New Cats from Scotland part Two


January 17, 2024

New Cats from Scotland part Two (quite some wine too)

Let's pick up where we were interrupted by an explosive Ardnamurchan last time at Berry Bros... Ah, these eco-friendly whiskies! The problem is that nowadays, absolutely everyone is using environmental slogans, while the public is unable to sort them out, which means that these arguments are becoming less and less distinctive and therefore impactful, alas! It is getting, depending on the markets, increasingly costly to be honest, which is very sad… Not specifically talking about whisky here.

Label for Alfred Saunders of Mark Lane, London, circa 1925, WF Archive. Regardless of the whisky, whether new or old, we always prefer it wine-free, even if sometimes only philosophically (this does not
apply to the great 'sherries', of course).

Arbikie 2017/2023 (58.3%, Berry Bros. & Rudd, The Pioneers, single grain, new US oak barrel, cask #69, 213 bottles)

I believe this is rye-led whisky, while Arbikie, a very green distillery, also produces gin and vodka. It's only the second Arbikie we're trying, the first one having been a little difficult two years ago, rather too oak-led for me (Highland rye batch 22, WF 69). Colour: gold. Nose: williams pear eau-de-vie aged in active oak. Then cinnamon and cedarwood. With water: the rye coming out together with heavy honey notes and various crushed leaves. Fig tree leaves, moist rye bread. Mouth (neat): very spicy oak. Chewing bits of tobacco, ginger, pine sap pastilles, wood. With water: twenty tons of speculoos and gingerbread plus some dried pears. Finish: long, spice-and-wood-driven. Rye, oak, cinnamon, allspice. Comments: totally un-Scottish. It's really quite complicated. You'd expect to find this style in Oregon, Alberta, or Central Europe, even perhaps in England, but not in the Scottish Highlands. But is it a problem to blur the lines in this way? After all, don't we find some malts of pure Scottish style on the European continent? To be discussed, in any case, this baby is a bit too woody for my taste; in this regard, it's not exactly subtle.
SGP:650 - 75 points.

GlenWyvis 2018/2023 (53.9%, Berry Bros. & Rudd, The Pioneers, single malt, hogshead, quarter casks finish, casks #1501+1502, 409 bottles)

Remember, a quarter cask is basically a half-cask. True. We've tried Glenwyvis once, it was a very good young 2018 (OB, WF 80). Colour: white wine. Nose: good fun! Smoky porridge, stewed apples with a dollop of tar liqueur, a little carbon dust (from a Porsche, ha), then pink grapefruits, cantaloupes and greengages, with a rather lovely fruity freshness. No over-oakiness this time. With water: amazing gooseberries. I fell in love with gooseberries a long time ago, I'm very sorry that so few people plant them in their gardens these days. Mouth (neat): perfect chenin blanc. Honeysuckle, lime, lemongrass, a little honey, granny smith, touch of liquorice. You would almost believe it is one of those unpeated 'Highland' Caol Ilas. With water: impeccable fruity freshness., with admirable plums and fantastic, well, gooseberries. Finish: only the finish would tend to become a tad bitter and green, possibly because of those quarter casks. Not too sure. Comments: love this little GlenWyvis from Dingwall that's sitting 'in the shadow of Ben Nevis' (not the distillery! I mean not in the shadow of Ben Nevis distillery!)
SGP:551 - 85 points.

Nc'Nean 2019/2023 'Organic Cask Strength' (59.6%, OB, batch #CS/GD06, 4998 bottles)

All very natural and certified but there's 55% STR red wine casks in the cask-bill, Grape and grain… Colour: gold. Nose: the woods. Branches, fresh putty, black tea, cinnamon, lees, then a little olive oil, which is always great, and more pastries and breads, doughs, pancakes… Which is going to win here? Casks or distillate? Quite some nutmeg too. With water: peonies and very fresh strawberry muffins. Mouth (neat): I like this, despite the wines (whether charred or not). Strawberry jam and green pepper, pistachio oil, lemon marmalade… We're reminded of some champagne blanc-de-noirs, really. Which goes well with strawberries, by the way. Anyway… With water: fine balance. Szechuan pepper, more strawberries (and chewing gum, jellybeans…) and more cakes. Pepper and fruit crackers. Finish: long, with exactly the same profile. Comments: very good but the 'pure' Nc'Nean ex-hoggie that we tried right yesterday was in a whole different league (WF 88). As Nature intended!
SGP:651 - 84 points.

Lindores Abbey 4 yo 2019/2023 (59.1%, OB for The Whisky Barrel, peated ex-Islay rum cask, cask #383, 247 bottles)

Honestly, I have absolutely no idea what a 'peated ex-Islay rum cask' could be, there is an ocean of possibilities. What I know is that The Whisky Barrel, had an awesome Lindores ex-sherry butt back in 2082 (WF 86). Colour: pale white wine. Nose: I find it a little HP-y, if I may. Heather honey, muscovado, syrups (perhaps cane), indeed something very remotely peaty, plus some root vegetables, Jerusalem artichokes, celeriac… But it's strong. With water: pure lemon, seawater and smoked mercurochrome. Mouth (neat): straight ashy peat ala Caol Ila. With water: very good, obviously. Finish: same, plus apple peel. Comments: ha, borrowed peat or in-cask blending. I don't quite know what to think, some new distillers have even (tried to) built their reputation by doing this almost exclusively. Not even sure they told anyone at their beginnings. No, of course no names. Oh, not Lindores Abbey, of course not!
SGP:555 - 85 points.

Bonnington 2020/2023 (64.8%, Fruitful Spirits First Release, virgin oak, cask #0779, 246 bottles)

This new cat is said to be heavily peated. It is the first ever bottling from Crabbie's Bonnington Distillery in Leith, and the first we're trying. Colour: dark gold. Nose: some pretty typical, modern high-extraction young malt whisky, a style that's really becoming popular everywhere in Scotland, not just with new-cat distilleries (think Deanston, Glenallachie and many others). Rather a lot of curry, ginger, leather, nutmeg, mercurochrome, tincture of iodine, ointments, CBD muscle balms (yep)… With water: pear eau-de-vie, gin, gentian, tequila, aquavit… Mouth (neat): very powerful, certainly peaty and obviously very extractive. Bags of pepper and nutmeg, juniper and coriander seeds, bitter oranges, cloves, heavily salted Dutch liquorice (I'm writing Dutch because that's the only one I know)… A feeling of high-strength gin. With water: more aged gin. There's something mysterious in this one, as if there were a few 'secret' things happening between 2020 and 2023. Finish: long, with some charcoal, salt, more ginger and gentian, and gin, and salted liquorice. Dutch, as I said. Comments: this little Bonnington is somewhat mysterious. It's as if the wood had already tamed that 'heavy peat'. I find it frankly excellent at just 3.
SGP:565 - 84 points.

Isle of Raasay 5 yo 2018/2023 (57.9%, Whisky Druid, ex-Bordeaux Red Wine, cask #18/13, 276 bottles)

Let's see if it was peated Raasay in that odd barrique. After all, we've already tried some peated merlot, not to mention Domaine Zind-Humbrecht's pinot gris made and matured in an ex-Brora hogshead I had brought back from Limburg (do not ask, never ask). Colour: deep gold. Nose: either the barrique was rinsed out very well (death to all wet casks!) or that red Bordeaux was not that red, unless it's all very 'refill'. In short, not red-berry extravaganza, rather smoke, Swiss cheese, bread dough, some flinty clay, slate and chalk, and dairies. With water: porridge, clotted cream, fresh bread, more Swiss cheese. NOT gym socks, mind you. Mouth (neat): hurray, rather grapefruit than strawberry! And raw peat, bay leaves, and ten kilograms of cigar ashes. It's very wild, I was about to add 'very druidistic'. I'd love to be able to try mistletoe one day, sadly all parts of the plant are said to be very poisonous – and we're not thaaaat crazy. With water: super good. Just forget about the mention 'Ex-Bordeaux Red Wine', they just shouldn't tell about such things. Finish: long, clean and fat, even better. Pink grapefruits (heeey?) Quite some pastis in the aftertaste. Comments: seriously good stuff from Raasay and the Druid. Bordeaux red wine, really? Do we have a picture of the barrique? Certified by a sober bailiff, Preferably.
SGP:556 - 87 points.

Dornoch 5 yo 2017/2023 (60.5%, OB, for Club Qing Hong Kong, 1st fill bourbon octave, cask #28, 74 bottles)

Remember, a quarter is a half and an octave is a quarter, give or take. Capeesh? Colour: gold. Nose: saffron, coconut and varnish, this is an unusual combination. Bourbon. Water should be needed. With water: caraway, fennel seeds, coriander seeds, a feeling of rye… I believe it is a pretty unusual Dornoch, and an unusual Scotch malt whisky altogether. Mouth (neat): more high-power bourbon, coconut, sweet maize, marshmallows, barley sugar… With water: very nice and pretty bizarre. More herbs, caraway, liquorice, gentian liqueur (Avèze), some fir bud liqueur… I'm wondering if I'm not going to mention chartreuse again. Finish: long, bittersweet, caraway-y. Tiny soapy touches of rye in the aftertaste. Comments: uncharted territory, I would say. It's good, it's new; it's new, it's good.
SGP:463 - 86 points.

We've planned a whole Dornoch session in the coming weeks, stay tuned. Last one now…

Torabhaig 2018/2023 'Batch Strength' (61.1%, OB, Alt Glean)

Torabhaig 2018/2023 'Batch Strength' (61.1%, OB, Allt Glean)

Matured in 1st fill bourbon (80%) and refill (20%). Using 'batch strength' remains bizarre to our shy ears but I suppose you cannot call it 'cask strength' when you've vatted several casks together, can you? Not too sure, how much water could they have added, while still bottling at 61.1% vol.? (S., is that important?) BTW, it was moderately peated, to around 23ppm peat. Oh and we're on Skye. Colour: white wine. Nose: every time I'm trying Torabhaig – granted, we haven't tried hundreds – the word 'crystalline' springs to mind. This is pure seawater blended with lime juice, granny smith juice, a small bottle of tincture of iodine, and the waters of a dozen oysters. That's all. With water: a lot of fern-type notes, then peppered clams and winkles and whelks and cockles. And a good glass of petroly Alsatian riesling. Mouth (neat): very punchy, full of brine, seawater, chilli (but not of the XXX-end-of-the-world kind) and ashes. Ultra-vertical and really shock-full of ashes of all kinds. With water: dazzling lemons and smoked and salted almonds. I revere smoked almonds, but they are getting rarer and rarer where I live. Actually, it is a scandal. Finish: long, pure, salty and lemony. Those granny smith apples are back in the aftertaste. Comments: pure and crystalline indeed.
SGP:566 - 90 points.

BONUS: new make by Holyrood, very, very quicky. I get the impression that Holyrood is one of the very few new distilleries that almost exclusively care about their distillate, rather than relying on those darned wine casks, STR, PX, Port, new oak, VDN, Bordeaux, shiraz and all that. Which everyone does anyway, and no I won't stop being so persistent. Please, some bready notes!

Holyrood 2021 new make (60%, C. Dully Recipe, floor malted Marris Otter, two ale yeasts, 166 hours fermentation)
Colour: white. Nose: green olives. With water: agave, cane, barley, it's got them all. And pears. Exceptional salty breadiness. Mouth (neat): exceptionally fat. Olives, ashes, anchovies, white berries. With water: a little saltier, otherwise similar. Finish: long, with the pears coming out once more. Comments: we've never seen (tasted) a new make without pears, that said. We don't score new makes but we would be close to 90, honestly. The big boyz' new makes, I mean the ones I could try, were never as complex and expressive as this, but on the other hand, that's not their purpose in the first place.

Holyrood 2022 new make (60%, C; Dully Recipe, floor malted Marris Otter, rum yeast, 308 hours fermentation)
Colour: white. Nose: fresh breads. With water: great fun, it's got some foie gras. I am absolutely not joking. Mouth (neat): awesome fresh small white pineapples, focaccia, olives. With water: exceptionally earthy, while I'd swear I'm finding some foie gras again. We should ask some molecular chemists and biologists. Finish: foie gras and pears, that works so well! Comments: I think I liked the 2021 a wee bit better. Perhaps the brewer's yeasts?

A vatting of both and one small ice cube sends you straight to Planet Mars. In fact, for this kind of goal, I would trust Holyrood more than Elon Musk.

ANOTHER BONUS: forgot this wee one...

King's Inch Glasgow Single Malt (46%, Courageous Spirits, ex-bourbon and ex-sherry, 5,000 bottles, 2022)

King's Inch Glasgow Single Malt (46%, Courageous Spirits, ex-bourbon and ex-sherry, 5,000 bottles, 2022)
This one is said to be some kind of independent malt from Glasgow Distillery. I have to say I am very fond of this very 'Bauhaus' label, it's a change from the baroque extravagances seen here and there these days. What's more, King's Inch's whisky has been one of the late Dr Jim Swan's very last creations. There are also some King's Inch single casks these days. Colour: straw. Nose: fresh, even refreshing nose with cut apples, green pears, acacia flowers, woodruff, green walnuts, a little polenta, then a large pack of marshmallows. Whiffs of honey and orange blossom, panettone… Mouth: more panettone, ripe pears, ripe apples, greengages, some pleasant bitterness from the wood, then touches of mangos and oranges, which I find pretty 'Dr Swan' indeed. Here's to Dr Swan. Finish: more lemons chiming in, yuzu, more vanilla, shortbread, light honeys… Some milk chocolate, liquorice and aniseed in the aftertaste, as well as more oak. Comments: excellent at this young age – it cannot be old. Give it a little time and it would go like 81, 82, 83, 84, 85.
SGP:651 - 85 points.

That's enough new cats from Scotland, but we'll do this again in the beginning of spring. Or perhaps even earlier, we'll see.

(And bravo again, Jonny McMillan!)

Check the index of all new distilleries we've tasted so far