Two years ago Hubby and I took our first trip to Scotland, we were not great whisky fans when we set off but we certainly were when we came home. You can read about our previous adventures in my May 2019 blog posts.
Always happy to revisit places we have just enjoyed 10 days exploring Scotland with friends; visiting old places but also discovering new. There is so much to write about I have split my blog posts into themes but it may take me a while to write them all.
I'm beginning with our tasting at Robertson's of Pitlochry hosted by the very knowledgeable owner Ewan McIlwraith. It was at this tasting two years ago we discovered whisky so we were all looking forward to another whisky afternoon.
The tastings are held in The Bothy on a beautiful oak table laid with barrel staves holding four Glencairn glasses. Although a second visit I learnt so much more about this golden liquid.
Whisky can only be whisky if it has been in an oak barrel or cask for 3 years and 1 day and it cannot be below 40%. Blended whisky is different to malt as it can contain many different whiskies; Bell's can have up to 46 different varieties in its blend.
Whisky is a clear spirit when it enters the cask, it draws its colour and flavour from the type of cask it is stored in. Bourbon, sherry and wine barrels are the most commonly used, however some whisky producers do use caramel to add colour. It is often thought that the older, darker, more expensive a bottle is the better the whisky; this is not always the case but my final part of this blog will hopefully agree with that thought.
Our four whiskies were Stronachie 10 year old, Edradour, Robertson's Tobermorey and Golden Cask. All very different in colour, flavour and enjoyment.
Stronachie is a Speyside whisky finished in a bourbon cask. There were plenty of toffee and vanilla aromas along with hints of coconut and creme brulee in the flavour. As it warmed I could certainly find flavours of rich vanilla custard.
Edradour is a small distillery just outside Pitlochry; the next day we drove up to see the beautiful white buildings although the distillery was closed to visitors. We found many distilleries closed or only had their shop open due to the current restrictions, it must be so hard to comply with all the guidelines. Even though closed it was lovely to visit them as all the buildings are very different and all in beautiful settings.
As you can see we liked the Edradour so much we bought a bottle for home (along with many more on our travels, but more about that in my other posts). Aged in a combination of an Oloroso Sherry and Bourbon cask it is chill filtered to 40%. This is a more complex whisky with earthy, woody notes and a touch of honey.
Robertson's Tobermory was our third tasting, this was only launched on 21st March 2021. It is finished in a sherry cask and is sold at 61% cask strength. A little strong for me, I needed 10 angel's tears (drops of water) to soften it but it's marmalade notes were a hit with Hubby.
The Pitlochry shop has many many whiskies in their own range. Ewan chooses and buys a cask from a distillery and cask finishes the whisky to his own specification. Hubby previously bought a Robertson's Tullibardine and this year I bought him a bottle of Robertson's Tobermory as a treat for his upcoming milestone birthday.
Our final tasting was Golden Cask, an Islay peated whisky at 57%. I'm not a fan of peated whiskies as I struggle to get past the medical ointment smell, I do keep trying though. The peatiness in a whisky comes from the firing to stop the grain germinating, in these whiskies it is peat that is used as the heat source when malting.
Thank you Ewan for a superb tasting, it was so lovely to be back in The Bothy and I hope it will not be too many years before we are again.
Now returning to the assumption of the older, darker, more expensive a bottle being a better whisky. Ewan told us about a very special whisky soon to be launched by
Gordon and Macphail, the world's leading malt whisky specialists based in Elgin.
They have an 80 year old Glenlivet whisky that is being launched on 7th October 2021 with the first bottle being sold at
Sotheby's in Hong Kong. It is expected to sell for between £80,000 and £140,000 although it could go higher. There are 250 decanters from this 80 year old cask.
Distilled in 1940 it has been in a sherry cask ever since. Sir David Adjaye OBE has designed the unique decanter and oak case around the theme 'Artistry in Oak', it currently rests in the tasting room at Gordon and Macphail's Elgin whisky shop.
Trees for Life is a charity whose mission is to rewilding the Caledonian forest and proceeds from Decanter#1 will be donated to resource their nursery which grows 100,000 rare native trees from seed.
It will be so interesting to see how much this unique whisky sells for, and how much the remaining decanters are priced at. It is a long long way out of my buying range but I have seen the whisky as we were privileged to be shown into the stunning tasting room. The proof I was actually there is obvious in this photo.
Two super visits as part of our Scotland touring holiday, there's plenty more whisky, beer and so many beautiful sights to blog about I'll be busy for quite a while.
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