Whisky Review: Macduff 2007 Pre-Octave

• Category: Speyside single malt scotch whisky
• Origin: Macduff distillery
• Bottling: Duncan Taylor, The Octave, IB
• ABV: 52.9%
• Cost: ?

What they say

For many years, Duncan Taylor Scotch Whisky Ltd. has experimented in the use of differing cask sizes for the maturation of Single Malt and Single Grain Scotch whiskies. The research stemmed from a simple premise that there is more interaction between the wood and the spirit over a shorter period of time in a small cask than in a large cask, therefore allowing a more rapid “melding” of wood, air and alcohol.

What I say

Thanks to Duncan Taylor for the sample.

Distilled at Macduff in 2007 and matured in an ex-bourbon cask.

My tasting notes:

• Appearance: Pale gold (3/20), medium tears leave quite large legs.
• Nose: Dry and dusty, apple must, pear, apple and pear skin, gristy cereal barley, a little mealy/rolled oats, apple flapjacks and Ovaltine.
• Taste: Medium bodied, crisp/acidic green apple but also must and cereals quickly neutralize the acidity, a sharpness continues throughout adding zest to toffee, malt, butterscotch, vanilla, coconut and hints of menthol and orange oils and oak wood too.
• Finish: Long, neutral butterscotch, oak tannins and sugars and sherbet acidity, teeth-cleansing.

Overall

Full of classic ‘Speyside’ flavours of fruits and cereals, a crisp acidity runs throughout this dram keeping the palate clean.

Score 80/100

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