Balvenie Doublewood 12

About the distillery: Established close to the town of Dufftown in 1892 by the Grant family of distillers, The Balvenie remains a family business over a century after its founding. Owned by the operators of neighboring Glenfiddich, The Balvenie produces richer and more complex, but far less popular single malts. The 12-year-old Doublewood is the standard bearer of the Speyside distillery. The whisky sits in first or second fill bourbon casks for almost its complete aging, before being finished in sweet oloroso casks, creating a rich honey malt.

Tasting notes: Nose is deep fruity, the sherry smell is noticeable. Good strong body; golden color. Taste is rich and deep on the palate; with a sherry richness, smoky body, and long, complex, and satisfying finish. Great combination of flavors, none of which overwhelm. Hold it up to the light and add a single drop of water: the release of oils is remarkable and there are some nice fresh, floral notes with the addition of water ("the barley comes out of hiding").

You will like this if you like: The Macallan, Glenfiddich Solera Reserve 15.

Bottle notes: "Rich, mellow flavour of great depth and unusual complexity."

Ratings: Taster one, 86; taster two, 83; taster three, 87. Average: 85.

Dalwhinnie 15

About the distillery: At 1,073 feet (326 meters), this Speyside whisky distillery is one of the highest in Scotland. Up here, in the heart of the Scottish Grampians, the air is cool and the water is pure (with a welcome hint of regional peat). Originally called Strathspey when it opened in 1897, Dalwhinnie is now named after a nearby village, with a name that is Gaelic for "meeting place." A popular single malt Scotch since it was included in producer Diageo's line of Classic Malts as the Highlands entry in 1987.

Tasting notes: The nose is flavorful, with a hint of peat. Bright golden color; rich body. From a gentle sweet start, it has a rich, rounded, fruity heart and a long, intensely beautiful finish with hints of peat and summer fruit. A good aperitif.

You will like this if you like: Cragganmore, The Speyside.

Ratings: Taster one, 84; taster two, 81; taster three, 76. Average: 80.

The Macallan 12

About the distillery: The most distinguished of the famous single malt whisky blends, the Macallan has been producing whiskies since their production was legalized in 1824 (and probably before). Though the special bottlings are prized by Scotch connoisseurs, a generous attention to detail is placed on even the mass-produced vintages (10 years in the UK, 12 years elsewhere). Using fine barleys, limited yeast varieties, small stills, and solely dry oloroso (sherry) casks, the distillers at Macallan have succeeded in producing a single malt of outstanding consistent quality.

Tasting notes: Generally lovely. Amber color. Nose reveals hints of the components: spirit, barley, rich sherry. Taste is rich but smooth, body hits all areas of the mouth for a rounded but complex taste. The finish is similarly rounded and complex and quite long, with flavor running all the way down the throat. Taste is distinctive: sherry and barley sweetness. Great for after dinner or anytime; wonderful introduction to single malt Scotch whisky.

You will like this if you like: Older Macallans (recommended), Glenmorangie (compare the solely bourbon casks).

Ratings: Taster one, 90; taster two, 89; taster three, 91. Average: 90.

The Singleton 12

About the distillery: The Singleton is distilled near Dufftown in the heart of Speyside. For many years, unofficial bottlings of Diageo's Auchroisk (pronounced "Ath Rusk", or something like that and founded in 1974) distillery were called "The Singleton." (Auchroisk produces a quantity of the whisky used in Diageo's blended scotch whisky, including Johnny Walker and J&B.) The official Singleton bottling, part of the Classic Malts Selection, seems to originate instead from the Glendullan distillery, also in Dufftown. Glendullan, founded in 1898 and once a personal choice of King Edward VII is also a key contributor to the Diageo blends. In any case, The Singleton is a relative newcomer to the single malt scene and is still somewhat hard to find, though it is increasing in prominence.

Tasting notes: Nice. The nose is very woody, perhaps oaky, with notes of nutty vanilla. The body is soft and full, and a textured taste that induces words like "creamy," "silky," "soft," and "buttery." The palate is rich and smooth, with a spicy nutty finish. It is full without being too complex, as thought any edge has been aged away in the combination of woods. This is a good example of a single malt scotch becoming more complex with a small amount of water, which releases many syrupy tastes. A good after-dinner whisky and a nice intro scotch for a burgeoning connoisseur. As one taster remarked, "someone could drink serious quantities of this."

Notes printed on bottle: "Sweet and fruity notes." "Unique balance of European and US casks." "Smooth, richly satisfying taste."

You will like this if you like: Glenlivet 15 year old French Oak finish, Balvenie Doublewood.

Ratings: Taster one, 79; taster two, 76; taster three, 77. Average: 77.

More whisky jobs lost

A break from the reviews.

Long gone are the days of the family whisky maker, drying malt with peat, aging in a warehouse at the distillery, and bottling at the same plant. Today, scotch is a multi-billion pound business, and many distilleries are owned by international corporations. With this trend has come the search for corporate efficiency, which all too often translates into job losses. Sadly, I read today of another mass layoff in the whisky industry. Whyte & Mackay, owned by a Indian billionaire, announced cuts of 100 staff members, including some at their flagship Dalmore and Isle of Jura distilleries. This comes on the heels of the massive layoffs by Diageo (owners of Oban, Talisker, Lagavulin, Glen Ord, Caol Ila, Knockando, Glenkinchie, Dalwhinnie, and Cragganmore distilleries and Johnnie Walker blends, as well as a host of other well-known alcoholic beverages). As drinkers of the “water of life,” we feel a special connection to the fine people who produce Scotland’s finest export and are saddened by these cuts.

Allt-Abhainne (distilled 1991, bottled 2004 by Gordon & McPhail, Elgin)

About the distillery: A relatively new Speyside distillery, Allt-Abhainne (also spelled Allt-a-Bhainne, the name means "the milk burn" in Gaellic) was built in 1975 by Seagrams. It was designed to manufacture whisky for use in blended scotch, and it fulfills this purpose today under the operation of Chivas Brothers (Pernod Ricard), adding its flavor to their smooth blends. To date, there have been no official bottlings of Allt-Abhainne as a single malt, although it has been released by several independent labels (this bottle was from Gordon & McPhail. Allt-Abhainne briefly ceased production between 2002 and 2005, but it looks set to continue into the foreseeable future.

Tasting Notes: The nose is soft and pleasantly citrusy like a walk through a spring meadow. Light color, soft light body. Gentle floral palate that continues into a slow and silky finish. Hints of smoke and peat and fruits. A good before-dinner drink and a nice full-tasting whisky with which to begin a single malt tasting session.

You will like this if you like: Glenfiddich, Glen Moray, Chivas Regal.

Rating: Taster one, 80. Taster two, 81. Taster three, 76. Average: 79.

Bowmore (no age statement)

About the distillery: Established in 1779, Bowmore is one of the oldest malt whisky distilleries in Scotland. It is nestled on the shore of Loch Indaal on the inner Hebridean Isle of Islay. Water used for this single malt has a distinctive peat flavor typical of Islay whiskies, and the distillery has its own maltings, smoking crumbled peat in the drying process to add more peat taste.

Tasting notes: Nose is peaty and warm. Color is light and gold. Intense and quick initial attack transitioning to a long mild finish. Taste is surprisingly full, peaty and young without being too spirity. A good introduction to the Islay whiskies, the peat flavor is noticeable without being overwhelming. Makes a good transition drink in a tasting session. Good change of pace for a mostly Highlands drinker.

You will like this if you like: Laphroig and other strong Islays, but also Oban, Talisker and lighter, less peaty malts.

Rating: taster one, 74; taster two, 77; taster three, 80. Average: 77.

Label notes: "Best Balanced" of all the Islay notes, as characterized by its wonderfully rich and complex flavours. Color: light gold. Nose: peat smoke, marine notes. Palate: Citrus fruit, honey. Distinctive, smoky, and full-flavored on the palate. Welcome to Islay.

An Cnoc 12

About the distillery: An Cnoc (Gaelic for "the hill" and also known as Knockdhu [note: *not* the same as Knockando]) was established in the 1890s, but for much of its history this Highlands Speyside distillery produced malt for blends. It was only in the 1990s (after a closure in the early 1980s) that it began to make official single malt bottlings. It remains a fairly infrequently seen whisky.

Tasting notes: Nose is soft and spicy, becoming fruity with water. Color is medium rich. Body is strong but lightly smooth. The finish is long with a deep penetration. The taste is spicy fruit, smooth, caressing, and subdued. Benefits well from a drop of water, becoming fruity and delicious. This is a proper scotch, very drinkable. It would make an ideal introductory whisky once you've moved beyond the great standards of Glenlivet, Glenfiddich, Glenmorangie, Aberlour, and Macallan. Drinks well at any time, but works nicely after a meal.

You will like this if you like: Aberlour, Knockando, Glendronach.

Rating: taster one, 84; taster two, 79; taster three, 75. Average: 79.

Glen Garioch 15

About the distillery: There has been a distillery on the site of this Eastern Highlands producer since 1785. Glen Garioch closed briefly between 1995 and 1997, so this bottle was from the old owners, who cultivated a more peaty taste than most highlands maltsters.

Tasting notes: Burnt sweet smell; medium length; mellow burnt syrup taste; very smooth, lacking in complexity; shallow finish, rich and flowery but lacking penetration.

You will like this if you like: A mellow islay whisky; a younger Macallan; Dalwinnie 15.

Rating: taster one, 76; taster two, 82; taster three, 79. Average: 79.

Single Malt Whisky Reviews

I love whisky, most especially of the kind distilled in scotland at a single distiller using solely malted barley and aged in oak barrels for 10+ years. Every so often I taste a variety of single malt whisky (scotch whisky), alone or with fellow aficionados. This site will track the results of some of those tastings: our comments regarding taste, smoothness, similarity to other whiskies, and overall ranking. Likely there will be a flurry of posts near the beginning and then it will taper off. So it goes.

Cheers.