Wemyss malts Lord Elcho 15 yo

Those of you who read the blog on a regular basis know that I find Wemyss Malts single casks and blended malts to be very good to excellent. They do bottle good stuff, and do not bother with mediocre stuff, and usually they produce top notch stuff. The new expression named “Lord Elcho” is their first attempt at the blended whiskies market, with a premium whisky that sounds really interesting. I guess a little bio of this Lord Elcho is mandatory, so here goes :

The whisky is named after Wemyss Malts founder’s 18th century ancestor who was a loyal supporter to Bonnie Prince Charlie and led his lifeguards at the Battle of Culloden during the ill-fated Jacobite uprising in 1745. For his part in the uprising, Elcho was stripped of his title and lands and exiled to France, never returning to his native Scotland. Sounds good? let’s try the whisky. This blend is heavily influenced by sherry casks, and as such is rich, sweeter with a very enticing and deep feeling to it.

Nose : very nice nose. Distinct sherry with sugars caramel and dried fruit in honey liquor. A bit of wood and vanilla on top of that sweetness. Stewed apples, wood.

Palate: Creamy and mouth coating, starts spicy, with pepper, and ginger powder, then goes on with wood spice, dark chocolate, and cocoa, hint of cloves and. very nice chocolate-y notes.

Finish: Cocoa powder with dark chocolate, spice, wood and sherry.