Origin: Highlands (Scotland)
Type: Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Strength: 46.8%ABV
Ageing casks: Ex-Bourbon and ex-Sherry
Chillfiltered: No
Added coloring: No
Owner: Adelphi Distillery Ltd.
Average price: € 54.00
Official website: www.adelphidistillery.com
Vote: 84/100
After the truly bang-up debut of 2020, the Adelphi distillery is back with its second release, the first of 2021 distributed in January (as the name suggests).
Like its predecessor, it combines peated and unpeated whisky, aged for five years at 65% in ex-Bourbon casks and 35% in ex-Sherry casks.
This bottling sold out in a flash, confirming the interest in these releases which also (and I would add unfortunately) live on speculative bubbles, with people hunting for first editions regardless of their prestige and circulation, hoping to be able to resell them in the short term longing for who knows what kind of profits.
Is it sad?
It is.
Tasting Notes
Gold in the glass.
Acrid and smoky peat on the nose, of burnt resin, with fruit (orange peel, pineapple, dried apricot) passed over the fire. Creme brulèe, vanilla, dried fruit (hazelnut, pine nuts, pistachio), honey. Cooked apple. Not very pronounced and perhaps a little closed, but pleasant.
More lively on the palate, with a spicy thrust (ginger, nutmeg) on a burning bonfire with orange marmalade, yellow fruit (peach, apricot, melon), tamarind, lemon drop, liquorice root. It becomes crisper with time, with balsamic and herbaceous hints, while the peat recedes into the background revealing itself more in length.
The finish is quite long with saline tips, liquorice, spices, orange and ash.
A cheerful, youthful, lively whisky, not particularly complex but very drinkable, another step forward for a distillery that continues to give satisfaction.