Speyside Whisky

Cragganmore was founded in Ballindalloch, Speyside, in 1869 and was the first distillery to take advantage of the railway system for transportation, with its own railway siding on the Strathspey route. The distillery was designed by Charles Cree Doig and the stone used came from the local hill 'Craggan Mor' (meaning 'big rock') which gave the new distillery its name. 

Cragganmore's Distillers Edition series welcomes another delicious vintage! This 2005 vintage was finished in Port pipes for greater clarity and depth in its fruity, sweet notes. Bottled in 2017 at a smooth 40% ABV, there's plenty of room for those flavours to breathe.

Nose: dark fruit, cured ham and granary toast,  winter spices and oily walnuts.

Palate: A gorgeously balanced concoction of blackberry jam, iron-rich meat, firewood, fruit cake and nutty oak are eventually joined by more of those winter spices.

Finish: Fizzy oaky tannins and armchair leather simmer in a dry finish.

To make Benriach Quarter Cask, Benriach spirit is first matured in bourbon barrels then undergoes a second maturation in bespoke quarter casks. These smaller casks allow more interaction between wood and spirit, intensifying maturation for depth and richness of flavour, to create layers of glazed orchard fruit and rich vanilla, finishing with notes of ripe barley and oak spice. All in perfect balance.


Nose
Burnished gold

Colour
Candied fruit, rich vanilla, fresh oak

Palate
Sugared pear and honeyed apricot with finishing notes of fresh barley cream and oak spice

Distilled in 1972 and aged in a single sherry butt until August 2015, this is one of 565 bottles produced from cask number 3551. These bottles were released in the Winter 2015 batch of Family Casks.

A Rich, intense whisky with honeyed sweetness thanks to a high proportion of first-fill American white oak casks, traditional casks and ex-sherry casks. Luxurious, velvety, juicy pears and honey on the palate lead to a complex balanced finish.

An elegant, sophisticated Knockando, Master Reserve 21yo is made with casks lying in the coolest part of the warehouse. These casks take longer to mature and the resulting malt is extremely smooth.

Nose: Ginger, oak spice, ice cream and pralines.

Palate: Almond and clove, with a touch of Sherried raisin. Honey-covered apples.

Finish: More honey, with a little touch of spearmint.

Mannochmore's delicate and fragrant addition to Diageo's Flora and Fauna range. One of the only bottlings you'll find with the distillery name on the front.

From the distillery

Smoky whiskies are not traditionally associated with Speyside, but look back through its distilleries? archives and it?s clear that heavily peated single malts were the preferred palate of the region back in the 19th century. Both intensely smoked and exquisitely sweet, the special edition has been two-cask matured in both American virgin oak and bourbon barrels - wood types intentionally selected to amplify the toasted sweet notes in Benriach?s smoky spirit.

"Celebrating the time of year where peated spirit runs through Benriach stills, a tradition revived by the distillery over 50 years ago, Smoke Season is a small batch release which captures one of Benriach?s time-honoured production techniques. Both intensely smoked and exquisitely sweet, the special edition has been two-cask matured in both American virgin oak and bourbon barrels - wood types intentionally selected to amplify the toasted sweet notes in Benriach?s smoky spirit. With a new recipe finely tuned by Master Blender Dr. Rachel Barrie, this expression is the most intensely smoked whisky to be released by the distillery."

A fruity, creamy Glen Elgin here from Douglas Laing, distilled in April 2011. Into a single refill hogshead it went, where it stayed for the next eight years. In January 2020, it was bottled for the Provenance series, with a release of just 359 bottles.

Distilled - April 2011

Bottled - January 2020

Refill Hogshead - REF - DL13789

Nose: Grassy & fresh .... green apples, barley sugar and caramelised nuts. 

Palate: An oak warmth initially then comes sherbet, meringue and clotted cream.

Finish: Long with runny honey and toffee balanced nicely by citrus peels (CSL).

A whisky that focuses on the richer side of Benriach's spirit, as well as it's darker smokier side. Aged for 12 years in a combination of bourbon, sherry and marsala casks, the peat smoke is complimented by dried fruit and vanilla from the bourbon and sherry casks, and rich, sweet fruit from the marsala.

A 15-year-old expression of Old Balantruan, the peated line from Tomintoul distillery. Bottled at 50% ABV, this is a laid-back beast of a whisky; big peat smoke rolls around the mouth along with softer Speyside flavours - vanilla, toffee and a touch of woodiness.

Aged for 15 years in hand-picked oak barrels, this Speyside single malt Scotch whisky was distilled using peated malted barley at Tomintoul Distillery, giving that self-acknowledged 'Peaty Tang' uncommon in its region.

Bottled at a smooth 40% ABV, this release marks something of a follow up from this little beauty, only this edition has a declared age statement.

Aged for at least a quarter of a century in ex-bourbon American oak casks, this Speyside single malt is a gentle giant. Floral and fruity with a touch of spice

The folks at Tomintoul have raided the warehouse and unearthed a stunning 45 year old expression! This single malt was distilled back in April 1973 and initially aged in a bourbon barrel before being moved over to an Oloroso sherry hogshead to continue maturing. It was bottled in September 2018 with an outturn of just 240 bottles.

Nose: Clean Sherry influence on a sweet malty layer. Intense waxy aromas merge with hints of orange citrus and Christmas pudding.

Palate: Richly mouth-filling as notes of nuts, chocolate, mocha coffee bean and spicy oak tannins vie for supremacy.

Finish: Dry and spicy with a rich and enduring final?.

The Glen Elgin 18 YO Special Release 2017 is a limited release of 5352 bottles. This is a special release in an unusual way - this is something of a yeast experiment. For this whisky the distillery used both the conventional cerevisiae yeast and the more unusual (in the whisky world) pombe yeast . Pombe is Swahili for beer, and this is a yeast known from East Africa.

The Glen Elgin 18 YO Special Release 2017 is a vatting of two batches. One part made using the pombe yeast and matured in ex-bodega sherry casks. The other part made using standard yeast and matured in refill European oak butts.

Nose: A deep and rich fruitiness is the first that greets my nose. It seems almost Japanese in style. Complex and clean. Apples, green and fresh on one hand and ripe and baked on the other. Freshly baked gourmet bread with a butter and floral honey spread.

Taste: Creamy, rich and most certainly full-bodied. A bit off-kilter but in a charming way. It could very well be the yeast used that has me confused and amused. Still very fruity, but not just apples now, I also get ripe banana and hints of honey melon and bitter oranges. Dry-ish.

Finish: Medium to long finish. Still fruity - which is not surprising. Creamy and rich all the way.

A 21 year old blended malt from the MacNair's Lum Reek range, produced by the GlenAllachie Distillers Company. Built around a blend created by Billy Walker of peated Islay and Speyside whiskies, alongside with GlenAllachie single malt, this expression packs a satisfying peaty punch. It features whisky drawn from a combination of Oloroso, virgin oak and red wine casks.

Nose: Matured oak and cigar box, with a good whiff of woody smoke gliding through.

Palate: Cedar spices, milk chocolate, apricot, earthy peat, black pepper and a hint of charcoal.

Finish: Thyme honey, bonfire embers, dark chocolate tart.