Arran 18 Years Old 1996 Single Cask 777

By Barry Bradford on October 27, 2020 • ( 1 Comment )

Arran 18 Years Old 1996 (52.7%, Whiskybroker, Refill HH #777, 256 Bottles, 2015)

Whisky Review

ABV: 52.7%
Age: 18 Years Old
Bottling: Whiskybroker, Refill HH #777, 256 Bottles
Category: Island single malt scotch whisky
Cost: £sold out
Origin: Arran Distillery
Vintage: 1996

What they say

18yo Arran, 70cl, 52.7%
Single Malt Scotch Whisky bottled by whiskybroker.co.uk.

This whisky, distilled on 19th July 1996 at Arran Distillery, has been matured in an oak hogshead for over 18 years. The whisky has not been chill filtered, nor has any colouring been added. This whisky has been lightly filtered to remove large particles of wood sediment from the cask, but may still contain small traces, which are visible only when bottle is left standing for a period of time.

Each bottle is individually numbered.

Cask Details:
Hogshead number 777
Distilled 19th July 1996
Bottled 9th April 2015
The cask yielded 256 bottles at a natural cask strength of 52.7% vol.

What I say

Another 18 year old 1996 HH from whiskybroker! This one must have slipped to the back of my samples until I had some more Arran to taste alongside.

My tasting notes:

Appearance: Yellow gold (8/20), quick, large tears and thick legs.
Nose: Quite neutral on the nose, polished oak wood with some sweet overtones, cereal malted barley, vanilla, citrus; grapefruit & lemon, honey, linseed oil and more oak wood.
Taste: Full-bodied, syrupy in texture, malty and woody, fruity nectarine, some tropical pineapple and mango in syrup with a liberal sprinkle of white pepper and cinnamon spices.
Finish: Medium-long, fruity and sweet leading to dry oak wood.

Overall

Another characteristically fruity Arran dram, still quite spicy and perhaps a little less sweet and vanillic most likely due to the use of a refill hogshead for maturation here.