Bladnoch, active casks and limoncello


January 16, 2023

Little Duos, today Bladnoch, active casks and limoncello

Just too little Bladnochs that have met a lot of oak.

Bladnoch 'Liora' (52,2% , OB, 2022)

No wine in there, this little NAS is ex-bourbon and new oak, matured not finished according to the label. So a blend of both, I suppose. That's sorted. Colour: white wine. Nose: curiously thick and warming on the nose, I would suppose that's the virgin oak. Fresh sponge cake, vanilla, biscuits, croissants, then in the middle distance, rather mango jam and a pack of banana foam. Plus a little limoncello, it's hard to escape limoncello. Remember you use the skin to make limoncello, not the flesh or juice. With water: raw malt coming out, also visiting a bakery at 5am. Mouth (neat): perfect young citrusy Lowlander that really reminds me of the older expressions of Bladnochs, such as the formidable 'white label' that they used to ship to Italy in the 1970s. Awesome chalkiness and admirable doughs (bread, cakes…) With water: citrus tickling you, grapefruits, lemons, liqueurs… Touches of sauvignon blanc. Finish: medium, refreshing, citrusy and, in truth, very 'Bladnoch'. Comments: the Rare Malt '77 would also spring to mind but I'm not sure I've ever written any proper notes for that one. Anyway, success with this little Liora. What does Liora mean, by the way? Isn't it just a name, like, say Harry?
SGP:651 - 87 points.

The next one may be more complicated…

Bladnoch 27 yo (56.7%, Master of Malt, Darkness!, cask #30337, 100 bottles, 2017)

This one was finished in bespoke 50l PX-treated casks, but nowhere does it say that that is verboten. Colour: deep gold. Nose: I have to admit that these pretty heady whiffs of fresh kougelhopf and panettone rather work. Lovely raisins and fudge, orange blossom, Jaffa cakes and rum, without any heaviness. Quite a tour de force in this kind of context. With water: between us, it is almost as if the cask treatment had moved it from the Lowlands to Speyside. Toffee, butterscotch, millionaire shortbread and even some clootie dumpling. Mouth (neat): punchy and much brighter than I had expected, with big pink grapefruits and blood oranges. It's as if Bladnoch's citrusness had managed to keep the upper hand in this rather challenging context. With water: yep, only a few leafy and spicy touches do remind us that after all, this baby's met with a lot of oak. Hints of artichoke, green plums, bay leaves, spicy plum sauce… Finish: pretty long this time, frankly spicy, which makes it just a notch astringent towards the aftertaste. Comments: the official's brightness wins it in the end but we were close. Without this one's leafier finish, it would have been a tie in my book.
SGP:661 - 87 points.

(Thank you Tim!)

Check the index of all Bladnoch we've tasted so far