Origin: Speyside (Scotland)
Type: Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Strength: 48.6%ABV
Ageing casks: Ex-Bourbon barrel
Chillfiltered: No
Added colouring: No
Owner: Morrison Distillers
Average price: € 230.00
Official website: www.carnmorwhisky.co.uk
When it comes to whisky, Linkwood and Càrn Mòr (aka Morrison Distillers) are two real fetishes for us. We have already met them, tasted them and enjoyed them in an 11yo matured in ex-Calvados from the Strictly Limited series. Today we find them again in a proposal from the prestigious Celebration of the Cask, with a single ex-Bourbon cask, number 8248, filled on 16 October 1996 and bottled after almost a quarter of a century at 48.6%ABV in 191 bottles, incredibly still available.
Tasting Notes
The colour is pale gold.
On the nose, the attack is undoubtedly fruity, with apple, pear and apricot, joined by peach in syrup in a captivating ensemble. While the floral side oscillates between jasmine and primrose, the creamy side grows in intensity, marrying vanilla and custard, with happy hints of shortcrust, cappuccino, icing sugar and bread crust. A fresh and delicious nose, as expected.
On the palate, it is slightly spicy (white pepper) and offers, without any particular variation, the aforementioned aromatic score, including the sensations of bread crust and cappuccino. But here the fruit is presented in its undergrowth version (mainly apple and pear), with the yellow orange confusing the cards a little and the cream (mainly vanilla) enveloping the palate with a softness that touches our taste buds.
The finish is long and spicy, fruity and creamy in equal measure, with white-fleshed fruit and vanilla sharing the proscenium and the unconditional approval of our senses.
The best that Linkwood has to offer in a drink that we have no hesitation in describing as exemplary. And a confirmation of Càrn Mòr’s ability to capture and crystallise whisky at its moment of maximum expressive splendour.