Whisky of the Week review and tasting notes for whiskies that I rated as Divine. Divine means that after tasting the whisky, I try not to finish the bottle in one sitting. Just perfection. Rating: Divine
Time for an 18 yo Highland release, so today I am looking at the GlenDronach 18 year old Allardice single malt Scotch whisky. The GlenDronach opened its doors way back in 1826. A syndicate headed by James Allardes started the distillery, and it iss located at the Dronach Burn in the Deveron area.
As I rummaged through my whisky collection, pondering the perfect dram to cap off another incredible year, my gaze fell upon the shopping bag on the counter. It struck me that, once again, I had unwittingly bought the whisky that has graced my glass more frequently than any other (with perhaps the exception of the Bain’s whisky). This is the iconic Johnnie Walker Black Label blended Scotch whisky.
Today I look at the Ardbeg Day release of 2021: The Ardbeg Scorch Islay single malt Scotch whisky. I seldom buy or open my Ardbeg day releases because the liquid does not always live up to the hype, fanfare (and high price). The Ardbeg Day releases are drinkable but nothing mind-blowing most of the time.
I am ending the year with my favourite Scottish fisherman; my last tasting notes for 2021 being for the Big Peat Christmas 2018 Edition blended malt Scotch whisky. Big Peat blended whisky needs no introduction; he has been a regular and welcome visitor on the blog over the last couple of years.
The other day I reread the blog post I wrote at the end of 2017, where I was lamenting that there is only the standard Bain’s single grain whisky available. Even though Distell had older whisky available in casks, they were reluctant to release more liquid as the brand was still relatively small.
In honour of Ardbeg Day, I decided to try the Ardbeg Corryvreckan Islay single malt Scotch whisky. The Corryvreckan is seen as the personification of ‘the untamed spirit of Islay’ and was released to replace Airigh Nam Beist. Ardbeg Corryvreckan takes its name from the famous whirlpool that lies to the north of Islay.