CAMERONBRIDGE 1979 G4.4 'ENJOY SOME R&R' - THE SCOTCH MALT WHISKY SOCIETY

Time for a single cask grain from Scotland's largest grain distillery, Cameronbridge, located not that far north of Edinburgh and close to Leven, Fife.

Cameronbrige is the oldest and largest grain distillery in Scotland, producing since 1824.
Their production last year passed 140.000.000 liters of spirit also included other white spirits like vodka and gin for the owners Diageo along with the grain spirit for the many blends under the Diageo umbrella.

Having nosed this one for a while prior to tasting it, it made certain promises... lets hope it can keep it up.

Cameronbridge Distillery from a distance, picture from Wikimedia

Cameronbridge 1979 G4.4 (28.05.1979/xx.xx.2013) 'Enjoy some R&R' 34yo, 47%, refill hogshead, 156 bottles, The Scotch Malt Whisky Society

Colour is pale gold

Nose:
Sweet rum - the brown aged kind, tobacco, hint of varnish, a vegetal note - freshly cut bell peppers and burnt sugar/custard

Taste:
Sweet sugars, icing, but carries a spicy oak egde, cumin and honey hand in hand, overripe melon, coconut and brown banana

Not bad, considering I'm not a fan of grains because of its general sweetness.

83/100!

INVERGORDON 1993 G5.3 'EXTRAORDINARY TASTE INTENSITY' - THE SCOTCH MALT WHISKY SOCIETY

Well, I didn't quite get all of the evil spirits exorcised with my previous review.

I was told to expect something different with this one, so I did - but I never thought it'll have me off from the Invergordon distillery by the Cromarty Firth to the Caribbean with a snap of my fingers.

Invergordon 1993 G5.3 (20.05.1993/xx.10.2011) 18yo 'Extraordinary Taste Intensity' 65,6%, 246 bottles, New toasted oak hogshead, The Scotch malt Whisky Society

Colour is dark amber

Nose:
Rhum, right?? This is huge on what I connect with the slightly 'dirty' and heavier Rhum Agricole style. A thick sugary edge, wood sap, solvety/paint thinner notes. This has Jack Sparrow written all over it and thoughts are immediately off to the island of Tortuga. Pineapple, caramel, coconut, spices (cinnamon) and dark chocolate.

Taste:
I'd normally pour something like this over coke and ice. This is huge on butter caramels, vanilla pods, custard, raspberries and white chocolate, tobacco, oranges, toffee and burnt toast.

This is some of the best grain whisky I've tried - no doubt thanks to the new toasted oak cask!

Not all (grains)spirits are evil and needs to be exorcised!

Thanks to GNJ for the sample!

86/100!

NORTH BRITISH 1990 G1.7 'FLAMED CHRISTMAS PUDDING' - THE SCOTCH MALT WHISKY SOCIETY

We're back with my evil spirits, grains (get the pun?)... that being bourbons/ryes and grains.

This next one is just that... a Scottish grain, but from a distillery I find to produce a slightly spicier style of grain whisky - North British.

Located pretty much almost downtown Edinburgh and very close to a rugby and a football stadium (that's soccer to the US readers) and even close to some residential neighbourhoods, the distillery is using 3 continuous stills, being fed up to 40.00 liters of wash every hour and, at the other end, delivering grain whisky at an amazing 94,5% alcohol. Its not stored on site, but at Muirhall which is halfway between Edinburgh and Glasgow and gets there by road (tanker).

Once there, its diluted to 68,5% before being put into casks.

The one I'm about to review is still pretty high in alcohol volume, but this may be because its from a sherry butt (European oak), which usually is less porous than American oak and with that less likely to loose alcohol.

Google maps provides a good look at the production site here

Anyway, enjoy my review...

North British 1990 G1.7 (xx.12.1990/xx.xx.2010) 19yo 'Flaming Christmas Pudding' 62,4%, 506 bottles, Refill ex-sherry butt, The Scotch Malt Whisky Society

Colour is amber

Nose:
Varnish (alcohol) and vanilla oak. After 10 drops of water and 15mins, mocha chino and even grapefruits appears. Still carries lots of sugary sweetness mainly burnt brown sugar /creme brulee style.

Taste:
Much more expressive with coconut, spices, ginger, some heavy tropical fruit, peach/nectarines, but also still lots of varnish - even after quite a bit of water.
The sherry influence is there, all right, but it kind of gives a more bitter edge to it.

Phew, although kind of pleasant, this still doesn't do it for me...

Thanks to GNJ for the sample

80/100!

INVERGORDON 1965 - DUNCAN TAYLOR

I've tasted a few grain whiskies on here before, but this is the first Invergordon grain I'll be reviewing.

Invergordon is a large industrial complex located north of Inverness and in business sense maybe a strange place for a large grain distillery as most of its product will go into blends and that's usually done in/near the Edinburgh or Glasgow area.

40 million liters of grain spirit is produced each year at Invergordon - quite a bit!

Let's try this grain whisky distilled in the same year as The Beatles and The Temptations were big hits!

Invergordon 1965 40yo (xx.12.1965/xx.10.2006) 50,3%, ex-bourbon cask#15514, 238 bottles, Duncan Taylor Rare Auld

Colour is light amber

Nose:
Coconut - as is often very evident in these old grains - tropical fruits, mango, peach, even raspberries, almonds (marzipan)

Taste:
Cake creme (custard), a little caramel, mildly spicy, burnt bbq sauce, vanilla and ginger. A relative short finish for such an old whisky, but grains have a tendency to lack in that department.

Still, a pretty good old grain, I think - 86/100!

NORTH BRITISH 1962 - ARCHIVES BATCH 4

Now, as I've mentioned before, I'm not that much into grain whiskies - I simply find them too sweet. After exploring my options a bit I then found, that North British carries a style that is still sweet, of course - but also a bit more on the spicy side, which for me, certainly does things to the otherwise sometime cloying sweetness that some grain whiskies have.

Its all a matter of personal taste, of course - I know people that lap up grain whiskies fast, but not here... usually 1 dram - and I'm good for the night!

Here's a cask of North British from 'The Beatles'-years...

North British 1962 50yo 31.05.1962/24.07.2012, Hogshead#29, 45,2%, 168 bottles, Archives

Light amber in colour

Nose:
Not getting the fruity impact here as you often do with these old grain whiskies. To get some you really need to take a deep whiff of this. Instead, I get a dusty felling and an (olive?) oily feeling on the nose. Aslo getting a guacamole/avocado greenish note and some licorice and tobacco leaves.

Taste:
Not as spicy (oaky) as expected for having spent ½ a century in a cask.
Very smooth, in fact... Now getting some of the tropical fruits I expected on the nose to begin with, especially the all-present (in grain whisky) coconut note - also getting banana and tinned pineapple. On the finish, spices show themselves along with some mint.


This North British remains a little dusty with traces of dunnage and old furniture... and definately not an overly sweet one - I like it!

88/100! ...and I'm not that keen on grains - so pretty good IMO!

JAPANESE WHISKY SPECIAL - KAWASAKI 1981 - NO. ONE DRINKS COMPANY

Located in the town by the same name, Kawazaki grain distillery closed in 1986.
Not much information is available on this distillery other than its still was a traditional coffey-still and about 90% of the production was grain with 10% malted barley in the mix.

This is also the last Japanese whisky in Japan special...

Kawasaki 1981 28yo, 62,4%, ex-bourbon cask - 120 bottles total, No. One Drinks Company for Part Des Anges (closed)

Colour: Full gold

Nose:
Light and very fresh for an old grain. Very sweet with vanilla, huge on tropical fruits and coconut and maybe some pineapple as well - all in beautiful measures... Do I detect some coriander in there?

Taste:
Cinnamon for sure, Xmas bakings, then coconut and tropical fruits. Gets a lot more spicier with water...

Not seriously complex on the palate, but still very enjoyable and not overly sweet which I like in a grain whisky.

88/100!

CARSEBRIDGE 1981 (GRAIN) - CLAN DENNY - PART IV

Its time to visit yet another of the Douglas Laing series - this time its Hunter Hamilton 'Clan Denny'. This series usually features bottlings from Grain Distilleries and the one below is no exception. That said, also malts are bottled under this label.

We're paying a visit to the Carsebridge Distillery in Alloa, not far from Stirling.
The distillery closed in 1983 and was demolished in 1992.

Carsebridge 1981 29yo 53,1% xx.10.1981/xx.xx.2010 1st fill ex-bourbon hogshead#6609, Clan Denny

Dark gold in colour

Nose:
Heavy sweetness, like an American bourbon - Jim Beam comes to mind, coconut, exotic fruits, caramel - the sweetness is massive.

Taste:
The American bourbon style is there for sure, spicy now, the sweetness and the fruits take over and then the oak spices hits again. Not terribly complex, but this is what grains suffer from in general.

Now, I may have a sweet tooth when it comes to certain things, but not grain whisky (incl. (most) American bourbons) I need the stuff to be spicy and then I still only have one dram.
This is why grains have never been a big hit with me....
Decent, though, for a grain since it also carries some spicyness.

82/100!

NORTH BRITISH - THE WHISKY AGENCY

North British 1962/2010, 48yo, 47,9%, Hogshead, 146 bottles 'The Perfect Dram'
Nose:
Lighty spiced in beautiful measures for an old grain - not at all overpowering - very nicely balanced

Taste:
Not your average heavy sweet tasting grain whisky, more laid back in both arrival/palate and finished. Mouthfilling, medium long, all spice from the cake cabinet, a beautiful grain whisky with a medium/long finish

86/100! (tasted 05-11-2011)

CAMERONBRIDGE 1959 - SIGNATORY

Cameronbridge 35yo, 11.09.59/xx.09.94, cask#33/88, 53,2%, 155 bottles, Signatory

Nose:
Coconut, high end american bourbon, woody

Taste:
Moderate alchohol attack, weak middle palate, a little acidic
Gains by adding a few drops of water, palate gets more balanced

82/100! (tasted 05-11-2011)