Review by: The Muskox

These van Wees bottlings of Edradour tend to be quite great, especially for the price. This one’s first-fill sherry matured, which I think works better for young unpeated Edradour than ex-bourbon maturation. Let’s see!

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Distillery: Edradour.

Bottler: van Wees.

Region: Highlands.

ABV: 59%. Cask strength.

Age: 9 years. Distilled November 17th 2010. Bottled January 8th 2020.

Cask type: Cask #389, a first-fill sherry butt.

Price: N/A, sample.

Color: Light copper. Natural Color. Non-chill-filtered.

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Nose: Fruity, malty, and strong. Various breakfast cereals: Raisin Bran, Honey Nut Cheerios, or those cornflakes with the dried strawberries, all with milk of course. Butter-smeared toasted raisin challah, dates, cherries, raspberry jam, dried banana, honey, and beer nuts. Vanilla and baking spices. Slightly waxy.

Several drops of water add even more honey, as well as some dried citrus peel and cocoa powder.

Palate: Thick texture, but a bit hot. A blast of sticky strawberry jam and sour cherries up front, inexplicably smothered in honey. Toasted cereals, roasted nuts, and bitter-sweet toffee in the middle. Apricot jam on challah toast. It stays toasty towards the finish, with that rich beeswax note emerging.

The water really thins out the texture here, perhaps I added a bit too much (I didn’t have much left in the glass when I added the few drops).

Finish:  Medium-short. Dried fruit leather, dried cow leather, honey-sweetened tea, grape must, apple pie, and toasted cereals. Beeswax here, too.

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Conclusion: Oh yeah! The nose is rich and decadent with this great maltiness. The palate is syrupy with a long development. The finish is maybe a bit short but otherwise very tasty. That beeswax note really sets this ahead of the pack, though. This is at least as good as the North Star Longmorn 15 I had the other day. I’d say the maltier, fruitier, style of this whisky is a tiny bit more to my taste, but I’m sure my preference between those two drams would change day-to-day.

Final Score: 86.

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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.