Edinburgh.
A cold, dark, damp autumnal Edinburgh. So what could be better to blow away those icy chills than a nice drop (or five) of Scotland's finest?
There must have been about twenty of us in the room. We were placed around small tables seating three or four people. In front of us were five different (and as yet unknown) whiskies of various colour, each in a proper whisky glass (not a big tumbler but a small flute) and with their own cover in place to prevent their aromas from taking flight. By the time our host had finished his welcome speech we were, to say the least, eager and ready to rumble.
First things first. Our man made it clear that this was going to be a form of blind tasting, in that he would only tell us about the whisky we were tasting after we'd had a taste and a chance to say what we felt about it ourselves. As it turned out, this was an extremely wise and eye-opening form of proceedings. The logic behind it was clear: the more he told us upfront about where each whisky came from, how it was made, any flavours we might expect to find, cask age and - worryingly - how much it costs, the more our experience would be clouded by our preconceptions. Fair enough. The second thing was that all of the whiskies we were about to try were sourced from the same Independent Bottler, namely Cadenhead. But no worries - this did nothing to limit the range of whiskies that were on offer - far from it. In fact we were going to taste a few whiskies of which it was now almost impossible to get hold of at any price. Needless to say, his little preamble (coupled with the lashing rain outside) had whetted our appetite substantially.
The Whiskies
First up was what turned out to be a Putachieside Blended 12yo, which came in at 40% proof. Light amber in colour, with a pungent, malty nose, it made a very smooth entry and left a lovely, warm and creamy aftertaste that was nice and long, and got better with each sip. At 23 quid, this is a snip and I gave it an easy on nose 7.5/10. Before this tasting I thought that blended whiskies were a no-no, but this is not the case. Just as in wine, blending is a fine art and requires a professional "nose" to do the job. Even a single malt, in order to achieve the house style, must be blended from different casks. And (shock horror) many distillers will also add in a small quantity of caramel to achieve a house colour too - although you wont find this information on the label, at least in the UK (Swede's, as ever, as more precise!).
Next up was a whisky made exclusively from barley, a 56.3% 12yo Speyside from the Dailuaine-Glenlivet Distillery. This had a much darker amber colour, with a hot, pungent nose which reminded me a little of paint thinners. We were encouraged at this point to add a little water to calm this one down a touch. Again, this was news to me. I had assumed that you should add a little drop of water to any whisky so that you could release the aromas. Not so. You should always try a whisky neat first and then see if it needs water or not. All whisky is watered down when its bottled, but adding more water should be at your discretion. This one did pick up a bit with water, but not enough for my taste. The thinners smell gave way to a propane taste, and this one certainly wasn't my cup of cha. I gave it a disappointing 6/10, though others around me seemed enthused. At 38 quid its not for the feint of heart either!
The third whisky on the bill was a 19yo bottle from the North British Distillery. At 59.9% this needed a little water too, but for me this was definitely the hit of the evening. It had a dark amber colour with an almost fruity, wine-like nose (really!) with a big hint of vanilla (apparently due to the fact it has been matured in old Bourbon barrels). The entry on the palate was warm and well-rounded, and hit all the right spots, and, frankly, I could have drunk it happily for the rest of the night, but I only had a thimble full to work on in the glass. I've lost the note about the cost, but I think it was in the 40 quid bracket. A lot for a bottle, but still value for money given the taste. I gave it an 8.5/10. (The North British Distillery also get a prize for the most lacklustre internet site in the world - but good for them, it probably means they're getting on with their real job).
Next up was the evening's rarest example, a 51.2% proof, 42yo bottle of Speyside Chairman's Stock (don't you love that!) from Glenn Grant-Glenlivet. Our man told us that the only other business that works to the same time frame as a whisky manufacturer is the nuclear industry. He also told us that the many of these older whiskies tend to be barrels found in the corner of warehouses that have been misplaced or forgotten about. This bottle was one of only a handful still in existence, and its price tag reflected the fact. At a whopping 170 quid a bottle, its not an everyday sipping whisky! But was it worth it? The colour was a the darkest of all five whiskies, almost burnt amber, with an overpowering nose of paraffin and burnt toffee. It had an extremely hot entry, but later this mellowed to an incredibly long and lingering warmth on the palate which just never seemed to fade. But all in all it was better as a "winter warmer" than a premium whisky for me. It would have been interesting to see what my score might have been if our man had told us about this one before we'd tasted it though (with all those preconceptions in place!). As it was, I gave this a good but hardly ecstatic 7/10.
Last (and in my book least), was a bottle of 56.3% Islay from the Caol Ila Distillery. Can a whisky be more extreme and divisive than this? The colour was almost transparent, with a petrol nose and similar taste. Not for me then, but just as I was putting down my lowest score of the night - a measly 4/10 - my neighbour suddenly went into ecstasies about it, which just goes to prove there's nowt so queer as folk. I remained unphased. Frankly, if you want to taste petrol, I suggest you take a can down to your local pump and fill it there, as it'll be a lot cheaper than the 41 quid asking price for this little number.
As well as a shop on the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, Cadenhead also have a shop in Covent Garden, which I suspect is well worth a visit if you're in town. Bottoms up!
Next Week: A mammoth (and rather drunken) tasting at the German Embassy in Stockholm of the wines from Mosel-Saar-Ruwer, 2005 vintage.
There must have been about twenty of us in the room. We were placed around small tables seating three or four people. In front of us were five different (and as yet unknown) whiskies of various colour, each in a proper whisky glass (not a big tumbler but a small flute) and with their own cover in place to prevent their aromas from taking flight. By the time our host had finished his welcome speech we were, to say the least, eager and ready to rumble.
First things first. Our man made it clear that this was going to be a form of blind tasting, in that he would only tell us about the whisky we were tasting after we'd had a taste and a chance to say what we felt about it ourselves. As it turned out, this was an extremely wise and eye-opening form of proceedings. The logic behind it was clear: the more he told us upfront about where each whisky came from, how it was made, any flavours we might expect to find, cask age and - worryingly - how much it costs, the more our experience would be clouded by our preconceptions. Fair enough. The second thing was that all of the whiskies we were about to try were sourced from the same Independent Bottler, namely Cadenhead. But no worries - this did nothing to limit the range of whiskies that were on offer - far from it. In fact we were going to taste a few whiskies of which it was now almost impossible to get hold of at any price. Needless to say, his little preamble (coupled with the lashing rain outside) had whetted our appetite substantially.
The Whiskies
First up was what turned out to be a Putachieside Blended 12yo, which came in at 40% proof. Light amber in colour, with a pungent, malty nose, it made a very smooth entry and left a lovely, warm and creamy aftertaste that was nice and long, and got better with each sip. At 23 quid, this is a snip and I gave it an easy on nose 7.5/10. Before this tasting I thought that blended whiskies were a no-no, but this is not the case. Just as in wine, blending is a fine art and requires a professional "nose" to do the job. Even a single malt, in order to achieve the house style, must be blended from different casks. And (shock horror) many distillers will also add in a small quantity of caramel to achieve a house colour too - although you wont find this information on the label, at least in the UK (Swede's, as ever, as more precise!).
Next up was a whisky made exclusively from barley, a 56.3% 12yo Speyside from the Dailuaine-Glenlivet Distillery. This had a much darker amber colour, with a hot, pungent nose which reminded me a little of paint thinners. We were encouraged at this point to add a little water to calm this one down a touch. Again, this was news to me. I had assumed that you should add a little drop of water to any whisky so that you could release the aromas. Not so. You should always try a whisky neat first and then see if it needs water or not. All whisky is watered down when its bottled, but adding more water should be at your discretion. This one did pick up a bit with water, but not enough for my taste. The thinners smell gave way to a propane taste, and this one certainly wasn't my cup of cha. I gave it a disappointing 6/10, though others around me seemed enthused. At 38 quid its not for the feint of heart either!
The third whisky on the bill was a 19yo bottle from the North British Distillery. At 59.9% this needed a little water too, but for me this was definitely the hit of the evening. It had a dark amber colour with an almost fruity, wine-like nose (really!) with a big hint of vanilla (apparently due to the fact it has been matured in old Bourbon barrels). The entry on the palate was warm and well-rounded, and hit all the right spots, and, frankly, I could have drunk it happily for the rest of the night, but I only had a thimble full to work on in the glass. I've lost the note about the cost, but I think it was in the 40 quid bracket. A lot for a bottle, but still value for money given the taste. I gave it an 8.5/10. (The North British Distillery also get a prize for the most lacklustre internet site in the world - but good for them, it probably means they're getting on with their real job).Next up was the evening's rarest example, a 51.2% proof, 42yo bottle of Speyside Chairman's Stock (don't you love that!) from Glenn Grant-Glenlivet. Our man told us that the only other business that works to the same time frame as a whisky manufacturer is the nuclear industry. He also told us that the many of these older whiskies tend to be barrels found in the corner of warehouses that have been misplaced or forgotten about. This bottle was one of only a handful still in existence, and its price tag reflected the fact. At a whopping 170 quid a bottle, its not an everyday sipping whisky! But was it worth it? The colour was a the darkest of all five whiskies, almost burnt amber, with an overpowering nose of paraffin and burnt toffee. It had an extremely hot entry, but later this mellowed to an incredibly long and lingering warmth on the palate which just never seemed to fade. But all in all it was better as a "winter warmer" than a premium whisky for me. It would have been interesting to see what my score might have been if our man had told us about this one before we'd tasted it though (with all those preconceptions in place!). As it was, I gave this a good but hardly ecstatic 7/10.
Last (and in my book least), was a bottle of 56.3% Islay from the Caol Ila Distillery. Can a whisky be more extreme and divisive than this? The colour was almost transparent, with a petrol nose and similar taste. Not for me then, but just as I was putting down my lowest score of the night - a measly 4/10 - my neighbour suddenly went into ecstasies about it, which just goes to prove there's nowt so queer as folk. I remained unphased. Frankly, if you want to taste petrol, I suggest you take a can down to your local pump and fill it there, as it'll be a lot cheaper than the 41 quid asking price for this little number.
As well as a shop on the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, Cadenhead also have a shop in Covent Garden, which I suspect is well worth a visit if you're in town. Bottoms up!
Next Week: A mammoth (and rather drunken) tasting at the German Embassy in Stockholm of the wines from Mosel-Saar-Ruwer, 2005 vintage.
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