Caledonian 45 Single Grain, 46.2%
https://www.klwines.com/p/i?i=1086948
Sovereign-bottled, 45 year old single grain scotch, distilled in 1965… This is a rare treat via friend. Wonderfully sweet and woody and almost malty nose with honeycomb and dark honey dominating, some dark leather notes are also float up with time. Palate is surprisingly full of old smoke, leather, tobacco… Reminds me of insides of an old leather suitcase. Nearly salty with pine resin, intensely flavored and surprisingly not sweet. This almost tastes peated, though my understanding that this isn’t peated at all. Nose and palate are extreme opposites here. Aftertaste is sadly a little of a letdown with some residual smoke from the palate. While the final notes linger for a long time, initial rush of flavors fades pretty fast. Superbly layered, mind-bending and interesting, my only real complaint is that this could have really used a tiny bit of sweetness. As is, any fan of Springbank should be all over this like a holy grail it may be for them. Sadly, long sold out and probably bunkered by the few lucky rich folks that picked it up back in the day. Definitely one of those bottles that needs to be contemplated on in front of the fire in a winter storm.
Note: I find it difficult to score due to the large combination of factors in play here. A dead distillery, 1965 distillation year, age and uniqueness are all in play. I think in the end, I’d not have enjoyed it enough to justify the $400 price… But I’m also not a huge fan of Springbank savory light peat style. For those that are fans of that… this would be 101% Holy Grail level bottle. For me… Well, my score is below.
Score: A- to A+ (Subjective)
Invergordon 31 Single Grain, Sovereign, 52%
https://www.klwines.com/p/i?i=1380524
A Sovereign bottling sample, that I happen to have a bottle of, so let’s look at it as a preview. Nose is vanilla caramels all the way with some alcohol burn. The palate is reserved, almost no alcohol, toned down caramel and sugar, but now some wood and tiny bit of smoke comes up. The palate continues with more fruit, bits of salt and some honeycomb. As usual with single grains, the aftertaste fades fairly fast but displays no surprises and follows closely with the palate. There are many layers of flavor in this and it’s a bit it’s mind-boggling. Bottlings such as these make me respect single grain scotch more and more… Though, granted, there are plenty of duds too. I wish this cask had little bit more of an aftertaste, but still; what a ride regardless. Deliciously good and totally worth its price.
Score: A-
Invergordon 29 Single Grain, Barrel-to-Bottle, 57.9%
https://www.klwines.com/p/i?i=1485189
Aged for 29 years in a 1st refill Tennessee (Jack Daniels) casks. This certainly is an interesting one. When I initially opened it… I thought this was “the most bourbon-like single grain I’ve ever had” from the nose… But that isn’t the whole story is it? The nose is actually very bourbon-light with spice and raspberries rather than burnt caramel corn. The palate is tightly coiled, baking-spiced vanilla creme brulee and a long spicy aftertaste to match. To be clear this ain’t the easiest of drinkers at full proof as the alcohol is quite prominent with not much to hide behind. Adding water cuts the burn down and allows that spicy raspberry palate to shine through. All of a sudden, its sweet red fruit dessert that’s fantastically balanced and quite delicious. With the disclaimer that this is certainly not everyone’s pour, adding water flips it from ‘drinkable’ to ‘enjoyable’. That being said, I was really hoping that it had some additional flavor layerings as is the case with older single grains… Overall this is a definite ’something different for dessert’ pour of the night. Surprisingly subtle and restrained after water. This isn’t one to be paired with food though for its subtle flavors would get easily lost… Though I wonder if a good cigar would add that smoke element layer that this may be lacking. That being said… Unfortunately, there are plenty of interesting things in the price range so YMMV and this isn’t like most other single grains I’ve enjoyed.
Score: C
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Scoring Breakdown: https://www.aerin.or … age=scores_breakdown