Known as the Maritime Malt, this 12-year-old carries the full salty, rugged character of Scotland's northernmost mainland coast.

Expert Review

Old Pulteney 12 år Single Highland Malt Whisky 70 cl 40% is a Single Highland Malt Whisky matured in ex-bourbon casks and bottled at 40% ABV.

Old Pulteney 12 Years Old is an iconic single malt whisky from the north of Scotland, known as the Maritime Malt. It is produced at Pulteney Distillery in Wick, close to Scotland's rugged coastline, where sea air seeps into the warehouses and shapes the whisky's character throughout maturation in ex-bourbon casks.

Tasting Notes

Nose

The nose is fresh and saline, with citrus, apple and a light sea breeze.

Palate

The palate is clean and lightly sweet, with honey, citrus and a touch of salt.

Finish

The finish is medium-long, dry and salty.

Specifications

Name: Old Pulteney 12 år Single Highland Malt Whisky 70 cl 40%
Distillery: Old Pulteney
Region: Highland, Scotland
Type: Single Highland Malt Whisky
Age: 12 Years
ABV: 40%
Size: 70 CL
Cask Type: ex-bourbon casks
EAN No.: 5010509060028

Flavour Profile

Maritime · Citrus · Fresh

Did You Know?

Pulteney Distillery is located in Wick, once Europe's busiest herring port, and the whisky takes its name from the town's historic harbour district, Pulteneytown.

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"Give it time" has been Tullamore D.E.W.'s promise since 1829. This expression keeps that promise with three whiskey types, three distillations and one familiar, smooth style.

Expert Review

Tullamore Dew Triple Blend Triple Distilled is an Irish Whiskey combining Pot Still, Single Malt and Grain Whiskey, bottled at 40%.

The whiskey comes from the Tullamore D.E.W. distillery in County Offaly and is triple distilled, giving it the light, approachable style the brand is known for worldwide. By combining all three classic Irish whiskey styles in one blend, it achieves a soft, round profile that works equally well neat and in cocktails such as Irish Coffee.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Light and floral, with vanilla and a touch of green apple.

Palate

Soft and round, with honey and a lightly spiced edge from the pot still component.

Finish

Short to medium, clean and lightly sweet.

Specifications

Name: Tullamore Dew Triple Blend Triple Distilled Irish Whiskey
Distillery: Tullamore D.E.W.
Region/Country: County Offaly, Ireland
Type: Irish Whiskey
ABV: 40%
Size: 70 CL
Distillation method: Triple distilled
EAN no.: 5011026108033

Flavour Profile

Light · Floral · Soft · Round · Sweet

Did You Know?

The name Tullamore D.E.W. carries the initials of Daniel E. Williams, the man who rose from young warehouse worker to distillery director and left his mark on both the whiskey and the slogan "Give it time".
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Hinch Small Batch Bourbon Cask is an approachable blended Irish whiskey with a light nutty brown colour and a fresh, fruity palate.

Expert Review

Hinch Small Batch Bourbon Cask Irish Whiskey is a Blended Irish Whiskey, bottled at 43%.

The blend is a 70/30 mix of single grain whiskey and single malt whiskey, matured in bourbon casks in a small batch style. The colour is light nutty brown, and the palate offers dry fruit with citrus notes and a lingering caramel mouthfeel.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Light and fresh with citrus.

Palate

Dry fruit with citrus notes and caramel.

Finish

Lingering caramel mouthfeel.

Specifications

Name: Hinch Small Batch Bourbon Cask Irish Whiskey
Distillery: Hinch
Region/Country: Ireland
Type: Blended Irish Whiskey
Cask: Bourbon Cask
ABV: 43%
Size: 70 CL
Colour: Light nutty brown

Flavour Profile

Fruity · Citrus · Caramel · Light · Approachable

Did You Know?

The small batch process means Hinch only blends a limited number of casks at a time to preserve consistency and character.
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One cask, 114 bottles, and a Danish importer who sat and waited for seven years. The spirit ran off the stills on a July day in 2016 in an industrial park in the west of Glasgow, and exactly seven years and ten days later the cask was emptied. Timing like that is rarely an accident.

The Expert's Description

1770 Glasgow 2016/2023 Mac Y Selection 7 Years Old is a Lowland Single Malt Scotch Whisky matured in a 1st fill ex-bourbon cask and finished in Virgin Oak, bottled at 55.8%. Cask 16/844 was distilled on 17 July 2016 and bottled on 27 July 2023, yielding 114 bottles selected by the Danish importer Mac Y.

Just over three years went by in the first fill bourbon cask, where the spirit picked up vanilla, coconut and a light cereal sweetness. Then came almost four years in new charred American oak. Virgin Oak has never held spirit before, and it works fast and hard: cinnamon, nutmeg, burnt sugar and a drier tannic edge shift the whole profile. Seven years does not sound like much, but in virgin oak seven years can do more than twice that in a refill cask.

Glasgow Distillery uses malted barley and water from Loch Katrine, ferments for more than 72 hours and distils slowly in traditional copper pot stills. The whisky is neither chill filtered nor coloured.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Freshly planed oak and warm cinnamon bun first. Behind that come vanilla, toasted coconut and a hint of yellow fruit, mostly pear with a little pineapple. There is also a drier pencil shaving note that virgin oak casks tend to give.

Palate

Sweet and spicy at once. Burnt sugar, nutmeg and baked apple meet a firm oak tannin that tightens things up mid-palate. At 55.8% it runs warm but the body holds. A few drops of water draw out more honey and calm the wood a little.

Finish

Long and woody, with pepper, toasted oak and a faintly bitter cocoa note. The sweetness lets go slowly.

Specifications

Name: 1770 Glasgow 2016/2023 Mac Y Selection 7 Years Old Virgin Oak Single Malt Scotch Whisky 55.8%
Distillery: Glasgow Distillery
Region/Country: Lowland, Scotland
Type: Lowland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Age: 7 years
ABV: 55.8%
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: 1st fill ex-bourbon and finished in Virgin Oak, cask no. 16/844
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Distilled: 17 July 2016
Bottled: 27 July 2023
Number of bottles: 114
Edition: Mac Y Selection
EAN no.: 5714772002067

Flavour Profile

Spiced · Vanilla · Oaky · Fresh · Cask Strength · Fruity

Investment Potential

Medium. A single cask with only 114 bottles, released into one market, is hard to find again once it has gone. Bottlings from Glasgow Distillery’s early years have also drawn steadily more attention as the distillery has established itself.

Did You Know?

The water for 1770 comes from Loch Katrine in the Trossachs, the same loch that has supplied Glasgow with drinking water since 1859. The city built an aqueduct system running more than 50 kilometres to fight cholera, and today that same water runs through a malt distillery on the western edge of town.

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Hungarian dessert wine and Scottish malt whisky are not an obvious match. Yet a Tokaji barrique sat waiting in a Glasgow warehouse, and for the final months before bottling the whisky was allowed to stretch out in it. You can smell that somebody took a chance.

The Expert's Description

1770 Glasgow 2018/2022 Mac Y Selection Tokaji Finish is a Lowland Single Malt Scotch Whisky matured in 1st fill ex-bourbon casks and finished in a Tokaji barrique, bottled at 52%. Cask 18/968 was distilled on 3 February 2018 and bottled on 25 October 2022, giving 303 bottles for the Danish importer Mac Y.

Tokaji is a Hungarian sweet wine made from botrytised grapes, and its casks are used only very rarely for Scotch. Where a sherry cask brings dark fruit and nuts, Tokaji pulls towards apricot, honey and a tart marmalade note that leaves the whisky brighter and fresher than a typical finish. The bourbon wood underneath keeps the vanilla and cereal sweetness in place.

The whisky was distilled at Glasgow Distillery, where the mash ferments for over 72 hours before slow distillation in copper pot stills. Neither chill filtration nor colouring came anywhere near the bottle.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Dried apricot and orange marmalade first, with honey and a little yellow plum behind. Then the bourbon cask brings vanilla and a light pastry note, close to a Danish. A fine acidity runs through it all and stops the sweetness turning sticky.

Palate

Sweet and juicy to begin: apricot, honeydew melon and candied lemon. Mid-palate the oak and white pepper tighten up and a faintly waxy texture appears. The 52% gives body without heat. After a few minutes in the glass a dried mango note steps forward.

Finish

Medium length. Honey and citrus peel first, then drier oak and a touch of ginger. The sweetness fades calmly.

Specifications

Name: 1770 Glasgow 2018/2022 Mac Y Selection Tokaji Finish Single Malt Scotch Whisky 52%
Distillery: Glasgow Distillery
Region/Country: Lowland, Scotland
Type: Lowland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Age: 4 years
ABV: 52%
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: 1st fill ex-bourbon and finished in a Tokaji barrique, cask no. 18/968
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Distilled: 3 February 2018
Bottled: 25 October 2022
Number of bottles: 303
Edition: Mac Y Selection
EAN no.: 5714772001978

Flavour Profile

Fruity · Honeyed · Fresh · Spiced · Cask Strength · Vinous

Did You Know?

Tokaji was for centuries the most sought-after wine in Europe. Louis XIV is said to have called it Vinum Regum, Rex Vinorum, the wine of kings and the king of wines. Casks like these almost never turn up in Scottish warehouses, and when they do it is usually because a small distillery fancied trying something the big ones cannot be bothered with.

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Two whiskies from the same distillery that were never meant to meet. One peated and finished in Bordeaux red wine casks. The other triple distilled and finished in Ruby Port. Somebody opened both and poured them together, and what came out makes more sense than it should.

The Expert's Description

1770 Glasgow 2018/2022 Red Wine & Ruby Port Cask 4 Years Old is a Lowland Single Malt Scotch Whisky finished in Bordeaux red wine casks and Ruby Port casks, bottled at 57.5%. It brings together two different malt whiskies, both made at Glasgow Distillery, released in the distillery’s Small Batch Series at 1,925 bottles.

The first part is peated and took its finish in casks from Bordeaux, which lays dark berries and a drier tannic edge into the smoke. The second is triple distilled and unpeated, finished in Ruby Port, giving red fruit, sweetness and a fuller texture. Because every drop comes from the one distillery, the whisky is still a Single Malt.

The water comes from Loch Katrine, the mash ferments for more than 72 hours, and distillation runs slowly in copper pot stills. The whisky is neither chill filtered nor coloured.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Dark berries first, blackberry and preserved cherry, and behind them a dry earthy smoke closer to cold ash than a bonfire. There is vinous sweetness too and a streak of liquorice. The smoke is clear but it does not fill the whole glass.

Palate

Sweet and full to start: raspberry, redcurrant and a little dark chocolate. Then the smoke arrives from the side along with black pepper and a drier tannin from the red wine wood. At 57.5% the body is generous, and a pleasant tension between sweet and smoky runs the whole way through.

Finish

Long and in two halves. The fruit lingers first, then a drier note of ash and pepper takes over and releases slowly.

Specifications

Name: 1770 Glasgow 2018/2022 Red Wine & Ruby Port Cask 4 Years Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 57.5%
Distillery: Glasgow Distillery
Region/Country: Lowland, Scotland
Type: Lowland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Age: 4 years
ABV: 57.5%
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Finished in Bordeaux red wine casks and Ruby Port casks
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Distillation method: Traditional and triple distillation in copper pot stills
Distilled: 2018
Bottled: 2022
Number of bottles: 1,925
Edition: Small Batch Series
EAN no.: 5714772002074

Flavour Profile

Smoky · Fruity · Vinous · Spiced · Cask Strength · Full Bodied

Did You Know?

Glasgow Distillery runs peated, unpeated and triple distilled production within the same year. Most Scottish malt distilleries stick to one style, but here the recipe is deliberately switched so there is something different to build with when the casks are brought together. This bottle is a direct result of working that way.

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Twenty-five years as a Danish whisky importer deserves more than a speech. Mac Y picked a peated cask from Glasgow that had spent its final months in Ruby Port and marked the anniversary with 482 half bottles. Smoke and red fruit in one glass. There is a reason that cask was chosen.

The Expert's Description

1770 Glasgow Mac Y 25th Jubile Release is a Lowland Single Malt Scotch Whisky matured in a 1st fill ex-bourbon cask and finished in a Ruby Port barrique, bottled at 55.3% in 50 cl format. Cask 17/803 was distilled on 12 October 2017 and bottled on 4 November 2021, yielding 482 bottles.

The spirit is peated, and that matters: Glasgow Distillery only runs peated malt for part of the year, so the volume is limited from the outset. The bourbon cask laid down vanilla and coconut, and the Ruby Port cask stacked red fruit and sweetness on top. That combination gives the whisky its unusual balance of sweet smoke and berries.

The bottling was created for Mac Y’s 25th anniversary in September 2021, and the whisky is neither chill filtered nor coloured.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Sweet peat smoke first, close to a toasted marshmallow held near a fire pit. Then rich chocolate cake, freshly planed oak and a note of rolling tobacco. Further back sit cracked leather and a hint of preserved cherry.

Palate

Rich and smooth. Strawberry and raspberry open, then sponge cake, cocoa and milk chocolate with coffee beans in the background. The smoke lies underneath as a warm floor rather than a point. At 55.3% there is body without hard edges.

Finish

Long and layered. Full red fruit, a smoked barbecue note and dried dark fruits that release slowly.

Specifications

Name: 1770 Glasgow Mac Y 25th Jubile Release Single Malt Scotch Whisky 50 cl 55.3%
Distillery: Glasgow Distillery
Region/Country: Lowland, Scotland
Type: Lowland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Age: 4 years
ABV: 55.3%
Size: 50 CL
Cask type: 1st fill ex-bourbon and finished in a Ruby Port barrique, cask no. 17/803
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Distilled: 12 October 2017
Bottled: 4 November 2021
Number of bottles: 482
Edition: Mac Y 25th Jubile Release
EAN no.: 5060411501232

Flavour Profile

Smoky · Fruity · Sweet · Chocolate · Cask Strength · Vinous

Did You Know?

Mac Y started in 1996 in Frederiks in central Jutland as a hobby that got out of hand, and in its early years imported mainly whisky from Scotland, Ireland, Wales, Canada, Kentucky and Japan. Rum arrived after 2000, and today the house covers everything from port and armagnac to absinthe. This anniversary bottle marks the first quarter century.

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There is something nerve-wracking about a first release. Everything the distillery has learned sits in that one bottle, and there is no earlier batch to hide behind. The Morrison family had not distilled for over 30 years when they fired up the stills on the farm at Aberargie. This is the answer to whether it was worth the wait.

The Expert's Description

Aberargie Inaugural Release is a Lowland Single Malt Scotch Whisky matured in 1st fill ex-bourbon casks and 1st fill Oloroso and Pedro Ximénez sherry casks, bottled at 48.2%. It is the distillery's first single malt, distilled in 2017 and bottled in 2026, and the first whisky created from grain to bottle on the family's own land.

The barley is grown on the farm’s 300 acres and splits 52% Golden Promise and 48% Laureate. Golden Promise is an older variety with lower yield and more cereal character, Laureate a modern and efficient one, and the combination gives both depth and a clean, clear malt profile. Maturation is divided evenly between American bourbon casks and Spanish sherry casks from Miquel Martin, with every cask shipped whole to protect the aroma in the wood.

The whisky is neither chill filtered nor coloured. It was released to specialist whisky retailers worldwide in March 2026 and marks the Morrison family’s return to distilling after a break of more than three decades.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Baked apple and golden pastry first, close to sugared puff pastry. Behind come fresh barley, vanilla and a light tropical note of mango and pineapple. The sherry casks add a layer of dried fruit and a subtle spiced sweetness.

Palate

Clean and malty with clear cereal character. Honey and citrus open, then soft oak and a natural sweetness from the barley. The sherry portion lays in raisins and a mild spiced depth without taking over. At 48.2% there is good body and a neat balance between fruit and wood.

Finish

Medium length and clean, with malt, oak and a herbal, lightly dry close that keeps the mouth fresh.

Specifications

Name: Aberargie Inaugural Release Single Malt Scotch Lowland Whisky 48.2%
Distillery: Aberargie
Region/Country: Lowland, Scotland
Type: Lowland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
ABV: 48.2%
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: 1st fill ex-bourbon and 1st fill Oloroso and Pedro Ximénez sherry casks
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Distilled: 2017
Bottled: 2026
Edition: Inaugural Release

Flavour Profile

Malty · Fruity · Honeyed · Fresh · Sherry Matured · Spiced

Investment Potential

Medium. First releases from new distilleries carry built-in scarcity: there will never be more of this exact bottling, and they often become sought after if the distillery goes on to do well. Aberargie is also barley-to-bottle on its own land, which makes the bottle interesting beyond the historical marker.

Did You Know?

The Morrison family is one of the longest established names in Scotch whisky, yet they had not distilled themselves for more than 30 years before Aberargie came on stream. The farm sits just outside Perth, and the barley grows literally outside the warehouse door, something very few Scottish distilleries can claim.

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Five centilitres is enough to work out whether a distillery is for you. This small bottle holds the Glasgow Distillery house style in undiluted form: bright, fruity and bottled at 46% with no filtration and no colouring. An honest sample, not a splash in a plastic cup.

The Expert's Description

1770 Glasgow The Original is a Lowland Single Malt Scotch Whisky matured in 1st fill ex-bourbon and Virgin Oak casks and bottled at 46% in 5 cl format. It is the distillery’s core release and carries the subtitle Fresh & Fruity, which describes what happens in the glass rather accurately.

The whisky is unpeated and double distilled. The bourbon casks give vanilla, coconut and a soft cereal sweetness, while the Virgin Oak lays in spice and a drier edge so the profile never turns cloying. There is no age statement; the distillery bottles when the casks are ready rather than when the calendar says so.

The mash ferments for more than 72 hours and distillation runs slowly in copper pot stills using water from Loch Katrine. Neither chill filtration nor colouring is involved.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Pear and green apple first, clear and fresh. Beneath sit vanilla, desiccated coconut and a light honey note. There is a fine cereal thread too, close to warm porridge oats.

Palate

Soft and lightly creamy. Vanilla and baked apple arrive first, then a brief spicy tightening from the new oak, cinnamon with a little white pepper. The 46% gives good body for a bottle this size.

Finish

Short to medium. Vanilla, malt and a dry oak note that lets go cleanly without bitterness.

Specifications

Name: 1770 Glasgow The Original Fresh & Fruity Single Malt Scotch Whisky 5 cl 46%
Distillery: Glasgow Distillery
Region/Country: Lowland, Scotland
Type: Lowland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
ABV: 46%
Size: 5 CL
Cask type: 1st fill ex-bourbon and Virgin Oak casks
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
EAN no.: 5060411500952

Flavour Profile

Fresh · Fruity · Vanilla · Soft · Malty · Spiced

Did You Know?

The number 1770 is not the founding year of the current distillery but of the original Glasgow Distillery, which opened that year. When the modern distillery was built it became the first malt distillery inside Glasgow itself for more than a century, and the name was chosen to tie the two together.

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A third pass through the stills takes something away. That is the whole point. The heavy oily compounds are left behind, and what comes out is softer, lighter and cleaner at the edge. Five centilitres is plenty to hear the difference.

The Expert's Description

1770 Glasgow Triple Distilled is a Lowland Single Malt Scotch Whisky matured in ex-bourbon and Virgin Oak casks and bottled at 46% in 5 cl format. The distillery calls it Smooth & Vibrant, and it is triple distilled, a technique that has all but vanished from Scottish malt production.

On the third distillation only the lightest and purest part of the spirit is collected, and the heavier fatty acids stay behind in the still. That gives a whisky with less oily body but more clarity in the fruit. The bourbon casks lay in vanilla and coconut, and a smaller proportion of Virgin Oak tightens things with spice.

The whisky is unpeated, non-chill filtered and free of colouring. The water comes from Loch Katrine and fermentation runs beyond 72 hours before distillation.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Bright and clean: lemon peel, white flowers and a hint of pear. Vanilla sits underneath as a soft floor, and there is a note of damp sponge cake. No smoke, no weight.

Palate

Silky to begin, with cream, honey and fresh apple. Then a light chalky minerality arrives with a touch of white pepper from the oak. The body is lighter than in a double distilled malt but it is not thin.

Finish

Short and clean. Vanilla, citrus and a final breath of malt. It disappears neatly without leaving bitterness.

Specifications

Name: 1770 Glasgow Triple Distilled Smooth & Vibrant Single Malt Scotch Whisky 5 cl 46%
Distillery: Glasgow Distillery
Region/Country: Lowland, Scotland
Type: Lowland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
ABV: 46%
Size: 5 CL
Cask type: Ex-bourbon and Virgin Oak casks
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Distillation method: Triple distilled
EAN no.: 5060411500976

Flavour Profile

Soft · Fresh · Creamy · Citrus · Light · Vanilla

Did You Know?

Triple distillation is standard in Irish whiskey but rare in Scotland. Only a handful of Scottish malt distilleries do it routinely, with Auchentoshan in the Lowlands and Hazelburn from Springbank in Campbeltown the best known. Glasgow Distillery runs it for a substantial part of the year and has made the technique part of its identity.

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Smoke from the Lowlands is a rarity. For decades the region stood for the light and floral while peat was left to the islands. Glasgow Distillery decided to do it anyway, and laid the smoke down in Pedro Ximénez casks where it found sweetness to lean against.

The Expert's Description

1770 Glasgow Peated is a Lowland Single Malt Scotch Whisky matured in Virgin Oak and PX Sherry casks and bottled at 46%. The distillery calls it Rich & Smoky, and it is their peated core expression, made from peated malt during part of the production year.

The cask choice is what makes it. Virgin Oak gives spice, cinnamon and a drier wood edge, while the PX Sherry casks lay in a thick, almost syrupy sweetness: raisins, dates and dark sugar. The smoke sits between the two and comes out rounder for the company than it would have on neutral wood.

The whisky is neither chill filtered nor coloured, and bottling at 46% was chosen to keep the body intact. The water comes from Loch Katrine and fermentation runs beyond 72 hours.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Sweet smoke first, closer to singed raisins than a bonfire. Behind it come dates, dark sugar and a note of burnt orange. There is a layer of cinnamon and dried ginger from the new oak as well.

Palate

Full and sweet. Raisins and molasses open, then the smoke steps in as a dry earthy floor. The spices arrive last: cinnamon, clove, a touch of chilli. The texture is thick and slightly clinging, which is the PX cask signature.

Finish

Long. Smoke and dark sweetness go hand in hand, and a drier, almost coffee-like bitterness lingers at the end.

Specifications

Name: 1770 Glasgow Peated Rich & Smoky Single Malt Scotch Whisky 46%
Distillery: Glasgow Distillery
Region/Country: Lowland, Scotland
Type: Lowland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
ABV: 46%
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Virgin Oak and PX Sherry casks
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
EAN no.: 5060411501218

Flavour Profile

Smoky · Sherry Matured · Sweet · Spiced · Full Bodied · Dried Fruit

Did You Know?

Glasgow Distillery launched Makar Gin long before the first whisky was ready. It is a common strategy at new distilleries: the gin can be sold immediately and pays the bills while the whisky sits maturing for years. Without the gin, 1770 would probably have had a harder time reaching 2018.

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For more than a century nobody distilled malt whisky inside Glasgow. The city had shipyards, cranes and a proud industrial past, but no copper stills. This bottle is the one that broke the silence, and it comes from an industrial estate rather than a glen.

The Expert's Description

1770 Glasgow The Original is a Lowland Single Malt Scotch Whisky matured in 1st fill ex-bourbon and Virgin Oak casks and bottled at 46%. It is the distillery flagship and carries the subtitle Fresh & Fruity, the bottle everything else in the range is measured against.

The malt is unpeated and the spirit is distilled twice in traditional copper pot stills after a fermentation of more than 72 hours. That long fermentation is no accident: it develops fruity esters, and those are what you meet as pear and apple in the glass. First fill bourbon casks add vanilla and coconut, while a smaller proportion of Virgin Oak lays in spice and structure.

The whisky is neither chill filtered nor coloured. The water comes from Loch Katrine, and there is no age statement, as the distillery bottles when the casks say so.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Fresh pear, green apple and a touch of melon. Vanilla follows along with toasted coconut and a soft cereal sweetness, close to white bread straight from the oven. Clean and inviting, with no hard edges.

Palate

Soft and lightly creamy, with baked apple and custard first. Mid-palate the new oak tightens things with cinnamon, nutmeg and a drier wood note. The 46% gives enough body that the whisky handles a few drops of water without turning watery.

Finish

Medium length. Vanilla and malt linger, and a dry, lightly spiced oak note arrives at the end.

Specifications

Name: 1770 Glasgow The Original Fresh & Fruity Single Malt Scotch Whisky 46%
Distillery: Glasgow Distillery
Region/Country: Lowland, Scotland
Type: Lowland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
ABV: 46%
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: 1st fill ex-bourbon and Virgin Oak casks
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Distillation method: Double distilled in copper pot stills
EAN no.: 5060411501201

Flavour Profile

Fresh · Fruity · Vanilla · Soft · Malty · Spiced

Did You Know?

The distillery sits in Hillington, an industrial area in the west of Glasgow, between warehouses and businesses. There are no whitewashed walls, no pagoda roof and no burn running past. That was a deliberate decision: the whisky was to be made in the city, not in a postcard version of Scotland.

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A third of the production year goes to this style. It is not a side project or a trial, it is a deliberate decision to use a technique almost every other Scottish malt distillery has put down.

The Expert's Description

1770 Glasgow Triple Distilled is a Lowland Single Malt Scotch Whisky matured in 1st fill and refill ex-bourbon casks plus Virgin Oak and bottled at 46%. The distillery calls it Smooth & Vibrant and runs triple distillation for a third of the year.

The malt is Concerto, a barley variety widely used in Scottish distilling, and the water comes from Loch Katrine. The third distillation removes the heavier oily compounds so that only the lightest and purest part of the spirit is collected. Most of the maturation happens in bourbon casks, while a smaller share, around five to eight per cent, comes from new American white oak barrels supplied by Kelvin Cooperage in Kentucky.

The result is a whisky with less fat and more clarity. Neither chill filtration nor colouring is involved, and there is no age statement.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Shortbread and light honey first, then double cream and a hint of lemon peel. There is a fine bakery quality to it, close to freshly baked biscuits, and a warm drier wood note sits at the back.

Palate

Round and lightly creamy, with honey, vanilla and juicy apple. The body is lighter than in a double distilled malt but it is not thin, and a warm spicy wood edge arrives mid-palate. Clean and well balanced the whole way.

Finish

Medium and soft. Honey and malt linger, and a warm oak spice note closes things quietly.

Specifications

Name: 1770 Glasgow Triple Distilled Smooth & Vibrant Single Malt Scotch Whisky 46%
Distillery: Glasgow Distillery
Region/Country: Lowland, Scotland
Type: Lowland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
ABV: 46%
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: 1st fill and refill ex-bourbon casks plus Virgin Oak
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Distillation method: Triple distilled in copper pot stills
EAN no.: 5060411501225

Flavour Profile

Soft · Creamy · Fresh · Honeyed · Light · Spiced

Did You Know?

The new oak barrels for this whisky come from Kelvin Cooperage in Louisville, Kentucky, a cooperage originally founded in Glasgow in 1963 that later moved to the United States. The casks therefore travel from Kentucky back to the city where the business began. It is a coincidence, but it makes a good story.

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The first single malt distilled in North Wales in 120 years, named after the waterfall that supplies its water.

Expert description

Aber Falls 2021 Release is a Welsh Single Malt Whisky, bottled at 40%. Aber Falls was founded in 2017 in the village of Abergwyngregyn in North Wales, in a 6,000-square-metre 19th-century building that was originally a slate works, then a margarine factory during the world wars, and later a warehouse depot for Halewood International, who led its restoration into a distillery in 2017. Aber Falls marked the first single malt distilled in North Wales in 120 years. The whisky is made entirely from Welsh barley and water from the nearby Aber Falls waterfall, located within the boundaries of Snowdonia National Park. In 2023, Welsh single malt achieved official Geographical Indication (GI) status, recognising it as a quality product with a distinct style.

Tasting notes

Nose

The nose offers malt, honey and a hint of fresh fruit.

Palate

The palate is round with caramel, apple and light vanilla.

Finish

The finish is medium-length, soft and malty.

Specifications

Name: Aber Falls 2021 Release Single Malt Welsh Whisky
Distillery: Aber Falls
Region/Country: Abergwyngregyn, Wales
Type: Welsh Single Malt Whisky
ABV: 40%
Size: 70 CL
Edition: 2021 Release

Flavour profile

Malty · Fruity · Sweet · Soft

Did you know?

Aber Falls marked the first single malt whisky distilled in North Wales in 120 years, and in 2023 Welsh single malt achieved official Geographical Indication (GI) status, on par with Scotch and Irish Whiskey.

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Two lads on a farm in Aberdeenshire had grown tired of good single malt always vanishing from the shelf before they got there. The idea was simple: make a whisky people can actually find on the shelf. This bottle is the first proof of how it should taste, and it went out of the door before the labels were ready.

Please note: The label on this preview release is handwritten and hand signed, because the printed labels did not arrive in time. Future batches will carry the final design.

The Expert's Description

Aberdeenshire Glen Garioch 12 Years Old Little Brown Dog is a Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky matured in 60% 1st fill bourbon casks and 40% Pedro Ximénez and Oloroso sherry casks, bottled at 46%. It was distilled at Glen Garioch in 2013, bottled in 2025 by Little Brown Dog and limited to 500 hand-numbered bottles.

Andrew Smith and Chris Reid of Little Brown Dog have spent years working towards a signature bottling that does not simply appear in small rare batches but stays on the shelf. The vatting is their own work: the bulk from first fill bourbon for vanilla and cereal sweetness, the rest from sherry casks, both refill and first fill, for fruit and depth. The result lands somewhere different from an official Glen Garioch, which tends to be drier and maltier.

The whisky is neither chill filtered nor coloured. This release is a preview bottling that shows the direction of Little Brown Dog’s forthcoming regular single malt under the Aberdeenshire name.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Ripe pear and honey first, with a clear malty floor underneath. The sherry portion reports in as raisins, orange peel and a streak of dark sugar. There is a light waxy note too, which Glen Garioch often gives.

Palate

Soft and full. Vanilla and baked apple open, then the sherry brings dried fruit and a mild spiced warmth of cinnamon and a little ginger. At 46% it is round enough for a weeknight, yet there is still body enough to reward attention.

Finish

Medium length. Malt, honey and a drier oak note, with a final suggestion of raisin. Clean and free of bitterness.

Specifications

Name: Aberdeenshire Glen Garioch 12 Years Old Little Brown Dog Single Malt Scotch Whisky 46%
Distillery: Glen Garioch
Bottler: Little Brown Dog
Region/Country: Highland, Scotland
Type: Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Age: 12 years
ABV: 46%
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: 60% 1st fill bourbon casks and 40% Pedro Ximénez and Oloroso sherry casks
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Distilled: 2013
Bottled: 2025
Number of bottles: 500
Edition: Aberdeenshire Preview Release

Flavour Profile

Malty · Fruity · Honeyed · Sherry Matured · Soft · Spiced

Investment Potential

Medium. Five hundred bottles with handwritten, hand signed labels amount in practice to a one-off release, and preview bottlings from the start of a bottler’s project tend to become sought after once the regular series is running.

Did You Know?

Little Brown Dog is named after Andrew's dog, whose nickname was exactly that, the little brown dog. The company started in 2018 on a farm at Fetternear in Aberdeenshire and has since grown from pure bottling into distilling as well, running both a small copper pot still and a larger column for neutral spirit.

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See our full range of Little Brown Dog

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On the banks of the Pitilie Burn, where people still crouch down and wash the gravel looking for gold, sits a distillery that has been making honeyed malt since 1898. Aberfeldy calls its whisky the Golden Dram. The colour is only half of what they mean.

Expert description

Aberfeldy 12 Year Old is a Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky matured in American oak ex-bourbon casks alongside refill, re-char and sherry casks, bottled at 40%. It anchors the core range and is almost always the first Aberfeldy anyone tastes.

The distillery stands in Perthshire, just outside the town of Aberfeldy. John Alexander and Tommy Dewar started building it in 1896, barely a few kilometres from where their father was born, and spirit was running by 1898. The plan was never modest: Aberfeldy would supply the heart malt for the blends that John Dewar & Sons built its name on. That job never went away, which is why it took surprisingly long for the single malt to get proper attention in its own right.

The barley malt is unpeated, so there is no smoke here at all. The spirit runs through two wash stills and two spirit stills, double distilled, then spends twelve years in wood. American oak from the bourbon industry supplies vanilla, coconut and the pale honey note Aberfeldy is known for. The sherry casks lay dried fruit and a little spice over the top. Re-char casks are older casks burnt out again on the inside, and they pull the sweetness back up without making the whisky heavy.

Tasting notes

Nose

Pale heather honey and vanilla arrive first, then peeled green apple and pear. Behind that sits a dry toasted note, roughly like toast pulled a moment before it turns too dark, and a lift of orange peel.

Palate

Soft and round without going slack. Honey and malt carry the whole thing, orange and pear keep it fresh, and a light cinnamon spice arrives in the second half. At 40% it is mild, but it is not thin.

Finish

Medium length. The honey hangs on, the spice ebbs away slowly, and a dry malty note is the last thing left.

Specifications

Name: Aberfeldy 12 Year Old Single Highland Malt Scotch Whisky 70 cl 40%
Distillery: Aberfeldy
Region/Country: Highlands, Scotland
Type: Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Age: 12 years
ABV: 40%
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: American oak ex-bourbon casks, refill casks, re-char casks and sherry casks
Distillation method: Double distilled
EAN no.: 5000277000982

Flavour profile

Honey · Fruity · Malty · Soft · Lightly spiced

Did you know?

The Pitilie Burn that feeds the distillery genuinely carries gold. People still pan the gravel along its banks, and Aberfeldy has spent years using that gold as the image for what ends up in the bottle.

Browse our full range of Aberfeldy

The Tay valley is green, wet and fairly quiet. Aberfeldy works the same way: no smoke, no rush, just time in wood. By sixteen years the distillery's pale honey has picked up something darker, and the whisky starts to seem like one that has slept long and slept well.

Expert description

Aberfeldy 16 Year Old is a Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky matured in 1st fill, refill and re-char bourbon casks and finished for roughly six months in 1st fill Oloroso Sherry casks, bottled at 40%. It sits at the top of the core range, above the 12 and below the rarer releases.

The buildings outside the town of Aberfeldy were drawn by Charles Doig, the man behind the pagoda roofs on a good share of Scotland’s distilleries, and the Dewar brothers bought the land from the Marquis of Breadalbane. The distillery opened in 1898 with one purpose: to feed the heart malt into the house blends. Bacardi has owned the place since 1998, and it is really only in that period that Aberfeldy has been built up as a single malt brand in its own right.

The malt is unpeated, so there is no smoke here either. The cask history runs in two stages. First sixteen years in American oak, where the mix of 1st fill, refill and re-charred bourbon casks gives vanilla, honey and a lightly toasted note. Then half a year in 1st fill Oloroso casks, and that is the stay that lays fruitcake, dark chocolate and orange peel across the top. The sherry never quite takes over, but it shifts the centre of gravity noticeably.

Tasting notes

Nose

Honey and orange, then a dry clove-like spice a moment later. Ginger sits behind it, together with raisins and a hint of cake batter.

Palate

Fuller than the age and the 40% would suggest. Fruitcake, marzipan and milk chocolate first, then orange turning steadily more bitter. The spice is soft and nutty rather than sharp.

Finish

Long and mouth-coating. Dark chocolate and bitter orange hold on while the sweetness pulls back, leaving something close to dry.

Specifications

Name: Aberfeldy 16 Year Old Single Highland Malt Scotch Whisky 70 cl 40%
Distillery: Aberfeldy
Region/Country: Highlands, Scotland
Type: Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Age: 16 years
ABV: 40%
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: 1st fill, refill and re-char bourbon casks, finished in 1st fill Oloroso Sherry casks
Distillation method: Double distilled
EAN no.: 5000277000579

Flavour profile

Sherry matured · Honey · Fruitcake · Orange · Spiced

Did you know?

Aberfeldy was built as a supplier, not as a star. For close to a century almost everything it made went straight into blends, and the first official single malt from the distillery only reached the market in 1991.

Browse our full range of Aberfeldy

The label does not say Aberfeldy. It says Pitilie, the name of the burn running past the distillery, and that is the kind of cover name independent bottlers use when a distillery would rather not see its own name on a bottle it did not fill itself.

Expert description

Aberfeldy Pitilie 9 Year Old from Dràm Mòr is a Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky finished in a 1st fill Buffalo Trace barrel and bottled at cask strength 54.8%. It was distilled in 2015, bottled in 2024 as part of the Dràm Mòr spring releases and came out at 240 bottles from cask number 247.

Dràm Mòr is run out of Dumbarton by husband and wife Kenny and Viktorija Macdonald. They began as an export agency for Scottish brands and only moved properly into bottling at the end of 2019. The approach is straightforward: single casks, cask strength, no chill filtration and no added colour. You get the cask as it stood, with nobody tidying it up along the way.

The spirit comes from Aberfeldy in Perthshire, where the barley malt is unpeated and the stills run twice, so there is no smoke in this at all. Nine years is young for a Highland malt, but the finish in a 1st fill Buffalo Trace barrel does a lot of the work. American oak straight out of bourbon service is far more active than a cask on its third or fourth outing, and it pulls the whisky towards something creamy and sweet rather than sharp and youthful.

Tasting notes

Nose

Chewy caramel and vanilla first, opening slowly onto ripe peach flesh and old-fashioned wine gums.

Palate

The caramel carries on and turns sweet and creamy. Butterscotch and syrup sponge with a velvety custard laid over the top. There is power behind the 54.8%, but it does not bite.

Finish

Delicate and lingering. The layers melt together and settle softly rather than snapping shut.

Specifications

Name: Aberfeldy Pitilie 9 Year Old Dràm Mòr Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky 70 cl 54.8%
Distillery: Aberfeldy
Bottler: Dràm Mòr
Region/Country: Highlands, Scotland
Type: Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Age: 9 years
ABV: 54.8%
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Finished in a 1st fill Buffalo Trace barrel
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Distillation method: Double distilled
Distilled: 2015
Bottled: 2024
Number of bottles: 240
Edition: Single Cask, cask number 247

Flavour profile

Caramel · Vanilla · Peach · Creamy · Cask strength

Did you know?

Dràm Mòr did not start out as a bottler at all. Kenny and Viktorija Macdonald spent years running an export agency for Scottish brands, and it was only in 2019 that the company changed its name and began buying and bottling casks itself.

Browse our full range of Aberfeldy

The label looks like a page torn out of a comic, and it is easy to miss what is actually in the bottle. This is twenty-one year old Aberfeldy. On the label the whisky writer Ian Buxton stands panning for gold in the Pitilie Burn, exactly where the distillery draws its water.

Expert description

Aberfeldy 21 Year Old from That Boutique-Y Whisky Company is a Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky matured in oak casks and bottled at 48.9%. It was released in 2018 as Batch 2 in an outturn of 261 bottles and has long since sold out at the bottler.

That Boutique-Y Whisky Company is an independent bottler that started in 2012 and belongs to Atom Brands in England. They do not distil a drop themselves. They buy casks, bottle them in 50 cl format and commission illustrators for labels that usually hide an in-joke about the distillery. This one was their second Aberfeldy and the first to carry an age statement on the label.

The spirit comes from Aberfeldy in Perthshire, where the malt is unpeated and the stills run twice. At twenty-one years the pale honey the distillery is known for has drawn together into something denser and more syrupy, and the wood has had time to add both spice and a very faint smoky edge. The 48.9% is higher than the distillery's own official bottlings, and you feel it in the weight.

Tasting notes

Nose

Cinnamon and orange zest, with something behind it like the crust on a cake straight out of the oven. A very faint smoky edge sits on the outside, more old cask than peat.

Palate

Syrupy and rich. Pancakes with maple syrup, melted butter and small pieces of dark chocolate. The spice builds slowly and drags the whisky away from pure sweetness.

Finish

Long and spiced. The sweetness drops away and leaves a dry, almost savoury cooking spice with a touch of cayenne.

Specifications

Name: Aberfeldy That Boutique-Y Whisky Company 21 Year Old Single Highland Malt Scotch Whisky 50 cl 48.9%
Distillery: Aberfeldy
Bottler: That Boutique-Y Whisky Company
Region/Country: Highlands, Scotland
Type: Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Age: 21 years
ABV: 48.9%
Size: 50 CL
Distillation method: Double distilled
Bottled: 2018
Number of bottles: 261
Edition: Batch 2
EAN no.: 5052598134365

Flavour profile

Syrupy · Spiced · Fruity · Orange · Faintly smoky

Investment potential

Medium. Twenty-one years of age, 261 bottles and a batch long gone from the bottler make it hard to replace, and the labels from That Boutique-Y Whisky Company have a collector following of their own.

Did you know?

The half bottle is deliberate. That Boutique-Y Whisky Company bottles almost its entire range in 50 cl because they would rather people tasted a lot of different casks than spent the whole budget on one.

Browse our full range of Aberfeldy

Browse our full range of That Boutique-Y Whisky Company

At the foot of Ben Rinnes two burns run together, and right there sits a distillery whose founder had his life motto printed on the label. Let the deed show. No grand words, just do the work. This bottle is the distillery’s most straightforward answer to what it can do.

The Expert's Description

Aberlour 12 Years Old Double Cask Matured is a Single Speyside Malt Scotch Whisky matured in traditional oak casks and Oloroso sherry casks, bottled at 40%. The name says it: the whisky has rested in two different cask types, and the interplay between them is what the whole release is built on.

Aberlour's new make carries a distinctive crisp citrus character, and the sherry casks are there to complement rather than drown it. The bourbon and oak casks hold on to that freshness and a clear malt sweetness, while the Oloroso casks lay in raisins, orange and a soft spiced depth. The balance sits closer to Christmas cake than to a sherry bomb.

The distillery was founded in 1879 by the grain merchant James Fleming in the village of Aberlour, where the Lour Burn meets the River Spey. Every oak cask is chosen by the team behind the whisky, and the sherry casks are nosed through before they are filled.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Orange peel and honey first, over a clear malty floor. The sherry arrives as raisins and a streak of cinnamon, and a light nuttiness with a hint of soft caramel sits further back.

Palate

Soft and round from the first sip. Baked apples, malt and orange marmalade open, then dried fruit and a mild spiced warmth from the sherry casks. The 40% makes it easy to drink, yet there is still a decent layer of fruit to follow.

Finish

Medium length and soft. Malt, honey and a light dried fruit note that lets go calmly with no sharp edge.

Specifications

Name: Aberlour 12 Years Old Double Cask Matured Single Speyside Malt Scotch Whisky 40%
Distillery: Aberlour
Region/Country: Speyside, Scotland
Type: Single Speyside Malt Scotch Whisky
Age: 12 years
ABV: 40%
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Traditional oak casks and Oloroso sherry casks
Edition: Double Cask Matured
EAN no.: 3047100017849

Flavour Profile

Sherry Matured · Fruity · Malty · Soft · Spiced · Honeyed

Did You Know?

James Fleming spent much of his fortune on the village rather than on himself. He paid for the town hall, the local hospital and the Penny Bridge across the River Spey, which locals could cross for a penny. The bridge still stands, and his motto, Let the deed show, still appears on every bottle.

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Where the Lour Burn meets the River Spey, at the heart of Speyside's most classic whisky landscape, Aberlour has been distilling malt since 1879.

Expert description

Aberlour 18 Year Old Double Cask Matured Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky from Aberlour is a Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky matured in ex-bourbon casks and oloroso and Pedro Ximénez sherry casks, bottled at 43%. The distillery was founded in 1879 by James Fleming at the confluence of the Lour Burn and the River Spey, a location that gave the distillery both its name — 'mouth of the chattering burn' — and the soft, iron-free spring water still used in production today. Aberlour has been owned for decades by Chivas Brothers, part of the French drinks group Pernod Ricard, and is at the same time France's best-selling single malt whisky, a result of the distillery's long-standing ties to the French market. The 18 Year Old undergoes double maturation: the whisky first matures in ex-bourbon casks before a significant portion is transferred to oloroso and Pedro Ximénez sherry casks, giving it its characteristic combination of soft sweetness and deep fruitiness.

Tasting notes

Nose

The nose opens with raisins, orange peel and a soft sherry sweetness, backed by dark chocolate and a hint of oak spice.

Palate

The palate offers dried fruit, walnuts and a smooth sweetness, with layers of cinnamon and an undertone of apple pie.

Finish

The finish is long and warming, with sherry, brown sugar and a closing hint of smoke.

Specifications

Name: Aberlour 18 år Double Cask Matured Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Distillery: Aberlour
Region/Country: Speyside, Scotland
Type: Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Age: 18 years
ABV: 43%
Size: 50 CL
Cask type: Ex-bourbon and oloroso/Pedro Ximénez sherry casks
Non-chill filtered: No
Natural colour: Yes
EAN no.: 5000299620144

Flavour profile

Sherried · Fruity · Creamy · Spicy

Investment potential

Low – An 18-year-old double-matured single malt from one of Speyside's most respected distilleries, where the long maturation and the complexity of the sherry casks give it clear collector appeal within its segment.

Did you know?

According to an old Scottish legend, the monk St. Drostan hid in a cave behind what is now Aberlour's spring while fleeing Viking raids — the very same spring water the monk once drank from is still used in the distillery's production today.

See our full range of Aberlour

There is whisky you drink. And then there is whisky that drinks you. Batch 46 is deep red, dense and insistent, a Speyside sherry bomb drawn straight from the cask with no dilution and no filter. It does not ask permission.

Please note: Discontinued 2013 version with the yellow banderole.

The Expert's Description

Aberlour a'bunadh Batch 46 is a Single Speyside Malt Scotch Whisky matured exclusively in 1st fill Spanish Oloroso Sherry Butts and bottled at 60.4% cask strength. It is non-chill filtered and carries no age statement, as each batch is assembled by taste rather than by calendar.

A'bunadh means the original in Gaelic, and the name points to a specific story. During building work at the distillery an old bottle was found hidden beneath the floorboards, wrapped in a nineteenth century newspaper. The contents were analysed and the style recreated: rich, sherry matured, powerful and free of modern processing. That principle has driven the series ever since, batch after batch.

Aberlour sits in the village of the same name at the foot of Ben Rinnes, where the Lour Burn joins the River Spey. Using nothing but first fill Oloroso casks is what gives Batch 46 its colour, its weight and that intense fruit character.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Dark fruits leap out first: plums, black cherries and overripe raisins. Beneath them sit orange, gingerbread and a vinous sweetness from the sherry oak. With a little water it opens up to show vanilla, malt and a suggestion of overripe banana. It is lively but never scrappy.

Palate

Intense and full from the first second. Bittersweet dark chocolate meets dried fruits, pepper and a warm oak tannin. Add a drop of water and it turns creamy, rounding towards caramel, cherry and cinnamon. Something shifts, the hard edge goes and leaves something far more welcoming.

Finish

Medium to long with bittersweet notes of dark chocolate, pepper and wood. A subtle nuttiness creeps in at the end. Warm and rounded.

Specifications

Name: Aberlour a'bunadh Batch 46 Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky 60.4%
Distillery: Aberlour
Region/Country: Speyside, Scotland
Type: Single Speyside Malt Scotch Whisky
ABV: 60.4%
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: 1st fill Spanish Oloroso Sherry Butts
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Bottled: 2013
Edition: Batch 46
EAN no.: 5010739261523

Flavour Profile

Sherry Matured · Fruity · Spiced · Oaky · Creamy · Dark Chocolate

Investment Potential

Medium. Batch 46 is discontinued, and the early batches in the series grow harder to find as they get drunk. The 2013 banderole makes the bottle easy to date, and it is precisely the identifiable older batches that collectors go after.

Did You Know?

Every batch of a'bunadh is a fresh assembly, so the strength varies from release to release, typically between just under 59 and a little over 61 per cent. That also means two batches can taste noticeably different even though the recipe and cask type are identical. It is one of the few series where whisky people collect batch numbers rather than vintages.

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The name is not about the taste, it is about the trees. Aberlour has spent years working on woodland conservation in Speyside, and this bottle takes its name from that effort. What is in the glass is rather more concrete: three kinds of oak, and one of them is French.

The Expert's Description

Aberlour Forest Reserve 10 Years Old is a Single Speyside Malt Scotch Whisky matured in bourbon casks and Jerez sherry casks, then finished in French Limousin oak and bottled at 40%. It is the French oak that sets it apart from the rest of Aberlour's range.

Limousin oak comes from the forests around Limoges in central France and is normally used for cognac rather than whisky. The wood is porous and tannin-rich, giving a drier, spicier wood character than American oak: think pepper and nuts rather than vanilla and coconut. The bourbon casks underneath keep the malt sweetness in place, and the sherry casks lay in raisins and orange.

Aberlour sits in the village of the same name, where the Lour Burn joins the River Spey at the foot of Ben Rinnes. The name is Gaelic and means roughly the mouth of the chattering burn.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Honey and baked apple first, with orange peel behind. Then a drier, almost woody note arrives with nutmeg and a hint of gingerbread spice, which is the French oak reporting in. Raisins and a light nutty sweetness sit at the back.

Palate

Soft opening with malt, caramel and baked fruit. Mid-palate the wood tightens up with spice and a drier tannic edge, unusual for an Aberlour at 40%. The raisins from the sherry casks round it off. Easy to drink without being dull.

Finish

Medium length. Spiced oak, honey and a light dryness that hangs on for longer than the strength suggests.

Specifications

Name: Aberlour Forest Reserve 10 Years Old Single Speyside Malt Scotch Whisky 40%
Distillery: Aberlour
Region/Country: Speyside, Scotland
Type: Single Speyside Malt Scotch Whisky
Age: 10 years
ABV: 40%
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Bourbon casks and Jerez sherry casks, finished in French Limousin oak
Edition: Forest Reserve
EAN no.: 5000299620403

Flavour Profile

Malty · Fruity · Spiced · Oaky · Honeyed · Sherry Matured

Did You Know?

Limousin oak is the cognac cask. The French have used it for centuries precisely because it is porous enough to let the spirit breathe and tannic enough to give structure. Using it for Scotch malt whisky is a far more recent idea, and not many distilleries still do it.

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Most whiskies use two cask types and call it a day. Here there are three, and two of them are bourbon casks of different sizes. That sounds like a detail. It is not, because the volume of a cask decides how fast the wood works.

The Expert's Description

Aberlour Triple Cask Matured is a Single Speyside Malt Scotch Whisky matured in bourbon barrels, bourbon hogsheads and Oloroso sherry casks, bottled at 40%. The three cask types were not chosen for the sake of symmetry but because each one contributes something different.

A bourbon barrel holds around 200 litres, a hogshead around 250. The smaller cask has more wood contact per litre and therefore works faster and more directly, giving more vanilla and coconut. The hogshead moves more slowly and yields a rounder, maltier character. The Oloroso casks then stack raisins, orange and spice on top of the other two.

There is no age statement. Aberlour assembles the whisky by flavour profile rather than by date, and three cask types give exactly that freedom. The distillery sits at the foot of Ben Rinnes in the village of Aberlour.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Vanilla and light caramel first, clearly bourbon-driven. Then honey, ripe pear and a gentle coconut note. The sherry sits discreetly behind as orange marmalade and a streak of cinnamon.

Palate

Round and lightly creamy. Custard and malt open, then baked apples and a mild spiced warmth from the Oloroso casks. There is more vanilla and less raisin here than in the distillery’s sherry-heavy expressions. Soft the whole way through.

Finish

Medium length. Vanilla, malt and a light oak dryness. The sweetness fades calmly with no bitterness.

Specifications

Name: Aberlour Triple Cask Matured Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky 40%
Distillery: Aberlour
Region/Country: Speyside, Scotland
Type: Single Speyside Malt Scotch Whisky
ABV: 40%
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Bourbon barrels, bourbon hogsheads and Oloroso sherry casks
Edition: Triple Cask Matured
EAN no.: 5000299620120

Flavour Profile

Vanilla · Fruity · Malty · Soft · Honeyed · Spiced

Did You Know?

The difference between a barrel and a hogshead is not only size. A hogshead is typically built by gathering staves from several bourbon barrels and fitting new heads. The cask is therefore recycled material reassembled, and that is why hogsheads are so common in Scotland: they can be built from American offcuts.

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Adelphi is known for saying no. Of the casks they get offered, very few are approved to carry the name. Private Stock is the house blend, the place where they show what they can do with an assembly rather than a single cask.

The Expert's Description

Adelphi Private Stock is a Blended Scotch Whisky bottled at 40% by the independent bottler Adelphi. It is the house's own blend and differs from Adelphi's single cask releases by being assembled to hit a particular style rather than to show one cask's character.

Adelphi was founded in 1826 as a distillery on the Clyde on the edge of Glasgow. It closed in the early twentieth century and the name lay dormant for almost a hundred years. In 1993 it returned as an independent bottler when Jamie Walker, great-grandson of the former owner Archibald Walker, started the firm again. Donald Houston and Keith Falconer took over in 2004 and later built the Ardnamurchan distillery on the Scottish west coast.

Adelphi’s selection is famously strict: only a small fraction of the casks the house tastes make it through. Private Stock is the bottle where that philosophy meets everyday drinking.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Bright and straightforward. Malt, honey and a touch of green apple first, then vanilla and a light cereal sweetness. There is a clean thread running through it all, no sharp edges and no smoke.

Palate

Soft and malty. Caramel and baked fruit open, then a mild spiced warmth and a light nutty note. At 40% it drinks easily, and the texture is rounder than you might expect from a blend in this style.

Finish

Short to medium. Malt and honey linger, with a dry cereal note at the close. Clean finish.

Specifications

Name: Adelphi Private Stock Blended Scotch Whisky 40%
Bottler: Adelphi
Region/Country: Scotland
Type: Blended Scotch Whisky
ABV: 40%
Size: 70 CL
Edition: Private Stock

Flavour Profile

Malty · Soft · Honeyed · Fruity · Light · Vanilla

Did You Know?

Adelphi today owns Ardnamurchan Distillery, which sits on the westernmost point of mainland Scotland. The firm went from being a distillery in 1826, to a pure bottler from 1993, to distilling again after 2014. Very few whisky houses have taken that road twice.

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Three grains and American oak give this edition a fuller character.

Expert description

Adnams American Oak English Triple Malt Whisky is made from a mash bill with three different malted grains and matured in American oak, bottled at 47%. Adnams has had brewing operations in Southwold on the English east coast since 1872, but it was only in 2010 that the brewery established Copper House Distillery for the production of gin, vodka and English whisky. This made Adnams the first brewery in England to be legally permitted to produce spirits on the same site as its beer production, and the distillery uses local grains grown in the surrounding region.

Tasting notes

Nose

The nose is full with caramel, vanilla and a hint of grain.

Palate

The palate offers honey, toasted wood and light sweetness.

Finish

The finish is medium to long, warm and round.

Specifications

Name: Adnams American Oak English Triple Malt Whisky
Distillery: Adnams Copper House Distillery
Region/Country: Southwold, England
Type: Triple Malt Whisky
ABV: 47%
Size: 70 CL

Flavour profile

Full-bodied · Vanilla-forward · Warm · Sweet

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French oak meets English malt whisky on the Suffolk coast.

Expert description

Adnams French Oak English Single Malt Whisky is matured in French oak casks, bottled at 40%. Adnams has had brewing operations in Southwold on the English east coast since 1872, but it was only in 2010 that the brewery established Copper House Distillery for the production of gin, vodka and English whisky. This made Adnams the first brewery in England to be legally permitted to produce spirits on the same site as its beer production, and the distillery uses local grains grown in the surrounding region.

Tasting notes

Nose

The nose is soft with honey, vanilla and a hint of fruit.

Palate

The palate offers caramel, malt and light sweetness.

Finish

The finish is medium-length, soft and round.

Specifications

Name: Adnams French Oak English Single Malt Whisky
Distillery: Adnams Copper House Distillery
Region/Country: Southwold, England
Type: Single Malt Whisky
ABV: 40%
Size: 70 CL

Flavour profile

Soft · Malty · Sweet · Round

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Ten years on a cask that once held sherry at an Islay distillery. That is an unlikely journey for an organic Funen whisky – and the result is a complex, winey Danish Single Malt Whisky at 59.9%.

Expert description

Isle of Fionia Adventurous Spirit 10 Year is an organic Danish Single Malt Whisky bottled at 59.9% as part of the Adventurous Spirit series from Isle of Fionia / Nyborg Distillery. In 2010 the whisky was placed in a used sherry puncheon that had previously been used at an Islay distillery. It rested there for 10 full years before being bottled in December 2020 in 298 bottles. The combined impression of Oloroso sherry, the Islay-connected cask character and the organic Funen distillate makes this bottling something near unique.

Tasting notes

Nose

Rich and complex with ripe sherry sweetness, dark fruit and oak tannin. Winey depth and a hint of sea salt in the background – a discreet reminder of the cask's Islay connection.

Palate

Full-bodied and intense at 59.9% with 10 years of integration. Sherry sweetness and dark fruit dominate – dried plums and figs – with an elegant oak spiciness. The cask's complexity reveals itself layer by layer.

Finish

Long and meditative with lingering sherry sweetness and a discreet, dry oak close.

Specifications

Name: Isle of Fionia Adventurous Spirit 10 Year
Distillery: Isle of Fionia / Nyborg Distillery
Region/Country: Funen, Denmark
Type: Organic Danish Single Malt Whisky
Age: 10 years
ABV: 59.9%
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Used sherry puncheon (from an Islay distillery)
Distilled: November 2010
Bottled: December 2020
Number of bottles: 298
Edition: Adventurous Spirit

Flavour profile

Sherry · Complex · Dark fruit · Winey

Investment potential

High. A 10-year Danish single malt from an award-winning distillery, bottled in 298 copies from an Islay-connected sherry puncheon – that is rare. Nyborg Distillery's oldest production draws increasing collector interest, and this bottling is a unique snapshot from 2010.

Did you know?

A puncheon is a very large cask – typically 500 litres compared to a standard bourbon barrel's 200 litres. The large volume slows down the cask influence and creates a longer, softer maturation process. The combination of the large cask and 10 years of maturation creates a depth and integration characteristic of older single malts.

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Most distilleries talk about smoke and leave sweetness as a feeling. Ailsa Bay measures both. Twenty-two ppm of phenol, nineteen ppm of sweetness, and they print the figures on the bottle as though it were a lab report. Nerdy? Yes. It also makes sense in the glass.

The Expert's Description

Ailsa Bay 1.2 Sweet Smoke is a Lowland Single Malt Scotch Whisky matured first in small Hudson Baby bourbon casks and then in American white oak, bottled at 48.9%. It is the distillery’s second release and sits at 22 ppm of phenol and 19 SPPM of sweetness, where the first release measured 21 ppm and 11 SPPM.

Micro-maturation is the heart of it. The spirit goes first into casks of between 25 and 100 litres, Hudson Baby bourbon casks from the United States, where the small volume gives an extreme amount of wood contact per litre. It is then moved into standard American oak casks for the longer maturation. No other Scottish malt distillery uses the method.

One detail is worth holding on to: the 22 ppm is measured in the distillate rather than in the malt, which is the usual practice. The figure therefore cannot be compared directly with the ppm numbers on an Islay bottle. Ailsa Bay was built in 2007 by William Grant & Sons on the site of the Girvan distillery in South Ayrshire.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Sweet smoke first, closer to burnt sugar than a bonfire. Behind it come vanilla, fudge and a note of toasted malt. There is salt and a little tar in the background too, a reminder of the coast where the whisky is made.

Palate

The sweetness arrives before the smoke. Caramel, honey and custard open, and only then does the peat report in as a dry, almost mineral floor. The 48.9% gives good body, and the texture is thicker than you would expect from a whisky this young. That is the small casks showing themselves.

Finish

Medium length. Smoke and sweetness let go at roughly the same time, with a dry ash note and a last touch of salt.

Specifications

Name: Ailsa Bay 1.2 Sweet Smoke 22 ppm Single Malt Scotch Whisky 48.9%
Distillery: Ailsa Bay
Bottler: William Grant & Sons
Region/Country: Lowland, Scotland
Type: Lowland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
ABV: 48.9%
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Micro-maturation in small Hudson Baby bourbon casks, then American white oak
Edition: Release 1.2 Sweet Smoke
EAN no.: 5010327655697

Flavour Profile

Smoky · Sweet · Vanilla · Maritime · Caramel · Spiced

Did You Know?

SPPM stands for sweetness parts per million, and Ailsa Bay invented the term. No other whisky producer measures sweetness that way. Whether it is science or marketing is open to argument, but it is at least the first time anyone has tried to put a number on that half of the balance.

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When a new Scottish malt distillery sends its very first whisky out into the world, it usually goes to Britain or the United States. Ailsa Bay chose Denmark. It is a detail that tends to please Danish whisky people rather more than it probably should.

The Expert's Description

Ailsa Bay 21 ppm is a Lowland Single Malt Scotch Whisky matured first in small Hudson Baby bourbon casks and then in American white oak, bottled at 48.9%. It is the distillery's very first release, and it had its world premiere on the Danish market.

The phenol content sits at 21 ppm measured in the distillate, giving a clear but restrained smoke, roughly on a level with a Bowmore if you compare the experience rather than the figures. Sweetness was measured at 11 SPPM, the distillery’s own sweetness scale, and that is markedly lower than in the later Sweet Smoke release. This is therefore the drier and more smoke-driven of the two.

The whisky is neither chill filtered nor coloured. Ailsa Bay was built in 2007 by William Grant & Sons at Girvan in South Ayrshire, where eight stills can run several different spirit styles side by side.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Smoky and slightly medicinal on first impression, like a muted Islay. Then honey, liquorice and a floral sweetness take the edge off. Dry cereal and a trace of seawater sit at the back.

Palate

Spicy and smoky from the start, with honey and liquorice underneath. Floral notes come mid-palate along with a drier mineral streak that keeps the sweetness at arm’s length. The 48.9% is well integrated: there is strength, but it does not push.

Finish

Short to medium with a firm bite at the close. Smoke and sweetness leave together, and a dry ash note lingers.

Specifications

Name: Ailsa Bay 21 ppm Single Malt Scotch Whisky 48.9%
Distillery: Ailsa Bay
Bottler: William Grant & Sons
Region/Country: Lowland, Scotland
Type: Lowland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
ABV: 48.9%
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Micro-maturation in small Hudson Baby bourbon casks, then American white oak
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Edition: First Release
EAN no.: 5010327405629

Flavour Profile

Smoky · Spiced · Honeyed · Liquorice · Dry · Mineral

Investment Potential

Medium. This is the first whisky ever released from the distillery, and this expression is no longer in production. First releases from new distilleries often become sought after once the distillery finds its feet, and the Danish world premiere gives the bottle an extra twist on that market.

Did You Know?

Ailsa Bay has eight stills, and they were deliberately built in different shapes and sizes. That makes it possible to produce several different spirit styles at one distillery, something most Scottish malt distilleries cannot do. Ailsa Bay was originally built to supply William Grant blends with malt in many different characters.

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