The History of Scottish Whisky – A tasting
I recently held a tasting to illustrate the history of Scottish whisky. One bottle was chosen to represent an era of whisky making and then I waffled on. The evening seemed to go quite well and so I decided to write it up. Having done so I thought it might be a good idea to revive this dormant blog and post it. There were seven sections and hence seven individual posts. The whiskies are listed below in a table that was given as a handout. The tasting notes are not my own (I don’t do really do tasting notes), they were gathered from the company or retailers.
The whiskies:
| Mists of Time | Glenturret Peat Smoked | Age: 10yrs abv: 48.4% 1st & 2nd fill American & European oak | Nose: Creamy vanilla, orange peel, and cinnamon join campfire smoke. Palate: Hedgerow fruits, smoked heather, nutmeg, and lemon sherbets. Followed by ashy smoke and citrus |
| Laying the Foundations | Balmenach (Master of Malt) | Age: 8yrs abv: 57.8% Finished in olorosso octave | Nose – Burnt sugar, hot caramel, dark chocolate with almonds, creamy coffee, rice pudding Palate -Lick of toffee coats the mouth followed by a light dusting of pepper. Rich and sweet, with creamy notes of dark beer and char leading to more spicy oak and chewy toffee pennies |
| Victorian Peak | Glen Elgin Infrequent Flyers Cask | Age: 15 abv: 55.4% Sauternes finish | Nose -Sweet: brandy snaps and peanut brittle. sugared almonds and pistachios. Palate – Underlying honeycomb. Orchard fruit notes – stewed apricots, raisins and apple strudel. Dusted with brown sugars, spices towards the end – pepper definitely; maybe cinnamon. |
| Facing Adversity | Thompson Bros TB/BSW | Age: 6yrs abv: 46% Sherry matured | Nose – Plum sauce, golden sultanas, cinder toffee and coffee creme patisserie Palate – Golden sultanas, raisin loaf, buttered Jamaica cake, maple and toasted Finish – Soft warm spice, allspice, nutmeg and cinnamon, with orange peel and dried figs |
| Post-War Rebuild | Tormore Distillery Reserve Collection | Age: 16 abv: 56.9 1st fill bourbon | Nose: Oranges and tangerines, then, compote and green apples. Vanilla, burnt cereals, a nuttiness. Taste: More tropical fruitiness all supported by high maltiness, some buttered popcorn. Spice – ginger and pepper leading, some gentle anise A few drops of water add in lively lemon drops as well as coconut shavings. |
| After the Goldrush | Kilchoman Cognac Cask | Age:6 abv: 50% Fully matured in cognac casks | Nose: Apples and pears with notes of honey, orange peel, baking spices, and smoky peat. Palate: Creamy and buttery with lemon and apricot fruit, spices such as cinnamon and nutmeg. Oak and peat smoke. Long finish, with flavours of dried fruit, spices, and almonds. |
| Now and Then | Lochlea Cask Strength | Age: NAS abv: 60.1 Bourbon & Olorosso | Nose – Fruit punch, cigar notes, coffee beans Palate – Fruit, Brazil nuts, Orange syrup, aged oak shavings |