Inchmurrin Madeira Wood Finish (46%, OB, 2015)

• Category: Highland single malt scotch whisky
• Origin: Loch Lomond Distillery
• Bottling: Official
• ABV: 46%
• Cost: £55.00 for 70cl

What They say:

Our Master Distiller Bill White selects individual casks matured exclusively in traditional American oak whisky barrels before marrying them together for a further maturation in casks that have previously been used for making Madeira wine. The Maderia cask finish enhances the orchard fruit character of peach and pear with marzipan and nutmeg coming to the fore, giving a dry nuttiness to the long, oak finish. Inchmurrin Madeira Wood Finish is non chill-filtered, to keep things as nature intended.

What I say:

Dram #3 from the #InchmurrinWhisky Tweet Tasting hosted by Steve @TheWhiskyWire and @LochLomond3. Although not stated on the bottle (therefore NAS) I got the impression this is essentially the 12 Years Old Inchmurrin expression that has spent a further maturation in Madeira Wine Casks  – perhaps a year or two more?

Colour:

Ochre amber gold (11/20), large oily drops with medium-thick legs

Nose:

Sweet egg custard tarts, vanilla, cereal pastry, sprinkle of nutmeg, peach melba, melon, hazelnut paste, cocoa, grassy/hay

Taste:

almond croissant, fruity tinned peaches, doughy cereal malt, sugared almonds, touch of zest sweet lemon/lime, bay leaf, lemongrass, Diane sauce

Finish:

Medium-long zesty, spiced cream toffee and peach fruit

Overall:

Not as fresh and direct on the nose as the 12 Year Old, this introduced some interesting savoury aroma and flavour but for me the sweet predominates and I preferred the palate more in this expression than the 12yo Inchmurrin.

Score: 85/100

Don’t take my word for it:

Bloggers submit link to your review