Glen Scotia 15 Year (2003) Campbeltown Malts Festival 2019 Peated/Rum Finish

Review by: The Muskox

The premise of this whisky alone got me really excited. Peated Glen Scotia, with some age on it, in a rum cask?? Good stuff. This was released for this year’s Campbeltown Malts Festival, which sounds like an absolute bash.

Distillery: Glen Scotia.

Bottler: Official bottling.

Region: Campbeltown.

ABV: 51.3%. Cask strength.

Age: 15 years. Distilled in 2003. Bottled in 2019.

Cask type: Initially matured in American Oak, then finished in ex-Guyanese rum casks

Price: N/A, sample.

Color: Medium gold. Natural Color. Non-chill-filtered.

Nose: Sweet funky smoke, slightly tangy and acrid. A good amount of those oily industrial notes, but it’s different enough from Springbank. Sidewalk chalk, smoked hot peppers, cooked greens, even some sundried tomatoes in olive oil. Dark, roasted, chocolatey, honeyed barley notes. Brown bananas, lime, papaya, and cantaloupe. Some caramel, brown sugar, baking spices, and pickled ginger.

Palate: Medium-light body. Cereals, honey, lemon oil, and coconut up front. Then comes roasted barley in the middle, then smoked peppers, bananas, dark chocolate, and seaweed. More very dark, almost burnt notes in here. Charred wood, ash, and tobacco. Bay leaf maybe? More cantaloupe towards the back.

Finish: Lasting smoke. More dark chocolate and chipotles in adobo sauce. Lingering tobacco and dead leaves.

Very different from what I was expecting. It’s fairly light in both flavor and texture. I think it still works though. There’s some really nice estery banana funk in here, which I haven’t gotten from other rum-cask whiskies I’ve tried. Granted, I haven’t tried all that many, but still. The nose is my favourite part, as it gets a bit straightforward on the palate and especially the finish. There’s also nice smoky and industrial-funk flavours, and an especially nice mix of smoked peppers and tropical fruits. Overall, tasty, but it doesn’t quite live up to its exciting premise.

Final Score: 83.

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