skip to main |
skip to sidebar
Aberfeldy 21 yo
Speyside Single Malt Whisky
40% abv
£89
$150 (USD)
Winner of the Best Mainland Whisky award at the 2007 World Whisky Awards, this 21 year old expression from Aberfeldy distillery was introduced in 2005, 7 years after Bacardi acquired the distillery (along with Dewar's blends and 4 other malt distilleries) from Diageo. The award winning vistors' centre Dewar's World of Whisky opened in 2000 and has been visited by almost a million people.
Although Dewar's dominance in the USA market has slipped a little in recent years, the brands diversification into 12, 18 and ultra premium while raising the blend's association with this fine distillery has helped it's appreciation among malt enthusiasts and widened its consumer base beyond the scotch and soda crowd, if those old fogies even still exist.
For all Dewar's whiskies had on the mission, click HERE. Thanks to SM for sending along the drop and sorry for taking about a year to feature it.
TASTING NOTES:
Sweet, rich and beautiful. Creamy with incredible aroma integration. Nothing out of place or prickly. Toasty, woody, and full of honey and heather, even a gorse-y coconut aroma among a luscious creaminess.
Gorgeous first impressions, flavours so well bound. Macadamia nutes, marzipan, chocolate and buttermilk pancakes then a toasted nut effect, almond butter, with honey, oranges, and malty malty goodness.
SUMMARY:
A great balance of European and American oak influences after 21 years in casks make this excellent drop worth every penny. One for everyday dramming if you could afford it.
Malt Mission #311
Malt Mission #312
Malt Mission #313
Malt Mission #315
Malt Mission HOME
Aberfeldy 12 yo
Single Malt Whisky
40% abv
£26
$40(USD)
It seems we are gonna make it to 100 in this Malt Mission. Still blows my mind. And even though it is a Bank holiday Monday here (long weekend), there ain't no rest for the mission.
This week we'll be drinking our way through the Dewar's range of blends and start with the heart of the range, Aberfeldy (Other Dewar's HERE). In 1896, the Dewar family decided to build Aberfeldy to guarantee a supply of a good blending malt whisky to be used in Dewar's White Label.
Distillation began in 1898 (a tough time for the whisky industry), but apart from short closures during wartime, Aberfeldy has been in continuous production ever since. In 1998, Dewar's and Aberfeldy became a part of the Bacardi company in what was one of the most expensive purchases in whisky history. It included Bombay Sapphire and 4 other malt distilleries. In 2000, they built the Dewar's World of Whisky "exhibition and interactive centre" at the distillery near Perth, Scotland. It receives 40,000 visitors a year.
Tasted with Colin Harvey at The Whisky Exchange at Vinopolis. His notes appear in quotes.
TASTING NOTES:
Perfumy aromas, fragrant with apple skins and fudge. Freshly baked goods in a flat full of flowers. Bourbony creamininess, toffee. "Green wood. Bracken, stubble burning. Butterscotch."
Instantly sweet, fudge and oak again. Sappy or waxy. There is a mint gum element, cinnamon. "Green-ness, not quite sappy, but succulent."
SUMMARY:
Completely pleasant nose, spicy, creamy and inviting. But on the palate, it all sort of falls flat, like cold tea. Michael Jackson has called this malt 'lively', but we found nothing of the sort. That being said, we found nothing unpleasant about the stuff. Colin summarised with "not doing much for me."
Malt Mission #90
Malt Mission #92
Malt Mission #93
Malt Mission #94
Malt Mission #95
Malt Mission HOME
