Whisky Discovery #1470

Littlemill Private Cellar Edition 2015 25 Year Old 50.4% abv

Lowland Single Malt
Price tba

The Littlemill distillery was founded at Bowling to the west of Glasgow on the banks of the river Clyde in the 1770’s and laid claim to being Scotland’s oldest distillery. That was up until 1992 when it stopped production. Triple distillation was practised at Littlemill until around 1930, when new equipment was installed. The stills had rectifying columns and were also isolated with aluminium. Their goal being to produce whisky that would mature faster (Malt Whisky Yearbook 2016). The distillery was dismantled in 1996 and part of the buildings demolished, the remaining buildings were destroyed by a fire in 2004.

Michael Jackson described the house style as 'Marshmallow-soft'. A restorative, or perhaps with dessert

All that's left is the ghost of Littlemill and the last remaining drops of this Lowland whisky, once gone, an important piece of Scotch whisky's heritage will be lost for ever

I've only tried three releases from the Littlemill distillery previously;

•  #200 A 1990 22 Year Old from Single Malts of Scotland
•  #260 A 1992 20 Year old from Berry Bros & Rudd
•  #904 A 1998 25 Year Old from Douglas Laing's Executive Decision series

and so the opportunity to taste this new and rare limited release from The Loch Lomond Group was a very special treat indeed.

The Loch Lomond Group's Master Blenders John Petersen and Michael Henry have selected ten of the remaining casks from 1989 and 1990, which they believe to best represent the style of Littlemill to create this 2015 release. The spirit was originally laid down in American and European oak casks on 17th December 1989 and April 1990. For this special release it has been married together and has been finished in first fill Oloroso Sherry casks from European oak. Just 1500 numbered bottles will be available, each packaged in a premium bottle with ornate stopper and collar house within a bespoke wooden box. Each box contains a miniature of the the whisky too.

So What Did I Think?

I know I've often mentioned this before, but a whisky with an age statement takes me back to that point in time. From what I remember 1989/90 was a bit of a wild time for me so we won't dwell on that here, but I can tell you a few stories of the shenanigans that I was up to if you pour me a drink or two!

We're told that this has been made with locally grown peat kilned barley and blended with spring water from Auchentorlie Burn. When I first poured my sample into the glass, bread dough notes came through initially but these were quickly masked by the sherry notes - a first fill Oloroso cask will do this! The light delicate Lowland style I was expecting has been covered up by the dark fruity Sherry with notes of blackberry and cherry. A drop of water brings the malty notes which is followed by dark chocolate, with that slight bitterness from a high cocoa content.

Tasting and the 50.4% abv comes across as quite punchy  and I felt benefited with a drop or two of water just to open it up. The water brings a silky chocolate note and texture, balanced with a woody maltiness. Gentle spices of cloves and just a hint of ginger are here too. Both the chocolate and spices linger for the long finish, which concludes with the slightest hint of smoke.

Many thanks to Steve Rush of The Whisky Wire and to Loch Lomond Distilleries for sending me this review sample

Verdict

Whilst this is a pleasant enough dram, I was a little confused as to why this little piece of history needed to be finished in a Sherry cask. The renowned 'Lowland Style' has been completely masked by the Sherry in my opinion, and I would have preferred to have tasted this in its unfinished state. The cynic in me thinks that perhaps these 10 casks were not quite up to scratch for single cask releases. With such a high perceived 'book value' these rare casks (there can be no question about their rarity as no whisky has been laid down since 1992) needed some 'work' in order to make the book value into commercial value.

I once spoke to a spirits buyer and master of cask selection who told the owners of a large stock of old maturing whisky that the majority of their perceived book value had to be written off, as quality was not good enough for single cask releases and was therefore sold off for blending stock. I'm sure this story brought on this recent bout of cynicism. Writing off 10 casks of a closed distillery would be hard to swallow (no pun intended) and I too would try anything permissible to rescue and retrieve it’s value. 

Finishing in a first fill Oloroso cask will impart a significant flavour profile. My cynical mind says that this has lifted what was perhaps a mediocre whisky into something the master blenders would be happy to put their name, and reputations on. But perhaps I'm completely wrong and it has simply been done to update the whisky to align with today’s taste.

That said, I did enjoy the chocolatey notes the Sherry cask has imparted, and this release should interest a Littlemill collector as I'm sure Sherry cask finished releases have been few and far between.

Slàinte! Dave

Whisky Discovery #307

Auchentoshan 27 Year Old Master of Malt (58% abv D:11/12/84)
Lowland Single Cask Single Malt Whisky
£99.95 70cl (only available from Master of Malt)

This twenty seven year old Auchentoshan comes from Master of Malts Single Cask Series, and was distilled on the 11th December 1984. It was aged for 27 years in a bourbon barrel and bottled on the 20th November 2012. 

The aroma of this venerable Lowland single malt whisky is particularly intense, and leads to a complex flavour profile with a stupendously long finish

There are just 209 bottles available.

Tasting Note by The Chaps at Master of Malt

Nose: Parma violets, greengages and black currant jelly form an aroma dominated by heady top-notes. Beneath this there are light floral notes and a little ground white pepper.

Palate: This is a light bodied whisky with clean notes of parma violets, lavender and carnations forming up on the palate. The texture is mouth-coating with a slight syrupy quality.

Finish: The finish is elegant and floral with notes of rose water and rose flavoured meringues. On the tail there is a little dried banana which clings on for a long time after the last phenomenal sip.

Overall: All the complexity and depth befitting its age but with a distinctly unique character. A glass of this punchy single malt will go a long way, leave it to sit for an hour or so to appreciate its delicate side.

So What Did We Think?

I found that this needed some time in the glass to develop it's nose. It's dry and dusty at first reminding me of the chalky smell of the old blackboard wiper at school. After a little time it does get very floral, heavily perfumed for a while before settling down to some creamy vanilla with a citrus edge notes, and some sweetshop Parma Violets (I had to go and buy some just to be sure). It really does benefit from airing, but then it has been sleeping for twenty seven years, so wakes up very slowly indeed.

Again the palate is very floral, perhaps a little too much for my liking. It doesn't appear to be gentle in it's approach to giving you it's perfume and brought back memories of 'nice perfume, but must you marinate in it?' one of the put-down sayings we had listed at work that we used to check off as we insulted someone.

Once you get over the perfume attack again it settles down, there was a blueberry taste to it, as in a blueberry muffin, which seems to be very similar to the Parma Violet sweets. This Auchentoshan definitely benefits a few drops of water.

The finish does seem to go on forever, it's a little bit chalky and that blueberry sweetness. I'm sure I woke up the following morning still tasting those Parma Violets/blueberry notes.

Want one? Best be quick as there was just 209 bottles filled. check out Master of Malt 27 Year Old Auchentoshan

Whisky Discovery #179

Auchentoshan Springwood NAS (40% abv OB, 2012, 1l)
Lowland Single Malt Whisky
Travel Retail Release, Circa £35.00 1 litre

The Travel Retail only Springwood

The British Airport shops have been running a deal most of this year, offering two bottles of a limited range of whiskies for just £55.00. I picked up a couple of bottles on may way back from Mexico (that I've not opened yet) and a further pair of bottles on a recent business trip to France. This Auchentoshan was one of them.

Auchentoshan released a new range of no age statement whiskies earlier this year, the Springwood is the entry level bottling, and youngest of the range. It's been triple matured as with all Auchentoshan whiskies and then matured solely in North American Bourbon oak casks, bottled at 40% abv.

So what did I think?

It has a light golden colour, which has unfortunately been modified with the addition of caramel. On the nose it comes across as quite young, with lots of sharp citrus fruits; lime, grapefruit and lemon, there are grassy notes, and even some Vietnamese coriander. The vanilla notes you would expect from the Bourbon casks, eventually breaks out the sharp astringent notes.

On the palate its light fresh and delicate, there is a light sweetness to the vanilla notes, yet there is a grapefruit sourness that cuts through it, I guess it's what would be expected of a young classical Lowland single malt.

There is a drying nuttiness to the finish, with light pepper spice and citrus notes which all fades quite quickly

While not overly complex it is very drinkable whisky. It is quite young and there is that 'new make' feel to it. The addition of caramel is probably necessary to give it some colour, as I doubt there would be much from the casks considering it's assumed young age. It benefits from sitting in the glass for a while, which I didn't expect for such a young spirit, but being fresh and zesty would be perfect for sunny summer afternoons, however will have to wait until 2013 till I see one of those again. However, when you can pick up two litres for £55 it offers great value for money!

Whisky Discovery #88

Auchentoshan Valinch NAS (57.5% abv 2011)
Lowland Single Malt Whisky
Circa £38.00 70cl

The cask strength Valinch

This was another Auchentoshan that had been recommended to me by The Toshan Man, and was dram No.19 of the afternoon at the Whisky Lounge London

This small batch release is the cask strength edition of their 'Classic' and is bottled at 57.5% abv and is not chill-filtered.

The expression is named 'Valinch' after the name of the pipette used to draw whisky straight from the cask (also known as 'the whisky thief') which is an appropriate name for a whisky with all the depth of taste, flavour and texture associated with sampling whisky at source.

The Valinch has no age statement, which probably means it's a young whisky, but I have no confirmation of the make up so far. This was the first whisky created by Jeremy Stephens, Senior Blender of the Morrison-Bowmore group.

So What did I think?

With the colour of pale straw and the nose bursting with sweet vanilla and citrus, it really quite sweet and creamy in the mouth despite the high abv.

 I was expecting this to be quite exciting and I wasn't disappointed. I added a little water to the first dram as advised my the guys behind the stand, but went back for an immediate second dram and spent a little longer with it and really enjoyed it at full strength. This will be staying on my wishlist, I want more of this!

Whisky Discovery #87

Auchentoshan 12 Year Old (40% abv)
Lowland Single Malt Whisky
Circa £27.00 70cl

Auchentoshan 12 Year Old

Next up was a stand that contained a number of different whiskies and three expressions from the Auchentoshan distillery were on display. Their 12 Year Old, Three Wood and Valinch.

I was only recently introduced to Auchentoshan recently and on the recommendation from the Toshan Man himself, bought a bottle of their Three Wood as my official January 2012 bottle, but was keen to try some other expressions.

So for my 16th dram of The Whisky Lounge London Show I tried their 12 year old for the very first time.

This expression was first released around 2008 and the 12 year old replaced their 10 year old during a re-branding exercise. At the time it was hailed as a big improvement on the reportedly lacklustre younger expression.

As with all Auchentoshan whiskies this malt has been triple distilled before maturing in a mixture Bourbon and Sherry casks making it rich, spicy and with a sherry influence.

So What did I think?

On the nose it was initially quite sweet with caramel and some honey, rich fruit and nut flavours with a hint of spice. Not as sweet on the palate, but smooth with hints of tangy orange and vanilla. 

Although it was a pleasant enough dram I wasn't overawed by it. I really love the Three Wood and was looking forward to trying more Auchentoshan, so perhaps might have expected more?  It might have been due to the number of different drams tasted prior to this or even the new make spirit that I had tried on the Balvenie stand previously, but it didn't grab me.. At the next Whisky Show I will start with Auchentoshan to give it another go!

Whisky Discovery #35

Auchentoshan Three Wood NAS (43%, OB, bottled  2011, 70cl)

Lowland Single Malt Whisky

Circa £35

My first Toshan

My first Auchentoshan, but not my first Lowland whisky as I've previously sampled Edinburgh’s Glenkinchie 12 Year Old at the beginning of my journey (Whisky Discovery #3).

This is January 2012’s official addition, and recommended by the Toshan Man himself, Mark Dermul (http://www.markdermul.be/toshanman/) who I have become acquainted with on The Whisky Social Network ‘Whisky Connosr’ (http://www.connosr.com/).

I was going to go for the Classic as listed in Ian Buxton’s book, but Mark steered me this way. I’m really pleased with his recommendation, but will be back for the Classic (and more) later !

Auchentoshan (ock-un-tosh-un) is, as I said earlier, a Lowland whisky and the distillery is located to the North West of Glasgow in Clydebank. With no age statement on this expression I wrote to Auchentoshan and asked what age whisky this was. They replied that this was a 12 year old whisky, matured for 10 years in bourbon casks then finished for one year in Oloroso Sherry and then one year in Pedro Ximenez Sherry.

Auchentoshan’s clean, complex character starts with malted optic barley. Only gently kilned, completely un-peated barley lets the Auchentoshan taste shine through. They grind the barley to suit their lauter tun. It’s vital to have evenly milled starch grits – this maximises the amount of starch that converts into sugars during mashing. The milled, malted barley and pure water is fed into their lauter tun, first of all at 63.5°C. The heat helps turn the starches into sugar. After two fillings it’s ready for fermentation – the third filling is used as the first water in the next mash.

Many distilleries prefer the consistency that comes with stainless steel washbacks, however, Auchentoshan use Oregon pine instead – so the results are always a little different each time, this also means that an especially keen eye on everything is needed. All this effort means a fresh-tasting, clear wort from the lauter tun.

Auchentoshan is the only distillery in Scotland to have a third still, truly triple distilling every single drop. Triple Distillation takes the fermented liquid from around 8% ABV (alcohol by volume) up to 81%. No other Scottish distillery insists on this for every drop – double distillation usually reaches just 70% ABV. Auchentoshan new spirit is the highest distillate of any single malt distillery in Scotland. They say that when you taste the new spirit, strong notes of fruit and citrus are revealed because they have distilled away all the impurities in the liquid. You can read much more about it on their superb website http://www.auchentoshan.com/triple-distillation-(our-way)/triple-distillation.aspx

So why triple distillation ? It’s more time consuming. It’s more expensive, and it’s also absolutely unique in Scotland – no other Single Malt Scotch Whisky goes beyond two distillations (unless of course you know otherwise!) The extra distillation takes the spirit to around 81% – not 70%. This dramatically affects the character of the new make spirit, helping to create a subtle whisky that matures beautifully in oak.

So what did I think ?

Colour: A rich and deep amber from the Sherry, although reading the very small print on the bottom of the box I think this has been stabilised with caramel (it’s in German hidden under the bar code - but Google translate got me through it)

Body:              Oily, rich, and smooth, legs slow to drain in my Glencairn

Nose:              Just Delicious ! Rich and sweet, fruity, raisins, brown sugar, caramel toffee, slight butterscotch, even a slight marmalade scent

Palatte:           Delicious ! Mellow and smooth almost creamy, the sherry comes across strong, but there is more underneath, the vanilla and oak coming through the sweet fruits

Finish:             Delicious ! The finish is warming and very long, fresh and fruity. I always enjoy nosing my empty glass again after a minute or two, and this one is no exception, the final pleasure of whisky tasting, and was surprised getting some lavender at the very end.

Overall verdict: Loved it – A great discovery !

Mark has recommended I try the Valinch next – it’s on my wish list already !

Whisky Discovery #3

Glenkinchie 12 Year Old (43% abv, OB Bottled +/- 2010 20cl)

Lowland Single Malt Whisky

Circa £9 at my local supermarket

Just a 20cl sampler

The second of the  two small bottles picked up to sample alongside my Laphroaig.

The nose is quite light, yet fragrant. Notes of fresh cereal, some barley sweetness and a nuttiness. Honey creeps in with gentle warmth. The palate is very fruity with notes of Madeira and sweet stewed fruits. A hint of calvados and tannic oak lining the mouth. There is a freshness and roundness to this dram. The finish is of medium length with notes of cereal.