Things I Really Drink: Famous Grouse 18 year old Blended Malt (bottled in 2007)

Okay, I've been hiding this for years. I adore Famous Grouse 18 year old blended malt. Flawlessly assembled, FG18 had a better balance of sherry cask and malt than Macallan 18, and sometimes showed more complexity. It was also the perfect blending whisky. Drop it into anything, or drop anything into it, and you'll announce your brilliance after the first sip. Johnnie Walker hasn't had anything like this for at least forty years.

I know this is a super hot take, considering Edrington stopped producing this whisky almost a decade ago. But you know me, always relevant. It wasn't until FG18 was discontinued and stores were trying to get rid of it that I discovered the stuff, around seven years ago, for the price of $49.99. Eighteen-year-old sherried non-Kirkland single malt for fifty bucks? Yes please. I had three bottles. One remains.

Using Edrington's old convoluted bottle code (detailed in this Highland Park post), I figured out that all three of my FG18s were bottled in 2007. Considering that date, here are some possible ingredients: Bunnahabhain, Glengoyne, Glenturret, Glenrothes, Macallan, and Highland Park, all quite sherried.

Here are some tasting notes that are probably quite useless.

Brand: The Famous Grouse

Ownership: The Edrington Group

Type: The Blended (or Vatted) Malt

Age: minimum 18 years
Maturation: mostly sherry casks

Bottle code: L0968G L8 21/11 16:39

Bottling year: 2007
Alcohol by Volume: 43%
Chillfiltered? Probably
e150a? Probably

(from my bottle)

NOTES

The nose notes arrive in groups: Almonds in toffee. Dark chocolate and dried cherries. Manuka honey and a whiff of musty dunnage. Hints of manure, smoke, and walnuts in the distance.

The palate has a layer of figs, plums, sultanas, and tingly citrus on top. Almond flour, bitter herbs, and lightly toasted oak assemble in the middle. Earth, minerals, and hay highlight the background.

The moderately sweet and tart finish lasts longer than expected, with plums, dried apricots, bitter herbs, and floral sake(!) drifting and drifting and drifting...

WORDS WORDS WORDS

It's delicious, and does anything else matter? It's also surprisingly bold for a filtered 43%abv production, so the blenders must have included plenty of lovely, possibly older, casks in the mix. Can you imagine Edrington dumping those gems into a blend today?! Yes, I'm certainly leaning on too many superlatives right now, but FG18 has been so reliable, and become so familiar, that I can't just say, "yeah, it's a very good blended malt" without waxing romantic a little bit. It's a whisky of the past, and yeah, it's a very good blended malt.

Availability - maybe somewhere out there
Pricing - ???
Rating - 88

Willett Family Estate 8 year old rye, barrel 1433

MGP's 95%-rye recipe is the best rye whiskey in the world. FIGHT ME. Actually don't fight me, I'm kinda scrawny and have no rotator cuffs to speak of. That's right, I'll never grow up to be the ambidextrous knuckleball-flinging middle reliever I dreamt of becoming. So here I am, medicating drinking booze on a school night during baseball season.

Long-long-longtime readers may remember that I absolutely adore Willett's single barrels of MGP rye. I dip into the stuff once every other year to make sure the quality remains sharp. This time, I thought I'd bring you with me. Wish I could share the whiskey with you, my one reader! Instead, here's my first Willett rye review in nearly six years.

Distillery: MGP's own Ross & Squibb Distillery

Bottler: Willett Distilling Company
Range: Family Estate Single Barrel (WFE)

Region: Bardstown, Kentucky (Distilled in Lawrenceburg, Indiana)
Type: Straight Rye Whiskey

Age: 8 years

Maturation: New American Oak

Barrel: 1433

Alcohol by Volume: 57.4%
(from a bottle split)

NOTES

Sure there's rye bread aplenty in the nose, but it's snuggled within layers of fresh apricots and plums, anise, flower blossoms, sour apple candy, brown sugar, and brine (more ocean than pickle).

It's very, very drinkable at this strength, with the palate balancing sea salt, sweet plums, tangy chiles, bitter raw cocoa, and hints of butterscotch hard candies. It gains mint, blackberry juice, and a little bit of pipe tobacco after 30+ minutes in the glass.

The finish holds onto many of the palate notes. Tangy chile peppers, tangy berries, sweet plums, and lots of salt. A little bit of wood smoke and mint leaf in the background too.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

After this tasting, I feel very reassured that my senses haven't totally collapsed into cynicism. Willett's MGP rye still works wonders on my palate. Yum.

The word "balance" gets overused on this blog, but I rarely wield it when reviewing American whiskies, as those spirits tend to be almost entirely about oak extraction. And the enormity of rye spirit doesn't really offer symmetry as one of its features. But, damn, this 8 year old rye barrel's got it, from the nose to the palate to the finish. Grand spirit and stellar cask management meet again. And to think I complained when this stuff was $80.

Availability - Secondary market
Pricing - *looks, sighs, shrugs*
Rating - 90

Chichibu 2017 W for Seibu Department Store

I usually commit two weeks of old spirit reviews in honor of my own age ticking up one more year, but 2023 will be different. This second week is all about stuff I like; two brands I adore and one secret beloved pour. Sorry for the rhyme, kinda.

Today: Chichibu, my favorite Japanese distillery. Yes, my favorite. Once Yamazaki and Yoichi start offering up obtainable and delicious (and preferably age-stated) whisky again, then a Taste Off will be in order. As noted in previous reviews, my palate says Chichibu is the only new distillery, anywhere in the world, whose output matches or surpasses its hype. Sadly, their primary and secondary market prices are very very very very very steep. But if you go to Japan, you may find a good number of whisky bars with Chichibu surprises awaiting your glass.

I just checked, and today's 'Bu is my last sample. 😿  For now. 😼  It's also a pour about which I know nearly nothing.

Seibu, Ikebukuro.
Their restaurants and food merchants look awesome. I must go there next time.
(pic source)

Each year, from 2015 to 2020, the Seibu department store(s) sold a pair of exclusive cask strength Chichibu bottlings, an "S" whisky and a "W" whisky. I can tell you that the bottles' listed year, like "2017", refers to the bottling year, not the distillation year. But I'm not sure what the "S" and "W" refer to. The Ikebukuro store carries the "W" appellation on some Japanese sites, so is there an "S" store too? Can anyone help a brother out here?

Anyway, today's baby bomber has that "W" on the label. Will that "W" = "Winner"?

Distillery: Chichibu #1

Location: Chichibu, Saitama Prefecture, Japan
Ownership: Venture Whisky
Range: Ichiro's Malt

Bottled: 2017
Age: ???

Maturation: ???
Outturn: ???
Exclusive to: Seibu
Alcohol by Volume: 61%

(from a bottle split)

NEAT

Key lime pie, ground cloves, and yuzu gelatin fill the nose's foreground. A carrot-ginger-orange juice sits in the middle. Background hints of brine and paprika offer a fun twist. Unsurprisingly the alcohol content bites back in the palate. Once the tongue recovers, one may find lots and lots of malt, followed by mint leaves and baked apples. Ultra-tart citrus and a touch of mango arrive in later sips. The key lime pie returns for the finish, as does as the mango and barley.

DILUTED to ~50%abv, or 1¼ tsp of water per 30mL whisky

It's a different whisky now. The nose has different fruits (honeydew and lemons), a hint of dessert (hazelnuts and vanilla), and a bit more edge, with bold ocean and concrete notes. The mildly sweet palate is full of creamy barley things, with a squeeze of orange in the background. The finish matches the palate, while also bringing in a hint of yeast.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

In my limited Chichibu experience (~15 bottlings), I've found their each of their whiskies fitting into one of three categories: 1.) Reads older than its age; 2.) Unreasonably beautiful youth; 3.) Close to new make. Today's 'Bu plops into the 3rd group. The nose wins (of course), but I always enjoy barley-forward palates. At the same time, the palate feels limited compared to the distillery's other offerings, and it even lost some complexity when diluted. While the whisky plays in a different league than the vast majority of the world whisky market's other ultra-young bottles, it's not the distillery at its best. I'd still drink it any day, though!

Availability - Secondary market?
Pricing - I ain't looking
Rating - 84

Birthday Booze: Speyside 45 year old 1973 TWE, Magic of the Cask

I'm 10 years old!

When attempting to source whiskies that match my actual age, I'm mostly limited to these 1970s teaspooned Glenfarclas, er, "Blended Malts". (See a 41yo here and a 43yo here.) That's what the market offers. The majority of 40+ year old whiskies ain't getting split. Hell, I don't think they're even being opened anymore. Today's "Speyside" will be the penultimate not-Glenfarclas I will review. I'll just have to get more creative as the birthday number increases.

Today's Glenfarclas Speyside is from The Whisky Exchange's Magic of the Cask range bottled for their 2019 Whisky Show. Its 549-bottle outturn and 45.1%abv has me thinking it was recasked into a sherry butt at some point towards the end of its life. Maybe from a pair of casks? Anyway, it has a good drinking strength, so I'm going to drink it.

Distillery: Glenfahrvergnügen

Region: Speyside, perhaps?

Independent Bottler: The Whisky Exchange

Range: Magic of the Cask, for The Whisky Show 2019

Age: 45 years old (1973 - 2019)

Maturation: sherry butt

Cask #: 6
Outturn: 549 bottles

Alcohol by Volume: 45.1%
(from a bottle split)

NOTES

The nose shows off the old pretty cask, starting with dried apricots, almond extract, and old furniture. Candied ginger + baked apples, then peaches + clover honey with a metallic hint in the background. Old stamp glue and potpourri. The old wood note expands with time.

The palate begins with a blast of oak spices and toasted coconut. The subsequent sips bring tart oranges, macrons, very sweet lemon candy, and just a little bit of hot cocoa mix around the edges. It gets tarter and more tannic with every sip.

The finish sheds the tartness and goes all in on the sweets and oak. Baked apples, lemon candy, and plain ol' sugar meets eucalyptus + big peppery tannin.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

I'm going to be the party pooper here. Whiskybase has it at nearly 90 and WhiskyFun has it at 89 (twice). Those scores are very generous. And I get it. Old whisky critters inspire compassion and wistfulness. Hell, my score might be on the optimistic side as well.

This is oak juice, very good oak juice, but still oak juice. Sometimes oak juice can be lovely and moderately complex, but it frequently isn't. I'm not saying this is one dimensional 45yo stuff — a lot of bright fruity bits break through — but it's the simplest of this week's three whiskies. At times it seems like an old single grain, though it has the silky mouthfeel and texture that seem to come from only 100% malt. To end on a more positive note, this does seem to be a lot better than the 41yo Speyside from four years back. Perhaps Year 45 will be better than Year 41 for yours truly; I certainly hope so!

Availability - Secondary market
Pricing - ???
Rating - 85 (probably too charitable)

Birthday Booze: Glen Ord 25 year old 1978

I reviewed Glen Ord 30 in 2015, then the 28 year old in 2018, and now the 25 year old...

This Glen Ord Thrillogy was released as part of Diageo's annual once-actually-special Special Releases: the 28yo in 2003, the 25yo in 2004, and the 30 in 2005. It's a darned shame they stopped there. Or rather they didn't. Teenage Glen Ord Special Releases arrived in 2019 and 2022, but were aged in recharred hoggies and wine casks because......?

Enough of dwelling in the recent past! Rather, it's time to indulge in ancient times with one of the last 1978 samples in my whisky closet.

Distillery: Glen Ord

Owner: Diageo

Region: Northern Highlands
Range: Special Release

Age: 25 years (1978-2004)

Maturation: ????????????

Outturn: 3600 bottles

Alcohol by Volume: 58.3%

(from a bottle split)

NEAT

Yep, fruits in the nose! These apricots, kiwis, and mangoes get riper and muskier with time. Mineral/stone notes provide support in the midground, while toffee pudding, almonds, and toasted oak fill the background. Similar to its sparring partner, the 43yo Cadenhead blend, this Glen Ord offers quite the musty dusty palate, focusing on old books and dunnage at the start. Tart guavas and lemons give it a big zing, and there's plenty of earth in the background. It finishes herbal and musty with a touch of lemon and a lllllllllot of length.

It's a bit monolithic at this strength. Time to add water...

DILUTED to 50%abv, or 1 tsp of water per 30mL of full strength whisky

The nose starts off......the same? Ah, but then blood oranges and lemonade powder appear with a hint of dunnage in the background. Much of the palate's mustiness is replaced with gentle wood smoke. The blood oranges show up here too, with some bitterer citrus in the back. The finish grows sweeter and tangier, keeping the good length.

More?

DILUTED to ~43%abv, or >2 tsp of water per 30mL of full strength whisky

A simpler nose now, with butterscotch candies, blood oranges, roses, and dunnage. The palate's elements come together well here, with citrus + nuttiness + dunnage. Toasted nuts and sharp citrus fill the finish, with a little bit of dustiness in the distance.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

I did not anticipate diluting this whisky, but I'm so glad I did. It wallops at full strength, shines at 50%abv, and balances at 43%. The grand blood oranges mix with the mustiness perfectly, and it never gets too sweet. The 30yo reigns supreme, and the 28yo is probably more complex, but this one may be the most flexible. And it's just damned good stuff, often seeming even older than its stated age. Like me!

Availability - Secondary market
Pricing - I can't look
Rating - 90 (diluted)

Birthday Booze: William Cadenhead 43 year old Blended Whisky

This may be the first time my birthday has approached much too quickly for my liking. Can't I have a few more months??? 

As happens during Earth's solar years, things occurred since the last birthday. My daughters are now both in public school, not too far from my apartment. I jumped onto The Dating Train, then nine months later, I emphatically threw myself from it. It was not a soft landing. In other news, an increasingly gray beard grew on my face for several months before being removed. Travel continued: I enjoyed another two beautiful weeks in Japan in the spring, then Mathilda and I took our first long distance father-and-daughter trip in the summer. My last grandparent, my maternal grandfather, passed away at the age of 95. Ninety-five years. Three decades of cigarette smoking, nearly eight decades of beer drinking, and never a vegetable to be found on his plate. I'm doing it wrong. Happy 45th to me!

The older I get, the more challenging it is to select "Birthday Booze" that's relevant to my age. This appears to be a forever thing. Thankfully, I found a 1970s trio for this week.

In honor of the passing of Mr. Hedley Wright, the chairman of J&A Mitchell (owners of Springbank, Glengyle, and Cadenhead) for sixty years, I'm finishing up my big bottle split of Cadenhead's own 43-year-old blended whisky today. (No, I'm not 43, but I don't have a 44yo spirit other than my own!) The rumored ingredients are: 55% Invergordon and a 45% mix of Glenfarclas and Glenlivet...

pic source

Distilleries: Invergordon, Glenfarclas, and Glenlivet (allegedly)

Bottler: Cadenhead

Type: Blended Scotch

Age: 43 years (197? - 201?)

Maturation: ?????

Outturn: 624 bottles

Alcohol by Volume: 44.2%

(from a bottle split)

NOTES

Nuts and sugars unite in the nose: walnuts, almonds, and candied pecans meet toffee and caramel sauce. Softer notes of orange oil, mushrooms, and band-aids appear after 30 minutes, then dried apricots and nutty whole grain bread at the 50-minute mark. 

Dusty things, like old books, mild wood smoke, and cigar ash start the comfy palate, followed by sweet oranges and raw almonds. Layers of oak spices and bitterness build in the background.

The finish lingers awhile thanks to all the old oak. It's also dusty and mildly smoky like the palate, with a hint of tangy limes. Despite a big caramel note in the finale, it's not too sweet.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

It wouldn't shock any of us if at least one of the two malt elements had entered "spirit drink" territory below 40%abv, judging just by the blend's ABV. Then the whisky itself proves it. Though the casks feel exhausted, they shan't be shamed, since they've trod a 43-year marathon, at minimum. That old creaky wood produced a very good nose and an easy palate with some charming earthy hints in both. It's older and better than JW Blue Label, so good on Cadenhead for this blend's original reasonable price.

Availability - Sold out
Pricing - around €200 in 2019
Rating - 85

Irish Single Malt 26 year old 1988 The Whisky Agency, The Perfect Dram

If you've followed any of the major whisky writers (online or in print) you have likely seen them sing the praises of 20+ year old Irish single malts distilled in the late '80s and early '90s. There's one reason why they do so. The whiskey is delicious. That's the reason. And why is it delicious? Frooooooooooot. Fruit. The fruitiness can be kind of outrageous. One only wonders if Bushmills (oops, I said it) can ever reach these heights, or even a suggestion of this style, again. One need only compare the '80s Bushmills blend with the current version to see that something has been lost even at 3 years and 40%abv.

This is my first review of one of those well-regarded Irish malts distilled in the late '80s, and likely my last. Sourcing something like this has gotten nearly impossible. I wonder if anyone opens these bottles anymore or just flips them while citing Whiskyfun 90+ point reviews. Well, here comes a 90+ point D4P review.

Distillery: Old Bushmills Distillery (maaaaaaybe)
Location: County Antrim, Northern Ireland

Bottler: The Whisky Agency

Range: The Perfect Dram
Age: 26 years (1988-2015)
Maturation: bourbon barrel
Outturn: 201 bottles
Alcohol by Volume: 50.7%
(from a bottle split)

NOTES

Oh. Oh baby, the nose. I'll list it in order. Mangoes + peaches + a little bit of guava. Watermelon + jasmine blossoms + apricots. Kiwis. Hints of dandelions and toffee! All those fruits get sugarier with time, and honeys pour in.

It's easier for me to form thoughts about the silky palate. Guava and grapefruit juices mix with honey and a pinch of sea salt. Little bits of menthol, wormwood, and bitter citrus keep things from getting too sweet. There are even herbal and grassy characteristics in the background.

The whiskey leaves behind a tart aura(?!) with a dusting of sugar in the finish. Kiwis, guavas, and bitter citrus peels sink into the tongue, and I'm not sure when the sensation ends.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

Heaven for fruit lovers. On the nose, this liquid reads like some beautifully crafted juice. How did barley, yeast, water, and wood turn into this? The palate is more whiskey-bound, complex and perfectly balanced, yet definitely......whiskey. Of course I want more More MORE, but I don't think anyone makes stuff like this anymore, anywhere. Meanwhile, my time machine is in the shop, indefinitely. As always, I encourage everyone to open their bottles and share. Please enjoy together. Cheers!

Availability - Maybe the secondary market, but...
Pricing - ...I won't look
Rating - 92