Whisky-Fassle Blended Malt "Very Old"

A blended malt (that's vatted malt to those of you reading this ten years ago) from German bottler Whisky-Fässle. No details as to the distilleries involved, and the age information is limited to the label's simple "very old".

I'm not particularly fazed by the lack of age statement on blends like this, although the move to cognac-style labelling like this (and more blatantly this) is an interesting development. Archives certainly didn't feel the need to do it with their (fantastic) blended malt from last year, which carried a vintage despite being comprised of older malts as well. (Admittedly, the exact ages of the older malts in the Archives release were, I believe, unknown).

Whisky-Fässle Blended Malt “very old”, 45.2%

Nose: Reticent at first. After a while, the faint whiffs of sherry and oak are joined by lighter notes of fruit and spices which are drawn out a little further with the addition of water.

Palate: Starts with sweet old spiced sherry – cloves, oranges, leather and a hint of chocolate – but then brighter top notes emerge showing yellow fruits, honey and a touch of salt. Is that a faint suggestion of heathery peat? Water brings the two parts closer together while simultaneously expanding the whole. 

Finish: The sweet/salt combo continues through the medium finish. Water extends the finish slightly, broadening the yellow fruit in combination with the spices, but also releasing some slightly astringent tannins right at the death. (Careful with the water.)

A lovely blended malt. While not particularly complex, it is very enjoyable and drinkable indeed. 

Very old? I dunno. I certainly found some notes indicative of some older stuff, but what do I know.

One man's "very" is another's "quite" anyway, I suppose.
Still available I think and definitely recommended.

A Whisky Adventure

As an international man of leisure now that my family are on holiday back home in Cornwall (please come back soon!), I attended a “whisky event” here in Melbourne yesterday.

I don’t normally go to these type of things, not just due to family commitments and priorities though. It’s simply not really my thing, I guess. Blokes, cologne, more blokes, all getting in between me and the whisky. Because theoretically I should of course love these events – lots of whisky, some of it really good, and a chance to talk to those who make it (or, more often, work for those that do, but that’s cool, more often than not they know their stuff).

But there’s just so much bloke. And cologne. And beard.

Anyway, I went (on a bus!) to this thing which was a showcase of independent bottlers of whisky – predominantly Scotch, but also some Irish, Australian, and whatever we’re classifying Couvreur’s as these days.

Three years ago, this event could have been held in a large phone booth (a small glassed-in room in the middle of the street where you put actual coins into a huge, non-functioning metal phone – ah fuck it, google it), so few indie bottlers were there to be found in Australia. But did you know there was a whisky boom?

So previously where for years we saw primarily just Gordon & Macphail, Adelphi, SMWS (if you’re a member) and Cadenhead (all of whom were represented at this tasting except, disappointingly and curiously, Cadenhead), we’re now increasingly seeing more and more of the UK and Europe’s independent bottlers being imported directly into the country. Signatory (only very recently), Berry’s, Hyde, Rest & Be Thankful, Couvreur, La Maison du Whisky (including the Artist Series and The Ten) are all now in the country officially. These were all represented at this tasting.

This is a good thing. Of course it is, the more indie whisky the better. The problem, for me, is the normalisation of seemingly ridiculous pricing. Now, I’m not one to bang on about pricing too much, although of course I’ve done my fair share. I buy expensive (to me) malts from time to time, largely from Europe. I don’t collect a lot of whisky (my supplies are considerably smaller (I imagine) than many other whisky obsessives), but I try to buy what I like.

[Whisky is still very much a drink for me. I can’t drink wine or beer anymore (due to complicated, boring intolerance issues) so when I want a drink, eight times out of ten it’s whisky (the other occasions it’ll be gin or, if i'm desperate, vodka). Sure, of course I love to geek out on whisky, sit down with it and explore, enjoy and discover. But I also just like to drink it. So I go through a bottle a little faster (I imagine) than many others.]

Some of the prices on these indie imports are beginning to seem pretty speculative though, both in comparison to their prices in the EU and UK, and just within the wider Australian context. Sure, we’re used to seeing some big numbers from SMWS and Adelphi, but often these are reasonably equivalent to their prices in other markets – with the additional impost and duties they attract when they land here.

But a quick scan through EU and UK stores shows some glaring mark-ups (again, yes, still factoring in the aggressive tax and duty regime here) on some of these new arrivals mentioned above. Something interesting is going on with some of the new batch of Adelphis too. (Signatory and their distributors here should be applauded, though, for they seem to have kept their prices at a reasonable level).

“It’s the market, idiot.” Yes, I know. But if people start buying at these bloated prices, it casts a signal to the rest of the market, ie. distilleries and their official bottlings. Anyway, we’ll wait to see if they move – it’s still early days.

Anyway, the whisky. Any good ones? Yes. Some not so good ones too.

No real notes (and the photos were all crap so I've just dropped the least shitty one in), but here’s a few of the whiskies I tried (I've listed some prices, others I'm too lazy to look for or just aren't yet available):

SMWS C1 – Cognac! This was a surprise. Lovely exotic spices carry from the nose through to the rich palate. Quite nice. 

SMWS 71.41 Curious and intriguing 57.2% - Sherried Glenburgie. Sweet, then rubber, sulphur and dirt, and mint and dried fruits. Pretty polarising. I liked it though.

Heartwood 2 of 3, Vatted Tasmanian Malt (Tasmanian Distillery and Lark), 68.1% - Outstanding vatting. Peat, Sherry and Port casks. Balance is impeccable. Probably long gone, but this was great (around $300 probably). It's a blend of one 16 YO Tasmanian Distillery cask and two Lark casks (8 and 6 YO).

Berry Bros. Clynelish 1996, 18 YO, 46% - Very waxy, archetypal Clynelish. No faults.

Berry Bros. Auchroisk 1998, 15 YO, 46% - This was awful. Metallic and musty.

Adelphi Highland Park 1989, 26 YO, 47% - Amazing. Bourbon cask HP delivering spicy fruit on nose and waves of tropical fruit on palate with tannins for structure on finish. Pity it’s so expensive ($515). Fantastic though.

Adelphi Clynelish 1993, 15 YO, 60.1% - One of the older bottlings that Adelphi have brought over this time. Solid bourbon cask Clynelish. Absolutely ridiculous price ($375). It was bottled in 2008, I get it, but the prices on this and the 11 YO Ben Nevis ($345) are insulting.

Signatory Glenlossie 1992, 22 YO, 57.1% - Nice fruity Speysider. Mouth coating, long and spicy ($200).

LMdW Artist #5 Ledaig 2004, 11 YO, 60.4% - Beautiful sherry cask. Sherry fruits, tobacco, salt, caramel, peat. Fantastic finish on this. This was great. But again, pricey ($265).

Rest & Be Thankful Octomore 2009, 6 YO, 66.9% (Lafite Cask) – Admittedly, this was never going to be my kind of thing, but this was so unbalanced, a mess of peat and hot red (wine) fruits. ($500!)

Glenmorangie Astar

In a previous Glenmorangie review I noted my partiality to the house style, in particular to the reliable 10 year old throughout the heat of summer. While we're still a couple of months away from summer here, somebody forgot to tell The Weather this little fact and we're enjoying the hottest October on record (so far) in these parts (but as it is most certainly cold somewhere in the world, we can be certain that climate change is definitely not happening. No way.) So, time to revisit an old favourite.

I really enjoyed this when first released, so when I saw it again at my local recently (at pretty much the original price, too, actually) I felt compelled to jump on it.

Astar. Virgin oak. Cask strength. NAS.
Peak Glenmo.

Glenmorangie Astar, 57.1%

Nose: Oak, natch. Sweet vanilla and coconut. Lots of all that. Some of the more aggressive wood characteristics blow off a little after some time in the glass. Water perhaps adds the faintest hint of ripe peach.

Palate: Heavy wood up top, sweet coconut and vanilla underneath. A bit of heat too. Quite noticeable layering here. The oak is pretty aggressive and easily the dominant layer. Water adds a hint of honeyed fruit.

Finish: Drying oak spice continues for quite a while, becoming increasingly metallic on the tongue, as the vanilla fades. Water sees the sweetness continue a fraction longer maybe.

Well, it's certainly more woody than I remember, but accusing Glenmorangie - this Glenmorangie - of being oak driven would seem to be a pretty futile exercise.

In any case, it hasn't given me as much fruity pleasure at it once did. Yet on these unseasonably hot nights I have found that the oak can be partially tamed by drinking it over some ice, and so that's how I've enjoyed the bulk of this bottle. Refreshing and thirst-quenching.

But I can of course also get that anytime, quickly and cheaply, from the 10 year old, too.

Springbank 2000, 13 Year Old, SMWS 27.106 "A boiler suit in ballet shoes"

A Springbank from what must be the most active refill bourbon cask in the history of history. And casks.

Springbank 2000, 13 Year Old, SMWS 27.106 "A boiler suit in ballet shoes", 50%

Nose: Quince jam, peat smoke and a touch of ash, too, perhaps. Hint of something herbal in the background.

Palate: Luscious, thick and oily texture. Sweet red fruit and figs. A hint of cabbage-y sulphur too, actually, which I haven't noticed on previous tastes to be honest. Salt and maybe a touch of aged balsamic.

Finish: Peat on the initial swallow, and this lingers through the sweet, thick and rather long finish as the salt becomes increasingly licorice-like.

Well, the label says refill bourbon so I guess it is, but it really is presenting a lot like an ex-sherry.
Anyway, nice "drinking" whisky. Not very complex, but it does have a lovely texture and mouthfeel.

Springbank 17 Sherry Wood (2015)

Forgive me Communist heathen Pope, it's been some time since my last entry.


Springbank 17 Sherry Wood (2015) 52.3%

Nose: Leather, ginger ale, mild and sweet heathery peat, and chocolate. After a while some fruit emerges - papaya mainly, with perhaps a hint of peach too.

Palate: Chocolate, papaya, salt, along with the ol' Springbank tells of  earth and engine oil.
Water doesn't seem to add too much, although perhaps now it serves to heighten both the sweetness and the salt.

Finish: The papaya and salt pulsate through the finish, with the chocolate reappearing before the dirty oil swirls back to the top at the death.
Water seems to add a bit of spice at the end as that increased saltiness from the palate follows through on the finish.

To be honest I was expecting more - or at least something different - from this sherried Springbank. While I have enjoyed it and it has certainly grown on me - this review is from the last quarter of the bottle - I had hoped upon release that it may be a full-sherried (first fill) experience as opposed to the largely re-fill barrel notes this seems to me to offer.

Glen Ord 1983, 31 Year Old, Cadenhead Single Cask

You (and by that I suppose I mean I) don't tend to see a lot of Glen Ord around (although I note that Signatory have just recently released another single cask), the bulk of the 162 independent bottlings listed on whiskybase coming from Signatory and SMWS, with Cadenhead a distant third.

[This, incidentally, will be the second of Cadenhead's gold-labelled Single Cask series that I've tried, the first being this really bloody good Glen Keith.]

I have, though, never actually tried a Glen Ord before this, but from what I've read of the profile, it should fit comfortably up my alley - amongst other euphemistic mixed metaphors.

[For the record, I'm sticking with the more recognisable "Glen Ord" in the title rather than Cadenhead's Glen-less "Ord" - the arcane and eccentric distillery naming system that Cadenhead utilise for their labels goes way above the head of one such as myself, so I wont even bother trying to work this one out.]

Glen Ord 1983, 31 Year Old, Cadenhead Single Cask, 51%

Nose: Sweet honeyed barley at first, soon becoming quite waxy. After a little while some fruits gather - rock melon, kiwi and a hint of orange citrus. Oak spices emerge after even more time.
Water accentuates the fruit a touch, bringing in some sweeter stonefruit like peaches and nectarines, and after a while some less sweet stuff like papaya and cocoa.

Palate: Powerful, mouth-filling arrival, with lots of spice, malt, wax and salt. A touch of Clynelish about it. Something herbal - rosemary? - along with vanilla, passionfruit and milk chocolate.
Water turns down the heat a fraction and releases a whole lot more fresh fruit - orange, peach, melon, mango, pineapple - along with honey and maybe cinnamon. Beautiful bourbon cask notes. The mouthfeel remains creamy yet prickly and lively as it expands across the palate. Maybe a touch of smoke here, too, now?

Finish: It remains quite spicy as it develops, with the salt lingering into the chocolate-laden finish.
Water sees the fruit - oranges, clementines, mango - extend further into the long salty finish with the chocolate now prominent only right at the very death.

Great whisky.
For me, an absolute highland classic. Salt, bucket-loads of (tropical) fruit, spice and a hint of smoke.
The kind of whisky I wish I could drink forever.

Clynelish 1997, 17 Year Old, Maltbarn, 48.6%

Maltbarn would have to be one of my favourite bottlers at the moment. Great selections (I haven't yet tried - in my somewhat limited experience - anything that I'd classify as a complete dud), great labels and great people.

This is the second 1997 Clynelish I've tried from Maltbarn - the first was very good so I was very much looking forward to this which, like that first one, is drawn from a bourbon cask.


Clynelish 1997, 17 Year Old, Maltbarn, 48.6%

Nose: It's really quite reticent at first. Eventually there's hints of butterscotch, salt and wax.
Water releases some menthol (see below), and that distinct Clynelish-y maltiness begins to emerge.


Palate: Butter-Menthol. So much Butter-Menthol. (Butter-Menthol is an Australian throat lozenge comprised primarily of sugar, sodium ascorbate and, yes, you guessed it, menthol and butter. I'm sure there are similar products around, but it's a very familiar taste to an Aussie palate - well, certainly to this one anyway.) Salt builds through the development, as do some sweeter citrus notes. Yellow fruits appear underneath that salt after some more time in the glass.

Water enhances all of the above, perhaps increasing the saltiness above all, as it works in tandem with the menthol to expand and prickle the palate.


Finish: Medium length. It finishes as it began, salty Butter-Menthols.
Water extends the finish dramatically and, as for the palate, increases the saltiness.


It may seem, from these notes, that this whisky is a little one-dimensional and lacking in complexity, but that could just be my palate fixating on the familiar at the expense of everything else. (The nose was also nearly absent at this sitting, so perhaps my senses are just a little dulled at the moment.)

Regardless, this is a deliciously lip-smacking Clynelish. So salty and buttery (and of course menthol-ly). Extremely more-ish.