Clynelish 1974 Signatory Dumpy [Review #1000!]

Hi everyone,

Here we are, the big four digits at last!

It has been a long road but I can’t say it’s been a hard one. I still love tasting whisky, making notes and sharing my thoughts. What is there more to say than that?

 

This was the other whisky I tasted in Feathers Pub in Toronto. I knew to taste this because u/TOModera had done notes on this one and said that he thought it was a Brora. I planned to taste the Lord of the Isles Ardbeg after this but decided not to. I’d found what I was looking for.

Clynelish 1974 Signatory Dumpy 55.7%

Colour: Gold

Body: Full

Nose: Immediately stunning. A shit tonne of amazing complexity, balance and power! Oils for days, waxy with pine smoke, Lapsang Souchong, burnt wood, lemon sherbet, a little BBQ pit. Liquorice and an incredibly good medicinal edge that cuts through, white pepper, bandages, nice chilli heat, some white florals coming in now with minerality. More calpol and earthy notes coming through after a bit. Could literally just sit here and smell it for hours.

Water: Darker, brooding and more earthy, burnt florals, singed heather, leather and dark chocolate.

Taste: Clean arrival, pure lemon, some oak, white pepper then kicks up several notches into transendant territory with big medicinal peat perfectly balanced by the clean lemon and minerals. So damn good. Ridiculously oily and satisfying. Super drinkable.

Water: Softer and rounder and darker. More malty, more oily and waxy, so balanced it almost hurts!, incredible mouthfeel, not as dry, heather. Still powerful. Pine smoke.

Finish: Long length. Arrrgh! Fucking hell its amazing! Really makes the dram. Quite dry with white pepper and minerality, late earthy note but clean finish. Earthy leather and some malt.

Bottled 2001 at 27yo. No WAY this was distilled at Clynelish! A freight train of a whisky with everything I look for. Really sings!

My scoring has been brought up again and again by folks that don’t quite understand my harsher lower scores. But when you come across really, really good whisky you just know it, you can’t help it. Truly exceptional whisky hits you in the face and goes to something right at the core of you.

93/100

A big thank you to everyone that reads these reviews! I started on Reddit and I still love the amazing community that we’ve created here. Being in the whisky industry has allowed my to try some amazing stuff and, though it sometimes comes with complications, I wouldn’t change it for the world. I still remember a time, not long ago at all, when I was little more than tour guide that enjoyed whisky and wanted to try more. I would never have dreamed that I would taste 1000 whiskies, let alone the ones that I have. I feel extremely lucky every single day.

Cheers!

Thanks for reading!

Updated Distillery Rankings

Scotch Review #835

Whisky Network Review #1000

Network Average: 75.2

Best Score: 94

Worst Score: 12

0-49 Terrible

50-59 Bad

60-64 Just About OK

65-69 Ok to Good

70-74 Good

75-79 Very Good

80-84 Excellent

85-89 Superb

90+ Magnificent

Full Disclosure Disclaimer: I currently work as the Global Brand Ambassador for Penderyn Distillery. The views expressed here are purely my own and do not reflect the views of Penderyn Distillery or The Welsh Whisky Company. I try to maintain as much objectivity as I can but feel free to take my reviews with as big a pinch of salt as you like. Furthermore, my rating scale is NOT based on a Parker type wine scoring scale or a school/college/university % or A-F grade score. You can find more on my scoring here. I apologise for any seemly low or 'bad' scores given with my system and I am sorry I can't say only nice things. Please keep in mind that I am ethically compromised and I am unable to produce 100% unbiased reviews.

Why is this here?

Brora 1972 Cask Sample [Road to #1000, Review #999]

Hi everyone,

Today I would like to explore something that we must all deal with when reviewing and assessing whisky; rarity.

A few reviews ago I gave the Van Winkle Family Reserve Rye an 78/100. The 15yo Pappy got 75/100. To be clear, these are good scores. They class these whiskies as ‘Very Good.’ Some people seemed upset that I had given such ‘low’ scores to such rare and expensive whiskies.

But are rare and expensive whiskies worth such huge costs?

In my opinion, no. The most I would ever pay for a whisky is £200 and I have not gone over this amount for a 70cl bottle. The reason for this is that I don’t have loads of money to drop on whiskies that could be good or are rare. I have also found that the value for money goes down rapidly after the £50-£60 mark.

Really, after £200, I have found that whisky does not get better, only more rare.

And we must deal with another question; are rarer and more expensive whiskies deserving of higher scores?

The obvious answer to this is that, no, just because a whisky is rare and/or expensive it should not get a higher score. However, it isn’t as simple as all that. It is easy to start believing the hype before you’ve even tasted a whisky. You can easily convince yourself that the whisky truly is wonderful, it must be, because people pay so much for it.

 

With that in mind, this is the rarest, most ridiculous sample I have ever managed to get my hands on. Brora is rare enough in and of itself but the 1972 vintage is the one that is hyped and people rave about because Brora was the most heavily peated then. This is a cask sample of a still maturing whisky from a single cask that will likely never be bottled. It is old at 47 years in the cask, perhaps the oldest Brora ever tasted. Only a few people will ever taste this whisky, ever.

Brora 1972 Cask Sample 40.1%

Colour: Gold

Body: Medium

Nose: Stupidly complex, oils and fruits and wax galore, the best strawberry fruit pastilles ever made, faint smoke, crushed seashells, very Clynelish actually, gorgeous honey, Oolong tea, green tea. More woody and spicy as it opens up- black pepper, complex chocolate notes, then more fruity with fragrant orange peel.

Taste: Soft and lacking power at first, builds though with an emotionality, smoky, wood and oak, tired wood, black tea, leather and old books, very very dry, some black pepper and very light salt, dried orange peel, then the oils and waxes I was looking for. Good mouthfeel for the strength.

Finish: Short length. More smoky here with malty, oils, some fruit and loads of chocolate.

47yo cask sample for the Brora masterclass at the 2019 Whisky Exchange Show. The nose is stellar but the taste and finish are too dry and tired as well as lacking power from the low strength. A shame that this wasn't bottled 20 years ago! A massive, massive thank you to the legend Colin Dunn for letting me try this!! Oh, and thank you to Jason for the photo because I forgot to take one.

As with the 1964 Longmorn, I can give this a score but truly it was more of an experience.

82/100

Thanks for reading!

Updated Distillery Rankings

Scotch Review #834

Whisky Network Review #999

Network Average: 75.2

Best Score: 94

Worst Score: 12

0-49 Terrible

50-59 Bad

60-64 Just About OK

65-69 Ok to Good

70-74 Good

75-79 Very Good

80-84 Excellent

85-89 Superb

90+ Magnificent

Full Disclosure Disclaimer: I currently work as the Global Brand Ambassador for Penderyn Distillery. The views expressed here are purely my own and do not reflect the views of Penderyn Distillery or The Welsh Whisky Company. I try to maintain as much objectivity as I can but feel free to take my reviews with as big a pinch of salt as you like. Furthermore, my rating scale is NOT based on a Parker type wine scoring scale or a school/college/university % or A-F grade score. You can find more on my scoring here. I apologise for any seemly low or 'bad' scores given with my system and I am sorry I can't say only nice things. Please keep in mind that I am ethically compromised and I am unable to produce 100% unbiased reviews.

Why is this here?

Brora 30 (2004 Release) Review

Hi everyone,

Almost 700 whiskies separate 92 and 93. And yet, only 10 whiskies later, I found my second 93 scorer.

Not satisfied with the 1972 Ardbeg I just reviewed (yes, it was very nice but not in the 92/3 region), there was only one option left open to me. 1972 Brora. That legendary vintage from that legendary distillery. I had thought I saw earlier the 2002 release of Brora 30yo, which would mean 1972 or earlier. Unfortunately I couldn’t find it again until after it was too late. As the replacement I saw the 2004 release and pounced.

 

Brora 30 2004 Release 56.6%

Colour: Gold

Body: Medium/Full

Nose: Manure. Cow shit, barnyard, soiled hay. All that definitely evokes memories, particularly of walking in the countryside around my home town of Haslemere. Behind that there's crystallised fruit, sugared, waxy and complex. Earthy and nice old school oak. Peach stones. Even some overt peat in there, grapefruit, buttery.

Water: More yellow fruit, yellow apple, less barnyard, more earthy and oily. Can I jump into the glass?! INCREDIBLE.Some tropical fruit after a bit.

Taste: Oily and soft arrival, crystallised fruit, orange, lemon citrus, lovely sharp citrus then becoming darker and more earthy. Cocoa, dark chocolate, white pepper and refill oak.

Water: Soft, dry oak, oily, quite intense then with spice and smoke, soot, orange and lemon, really long development. Then fucking incredible into the finish, just a perfect transition of flavour.

Finish: Medium/Long length. Earthy, cocoa powder, mouth watering, dry oak. With water it's a bit longer with more smoke. Proper smoky and peaty. Striking stuff.

This obliterates the '72 Ardbeg before it, with water anyway. This took water really well and although I'm bummed I didn't get the 2002 release this was great to try. I hesitated about giving this 93, but after some thought I decided that this was a step up from the 92’s, while maybe not quite as amazing as the 1973 Mortlach. I messed around with some options: giving the Mortlach 94 and this 93, or this 92 and the Mortlach 93. Or even both 92. But this makes the most sense to me. Another level on everything else I’ve tried. Truly.

93/100

Thanks for reading!

Scotch Review #553

Whisky Network Reviews #648

Network Average: 74.7

Best Score: 92

Worst Score: 22

0-49 Terrible

50-59 Bad

60-64 Just About OK

65-69 Ok to Good

70-74 Good

75-79 Very Good

80-84 Excellent

85-89 Superb

90+ Magnificent

Full Disclosure Disclaimer: I currently work as a Brand Ambassador for Penderyn Distillery. The views expressed here are purely my own and do not reflect the views of Penderyn Distillery or The Welsh Whisky Company. I try to maintain as much objectivity as I can but feel free to take my reviews with as big a pinch of salt as you like. Furthermore, my rating scale is NOT based on a Parker type wine scoring scale or a school/college/university % or A-F grade score. You can find more on my scoring here. I apologise for any seemly low or 'bad' scores given with my system and am sorry I can't say only nice things. Please keep in mind that I am ethically compromised and am unable to produce 100% unbiased reviews.

Why is this here?

Brora 35 2013 & Port Ellen TBWC Batch 5: Scotch Review #500!

Hi everyone,

Today’s the big day. 500 Scotch reviews later and I am to be crowned (On Reddit you get a crown next to your username at 500 Scotch reviews). Is there a ceremony? With like candles and priests, some kind of creepy ritual maybe? A whisky sacrifice, where someone pours 1945 Macallan over my head?

We don’t know. Only one other has worn the crown so far, and it’s an honour to be the second!

I actually tasted these two whiskies last Christmas as my actual 500th whiskies tasted (in total) and bought the samples way back to make sure I’d be able to actually taste some Brora and Port Ellen before they become extinct… Although now they’re going to be resurrected and I’ve tried others now anyway.

I could give you a long essay on the distilleries, why they closed or what I think of them reopening. Or I could chat about how amazing this community is and what it means to me. But I think you guys and girls know that and instead, I’m going to just get to my notes and leave you with that.

Brora 35 1977 Special Releases 2013 49.9%

Colour: Gold

Body: Medium/Full

Nose: Immediately more intense than the 2016 release. Waxy, sea salt, crystallised fruit, dried mango, dried pineapple, complex spices and oak, nutmeg, a little cinnamon, some white pepper. More smoke making itself noticeable, old Talisker style smoke with oily pepper, maritime echoes, perfumed oak. Worn leather, dusty fruitiness, old books, old paper. Continues developing, one minute more fruity, then more smoky, then more oaky. Layered and complex.

Taste: Clean arrival, amazing immaculate development with crystallised fruit, mango, pineapple, cinnamon, nutmeg and tingling spices, oak making itself known, oily, waxy mouthfeel, keeps developing, more smoke coming in, Talisker-esque, white pepper, perfumed smoke. Really great balance, although the oak is speaking quite loudly.

Finish: Long length. A kick of soot, dry oak, tingling spices, marine echoes, sea salt, dried mango. Mouth watering goes on and on.

Much better than the 2016 38yo. Really reminds me of 30yo Talisker.

90/100

Port Ellen TBWC Batch 5 47.1%

Colour: Gold

Body: Full

Nose: The unique perfumed Port Ellen smoke, more intense than the Rare Malt though, black liquorice, cracked black pepper, salty smoked haddock, lemon sherbet, lemon drizzle cake, the oak is pretty seamless. Slightly earthy, malt,

Taste: Soft arrival, builds slowly with perfumed smoke, tingling spices, intensely drying oak, old leather, then goes very marine, smoked fish, mackerel?, lemon sherbet. Much more smoky into the finish with oily black pepper and a good blast of soot. Still quite intensely peaty.

Finish: Long length. Ash, soot, spices and dry oak. Lemon sherbet continues.

Not as complex as the Brora, but just as good. Not quite up to the excellent Batch 6 though.

90/100

Thanks for reading!

Scotch Review #499-#500

Whisky Network Review #575-#576

Network Average: 74.6

Best Score: 92

Worst Score: 22

0-49 Terrible

50-59 Bad

60-64 Just About OK

65-69 Ok to Good

70-74 Good

75-79 Very Good

80-84 Excellent

85-89 Superb

90+ Magnificent

Full Disclosure Disclaimer: I currently work as a Brand Ambassador for Penderyn Distillery. The views expressed here are purely my own and do not reflect the views of Penderyn Distillery or The Welsh Whisky Company. I try to maintain as much objectivity as I can but feel free to take my reviews with as big a pinch of salt as you like. Furthermore, my rating scale is NOT based on a Parker type wine scoring scale or a school/college/university % or A-F grade score. You can find more on my scoring here. I apologise for any seemly low or 'bad' scores given with my system and am sorry I can't say only nice things. Please keep in mind that I am ethically compromised and am unable to produce 100% unbiased reviews.

Why is this here?

Brora 38yo 2016 Special Releases: TWE Show Report

Hello again,

From the epic Lagavulin 25, my next dram was my first ever Brora. It's the new Brora 38 1977.

Brora has an awesome history, so head over to whiskyfun.com to learn more. Suffice to say Brora has been closed since 1983 and will never produce whisky again.

For now, let's get to my notes:

Brora 38 Special Releases 2016 48.6%

Colour: Gold

Body: Medium

Nose: The wonderful waxiness of Clynelish, complex baking spices, threads of smoke?, very soft farmyard notes, wet hay, crystallised fruit.

Taste: Full arrival, tingling spices, lots of oaky complexity, crystallised fruit, prickling and waxy, salty and white pepper, great balance. It builds and builds.

Finish: Long length. More smoke appears with lovely chocolate notes and oak.

Hmmmm, I didn't perhaps realise that this would be so similar to Clynelish. And therein lies the problem: I wouldn't know this from a great older Clynelish.

85/100

I have a sample of the 2013 release and really look forward to it. This 2016 version was a bit of a let down after the amazing Laga 25, especially at double the price!

To compare I tasted an older Sherry Clynelish from Signatory:

Clynelish 1995 Signatory Cask Strength 53.6%

Colour: Light Amber

Body: Medium

Nose: Waxy and sweet. Orange citrus and lovely candle wax.

Taste: Soft and waxy, building spice, some ashy notes, lovely, orange peel citrus.

Finish: Long length. Orange peel then oak and tannins.

Cask 8687, refill Sherry butt. Bottled March this year. A great Clynelish, everything you would want from Brora's younger brother. Also, cut the price by x15.

83/100

More to come, probably the Port Charlotte 10 next!

Reviews #199-#200!

Network Average: 75.1

Best Score: 92

Worst Score: 44

0-49 Terrible

50-59 Bad

60-64 Just About OK

65-69 Ok to Good

70-74 Good

75-79 Very Good

80-84 Excellent

85-89 Superb

90+ Magnificent