

The Talisker 10 year old is a fine whisky. It somehow combines the best elements of Islay and Speyside and assembles them into one impressive drop. I will always think fondly of this distillery, but despite everything, I think the main reason for this is simply the quality of their whisky.

★★★★

Glenlivet 12 Year Old

Reviewed by: Nick

Some whiskies have absolutely blown me away when I’ve first tried them. Often, the most exciting drams I have ever tried I’ve been unsure if I liked when they first passed my lips. Some whiskies are challenging and different and interesting. But not all of them.

I begin this review as if a whisky that were to lack one or all of these qualities is in some way an inferior drink. However, when the Glenlivet 12 Year Old is concerned, this is just not the case.

Rarely have I found a distillery as reliable as Glenlivet. Nor, where its signature expression is concerned, one as good value. But the 12 Year Old is as dependable a dram as you will find in Scotland. It is the perfect just-got-home-from-work whisky.

It offers sweet oak notes on the nose, leaving you in no doubt you have a malt from Speyside. On the palate it provides an initial hit of honey and some heather before developing into glorious burnt caramel, brown sugar and just a hint of smoke. This makes way for a long vanilla-centric finish that leans towards creaming soda. It all adds up to create a distinctive and memorable, if not perfectly balanced, flavour.

Glenlivet have not produced a world changing whisky here. But that was not what they set out to do. In their 12 Year Old, they have created a dependable whisky, one that you can turn to time and time again without fear of emptying the bottle. Because if it were to run out you would, without hesitation, nip to the bottle shop for a replacement.

★★★

Post script:

Since writing this review the whisky landscape has changed and sadly not for the better. My review’s final claim that when my bottle runs dry I can simply nip to my local store for another no longer rings true. Tonight I downed the last of my trusty Glenlivet 12. It’s been a fun journey, but as they say, all good things must come to an end. Glenlivet 12 – it has been a pleasure having you as my go-to. You will not be forgotten.

Lagavulin 16 Year Old

Reviewed by Ted

Balance. Subtlety. Lagavulin 16yr old. As George Takei would say: “Oh my…“.

Heralding from Islay, that near-mythical island of Scottish whisky making, the Lagavulin 16 is aged for most of its life in American oak bourbon casks, then finished in European sherry oak. The maturation sheds of Lagavulin distillery bear the full brunt of the winds and spray of the Atlantic Ocean, and these caress the barrels, imparting their spirit into the developing whisky.

The delicate nose of the Lagavulin 16 has wonderful hints of brine, sea air and mineral salts balanced against a warm brush of smoke and caramelised fruit. The colour is a very light amber, with almost a hint of green, like the first blush of patina on bronze.

After an initial warming hit of peat, the seaside elements make a return with engagingly salty, bitter, metallic notes tempered by nutty caramel and pear. Finally the lovely peat smoke glides across the back of the tongue and down the throat, leaving a peppery finish. This isn’t the usual hearty, roaring bonfire that so typifies many Islay whiskies, but rather the gentle, delicate smouldering of a seaside campfire in the soft golden light of a still dawn. A moment to reflect and savour.

If any of these flavours were too dominant, particularly those drawn from the ocean environment, then this expression of Islay would be diminished, perhaps even unpleasant. Yet in balancing all the parts so precisely against each other, and weaving them so subtly together, a magnificent tapestry is created. The skill of the Lagavulin distillers laid bare. This is a whisky for those quiet, contemplative moments in life, and a truly worthy addition to any collection.

★★★★★

Auchentoshan Three Wood

Reviewed by Nick

Despite it not being advertised as a 12 year old whisky, the Auchentoshan Three Wood has been aged in barrels for twelve years. Ten in American oak, one in ex-Oloroso sherry barrels and finally, another one in ex-Pedro Ximenez casks. The result is as surprising as it is magnificent. I can only describe it in one way – Christmas in whisky form.

The final two years of this whisky’s maturation has changed the spirit’s appearance from the sparkling gold typical of classic Auchentoshan to a deeper shade of crimson. It has also added depth to the already present sweet, butterscotch, dried fruit flavours. Suddenly, it’s spicy on the nose, broad across the palate and lengthy in the finish. In short: sticky date pudding – nay – fruit cake – nay – Christmas cake. It is simply one of – if not the – greatest 12 year old Scottish whisky on the market.

This is a dram perfect for warming your heart on a cold snowy day, and although it originates in one of Scotland’s most southerly distilleries, Glasgow is certainly not short of days such as this. This whisky, however, is a little more special than that. Out of all the snowy wintery days in Scotland, this dram would be especially suited to a particularly festive one.