Revisiting GlenAllachie 12 year old (2020)

Five years ago, I tried a batch of 12 year old Glenallachie and found it to be a better whisky than the 18yo, but it wasn't more than a B- malt. I'm going to try the 12 again, since I know this sample's actual bottling year. This official expression is less of a cask hodgepodge than the 8yo, as wine casks have yet to be invited to this party. I hope that has resulted in a better constructed whisky.

Distillery: Glenallachie

Ownership: The GlenAllachie Distillers Company Ltd

Region: Speyside (Aberlour)

Age: minimum 12 years old

Maturation: PX, oloroso, and virgin oak casks

Bottling code: L 02 12 20
Bottling year: 2020

Alcohol by Volume: 46%

Chillfiltration? No

Colorant? No

(from a bottle split)

NOTES

The nose begins with Granny Smith apples dipped in almond butter. In fact, there are a lot of apples in here. Quieter notes of florals, lime, and split lumber spread around the edges. Vanilla and moss show up at the 30-minute mark, then the vanilla pushes directly to the front.

The palate arrives silkily (a word?) with fudge, toasted coconut, whipped cream, and pears. Cinnamon and vanilla fill out the mid- and background. Most of these characteristics never come together.

It finishes drier than the palate with some dry oloroso to go with milk chocolate, blueberry jam, and vanilla.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

Again, this whisky is less than the sum of its parts because the parts remain separate. American oak feels like the guilty party here as it leads the way throughout, never attempting to be a team player. But like the similarly-priced 8yo, the 12 has a pleasant nose and a comfortable ignorable palate that would suit casual drinking. This one gets the slight edge with its thick mouthfeel and occasional bright fruits. Alas, this gets the highest grade of any official GlenAllachie so far.

Availability - Whisky specialist retailers in the US and Europe
Pricing - US: $65-$85; Europe: $35-$70
Rating - 82

GlenAllachie 8 year old (2022)

Glenallachie is but a baby distillery, born in 1967, younger than some of you handsome readers. Despite its limited existence, it has already been closed and reopened, while seeing a quartet of owners. It was founded by Mackinlay, McPherson, and Co., a branch of Newcastle Breweries. Newcastle then sent the brand over to Invergordon Distillers in 1985, where it stayed all of four years. Pernod Ricard bought it in 1989 and kept it until 2017 when, for the facility's semicentennial, Glenallachie was purchased by a group including former Glendronach Magician, Billy Walker.

For its first 50 years (or 48, because it was closed for two), Glenallachie's malt was used primarily for its owners' blends, but since 2017 the market has seen shipping containers full of its official single malts. Because the company has also bottled many dark-colored single sherry casks, the single malt has gained quite a fanbase, a group of which I am not a member. Walker's persistence in using new oak in most(?) of Glenallachie's standard releases has resulted in products that aren't suited to my palate. But since I like to pretend that I have an open mind, I will try six Glenallachies (including one retry) over the next two weeks.

First appearing on the market in 2022, the Glenallachie 8-year-old was distilled by Pernod Ricard, but then blended by the new company. And by "blended", I mean it includes PX, Oloroso, new oak casks, and wine barriques. Sort of a Long Island Iced Tea approach to a single malt.

Distillery: Glenallachie

Ownership: The GlenAllachie Distillers Company Ltd

Region: Speyside (Aberlour)

Age: minimum 8 years old

Maturation: PX, oloroso, virgin oak casks, and wine barriques
Bottling year: 2022

Alcohol by Volume: 46%

Chillfiltration? No

Colorant? No

(from a bottle split)

NOTES

A whiff of comfy extracts, like almond, vanilla, and maple hit the nose first, followed by grape jam, toffee, dried cranberries, and almond butter.

The palate comes in sweet with a bit of wine separation. It settles into cherry syrup, black raisins, and root beer candies, with a slight peppery tannic bite in the background.

It finishes with the black raisins and cherry syrup up front, and peppery, tangy notes in the back.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

Though the whisky is a bit discombobulated, it's not a total mess. It has an enjoyable nose, and the palate works as a casual, background thing. Nothing sets it apart from other official sherried whiskies, since so many of them have also not been afforded the time to let their ingredients merge into a coordinated experience. This is just a whole lotta words that mean: this whisky is okay.

Availability - Whisky specialist retailers in the US and Europe
Pricing - US: $60-$80; Europe: $35-$60
Rating - 81

Glen Garioch 29 year old 1968, cask 617

Your eyes are not deceiving you. This is a 1968 official single cask Glen Garioch. I've never had any 1960s Glen Gariochs, though I have heard they possess considerable quality. At the time of this whisky's creation, the distillery was run by DCL. In true DCL fashion, the owners promptly mothballed the facility. In the late 1990s, the new owner, Suntory, approved the release of some of Garioch's old sherried hogsheads. Today's pour comes from one of those casks.

Distillery: Glen Garioch
Ownership at time of distillation: Distillers Company Limited
Ownership at time of bottling: Suntory Holdings Limited
Region: Eastern Highlands
Age: 29 years old (27 April 1968 - 1997)
Maturation: sherry hogshead
Cask:  617
Alcohol by Volume: 55.4%
(From a bottle split. Thank you, PT!)

NOTES

This has one of the earthiest noses I've ever experienced. Layers of plum, cocoa powder, dunnage, and dried mango form around the earth. Fresh cigars, dried cherries, dried currants, and a sherry drier than oloroso join all the other notes by the 45-minute mark.

Oh goodness, the palate. Smoked wormwood, soil, dunnage, and black coffee with a cinnamon roll arrives first. Then baking chocolate and menthol. And then plums, blueberries, and charred chiles. The smoke, bitterness, and sweetness keep each other from overwhelming the palate.

The long finish is earthy and bitter up front with sweet citrus and berries appearing next, followed by lime and cayenne.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

This is powerful, relentless, lovely whisky. I sat with it — or it sat with me — for over an hour, and it never mellowed, never faded. My notes only scratch the surface of this whisky's complexity, as I was so taken by its style. There are no contemporary single malts to which I can compare this, because the spirit and vessels were different then. It was the perfect pour for this season's first snowy night.

Availability - Maybe secondary?
Pricing - ???
Rating - 93

Glen Garioch 29 year old 1988 Thompson Brothers

Phil and Simon Thompson continue to live the dream up in Dornoch: running a distiller, picking quality single casks from around Scotland, and chillin' in one of the best whisky bars in the world. (I should probably just do a Thompson week in 2025. Hell, I also need to go to Dornoch whenever I return to Scotland.) I have here a sample from a Glen Garioch refill hoggie that may have been split into two releases, with two pretty labels, in 2018. Distilled before the distillery was closed (1995) and reopened (1997), back when a touch of peated malt was used, this whisky had almost three full decades in oak. The fact that the Bros pulled the cask nine days before its 30th birthday, when they could have probably doubled the price, is also much appreciated.

Distillery: Glen Garioch

Owner: Beam Suntory

Region: Eastern Highlands

Independent Bottler: Thompson Brothers

Age: 29 years (5 Dec 1988 - 26 Nov 2018)

Maturation: refill hogshead

Outturn: 161 bottles (across two releases)?

Alcohol by Volume: 46.2%

(from a bottle split)

NOTES

It starts off with a nice toasty note on the nose, toasted grains, toasted nuts, and toasted oak. The fruits follow: grapefruit, kiwi juice, and peach candy. Around the 45-minute mark, dried apricots, gentle florals, and a hint of rye bread arise.

The palate is very dry, so tannic that it's almost smoky. And I don't mind it because sweetness (toffee and mint candy), bitter citrus, a hint of kiln balance it out. Dried apricots also appear after a while, as do some savory herbs.

It finishes sweeter, with gentle peppery tannins. Oranges, mint leaves, coconut cream, and metal provide character.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

Yes, it's tannic and I don't hate it. Complexity (you know, the sort that comes from actual time) saves the day. Its ABV right on target as well and doesn't have me wondering why the angels were so damned thirsty. And its price wasn't that horrifying. Good on ya if you scored a bottle!

Availability - Sold out
Pricing - £235
Rating - 87

Glen Garioch 10 year old 2012 Cadenhead, Fino Sherry

Glen Garioch made its last appearance on Diving for Pearls as a septet of 2003 SMWS bottlings, 18 months ago. There were at least three gems in that series, which is a much better batting average than most of my clusters have offered. No, I don't have any other 2003 SMWS casks from this Eastern Highlands distillery. But a trio of Gariochs from three different decades are calling my name right now.

Though whisky retailers have hundreds (if not thousands) of single casks of Scottish single malt distilled in 2012 or later, I've tried less than a dozen of them, largely because most of those I've consumed have been mediocre. But I like Cadenhead, fino, and Glen Garioch, so I took part in a bottle split of today's cask. Now it's time to find out if those parts came together.

(pic source)

Distillery: Glen Garioch
Owner: Beam Suntory
Region: Eastern Highlands

Independent Bottler: Cadenhead
Age: 10 years (2012 - Autumn 2022)
Maturation: Fino sherry cask (maybe a hoggie)
Outturn: 318 bottles

Alcohol by Volume: 57.9%
(from a bottle split)

NEAT

Wow, the nose begins with notes of actual dry fino, like raw walnuts, raw pecans, and saline. It gets fruitier with time, offering plums, apricots, lemon blossoms, watermelon Jolly Ranchers, and cinnamon. The palate arrives MUCH sweeter than expected. I'm getting marshmallows, lemon hard candies, cinnamon red hots, and green grapes, with raw new make resting beneath. The finish is even more sugary, with lemon and cinnamon candies, and slightly tangy grapes.

DILUTED to ~46%abv, or 1½ tsp of water per 30mL whisky

New make and candy on the nose. Cinnamon red hots, rock candy, and yeast. The palate remains sweet, with more bitterness and peppercorns. Hints of roses and metal in the background. It finishes very sugary and floral.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

I can only write "sugary" so many times. This is one of the sweetest scotches I have ever tried, and I'm at loss as to why Cadenhead chose to release it as is. Perhaps it was briefly finished in the fino cask and the original hogshead was a 4th fill. My palate preferences reflect my soul, bitter and occasionally spicy. This whisky's flavor does not fit my palate, but the (neat) nose is lovely, which rescues this whisky from descending into the C+ zone. This confection may suit other drinkers' faces, but I think it wasn't done baking.

Availability - Probably sold out
Pricing - €75
Rating - 81

Taste Off! Ardbeg Seventeen - Old versus New

Soon after purchasing Ardbeg distillery in 1997, Glenmorangie Plc released a 17 year old version of this Islay whisky to the then-tiny single malt market. The distillery had been closed from 1981 to 1987 by Hiram Walker, so the chillfiltered 40%abv expression had a very limited future. In fact, if one does some complex math, one will realize the batches bottled from 1999 to 2004 (its final year) were older than 17 years. After 2004, the Airigh Nam Beist briefly offered enthusiasts a standard release older than the Ten, otherwise everyone would have to wait until 2019 for a consistent teenage Ardbeg, the 19yo.

In 2023, Doc Bill Lumsden and his Ardbeg crew conjured up a new limited 17, in honor of the defunct whisky. Because the old Hiram Walker distillate was less peaty than the current spirit, the Glenmo/LVMH blenders mixed some unpeated(!) 17yo Ardbeg in with the peated 17yo stuff. Then, in an unusual maneuver for the brand, the resulting whisky was chillfiltered and reduced to 40%abv.

I am grateful to have very recently gotten in on a bottle split of both the old and new 17s. And here they are, quietly resting in stemmed receptacles:

Old one on the left
Lighter new one on the right
Side by side at night

Ardbeg 17 year old Hiram Walker spirit released 1997-2004 40%abv	Ardbeg 17 year old LVMH spirit released 2023 40%abv
A mix of charred things (beef and wheat toast) and fruit things (apple butter and raspberries) fills the nose, with milder notes of oysters, burlap, and metal in the background.	The nose is pretty loud, on-brand. Manure, seaweed, and soil form the top layer. Calvados and old sweat in the middle. Pound cake and snickerdoodles in the back.
The palate has multiple gears! First up: mild kiln smoke, Rose's grenadine, and vanilla frosting. Second gear (at 30 mins): Taffy, grapefruit juice, and a hint of bitter pith. Then, at the 45 minute mark: a sturdy savoriness.	Though the palate is very salty, it's much less peaty than any other current Ardbeg. Brown sugar, chlorine, mint extract, and a slight bitterness develop over time.
The kiln note sticks around through the finish, followed by orange pixy stix, lemon juice, and a subtle herbal bitterness. Good length.	"Ardbeg Ten Lite" is my first finish note, followed by, "cigarette ash to go with the chimney soot". A bit of minty toothpaste, too. Good length.
Comments: This is a great drinker, especially when you're in no mood to quaff peat and heat. Thought there's a little bit of complexity present, it's not intellectual stuff. I could use another belt of this.	Comments: It is louder and simpler than the old version, and there's really no way to get around that with the contemporary spirit. But there's a pleasant simplicity to it, and the nose is very good.
Rating: 87	Rating: 83

WORDS WORDS WORDS

As you may have heard from other bloggers, "old" Ardbeg can be fabulous. Yes, I'm sure ye olde Seventeen could have been dynamite with no chillfiltration and less dilution, but it still shines in its actual form. The new 17 was better than I had expected. Many of the distillery's annual WTF releases and the merely-good current Uigeadail have warped my view of Ardbeg. (Maybe I should stick to their bourbon cask stuff going forward?) If Dr. Bill ever decides to tinker (read: lower) Ardbeg's peat levels, I'd certainly be interested in seeing where that would lead. That's the best part of the new 17, it teases possibilities.

Concluding the Teaninich Cluster

(Teaninich cluster homepage)

Ah, finally a quiet night here at home. Autumn is finally falling. I've fashioned a hot dinner just for me — tofu is best when cooked in bacon fat, just sayin' — and have a glass off orange wine from the Allan commune at hand. I can finally take a look back at this long Teaninich cluster.

Going into this cluster I thought I was about to find my new favorite hush-hush distillery. Previous experiences were very good, and no one (including Diageo) talks about the distillery. But now that the cluster has completed, while I did find the whiskies pretty darned good, I'm not convinced enough to buy a Teaninich bottle blindly. As long as the whisky remains bright and sweet it starts to blend in with many other Highlands and Speyside distilleries, thus its role in actual Diageo blends. When it tilts a little darker, I'm smitten, but that didn't happen often in this series.

Out of 16 whiskies, 14 graded in the 80s, 2 in the 70s. Here's the list:

These average out 84.2, a low B. The whiskies under 20 years, whiskies within most of our price ranges, have a mean of 82.8, a B-.

The market is flooded with B- whiskies, which wouldn't be a tragedy if prices plateaued at some point. A very experienced whisky geek once declared, "Life is too short for 85-point whisky." And though he has a good point, I'd amend it to, "Life is too short to buy full bottles of 85-point whisky, pending one's budget." Of course I want the 35yo Signatory, but its price tag averages about $700.

My favorite cluster members under the age of the 20 were bottled seven and fifteen years ago. Of the <20yo Teaninichs bottled in this decade, I don't think I'd try them again, let alone buy a whole bottle.

This is not a terrible situation for fans like me, folks who already have more bottles than we can consume. As prices inflate, we have to curate. We can lower our standards or raise them. I always encourage the latter, both to hold producers accountable (macro) and to fill each of our cabinets with delicious drinks (micro).

This was fun, Teaninich! Keep filling up the blends that keep this industry alive.