2013 Whisky Season: First Cask is Here!

Our first cask from Scotland has arrived and, yes, I know, we didn’t tell you about this one during the initial pre-arrival campaign. Some casks, we’ve realized, don’t cause all that much of a stir when we release them as a pre-order, simply because they don’t have the star power name recognition. When you’re selling people whisky that they can’t taste, yet they still have to pay upfront, it can be difficult unless the cask has a big name. We find that casks like this Glen Elgin are more word-of-mouth phenomena – meaning someone gets a bottle, realizes how good it is, and then tells a friend. That happened with the Mortlach and that’s definitely going to happen with this:

1995 Glen Elgin 17 Year Old A.D. Rattray K&L Exclusive Single Barrel Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky $109.99 - YUM! Why is Glen Elgin such a delicious Speyside whisky? It seems that everytime we have the opportunity to get a peek at this Diageo-owned Highland distillery the whisky just cries out: DRINK ME! Glen Elgin has one of the longest fermentation times for its wort and one of the slowest distillation times as well. The combination of both results in a heavy, robust spirit that remains light and fruity at the same time. Longer fermentation periods usually result in fruitier worts, while slow distillation times allow the spirit to slowly capture all that flavor. It's a gum-smackingly great phenomenon. Unfortunately we don't get the chance to buy very much Glen Elgin seeing that it's not released in the states as a single malt. It's mostly known as the key ingredient in White Horse. That's why we jumped at the chance to snag this lovely little number from the Morrison's warehouse. This is classic Scotch, in the style of Glenlivet and Glenfiddich, but with far more viscosity and a ton of fruit. It reminds me of the few 1970s Glenlivet bottlings I've been fortunate enough to taste. The whisky was aged in hogshead, so there's not much wood influence, just that lovely little kiss of vanilla you expect from ligher Speyside malts. The finish is clean and soft with the malt's heavy mouthfeel taking center stage. Nothing short of lovely, throwback single malt whisky. Less than 200 bottles available.

Do you miss Scotch that tastes like Scotch? Then this whisky is for you. No wine-finished casks, no story, no gimmicks. Just booze.

-David Driscoll