Oban 12 yo (43%, OB, cut decanter bottle, Italian import, 1970s)
Colour: pale gold. Nose: mustard powder, dry waxes and beach pebbles! Love this profile that speaks to exactly that type of profile I was alluding to in the intro: robust and charismatic, but without much peat. Having said that, there is a tiny, fractal suggestion of peat in the mix here. Lovely gentle coastal quality, and a few crystallised exotic fruits emerging with a little time. Mouth: amazing power at only 43% and in an undeniably silly decanter bottle for decades. A lot of assertive salty and peppery qualities, very saline, very drying and really punchy! Dry waxes, mustard once again, some gentian, some liquorice root and some herbal bitters. Whisky for serious, brooding grown-ups! Finish: long, superbly warming, peppery, salty and mineral, with sandalwood and wee impressions of gorse flower and dried papaya in the aftertaste. Comments: I adore these old bottles, they are impressively powerful and display a profile that's pretty distinctive, even amongst other old style whiskies of the era. The one distillery that keeps popping into my head when trying this is Banff, with is frequently mustardy/waxy profile.
SGP: 363 - 90 points.

Oban 12 yo (70 proof, OB, pear shape decanter bottle, UK, late 1970s)
Colour: pale gold (a shade darker!) Nose: very close, but a broader waxiness and perhaps a little more peppery than mustardy. Otherwise this is really the same profile, similarly enchanting coastal vibes, tiny inclusions of peat and a wonderful sense of 'fulness'. Mouth: you do notice the loss of those three extra degrees of alcohol here, but it doesn't really impact the quality or the overall profile I would say. Just that this is rather more creamy, while still being generally very saline once again, very peppery, on cupboard spices, brittle waxes, cooking oils and I would say a notch more dry peat. Still excellent! Finish: still a good length if ever so slightly shorter, and I would say similar if a tad fruitier and more towards medicines in the aftertaste. Comments: top class, old school Oban and very similar to the older version, I just thing those extra 3 degrees of alcohol - as is so often the case with these old official bottlings - make a noticeable difference. Now, we're still very close in terms of quality and character. These bottlings are super fun to dissect in a tasting glass, but personally, these are my ideal tumbler whiskies of an evening when in the mood for a dram.
SGP: 463 - 89 points.

Oban 14 yo (43%, OB, circa 2000)
Colour: gold. Nose: softer and fruitier than the older ones, more on green fruits and yellow flowers, but this subtle sense of peppery and waxy backbone with hints of mustard powder are still there. Also these robust cooking oil notes and gorse flower - it's generally rather more floral I would say. Mouth: same impression of a rather challenging and powerful make where that power is all about coastal notes, drier more saline qualities, peppery once again, very delicate medical notes, some herbal teas and mineral oils. Finish: medium, more herbal tea notes, some orange peel, wee sappy touches and sandalwood impressions once again. Comments: this is excellent as well, although not quite up there with the old 12s in my view. Conversely, I also think that more recent batches of the 14yo are even better, and often up at that same 90 point level. Someone with more time (and cash) than me, should put together an Oban 14 vertical one day, it's always a fascinating bottling to follow.
SGP: 451 - 86 points.

Oban 10 yo (57.1%, OB 'Special Releases', 2022)
Called 'The Hidden Paradise of Black Rock' and featuring a purple rabbit - no doubt in reference to the charming little bay where Oban locals enjoy micro-dosing LSD. This has undergone a secondary maturation in ex-sherry and Amontillado seasoned casks. Colour: straw. Nose: once again, rather fruitier than the older ones, although it does have that Oban 'weight' about it, which is pleasing. Goes on with some putty and waxy notes, pineapple and a wee hint of caraway. With water: saltier, leaner, tougher and more oily and mustardy. Maybe the soul of Banff really does reside in Oban these days. Mouth: very nice Oban fatness with peppery and mustardy warmth, a hint of pickled tarragon, some seawater, lemon rind, putty and then more sherried aspects such as green walnuts and almonds. With water: leathery, still pretty salty and fatty, some pancetta, thick olive oil, crushed aspirin and heather ale. Finish: good length, going back towards light waxes, sweet honeys, breakfast cereals and dried flowers. Comments: I am a huge fan of Oban, and I don't want to complain too much about any new bottling of it because it's always a pleasure to try a new one. But, and I appreciate I am not the general target consumer here, couldn't we pretty please just have 10yo 100 proof refill wood Oban OB in the standard Oban bottle? I mean, all you'd have to do would be to change the '14' to a '10' and the '43%' to '57.1%'. Oh, and the whisky, you'd need to change that as well. But seriously, I'm not kidding, Oban deserves its own Lagavulin 12 treatment so to speak… 
SGP: 462 - 87 points.

Oban 11 yo 'Batch 3' (53.9%, OB 'Hand Filled Distillery Exclusive', bourbon, 575 bottles, 2023)
Colour: white wine. Nose: if there were such a thing as salty bubblegum (perhaps there is?) this is it! All manner of crushed greenery, flower stems, parsley and vase water, alongside crushed seashells, beach sand, pebbles, mineral salts and white coastal flowers. Love this nose, wonderfully bright, fresh and evocative. With water: develops decisively towards beach sand, yellow and white flowers with their pollens, sandalwood and a gentle waxiness. Mouth: an ever bigger arrival than the 10yo SR! Same tension between the sweeter and creamier components such has pineapple, gorse flower and coconut, and these fantastically salty and pure aspects that recall bone dry Manzanilla, green olive and aniseed. Once again this feeling that Oban is a powerful and rather challenging whisky at heart. With water: creamy in texture, on various shades of pepper, camphor, hessian and peppery, grassy olive oil. The mustard is also back with a vengeance! Finish: long, salty, waxy, peppery and still a little creamy and sweet at the same time. Comments: smart, excellent, fun and very high quality Oban - this sort of juice should really be a standard high strength 10yo bottling in my view (I know, I know, shut up Angus!) You just have to like your whiskies punchy and a little intellectual, which, thankfully, I do!
SGP: 461 - 88 points.