Dram data:
Distillery:Â – (blended malt)
Bottler:Â The Good Spirits Co.
Distilled: –
Bottled:Â 2013
Age: youngest malt is 7 yo
Limitation:Â –
Casks:Â unknown, “living cask” for vatting
Alcohol: 57%
unchillfiltered; natural colour
Tasting notes:
Colour: red gold
The nose is initially quite alcoholic – this batch had a load of young high-octane Glentauchers added. Vanilla, light honey, heather, citrus, coconut, eucalyptus and a grassy, green note. Feels a tad young. On the palate the load of high-strength young whisky is immediately noticeable as well. As the alcohol and initial dryness passes the dram is mouth-coating and pleasantly oily. Bourbon-matured Glentauchers, I’d say, but the exact proportions of Glentauchers to other malts are unknown.
“Modern” notes of vanilla, honey, slight coconut, orange, cough lozenges with menthol and a diluted mixture of all kinds of fruits – mango, Kiwi, peach, ripe pears, grapes as well as darker, dried fruits. You can tell there are many different components mixed together, dominated by one young fierce malt. The medium-long finish has malty, dry, oily, fruity and sweet notes mixed together upon swallowing with a slight malty and yeasty aftertaste with a hint of oak.
Verdict:
This dram is from a living cask residing in the Good spirits company’s shop in Glasgow. More info on the cask and its contents here. If you’re unfamiliar with the term, a living cask is a cask of whisky which gets topped up with new whisky whenever it is running low. Therefore the added whisky dominates, as it makes up the bulk of the volume, but the previous contents of the cask add complexity. In the case of this batch 9 the cask was filled up with young Glentauchers, which shows. The result is a young, feisty spirit with additional background complexity. Not the clearest of profiles, but an interesting experiment – and something you can also do at home!
Score:Â 81/100
(Nose: 81Â Palate: 82Â Finish: 81)