Glen Garioch 1990, Part 2: 25 year old Signatory, cask 2752

During this fatherhood phase I have only one or two opportunities to do tastings each week, which is one reason why I did this three-part Taste Off. A second reason is that one can also gain a better perspective of one whisky by juxtaposing it with other whiskies during the same tasting session. I keep staring at that sentence, trying to figure out if it will make sense to anyone but me, but I'm so damned tired that I'm just going to leave it be.

On Monday, I reviewed a 23 year old 1990 Glen Garioch bottled by The Nectar of the Daily Drams. It was a sharp, peaty, spirity, youthful thing.

Today I'm reviewing a 25 year old from Signatory, probably my favorite indie bottler. This whisky is beloved by Serge and the whiskybase community. Let's see if I'm in the same whisky boat...

Distillery: Glen Garioch
Distilled by: Morrison Bowmore
Current Ownership: Beam Suntory
Region: Eastern Highlands
Bottler: Signatory





Age: 25 years (April 9, 1990 to April 16, 2015)
Maturation: hogshead
Cask #: 2752
Alcohol by Volume: 50.6%
Chillfiltered? No
Caramel Colorant? No
(purchased sample)

NEAT
This has the lightest color of the three. A lovely nose. Lemons, pineapples, roses, canned peaches, toffee pudding and peat. The palate is full of malt and white fruits. Then fermenting melon, cayenne pepper and citrus. Marzipan. Slightly fizzy. It does get a sharper bite with time in the glass. The complex finish mirrors the palate, but with a little more peat and herbs.

WITH WATER (~43-44%abv)
Oooh yeah. The nose has butterscotch, (lots of) fresh peaches, dried apricots, ocean air and a hint of Belgian witbier. The palate has changed a bit. Plums, limes, fudge, tart cherries, cranberry juice and bitter peat. Again, the finish matches the palate.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
Okay yeah, this is pretty great. It works with or without dilution, though I think I preferred it with. It's much rounder and more mature than yesterday's 23yo, swapping out the harsher edges and loud peat for fruit and complexity.

I'm pretty sure this sold out promptly following Serge's blessing in 2015, but if it's still floating around out there at its €100-120ish original price, it wouldn't be a bad Glen Garioch to seek out.

Availability - probably sold out, so maybe via the secondary market?
Pricing - ???
Rating - 89

Glen Garioch 1990, Part 1: 23 year old Nectar of the Daily Drams

Here's a random series for you. In honor of reader James, to whom it's taking me months to respond, I did a Taste Off between three Glen Garioch single malts distilled in 1990. (James is a fan of older Glen Gariochs, to clarify that previous garbage sentence.)

Before Suntory took over (1994) and mothballed (1995) Glen Garioch, the distillery used lightly peated malt. And as much as I like the current version of Glen Garioch's single malts, the pre-Suntory style always brought something interesting to a bottle. Of course, the rumored dark side of that situation is the dreaded lavender soap note that also infected Morrison's Bowmore output in the '80s.

Here are three samples of '90 Garioch from three different bottlers.

First up, a 23 year old from Nectar of the Daily Drams.

Distillery: Glen Garioch
Distilled by: Morrison Bowmore
Current Ownership: Beam Suntory
Region: Eastern Highlands
Bottler: Daily Drams





Age: 23 years (1990-2014)
Maturation: maybe a refill ex-bourbon cask
Alcohol by Volume: 49.7%
Chillfiltered? No
Caramel Colorant? No
(purchased sample)

NEAT
Its color is the second darkest of the three, but it seems as if the cask contributed little more than visual tone, because the nose is very spirity for the whisky's age and alcohol content. Burnt paper, barley, apples and plaster. A good oceanside note. Small notes of marshmallow, lemon cake, vanilla and peat. The palate is ashy and earthy, full of minerals and concrete (oh that tasty concrete). It's lightly sweet with moderate notes of malt, horseradish, plastic and vanilla. Its finish is very ashy, like damp cigarettes. Light bitterness and peppercorns.

Dilution time...

WITH WATER (~43-44%abv)
Its calmer nose has more vanilla, caramel and marshmallows. Additional beach, smoke and farm notes. With time it almost turns into a single-digit Ledaig with sulphur and sneaker peat. The palate is aggressively green and herbal with plenty of bitter smoke. Tart citrus, stale raisins and jalapeño peppers. Little bit of sweets, lots of minerals. The finish is shorter, quieter. It's still green and earthy like the palate. Light vanilla sweetness mixes oddly with the jalapeño peppers and smoky residue.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
That this whisky flexed its spirit was not a surprise. That it read like a 60%abv whisky at one-third its actual age was unexpected. Water did bring out some oak notes in the nose, but also turned up its rugged phenolics. The palate's a fighter with or without water. This was confirmed by Kristen's reaction when she tried the whisky.

One's personal preferences are certainly in play here. This isn't a graceful or casual sipper. It's a bit more of a winter warmer. While I enjoyed the nose better once the whisky was diluted, the added water messes up the finish. So I'd recommend it either neat or at an ABV much lower than 43. And while I dig the zesty greenery in this one, I expect a bit more depth, roundness and maturity from a whisky that spent twenty-three years in a cask.

Availability - A few European retailers perhaps?
Pricing - probably €100-€130
Rating - 82

Beatrice Booze Report: Springbank 25 year old Millennium Collection

In 1998, J. & A. Mitchell & Co. Ltd., the owners of Springbank Distillery, released the Millennium Collection, probably the most erotic thing in the history of whisky (with apologies to Jim Murray).

The set was made up of a 25 year old, 30 year old, 35 year old, 40 year old, 45 year old and 50 year old Springbank single malt. Each of these whiskies took the form of one 700mL bottle and one 50mL bottle. The set included a certificate of authenticity and six wooden coffins. There were a total of 580 sets.

(source)

While this set appears in auctions every year (and I'll let you google its value), a number of original owners actually chose to break up the set and DRINK the whisky. Through the generosity of one of these crazies, the LA Scotch Club obtained a bottle of the 25yo, five years ago. We split it up, 30mL a piece. And now I am going to drink my sample of whisky history.

Distillery: Springbank
Brand: Springbank

Owner: Springbank Distillers Ltd.
Region: Campbeltown
Maturation: good casks ✔

Age: at least 25 years

Bottled: 1998
Limited bottling: 580 bottles

Alcohol by Volume: 46%

NOTES

The nose begins with a surprising amount of fruit: orange peel and dried cherries, as well as a cinnamon and apple baked treat. A swirl of toffee pudding, vanilla bean and nutmeg. Burlap and a hint of mossy peat. After 30 minutes, it's all anise, rosemary and oregano oils.

A surprise greets the palate as well: a heavy strike of peat and salt. Chimney and earth. Lemon and pepper and Underberg. Its creamy texture fills the mouth and reads as if it's cask strength.

Oh my. The finish is colossal. Earth, coal, pepper, lemon peel, mint leaves and herbal bitterness.

WORDS

This was a revelation. No, not its tremendous quality, but its character. I was expecting a graceful heavily sherried thing. But the peat and herbs and fruit and filth carry the day. And it's gigantic.

The 2005 21 year old may be more detailed and drinky, but this one's remarkable finish sticks the landing better than almost any whisky I've tried. I'm thrilled to have had this opportunity to try these two whiskies, and am glad I was able to liberate them before the samples had spoiled.

(For a few more takes on this very bottle, please see the LAWS reviews here. The salted plum notes are pretty cool, I wish I'd thought of that!)

Availability - Auctions & a few European retailers
Pricing - Auctions: $1000-$2000, Retailers: $2000-$3000
Rating - 93

Beatrice Booze Report: Springbank 21 year old, bottled in 2005

After examining my entire sample stash for storage problems, I decided to change up the celebratory whiskies this week. I'm going with two super samples I've been saving for years for some unknown circumstance. I believe the opportunity has presented itself.

First up is the official Springbank 21 year old that was bottled in 2005. Here's a photo of a bottle:

(source)

Old Springbank. It sounds awesome, right? But wait, there's more.

Doing the math... 2005 minus 21 equals 1984. But the distillery was closed in 1984. And 1983. And 1982. And 1981. And 1980. So the youngest possible whisky in the bottle would have been from 1979. Thus it's a 26 year old in 21 year old clothing.

And.......commence.

Distillery: Springbank
Brand: Springbank

Owner: Springbank Distillers Ltd.
Region: Campbeltown
Maturation: probably some pretty nifty sherry casks

Age: 21 years per statement, but actual age is at least 26 years

Bottled: 2005
Limited bottling: 2400 bottles

Alcohol by Volume: 46%

(Purchased at an LA Scotch Club event many years back)

NOTES

The nose takes one on a little journey. Industrial dockside. Coal smoke. Tobacco. But then... nuts roasting in the oven, alongside an apple tart. Hints of jerk spice and cabernet sauvignon. Then raspberry syrup, pineapple and molasses. Damn.

The palate's tale is narrower but intense, and occasionally similar to the nose. It's dingy and oily. Tar. Smokestack. Earth and stones. Those Campbeltown dunnages. Very dry sherry meets a slight malty sweetness. Hints of bitter chocolate and anise. A subtle rooty bitterness. I could get used to this.

Focus continues to tighten in the finish. It still has the greasy industrial notes and dunnage. Hints of the ocean and bitterness. There's also chili pepper, lemon and salt. The smoke returns later.

WORDS

Because the nose and palate notes speak for themselves, I'll waste no further words on them. *sobs*

The finish is briefer than expected and never reaches the heights of the nose and palate, yet it ends up leaving the palate feeling refreshed, like some mysterious aperitif.

This whisky......it's a completely different liquid than any single malt being produced today. I do have faith that the current Springbank folks could nail a similar style someday somehow. And maybe Benromach ten years from now, if they've got stuff sitting in sterling sherry casks. And if anyone really gave a crap about single malts at Ardmore, but they don't. Anyway, let us not dwell in the present anymore than we already do.

Let's see if I can top this whisky on Friday.

Availability - Auctions
Pricing - Under $500?! Where's my coin purse...
Rating - 92 (the finish knocks it down from 94-95, these scores are stupid)

Whisky PSA: Check yo samples before you wreck yo samples!

Achtung! And embrace the terrible title! This is a public service announcement for those who have a liquor sample collection.

I started my whisky sample stash about six years ago.  Less than two years into the bottle accumulation, I upgraded bottle caps.

The standard caps have a plastic ribbing and a foam or paper liner. When one first starts saving whisky samples, these seem perfectly okay. One may even choose to use electrical tape around the bottle neck to make sure the cap doesn't open.

When I upgraded caps, I switched to those with phenolic ribbing and the little polycone seal. These provide something much closer to an airtight fit. These are more expensive than the standard caps.

The thing is, though, I chose to use the better caps only on samples going forward. A year later, I decided to order a slew of extra caps to switch out the old ones. Then life happened, and I never did the big switchout.

I'm here to tell you that by not switching out the caps, I enabled a number of samples to spoil. The standard cap's cheap liner falls off within a couple of years, often adhering to the glass neck or crumbling into the whisky itself if the liquid is right up to the edge.

Even more troubling, the cap itself gradually buckles upwards. (You can actually see and feel this, as the top of the cap starts to get curved instead of flat.) Thanks to the buckling plastic and flimsy liner, the seal breaks and air comes in. Over five years, some of my samples experienced 1/3 to 2/3s evaporation. They're left with what I recently called a "swirling murk" throughout the liquid. The whisky loses most of its smell, while the palate goes flat, watery and nearly tasteless except for a really weird bitterness.

Luckily I lost only a half dozen samples to this issue. But all of them had caps that buckled on the top. This weekend, I replaced another fourteen caps on samples that showed no evaporation nor murk. Meanwhile, the little historical archive I started six years ago is probably mostly ruined. Can't bear to look at it right now.

If you have a whisky/brandy/rum/etc sample bottle collection going back more than three years, then I encourage you to check your bottle caps. If you've been using the standard tops, I recommend any option with a better seal. Swap out the old caps with better ones. Dump any sample that has experienced evaporation of 1/3 the bottle, or greater. I mean, you can sip it first to check its quality but then you've lowered its fill level and also contributed some bacteria to the mix.

In conclusion — never a great way to begin a conclusion — keep your samples sealed the best way you can. The extra ten or twenty cents per cap is worth it. (One method to buy extras is to add a bunch of additional caps to your next bottle order. I don't think Amazon sells the caps by themselves.)

ALSO, drink your whisky.

Thank you. This has been a Diving for Pearls public service announcement.

Bourbon and Rye Day Friday: Smooth Ambler Old Scout Rye 8 year old single barrel 971

The plan seemed airtight. I'd save my sample of Thomas H. Handy (2011 edition) rye for a special occasion. And after my second daughter arrived, I knew this was the moment. Then I pulled the sample bottle — poured for me by Florin (a prince) five years ago — from storage, only to discover that 2/3s of the whiskey had evaporated and the remainder was full of swirling murk. I'm an idiot for waiting so long. And yes I'm an idiot for having given it not one, not two, but three sips just to make sure it was really spoiled. It was really spoiled. Moral of the story: DON'T WAIT FIVE YEARS TO CONSUME A SAMPLE.

Now the night was zipping by and I wanted to taste something while my nose and palate were still working, so I grabbed my last Smooth Ambler / MGP single barrel rye sample. It was also from Florin (a prince) but from only 2.5 years ago. That was back in the day when these bottles were selling for 1/5th of their current "value" on the secondary market. But I love full strength MGP rye more than most single malts, so here we go.

Brand: Old Scout
Company: Smooth Ambler
Type: Straight Rye Whiskey

Region: Maxwelton, West Virginia (Distilled in Lawrenceburg, Indiana)
Age: 8 years
Mashbill: 95% rye, 5% malted barley
Retailer: Davidson's
Barrel: 971
Bottled: 11/12/14

Alcohol by Volume: 60.9%

NEAT
The nose starts off bourbon-like, thick with vanilla, caramel and cherry syrup. Then apricot and dark chocolate notes arise. Underneath is a floral rye note, and a minor pickle brine thing. And cinnamony churros! A good lack of heat. The palate is more rye-ish. Dark dusty spices, a jar of multicolored peppercorns. Salted caramels and fennel seed. Sweet and tannic with a velvet texture and very little burn. It finishes with honey and black pepper. Sweet lemons, fennel seed and barrel char. Medium length.

Gonna drop it to the standard Old Scout Rye abv:

WITH WATER (~49.5%abv)
The nose becomes more focused. Caramel candies, mandarin oranges, cloves and a hint of flower blossoms. The rye element intensifies in the palate. All vanilla and caramel stuff has been stripped away. It's very spicy and peppery. Hints of citrus and tannins. The finish is all zing. Tangy citrus. Feisty pepper. Curmudgeonly char.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
This is an impressively easy drinker considering the considerable (sorry) alcohol content. The rich oak notes in its nose will likely appeal to bourbon fans. Rye enthusiasts will prefer the palate over the nose. That's where the rye lies. It dilutes well too, which is another plus.

Due to all that oak, I think it's a half step back of Willett's similarly aged MGP rye, but it's close enough to provide some similar joys. This was a good buy back when this stuff was $50-$65. And, girl, I'm missing those days.

Availability - Secondary market only
Pricing - allot of munny
Rating - 87

Randy Brandy drinks......Clear Creek Cherry Brandy (Kirschwasser)

It seems like Our Dear Leader is useless today because of something called "children", so he handed the website password to this wiser gentleman. That's right, snowflakes, Randy Brandy's going to write whatever he wants.

So, I had a colonoscopy last week, as is required of men of my enlightened age. Here is my entire conversation with the gastroenterologist. I speak in all caps.

"For the 24 hours before the procedure you can only consume clear liquids."
"GREAT. I'LL LOAD UP ON PEAR EAU DE VIE."
"Actually, that's not--"
"SPIRITUEUX DE CANNELLE?"
"No."
"GRAPPA."
"No."
"FUCK."
"You'll want to refrain from that after taking the laxative--"
"DON'T TELL ME HOW TO LIVE MY LIFE."

That meant I had to drink broth for a day, which is depressing because it doesn't mix with vermouth. I was intrigued when my wife, Brandy, told me about some pop-up shops selling hipster bone broth. But I lost interest when I found out it's actually made from chicken.

The day after the medical professionals looked at my magnificent ass, Diving for Girls invited me over to celebrate the birth of his second daughter. Usually Jews bring Slivovitz (kosher plum turpentine) to celebrate the birth of Jewish children, but Kirschwasser is a German spirit so I thought that would be funnier.

Speaking of hipsters. Portland's Clear Creek Distillery makes brandy out of everything from poire williams to banjos. Steven McCarthy fired up the stills for the first time in 1985, then sold out to Hood River Distillers in 2014, thus losing his Portland citizenship forever.

Clear Creek kirschwasser is made from sweet cherries grown in the Pacific Northwest, which is quite locavore and sustainable, especially considering they then ship the product to retailers thousands of miles away. Clear Creek, guys, you know Latvian or Chinese cherries would be much cheaper.

Here are my notes.

Color: Appropriate
Nose: Fruity bubblegum, maraschino liqueur, dried blueberries, orange brandy. Only a mild spiritous note.
Palate: Moderate acidity. Warm cinnamon spiciness and honey. More on sweet apples than dark cherries. Creamy texture, minimum burn.
Finish: This is where the cherries show up and take over. Some late sweetness and bitterness.

There were my notes.

It drinks fast and easy, so the 375mL bottle is a damned flask. The fruity nose is good, the palate is fine. Imported kirsch isn't cheap, so Clear Creek's version is one of the lowest priced options around. Though German and Swiss kirsch often have a better palate than this one, be prepared for $40-$50 for half bottle prices. So, I guess at $25ish, this one counts as a good deal. I guess. It's better than vodka. It's better than cheap Sliv. It's better than Hiram Walker's "brandy". But so is a colonoscopy.

NOT WHISKY RATING: B-, though by the fourth glass it's a B. Deal with that, Kravitz.