Arran Lepanto PX Brandy Cask Finish

Review by: TOModera

Part two of the Feather’s Drams #5 series, where I go to Feather’s, have some interesting drams, some great food, and people buy me drinks.

Last review was brought to us by my parents and my wife, and this one differs in that it was the Pub itself that found out we were celebrating my birthday, and gave me a dram on the house. I don’t know for certain if they follow these reviews, but that made my day. And before anyone suspects me of some sort of advertising gimmick, just know that I’ve been blabbering on about them for years before this happened, and would say nice things regardless.

They also gave me a bottle of Uisage Source for Islay, which I unfortunately (drunkenly) forgot at the bar. So as a change of pace, I’ll be saying what was added when adding a few drops of water (about a 1/4 tsp)

But away from if you can trust me or not, let’s get on to the review. When I polled Scotch drinkers about what to order, I asked about Arran Lepanto PX Brandy Cask Finish and was told that it would be interesting as a Brandy Cask Finish isn’t done that often. So I thought I’d try it out.

This is a 2006 Limited Edition from Arran, who love to finish their malts and serve them at Cask Strength when given the chance. This is actually aged in sherry casks first and then finished in a Lepanto PX brandy casks sourced from Spain.

Spain seems nice, this seems nice.

Distillery: Arran Distillery.

Bottler: Distillery Bottling.

Region: Isle of Arran, Islands, Scotland.

ABV: 61.3%. Cask strength.

Age: Bottled in 2006.

Cask type: Sherry Casks, then finished in Lepanto PX Brandy Casks.

Price: N/A in Canada.

Color: Pale yellow

Nose: Cherry blossoms, oak, floral, grape, sea air

There’s a very faint nose on this one. Takes awhile to open up. Once it does, there’s a lot of floral and bitter notes. Quite nice.

Water Added: Sweet floral comes out rather than the more acidic floral notes.

That sentence makes me sound like a Wanker. Basically, imagine more sweet notes than acidic notes, closely attached to the floral notes, like that one ex you can’t get rid of.

Taste: Burn, grape, grain, sour lemon

Not the happiest tasting flavour out there. The burn subsides after a bit, leaving some grape acidity. Need water like a soccer player in the desert. But enough about the World Cup…

Water Added: Toffee shows up, and it’s quite nice here. I don’t really see much of the influence of the sherry or brandy, though the toffee flavour really adds a nice, palatable flavour to the mix, so it has that going for it, which is nice.

Finish: Vanilla, cherry, lentil, tequila, burn

Ends with sweetness and some earthy flavours, though that young burn just won’t go away.

Water added: Citrus shows up, but it’s not wanted like Ronald the Flatulent at the secret orgy under the library.

Conclusion: I think that Arran short changed themselves with this one. It has a lot of things going for it, yet the colour leads me to believe that the age is young, the finish wasn’t long, and the lack of anything beyond a typical oak barreled Scotch isn’t helping. I’m glad I tried it, and the water ended up adding some really nice dimensions when added. Typically letting something sit for 30+ minutes brings out enough, yet this time I’d recommend the Uisage.

Final Score: 76.

Scoring Legend:

  • 95-100: As good as it gets. Jaw-dropping, eye-widening, unforgettable whisky.
  • 90-94: Sublime, a personal favorite in its category.
  • 85-89: Excellent, a standout dram.
  • 80-84: Quite good. Quality stuff.
  • 75-79: Decent whisky worth tasting.
  • 70-74: Meh. It’s definitely drinkable, but it can do better.
  • 60-69: Not so good. I might not turn down a glass if I needed a drink.
  • 50-59: Save it for mixing.
  • 0-49: Blech.

Leave a comment