| A Tasting
of:
Glenlivet 12 Year Old French Oak Dalmore 21 Year, Highland Park 1977 Bicentenary, Springbank 21 Year, & Many Aberlour Single Malts With F. Paul Pacult by Kevin R. Kosar Whew! Big title for a big night of malts! Late in January, I and a drove of other malt lovers crowded Keen's Steakhouse in Manhattan to celebrate Robert Burns birthday (a couple days early) and to taste a marvelous selection of single malts. It was a terrific evening- we had the upstairs of glorious old Keen's all to ourselves (per usual with Pacult's Master Tastings). We began by sipping Keen's hoppy house ale, chatting, and looking at the hundreds of smoking pipes hanging from |
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| the ceiling and the old newspapers on the walls (many from the era of Abraham Lincoln).
After a time, the sound of bagpipes brought a hush to the crowd, and all
fell in line behind the bagpiper who led us to the tasting room.
Not only were we graced with the presence of the bagpiper and F. Paul pacult,
renown wine and spirits author, also here for the eve was a kilted Alan
J. Winchester, production manager at Aberlour Distillery. Mr. Winchester
was so kind as to tell us all about Aberlour distillery, Scotland, and
the malts.
Before we hit Mr. Winchester's whiskies, though, we tried some other malts, just to loosen our palattes up. Glenlivet 12 year Old French Oak
Finish (40%): We've previously reviewed this one,
but I'll recount it in brief- "rather dry...Whether it is the Limousin
wood or not, this scotch does have a woody (as opposed to oaky- think Chardonnay)
flavor, along with some mild floral notes and a spiciness that is reminiscent
of those hot cinnamon fireballs I ate as a child." Put a few drops
of water in and it really opens nicely. $45-$50 a bottle.
Dalmore 21 Year (43%): A much
bolder dram, with, as Paul noted, "grip." Loaded with caramel and
vanilla and the barley shines through. Goes for around $100 a bottle
and you can tell why. (Rating****)
Highland Park 1977 Bicentenary (43%): A very difficult to find malt, and a very good one. Notes of iodine, heather and silky smoothness in the mouth distinguish this $120+ a bottle malt. Too complex for words to convey. (Rating ****1/2) Springbank 21 Year Old (46%): Chock full of sherry, spice and a generally super rich tasting malt that leaves the mouth masticating over its lengthy vanilla finish. Wow. (Rating ****3/4) Then, we really got down to business. It was time for the Aberlours. Aberlour 10 Year:
We've reviewed this previously, but I'll quote our previous review, which
seems right- "Aberlour 10 Year is a docile scotch- very smooth, creamy,
and its bouquet and taste are complex and lingering. It begins with
a sort of cinnamon and malt scent. When it hits your tongue you feel
a modest wave of peat and then bits of vanilla and caramel and more spicy
cinnamon. Swallow and you entire palate is awash in flavors."
Aberlour 15 Year (43%): A peculiar and fascinating incarnation of Aberlour, in that a grapefruit note appers, along with vanilla, toffee, sherry and, as Mr. Winchester put it, Aberlour's "signature sprig of mint." Quite nice. (Rating ****1/4) Click here to purchase Aberlour 15 Year Aberlour 21 Year (43%):
This old malt fetches $85-$95 a bottle and is worth every penny of it.
Really. It is one of the few that merit a five star rating from AlcoholReviews.com.
Aberlour 21 Year delicately booms, showing off power, finesse, and layers
upon layers of flavor, including vanilla, peat, heather, toffee, and...
(Rating *****)
Aberlour Antique (43%): Only available through duty free, Antique is a mix of 10-25 year old malts. Ever magnanimous, Paul brought this from his own private collection (as he did the first four malts). Some seven years back Paul lugged this home from Scotland. So how is it? Bolder and spicier than the previous three, with a clear cereal note. It creeps away softly. (Rating ****1/4) Aberlour a'bunadh (59.6%): When you can find it, a'bunadh goes for $60-$70 a bottle. The name "a'bunadh" (pronounced, a-boon-akh) means "the origin." Applying this to scotch, it means that this malt was taken from the directly from the oak casks without filtering or adding water- thus, it's higher than usual alcohol content (nearly 120 proof!). A very different animal than the
other Aberlours. A big malt, with a fat chocolate note and spice.
Cut with water and enjoy. (Rating ****1/4)
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reviewed: 01/27/01
