Around ten Mannochmores, and a vain attempt to break a curse


July 29, 2026

Around ten Mannochmores, and a vain attempt to break a curse

Another session that makes precious little sense, although then again... Anyway, let's see how far we can get, while carefully steering clear of any Loch Dhu we haven't yet tasted, assuming there are any left. That said, in a way, we shall end up with one after all. But for now, let's just start at random.

Mannochmore 10 yo 2015/2025 (50%, Elevenses, English Scottish Trifle, bourbon hogshead, 680 bottles)

Colour: very pale white wine. Nose: apple juice, whitecurrants, fresh varnish, kirsch, liquorice allsorts, cloudy lemonade, all rather charming and almost childlike, were it not for the alcohol, of course. With water: barley comes to the fore, alongside damp clay and fresh earth. Mouth (neat): bubblegum, jellybeans, limoncello, bright, playful and irresistibly fruity. With water: a little green pepper, melon skin and a simple triple sec, think the lighter style, without the richer profile of Cointreau, Grand Marnier or similar. Finish: medium in length, returning to the barley, with a faintly varnishy touch lingering in the aftertaste. Comments: a thoroughly delightful young malt, as fruity as one could wish for, and impeccably clean throughout.
SGP:641 - 85 points.

Mannochmore 11 yo 2014/2025 (60.3%, Lady of the Glen, bourbon hogshead, cask #10367, 279 bottles)

Mannochmore 11 yo 2014/2025 (60.3%, Lady of the Glen, bourbon hogshead, cask #10367, 279 bottles)
Colour: gold. Nose: much the same, although this time wrapped in an extra layer of vanilla cream and banana custard. With water: damp clay emerges and adds a pleasing earthy edge. Mouth (neat): very much in the same vein, citron, triple sec, limoncello and all the usual citrusy suspects. With water: really excellent, bright and lemony, with a delicate earthiness keeping everything beautifully in check. Finish: long, increasingly focused on citrus zests, green pepper and even a touch of fresh ginger. Comments: a lovely, ultra-clean and gloriously fruity malt that never bothers with unnecessary complications. Life is already complicated enough as it is, isn't it?
SGP:641 - 85 points.

Let's at least try to keep some sort of logic...

Mannochmore 10 yo 2014/2024 (59.7%, Lady of the Glen, bourbon hogshead, cask #10366, 283 bottles)

Obviously a sister cask, judging by the numbers, although we've managed to do everything in the wrong order, as usual. Colour: full gold. Nose: essentially the same whisky as the previous one, only a little cakier, slightly rounder and a touch more caramelised. With water: really extremely close. Mouth (neat): a little sharper and more focused on the palate, with a pleasantly earthy, lively profile. Lovely lemons. With water: almost identical, which is no bad thing at all. Finish: much the same. Comments: let's not overthink it, it's the same batch, the same type of cask and even the very same day of distillation. And it's very good indeed.
SGP:641 – 85 points.

Mannochmore 11 yo 2014/2025 (52.4%, Tri Carragh, 2nd fill bourbon barrel, 236 bottles)

Colour: gold. Nose: almost the same again, although a little oilier and more herbal this time, with rather more barley and damp earth, making it just a shade less expressive and a touch more restrained. We're beginning to split hairs now... With water: no, it's really extremely close. And therefore very lovely indeed. Mouth (neat): closer still to the previous ones, perhaps just a touch earthier and more herbal, and consequently a touch less fruity. With water: back come the citrus fruits, Jelly Babies and bubblegum, exactly as expected. Finish: long, leaning a little more towards grapefruit, although the whole remains firmly within the same basic template, so to speak. Comments: don't tell me all these Mannochmores, excellent though they undoubtedly are, are going to be virtually identical today!
SGP:551 - 85 points.

Wish me luck…

Mannochmore 15 yo 2009/2025 (48.5%, Decadent Drinks, Equinox & Solstice, autumn 2025, refill hogshead, 239 bottles)

Not entirely sure these equinox and solstice themes really mean much to people who don't live in northern countries like Scotland, but then again, there's room for everything. Colour: gold. Nose: very little difference, to be perfectly honest, despite the extra years. This remains a single malt that stays firmly anchored in its barley. Mind you, that's hardly a criticism... Mouth: exactly the same aromatic territory, no point labouring the description. Finish: long and lovely, with citrus fruits, barley, damp earth and just a wee hint of coconut. Oops. Comments: seriously, it's still excellent. Not especially distinctive, perhaps, but excellent all the same.
SGP:551 - 85 points.

These 85 points are turning into a proper curseindeed. I rather suspect it'll take some wine to move the needle, upwards or, more probably, downwards...

Mannochmore 12 yo 2012/2025 (55%, Fadandel, 1st fill PX barrique, cask #231201, 64 bottles)

PX in a barrique and only 64 bottles, the whole thing sounds rather amusing, and perhaps just a little dangerous... Colour: deep gold. Nose: well, we're not straying all that far from the previous ones after all, there's simply a little more nougat, caramel, café latte and dark ale. It's really rather good. With water: the earthiness comes back to the fore, and we do like a bit of earth, it's our rootsy side, ha. Mouth (neat): well now, this is good, very much on oranges, bitter or otherwise, with marmalade, fig preserve and sweet paprika. With water: sweet paprika, mild pepper and even more bitter orange. Finish: fairly long, clean, with peppers and orange zests taking the lead. The aftertaste turns more bitter, as is so often the case with these casks. Comments: I do tend to prefer the more 'bourbon/hoggie' versions, but I certainly won't deny that this little PXed baby is very good indeed. In short, there's simply no escaping it...
SGP:551 - 85 points.

We are beginning to wonder whether it's still worth sticking with the classic 100-point scale, aka the percentage scale, or whether we ought to introduce a little more granularity by adding decimals. Mind you, that would fly in the face of our profound dislike of those inflated scoring systems, puffed up like the ego of who-you-know in D.C... Ah well, we'll worry about that another day. This is hardly the moment.

Mannochmore 16 yo 2008/2025 (54.6%, Signatory Vintage, Symington’s Choice, 1st fill PX hogshead finish, cask #3, 347 bottles)

It's a little surprising to find a middle-aged Mannochmore with a PX finish in this range, but there must be a reason, so let's see if we can uncover it... Colour: full gold. Nose: capeesh, this is a delicate finishing, certainly a well-controlled one, and let's not forget that Mannochmore's rather mainstream distillate makes it an almost ideal candidate for this sort of treatment. I mean, compared with Springbank, Ben Nevis, Laphroaig or Clynelish, if you see what I mean... In short, chocolate truffles, Turkish coffee, cracked black pepper, black tea and Corinth raisins. With water: lovely dried figs, damp black earth and a little pipe tobacco. Mouth (neat): chocolate, coffee liqueur, prunes, Armagnac, black pepper and more pipe tobacco. With water: very good indeed, fairly rich yet remaining thoroughly elegant. Prunes and dried figs take centre stage. Finish: long, becoming jammier, with even more prunes, especially those soaked in Armagnac. Comments: I'll gladly concede that this finishing has worked perfectly, just not quite well enough to break today's curse...
SGP:561 - 85 points.

Mannochmore 12 yo 2013/2025 (52.7%, James Eadie, cask finish, cask #378492, 284 bottles)

We didn't add it to the bottle description because it would simply have been too long, but what we're dealing with here is a 'first fill PX hogshead oak European finished for 14 months', if you follow... What we do know, however, is that James Eadie have a knack for getting this sort of thing absolutely right. Colour: very deep gold. Nose: magnificent caramel, toffee and fudges de la muerte, and all that jazz. It's almost disappointing that it's quite this good. With water: damp earth rises to the surface. Mouth (neat): walnut cake packed with sultanas and Cognac, wonderfully moist and generously soaked, the sort that has you asking for a fourth slice before you've quite finished the third, if you see what I mean. With water: they really are masters of this sort of thing, terrifying on the label, utterly delicious in the glass. Lovely peppers too. Finish: long, although becoming progressively drier, with peppers, juniper berries and cloves. Comments: today's Indian sign still hasn't quite been broken, but we're at, let's say, 85.999 points. But dura lex, sed lex, we hardly ever round upwards.
SGP:561 - 85 points.

Mannochmore 13 yo (53.7%, Dràm Mor, 1st fill tawny Port hogshead finish, cask #2690, 243 bottles, 2025)

Colour: ripe apricot. Nose: a little truffle at first, a faint whiff of gas, then fig leaves, tomato leaves, fresh bread dough, cherry stalks and blackcurrant buds. We're venturing into rather curious territory here... With water: intensely vegetal earthiness, manure, peelings, green beans and green pepper. Mouth (neat): much better on the palate, even if it's undeniably odd, rustic, rather too kirschy, quite unbalanced and distinctly over-peppery. That said, the Campari side is impossible to ignore, and one of our greatest faults is that we happen to love Campari. We're not even ashamed of it, although, of course, we probably should be. Love and hate, all over again. With water: the Port's blackcurrant notes emerge more clearly, together with leafy flavours. Finish: long, vegetal and bitter. Comments: exactly the sort of whisky we hate to love. Rather like that blasted Campari.
SGP:361 - 85 points.

We're not getting out of this, it would seem. Should we simply give up? Never! You see, our cause is just, if rather demanding, and we knew that from the very start...

Mannochmore 15 yo 2009/2025 ‘Loch Do!!’ (50%, Decadent Drams, refill hogshead, 254 bottles)

LOL! Colour: gold. Nose: allow me another little grumble, this has absolutely nothing to do with Loch Dhu beyond the distillery it came from, and that's all to the good. Turnips, orange peel, morels, a whiff of gas, pearl barley and damp compost. With water: the orange zests play exactly the same role here as the woodblocks, or are they cowbells, in Honky Tonk Women, they're simply indispensable. Mouth (neat): walnut cake glazed with kirsch, pistachio syrup, service berry eau-de-vie, sesame paste and artichoke cream. We do love artichoke cream, don't you? Give it a try... With water: and now comes toasted sesame cream as well. Finish: this is where it loses a little coherence, becoming just a shade too rustic, with a touch too much earthiness and fermentary character. I told you, it's a genuine curse... Comments: I rather think it was written in the stars that we wouldn't escape today, that we'd be condemned to these blasted 85 points.
SGP:452 - 85 points.

This seems as good a moment as any to remind you that 85 is an excellent score, isn't it! See you soon…

Check the index of all Mannochmore we've tasted