“Whisky is liquid sunshine.” - George Bernard Shaw
As we approach the gloomy solstice what better way of warming the soul than a dram of Scottish sunshine?
It’s hard to imagine today but less than 30 years ago single malt Scotches were a rarity in America, and only just gaining traction in the UK.
Then, in 1988, what is now
Not only is the number of straightforward single malts growing every year, but special editions, rare editions and single cask offerings are proliferating like purple heather on a Scottish moor in August.
All the big producers are ransacking their cellars in search of unusual casks, previously unwanted because they didn’t fit the needs of the blenders, but today make for valuable, attention grabbing, special bottlings.
And then there the independent bottlers, those enterprising Scotch-lovers who pry small quantities of whisky, sometimes a single barrel, from the increasingly retentive grasp of the distilleries, and bottle it under their own label. So distinctive are their products that they comprise half the selection of very special Scotches highlighted below.
Alt-A-Bhainne 1993, The Exclusive Malts
Speyside Malt, $180
With its creamy, aristocratic polish and haughty demeanor this is Speyside whisky at its show-offy best. Lighter and more elegant than many of its neighbors it’s easy to see why it’s so prized by Pernod-Ricard’s Chivas Brothers as a key ingredient in their Chivas Regal, and why it so rarely allowed out on its own.
Ardbeg Perpetuum
Islay Malt, $125
A limited edition released in May of this year to mark the 200th anniversary of Ardbeg – think, it was founded the same year as the battle of Waterloo. Bone dry, with a gently smoky nose accompanied by distinct briny notes. It’s salty finish stays in the mount for minutes.
The Arran Malt 14 Year Old
Isle of Arran Malt, $80
Smooth, polished and approachable, more like a Speyside than an island malt due to the lack of obvious peat.
Ben Nevis 1996, The Exclusive Malts
Highland Malt, $140
Even on the nose it’s packed with the aromas of dense, decadently ripe fruit – I’m thinking squishy, almost over-the-top figs drenched in heavy cream. On the tongue it’s full, rich and voluptuous. From a single refill ex-sherry butt.
Blue Hanger Blended Malt Whisky 7th Edition
Vatted Malt, $100
Blue Hanger is a range of limited edition blended malts produced by master blender Doug McIvor of London wine merchants Berry Bros. & Rudd.
This iteration is pale in color, with the first impressions imparting a gentle, subtle peatiness while the dry, distinctly briny follow-through suggest a definite Islay influence.
Compass Box, This Is Not A Luxury Whisky
Blended whisky, $225
The name is a whimsical, and ironic, play on Belgian surrealist Rene Magritte’s painting Treachery of Images, and is independent bottler and genius blender John Glaser’s way of emphasizing just how different his whiskies are from the large commercial bottlers..
The base is 79% first fill Glen Ord sherry butts whisky which give it a rich and creamy seductiveness. Then the 17% grain whisky elevates the effect, with a wee drop of 30 year old Caol Ila adding just a tincture of peat.
Dailuaine 34 Year Old, Diageo 2015 Special Release Series
Speyside Malt, $2,000
Long a valued component of various Johnnie Walker blends, it has rarely seen the light of day standing alone as a single malt. And tasting it you can see why the blenders so carefully guard this whisky, especially the ancient casks that filled just 2,952 bottles of this limited edition.
Pale in color, deeply complex and nuanced on the tongue. A honeyed sweetness is eventually supplanted by spicier elements that linger for minutes after the last drop slips down the throat.
Deveron 12 Year Old
Speyside Malt, $45
A brand new whiskey from the coastal distillery Mcduff. It’s light and fresh, with a seductive luscious sweetness tinged with hints of pine tar that linger on the ridiculously long finish.
Mortlach 25 Year Old
Speyside Malt, $1,000
Caramel and English toffee dominate this sensual, seductive dram. As it opens up in the glass mysterious layers of complex, intermingled flavors appear like a genie from a lamp, beguiling and mesmerizing. Very few whiskies can spend 25 years in cask and emerge with their integrity intact. This beauty does.
Old Pulteney Navigator
Northern Highlands Malt, $55
A reminder of why coastal whiskies are so distinct – perhaps it’s the power of suggestion but they always seem to suggest the smell of roaring grey waves of a fierce North Sea storm crashing over the breakwater.
As its name implies, Navigator has definitive links to the sea – it was released to celebrate Old Pulteney’s sponsorship of the Clipper Round The World Yacht Race 2013-2014
Pale in color and delicate in flavor, but there’s no wimpy whisky here thanks to a subtly restrained, highly focused intensity.
Pettyvaich 25 Year Old, Diageo 2015 Special Release Series[/entity]
Speyside Single Malt, $400
This bottling has had a longer life than the now-demolished distillery from which it came. But it’s marvelous: what were Diageo thinking? It has a gloriously intriguing nose of heather-infused toffee. The light and fruity initial impressions are soon overlaid on the mid-palate by a fruitcake-and-cream decadence.
Rare Cask Ghosted Reserve 26 Year Old
Vatted Malt, $400
A blend of two very old (40 and 26 years at least) whiskies from mothballed, or ghost, Lowland distilleries, Ladyburn and Interleven, owned by William Grant.
Very pale color, almost Sancerre, and a dry, delicate, heathery nose are the first impressions. After 10 minutes in the glass a malty, fruity sweetness emerged and shows just how appealing the under-rated Lowland malts are amidst all the show-off peat and sherry products of their more northerly and westerly compatriots.
Usquaebach Old Rare Blended Scotch Whisky
Blended Scotch, $115
The most unpronounceable whisky name I’ve ever come across, and I’ve seen a few shockers. I once heard Laphroaig pronounced La Froggie.
Deep, old gold in color with a complex, resinous nose, produced by one of the few Scotch brands still family owned.
A blend of 41 malt and 2 grain whiskies, and from its luxuriant sweet creaminess I would guess the dominant influence is Speyside. A super after dinner cigar dram.
