Gordon & MacPhail Recollection Series #2: 1981 Port Ellen, 1973 Glen Mhor & 1976 Banff [Tasted #647 - 649]

It's been a few months since we tried an incredibly-aged release from Gordon & MacPhail (the Mr George Legacy 3rd Edition, if you're wondering) and thanks to the good folk at G&M, today we have not one, not two, but three more new releases - this time from "The Recollection Series #2".

As the name suggests, the annual Recollection series (first launched in 2022) celebrates closed distilleries, this time across both Private Collection and Conoisseurs Choice ranges. Consisting of 18 expressions from 15 distilleries, the full series includes:

• Port Ellen 1981 – RRP £10,000
• Glen Mhor 1973 – RRP £6,000
• Banff 1976 – RRP £4,300
• Caperdonich 1979 – RRP £3,500
• Dallas Dhu 1979 – RRP £3,500
• Glen Albyn 1979 – RRP £3,500
• Glenlochy 1979 – RRP £3,500
• Imperial 1979 – RRP £4,000
• Lochside 1981 – RRP £3,750
• Linlithgow 1982 – RRP £3,000
• Glen Esk 1984 – RRP £2,200
• Inverleven 1985 – RRP £2,000
• Littlemill 1991 – RRP £1,600
• Lochside 1991 – RRP £1,600
• Rosebank 1991 – RRP £2,000
• Pittyvaich 1992 – RRP £1,200
• Imperial 1997 – RRP £380
• Imperial 1998 – RRP £360

Tasting any of these would've been a treat, but luckily the first three (in bold) above are global releases, and it's those we're tasting today. It's not every day you get to try a 42 year old Port Ellen, so let's get into it...

Gordon & MacPhail "The Recollection Series #2" Port Ellen 1981 42yo (52.5% ABV, 42yo, Refill Sherry Butt #290, Islay, Scotland, One of 181 bottles, £10,000)
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Distilled on 28 Jan 1981 and bottled 6 Feb 2023, and hailing from arguably the most famous closed Scotch malt whisky distillery, the whisky was distilled just two years before Port Ellen shut its doors in 1983. They won't stay shut forever though, as the distillery is set to re-open this year.

Colour: Copper-brown mahogany

Nose: Subtle bonfire notes with rum & raisin, BBQ'd pork, cherry smoke and hints of cinnamon. Already a lot going on (all of it good), right from the outset.

Palate: Red cherries, cigar box, with the faintest whiff of residual smoke. There's some oak (not too much), baked apple pie crust, some pepper spice, and some sweeter rich Christmas cake notes. Very complex, very clean, very robust.

Finish: Long, with poached pears, dried cherries and a dusty residual smoke. 

Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 93/100 (Martin). There's a LOT going on here and it's all very well-integrated. An impeccable dram.

Gordon & MacPhail "The Recollection Series #2" Glen Mhor 1973 49yo (57.2% ABV, 49yo, Refill Sherry Hogshead #85026801, Highland, Scotland, One of 170 bottles, £6,000)
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Distilled on 30 April 1973 and bottled 10 Jan 2023, this whisky hails from Glen Mhor which may not be well-known by the average whisky drinker, but certainly rewards those who come across it.

Colour: Golden copper-brown

Nose: Funky cola chews (I love finding this note in well-aged sherried whiskies, rare though it is), citrus zest, BBQ rub, then smoked paprika, za'atar, with an underlying juiciness. Very strong competitor for nose of 2023 so far. Just incredible.

Palate: Less zest and juiciness than the nose, more rounded and mature, with mature oak more noticeable. BBQ meat follows, with a slightly earthy / vegetal note (mint / Eucalyptus even?), some overripe oranges, pecan pie & rich toffee.

Finish: LONG, with a soft lingering oak spice and hints of chocolate mint slice.

Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 92/100 (Martin). Absolutely incredible nose (one of those drams I could happily nose for an hour), with a very strong palate and finish. Complex like few other drams - take your time with this one, you'll be rewarded.

Gordon & MacPhail "The Recollection Series #2" Banff 1976 46yo (50.4% ABV, 46yo, Refill Sherry Butt #2887, Highland, Scotland, One of 109 bottles, £4,300)
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Distilled on 26 Oct 1976 and bottled 3 Feb 2023. Banff is sometimes called "Scotland's unluckiest distillery", having been destroyed in a fire (twice), and bombed by the Luftwaffe during WWII. Like Port Ellen, Banff closed in 1983, but unlike Port Ellen there are no plans to re-open it.

Colour: Yellow golden sunset

Nose: Immediately, one of those "incredibly old and complex light style sherry" noses. Not dissimilar to this G&M 70yo Glen Grant from 2019. There's a yellow / stone fruitiness - pears, grapefruit, peach, followed by wafts of light smoke (earthy, not peated) & dunnage warehouse. After a decent airing, some slightly funky notes (the pleasant kind) emerge.

Palate: Follows the nose well, adding a touch of oak, more peach and strawberry, vanilla cream, baked peach pie & ginger. An elegant, well-aged, balanced palate.

Finish: Long, with ginger and hints of residual grapefruit.

Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 93/100 (Martin). I had high hopes for this and it exceeded even them. For me, on par with the Port Ellen, yet a very different style of dram.

Thanks as always to G&M for the samples.

Cheers,
Martin.

Tasted #598: 1980 Port Ellen "Prima & Ultima III" 41yo (TimeforWhisky 10 Year Anniversary Dram)

We kicked off our 10th Anniversary tasting celebrations with a 40 Year old Brora from the Prima & Ultima collection (#2), so it felt fitting to (almost) bookend it with an even older Port Ellen, also from the Prima & Ultima collection - #3 this time.

Distilled in 1980 and bottled in July 2021 from two casks (refill American Oak hoggy, ex-Sherry European butt), this bottling joins the rarified ranks of the 40+ year old Port Ellen club - a club with few members and even fewer open bottles. 

1980 Port Ellen "Prima & Ultima III" 41 Year Old (59.6% ABV, 41yo, 1 of 605 bottles, Islay, Scotland, $15,200SGD)
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Colour: Golden sunset.

Nose: Oak, lemon zest...if I didn't know better, I'd guess this could be a Caol Ila in its late teens or early 20s. Lemon pie with a freshly-baked crust. With a few drops of water, there's a lot of peppery peat.

Palate: Dusty lemon, salted, then lemon tart, BBQ'd pineapple rings, brine, salted plum, salted lime, then some hints of seaweed. There's a noticeable smokiness - more BBQ than medicinal or coastal, but the saltiness cuts through. 

Finish: Long, salted lemon with some subtle residual peat smoke.

Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 92/100. A very enjoyable dram, with no signs of over-aging and no "off" notes. If you'd told me it was a 20-something year old Caol Ila (and priced accordingly), I'd believe you and be impressed....but at this sort of level ($15k SGD) I think I expected just a little bit more. 

A very big thanks (again) to Kam Daswani of Dram Good Stuff for his generosity sharing all three Prima & Ultima collections to date.

Cheers,

Martin.

Tasted #500: Port Ellen 40yo 1979 "Prima & Ultima"

When I started this blog over 8 years ago, I didn't really know where it would lead, but it's fair to say I didn't expect that after all this time it would still be running with regular updates, spanning two countries and with two writers. I also didn't expect we'd ever see a 500th tasting post either, and yet here we are!

Over the years I've tried to keep the "100s" posts for special drams. #200 was a 60yo Glenfarclas, #300 was a 65yo Macallan, #400 was a 50yo OB Balvenie...and for this 500th post, I was fortunate enough to try a 40 Year Old Port Ellen from Diageo's recent "Prima & Ultima" range, which in some ways seems to have picked up the mantle from the Special Releases (themselves becoming a bit more accessible - no bad thing, mind you). 

 

You don't say no to a Port Ellen, and whilst they're not all deserving of the hype, this one bottled from a single refill European Oak Butt, and matured for 40 years from 1979-2019, certainly filled me with a lot of hope. Thankfully, my hope was justified.

Port Ellen 40yo 1979 "Prima & Ultima" (51.2% ABV, 40yo, OB, 1979-2019, Cask #6422, Islay)

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Colour: Rich deep amber gold.

Nose: Lemons at first, then a grassy herbaceousness. A hint of mint? Subtle salty smoke, leading to seaweed and finally hints of an old cigar box.

Palate: The smoke comes through stronger on the palate - BBQ smoke, followed by orange wheels and an explosion of meatiness. Quite different to the much more subdued nose, this was chewy, viscous and "big". Dried fruits, chocolate, smoked seaweed all feature too.

Finish: Long, with sea salted peanuts, followed by charcuterie and a residual longing BBQ smoke at the end.

Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 93/100. What an experience.

A humungous thanks to Kam of Dram Good Stuff for the taste of this. Whilst they don't currently have this bottle listed, they do have another OB 1979 40yo Port Ellen available if this one has whetted your appetite!

Cheers,

Martin.

Diageo Special Releases 2016 Tasting in Sydney (Tasted #354 - 356)

Sometimes in whisky (as in life), things just work out perfectly.

Take the other week for example. An invitation arrives for a tasting at 2pm on a Tuesday, in Sydney. On any normal week, I'd be 1) in Hong Kong, and 2) Working at 2pm (although considering the invitation in question was for the Diageo 2016 Special Releases, I'd probably try to wrangle some time off and be there). In this case however, there was no wrangling required. I was in Sydney, with a free day. Perfect.

So along I went to Sydney's timeless Rockpool Bar & Grill, to join what was to be a very special tasting. I'd been fortunate enough to try a few of the 2016 releases a few months earlier in Singapore, and whilst I would have loved to try those same drams again, I was very happy to see three of the five drams on tasting were ones I hadn't tried.

Specifically, we were to taste:

• Caol Ila 15yo "Unpeated Style" - Distilled 2000, 61.5% ABV
• Cragganmore Limited Release - 55.7% ABV
• Glenkinchie 24yo - Distilled 1991, 57.2%
• Brora 38yo - Distilled 1977, 48.65 ABV
• Port Ellen 37yo (16th Release) - Distilled 1978, 55.2% ABV

After a wonderfully refreshing Dalwhinnie 15 highball (with honey and malic acid), we took our seats to hear from Diageo Australia's newly-appointed National Whisky Ambassador Simon McGoram, who kicked things off with a brief history on the Special Releases (now in their 16th year), and how the much-loved Rare Malts of the 1990s gave way to the Special Releases of today.

Also of interest was the price of the 1st release Port Ellen - a mere £110! A far cry from the $5,000AUD of the 16th release we were about to taste.

(I remember back in 2009 picking up a catalogue from Park Avenue Liquor in New York, which I still have, with a whole range of Port Ellens from $200-$400USD. If only I'd had a little more foresight!)

For those unfamiliar with the Special Releases, it's basically Diageo's annual collection which shows off the various Scottish whisky distilleries, both malt and grain, within Diageo's immense portfolio. Typically the collection includes closed distilleries (like Port Ellen and Brora), operational distilleries (like Lagavulin and Talisker) and grain distilleries (like Cambus - also a closed distillery), and covers many of Scotland's whisky producing regions.

All bottles are bottled at cask strength, and the series has become increasingly popular with both drinkers and collectors alike. This year's collection runs from $170AUD (Caol Ila) to $5,000AUD (Port Ellen), so there's something for everyone.

You wouldn't usually expect to start a tasting of various Scottish regions with an Islay whisky, but in the case of Caol Ila's 15 year old "Unpeated Style", it was entirely appropriate. An annual release, this year's 15yo is from a batch made just once per year, in what Diageo call the "Highland Style", showing off the vibrancy of the Caol Ila spirit without the usual peat smoke.

Caol Ila 15yo "Unpeated Style" (Special Releases 2016) (61.5% ABV, 15yo, OB, Islay, Scotland, $170AUD)

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Colour: Light yellow gold.

Nose: Dried seaweed. Lemon tart. Salty, maritime notes, with hints of fresh tropical fruit.

Palate: Allen's Pineapple lollies, more seaweed, a fair amount of malt. A few drops of water brings a little smoke, but nothing like you'd get on a regular Caol Ila, especially one at 61.5% ABV!

Finish: Medium in length, with some vanilla, caramel and popcorn. 

Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 89/100.


The Cragganmore was next - the only NAS in the line-up. We're not ones to judge an NAS by its (lack of) age statement though - Diageo have proven (as we found with 2014's Clynelish) that they do NAS very, very well when it comes to Special Releases.

Cragganmore NAS (Special Releases 2016) (55.7% ABV, NAS, OB, Speyside, Scotland, Bottle #2,818 of 4,932, $750AUD)

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Colour: Yellow-orange sunset.

Nose: Earthy - mushrooms, dried vegetation and almonds primarily.

Palate: Citrus and spice initially, followed by nutty, vegetal notes. Stewed fruits follow, with the spices wafting in and out. The cask make-up (a mixture of refill hoggies, rejuvenated hoggies, and European Oak) shows.

Finish: Long, smooth and spicy. Slightly vegetal.

Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 91/100. A fantastic match with Jamon Bellota, it turns out (and of course very good on its own).

Next was the Glenkinchie 24 - the oldest official bottling ever released, and also the first to be matured entirely in European Oak. Fair to say I was a bit excited to try this one.

Glenkinchie 24 Year Old (Special Releases 2016) (57.2% ABV, 24yo, OB, Lowlands, Scotland, Bottle #988 of 5,928, $520AUD)

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Colour: Deep yellow gold.

Nose: Tropical fruit, Nutri-Grain cereal, milk chocolate, whilst retaining a floral lightness. Water brought out more of the fruit. It's a complex nose, for sure, but not one you'd immediately associated with a dram aged for 24 years in European oak.

Palate: Lightly spiced, with floral hints and some cereal notes from the nose returning. The tropical notes were there too - pineapple dusted with cinnamon.

Finish: Long, sweet fruity and fragrant spices. Walking through a spice market eating a sweet apple.

Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 90/100. 

The Brora and Port Ellen rounded out the tasting, and I found very similar notes to when I'd tasted them a few months earlier (and unknowingly gave the same scores as then, too).

As expected, the Brora stole the show, with an incredible amount of complexity coupled with what I'll call "delicious elegance". The pick of the bunch, in my opinion, and a dram I could happily nurse for hours, seeking out more and more notes as time goes on.

As mentioned, nine of the ten 2016 Special Releases have been released in Australia (unfortunately, this year Australia misses out on the crowd favourite Lagavulin 12 Cask Strength, which we learned was very constrained due to "every market wanting to get their hands on the 200th Anniversary release". The nine available bottles are as follows:

AUCHROISK 25 year old, Distilled 1990, ABV 51.2%

3,954 bottles available worldwide. 216 for Australia.

RRP $520AUD

BRORA 38 year old, Distilled 1977, ABV 48.6%

2,984 bottles available worldwide. 108 for Australia.

RRP $2,800AUD

CAMBUS 40 year old, Distilled 1975, ABV 52.7%

1,812 bottles available worldwide. 68 for Australia.

RRP $1,400AUD

CAOL ILA 15 year old, Distilled 2000, ABV 61.5%

450 bottles for Australia.

RRP $170AUD

CRAGGANMORE, ABV 55.7%

4,932 bottles available worldwide. 180 for Australia.

RRP $750AUD

GLENKINCHIE 24 year old, Distilled 1991, ABV 57.2%

5,928 bottles available worldwide. 282 for Australia.

RRP $520AUD

LINKWOOD 37 year old, Distilled 1978, ABV 50.3%

6,114 bottles available worldwide. 300 for Australia.

RRP $1,100AUD

MANNOCHMORE 25 year old, Distilled 1990, ABV 53.4%

3,954 bottles available worldwide. 240 for Australia.

RRP $550AUD

PORT ELLEN 37 year old, Distilled 1978, ABV 55.2%

2,940 bottles available worldwide. 128 for Australia.

RRP $5,000AUD

With almost $10,000AUD worth of whisky across 5 bottles, it's fair to say this was no ordinary tasting, but it's one I was thrilled to join. A huge thanks must go to Simon, Diageo Australia and the team at Leo Burnett for the invitation and their hospitality during the afternoon.

Cheers,
Martin.

Tasted #343 - 348: Diageo Special Releases 2016 - Port Ellen, Brora, and others (#101drams)

My recent trip to Singapore's invitation-only Johnnie Walker House was special not only because it was a really impressive space, but also because at the end of my tour came a tasting...and not just any tasting - a tasting of 5 of Diageo's rarest 2016 Special Releases, and a stunning NAS Clynelish from 2014's Special Releases.

Port Ellen 37yo 1978 16th Edition (Special Releases 2016) (55.2% ABV, 37yo, OB, Islay, Scotland, Bottle #590 of 2,490, £2,083.33 / HK & AU pricing not available)

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Colour: Vibrant yellow gold.

Nose: Perfumed. Light, elegant. No discernible peat. Leather, citrus and the slightest hints of lavender.

Palate: There's the peat smoke...but it's subtle, never imposing, never dominating. More barbecued meat smoke than coastal smoke. Lots of candied ginger, mint, mixed candied fruit peels and marmalade, and some herbacious seasoning. Think a smokey BBQ, sizzling a lovely rib eye, covered in rosemary and a sprinkling of paprika.

Finish: Long, sweet, honey-BBQ smoked.

Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 93/100. All-in, a very nice dram (and a #101drams dram too!) but not as memorable as the 12th Edition I tried a few years ago (the notes for which I just realised I never published). I did however find a few similar notes on the "Elements of Islay" PE5, which I gave the same score.

Brora 38yo 1977 (Special Releases 2016) (48.6% ABV, 38yo, OB, Highlands, Scotland, Bottle #1,507 of 2,984, £1,208.33 / HK & AU pricing not available)

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Colour: Orange gold.

Nose: Whole oranges. Citrus oil and lemon zest. Smooth, faint smoke.

Palate: Oak, earthy smoke, more citrus (a little lemon rind and orange peel now). Some stewed pears and apricots. There's a waxiness to the mouthfeel, and everything is in such perfect balance. Expertly made whisky, without a doubt.

Finish: Long, smooth caramel notes turning to more citrus (back to whole oranges, some grapefruit slices). Hints of pot pourri at the very end.

Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 94/100. Stunning.

Cambus 40yo (Special Releases 2016) (52.7% ABV, 40yo, OB, Lowlands, Scotland, Bottle #1,231 of 1,812, £737.83 / HK & AU pricing not available)

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Colour: Golden sunset.

Nose: Grape!? Yes, lots. Wine gums, slightly acidic. You could tell me this was a Cognac, and I'd believe you.

Palate: More grape, only this time, it's Grape Hubba Bubba Bubblegum! There's a delightful freshness here - fresh laundry especially, but it's mostly about those vibrant grape characteristics, they really dominate, and it's wonderfully refreshing.

Finish: Medium in length, more wine gums and a perfumed lavender-like sweetness.

Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 95/100. This is an odd whisky, there's no doubt about it. It's so left-field, that even after spending a good 10 minutes with it blind, I wouldn't necessarily have pegged it as a whisky. But it's also beautiful. I'm always looking to be "surprised" when it comes to whisky, and this has plenty of surprised up its sleeve. Complement that with a wonderful nose and palate, and its earned its 95.

Linkwood 37yo 1978 (Special Releases 2016) (50.3% ABV, 37yo, OB, Speyside, Scotland, Bottle #1,378 of 6,114, £500 / HK & AU pricing not available)

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Colour: Orange gold.

Nose: Muted at first, before some vanilla and sponge cake notes come through, along with some Chardonnay-like notes and tropical fruit salad.

Palate: Sweet and tropical. Pawpaw and pineapple dominant fruit salad, glacé cherries, apricot jam and a fair whack of vanilla overseeing it all.

Finish: Medium to long, carrying similar notes from the palate right through to the end.

Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 92/100. Another well-made, enjoyable dram, not dissimilar to other well-made, well-aged Speysiders.

Clynelish Select Reserve (Special Releases 2014) (54.9% ABV, OB, Highlands, Scotland, Bottle #2,877 of 2,946, £412.50 / HK & AU pricing not available)

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Colour: Vibrant Gold.

Nose: Waxy, butterscotch-drizzled oranges.

Palate: Spiced oranges, cloves, with an overarching caramel, mouthfilling waxy smoothness. Just absolutely delicious. Water brought about a bit more spice, and a little more oak. I'd guess there's some fairly old Clynelish in here.

Finish: Long, smooth, toffee-like with residual hints of warming spice.

Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 94/100. Just a brilliantly made whisy, even if it is a £400+ NAS.

Mannochmore 25yo 1990 (Special Releases 2016) (53.4% ABV, 25yo, OB, Speyside, Scotland, Bottle #2,424 of 3,954, £208.33 / HK & AU pricing not available)

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Colour: Deep amber gold.

Nose: Rich caramel, sherry-soaked raisins, red berries (Acai? Some Strawberries too) and milk chocolate.

Palate: Every bit a sherried Speysider - and a clean one at that. Smooth, soft Christmas pudding, Christmas spices and some mince pies. Brazil nuts and a hint of well-aged leather.

Finish: Long and full of vanilla-laden spices.

Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 92/100.

A huge thanks must again go to Diageo and Ketchum for their fantastic hospitality during my visit.

Cheers,
Martin.

A visit to Diageo's Johnnie Walker House Singapore

A few weeks before my recent trip to Singapore, Diageo were kind enough to invite me to "Johnnie Walker House", to experience something which, until that point, I'd only seen glimpses of via Instagram.

Unlike the Jonnie Walker Houses in Mumbai, Taipei and select other airports, Johnnie Walker House Singapore is a private affair - open by invitation only, and designed for Diageo's private clients.

Located within Diageo's Singapore offices, the House is a tastefully decorated suite overlooking the historic trading port of Boat Quay (where the very first Johnnie Walker bottles would have arrived in Singapore in the 1800s), providing a nice link back to the earliest days of the brand. A large-format coffee table book ("bible" may be more apt) also provides insights into the brand's history in Singapore, whilst a video conferencing link allows customers to get real-time insights into the operation of some of Diageo's distilleries today.

Diageo's Private Clients team use the House to demonstrate their higher end, often more bespoke offerings, including personal cask ownership and signature blends. Basically, this isn't where you go to pick up a bottle of Johnnie Walker Blue...

Upon entering the House, you're greeted by a large flavour map, mapping out Diageo's 39 malt distilleries (28 operating, 11 closed) in terms of profile. You may not agree with the all the placements, but you'll have to take it up with Dave Broom, as he mapped each distillery.

Against the far wall sits a showcase of Diageo's more exclusive products, including high-end Johnnie Walker blends (think the ~$48k USD McLaren Mercedes Edition and $200k USD Diamond Jubilee), followed by an overview of JW's "Signature Blend" program, allowing customers to determine their preferred flavour profile via a series of tastings, which Master Blender Dr Jim Beveridge then interprets into a custom JW Blend, drawing on the 8 million+ casks at his disposal.

Further along sat a curious bottle of Port Ellen (below) - clearly not part of the annual "Special Releases". I learnt that this was a bottling from Diageo's "Casks of Distinction" program - an incredibly limited program through which customers can purchase an entire cask from select distilleries, and choose to either bottle it, or continue ageing it (in Diageo's bonded warehouses) for bottling at a later date. 

The casks and distilleries available vary over time, but do occasionally include closed distilleries like Port Ellen and Rosebank, alongside operational distilleries like Lagavulin.

To have your own, private cask of Port Ellen and Rosebank bottled with your name would be pretty special...and the packaging certainly seems to befit the exclusivity, with bottles packaged in wooden 6 bottle crates, accompanied by a chest containing crystal glassware.

Having thoroughly toured the House and learnt all about Diageo's most exclusive offerings, there was only one thing left to do....taste!

I'll save the tasting notes for another post, but suffice to say, tasting 6 "Special Releases" bottlings (including 2016's 37yo Port Ellen and 38yo Brora, as well as a delightfully unique 40yo Cambus) was a pretty fantastic way to end a wonderfully detailed insight into the world of Diageo's bespoke offerings.

A huge thanks must go to Diageo and Ketchum for their hospitality during my visit (and of course, for the generous tasting).

Cheers,

Martin.