Two 1978 Highland single malts from James MacArthur

At some point I'll get around to dishing out scores to all the whiskies from my Killing Whisky History episodes. Okay probably not. But I am happy to review the two 1978 single malts featured in Episode 16: Blair Athol and Ben Nevis, both 14 year olds bottled by James MacArthur.

It was just my luck that one was from a bourbon cask, and the other was from a sherry cask. The former was very good, the latter I pronounced "phenomenal" and it still remains among the top 3 whiskies I've covered in the KWH series. For more on these whiskies, please see Episode 16.

Blair Athol 14 year old 1978 James MacArthur's Fine Malt Selection, 53.1%abv

The nose's boldest note are wheat bread crust and strawberry candy. There's also clay, newspaper print, honey, shredded wheat cereal and hints of lemons and dried herbs. The palate leads with sweet limes, riesling and newspaper print. Gentle dunnage and smoke notes mix with malt and tart apples. It finishes with dates, soil and tart apples.

These notes differ a bit from those on the video. Some of the oak has peeled away and some earthier, dustier notes have joined the grain. It also has the sort of creamy mouthfeel one doesn't often find in modern malts. A pleasure.

Rating - 87

---

Ben Nevis 14 year old 1978 James MacArthur's Fine Malt Selection, 55.8%abv

The nose shows a very clean nutty sherry cask. Toffee, orange peel, Luxardo cherries. But that's just one side of the whisky, because Ben Nevis. Hot engine, hot concrete and a bushel of crushed dried herbs begin outside the sherry cask, then gradually work their way inwards. The palate is intensely earthy and mossy. Funky dunnage notes and manure. Fresh dark cherries and peach juice. It finishes long, sweet, earthy, with hints of herbal smoke and pickled ginger.

A lovely single malt pulled from the cask at just the right time, this Ben Nevis sets the bar very high for this year's birthday whiskies, one that might not be topped.

Rating - 91

Glen Spey 12 year old 1999 Blackadder Raw Cask, cask 125

Another Glen! Hooray! Today's Glen Spey is from Blackadder's Raw Cask label, a range I like more in theory than in reality. At least there tends to be truth in the name, with the whiskies being much closer to their spirit than the woody vessel. My Glen Spey experience is limited, so I have no idea what to expect.

Distillery: Glen Spey
Owner: Diageo
Independent Bottler: Blackadder
Region: Speyside (Rothes)
Age: 12 years (6 April 1999 to August 2011)
Maturation: "Oak cask"
Cask number: 125
Outturn: 298
Alcohol by Volume: 59.8%
(sample from Florin (a prince))

NEAT
The nose is not as hot as expected, though there is a definite chlorine note. Beyond that there's a curious mix of ocean water and candy shop (gummi worms, sour apple candy and lollipops). There's also earthiness and wood smoke, like Benromach-lite, which is not normally what one finds with Glen Spey. All sorts of things are going on in the palate: plastic, mushrooms, woody smoke, cream puffs and tart limes. The finish matches the palate.

DILUTED TO ~46%abv, or 1¾ tsp of water per 30mL whisky
A very different whisky now. There are pineapples, lemons, flowers and vanilla in the nose, followed by baby powder, newspaper and cashews. It gets very metallic after 30 minutes. The palate is simple, malty and floral, reading hotter than 46%abv. It becomes bitterer and sweeter with time. It finishes sweet, peppery with hints of green herbs and smoke.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
This one leaves me wondering if the bottle's barrel char bits affected the whisky because this is quite smoky, and it's a very woody smoke. It's not bad, but curious. The Glen Spey's nose works better with water, while the palate reads better when neat. Boring it is not, though I found drinking it to be a chore. It almost seems like it needed a *gasp* more active cask.

Availability - Sold out
Pricing - ???
Rating - 79

Glenallachie 15 year old 1996 Signatory, casks 5233 + 5234

Monday's whisky was not diluted. Today's whisky is. It's part of Signatory's Watered Down range. It might actually be called the "Vintage Collection", but it's their the 43%abv semi-budget series. When window-shopping Signatories I always look past these whiskies, and perhaps that's unfair, but the UCF range is so darned good. Anyway, I think I've reviewed a couple of these Vintage Collection casks before and at least one of them was quite decent. This whiskies do stay close to the spirit......so make me a believer, Signatory.

Distillery: Glenallachie
Ownership: The Glenallachie Consortium
Region: Speyside (Aberlour)
Independent Bottler: Signatory
Age: 15 years (17 October 1996 - 18 January 2012)
Maturation: Hogsheads
Cask#: 5233 + 5234
Outturn: 798 bottles
Alcohol by Volume: 43%
(sample from Florin (a prince))

NOTES
Barley, yeast and anise on the nose, followed by hints of roses and black walnuts. Little bits of peach candy and grapefruit drift through the background. Just a touch of vanilla appears after 30 minutes. The sweet and warm palate has Boston cream-filled pastries, a bit of bitter herbs, a slight grassiness. The bitterness and sweetness expands with time. The finish is lemony and grassy with pinches of sugar and salt.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
This is a good spring or summer whisky, better than the Big Glenz. I also liked it more than the 12yo, 18yo and 10yo CS official Glenallachies. That's a relatively low bar, thus I'm not saying this is an awesome single malt. It's light and easily consumable without being oaky. It'll do well neat and probably result in a quality highball. It's also probably very sold out eight years later.

Availability - Sold out
Pricing - I think it was less than €40
Rating - 83

Glenturret 29 year old 1989 Signatory, cask 235

Last Friday, I wrote about the 900000 series of 2005 Ledaig sherry casks of which Signatory held a significant portion. Signatory has also released eleven 1989 Glenturrets all aged in hogsheads numbered between 220 and 238, and all with very low ABVs between 42.4 and 46.5.

I have not enjoyed official Glenturrets and I'm very skeptical of cask strength whiskies whose ABVs have dropped so low, so today's whisky would seem like an odd choice for my tastes. But I have tried cask 233 from this series and I really enjoyed it. That one was bottled for Vine & Table in Indiana, this one was bottled for Whisky Club Luxembourg. Neighbors.

Distillery: Glenturret

Owner: Lalique Group

Region: Southern Highlands

Exclusive to: Vinothek Massen, Whisky Club Luxembourg and Whiskyexclusive

Age: 29 years (21 April 1989 - 14 March 2019)

Maturation: Hogshead
Cask number: 235
Outturn: 262 bottles

Alcohol by Volume: 44.9%
Chillfiltered? No
Colorant added? No

(from a bottle split)

NOTES
The glorious nose is full of watermelon, kiwi, papaya, cucumber and fennel. Then some farm notes and cherry candy. A spring breeze across a meadow of wildflowers. There's a good balance of sweet and tart fruits on the palate, like limes, mango and kiwi. Then brown sugar and sour beer, as well. It gains minerals and a funky dunnage note after 30 minutes in the glass. It finishes with a light sweetness and gentle floral notes. Hints of limes, pineapples and bitter herbs.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
Upon first sniffs, I had though there was a 92+ point whisky in my glass. Rarely would I describe a whisky's nose as beautiful, but that word fits here. The palate and finish were very pleasant, but also shallow and simple. One can't ask for this to have been bottled at a higher ABV at this same age because the whisky isn't watered down. Nor is it over-oaked. It is what it is after almost three full decades in a hogshead. Time steals many things, including a half dozen points from this whisky.

Availability - Sold out
Pricing - I think it was less than €200
Rating - 87

Ledaig 13 year old 2005 Single Cask Nation, cask 900165

Single Cask Nation hit the big time last year as round after round of their single casks appeared then disappeared at many popular whisky retailers. The first of these releases I'll review is also the third 13-year-old Ledaig of this week.

This whisky is part of the ever expanding 900000 series of 2005 Ledaig casks that found their way to a number of independent bottlers. The cask numbers started with a pair of Berry Bros releases (900008 and 900012), then bounced around to a few random indies, then to Sansibar for several casks, then stayed with Signatory for 16 consecutive casks and then hopped over to Elixir Distillers. This SCN cask number (900165) sits in the middle of the Elixirs. Most, if not all, of the 900000s are sherry casks and many have very good reputations, especially the Siggies. Did the distillery sell or trade off this massive parcel? If so, I hope they held onto a few for official releases.

Cask 900165 is a second fill sherry butt, but the whisky is very dark, the reddest of this week's Ledaigs. I've a had few recent "refill" casks that were outrageously sherried, leaving me wondering if they were all re-seasoned and/or recharred.

This 13-year-old hit the market at $140, a price point that disincentivized me from getting a bottle. It didn't stop other folks, so I went in on a bottle split and set my expectations high.

Distillery: Tobermory
Brand: Ledaig

Owner: Distell International Ltd.
Region: Isle of Mull

Age: 13 years (Oct 2005 - March 2019)

Maturation: Second fill sherry butt

Cask: 900165
Outturn: 575 bottles

Alcohol by Volume: 57.1%
Chillfiltered? No
Colorant Added? No

(from a bottle split)

NEAT

The nose is......yep. Need more than that? A muscular herbal peat meets moderate nutty sherry in perfect balance. There's rotting kelp, charred veg, almond extract, pound cake, one cherry lollipop and a squeeze of lemon. The palate matches the nose very well, with a lovely nuttiness and dark chocolate pairing with salty seaweed peat. Mild sweetness, a little bit of citrus and big herbal bitterness. It finishes with toasted seaweed, sooty smoke, almonds, bright bitterness and a hint of sweetness.

It pains me to reduce this. But for science:

DILUTED TO ~46.3%abv, or 1⅓ tsp of water per 30mL whisky

The nose has cotton candy(?!), tar, old rye spiciness, cherry shisha and baked pears. The palate doesn't have the nose's candy shop, rather it's an intensely bitter herbal thing with some sweet white fruits providing some balance. Plenty of tar as well. White fruits, bitter herbs and tar in the finish.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
This excellent whisky from the Single Cask Nation crew leveled the other two Ledaigs in the big matchup. It was all over in the opening moments. The cask's weight and the spirit's intensity stay well-balanced (and delicious) throughout, something I don't find that often with sherry + peat. I have nothing but more hyperbole to spill about this. Expectations surpassed.

Availability - Sold out, or almost thus
Pricing - $140
Rating - 90

Ledaig 13 year old Port Pipe Matured

I may be entering more cask-driven territory now with this heavily-peated Tobermory spirit that spent its entire life in Port Pipes (probably 5 or 6, per the total outturn). Despite early negative expectations set by some whisky geeks, I have had decent experiences with many port cask matured single malts, including a few peated ones items, with Benriach's 17 year old Solstice marking the summit. I don't know why it works for a palate that could without wineskies forever. Maybe the key is tawny port? I like tawny port.

Ledaig, though. Expectation level set to: Sure, What the Hell.

Distillery: Tobermory
Brand: Ledaig

Owner: Distell International Ltd.
Region: Isle of Mull

Age: minimum 13 years

Maturation: Port pipes
Outturn: Two releases, 3,199 bottles

Bottling year: 2019

Alcohol by Volume: 58.1%
Chillfiltered? No
Colorant Added? No

(from a purchased sample)

NEAT

Opposite of what I'd anticipated, this has the most muted nose of the three Ledaigs. There's a minor Caol Ila / Ardmore-esque snuffed bonfire note and a little bit of ocean along with flowers and baked plums and blueberries. The palate feels big but its elements are difficult to discern over the first couple of sips. There's plenty of berry essence without the sugar. Smoked fish and wood smoke. Tart and bitter citrus. There's also a curious grainy note in the background. The mouth-drying finish has lots of heavy smoke, tart citrus, the aforementioned grainy note and lots of heat.

DILUTED TO ~46.3%abv, or 1½ tsp of water per 30mL whisky

The nose becomes very pretty with its flowers, pineapple and fruit cocktail. The smoke and ocean notes grow, and brown sugar makes an appearance. The palate is more on herbs and grasses, now. Good bitterness, subtle sweetness. Milder smoke. It finishes dry and grassy. It feels young, but no mezcal this time.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

These were certainly not wet port pipes, or they were gingerly seasoned because the fortified wine note remains minor throughout. And the pipes' large surface area prevented the whisky from getting woody. It also resulted in another youthful Ledaig. It's less funky and more friendly than the 13yo Amontillado finish, but there's also an odd drying aspect to the finish that I didn't enjoy. Expectations met, I guess, though not surpassed.

Availability - Sold out, or almost thus
Pricing - €120-€140
Rating - 84

Ledaig 13 year old Amontillado Cask Finish

Three 13-year-old Ledaigs this week! Because!

Leading off is an official 13yo that was bottled in 2017 and cost (usually) under €100 back then. The only major harrumph I'll harrumph today is regarding the "Cask Finish" as its length is unspecified, so it could have been 10 years or 10 days. A little help here, Tobermory.

Expectations set to: Moderate Enthusiasm. The official 10 is good and the first batch of the 18 was positively odd, but the three 19s I reviewed last year were disappointing. Thus I'm glad Dr. Springbank risked a bottle and sent me a sample. Time to test my luck!

Distillery: Tobermory
Brand: Ledaig

Owner: Distell International Ltd.
Region: Isle of Mull

Age: minimum 13 years

Maturation: bourbon casks for ? years, Amontillado casks for ? years/months/weeks/days
Outturn: ????

Alcohol by Volume: 59.2%
Chillfiltered? No
Colorant Added? No

(sample from Dr. Springbank. Thank you!)

NEAT

The nose is somewhat reminiscent of the weird early-90s Ledaig that disturbs some drinkers while delighting others. There's hard cheese, walnuts, baked potatoes, smoked salmon and mezcal (a.k.a. breakfast). Grasses and cocoa powder appear after some time. Ah, the sherry's in the palate. It still has the walnut and aged cheese notes but now those are met with dried berries and golden raisins. It hauls along loads of salt and a massive youthful sneaker peat wallop. It finishes hot and salty, with bitter smoke, sneaker peat and a hint of sherry.

May I attempt Distell's favorite ABV?

DILUTED TO ~46.3%abv, or 1⅔ tsp of water per 30mL whisky

Though the nose is bolder and farmier, it also holds almonds cookies and peach and pear nectars. Some apple juice and ginger candy. The peat now trends towards seaweed. The palate reads both very young and very sherried, at first. Classic oloroso (not Amontillado) style, too, which is strange but we're in Ledaig Land now so...there it is. It sweetens and softens up with time. It finishes with farmy smoke and mild sweetness.

Keep going:

DILUTED TO ~40%abv, or about 1 tbsp of water per 30mL whisky

It's getting younger now? The nose is all yeasty, malty newmake, with confectioner's sugar, flowers and mint. Sugar, almonds and sneaker peat in the palate and the finish.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
This Ledaig presents the reverse of Friday's Kilkerran, wherein this whisky's original bourbon cask maturation seems to have resulted in very little maturation, and then the distillery tried to give it a little nudge with secondary sherry cask aging. It sresults in something reading half the listed age, but it works better (for me) than all those indie single-digit mezcal-Taliskers. I like this whisky best when neat where the sherry works well and the nose is the oddest. This style may be divisive. I'm more than moderately enthused, but this isn't a casual sippin' whisky.

Availability - Sold out?
Pricing - ???
Rating - 87