Rosebank 20yo 1990-2010 50% Old Malt Cask Douglas Laing cask#6396
I know there are many people that loves their occasional Rosebank more than me, but sometimes it shows what a great dram it can be. Another pale one, smells very light, a bourbon-cask? vanilla and alcohol, needs some time to open up, turns more spicy, goat cheese in chili, tapas-style. Time to taste this. Floral, vanilla and black pepper, a great whisky in all its simplicity. The finish is a tad short, spirity and one-dimensional.
A good whisky, but not worth the cost: 6
Rosebank 18yo 1990-2008 50% Old Malt Cask Douglas Laing cask#4655
A pale whisky from this closed lowland distillery, Smells sweet, aniseeds, vanilla, cream toffee and liqueur filling. Give it some time to rest and it develops a bit to the lighter side. The taste is at first very sweet, and a bit bitter, like some liqueur filled dark chocolate. It soon turns into some absolutely fantastic flavors of sour and herbal character. All in all this is a fantastic whisky, of the long lost Rosebank. Hopefully there's stock left for a couple more years before it turns too expensive for the common whisky drinker.
Fine example of the lowland character: 7.5
Rosebank 19yo 1990-2009 50% Old Malt Cask Douglas Laing
Rosebanks one that was lost in the 90's, therefor still pretty widely available, but if you wanna make a good purchase, buy one now before the demand increases the price because of decreasing stock. This one smells spirity, tobacco, glue and vanilla. Much bourbon influence here. The taste is peppery and floral, typical lowland-style. I know many are very impressed by Rosebank, unfortunately I still don't quite fall into that category. Some sour lemon notes appears after a while.
A good rosebank, just not my style: 5.5
Rosebank 12yo 50% Old Malt Cask Douglas Laing
Now Rosebank has been closed for nearly two decades, but there are still many bottlings to be found, and if I might say so, of very varying quality. This is a bourbon-matured version, smells very citrussy, lemon and oranges, sort of cider-ish. The taste is pretty easy, aniseed, lemon drops and pears. A nice easy-drinking malt which would've probably been a tad boring if bottled at about 40%abv. I'll add some water and see what happens. Still very gentle, cider-ish, pears, apples, aftertaste of sour apples. It's a fun, light and crispy malt, definately a whisky suitable as an aperitif.
A fine, classy, smooth, just plain good malt whisky: 7
Rosebank 13yo 1990-2003 46% Murray McDavid
This one is matured for 5 more years, will that make a big difference tastewise? Oh yes, instantly a much richer and rounder smell, like thick syrup, but still a bit burnt. This is much sweeter than the younger version, butter, syrup, malty, sort of like a strong caramel toffee. I'll add just a couple drops of water. Water doesn't enhance at all and I therefore recommend it to be taken neat.
A sweet, malty whisky: 6
Rosebank 8yo 1990-1998 46% Murray McDavid
I'm doing two different 1990-vintage Rosebanks from Murray McDavid today, both 46% and Bourbon-matured. Will they be as similar as they sound? This one smells really spirity with some burnt sugar, far from mouth-watering. The first taste is woody, burnt and very austere, I'll add some water. With water it gets a bit sweeter, some vanilla, but all in all it's not a very good Rosebank. It lacks both flavour and body.
Not complex enough: 4.5
Rosebank 10yo 1989-1999 40% Connoisseurs Choice Gordon & Macphail
This one is a bit paler despite being 2 years older, a good thing I guess, as the use of E150 has decreased at G&M. It has a far less substantial smell than the 1988, much more spirity even at 40%. The taste is kind of dry, I wonder if there's been any wine casks involved here, but I doubt it. peanut butter, capers, onion mayo and breadcrumbs. Water does no good in this one, and the aftertaste is bot with or without water a pretty dismal.
I guess it should been bottled a couple years earlier: 3.5
Rosebank 8yo 1988-1996 40% Connoisseurs Choice Gordon & Macphail
Today I'll be trying to Rosebanks from the CC-series with only a year different vintage. This 8yo has a nice and firm sweetish, caramelly odor. I have enjoyed some really young Rosebanks in the past. This tastes fresh and vibrant, blackberries, peppery, a bit woody, and it has that dirty lowland style, try a young Glenkinchie to compare. The aftertaste is quite sour, bitter and very sweet, all at once. I recommend just the tiniest drop of water in this one. Then it becomes a bit rounder.
A swell youngster from a sadly closed distillery: 6.5
Rosebank 12yo 43% OB F&F
Rosebank were due to unfortunate circumstances closed. Pretty distinctive smell, woody and mild oakiness. It has the initial fragrances of a classic lowlander, some withdrawn woody flavours, some pine nuts, burnt rubber, fried sugar, strong coffee and flowers.
Advanced but no classic: 4.5
Rosebank 8yo 40% Distillers Agency
An 8-year old version of this classic malt, maybe an OB, I'm not sure. Very dark for it's age, some lavender, hot spices and lots of herbal notes in the smell. It tastes about the same as the nosing predicted, remarkably many flavour for a whisky that consists of only 40% abv. I'm getting Fishermans Friend, cactus, lime, dried herbs and much more. One of the better Rosebanks I've come across.
By far one of the best 8yo's yet: 8.5
Rosebank 17yo 1991-2008 55.1% Single Malts of Scotland
An older Rosebank, the distillery from which I tend to lean more towards the younger versions. A fantastic nose, clearly soft, mild, sweet, manchego cheeze, dried fruits and blueberry jam. The taste is very smooth, waxy, honey, brie and mozzarella. It's just a tad drying on the finish. With a small drop of water the pleasant and quite beautiful taste all disappears, and some old tawny notes shows. I would not encourage dilution of this whisky anyhow.
A good Rosebank, not my favourite, but it's up there: 6.5
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