Scotch Whisky reviews

My first encounter with Pittyvaich was the 12 Year Old in the Flora & Fauna series, which tasted better than I feared. Pittyvaich didn’t build up a stellar reputation in its 18 years of production (from…

Nose: Peat, smoke, ocean air, lemon peelPalate: Phenolic, reminiscent of Islay (naturally) but uniquely Talisker. Spicy pepper, salted pretzels. With a little water the salted pretzels mellow and become…

Gordon & Macphail is one of the oldest independent bottlers in the world, founded in 1895 by James Gordon and John Alexander Macphail. They hired John Urquhart at the age of 15, who soon became respon…

Cask Number: 2839 Bottle Number: 97Nose: Heavy wood influence, pie crusts, underripe satsumas. Fairly sweet. For me, the nose is the best part.Palate: Once again lots of wood, sugar and spice, maple.…

This Islay distillery is one of the lesser know, probably because the largest part of its production is destined for the blends, particularly Johnnie Walker. But still, Caol Ila produces some exquisite…

I picked up an (overpriced) bottle of this beauty at an airport and have not regretted that purchase for a second. Caol Ila has been among my favourite distilleries for a while, and this new expression…

After the 12 Year Old – which I really liked – I’ll now try the 18 Year Old, also from the core range of the largest distillery on Islay. After that, I’ll try a very special independent bottling of Caol…