G&M tasting: Ardmore, Caol Ila, Glenlossie, Miltonduff & Mortlach

Gordon & MacPhail Tasting 

hosted by the "Whisky & More" shop 

in Hasselt (Belgium) 

Last weekend I attended a whisky tasting in my own hometown Hasselt, where only last year the first whisky shop opened its doors.
As for now they haven't got much to offer the seasoned whisky drinker. But it takes some time for an independent shop holder to acquire a decent stock of exclusive and rare bottles that sets them apart from the local supermarkets.

Glen Albyn 35yo (1975/2010) Gordon & MacPhail

Loch Ness mysteries in a bottle

View of the Beauly Firth at the mouth of the Caledonian Canal,

 100m from the grounds of the former Glen Albyn

Prelude

Last summer,  I stayed in Inverness for a couple of nights, it only came natural to do a bit of whisky relic hunting during my evening strolls.
Nowadays no one would likely make the connection between whisk and Inverness. Only a few of you would probably point out to me that the town is home to Bairds, an important supplier of malted barley.

Up to the 80's Inverness could proudly say it had no less than three small distilleries within the city limits. All was fine with the world until the overzealous industry created the infamous whisky lake that swept away two centuries of whisky production in Inverness.

Glenburgie Gordon & MacPhail 10yo

Blender's Fodder

http://blog.whivie.be/#post1589

The Gordon & Macphail bottling serves as a semi-official release of the obscure Glenburgie distillery. 

Glenburgie is ranked in one of the higher tiers when it comes to the annual production volume, due to the fact that, though the distillery may have had a long and interesting history, it was rebuild completely back in 2004.

Though many of you may never have tried the Glenburgie single malt, you probably drank it before, as it is one of the main components of the Ballentine's blends.

Benromach 10yo (OB)

A Quality Dram

http://insidemoray.co.uk/forres-distillery-to-roll-out-the-up-to-15000-barrels/

Ever had a whisky that you simply forgot about? According to my log I had my first Benromach 10 back in 2012. So this is more of a rediscovery, than an actual new experience.
Right from the Gordon & MacPhail Boutique Speyside distillery comes this ten year old 80-20% mix of bourbon and sherry casks with an oloroso finish.

Glentauchers 1990 Gordon & MacPhail

First time, definitely last time

http://www.scotchwhisky.net/images/dist/gltch_dist.jpg

There are mediocre whiskies, there are bad whiskies...

Unfortunately we ventured back into the bad territory, with a whisky that for the time being has the dubious honour of being the penultimate single malt whisky on my list.
Only second to the Drumguish of the Speyside distillery, a harsh verdict indeed.

One could wonder why Glentauchers, being one of the most productive Scottish distilleries with a production of 4.5 million l/year and one of the main ingredients of  Pernod Ricard blends, has such a terrible reputation.

Well let's just dive in and ind out why I granted this poor score to this whisky.

Miltonduff 10yo Gordon & MacPhail

Miltonduff: a pleasant surprise

http://www.axmaltwhisky.co.uk/75.html

Venturing further into obscure distillery territory, today's stop is at the Miltonduff distillery. A disitillery currently owned by Pernod Ricard, though the bottles that you nowadays find were still distilled under the previous management by Allied Domecq.

With a set of six stills and a yearly production 5.5 million liters of pure alcohol this is one of the bigger acts in the industry, standing shoulder to shoulder with other giants like Balvenie, Dufftown, Glen Ord and Tomatin.

 How is it possible that it managed to stay under the radar for so long?

Mortlach 15yo Gordon & MacPhail

The Great Disappointment

www.thewhiskyexchange.com/P-4085.aspx & www.thewhiskyexchange.com/P-25847.aspx

Don't let the images fool you, this is not a comparison between the old and the new. This review is all about their alternative.: the Mortlach 15yo Gordon & MacPhail, a bottle that is hard to find here in Belgium, but it can easily be found in let's say a Tesco somewhere in the Highlands. 

I picked this one up in Oban, while waiting for the ferry to Port Askaig ( the Islay report will follow shortly, I promise)