Westland single malt, cask 606

I'm closing out the year with six consecutive Westland single malt reviews. Not sure how exactly, but the posts will be posted. So prepare thyself.

Though I reviewed the regular range in October, it's the single cask medium wherein Westland shines brightest. I recently jumped in on six different bottle splits so I could survey the expanse of their uncut whiskies, then I tasted them in pairs in order to compare and contrast.

First up is cask 606 (release 58). It's a baby at only 30 months, made with their oft-used five barley mash bill: Washington Select Pale Malt, Munich Malt, Extra Special Malt, Pale Chocolate Malt and Brown Malt. (See below for more details.) Like its sparring partner, which is being reviewed tomorrow, this whiskey spent its entire short life in new American oak.

Distillery: Westland
Region: Seattle, Washington
Age: 30 months
Mashbill: Five malted barley strains
Yeast: Belgian Saison Brewer’s Yeast
Fermentation: 144 hours
Maturation: new American oak
Cask #: 606
Release: February 2016
Outturn: 218 bottles
Alcohol by volume: 57.8%
(from a bottle split)

NEAT
The nose begins with a light combination of white and citrus fruits, along with the chocolate-mocha note that often appears in their American Single Malt expression. Some mild notes of ginger powder and fruity cinnamon float about. With time the whiskey gains subtle band-aid and ocean/brine notes. Very little burn considering its strength and youth. The palate is very similar to the nose, with its mocha and ginger. It's also very toasty (oak and barley), and has highlights of grapefruit and bitter herbal liqueurs. Mocha makes up most of the long finish, along with toasted almonds, lemon juice and bitter herbs.

DILUTED TO ~46%abv, or 1½ tsp of water per 30mL of whiskey
Quite a shift in the nose. White chocolate, unsweetened breakfast cereal (toasted nuts and grains), guava juice, grass and brine. The palate has become simpler. Barley, ginger, a sweet creaminess and a tiny bit of bitterness. Mocha, ginger and bitter cocoa in the finish.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
This is a burlier, bolder take on their American expression. Unless it's my imagination, the Pale Chocolate and Brown malts seize the main stage here, while something else has summoned a refreshing herbal bitterness. One begins to wonder, as one noses and sips this 2.5 year old thing, matured in the state of Washington, how it is so much more complex and complete than a scotch at 4x its age. Is it the brewer's yeast? Is it higher quality barley? It's not the new oak, as we shall see in the upcoming reviews.

Availability - probably sold out
Pricing - ???
Rating - 85 (preferred neat)

Longrow 15 year old 2001 Refill Chardonnay Cask

Recently a whisky score of 87 upset someone, so I'm glad no one banned me from Campbeltown after I rated the new 18 and 21 year old Longrows merely very good. Now let's see what kind of damage I can do today.

Secret Agent Man and I thoroughly discussed today's whisky when it was released two years ago. I really wanted to buy a bottle, but The Party Source was slinging this 15yo for nearly $200. So I passed on it. Secret Agent Man did not, and he shared a sample of the whisky with me last month.

There was no quickie finish forced upon this whisky, instead it had a Cadenhead-esque double maturation, spending its last nine years in a refill chardonnay cask. I like the "refill" word and I'm intrigued by the "Chardonnay" part since Glen Moray's old 10yo Chardonnay Cask was surprisingly solid. Lemme see how this one turned out.

The data:

NEAT
The nose starts with roasted nuts in toffee, then Corn Nuts and bacon smoke. Hints of lemons and tangerines just beneath. The cask is much more present on the palate. In fact, it reads like a Sauternes cask. Floral, mineral and sweet. Midori and applesauce. Candy corn and fizzy ginger ale. The sweet and creamy finish holds ginger ale, oranges and roses.

DILUTED TO ~46%abv, or 1¼ teaspoons of water per 30mL whisky
Oranges, wood smoke and kiln ash on the nose. Then toasted oak, saline and anise. The palate does change much. Its fruit (nectarine) and floral (rose) notes seem to be coming from the wine. Still sweet, a little tangier and very little peat. The finish is also sweet and tangy, less floral, more peppery.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
That was one really active refill cask, or perhaps it was aggressively seasoned? The wine just rolled right over the spirit. I've never had a chardonnay as sweet as this, though I usually only drink French chardonnay.

*dodges thrown pans*

*ducks a thrown orange toupée*

*never leaves the house again*

Like I mentioned in the notes, this is really for Sauternes fans. And for people with sweeter teeth than mine. I like the whisky better once it's diluted as some Longrow character comes out in the nose, and the palate's fruit is less candied. I wonder what the whisky was like after six years in the wine cask, or one year really. There's a 17 year old chardonnay cask Longrow on the market now. That one terrifies me. Am I the only person interested in a 17 year old refill bourbon cask Longrow?

Availability - Secondary market, maybe?
Pricing - ???
Rating - 80 (with water)

Longrow 18 year old, 2019 edition

Monday's Longrow 21 had a pair of nifty sparring partners, including this year's edition of Longrow 18 year old. And, yes, I poured the review sample from my own bottle. I've had a chance to try a number of previous Longrow 18s, and while they each differ slightly one thing stays the same: the delicate peat.

Though Longrow's malted barley is peated to a burly measure of 50ppm, and one can certainly feel those phenolics in the young Peated and late CV (💘),  something seems to happen to that peat rather quickly once Longrow hits its early teens. It gets gentler, almost floral, often reading less peaty than Springbanks of the same age. Age truly mellows it out.

That was the case with this bottle during its first third. But it picked up steam after that. This review is from the bottle's midpoint.

Distillery: Springbank

Brand: Longrow
Region: Campbeltown

Age: minimum18 years

Maturation: 75% sherry casks, 25% bourbon casks
Batch: 2019

Alcohol by Volume: 46%
Chillfiltered? No
Color added? No
(from midpoint in my bottle)

NOTES
There's an old school Highland peat thing going on in the nose, which quickly met by seaweed and anise notes. Then guava and white peaches. Those fruit notes build with time, picking up some grapefruit along the way. The palate feels smokier, sharper and spicier than the nose during the first couple of simps. There's also cherry syrup, tart berries, fresh stone fruits and a hint of veg. It softens with time, but never gets too sweet. Citrus notes jump out later on. The smoke vanishes before the finish, tilting more towards salt and stones, savory seaweed. Then tart cherries and black peppercorns.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
Though the good palate improves with time (just like the 21), the nose wins (just like the 21). The fruit notes are the highlights in both categories. I do enjoy drinking it, but the thing is, the whisky never gets beyond a comfy sipper phase. It really could use a little more peat and/or Campbeltown character to hoist it up to another level, or at least set it apart from other single malts. The 21yo gets the edge here because it has some of that complexity. Still, the 18 is less than half the price of the 21, so weigh that as you like. I'll have to return to this someday with at least one other L18 for comparison.

Availability - Many European specialty retailers
Pricing - £90-£110
Rating - 86

Longrow 21 year old, 2019 edition

It's Relevant Longrow Week! And (AND!) Wednesday's Longrow review is from a bottle I purchased. Yes, this is still Diving for Pearls.

First up, the new Longrow 21 year old. Springbank had been rolling out official 18 year old editions of its heavily-peated malt for more than a decade, so I'd been wondering when something older would come along. And here it is:

Bottled just two months ago, this 21yo is a mix of sherry and bourbon casks, with a emphasis on the former, like many of Springbank's non-single cask releases. Hopefully this is the start of a regular annual expression, and that they keep it near its current price.

Distillery: Springbank

Brand: Longrow
Region: Campbeltown

Age: 21 years (bottled 2 October 2019)

Maturation: 60% sherry casks, 40% bourbon casks
Outturn: 3,600 bottles

Alcohol by Volume: 46%
Chillfiltered? No
Color added? No
(from a bottle split)

NOTES
The nose starts off with dirty peat, dirty sherry cask and dried herbs. But that all calms down after 15 minutes or so. Then there's combination charcoal smoke and dusty kiln. Dried berries, a raspberry confection and key lime pie. Smaller notes of soil and wet dead leaves float in the background. The sherry reads much cleaner and fruitier in the palate. Longrow lemons join in. At first the peat, a little farmy and earthy, sits in the far back at first then expands, balancing well with the casks, with time. A lime note overtakes the lemon as well. More smoke in the finish than the palate. In early sips it reads bitter, then it becomes earthy later on. A mix of sweet and tart citrus and berries provides an additional dimension.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
This one grew on me. The nose, in all its forms, always worked, but the palate was no more than just fine for a while, seeming more like a generic sherried Speyside. The emergence of limes and earthy smoke really lifted it up. Though the sherry casks bury the bourbon casks, the spirit finds its way through. While this is not a revolutionary whisky, it's a high quality beverage and it's priced lower than the Springbank 21yo. Seeing how just 60mL of it improved with time, I can imagine 700mL would provide a more extensive trip.

Availability - A few dozen European specialty retailers
Pricing - £190-£225
Rating - 88

Bladnoch 26 year old 1992 Cadenhead Authentic Collection

As I mentioned in the previous post, I never really understood Bladnoch's appeal. In fact, aside from Auchentoshan's kooky (or cookie?) indie single casks, there's nothing from current Lowland distilleries that appeals to my palate. Hell, Springbank's Hazelburn does Lowland better than the Lowlanders.

But that was before a recent tasting between this 26 year old Bladnoch and a 22yo from the 1970s. I tucked into the '77 Old Malt Cask whisky first and was immediately impressed. Could this more recent single cask compete?

Distillery: Bladnoch
Region: Lowlands
Ownership at time of distillation: either Bell & Sons or United Distillers
Independent Bottler: Cadenhead
Range: Authentic Collection
Age: 26 years (1992 - 2008)
Maturation: bourbon hogshead
Outturn: 246 bottles
Alcohol by Volume: 49.3%
(Thank you to LV33 for the sample!!)

NOTES
The nose begins with apples, pears, saline and rope. 10 minutes later: fruity cinnamon, lime juice, barley grist and almonds. 10 minutes after that: lots of fragrant stone fruits skins. The palate is Barley City. Its inhabitants also include limes, citrons, minerals and hint of milk chocolate. Minimal sweetness. Slightly medicinal without being peaty. It finishes with lemons, limes, salt, barley and a little bit orange juice.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
It's romantically unromantic. A goldilocks malt. Well-matured with no woody interference, this Bladnoch brings the citrus and stones and barley and......then my glass is empty. But before I finished it, the whisky was great! (For those of you who demand a whisky's approval by a certain Frenchman, here it is.) It certainly stood up to the 1977 OMC Bladnoch. There's all of a one point difference in scores between them, which is meaningless because on another day I could think this the better Blad. I'm so happy to have discovered Bladnoch, a decade too late or not, though I'm unhappy that I've already found myself window shopping other single casks of this Lowlander.

Availability - At Cadenhead shops, maybe?
Pricing - €150ish
Rating - 89

Bladnoch 22 year old 1977 Old Malt Cask

While I've never actively disliked Bladnoch, I've also never understood its (former) cult appeal. Its previous owners, the Armstrongs, seem to have run the distillery as a family business, warts and all, which was refreshing as the Scotch industry slid into corporate control. I also never took part in the Bladnoch Forum, which seemed to wrap up its releases just as I began my online whisky life. As a result, some of y'all reading this post will have your feet more firmly planted in the old Bladnoch world than I.

(Obligatory paragraph about modern Bladnoch: The distillery's current ownership seems to have tried to force a generally unknown brand into the ultra-premium sphere. They haven't released a single thing that sounds interesting, so they (like 99.9% of the ultra-premium brands) will enjoy success without my contribution.)

Whisky friend Cobo, sent me this sample of '70s(!) Bladnoch a few years ago, and I've been sitting on it (literally!) until it had a proper drinking mate. And now it does. Today the '70s, Friday the '90s. From Carter to Clinton. Fill in your joke here. I'm sure Randy Brandy will.

Distillery: Bladnoch
Region: Lowlands
Ownership at time of distillation: Inver House
Independent Bottler: Douglas Laing
Range: Old Malt Cask
Age: 22 years (December 1977 - July 2000)
Maturation: maybe a bourbon barrel?
Outturn: 174 bottles
Alcohol by Volume: 50%

NOTES
The nose has a gorgeously malty base with hints of earth and whole cloves on top, followed by pairings of peach candy and flower blossoms, kiwi juice and dried cranberries, dunnage and ocean air. Then a hint of incense. On the palate, a low rumble of tart fruits (citrus, berries, guava) carries along loads of barley. Sweet apricots, bits of musty dunnage. A butterscotch note develops with time, and the citrus edge expands. It has a very creamy mouthfeel. The finish's sweetness is balanced by tart citrus and a peep of horseradish. Some tropical fruit hints arise along with the nose's dunnage note.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
This is fine fine whisky, leagues beyond what I'd anticipated. It's perfectly matured malt without any woodiness, its elements having achieved dynamic equilibrium. There are three single casks of 22yo 1977 Bladnoch in the OMC line, the other two have shown up in European auctions, their hammer prices high but not unreasonable considering the quality and age. This one, though, with the smallest outturn of the three seems to be scarce, hopefully consumed! Anyway, if you have a bottle of it collecting dust, please open and enjoy it. It would be a cracking drink when spring returns.

Availability - ???
Pricing - ???
Rating - 90

Glen Moray 14 year old 2004 Old Malt Cask 20th Anniversary

Though they've recently been tinkering with a slew of NAS whiskies, Glen Moray had a range of low-priced age-stated single malts for the past decade or two. Even though their prices were fair, I have nearly no experience with that distillery's output. Like so many other Glens their official whisky is artificially colored, chillfiltered and diluted to the max so my interest was minimal.

I wrote about the distillery's history three years ago, and have little to add except that the year this single cask was distilled (2004) was when the former Macdonald & Muir sold the distillery to LVMH. So, I'm not sure if this was distilled under Bill Lumsden's supervision or not. Or if it even matters. If you've had more experience with Glen Moray and know of a style change please let me know in the comment section below. I'm all for more whisky education, of both words and liquid. And today's liquid learning was sent to me by My Annoying Opinions (thanks, Teach!) who has posted a simultaneous review of this same whisky this very morning!

Distillery: Glen Moray
Owner: La Martiniquaise
Region: Speyside (Elgin)
Bottler: Hunter Laing
Series: Old Malt Cask
Age: 14 years old (April 2004 - August 2018)
Maturation: probably a hogshead
Outturn: 337
Alcohol by Volume: 50%
Chillfiltered? No
Colorant added? No

NEAT
Quite a bit of bread, cheese and herbs in the nose at first. The herbs remain but the other two float off. There's also a vegetable broth note. Small notes of lemon juice, flower blossoms and vanilla linger. The whisky has an unusual palate that closely matches the nose. Definitely a salty broth note on top of a citrus base. Then little bits of corn syrup and mint. The finish is very tangy and lightly sweet. Minor notes of black pepper and copper/blood.

DILUTED TO ~43%abv, or 1 tsp of water per 30ml of whisky
The nose shifts and opens up a little. Though a grassy note leads the way, there's also apple peel, lemon zest, toasted coconut and smoked almonds. The palate stays lean and tangy. Barley, oats and sweetness make up the rest. It finishes tangy and yeasty with toasted grains and an herbal bitterness.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
Paler than a Kravitz in winter, this whisky reminds me of the ol' green bottle Cadenheads releases, though much less violent. It reads new and young, though not off-putting, instead crisp and spirit-forward. What it sacrifices is any sort of complexity. It delivers quirk, salt, herbs and tang (lowercase "t"), no more, no less. Perhaps this is close to the distillery's style?

Availability - Probably fewer than a dozen European retailers
Pricing - £55-£65
Rating - 82, preferred with water