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Aberfeldy
Region: Highlands
District: Midlands
Aberfeldy Distillery was constructed somewhere around 1896-97,
depending on your source, but opened for production in 1898. Aberfeldy
is located in the rasberry-growing region of Scotland and overlooks
the Tay Valley. The red squirrel on the label is inspired by the
beautiful woodland setting that borders the distillery and is
home to a colony of rare red squirrels. The distillery has been
in continuous production since its inception, except for a short
period during World War II.
15 year old
Proof 86
Color Light amber
Nose Full. Some oiliness, oak, heather and slight peatiness.
Body Medium to full.
Palate As with the nose, very full. Well-rounded with some sweetness,
peat, and oakiness.
Finish Full with some sweetness and fruit at first. Then it becomes
quite dry at the end.
Aberlour
Region: Highlands
District: Speyside
Many of Scotland's distilleries have stories of varying degrees
of interest relating to their history. Aberlour officials will
readily point out that in 960 A.D., St. Dunstan conducted his
Baptismals in the spring of water that is now used for whisky
production by their distillery. Judge for yourself as to the relevance,
or contribution, that this information or act in history has on
the single malt you will taste. Aberlour Distillery was founded
in 1879 on the site of an earlier distillery built in 1826. It
produces a full-bodied malt that is quite complex and spicy, with
a classic bouquet in the nose. It is the only malt whisky to have
won twice (1986 and 1990) both the Gold Medal and Pot Still Trophy
at the International Wine and Spirit Competition.
10 year old
Proof 86
Color Amber
Nose Full, spicy, classic bouquet with some sweetness.
Body Full, smooth.
Palate Round. Full flavor development that is long-lasting, with
a malty sweetness and some spice and fruit. Well-balanced.
Finish Long, smooth and continues to give.
15 year old
Proof 86
Color Medium golden, bronze-like amber.
Nose Assertive. Cereal notes with some smoke and citrus undertones.
Quite complex.
Body Full and rich.
Palate Very full, rich and tantalizing in flavor development.
Sherry sweetness, cereal grain, malt, and a fruitiness are readily
evide
Finish Very rich, long and lingering. Some smoke is evident near
the end.
18 year old
Proof 86
Color Deep, bronze-like, brownish amber.
Nose Obvious overtones of sherry, wood and smoke.
Body null
Palate Complex. A fruity, honeyed-sherry beginning gives way to
a finish of smoke, sherry and wood.
Finish Sherry sweetness with woody and peat notes.
Allt-A-Bhainne
Region: Highlands
District: Speyside
Allt-a Bhainne (pronounced Alt-a-Bane) in Gaelic means "Burn
of milk." The distillery is a newcomer to the industry having
been constructed in 1975. It stands on the northern slopes of
Benrinnes about 8 miles south-west of historic Dufftown. It was
built by Chivas Brothers, a subsidiary of the Seagram Company
of Canada. Although built with a modern design, four small pagoda
roofs crown the main roof as a reminder of distillery architecture
tradition. Very little production has been issued, so tasting
samples have been scarce.
16 year old, Cadenhead
Proof 116.8
Color Light amber
Nose Nuts and a trace of vanilla.
Body null
Palate Dry, with some wood and hint of smoke.
Finish Medium in length with some smoke.
An
Cnoc
Region: Highlands
District: Speyside
The distillery known as Knockdhu (not Knockando) was founded
in 1894 and is located about seven miles north of Huntly. The
name change, so as to ensure no confusion with Knockando, another
well-known Highland distillery, was made in 1989. The first single
malt by the name "AN CNOC" became available the following
year in 1990. The two original stills that were installed in 1894
are still utilized today. It is possible to see single malts by
both names on the shelves of some of the better stocked liquor
establishments.
12 year old
Proof 80
Color Light gold
Nose Malty, with some sweetness and fruity notes.
Body Medium and smooth.
Palate Quite sweet, smooth, with some sweetness and fruity notes.
Finish Lingering, with some oiliness, smoke and sweetness.
Ardbeg
Region: Islay
District: South Shore
The Ardbeg single malt comes by its reputation as "the most
traditional" of the island malts very honestly. There were
no fans in the pergodas on the roofs of the malting houses. The
peat smoke was thus "trapped" in the houses, exposing
the malt to the smoke for extended times. Even though the distillery
no longer does its own maltings, the specifications for its malt
is still, apparently, heavy peat. Ardbeg is located on the south
coast of Islay. A family by the name of McDougall was known to
have lived in the area as early as 1798. One of them started a
legal distillery around 1815-17. In spite of its reputation, the
Ardbeg is much sought after by the single malt connoisseur and
is the "ultimate digestiff" after Texas bar-b-que or
Mexican food.
10 year old
Proof 80
Color Light gold.
Nose Peaty and dry. Plenty of smoke, with some salt and iodine.
Body Full.
Palate Rich, with some peat, smoke and slight sweetness.
Finish Long, with some iodine and smoke.
18 year old, Cadenhead
Proof 116
Color Light gold.
Nose Peaty, with some pungency. A trace of sweetness.
Body Full.
Palate Rich. Some malt, salt and the sweetness comes through.
Finish Long, with some salt.
Ardmore
Region: Highlands
District: Speyside
Ardmore Distillery is located near the ancient villages of Spynie
and Kennethmont in rural Aberdeenshire. It was established by
William Teacher in 1898 in response to the 1890's whisky boom.
It is a staple in his successors' blended whisky, Highland Cream.
The distillery originally had only two stills but two additional
stills were added in 1955. The stills were increased to eight
in 1974. An "official" bottling of Ardmore single malt
is very rare but independent bottlings can be found from time
to time.
18 year old
Proof 92
Color Deep amber
Nose Light aroma. Some sweetness, malt and wood.
Body Medium and smooth.
Palate Rich, with considerable sweetness, maltiness and hint of
oak.
Finish Long, with the oakiness and a trace of sweetness in evidence.
Auchentoshan
Region: Lowland
District: West
This is one of the rare, triple-distilled single malts--Benrinnes,
Springbank and Rosebank being the only others. Auchentoshan is
a very light-bodied malt, but it retains great character and complexity.
It is an excellent malt to introduce the novice to the world of
single malts. The great bulk of Auchentoshan goes into the blends.
An interesting aspect concerning this distillery is that, even
though it is classified as a Lowland distillery due to the physical
location of the plant, it gets its water from the Highlands' Kilpatrick
Hills located just north of the Highlands boundary line.
10 year old
Proof 80
Color Pale gold.
Nose Gentle. Fresh and clean. Flowery, with very little peat.
Some oiliness.
Body Smooth and soft. Some oil.
Palate Some sweetness, but not overly so. Ever so little peatiness.
Light oiliness. Some fruit.
Finish Not so long, but very pleasant and even.
Aultmore
Region: Highlands
District: Speyside
Aultmore (meaning "big burn" in Gaelic) gets its name
from a nearby stream. It was built in 1896 by Alexander Edward,
who also owned Benrinnes. It is located about two miles north
of Keith and gets its water from the peaty springs of the Foggie
Moss. Only a very small amount of the Aultmore is bottled as a
single malt. Aultmore was purchased in 1923 by John Dewar. In
the early fifties, Aultmore and Imperial Distillery did the pioneering
experiments that would lead to utilizing most of the distillery
waste matter (pot ale and draff) for protein-rich animal feed.
This practice is now industry-wide and makes the production Scotch
Single Malt Whisky one of the most ecologically sound industries
in existence.
12 year old
Proof 86
Color Pale gold
Nose Rich, fresh aroma with a hint of peat, sweetness and mash.
Body Medium to firm.
Palate Mellow and well-balanced. Some light fruitiness.
Finish Long. Smooth, warming and quite dry.
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