Single Malt Whisky Tasting - 29th February 2008

After getting a number of very keen enquiries from some of our Club members and regular customers, we held another Single Malt Whisky Tasting last Friday evening.

Well attended by a group of a couple of dozen malt whisky fans, some being beginners and some being well-informed keen enthusiasts.

We showed the following malts, mostly from the independent bottler, Signatory:

• Yamazaki - 12yr old - Kansai District, Japan


• Mortlach 1991 - 16yr old - Highland


• Ardmore 1990 - 17yr old Cask Strength - Speyside


• Glen Scotia 1992 - 14yr old - Cambeltown


• Highland Park 1991 - 16yr old (un-chillfiltered) - Island


• Caol Ila 1996 - 11yr old (un-chillfiltered) - Islay

The guests were welcomed with a glass of bubbly (a clean fresh sparkling Loire Sauvignon Blanc made in the same way as Champagne which prepared the palate very well) and a brief introduction before being invited to 'nose' the range of malts. The Yamazaki from Japan's oldest distillery near Kyoto (started in 1923) was first shown here some months ago and it has proved very popular for its slightly sweet light style.

The tasters on this occasion were looking for something more intense, though. The Mortlach, where William Grant worked as a clerk before building Glenfiddich nearby and Glen Scotia, one of the few remaining distilleries from the Kintyre Peninsula were both marked in similar fashion; good all-rounders with some very keen but the next three certainly stole the show.

The Ardmore 1990 Cask Strength - A massive, full-flavoured, intense, smoky malt from South eastern Speyside that some found was better without water even at 59.5%alc.

Highland Park, Scotlands most northerly distillery from Orkney, with its wonderful complex flavours of heather and peat was unanimously popular. The favourite malt shown at the tasting had to be the fabulous Caol Ila. This was the 46%alc un-chillfiltered version (Most whiskies sold will have been through this chillfiltering process which by stripping out some fatty acids allows the liquid to be chilled or added to ice without it going cloudy. Therefore the somewhat heavy term 'un-chillfiltered' means that it is more natural, having been through fewer processes, and will turn hazy or cloudy when very cold.) This clean peated pure malt was pretty well everyone's favourite.

Our whiskies can be found on the Whisky section of the Tasting Room website or by coming in to visit us. We've still got a little left in the bottles.

Cheers!

Charles