Review by: dustbunna
Distillery: Blended.
Bottler: Cadenhead’s
Region: Scotland (blended).
ABV: 48.2%. Cask strength.
Age: 30 years. Bottled in 2023.
Cask type: Undisclosed but rumored to be a large ratio of sherry casks in the blend.
Price: $145 USD for 700mL.
Natural Color. Non-chill-filtered.
Bottle open across approx. 8 months, notes taken leisurely across that period. Bold notes taken beneath the shoulder, regular-formatted notes taken further into the bottle past the halfway point, italicized notes taken towards the heel.
Nose: dried raspberries, roses, oiled wood, library books, clay, powdered sugar.
Palate: thick ~ a huge hit of floral notes up front (more roses), red fruits, more oiled wood, orange zest, moss, a hint of gunpowder, minerals, goes even more floral at the end.
Finish: long ~ more flowers, malt, hints of moss and black pepper, canteloupe, Turkish delights.
Conclusion: Cadenhead’s releases a standard NAS blend they call Seven Stars (which I’ve not seen stateside), but a few years ago put out this special version of it at low cask strength with a 30 year age statement. The price seemed pretty great for the age and specs, so I bought this as a birthday treat last year.
I’m not always a fan of blended Scotch generally, but this is a really nice blend. It drinks richer than its ABV, probably owing to the lack of dilution at 48.2%. Cadenhead’s were tight-lipped about the contents of this one, and I am not even sure they knew themselves (it was apparently not from their warehouse stock, but purchased already married together in-cask, much like the Edrington mystery blended casks that seem to turn up often.) Whatever is in here, it drinks very malt-forward to me, with the sherry casks contributing generously but not overwhelming the overall balance. The sweet roses, raspberries and melons conjure up impressions of Turkish delight, which is really a neat find in whisky. It’s perhaps simpler than I might expect at three decades of maturation, but it’s still tons of fun and extremely quaffable.
Final Score: 86.
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 