Old Master Spirits 44-Year Old Armagnac Review!

Another old "malternative" brandy from Old Master with a bargain price. This latest release is a single cask of Bas armagnac that was distilled way back in 1978, with an age statement of a whopping 44-years!  

I'm starting to think Old Master Spirits are just teasing us with these old brandies! Both the age statements and the attached pricing are truly remarkable from any whisky drinker's perspective. From a 63-year old cognac to the recent XXO armagnac bottling, if you were to look at an equivalent whisky the pricing would make most feel nauseous. Age aside, all of the Old Master bottlings so far have been great quality and very reasonably priced - particularly when compared to an equivalent whisky. Yet another example is this forthcoming release, a 44-year old single cask Bas armagnac. What would an similarly aged malt whisky cost, here in the ongoing pricing madness of 2023? You'd be looking at a starting price of $3,000-$4,000 AUD on these shores, and far beyond for the "luxury" brands. We all know that armagnac doesn't carry the prestige or profit margins of an old single malt whisky, but you'd still expect such an old spirit to be over $1,000, right? Wrong! This single cask, cask strength, naturally presented 44-year old armagnac is going to sell, at retail, for $249 AUD. Which is an absolute steal. Needless to say, $250 AUD doesn't get much in the whisky world these days. For those playing overseas, here in the great southern land of tax, that's the going rate for a Glendronach or Glengoyne 18-year old, it's significantly less than we're charged for the 18-year old releases from Talisker or Highland Park, and is less than half the price of a Macallan 18. None of those whiskies are bottled at cask strength, and all but one are chill filtered. I know we're not comparing apples to apples there, in fact we're comparing grapes to malted barley. But to see a 44-year old spirit of any sort selling for roughly the same price as those examples is difficult to comprehend!

To date this Melbourne-based duo have also dabbled in Australian single malt whisky from Tasmania, Australian rum from New South Wales, and even PX sherry itself. Naturally (pun intended), and unlike most of their commercial distant cousins, all of these releases have been non-chill filtered and natural colour, and no extra sugars, flavourings or wood extracts have been added at any stage. I've gone into the shady - but sadly perfectly legal - additive practices in the brandy industry here in my first cognac review, so I won't delve into those deceptive depths again in this review. Suffice to say there are no such shenanigans or flashy marketing & packaging here, just quality spirits released with natural presentation and at good prices. That's the way Old Master do it, and that's the way their customers want it! 

This latest example is due to launch on Thursday the 25th of May (this week). Head here for more details, or sign up to Old Master Spirits' mailing list here. This eighth release from Old Master is a Bas Armagnac from Domaine De Papolle, a small armagnac house (pictured above) that is a 90-minute drive south of Bordeaux in south-west France. Distilled in 1978 from 100% Baco grapes, it was aged entirely in French oak - as per the legal requirements for armagnac (see here for more info) - for 44-years prior to bottling at the natural cask strength of 40.3% ABV. Age isn't everything of course; it doesn't always mean maturity, and on the flipside it can mean a spirit is too far gone. But that's certainly not the case here! As I've mentioned above, this armagnac is non-chill filtered, natural colour, and nothing has been added. Enough talk, let's see how it goes! 

Colour: Dark, burnt toffee. 

Nose: Sweet, oaky, spicy. Surprising vibrancy & depth for such an advanced age! Medjool dates, treacle, warm nutmeg & cinnamon. Herbal touches of dried sage & dried bay leaf. Strong Vietnamese coffee (sweetened with condensed milk), dried pineapple, polished pine furniture. Dried bitter orange peel around the edges.

Texture: Light-medium weight. Sweet, oily, oaky, soft & warming. No heat whatsoever. 

Taste: Soft & sweet entry, with treacle, black tea, that Vietnamese coffee (with condensed milk), and oily furniture polish again. Some currants and dates, dried bitter orange peel, and that bitter herbal note of sage & bay leaf (both dried). Touch of that dried pineapple adding a little acidity for balance. 

Finish: Long length. The treacle, oily furniture polish and currants carry through. Touches of rum & raisin ice cream with a dash of vanilla, and a crumbly dark chocolate fudge. Black tea and orange peel return, with that curious dried pineapple note again. 

Score: 4 out of 5. Easily.  

Notes: What a treat to nose & taste something so old - no offence intended to any readers of a similar vintage! I can comfortably say this is the most complex armagnac that I've tasted to date, and probably the most dynamic as well. It's constantly changing with time, air, and temperature, and there's a surprising depth & length on offer considering the natural cask strength of "only" 40.3% ABV. Admittedly this 44-year old armagnac is approaching the upper limits of my preferences as far as wood tannins and oak influence, but it never goes over the line. In my amateur opinion, they've pulled this armagnac from the cask at exactly the right time! 

Just like some of the old G&M bottlings in the whisky world, this armagnac is further proof that a 40% ABV spirit doesn't have to be light & thin, particularly when it's not been chill filtered. The difference here of course is that it hasn't been reduced / diluted down to the legal minimum strength of 40%, rather it's naturally come down to a cask strength of 40.3% during maturation. Which is an important distinction, and quite a rare thing even at an advanced age. This rarity is an absolute bargain at the retail pricing of $249 AUD. Do not miss this one folks! 

Cheers!

Smokehead Rum Rebel & High Voltage Whisky Reviews!

Another "mystery" rum cask finished Islay single malt, this time from Ian McLeod Distillers, plus their cask strength regular bottling for the sake of comparison.

From the 30-year old Rosebank from Ian McLeod, to a rum finished mystery Islay Port Askaig from Elixir Distillers, to a rum finished mystery Islay Smokehead (Caol Ila). The timing worked out rather well! It's been a long time since I tasted anything from Smokehead, in fact if memory serves neither of these two expressions existed when I last had a close look at the brand. Ian McLeod has certainly grown as a company since those early days, now with three malt distilleries under their belts; Glengoyne, Tamdhu and Rosebank. They also have half a dozen blended whisky brands in the stables, plus some gin and rum, and a couple of undisclosed / mystery single malt brands. For those of us in Australia most of these bottlings can only be found at Dan Murphy's, while some of the limited releases are more widely available. The Smokehead brand was launched back in 2006 with the namesake NAS bottling, which if memory serves was initially 40% ABV - I could be wrong, but it's currently bottled at 43% regardless. They've branched out significantly since those early days, and there's now a stout cask finish, a tequila cask finish, a sherry cask finish, and the rum cask finish & high strength bottlings that we're looking at here. None of these whiskies carry an age statement and none will tell you which distillery they're sourced from, although all are single malts from one distillery on Islay, and as far as I can find they don't switch between distilleries like some of these mystery bottlings. Obviously like the majority (but not all) of undisclosed Islay single malts Smokehead is most likely Caol Ila, being the largest distillery on the island and the easiest to source for independent bottlings. But Ian McLeod is being tight-lipped about the details, preferring to focus on basic tasting notes and cask finishes instead, not to mention the very "rock & roll" marketing angles & packaging designs. 

The two whiskies I'm reviewing here came from a sample pack of 3 x 50ml samples featuring the standard Smokehead, Rum Rebel, and High Voltage expressions. This pack can be found for around $30 AUD on these shores, which is a good deal considering that these whiskies are bottled at 43%, 46%, and 58% ABV respectively. I must admit the Australian pricing on the full-size bottles is quite reasonable as well; $80 for the standard bottling, $107 for the rum cask finish, and $113 for the high strength. Presumably that's because they're unofficially exclusive to our largest retailer, so there's no real competition on the market since any opposition would struggle to match the pricing. The whiskies themselves are probably quite young, but young Caol Ila can be very enjoyable when it's been looked after. Hopefully that's the case here. Unfortunately neither of these Smokehead bottlings mentions chill filtration or added colouring, and European labels do carry the dreaded "Mit Farbstoff" ("with dye" in German) artificial colouring warning required by the German additive regulations. I realise that the hardcore whisky geek is not the main target market for these whiskies, but would it really hurt to be a little more open? Even if it was only on the website rather than the packaging itself. Surely since these whiskies are bottled at 46% and above there'd be no need to chill filter them, but Ian McLeod don't deem it necessary to tell us. Which is the same issue I had with Glengoyne Legacy at 48%, where the first batch stated that it was non-chill filtered, but it was omitted from the subsequent batches. On the other hand the company's single malts from Tamdhu Distillery do declare that they're natural colour and un-chill filtered (where applicable) on their labelling and packaging, so why not implement those declarations across your whole single malt range Ian McLeod Distillers? It think it's time you got on the transparency train with both feet, rather than just the one toe...

We'll start with the 'Rum Rebel' Smokehead, which is bottled at 46% ABV. We don't know an age, we don't know a distillery, we don't know if it's coloured or chill filtered, but we do know that it's been finished in Caribbean rum casks for an undisclosed period of time. A rum cask finish isn't as rebellious these days as it was a few years ago, but I suppose the packaging and design are about as far from the tweed & tartan Scotch whisky crowd as you can get, so that's the cause they've chosen for this rebel. Let's see how it goes. 

Smokehead Rum Rebel, NAS, 46%. Islay, Scotland.

Undisclosed Islay single malt, finished in Caribbean rum casks. Unknown colouring or chill filtration. 

Colour: Gold. 

Nose: Fresh, sweet & coastal. Salted butter out of the fridge, vanilla essence, green peppercorns. Fatty smoked bacon, uncooked. Touches of sweetened lime juice & green banana, even banana chips. Drying muddy oyster shells, and warm sea salt. Gentle ashy smoke around the edges. 

Texture: Light-medium weight. Rich, syrupy, gently coastal. Slight touch of heat but pleasant. 

Taste: Dried green banana (banana chips), big pinch of sea salt, brown sugar, green chilli flakes, and vanilla buttercream icing / frosting. 

Finish: Short-medium length. Syrupy sweetness, with the cold salted butter and uncooked fatty smoked bacon returning. Dried oyster shells, green chilli flakes and that dried green banana (banana chips) to finish. 

Score: 3 out of 5. 

Notes: Certainly sitting on the sweeter side of the spectrum for malt whisky, and the rum casks have definitely made their mark, albeit without going too far and dominating the spirit. I'd say it's quite a well balanced whisky in fact, not particularly complex but easy drinking and enjoyable. Solid value for money as well. 

On to the big brother, the (only) high ABV version of Smokehead, dubbed High Voltage. There's no mention of cask strength on the packaging or website, nor is there any mention of cask type so it's presumably matured in refill hogsheads. As with the previous one there's no mention of colouring or chill filtration. Based on appearance I'm certain that is has been dosed with E150, and while it'd basically be pointless to chill filter a whisky bottled at 58% ABV we don't know what they don't tell us. Let's see how it goes!

Smokehead High Voltage, NAS, 58%. Islay, Scotland.

Undisclosed Islay single malt. No information given on distillery, age, cask type, colouring, or chill filtration. 

Colour: Amber. Certainly some E150a here I'd say. 

Nose: Orange citrus, metallic, gently smoky. Fresh orange, damp rusty metal (e.g. old iron sheeting in the rain), black pepper and cayenne powder. Burnt bacon, toffee, gentle ashy smoke, touch of acidic pineapple and blowtorched herbs. 

Texture: Medium weight. Oily, hot, ashy & metallic, and cloyingly sweet. Noticeable heat

Taste: Big ashy smoke, fades into that rusty metal again, artificial vanilla syrup, sugary toffee. Distractingly saccharine and cloying. Sweet orange cordial. 

Finish: Medium length. Spirity heat carries on for quite a while, spiky. Some rough casks in the mix here I think. Still has that artificial sweetness too. Sweet orange cordial, smoked bacon and gentle ashy smoke underneath. 

Score: 2.5 out of 5. But only just. 

Notes: Too cloyingly sweet for my tastes, and also noticeably hot & rough - which is unusual for a Caol Ila. That strange metallic note is a little distracting too, and I get the impression that this whisky would actually taste quite bitter and even hotter/rougher if it wasn't so sweet. I'm not sure where that distracting level of extra sweetness is coming from either, Caol Ila's spirit is naturally quite sweet but I don't recall tasting any that have taken it this far, to the point where it comes off as saccharine, artificial and almost chemical. I'd almost think there were some cheap sweet wine casks in the mix here, but I'm sure they'd make more noise about it if that were the case. Granted, Smokehead High Voltage is cheaper than the opposition on the high strength mystery Islay shelves, e.g. Port Askaig 100 Proof, Scarabus Batch Strength, and Finlaggan Cask Strength, but in my opinion this Smokehead can't match any of those in terms of balance, complexity, and just outright quality.

Overall Notes: Well I'm obviously preferring the Rum Rebel between these two. And by a larger margin than the 5-point scoring system can get across. Sure, both aren't particularly complex whiskies, but that's not the goal here, and it's not uncommon in young Caol Ila either. These Smokehead releases are sweet, straightforward, gently smoky, crowd-pleasing whiskies at reasonable prices, and there's definitely a big market for such a thing. 

Cheers!

Port Askaig 9 Year Old New Zealand Exclusive Whisky Review!

A New Zealand exclusive Port Askaig single cask bottled for Whisky Galore / Dramfest. And it's a rum cask finish, which means this is probably a rum cask finished Caol Ila. And that's quite the rarity! 

Port Askaig is one of the independent bottling brands from Elixir Distillers, formerly owners of The Whisky Exchange, which is now owned by Pernod Ricard; and now the owners of Tormore Distillery, which was formerly owned by Pernod Ricard. Funny how these things pan out...Aside from Port Askaig Elixir also brings us independent whisky bottlings like Elements of Islay and Single Malts of Scotland and also Black Tot rum, with their own Islay distillery named Portintruan under construction just outside the village of Port Ellen. The Port Askaig brand only consists of Islay single malts, but is technically one of the "mystery"  undisclosed single malt Scotch whiskies. There is no Port Askaig Distillery, but there is a distillery in the village of Port Askaig that goes by the name of Caol Ila. Not all Port Askaig bottlings are Caol Ila mind you, but the two permanent bottlings in the range, the 8-year old at 45.8% and the delicious 100 Proof at 57.1% ABV (110 Proof and bottled at 55% in the US) are. The rest of the Port Askaig bottlings are limited releases to varying degrees, sometimes Caol Ila and sometimes from other distilleries, even including 45-year old unpeated Bunnahabhain in the past. Since Caol Ila is Islay's largest distillery with a capacity of over 6-million litres (ramped up from 4-million a few years ago) and is underutilised as a single malt by owner Diageo, it is therefore one of the easiest to source for independent bottling and/or blending. So it stands to mathematical reason that the majority of the anonymous & undisclosed Islay independent bottlings will be Caol Ila, regardless of which label they're wearing. That's certainly not a negative though, this distillery produces fantastic whisky, and if it weren't for the independent bottlings it would be difficult to experience "proper" Caol Ila as a single malt. There are rumours that Diageo are going to slow or even stop the on-selling of Caol Ila to brokers and independent bottlers, but let's just hope that isn't true. If it is, they'd better pick their act up and give this distillery the attention it deserves; i.e. bring back the cask strength!

Why am I reviewing a New Zealand exclusive bottling when I'm not in New Zealand? Well, firstly because a generous resident of NZ sent me a sample. But also because this is a rum cask finished Port Askaig, which is the first time I've seen such a thing in the southern hemisphere. Which means there's a strong chance that this is a rum cask finished Caol Ila, which is the first time I've seen such a thing - Google tells me it's been done before by a couple of much smaller independent bottlers, but I'm yet to see any of those examples, let alone try them. We don't see many rum cask finishes from Islay in general, but in my experience it can work beautifully with peated whisky when done well. Ardbeg have dabbled in rum finishes in the past with 2019's (lacklustre) Drum release and the (much better) Committee Release version, while Kilchoman have released some excellent rum finished single casks. Further afield some larger producers have started delving into rum casks recently, including Diageo with their special release Talisker 8-year old in 2020 and more recently the Cardhu 16-year old special release in 2022. With more traditional finishing casks (i.e. sherry) constantly becoming scarcer and more expensive, and with the large corporates now buying Spanish bodegas to secure their own cask supplies, we'll continue to see more unusual cask maturations and/or finishes in Scotch whisky, from mezcal to cognac and further afield. This shift has been spurred on by the changes made to the Scotch whisky regulations back in 2019. Crucially, oak is still the only permitted wood type, and the previous contents must be barrel aged in its traditional production, i.e. you can't throw some vodka or gin in a cask and then finish your Scotch whisky in that cask, because those spirits are not traditionally barrel aged. If you do you can't label it as Scotch whisky, and you can expect a visit from the SWA. Which is a good thing; without these regulations you'd have chaos. Look at what's been happening in Australian whisky with soft drink casks and Christmas mince pie casks for the worst case scenario, let alone just about every producer adding more unnecessary sugar to their whisky by throwing their 2-year old spirit, often already too sweet and too woody, in maple syrup casks...

This Port Askaig rum cask finish is a single cask New Zealand exclusive, selected and bottled in "collaboration" with Whisky Galore in Christchurch - the importer, distributor and retailer behind the biannual Dramfest whisky festival. This is a 9-year old whisky, matured for 7-years in a refill bourbon cask and then finished for 2-years in a first-fill rum barrel, bottled at a cask strength of 58.2% without chill filtration or added colouring. There's essentially no point in talking about price with this one since New Zealand plays by a different set of rules to Australia, but I can't help it. Retail pricing is just $112 NZD, the equivalent of around $105 AUD or $70 USD. That's an incredible price for a cask strength single cask Islay, let alone an exclusive bottling. Other reasons & factors (of which there are many) aside, the New Zealand government charges almost half the amount of alcohol excise on spirits than the Australian government does here - currently $60.54 NZD (around $57 AUD) per litre of 100% alcohol vs. $97.90 AUD (around $104.50 NZD) per litre at 100% alcohol. And the rate there is increased every 12-months there, as opposed to every 6-months here. Sigh. While we're on the subject, in the U.S. according to the TTB site their federal spirits excise rate is just $13.50 USD... per GALLON (that's 3.78L) at 100% alcohol. That's not including any tariffs or state taxes, which are significant, but even so, double sigh. Moving right along, it's time for a dram...

Port Askaig 9-Year Old, Rum Cask Finish Single Cask, 58.2%. Islay, Scotland.

Exclusive to New Zealand. Anonymous Islay single malt (likely Caol Ila), distilled 2013, matured in refill bourbon for 7-years, finished in first-fill rum barrel for 2-years. Cask #4432. Non-chill filtered, natural colour. 

Colour: Pale gold. 

Nose: A little sharp, vegetal, ashy, and sweet. Grassy malt with a touch of smoked ham (Caol Ila's calling card), thick boot polish (paste/cream, not liquid), and slight aniseed. Chilli salt, smoked pork rinds, and sea spray. Bandages and a hint of oyster shells around the edges. There are some subtle tropical fruits - banana & papaya, I'd say - with a light caramel syrup, but the rum cask certainly isn't shouting at me. 

Texture: Medium weight. Syrupy, ashy, sweet & grassy. No heat, nicely warming. 

Taste: More thick boot polish & chilli salt before Caol Ila's sweet grassy spirit comes through, bringing a wave of ashy smoke with it. The light caramel syrup & banana around the edges again. Bandages on the exhale. There's certainly a denser, more syrupy sweetness here than your typical Caol Ila, but it's still quite a subtle influence. 

Finish: Medium length. The ashy smoke and sweet syrup (maybe even cane juice?) continue, then the chilli salt - but it's green chilli now rather than red - and boot polish make a fleeting appearance. Grassy malt and a tough of woody (bitter) herbs & aniseed. There's possibly a slight "rum funk" underneath that syrupy sweetness, e.g. overripe banana and brown sugar, but that could be the power of suggestion. 

Score: 3.5 out of 5. 

Notes: Well the rum cask influence is certainly subtle, but that's not a negative. In fact this is a great example of a cask finish done well, where it integrates with the spirit rather than dominating it, boosting some aspects (sweetness in this case) and adding an extra flare without becoming distracting or obstructive. Most rum cask finished peated whiskies that I've tried do seem to lean that way, unlike some other cask types that seem to want all the attention for themselves. Casks aside, this is another tasty Caol Ila from Port Askaig / Elixir Distillers who certainly know their way around the spirit from this Islay workhorse. As one of Diageo's dependables the spirit is extremely consistent, but it does need to be handled with care by bottlers. Along with Elixir, Gordon & MacPhail and Signatory Vintage are in that same grouping I think. Diageo are up there too, they just don't want us to know they are. Their Feis Ile bottlings and distillery exclusives tend to be great spirit-driven Caol Ilas. Whereas some other bottlers think it's Laphroaig and end up bashing it over the head with cask influence - especially if first-fill sherry is involved. This rum cask finish Port Askaig is a great example, and it's an absolute steal at the NZ pricing.

Cheers!

Rosebank 30 Year Old Whisky Review!

The legendary Rosebank, the recently rediscovered gem of the Lowlands region. New owners, new releases, and (eventually) new spirit!

Before you ask, yes, this is an expensive bottle of whisky, and despite only being a 2021 release it's largely sold out. At $3,000 AUD on these shores when it was released a couple of years ago, it was already out of many whisky drinkers' reaches. My own included. That was a high price when this whisky was released nearly three years ago, but in the sorry state of affairs that is the current global whisky market, $3,000 for a 30-year old cask strength official bottling from a closed (but re-opening) distillery is actually reasonable. I know that's quite a bitter pill, but it's true. As an example the most recent of Diageo's Port Ellen releases, a 40-year old batch of 1,380 bottles, is priced at $12,500 here in Australia and £8,000 for those in the UK. 

Unlike Port Ellen, Rosebank managed to survive the wholesale slaughter of the early 1980s. In fact it was more highly regarded at the time, but that wasn't enough to save it from the accountants red pen. The doors were closed in June 1993, over 150-years after they'd first opened, when Diageo-predecessor United Distillers elected to close the distillery rather than spending two million pounds on necessary upgrades. Here in 2023 three legendary dead distilleries are being rebuilt and reopened, in fact Diageo's Brora is already up & running after nearly four decades spent gathering dust. Port Ellen is still under Diageo's ownership, but the site required the most work out of this dead distillery trifecta, compounded by its remote location and also the pandemic. Rosebank was slightly better off since the distillery buildings were still standing on the original site in Falkirk roughly 45-minutes north-west of Edinburgh, but the resurrection has been very long-winded, and at the time of writing the distillery is still under construction. Falkirk is now more widely known for it's "Falkirk Wheel" rotating boat lift and the Kelpies sculptures, but to the more devout whisky lovers it's still known as the home of Rosebank. Once the new distillery is finally up & running, it will be again!

Owing to its convenient location on the banks of the Forth & Clyde Canal, the neglected & unloved Rosebank site was sold to the government group that managed the country's waterways. The distillery buildings soon fell into disrepair, and the copper stills & mash tun were partially stolen (cut apart and stolen over a period of days/weeks) by metal thieves in the late 2000s. Diageo still owned the Rosebank brand and sporadically released some of the remaining casks as official bottlings, including a Flora & Fauna bottling that was launched in the late 1990s and concluding with a 21-year old cask strength in 2014. Rosebank was & is quite a unique distillery among the Lowlanders since it used 100% triple distillation combined with worm tub condensers; the former giving a lighter and more floral character, and the latter giving a textural, more robust character. In late 2017 Ian McLeod Distillers managed to purchase both the brand and the remaining stock from Diageo, and also bought the distillery site and buildings from British Waterways. Ian McLeod are behind Glengoyne & Tamdhu distilleries and own independent bottling brands such as Smokehead and Sheep Dip. In late-2019 they set about building a brand new Rosebank Distillery on the original site, while keeping some of the original structure where possible, although building works didn't actually commence until the early 2021. As you'd hope and expect they've installed the same brewing & distillation equipment that the original distillery had, with wooden washbacks, three new copper pot stills built to the original specifications (pictured above), and of course those crucial worm tub condensers. The new stills were installed in mid-2022, with eight new wooden washbacks following a few months later, but the new distillery still hasn't fired into life here in April 2023, over five years after the new owners purchased the distillery. Surely it can't be far off now! 

In the meantime Ian McLeod has been releasing the old stock that was purchased from Diageo, obviously distilled prior to the distillery closure in 1993. So far that's included two large batch releases; a 30-year old in late-2020 followed by a 31-year old in late-2022, plus a travel exclusive 1990 "Vintage Release" and a couple of single cask bottlings. We're looking at the 30-year old bottling in this review, titled "Release One" which was distilled in 1990 and released in late-2022. It's a vatting of 62% refill sherry butts and 38% refill bourbon hogsheads, yielding 4,350 bottles at a cask strength of 48.6% ABV and bottled without chill filtration or added colour. This 30-year old "Release One" bottling is sold out in Australia, but the 31-year old second release is readily available for the same price. Supposedly that second batch will be the last official bottling until the new distillery finally kicks into life, which probably means there'll be a commemorative bottling released when that happens. I've been lucky enough to try a few examples of Rosebank thus far, but this 30-year old will be the oldest to date thanks to a generous fellow whisky geek. Let's see how it goes!

Rosebank 30-year old "Release One", 48.6%. Lowlands, Scotland.

Triple distilled, 62% refill sherry butts, 38% refill bourbon hogsheads. Distilled 1990, bottled 2020. First "global release" (non-single cask) from new owners. Non-chill filtered, natural colour. 4,350 bottles. 

Colour: Full gold. 

Nose: Fresh, floral, malty. Sweet thick honey, oat cakes, sweet floral perfume. Lovely rich maltiness, candied lemon & sweet orange rind. Powdered ginger, tinned fruit in syrup. Soft spicy & nutty oak further in. 

Texture: Medium-heavy weight. Rich & oily. Malty, fruity, no heat at all. 

Taste: More thick sweet honey, rich warm maltiness, lemon peel & orange rind (less sweet here).  Tinned fruit in syrup again - peaches in particular. Those sweet & floral notes are around the edges here, it's more about the malt & citrus on the palate. Not overly complex perhaps, but lovely.

Finish: Medium length. Black pepper fading into powdered ginger. Damp porridge, before the orange rind & lemon peel kick in again. Tinned fruit - peach again, maybe some pear now - and that warm maltiness to finish.

Score: 4 out of 5. Close to a 4.5, though. 

Notes: Another delicious Rosebank. No surprises there! What is surprising though is how fresh & malty this whisky is after 30-years in oak. And that's the beauty of Rosebank, the magic is in the contradictions - triple distillation for a lighter spirit, but worm tub condensers for more weight & texture which help it withstand longer ageing. Refill casks too of course, which is a winning recipe with any Lowlands whisky at an advanced age. No need for any fancy cask finishes or extra wood influence, absolutely nothing needs covering up or enhancing here! I suppose given the choice I'd like a little more length on the finish and maybe a little more complexity as well, but I'm picking nits again. This whisky has certainly been put together very well. Great balance, lovely freshness & clarity. 

I look forward to the "new" Rosebank releases in a decade or so - hopefully the distillery is up & running soon so that milestone is brought a little closer. Thanks to the generous bottle owner for this sample!

Cheers!

Cadenhead's Littlemill 22 Year Old Whisky Review!

My first Littlemill! This is a dead distillery rarity from the Lowlands region with a long & chequered history. There are still the odd independent bottlings around, but stocks are certainly certainly dwindling. 

Image from whisky.com

Littlemill is one of the lesser-known lost distilleries in Scotch whisky, even among fans of the Lowlands region where only Rosebank & St. Magdalene are held in particularly high esteem. I've previously gone into more detail on these oft-forgotten dead distilleries here, but suffice to say that while most of them were closed for a reason, surviving casks can still be lovely "old school" whiskies here in the modern era. Littlemill distillery dates back to 1772 on the banks of the River Clyde, although records from that time are understandably sketchy, with  the distillery passing through a slew of different owners even following production ceasing in 1992 and it's final decommissioning in 1994. In 1996 the site was sold to property developers who set about dismantling it, and the remaining buildings were destroyed by fire in 2004. The Littlemill brand and the remaining official stock is now owned by Loch Lomond Group, with the most recent release being a 45-year old bottled in 2022 and selling for $11,000 USD. Speaking of which, the owners like to claim that Littlemill was "the oldest distillery in Scotland", which doesn't make sense to me because a) it was dismantled over 25-years ago and completely destroyed a few years later, and b) it's beaten by Glenturret anyway which dates back to 1763 and is still in production. I suppose that erroneous claim helps the LLG marketing department sell their bottlings to unsuspecting buyers, but it's misleading at best. As with many of these lesser-known dead distilleries there is still the occasional independent bottling of Littlemill released, particularly by Cadenhead's, with more reasonable pricing. Independent supplies are dwindling for obvious reasons, but there's no word on how many casks of Littlemill are still out there.

Littlemill practiced triple distillation until 1931 when hybrid pot stills with rectifying heads (pictured below) were installed. These were early precursors to the somewhat-controversial Lomond still which would be invented twenty years later. Like most users of "hybrid" pot stills Littlemill was able to produce multiple styles of spirit; the lighter and unpeated namesake Littlemill, a heavier lightly peated "Dunglass", and a heavily peated "Dumbuck". These were only produced until the 1970s, and most was sold to blenders of course, so single malt examples are extremely rare now. The use of hybrid stills that were similar to Lomond stills - a.k.a. "straight-necked pot stills" - and multiple spirit types will probably remind you of Loch Lomond Distillery, which as it happens is where the Littlemill stills wound up when the distillery was dismantled. Littlemill was located only eight miles away from Loch Lomond Distillery, albeit on opposite sides of the Highland line, with the former being a Lowland distillery and the latter a Highland. These similarities aren't too surprising though, because Loch Lomond Distillery was actually built by the company which owned Littlemill at the time, in 1966. A couple of interesting factoids here; Littlemill was the first Scotch whisky distillery to be licensed to a woman, Jane MacGregor, from 1823-1839, and in 1840 the distillery was sold to Hector Henderson, who would go on to build Caol Ila in 1846. 

The Littlemill we're looking at today is a 22-year old independent bottling from Cadenhead's, Batch code 14/392, distilled in 1992 and bottled in 2014. It was matured in ex-bourbon hogsheads, and 558 bottles were released at a cask strength of 53.7% ABV without chill filtration or added colouring. This bottling was part of Cadenhead's "Small Batch" series of cask strength bottlings which were sadly discontinued and superseded by the 46% ABV "Original Collection" series a few years ago. The sample for this review came from a very generous friend over in New Zealand who managed to get the bottle for a reasonable price at auction, and then opened it to help celebrate her recent birthday. Tasting a single malt from a dead distillery is certainly a great way to mark any occasion! While we've exchanged samples a few times now we've never actually met in person, so sharing such a special whisky like this with me is greatly appreciated. With a premise like that, and with this being my first Littlemill, I obviously had to review it! I know I've almost pigeonholed myself with the title of this blog, but I do also love unpeated malts, especially a St. Magdalene / Linlithgow or a Rosebank when it comes to the Lowlands region - when I've been lucky enough to taste them. I'm expecting this Littlemill will be right up there as well. Let's see how it goes!

Cadenhead's Littlemill 22-year old, 53.7%. Lowlands, Scotland.

Distilled 1992, matured in ex-bourbon hogsheads, bottled 2014 at cask strength. Batch code 14/392, 558 bottles. Non-chill filtered, natural colour.

Colour: Full gold.

Nose: Creamy, citric, grassy. Freshly cut damp grass, milk bottle lollies, rich tea biscuits (with currants). Lime cordial, the natural sort (e.g. Bickford's), and a touch of candle wax. White pepper, lemon peel, and green apple coming through with more time. Touches of concrete dust & baking spices around the edges. 

Texture: Medium-heavy weight. Rich, spicy, grassy, citric. Slight heat but very pleasant. 

Taste: Malty & grassy entry. Black pepper here, and more rich tea biscuits (with currants). Lime cordial, candle wax, and milk bottle lollies again. Dry grass / hay now, and more baking spices and dried fruit coming through - dried lemon peel, and currants again. 

Finish: Medium-long length. Lime cordial, black pepper, baking spices, dried lemon peel & currants. Buttery pastry and a touch of creamy white chocolate, before pencil shavings, cut grass & white pepper round things out. 

Score: 4 out of 5. 

Notes: Very interesting, and very enjoyable! Much more richly flavoured & oily than I expected. We're still in the Lowlands with that grassy & malty backbone, but there's a richer texture and a great complexity in this Littlemill and I certainly wouldn't call it "clean" or "light". Quite an unusual flavour & aroma combination as well, particularly on the nose in fact. That citrus tang is great, lime cordial & dried lemon peel, and a very nice malty & creamy profile. It's certainly very different from the St. Magdalene / Linlithgow that I've been lucky enough to try, and Rosebank as well for that matter - although you'd expect that with the triple distillation. This is much richer, heavier, oilier, and it's very tasty! We're certainly going to miss these cask strength Cadenhead's bottlings that we used to take for granted before they were taken from us. I think there might be a song lyric in there somewhere... 

Thanks to the owner for sending the sample over!

Cheers!

Hazelburn 15 Year Old (2022) Whisky Review!

Even Campbeltown fans often overlook Hazelburn, thinking of it as the "weaker" of Springbank's three spirits. Yes, it's unpeated and triple-distilled, so it's generally a little cleaner and more refined than the namesake Springbank spirit. But there's nothing remotely "weak" about Hazelburn!

Triple distillation has an image problem. It's mostly associated with Irish whiskey, despite the fact that a significant proportion of Irish whiskey is actually double-distilled. By volume, most of those triple-distilled Irish whiskeys are bottled at 40% ABV, chill filtered and artificially coloured, and the same applies to Auchentoshan back in Scotland. This does not help with the perception that triple-distillation means less flavour and less character, particularly when blenders are using these whiskies/whiskeys to create light, bland, inoffensive, and "smooth" (shudder) products. The fact is that triple distillation is further-refining the spirit, so all things being equal a triple-distilled spirit will be lighter in flavour and texture than a double-distilled spirit. But it's no guarantee of better quality, and it doesn't have to mean that it is lighter in character. The Redbreast range is a good example in Irish terms, and I'd point to Benromach's Triple Distilled release (reviewed here) as a great example in Scotch terms. It was bottled at a good strength - higher than most of their bottlings - and was also lightly peated. Benromach produce characterful whiskies, and in that regard the triple-distilled bottling was no different. The same applies to Springbank and to its triple-distilled spirit Hazelburn, which is the only unpeated spirit that this Campbeltown distillery produces. I suppose that could be part of why it's not as lusted after as their other two brands, although you'll struggle to find evidence of that disparity in today's secondary market. 

Glancing at the photo above, you can see that just like the heavily-peated & double-distilled Longrow and the lightly-peated and 2.5-times distilled Springbank, Hazelburn goes through the distillery's direct-fired wash still, and also the first spirit still / low wines still which is equipped with a traditional worm tub condenser. These two pieces of equipment are partly responsible for the character that is present in this distillery's whisky, or rather in the spirit itself. The obvious difference with Hazelburn is that all of that worm tub condensed spirit then goes through the third still, meaning less spirit yield at the end, but with a higher ABV. Obviously the size & design of the stills (and fill levels) & condensers have an important role to play here, particularly regarding reflux and copper contact, as do the cut points, which are the portion of the distillation run that is captured to become new make spirit. While the cut points for Hazelburn are higher in ABV due to the third distillation they're also fairly wide, taken from 79%-63% ABV. As an example, the aforementioned triple-distilled Auchentoshan only collects from 82.5-80% ABV, giving a much lighter and more refined spirit, while the remainder of the run (the foreshots and feints) is sent back into the second still / intermediate still for re-distillation. That distillery somehow still manages to make a rough, fire-y spirit, but that's a story for another time... The wider spirit cut used for Hazelburn effectively means more feints in the spirit, which all other things being equal means more spirit character - you could even call it intentional and desirable roughness! For reference here, a typical double-distilled malt spirit in Scotland would be cut somewhere in the low-70s down to the mid-60s, while Springbank's double-distilled Longrow cuts from 69-58% ABV, and the 2.5-times distilled Springbank cuts from 76-60% ABV. Again, intentional and desirable roughness, and arguably a more characterful spirit - provided you don't go too early or too late. 

Testament to Hazelburn's spirit character is that it holds up surprisingly well in a multitude of cask types, and much like Longrow it's often matured or finished in first-fill red wine or sherry casks. The Hazelburn spirit is lighter on the sulphur and the "Campbeltown funk" than most Springbank or Longrow whisky, so it tends to be "cleaner" and much less divisive when combined with active sherry casks. It does also work well in bourbon casks given some age (one brilliant example reviewed here), and even in small casks as shown in the Rundlets & Kilderkins from 2014. But I must admit I've never really loved the standard / flagship 10-year old bottling. Back in the day when we could actually buy almost any of these bottles with ease, I'd skip the 10-year old altogether and consider the now-discontinued 12-year old Sherry Cask as the entry-level Hazelburn. As far as limited Hazelburn releases there's typically one per year, which much like Longrow tends to have either red wine or sherry cask influence. The 2022 release that I'm reviewing here is a 2006 vintage 15-year old that was fully matured in fresh (which is Springbank-ese for first fill) Oloroso sherry casks and bottled at a cask strength of 54.2% ABV. 9,000 bottles were released in April 2022, but the Australian allocation only arrived in late January 2023 and lasted around 45 seconds as per usual. Retail pricing here was circa $250 AUD, although as usual some retailers decided to bump that up - some actually decided to double it, and they should be removed from our importer's allocation sheet. One of the worst offenders in the country for this sort of thing, who is basically a flipper with a liquor license and website, still has it in stock at the time of writing; for $650 AUD. Please, for the love of god, nobody buy it. Let them crumble into dust with it still available on their website. The inevitable auction listings will be cheaper than that. Moving right along...

Hazelburn 15 Year Old (2022), 54.2%. Campbeltown, Scotland.

Distilled 12/2006, fully matured in first-fill Oloroso sherry casks, bottled 4/2022. 9,000 bottles. 

Colour: Very dark amber. 

Nose: Rich, sweet, savoury & sherried. Tons of salted dark chocolate, almost fudgy. Sweet raisins & plums, salted hazelnut & walnut, a few drops of good quality aged balsamic vinegar. Touches of sweet pastry and musty warehouse (dunnage) around the edges. Date syrup, bitter orange dipped in dark chocolate sauce, fresh sweet red apple with a spoonful of cinnamon sugar. 

Texture: Medium weight. Rich, syrupy, cleanly sherried, turning acidic & lightly astringent. No heat at all. 

Taste: Rich & fruity entry with that red apple & cinnamon sugar, raisins, and bitter orange. Salted hazelnuts & walnuts again, touch of leather, and salted dark chocolate fudge. Aged balsamic following close behind. 

Finish: Long length. More acidic and light astringent here. More balsamic vinegar, and those roasted & salted hazelnuts & walnuts again. Rich dark chocolate, date syrup, and bitter orange. Musty warehouse (dunnage), baking spices, and that sweet & crisp red apple again. 

Score: 4.5 out of 5. 

Notes: Fantastic. This is the best sherry cask Hazelburn that I've tried to date, and it's comfortably in my top three Hazelburn overall. For the record the other two are an 18-year old ex-bourbon cage bottling and the sauternes cask Society bottling, although the latest 21-year old is also a close contender. This 15-year old is quite heavily sherried obviously, but in an integrated & measured way where the spirit is still coming through nicely - even after 15 years in first-fill sherry casks. Call me crazy, but I actually think there are shades of the old discontinued Tobermory 15 sherry finish in here, albeit with more depth and with less funk - the particularly sulphur averse tended to struggle with that Tobermory, but they should be fine with this Hazelburn. The depth and character in this Hazelburn are really fantastic, and it easily beats the other wine cask & sherry cask examples that I've tasted to date.

Call me crazy again, but I think Hazelburn works better in first-fill sherry casks than Springbank or Longrow. Refill sherry is a different story, but with fresh & assertive Oloroso casks like these the cleaner and more refined Hazelburn spirit seems to really shine. Note that I've said "cleaner" and "more refined", not "clean" and "refined" - this is still a Campbeltown malt, and it's still a Springbank whisky. Like I said up top, there's nothing remotely "weak" about Hazelburn!

Cheers!

Old Master Spirits XXO Armagnac Review!

No, that's not two kisses and a hug. Sorry to disappoint you! XXO stands for "Extra Extra Old", referring to a brandy that is at least 14-years old, but without giving a vintage or age statement. Read on!

We're entering the murky world of brandy/armagnac/cognac age "classifications"! There are eight different terms used in the cognac & armagnac industries including a couple of unofficial terms, but the three that are most commonly seen are VS, VSOP, and XO. Rather than actual age statements, these relatively loose terms range from the 2-year minimum age VS "Very Special", to the 4-year minimum VSOP "Very Superior Old Pale", through to the 10-year minimum age XO "Extra Old". Prior to 2018 that was the highest official classification, meaning if you wanted to release a 50-year old cognac or armagnac with one of these classifications on it, then XO was as far as you could go. XO is still considered to be the "cream of the crop" among many brandy drinkers. As with an age statement on a Scotch whisky the age classification of a cognac or armagnac can only refer to the youngest component contained in the spirit. As we've talked about before, an age statement on a cognac or armagnac can legally include time in glass vessels as well as time in cask - so a 4-year old brandy may have spent one year in oak and then three years in an inert glass demijohn. However, one advantage to these age classifications is that they can only include time spent in oak, and not time in glass. So an 8-year old cognac or armagnac that then spent another two years "ageing" in glass cannot be given an XO classification, because it only spent 8-years in oak casks rather than the minimum of 10-years. In 2018 the brandy industry increased the minimum age of the XO classification from 6-years to 10-years, and they added the XXO "Extra Extra Old" classification for spirits that are a minimum of 14-years old.

What we're looking at today is an XXO armagnac from Melbourne's Old Master Spirits, who have previously brought us the likes of vintage-stated 51-year old single cask cognacs and two 39-year old single cask armagnacs - reviewed here and here, along with more general armagnac information. Most of the "luxury product" big brand cognacs and armagnacs are blended products with spirits taken from many different producers, and are chill filtered, artificially coloured, and artificially flavoured with wood flavouring ("boise") and/or added sugar. I've delved into this sordid state of affairs in more detail here, so let's just say that the cognac industry's marketing departments have a lot to answer for... Thankfully Old Master Spirits are proper spirits enthusiasts, so they steer clear of those shenanigans. This latest "XXO" release is a single cask & single estate armagnac, which is cask strength, unblended, unfiltered, and unadulterated - no added caramel, or sugar, or wood flavouring. Just how any brandy purist would want it! This being Old Master's tenth release though, they decided to forego the vintage and age statements, instead giving us only the same age information as many of the gigantic corporate "luxury" brands do; simply the XXO classification, reflecting a minimum age of 14-years. I have it on good authority that this single cask armagnac is considerably older than that, but they're playing their cards close to their chest on this one. Just to mess with the "VSOP" and "XO" crowd even further, and as we'd expect from Old Master Spirits, there's no luxury price tag attached to this bottling. Retail pricing is just $159 AUD! 

This latest armagnac release hails from the Bas Armagnac region, specifically from Chateau Garreau, the 17th century estate pictured above which is located an hour's drive south-east of Bordeaux in southern France. Mr. Charles Garreau purchased the Gayrosse estate in 1919, changing the name to Chateau Garreau and installing a new armagnac still - which is still in use today! His grandson is now the current Master Distiller, over a hundred years later. This Old Master Spirits XXO Bas armagnac was aged entirely in a French oak cask from Gascony, matured entirely in the Chateau's unique 19th century dirt-walled underground cellar. Like most older brandies this 100% Baco grape armagnac was initially filled into a new virgin French oak cask before being transferred into a larger, older refill cask for long-term maturation. The cask yielded only 170 x 500ml bottles at a cask strength of 44.8% ABV. This tenth release from Old Master Spirits will be released to their subscribers on Wednesday the 29th of March, with the general release at 7pm (AEDT) on Thursday the 30th. Deni from Old Master Spirits was generous enough to send through a sample, obligation free, but it'd be rude not to share the XXO (no, they're still not kisses & hugs, sorry) love, wouldn't it? 

Colour: Amber. 

Nose: Rich, fruity & sweet. Stewed dates, molasses, leather, currants, orange peel. Touch of solvent (varnish & acetone) around the edges but fleeting. Thick & dark toffee sauce, oily builder's putty, touch of rum & raisin ice cream, dark chocolate, and warm wood spices. 

Texture: Medium weight. Warm, soft, velvety & fruity. No heat whatsoever. 

Taste: Sweet, warm & rich. Molasses, rum & raisin ice cream, oily varnish, baking spices. Dark chocolate mousse, currants, orange peel, tinned peaches in syrup. Stewed dates again. 

Finish: Medium length. Wood spices, warm toffee sauce, more dark chocolate mousse. Soft old leather, tinned peaches, currants, and oily varnish. 

Score: 4 out of 5. 

Notes: Lovely stuff. Another delicious brandy from Old Master! This one alternates between an old leather & wooden armchair and a slice of x-mas pudding with toffee sauce, and dark chocolate mousse with sweet stone fruit. And it's extremely easy-drinking, without sacrificing weight or texture. The amount of wood influence is spot-on for my brandy tastes, this cask has clearly been well cared-for and well-managed. Like the good NAS whiskies out there, I have no complaints about not knowing the exact vintage or age here. The liquid is what really matters, and this is another great "malternative", especially at $159 AUD. As mentioned, there are only 170 x 500ml bottles, and it's releasing on the 29th of March for subscribers with the general release on the 30th. All of Old Master's releases have sold out very quickly, and I'm guessing this one will be no different. So don't snooze on this one brandy fans!

Thanks as always to Old Master Spirits for the sample for this review, and a big congratulations on their tenth release. Here's to the next ten, and beyond!

Cheers!