Linkwood 21 Year (1996) Signatory Vintage K&L Wine Pick
Review by: zSolaris
Distillery: Linkwood.
Bottler: Signatory Vintage.
Region: Speyside.
Age: 21 Year. Distilled on October 30, 1996. Bottled on July 17th, 2018.
Cask Number: 8717.
ABV: 59.5%. Cask Strength.
Price: $150.00
Color: 1.1, Burnished. Natural Color and Non-Chill Filtered.
Nose: It is really heavy on the nose, it feels like I have to take in a really deep breath to draw up the aromas up and out of the glass. There’s a bit of apple cider and a bit of ice wine comes through with a bit of funk along with a ton of super sweet, fermented grapes and apples. A bit of some dustiness, perhaps what others commonly refer to as dunnage warehouse, also makes an appearance along with a bit of honey.
Palate: It certainly isn’t “hot” by any stretch of the imagination but at full strength, it doesn’t feel like I’m getting the full experience. It feels very closed off and hard to get much out of flavor wise. There is a bit of bright orchard fruit, specifically that delicious green apple note that is a favorite of mine in Linkwoods, but that’s about it. With some water though, thankfully, it does open up quite nicely. There’s a lovely mix of those orchard fruit notes along with some baking spices particularly cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg. It has almost all the makings of an apple pie, only that somehow the apples are fresh and not baked. After a little more time in the glass, it starts to take on a baked vanilla custard-y note. Overall, it comes fairly close to a hot slice of apple pie with some vanilla ice cream.
Finish: Before adding water, not a whole lot goes on. After water, it gets to medium-to-long in length. It starts with a fairly bright, sharp apple note before ending on a more bitter, tannic note. There is something reminds me faintly of floral tea as well.
Conclusion: After hating the last Linkwood I reviewed, a little part of me felt a bit of dread creep up. Was it me? Has my palate changed and the distillery that really sparked my love for Scotch no longer what I enjoy? Was it time to hang up the #LinkwoodGang tag? Thankfully, this Signatory Vintage bottling put my fears to rest. The nose has a wonderful complexity that goes beyond simple fruit with those ice wine-esque notes. The palate serves up a delicious dessert with the almost-apple-pie and almost-vanilla-ice-cream combination. The finish wraps things up cleanly with the bit of bitterness as well. Overall, quite delicious and I would probably drink through a bottle a little too fast.
Rating: 85.
Scotch Whisky Review #467, Speyside Review #165, Whisky Network Review #625
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.
Malt Runners 
