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Speyburn 25 Year Old

Average score from 3 reviews and 4 ratings 86

Speyburn 25 Year Old

Product details

  • Brand: Speyburn
  • Bottler: Distillery Bottling
  • ABV: 46.0%
  • Age: 25 year old

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@Pierre_W
Speyburn 25 Year Old

Speyburn distillery is located in the Rothes Glen and was founded in 1897 by John Hopkins & Co., a company that was owned by the brothers John and Edward Hopkins and their cousin Edward Broughton. In 1916 both the company and the distillery were acquired by Distillers Company Limited. Like many other Scottish whisky distilleries Speyburn did not produce any whisky during the First World War, and production was again halted between 1930 and 1934, as well as during the Second World War. However after 1945 production resumed and has continued uninterrupted until the present day. In 1962 Speyburn was transferred to Scottish Malt Distillers and in 1991 was bought by Inver House Distillers. Since 2006 Inver House have been part of International Beverage Holdings Ltd. This 25-year old Solera was first released in 2005 and is a marriage of Speyburn single malt matured in American fino sherry casks and bourbon casks.

The nose is rich, grassy, and wonderfully malty. Vanilla fudge and notes of milk chocolate start this off, followed by honey and a touch of peppermint.

The palate is medium-bodied and buttery. Vanilla and honey flavours are back and play the main part. Towards the end dry wood spice becomes more and more apparent.

The finish is long and warming. Honey and liquorice are followed by distinct malty notes.

This is good stuff in my opinion: rich, smooth, fruity and delightfully malty. It may not be too widely known but will hardly disappoint those who try it.

@galg

A few months ago I visited the Speyburn distillery as part of a blogger’s visit to some of the Inver House’s distilleries. The Speyburn distillery, is located in wonderful surrounding near Rothes , all green and pastoral, but sadly it lacks a proper visitor center. While there we got to sample the 10 year old and a NAS expressions, which were nice, but did not leave a mark, I must say. I did hear quite a bit about the 25 year old, and read favorable reviews , but did not get to try that one until very recently.

Well, I was in for a good surprise, as this one is far better than the 10 year old. It’s aged in a solera system and has quite a bit of sherry influence in it. Not a very well known dram, and this should change, for it’s a great whisky, and although the distillery is not exactly sexy and non-hyped it should not sneak below your radars.

Nose: A lot more fresh and grassier than I expected this one to be. Some dry sherry , mint , wee balsamic in the first few seconds. Sweet malty and honey fruits underneath. Palate: sweeter and wineyier. Sherry is king here. Meaty and chewable. Some peppery notes as well as fig and plum. Getting dry at the end with balanced wood notes. Finish : oak , pepper, sherry and tannins.

All in all a very enjoyable 25 year old dram, for a decent price, and from a distillery that is often overlooked. A really nice surprise from Speyburn. I hope there will be more releases exepct the 10 year old and the NAS, which are ok, but not brilliant.

@j0h3ll

Can't believe I am the first one to post a review of this very nice Speysider. I understand this might be a little hard to find, but at merely 70 pounds in the U.K it still represents good enough of a deal to justify the hassle of tracking one down...

Nose: Extremely appealing sweet vanilla and creamy fudge from the start, proclaiming a very fair use of bourbon casks, which explains the rather pale colour. Also some very present heather honey note with a floral touch in the background that evolves into brown sugar and a slightly burnt note. Some lemon zest also. Sweet, but never cloying. Wonderfully balanced and complex. Surely the best I've yet to come across, I'd nose that thing for hours!

Palate: Initially port and vanilla, which gets sweeter within a few seconds. Perfumed and floral, with that cream fudge and brown sugar tussle going on. Evolves into citrusy notes, which hold quite a fair amount of tang... Almost too much in fact since it makes your mouth water so much that you almost lose the whisky. Very lively and fresh towards the end, almost effervescent? Good mouth-coating texture brought by the lack of chill filtration. The palate is overall not as complex and grandiose as the nose presaged... Rather deceiving but still very pleasant.

Finish: A nice honeyed sweetness but with that persisting lemon tang. Holds together well, but ends quite dry... Immediately makes you want another sip!

Overall a very nice whisky but maybe not a memorable one. I have to admitI expected more, and that my initial excitation at the nose quickly faded at the palate and did not particularly rise at the finish. Yet, this is still a very good option for those like me who do not particularly appreciate the super sweetness and smoothness that is usually found in old Speysider, but who still fancy a mellower dram from time to time.

-JR

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