Archives Glen Keith 1995
$289.99
Archives is an independent bottling range from the chaps at Whisky Base in the Netherlands. This 22 year old Glen Keith is from a 1995 distillation matured in a Hogshead Cask, bottled at 56.0%. Part of the Fishes of Samoa series, the label is an image of a Longnose Butterflyfish drawn by F.G. Levrault and publised over 150 years ago in "Histoire Naturelle des Poissons."
Andrew's Tasting Note
Nose: creamy, honeyed, floral and tropical; English scones with clotted cream and strawberry jam; lemon and lime juice; waxy tallow candles and canvas tents; Marcona almonds and French bakery treats; a touch on the tropical side.
Palate: sweet, honeyed and creamy with a backbone of firm but yielding oak; floral with building decadent spices: candied ginger and fennel; cane sugar, apple jelly and Jolly Ranchers; there is also a touch of under-rype tropical fruits.
Finish: long, coating, creamy and decadent; crisp spices and rich oak; fresh and mouthwatering.
Comment: this is a lovely little Glen Keith, a distillery which lay closed from 1999 until the early 2010s; it is a whisky which shows well with age, owing in part to the fact most of the spirit is matured in refill casks, subtly developing delcate layers as it oxidizes and mingles with the wood.
Archives Ben Nevis 1990
$399.99
Archives Aberlour 2006
$194.99
A single ex-Bourbon cask bottled under the Fishes of Samoa line at 12 years of age and 56.8%.
Whiskybase GlenAllachie 1995
$209.99
One of the most spectacularly retro packages we've seen in ages. The distillery recently changed hands - amid much fanfare, I might add - but this would have been distilled long before the new owners got their hands on any of the liquid produced here. And being an indie, that likely wouldn't much matter anyway! This extremely limited release of only 236 bottles was put together by the folks at Whiskybase, the largest online database of whisky notes in the world, to celebrate the 110,000 bottle registered in their system. We keep hearing a lot of lemon and a lot of vanilla on this one.
Natural cask strength, uncolored and unchill-filtered.
51.8% abv
Scotch Malt Whisky Society 9.134
$104.99
More stock available at the Sale price!
MAKING A HAZEL BOW
This 11 year old Speysider comes in at 57.1% after maturing in refill barrel.
Flavour profile: Juicy, oak & vanilla.
Outturn: 168 bottles.
Panel's tasting note: "A picture of a sunny summer’s day, sitting in the garden having just cut the grass and hung out the laundry to dry, we were now enjoying the heady scent of the rose bush whilst eating a buttered scone with strawberry jam. On the taste neat a balance between a sweet honey softness and ground white pepper spiciness combined with a slight tannic finish, like that of strong black tea. With a drop of water fresh woody aromas were released like making a bow out of a hazelnut stave, whilst on the palate now as creamy and juicy as a peach melba with sugar roasted doughnuts and vanilla ice cream."
Scotch Malt Whisky Society 46.57
$223.99
RELAXING IN A SAUNA
This 24 year old Speysider comes in at 53.6% after maturing in a refill hogshead.
Flavour profile: Spicy & dry.
Outturn: 214 bottles.
Panel's tasting note: "An interesting nose! Sweet, fruity and floral, with custard creams and lemon sponge-cake, but also something almost earthy, like greenhouses, vanilla pipe tobacco or woollen socks drying by the fire. The palate combined separate strands – sweetness (tinned peaches, wine gums), wood (balsa, cedar, wood-sap, eucalyptus) and spice (cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, peppercorns). The reduced nose evoked warm sauna wood, a model-maker’s work-bench and a pine forest floor – all very relaxing and easy-going. The palate still had the wood and the spice, but it seemed sweeter (fruit salad chews, honey, vanilla ice cream, blueberry muffins); altogether more enjoyable."
Scotch Malt Whisky Society 53.250
$163.19
SMOKED SALT ORANGE PEEL
From Islay, this 11 year old was matured in a refill hogshead and comes in at 58.4%.
Flavour profile: Lightly peated.
Outturn: 292 bottles.
Panel's tasting note: "Introduced by a salty twang the nose discovered rich oils from sardines and mackerel as they sizzled in a pan of melted salted butter until it smoked and blackened in the heat. Burning heather produced a perfumed smog that echoed shades of oily orange skin and the sticky gloss of glacé cherries. The palate evolved this sweeter strategy into honey and currants, perhaps taking in a barbecued glaze before diving head-first into a tin of smoked fruit salad. Ever-present waves of delicate floral perfume weaved around fresh fennel and sticky liquorice that merged into tar covered ropes on a finish that returned to salt and sweet smoke."
Scotch Malt Whisky Society 68.12
$112.79
BEESWAX ON A CELLO
The first-ever release from distillery 68 for SMWS Canada!
This 8 year old Highlander was matured in a re-charred hogshead and comes in at 58.1%.
Flavour profile: Deep, rich & dried fruits.
Outturn: 240 bottles.
Panel's tasting note: "A complex, layered nose of marzipan and plum jam, apple, cinnamon, apricot and lime – followed by a definite floral aspect of roses, violets and elderflower, finishing up with oak, beeswax on a cello and tobacco strands. The palate was both sweet and tart with damson jam and cherries in dark chocolate, then a curlicue flourish of Fisherman’s Friends sweet teasing spice. The reduced nose found figs, dates, maple syrup, dark toffee and polished red apples in a basket. The palate still displayed that sweet heat – nut brittle, Bakewell tart, sweet cinnamon and liquorice root – interesting, unusual and enjoyable."
Scotch Malt Whisky Society 70.26
$124.94
COOL AS A CUCUMBER
This 9 year old Highland whisky was matured in a refill barrel and is 60.1%.
Flavour profile: Young & spritely.
Outturn: 204 bottles.
Panel's tasting note: "A powdery musky floral note with orange blossom combined with crisp green apples and honey lemonade with fresh mint made this an uplifting experience on the nose neat. To taste, like a crunchy cucumber iceberg salad tossed in a dressing of mustard, honey, lime, freshly grated ginger root and a splash of cilantro - a truly refreshing experience, with a zesty twist. When adding water a walnut whip (whirl-shaped cone of milk chocolate with a whipped vanilla fondant filling topped with a half-walnut) appeared and on the palate, a chocolate, hazelnut and crushed meringue ice cream."