Peat and More Peat - Longrow 18 2017

Coninuing on with the peat theme, here's Springbank's peaty friend, the Longrow. This bottle came as part of the gifts when my sister got married. Part of Chinese culture involves giving 2 bottles of alcohol when a girl is marrying out of the family. The other bottle was a red wine that was good while it was fresh.

Springbank is one of few distilleries that manages most of the whole whisky-making process on-site. Much of its barley is imported (with the exception of the Local Barley series), but once the barley goes into the distillery, everything stays in Campbeltown until it is ready to meet the world. I guess this qualifies Springbank as a craft distillery? A giant in the industry, and massive in scale, but in terms of its ethos, I'm guess it still retains a craft spirit. Though does a distillery that is still family-owned, and still producing on-site definitely better? Is it merely an illusion of authenticity?

I'm reading a book, Whisky and Philosophy, and it is providing lots of food for thought. What makes a whisky good? It's process? It's flavour? Our impression of it affecting our evaluation of the quality? Is the search for provenance futile? What is real though, is this bottle of liquid.

Longrow 18, 2017 (abv 46%)



Colour: Gold, turns hazy with time.

Nose - This nose changes over time...Let's see. Dustiness, then baked pastry. Apple pie, I think, with cinnamon powder, apples, pastry, and all that. Plumps too! The fruit is very well integrated into the rest of the nose, which comes across as some custard, and a faint floral note. Peatiness doesn't come across so much on the nose. Maybe a hint of salt.

Palate - A little peppery, some cinnamon. Again, the fruit isn't very obvious - some raisins and apples, but the dominant note here is actually almond peel, the kind from roasted almonds. Hmm. The peat is fairly gentle, but turns a little bitter. It blends well into the oakiness and roasted almonds though. There's a bit of wet rocks, grapefruit. Oily, but gets even thicker with time in the glass. Salted butter makes a late appearance after some time.

Finish - Fresh pine leaves, mint, smoke. The almond skin sticks with you too. Fairly long. A little peppery. Eucalyptus oil? Mm. Yum.

Overall - I really like this. It really helps that the bottle came as a gift. But honestly, I don't think it is expensive for an 18 year old limited release from Longrow. Good whisky, good marriage. Good.

Lagavulin A Year Late

One year late to the party, but better late than never. Managed to buy the Lagavulin 12 from 2016's Special Release at a price just marginally higher than the Lagavulin 16. I was initially wavering over whether I should buy it there and then, or wait a day to think it over. But sales manager informed me that the price tag was wrong, and will be corrected once I walk out of the shop. It's rare that I'm pressured into underpaying for an item, but I'm thankful for having this celebratory bottling on my shelf.

The Lagavulin 12 is part of Diageo's annual Special Release, and is one of the most affordable of the lot. Doesn't make it any less special, since Lagavulin's normal offering is at 16 years old. This is pretty much a classic argument that older isn't always better, and a good young whisky has much to offer that an older bottle cannot.

This one continues my peated sequence of tastings. Let's see how this works out.

Lagavulin 12, 200th Anniversary, 2016 Special Release (57.7% abv)


Colour - Moscato wine

Nose - Big pepper, smoke, and peat rolling out of the glass. Salt, some custard cream, lemons, wet rocks. Big Lagavulin. The youth gives it a punch that the 16 lacks.

Palate - Smoked meat, roasted pork, cinnamon, pines, lemon, and lots of smoke. Peaty too, like moss. The peat feels a little different from what I remember Lagavulin peat to be, but it is big. Gentler, but big. Mm. Salted butter, and tobacco.

Finish - Good and long, with finally some dryness coming in together with spice and oak. Pepper, candied ginger.

Overall - My first ever Special Release purchase (and I think I'm only ever going to be able to afford this and the Caol Ila), but it's really good Lagavulin. Youth means that it isn't superbly complex, but there's a visceral enjoyment in watching a young one land a good, hard straight punch. So, sit back, relax, and enjoy this one with Nick Offerman.

Resurrections! Revivals! Resucitations!

The big news in Scotch whisky is undoubtedly the resurrection/revival of three of the most iconic single malts of Scotland. From the island of Islay, we have Port Ellen coming back, and in the Highlands, Brora is going to get its stills going again. Today, Ian Macleod announces the revival of Rosebank. Feels like some kind of one-upmanship from the whisky giants, but if the new stock is as good as the old, then it is the drinkers and collectors who are going to benefit.

This is most probably the result of the moneymen realizing that releases of Port Ellen/Brora/Rosebank going for thousands of dollars each on auction circuits and in Diageo's annual special release. If these single malts are still so popular after so many years, surely there's money to be made by re-opening these distilleries. It is still an open question how much the new bottlings will cost, and whether the new releases will contain any of the old malt. But more brilliant whiskies coming into the market is always a good thing. I guess the owners feel that the whisky bubble isn't going to burst anytime soon? Or, are the re-opened distilleries only targeting the collectors' and high-rollers' market, which is less sensitive to the price fluctuations of the general market?

Can't tell yet, but this is generating a whole lot of buzz. Now we just gotta wait for ten years...

Port Charlotte

This is the next peater in my sequence of peaty whiskies. Great way to wind down the year. Will I end it with Douglas Laing's Big Peat Christmas edition? Probably not. Let's enjoy the peaters while they last. This one comes courtesy of NF, who's practicing temporary abstinence from alcohol as a spiritual discipline (shortly after she bought this one). Port Charlotte is Bruichladdich's peated offering, between the Laddie and the Octomore in peat levels.

Port Charlotte 2007 CC:01 (abv 57.8%)

Colour - hay-ish

Nose - White wine, smells like a Chardonnay. Fairly sharp and sour. A note of sea breeze, followed by lemons and seaweed. Soy sauce and mustard. Smoky, of course. But not overwhelmingly so. Unripe plums. A dusty leather book cover. Honey, to soothe the soul. Mm. I could sniff this for a long long time. With water: A lot more restrained. Loses the white wine notes. Dusty still. Maltier. Peat tunes up and smoke tunes down.

Palate - Ouch ouch ouch. 57.8% hurts. But. Lots of good stuff going on. Smoky and sooty upfront, with a light bitter, charred note lingering throughout. There's some fruit behind all that smoke and peat, for sure. Asian pears, unripe plums, a bit of lemon. A touch of butter. This feels young-ish, which is about right, given that it's been matured for under 10 years. Very oaky - lots of wood tannin, wood varnish. Mm. Yes, more varnish than tannin. Quite classy, I think. Like having barbecued fruit beside a beach that's on fire. With a side of smoked fish. Sounds about right. With water: Still the alcohol burns. Mm. More umami, I think. Smoked fish and a touch of roast meat. Oak becomes less prominent. More pepper, clove, maybe a basil leaf in there somewhere. I think it tasted better without water, with the oak standing out. Feels like French oak, like a Chichibu I had once. But water mutes what made it special, and it becomes a normal peater. Still good, mind.

Finish - Peppery, woody. Drying, tannic. Smoky. That smoke's gonna stay with you for a long time. With water: More pepper and mint. Just as dry.

Overall - Was saying that the woodiness of this reminds me of a Chichibu I had once that was single cask of French oak, and voila, this is also matured in French oak! Is that classy woodiness from the French oak? Has to be, right? But for people who like their whiskies sweet and easy, this will be tough, like chewing your furniture. The wood supplements the peat to give the overall feel a slight bitterness, but I think it just about hits the spot, as far as bitterness goes. Many thanks to NF once again for the sample! The alcohol burns a bit, with or without water.