Auchentoshan 1999 (World of Whisky Exclusive)

Auchentoshan has a fantastic official 1988 Bordeaux Wine Finish, but also an abominable 1991 Chateau Montrose Wine Finish (Malts of Scotland). So the wine finishes are a bit hit & miss. The Toshan we are about to try is something unique: it matured solely on Limousin oak of the French Bordeaux house of Saint Julien (as the 1988, by the way). Also, it is only available at World of Whiskies, the chain of duty free shops in the airports of Edinburgh, Gatwick, Glasgow, Heathrow and Stansted.

The nose is a battle between sweet and sour. On the one hand we have summer berries (gooseberry, currant and juniper), but on the other hand is that sour touch that balances precariously close to being winey. Luckily, however, this Toshan stays on the sweet side. Leave it long enough, and you'll even get a whiff of vanilla.

He's very creamy and - oh, redemption! - wonderfully sweet. I get associations with red summer fruits, even strawberry... This is heading in the right direction. Mid-palate, the wine rears its head, but not in any way negatively. This is a pleasant surprise after the somewhat dubious nose. I get sweet, crispy malt, followed by some citrus. It's a young Toshan, but fierce. Don't add water, though. It flattens out the aromas completely (and since it doesn't improve the nose...).

The finish is dry and short, but pleasant.

For a while there, it looked like this Toshan was going down the sulfury path, but on the palate it redeemed itself completely.

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