Dalwhinnie 15 Year Old Single Malt

 

Michael Jackson's Complete Guide to Single Malt Scotch comments:

   House Style -  Lightly peaty.  Cut grass and heather honey.  Clear flavors against a very clean background.  Aperitif.

     COLOUR   -   Bright gold.

     NOSE         -  Very aromatic, dry, faintly phenolic, lightly peaty.

     BODY        -  Firm, slightly oily.

     PALATE     -  Remarkably smooth, long lasting flavor development.  Aromatic, heather-honey notes give way to cut grass and malty sweetness, which intensifies to a sudden burst of peat.

     FINISH      -   A long crescendo.

    

score

76

NorvellHimself’s take:

This afternoon (as I write this – but for the detail oriented, the afternoon of Saturday, 31 August 2013) I drove into town for my daily cup of Tim Horton’s coffee.  Then stopped by to see an old friend who happens to run a nice successful business in St. Peters.  After the final customer of the day exited, we started talking as if it were a continuation of a conversation of just yesterday rather than some day of last August 2012.  As our conversation moved over various topics of interest I watched avidly (but not to greedily, I hope) as she brought out two nice rounded glasses and then a bottle of Dalwhinnie 15 year old single malt from a small cup-board.  I had never – out of a foolish snobbery of the producer being Diageo and of which happens to be owners of some of my favorite spirits; Lagavulin, Talisker, Caol Ila, Oban and other great malts, but all I could remember was the rather bland Cardhu – wanted to try the Dalwhinnie.  But today was my lucky day to really be shown that a smooth malt could also be interesting in terms of great flavour, subtle hints of peat that tantalized rather than hazed the palate, an over-all sense of organic fall fruits of all kinds – old fashion apples and pears almost into that honey state of being – this was a lulling bit of alcohol that smoothed the tongue along with the palate.  And I have to give it at least an 82 to 85 for the great flavour.  Normally I tend to like my sipping to be a bit more of an assault and in particular with iodiney peat leading the assault but the Dalwhinnie is a fine whisky – the perfect one to serve to those friends who normally stay clear of the usquebaugh - and to yourself now and again to remind you that great single malts can be smooth.   

score

83

A small bit of background on the Dalwhinnie distillery in the Speyside district of the Highlands.  (Borrowed from that incredible book, Michael Jackson’s Complete Guide to Single Malt Scotch – 6^th edition).

One of the highest distilleries in Scotland at 326 meters (1073 feet) it has the Monadhlaith Mountains to one side and the Forest of Atholl, the Cairngorms, and the Grampians to the other.  Its name in Gaelic means “meeting place”.  The village of the same name stands at the junction of old cattle-droving routes from the west and north down to the central lowlands.  Much whisky smuggling went on along this route.  When the distillery first opened in 1897 it was called Strathspey.

Their website is www.discovering-distilleries.com/www.malts.com