Over the course of a couple of weeks I’ve killed off a good few good bottles. In recent reviews: the Ardnamurchan AD/ bottle (#338) and the lovely 24yo Glen Elgin from Asta morris (#333). And here come a few more: I though it would be fun (for me) to recall why I bought these bottles in the first place, and then I shall give my final take on the taste.
- Glencadam 10. I tried it first at Whisky Fringe in Edinburgh 3 years ago, and thought this has to be the reference bottle for a good ex-bourbon Speysider, one to calibrate ones palate against. So I’ve often started a tasting with just a little GC10 as a reference, and I bunkered up on bottles for the stash when I could a really good price on the bottle (less than €35)
- The Allt-a-bhaine from Gordon & MacPhail that I first reviewed in #154. Allt-a-bhaine is not one of the well-known distilleries. Quoting Wikipedia, in turn paraphrasing Whiskypedia, “Allt-a-bhaine is one of the newer distilleries in Scotland, having been built in 1975. It was the first distillery to be designed with modernity in mind. All the equipment is in one room and the process from start to finish can be accomplished by one person.” I bought it because it said pineapple in the tasting notes… (and reviews were good). I remember serving it to my dad, who basically choked on the high ABV.
- A 15yo peated Bunnahabhain from the old Càrn Mòr range. I had been contemplating buying it in 2020-ish when it was in retail and I was going through a Bunnahabhain phase, but it cost too much money for me back then, and I wasn’t sure about the peat. I got my chance later at auction in 2022, and it ended up at my GFs house in Edinburgh while I was in Germany. In the end I/we/friends drank maybe half of it, I rescued another 20cl into a smaller bottle that I brought to Germany, and privately sold the rest off together with some other bottles in 2022.
- An old Old Rhosdhu from A. D. Rattray. Old Rhosdhu was made from a still configuration at Loch Lomond that was used intermittently between 1966 and 2000. I got a first bottle in late 2021 for £160, thinking of it as in investment bottle. But then I got so curious (and richer) so in 2022 I got another one in Germany for €210 that I opened up to drink (the most expensive bottle I ever bought until that point). I had selected it because it was an impressive age statement, lots of waxy tasting notes, and sort-of a closed distillery since that still configuration is not around anymore.
Let’s proceed to the last judgment…
Glencadam • 10yo • 46%
Scotch Single Malt • American oak ex-bourbon barrels • Natural Colour & Unchillfiltered • €40 • WB🔗
Bottle kill
Nosing
Fresh orchard fruits and citrus, sponge cake, summer rain, oak and hessian.
Deliciousness
Fun factor
Sipping
Medium sweet, and somewhat tangy and bitter in a lively way. Juicy oak and tropical fruits (mango sorbet, grapefruit) and grass. Lingering coconut and pineapple in the finish.
Deliciousness
Fun factor
Comments
It’s among the best-valued single malts on the market, and I think worthy to serve as reference dram.
Great Value
⭐
Extra sample comparison
Since I have a 4cl sample bottle of GC10 from a tasting pack I’ll compare that to the last dram of the full bottle to learn something about the mini-bottle effect (see An Arran Analysis).
At first I thought maybe the sample smelled a bit brighter, a little while later that the bottle did, then I seem to land on the sample being a bit fuller and richer. But when I do a random shuffle and sniff, I get it wrong! So, I can’t truly tell a difference.
On the palate my reaction was a greater punch and feeling of alcohol in the sample. It could make sense that some alcohol has evaporated in the bottle. But I also detect a little of the “cardboard defect” of a mini-bottle sample in decline…
Allt-a-Bhainne • 15yo (2006) • 60.4% • Gordon & MacPhail
Scotch Single Malt • Refill American hogshead • Natural Colour & Unchillfiltered • sold out, originally €100 • WB🔗
Last dram of bottle first review in #154
Nosing
Lots of alcohol, behind some brown sugar, tropical fruits, almost rum-like. Water needed. That really brings forth citrus, grapefruit in particular and even a little tannenbaum. Also some fatty, buttery, waxy notes, and white pepper.
Deliciousness
Fun factor
Sipping
After water: pleasantly sweet, malty and oily. Pear, grapfruit.
Deliciousness
Fun factor
Comments
The #154 review was stated as a “bottle kill”, but it was only a near-kill. 2-3 drams survived, and the fact that it took another 16 months to finish them off says something about how little excitement I found with this bottle in the end, compared to other things in the stash. Reading the WB reviews, many are agreeing that the ABV is a difficulty with this one, but that some quality oily notes are to be found for the patient.
Bunnahabhain • 15yo (2004) • 53.8% • Càrn Mòr
Scotch Single Malt • Sherry butt • Natural Colour & Unchillfiltered • €200 current retail (I paid £112 at auction in 2022) • WB🔗
3rd last dram from the bottle (finished a week later)
Nosing
Coastal, tangy, confectionary, and aromatic. The coastal Islay influence brings minerality, smoked fish and ashtray. The tangy, citrussy and confectionary notes together evoke lemon meringue and rhubarb crumble, and there’s plenty of baking spices (cardamom, cinnamon) and other hard-to-pinpoint aromatic notes. Rose petals, and toasted Sichuan pepper?
Deliciousness
Fun factor
Sipping
Predominantly salty and savoury, balancing on the threshold to dry in thems of sweetness. A strong sense of tobacco, leather, and… lime and brown sugar (caipirinha?). Very moorish, with an ashy late finish.
Deliciousness
Fun factor
Comments
Right now I’m enjoying this dram way more than I recall having ever done. Kind of wish I had another bottle!
Personal favourite
❤️
Old Rhosdhu (Loch Lomond) • 27yo (1994) • 48% • A.D. Rattray
Scotch Single Malt • Bourbon cask • Natural Colour & Unchillfiltered • €200 in 2021; remaing few bottles in retail €400 • WB🔗
Bottle kill
Nosing
Fragrant and aromatic (black tea, kaffir lime, ginger, red apples) with a mature bourbon cask foundation (vanilla, sponge cake, dunnage warehouse, honey and wax).
Deliciousness
Fun factor
Sipping
Malty and fruity sweetness, with a waxiness too and mild woodsy bitterness. Flavours of melon, mandarin, pear, white chocolate, . Long-lasting aftertaste with dried mulberries and waxy bourbon cask notes.
Deliciousness
Fun factor
Comments
I am enjoying this very last dram more than I can recall enjoying the rest of the bottle. Perhaps oxidation really helped it along, though I was more worried by the opposite in the last year. It has the desirable waxiness, fruitiness, in an elegant and characterful profile, but somehow didn’t hit me as deeply as some other drams. I have another bottle, which I would definitely enjoy, but in hindsight I’d rather have put that money into something different, so maybe it goes on auction one day.
With some space cleared in the open-bottle shelf of the stash, the question is what new bottles I will crack open soon?
DuckDrams 
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