Gordon & MacPhails ‘Connoisseurs Choice’ Allt-a-Bhannie 1995 (14 year old) 43%
Refill Sherry Hogshead/ Dist: 1995 Btl: Nov 2009/ Tasted: May 2012
Quite a full and oily nose with plenty of cereal and barley. Gently spiced with the extremely subtle sherry oak sitting in the background. With time it becomes quite nutty with some herbal spirit notes. The oak becomes quite creamy and more American in style, but not intrusively so.
The palate is soft and creamy with some pleasant, slightly spicy barley notes, sprinkled with granulated sugar. Relatively full bodied and again there is not much sherry cask influence. Good length with a refreshing crispness along with a touch of bitterness on the finish. A pleasant aperitif malt.
Gordon & MacPhails Connoisseurs Choice Allt-a-Bhannie 1996 (18 year old) 46%
Refill American Hogshead/ Dist: 1996 Btl: 2014/ Tasted: Dec 2015
Aromas of bubblegummy white fruit, straw, sweet oak and balancing fresh citrus and green apple.
Crisp and very citric on the palate with white fruit, oily barley and like the nose a slight bubblegummy intimation. Hints of green apple, straw and grass come through on the middle, leading to a tart, puckering, almost salty finish. Thankfully the creaminess of the oak balances.
