Tag: Gordon & Macphail | MaltKlaus' Daily Drams

March 26, 2019March 24, 2019

Tasting: Strathisla 1965 50 yo bottled 2016 by Gordon & MacPhail

Usually we as a human race like to have special drinks (Champagne, Wine, Whisky) to celebrate special events. And then there’s the opposite: Letting a fine drink create a special event. I’ve been holding on to this sample of 50 year-old, sherry-matured Strathisla from Speyside for quite a while now. Let’s see if will succeed at creating a special occasion …

Dram data:
Distillery: Strathisla
Bottler: Gordon & MacPhail
Distilled: 09.12.1965
Bottled: 20.01.2016
Age: 50 years
Limitation: 418 bottles
Cask: First Fill Sherry Puncheon
Alcohol: 43%
Uncoloured
Whiskybase link

September 5, 2018September 5, 2018

Tasting: Longmorn-Glenlivet Pure Malt 12 yo (1980s)

Dram data:
Distillery: Longmorn-Glenlivet
Bottler: Gordon & Macphail, licensed bottling
Distilled: –
Bottled: 1980s
Age: 12 years
Limitation: –
Casks: –
Alcohol: 40
unknown colouring/filtering
Whiskybase link (similar, but older bottling)

There are things you just can’t say no to – like this wee old miniature bottle of whisky I stumbled across in Arkwright’s Wine and Spirit shop earlier this year. Who would pass on the opportunity to experience what whisky bottled decades ago tasted like? This was bottled in the 1980s as a licensed bottling by Gordon & Macphail, distilled in the 1970s – some of the new make might have even been produced when Longmorn was a distillery with only two stills and those were fired directly. Back then what we now call “Single Malt” was called “Pure Malt” and distilleries proclaimed their region by attaching “-Glenlivet” to their name. Those were the times – and they are now bottled history! Anyway, all of that means almost nothing if the whisky is bad, so let’s dive right in!

Tasting notes:
Colour: amber
The nose features a surprising amount of alcohol for a 40% whisky. Once the alcohol settles down, a dry, layered, spicy, sherried whisky is revealed. We’ve got orange peel, ginger, nutmeg, a whole truckload of cloves and cinnamon and dusty beeswax on a base of dried apricots and sulphured sultanas with a smidgen of motor oil on top (the good kind, you know…). Nicely layered and balanced, not flabby at all. We’re off to a very good start here. Let’s check the palate! Continue reading “Tasting: Longmorn-Glenlivet Pure Malt 12 yo (1980s)”

April 13, 2017July 5, 2017

Tasting: Glenlivet 33 yo 1974-2008 by Gordon & MacPhail

Dram data:
Distillery: Glenlivet
Bottler: Gordon & MacPhail
Distilled: 1974
Bottled: 18.02.2008
Age: 33
Limitation: 726 bottles
Casks: 3 sherry hogsheads
Alcohol: 43%
unchillfiltered; uncoloured
Whiskybase link

I know posts have been far and few between lately – I’m very busy at the moment juggling different tasks, so please bear with me. Since it’s been a while, let’s make this tasting count. Glenlivet from 12 years before I was born? Don’t mind if I do!

Tasting notes:
Colour: red amber
The nose immediately brings a smile on my face. Proper, aged whisky. I’m repeating myself here, there are many truly excellent young whiskies, but there is absolutely no substitute for time. You cannot produce this style of whisky in 5, 10, 15, 20 years, no matter what the marketing guys want you to believe. Older whisky doesn’t mean better, but when it’s right, it’s right! Oh, sorry, I digressed a little. On the nose then… we’ve got a fragrant mix of spices up front. We’re talking mulled wine spices. Cinnamon, cloves, allspice, that sort of thing, but not fresh and sharp, but on their second infusion. The spices are paired with quite a bit of oak wood concentrate, just bordering on too much (I hope this won’t show up too harsh on the palate) and loads of dark, dried fruit notes in the background (rum-infused plums, predominately). Also in the background are notes of Demerara sugar, chocolate cake, slightly burnt toffee, toasted walnuts and sweet vanilla pipe tobacco. All in all a very nice combination of intense, thick aromas. Continue reading “Tasting: Glenlivet 33 yo 1974-2008 by Gordon & MacPhail”

February 9, 2017February 8, 2017

Tasting: Balblair 30 yo 1985 – 2015 by Gordon & MacPhail

Dram data:
Distillery: Balblair
Bottler: Gordon & MacPhail
Distilled: 14.01.1985
Bottled: 27.01.2015
Age: 30 years
Limitation: –
Casks: refill ex-bourbon barrels 245+246
Alcohol: 43%
chillfiltered and uncoloured
Whiskybase link

I know, I know – I’m really slow with reviewing whisky lately, so many bad nose days… So let’s make today count!

Tasting notes:
Colour: dark gold
The nose starts out very promising! My favourite style of dram, the marriage of fruits and oak only long periods of maturation in excellent casks can achieve! Where to start… We’ve got dark red apples, sweet pears, thickened sweet grape juice, an abundance of lychees in glucose syrup, sultanas, dried mangos and papaya, a hint of pickled ginger with a wee drop of orange juice, dark milk chocolate, a box of milk toffee with vanilla flavouring and a light cigar, all stored in an old oak cupboard polished with fresh beeswax. The 43% ABV make it ever so slightly watery, but it remains an absolutely stunning nose, defying all “age doesn’t matter” claims. This would be the whisky to convert the NAStivists (I totally just made that word up…). Let’s see if it holds up on the palate! Continue reading “Tasting: Balblair 30 yo 1985 – 2015 by Gordon & MacPhail”

December 24, 2016December 23, 2016

24 drams till Christmas 2016 #24: Mortlach 1954 58yo by Gordon & MacPhail

Dram data:
Distillery: Mortlach
Bottler: Gordon & MacPhail
Distilled: 27.01.1954
Bottled: 20.11.2012
Age: 58 years
Limitation: 347 bottles
Casks: 1st Fill Sherry Butt
Alcohol: 43%
chillfiltered and uncoloured
Whiskybase link

Let’s review the oldest whisky in the house – 58-year-old Mortlach, to be exact… just because it’s Christmas!

Tasting notes:
Colour: mahogany
The nose starts out surprisingly restrained. Not an over-oaked dram at all, as I initially feared. Delicate even, but what a nose! Lots going on in the glass! A myriad of warm, sweet, dried fruits. Seriously! An abundance of dried plums, cherries, figs and a sneaky date as well. But oh so mellow and as elegant as dried fruits can be! Of course we’ve also got spices. But mellowed, gentle spices, no harshness at all. Cloves, a cinnamon stick, bay leaves and allspice. And herbs. Wormwood, perhaps? But that’s not all, of course. The fruits and spices are accompanied by cherry-flavoured pipe tobacco with black cavendish, the leather jacket of an orchard worker, an bee-keeper’s oak cabinet and a slice of chocolate fruit cake. Dense, interwoven, layered, “aged” and still very elegant. What a nose! I really hope the palate will be the same! Continue reading “24 drams till Christmas 2016 #24: Mortlach 1954 58yo by Gordon & MacPhail”

December 22, 2016December 21, 2016

24 drams till Christmas 2016 #22: Glen Spey 2004 by Gordon & MacPhail CC collection

Dram data:
Distillery: Glen Spey
Bottler: Gordon & MacPhail
Distilled: 2004
Bottled: 26.09.2013
Age: ca. 9 years
Limitation: –
Casks: Refill bourbon barrels
Alcohol: 46%
unchillfiltered and uncoloured
Whiskybase link

Glen Spey. That’s the Diageo distillery producing one of the lead malts for their J&B blends. How does it work on its own as a young malt?

Tasting notes:
Colour: straw
The nose starts off on the light side – Vanilla, orange and a malty sweetness with some alcohol on top. Fruits? Well, maybe a cheeky pear and a red apple with waxed skin have somehow made it into the barrel. Quality distillate for sure and very nice, but just a tad generic? Like a beefed-up (ABV-wise) young Glenlivet or Glenmorangie from the supermarket. Well, let’s see what happens on the palate! Continue reading “24 drams till Christmas 2016 #22: Glen Spey 2004 by Gordon & MacPhail CC collection”

December 13, 2016December 10, 2016

24 drams till Christmas 2016 #13: Caol Ila 2005 11 yo by Gordon & MacPhail

Dram data:
Distillery: Caol Ila
Bottler: Gordon & MacPhail
Distilled: 21.01.2005
Bottled: 20.07.2016
Age: 11 years
Limitation: –
Casks: 4 First-Fill Sherry Butts
Alcohol: 57,3%
unchillfiltered and uncoloured
Whiskybase link

Young Caol Ila. You can’t go wrong with intense, young Caol Ila, right? Let’s have a taste of this one, from Gordon&MacPhail’s Cask Strength Collection.

Tasting notes:
Colour: light gold
The nose is very intense on the first nasal contact! Intense, phenolic peat smoke with alcohol, vanilla and white pepper/horseradish sharpness! Whoa! But I like it! Exactly why we love young, heavily peated whisky! Let’s wait a few minutes… Ah ha! Ginger, peaty apple compote and something spicy… used mulled wine spices? To be honest, I would’ve guessed ex-bourbon maturation, but the leaflet says first-fill ex-Sherry butts. On the other hand… it could’ve been dry sherry, there is a dryness… With water: same general profile, but less alcohol! Let’s see what the palate has to offer! Continue reading “24 drams till Christmas 2016 #13: Caol Ila 2005 11 yo by Gordon & MacPhail”

December 2, 2016November 29, 2016

24 drams till christmas 2016 #2: Strathisla 2005-2015 by Gordon & MacPhail

Dram data:
Distillery: Strathisla
Bottler: Gordon & Macphail
Distilled: 2005
Bottled: 16.12.2015
Age: ca. 10 years
Limitation: –
Casks: first fill sherry hogsheads
Alcohol: 43%
chill filtered(?) and uncoloured
Whiskybase link

That’s only the second Strathisla I’ve reviewed for the blog – let’s see if this independently bottled 10 yo from Gordon & MacPhail’s “distillery labels” series has an edge over the official 12 yo!

Tasting notes:
Colour: dark straw (exactly what it says on the leaflet.. I didn’t cheat, I swear!)
The nose starts off a wee bit shy and on the sweet side. First fill sherry hoggies? I wouldn’t have guessed that from the first nose. Well, all right, dry, light sherry, perhaps, because that’s what the nose says after a while. American oak, too. Vanilla, custard, faint traces of dry sherry, green apples and pears, apple peel, rhubarb and donut glazing with a splash of citrus in it. Faint traces of oak. Well… light and nice enough but not the “usual” heavily sherried style of Strathisla. On to the palate! now! Continue reading “24 drams till christmas 2016 #2: Strathisla 2005-2015 by Gordon & MacPhail”

November 15, 2016November 14, 2016

Tasting: Inchgower 2002 – 2016 by G&M Connoisseur’s Choice

Dram data:
Distillery: Inchgower
Bottler: Gordon & Macphail
Distilled: 2002
Bottled: 06.05.2016
Age: ca. 14 years
Limitation: –
Casks: refill sherry hogsheads
Alcohol: 46%
unchillfiltered and uncoloured

It’s been a while since I last had an Inchgower – they’re not a very prominent distillery in the whisky shops, with no widely available official release by Diageo we have to rely on the independent bottlers!

Tasting notes:
Colour: red gold
The nose starts off fruity and aromatic. Not an in-your-face sherried whisky, it shows an elegant restraint, yet still loads of character. Apple and pear compote (including slightly green peel) with honey and the odd dried date thrown in. There’s also a hint of honey-covered crunchy muesli in the background with a whiff of fragrant oak. Oh, and a cinnamon stick and exactly two cloves. Fruity, but not overly sweet – the magic of good refill casks! Let’s check the palate now! Continue reading “Tasting: Inchgower 2002 – 2016 by G&M Connoisseur’s Choice”

June 14, 2016October 7, 2016

Tasting: Glentauchers 1996 / 2015 by Gordon & MacPhail

Dram data:
Distillery: Glentauchers
Bottler: Gordon&MacPhail
Distilled: 1996
Bottled: 2015
Age: 18/19 years
Limitation: –
Casks: first fill sherry butts
Alcohol: 43%
chill filtered and uncoloured
Whiskybase link

Tasting notes:
Colour: light honey
The nose opens on the rich, fruity-sweet and spicy side. The first impression reminds me of mulled apple wine with loads of rock sugar. Sweet baked apples with cloves and cinnamon powder, heather honey, dried pineapple, dried apricots, dried orange zest, reduced orange juice, roasted almonds and a very well-integrated oaky richness in the background. A rich, fruity, spicy delight! Continue reading “Tasting: Glentauchers 1996 / 2015 by Gordon & MacPhail”