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15th April 2018 |
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Review of the
Scottish Craftsman's Association 22nd
Anniversary event and the whiskies
tasted on the night by guest writer and
Scotch Malt Whisky forum member,
Companion of the Quaich, Murray Cohen.
The Scottish Craftsmen's Association
Twenty-Second Anniversary Whisky
Experience was held in Port Dalhousie
Ontario, Canada on April 12, 2019. The
dynamic evening featured a pair of
highland dancers, the Niagara Police
Pipe Band and of course five specially
selected single malts with 80 attendees
for the structured tasting. The host and
presenter for the evening was John
McIntosh. The event has garnered great
interest in the Niagara Peninsula from
its inception and the quality of the
whiskies presented year after year is
most notable. The single malts this year
represented Elgin, Moray; Campbeltown,
Isle of Arran, Pitlochry and Dufftown.
 The whiskies tasted
by the gentlemen of the Scottish
Craftsman's Association pictured above during Scottish
Craftsman's Association 22nd Anniversary
event were:
- Longmorn 16 Year Old
- Kilkerran 12 Year Old
- Arran The Sauternes Cask
- Glenfiddich Winter Storm 21 Year
Old
- Blair Athol 23 Year Old
You can read the tasting notes below,
all of the whiskies are available from
LCBO stores in Canada and outside Canada
most are available from specialist
online whisky shops such as
The Whisky Exchange,
The Whisky Shop and
Master of Malt
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Longmorn 16 Year Old Review
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Longmorn, a Speyside distillery has
had a cult following for some years and
its whisky has also been used in blends
and now is becoming more and more
popular as a single malt. An interesting
aside is that one of the father’s of
Japanese whisky, Masataka Taketsuru
spent some time working at this
distillery in 1920.
The whisky is aged in ex-bourbon
casks.
Bottled at
48% ABV
Murray Cohen's Tasting Notes:
Nose:
Fragrant fresh-cut summer flowers fill
the olfactory sense. Pumpkin seeds
freshly picked and sweetened Danish
pastry with icing flecks impress.
Cantaloupe, pistachios and sweet potato
pie come in waves with the late arrival
of buttermilk pancakes.
Taste:
Full-bodied, smooth and creamy yielding
a spice and caramel melange. Tangerines
and limes entertain with shades of
peanut butter and banana split.
Finish:
Long, vanilla sherbet with peaches,
crème du menthe and nutty nougat reach
out.
Comment:
This is a multi-dimensional, complex and
well-balanced whisky.
Score
93.5/100
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Kilkerran 12 Year Old Review
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The new Kilkerran 12 Year Old is the
first official core release from
Mitchell’s Glengyle Distillery. Back
in the 19th century there were at
least 34 legal distilleries in the
area. This whisky uses a mixture of
cask types: 70% ex-bourbon casks,
and the remaining 30% in ex-sherry
casks.
Bottled at
46% ABV
Murray Cohen's Tasting Notes:
Nose:
Exotic fruity essence with vanilla,
butterscotch and sugary notes
awaken. The second act presents
cereal notes, citrus gummy bears
with a progressive build-up of dark
chocolate and marble halvah.
Taste:
Medium to full-bodied and somewhat
drying. Mocha and corn flakes enter
the scene then spice, marshmallows
and pimento flakes. A batch of
flapjacks is served late.
Finish:
Lingering. Spice, leather and
espresso crema appear with late
whipped coffee and a hint of smoke.
Comment:
A refreshing whisky which would have
wide appeal to the fairer sex. It
has a lovely continuous candied
nose.
Score
89.5/100
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Arran The Sauternes Cask Review
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The Isle of Arran has just one
single malt distillery. Watch out
for the Golden eagles circling
around the crags above Glen
Chalmadale. This single malt is aged
for 8 years in traditional
(previously used) oak before
transferring to ex-Sauternes dessert
wine casks.
Bottled at
50% ABV
Murray Cohen's Tasting Notes:
Nose:
Earthy sweet, piles of straw, pea
soup, celery heart and bicolor corn
spawn an interesting interplay of
aromas. Rice pudding with nutmeg,
Christmas cake, mocha, sultanas,
apricots, mangoes and figs line the
perimeter.
Taste:
Full-bodied and creamy. McIntosh
apples, caramel sauce, bananas and
spice take a bow.
Finish:
Warming to be sure, medium to long,
red laces (licorice), lemon biscuits
and echoes of high tea desserts.
Comment:
A dessert dram with a “nose” and
some cask strength punch to
remember.
Score
86.5/100
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Glenfiddich Winter Storm 21 Year Old Review
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Glenfiddich Distillery shines as one
of the most known Scottish
distilleries with the water known as
“the single source of inspiration”.
This is batch two of Winter Storm.
The third entry in the Experimental
Series. The whisky is finished in
French-oak ice-wine casks from
Canada. The dram is recommended to
be served with a single frozen grape
in the glass.
Bottled at
43% ABV
Murray Cohen's Tasting Notes:
Nose:
Dried apricots on a cream soda
float, caramelized bananas, almond
praline spread, stewed fruit,
muscatel grape skins and lychee nuts
in syrup build like an ecological
aromatic map.
Taste:
Full-bodied, smooth and creamy.
There is a mix of Neapolitan 3
flavor ice cream with mocha and
Turkish delight.
Finish:
Lingering and drying; dark chocolate
and ice wine reminiscences satisfy.
Comment:
The whisky is a work of finesse and
creativity, embellished by the ice
wine wood.
Score
94/100
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Blair Athol 23 Year Old Review
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Blair Athol’s ancient source of
water is the Allt Dour – in Gaelic
“the burn of the otter”. It is this
constant availability of pure water
which led John Stewart and Robert
Robertson to found the distillery on
the moorland south of Pitlochry in
1798. The whisky is the first
official release since 2003 and also
the distillery's first appearance in
Diageo's annual Special Releases.
Matured in European oak butts that
have undergone scraping, toasting
and recharring. The butts were
refilled with fortified wine in the
UK before being filled with whisky.
There were only 5514 bottles
produced.
Bottled at 58.4% ABV
Murray Cohen's Tasting Notes:
Nose:
Red plums “runneth” over the fruit
bowl. Almost concurrent hits of
musky melon, stewed black cherries,
crab apples, sour cherry jam,
apricot compote and Australian black
licorice. Texas BBQ rub adds to the
mystique.
Taste:
Full-bodied and chewy with thick
tree-like legs. Black licorice,
anise, spice, walnuts and chestnuts
revolve on the palate. A waterfall
of intense flavors at your service.
Finish:
Long and drying. The licorice theme
repeats with a sweet undertow and
earthiness that perseverates.
Comment:
A voluptuous, meaty and thick dram
with massive layers of flavor and
aromas.
Score
96/100
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