For no particular reason, I decided to do some Cragganmores tonight, I have just had a craving for some feisty speysiders/highlanders lately, like Glendronach, Glen Garioch, Oban, Clynelish and such. I think Cragganmore is also one of these distilleries that often is more complex and rich than what you'd perhaps expect from some of their neighboring distilleries. But let's not waste any more time...
Cragganmore 17yo 1976-1993 40% Connoisseurs Choice Gordon & Macphail
There were, to put it kindly, much whisky of much varied quality in the CC-series, and I think there still is even thought the have stopped using chill-filtration and added coloring (or is it just the coloring of the whisky which has ended?). At least I think skipping one or both of thees (CF&C) will make for a very small difference in the finished product, at least for whiskies that are already diluted to 46%abv. or below. And there are many earlier bottlings in this series which was excellent despite being both colored, chill-filtered and diluted down to 40%abv altogether. This one has a nice orange hue. It smells sweet, oranges, spirity, orange zest, lots of oranges, perhaps some grassy notes as well, a very light one. The taste is bitter ale, strong, cheddar, peppery, again oranges, orange zest and tangerines. Grape fruit. The finish is short and on hay and detergent.
Fruity at first before ending very soapy. Beyond that, bland!: 3
Cragganmore 13yo 1984-1997 40% OB Distillers Edition
I have never been a big fan of these DE bottlings, it seems to me they don't finish the whisky in different wine casks to enhance it, but to create an affordable(production-wise) alternative to an otherwise very good Whisky. The biggest problem being that it often, a.k.a. most of the time, shows to be inferior to the standard OB's. I do not know how long the DE's have been around, but this one I know is from the first year of DE-production at Cragganmore Distillery. Since that they upped the abv and has kept delivering the DE-version up until today, something must've gone right to keep the continue. Maybe I can find the answer in this one? The color is dark orange. It smells big and fruity, stearic, soapy, red wine-ish, tawny port, needs some time to open up. The taste is thick, tawny port again, prunes, orange zest, oaky, rubber. This one could've been very good if bottled at higher strength, now it just comes off as weak and oak-driven.
Give it more time in wine casks and bottle at CS, then we'll have a winner: 4
Cragganmore 19yo 1991-2010 53.8% Bladnoch Distillery Forum cask#1176
I think the Bladnoch Distillery Forum is ceasing to exist as no new casks has been released from them since the new owners took over. But I could be wrong, lets hope so. This one has a more neutral straw color. It smells rich and spicy, honeyed, cumin, chili, coriander, dried onions. More peppery after a whisle with some gruyere cheese and smoked ham. The taste is extremely peppery and drying, some water must be added. Now it gets more interesting. Big oaky notes as well as lakrisal. Vegetable oil. Very oaky and bitter, one I will always have problems with. The nose was very pleasant, but my hopes was shot to pieces as soon as the palate said oak... I'm sure many will like this way more than I did.
But as said, this is a website based on subjective whisky experiences: 3
Cragganmore 12yo 1999-2011 55.1% Malts of Scotland cask#110012
From a bourbon hogshead, I guess this might be resembling what they put into port casks for an extra period of maturation. Remember, water is added later on in the process. But then of course, it could be that this particular hogshead is of superior quality. I often enjoy the MOS-bottlings, but it seems to me that their best whisky is often extremely old or very young, such as some very old Strathislaes or Bunnahabhins, or some very young Laphroaigs or Port Charlottes. I have no idea why there seems to be so little bravery (yes, lame adjective, but I used it!) between 13-29yo's, but I think it has something to do with the market. (Why ever sell a good cask at 29yo ?!?!?) (Why ever spare a perfect 8yo for years to come, when never knowing when quality will deteriorate?) Money talks, it always has and always will. Enough about that. The color on this one is sharp orange, even when not being colored or rested in some fancy wine cask, so it seems true what Ralfy once said, "color tells you nothing". It smells spicy, floral, burning, egg yolk, burnt caramel, intense coffee, dark chocolate, a rough cragganmore it seems, pleasant indeed. The taste is thick with phenols and spices, pencil shavings, parmegiano reggiano, old genever, bitter, dark berries. Extremely strong, and I guess, so far, another very good one below 13yo. But I need to try it with a small drop of water as I think this rough style might not be everyones cup of tea. With a couple drops of water it turns mineral, salty, creamy, peanut butter, ginger, genever again, very rich and complex for its young age. If this cask was to ever be finished and bottled as a DE, I think the world would be missing out on a great whisky.
There is surely something more to Cragganmore than what the OB's tells us: 7.5
Next tasting: Royal Lochnagar Distillery
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