Fettercairn Distillery (W&M.#2)

Fettercairn is a malt whisky that's being used extensively in the Whyte & Mackay blends as there's not much going to single malts and W&M has a vast range of different blends with a big output altogether. While a big fan of this distillery I am not thrilled by some of the standard bottlings they put out. The 10yo seems to have had some good batches, but more often than not it has shown to be a lightweighter more in blend territory. The Fior I have given a decent review, but it seems to be a whisky thats very good from a newly opened bottle, but when it comes in touch with a bit of air it quickly fades to being a mediocre malt. I'll have those two today alongside two single cask bottlings.


Old Fettercairn 10yo 43% OB

From a flat plastic container, probably bottled in the 80's. Coloured to reach that golden color that most standard bottlings seemed to have back then. Smells bittersweet, nail polish remover, spirity, soapy, briny, sweet onions, picks itself up a bit after some breathing. The taste is vanilla and sour cream, onions again, red pesto, ginger, a light and easy aperitif style whisky that proves to be a good value-for-money even today after its discontinuation. But beware, with this whisky there can be big leaps in quality from batch to batch.

A nice and good whisky, with much bourbon-influence: 5.5


Fettercairn NAS 42% OB Fior

This is the big melting pot from Fettercairn with some young peated, some older sherried and some bourbon-matured whisky. Kind of a what you might find in some of the high shelf blends out there. The color is dark orange, I'm not sure if this is the natural color of this whisky, smells a bit peaty, a bit sherried but most of all it has this indeterminate lightness, remember, this is one of the last drops from this bottle, and when it was newly opened it had a lot more power from both sherry and peat. Maybe a splash of water will help. Now it tastes even lighter, it seems its not a whisky anymore, some light rum or vodka maybe, but if you go purchase a bottle of Fettercairn Fior, make sure you enjoy it all the first month after opening because when it starts breathing it starts dying.

Tame and non-motivational experience, makes me a bit drowsy to be frank: 3


Fettercairn 22yo 1989-2011 54.6% Premier Bond Co Ltd. cask#1372 btl.21/228

Over twice the age of the next oldest whisky in this session, from a bourbon hogshead. I feel often the hogsheads fits better, because of their small size and big, often oaky, taste impact, to be bottled at a younger age when the spirit still is in vigorous form. This "Private Edition" bottled for the, to me unknown, Premier Bond, seems to be a cask sold from the distillery directly to them and therefore has the statement "Private Edition" on the label. Color of straw. It smells spirity and bourbony, if to guess I'd say this was a high strength bourbon whisky. Peppery, vanilla, spirity, oaky, musty, heated steel, custard, cloudberries. The taste is burnt, spirity and oaky. This was a rather unpleasant experience, and I see why most of the old glorious Fettercairn comes from sherry wood.

I'm sorry, but this one should have gone to some blend: 1.5


Fettercairn 6yo 1997-2003 62.3% OB cask#2302 btl.270/308

Last drop of the first bottle I ever purchased from this cask. I have 4 more to go. Another one from a bourbon hogshead, this time bottled at the age of which I'm thinking is appropriate for such a small cask. I have already tasted this before, but to do justice to the later on tasting and trying to distinguish the different malt influences of Whyte & Mackay blends, I'll now try it once again. Color of white wine. It smells big, huge on vanilla sweetness and licorice, about as fresh as it gets. Some mint and honey arrives later on. It's quite perfect so far, not complex but it doesn't need to be when this simplicity works so well. The taste is smoky, sweet and herbal, peppery, vanilla, bananas, grape fruit, honey, coriander, green tomatoes, juniper berries, white peppers, a small but very pleasant dryness in the finish alongside lime rind and salt.

Again it has shown me that not all Fettercairns die while breathing: 8.5


Bonus:

Fettercair 11yo 1992-2003 46% Gordon & Macphail Connoisseurs Choice

I remember there were some 1992 Fettercairns around especially two versions from James MacArthur's were good. Lets try this one, hopefully it will still be a potent spirit even though being reduced down to 46%abv. Oops, it was corked, which means the stopper broke in half before it was opened. What to do? Well, I try to get as much of the stopper as I possibly can out first, then I take a coffee filter and drain the whisky through it into the glass. Then most, if not all, of the cork sediments have left the spirit and is remainig in the coffee filter. Light golden color, smells austere and spirity, not a very good expression. The taste is burnt and bitter. I think this is another one that should have been used for blending purposes. Light and bitter.

It seems this whisky should always be bottled at cask strength: 3