A little Linkwood quartet


May 1, 2025

A little Linkwood quartet
(3 from 2013 + 1 from 1978)

We enjoy tasting Linkwood, which Michael Jackson once said had a rose-like aroma. But was he referring to the old distillery or the new one? In any case, both operated in tandem between 1972 and 1985, a situation that inevitably brings to mind Clynelish and Brora. The old one closed in 1985, so it’s quite possible that the 1978 we’re about to try today comes from it.

Paul Bocuse's Soupe VGE (P. Rougereau)

Linkwood 11 yo 2013/2024 (46%, James Eadie, Small Batch, recharred hogshead, casks #301827, 301830, 301834)

Colour: straw. Nose: this is fresh as a daisy, on green apples and pink grapefruit, all draped over a bed of chalk and clay, with some grist humming in the background, the whole laced with custard but without a whisper of excess. A lovely nose, extremely natural. Mouth: the barley malt is given full stage here, with returns of chalk and grist, plus this time more like apple peelings, alongside a charming bitterness and even a surprising salty flick, as if one of the hogsheads had previously held an Islay – before being recharred, naturally. Finish: of medium length, fresh, leaning more towards fruit eaux-de-vie, even a touch of slightly soapy kirsch peeking through. The salty note comes back in the aftertaste. Comments: very pleasant, very ‘natural’.
SGP:551 - 85 points.

Linkwood 11 yo 2013/2024 (54.8%, Dràm Mor, refill French oak oloroso hogshead, cask #900162, 325 bottles)

Colour: gold. Nose: quite the surprise, on fresh concrete, soot, walnut and a stack of glossy magazines, then ashes. One’s rather curious what a few drops of water might do. With water: rubber and tar, green walnuts, and a few dabs of mustard. Mouth (neat): it’s big stuff, all on chocolate and caramel stirred with ashes and a dusting of pepper. Quite striking, really. With water: that curious saline touch from the Small Batch edition pops back up, but otherwise it veers drier, more classically oloroso. Finish: long and dry, on bitter chocolate, ashes yet again, and a smoky, peppery edge. Comments: fascinating. I like it a lot, even if it leads you down an odd little path now and then. I wonder what Michael Jackson would have made of it – I suspect he wouldn’t have found a single rose petal.
SGP:352 - 85 points.

Linkwood 10 yo 2013/2024 ‘Edition #19’ (57.1%, Signatory Vintage ‘100 Proof’, 2nd fill oloroso sherry butts)

Colour: full gold. Nose: and here we are, peonies and rose petals straightaway, then chocolate, a pack of Ricola originals, caramel, nougat, blood orange and walnut liqueur. With water: marzipan soaked in kirsch and a fine walnut cake. Mouth (neat): very good, textbook stuff from this recent series, on ginger, very black tea, peppermint, fruitcake and an ever-increasing grind of pepper. A touch of leather and tobacco to round it out. With water: back to a more classical sherry style, with prunes steeped in Armagnac. Finish: long, fairly rich, ever so slightly salty once again, ending on dates. Comments: no reason to give this lovely wee baby anything but the same score.
SGP:551 - 85 points.

Linkwood-Glenlivet 17 yo 1978/1995 (55.5%, Cadenhead, Authentic Collection, sherrywood matured)

One does love that text on the back label: “This whisky has been bottled from a selected individual cask in its natural state and shows the character of that cask. It has not been diluted with water. It has not been treated to change its colour and is free from all additives. It has not been subjected to any filtration that might remove natural constituents and spoil its flavour. It is the authentic product of its distillery.” They really were pioneers, and of course this baby was ‘Matured in an Oak Cask’, as was only proper at Cadenhead’s, since chestnut and acacia had already been banned. Ahem.

Colour: chestnut (ha!). Nose: this is old-school sherry all right, much more on game and hoisin sauce than today’s sherries, on ristretto coffee – fresh back from Italy, they really are the only ones who know how to make a proper espresso – and coal tar. Magnificent. With water: it’s the walnuts leading the charge now, along with a few pecans and a splash of beef stock with bone marrow and parsley. I even suspect there’s a shaving or two of truffle. Mouth (neat): unbelievable sherry, dry, meaty, smoky, salty, tarry and intensely chocolatey. With water: a glorious broth, in the style of Paul Bocuse. Finish: long and salty, more on citrus now (finger limes), but the walnuts remain firmly at the helm, and for a long time. Liquorice salted to the hilt in the aftertaste. Comments: what a sherry, what a beast! You simply don’t come across this sort of thing in modern production anymore, that’s for sure.
SGP:562 - 93 points.

(Thank you Philipp)

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