craigellachie - 21yo - craigellachie hotel exclusive

Craigellachie, the village in the heart of the Speyside region, holds the smallest pub in the UK, a beautiful inn with a great bar, a humongous cooperage, a hotel with two great bars, and a filling station. And because the river Spey runs right past the village, there is a beautiful bridge too.

Oh, and - because: Speyside - a distillery! Dohw!

57.2% abv, €only available at the hotel
single malt

Nose: sweet, vanilla, honeycomb, creamy, Werther's Originals, spicy, allspice, cinnamon, cloves, herbal, sage, hints of laurel, 

Palate: sweet, creamy, honey, more Werther's Original, spicy, white pepper, cloves, tobacco leaves, lots of dried fruit but different fruits from a standard Sherry bomb, dried apples, mango, banana chips, is there something as dried kiwifruit?

Finish: hot, spicy, white pepper, long, spicy, tobacco leaves, cloves, herbs, sage, laurel
Mark: +++++ 

Conclusion: I like her. Not sure what they ask per dram at the hotel, but there are many indy bottlers offering a similar bottling, most of them for a good price. A special Craigellachie indeed, but not a unique one.

More info: The bottling is "designed" to sell per the dram, only at the hotel bar, and I am pretty sure there aren't many bottles available outside of the hotel, but we were lucky enough to be sent a sample. We have to know who we have bribe persuade to let us see the insides of the distillery, so if you would have any pointers for us...

.kindly donated to us by the craigellachie distillery for a twitter tasting

.craigellachie - 23yo

46% abv, €275

single malt

Nose: fruity, pears, juicy green apples, berries, red berries, ripe gooseberries, marzipan, nuts, almonds

Palate: quite dry, sweet, honey, treacle, floral, honeysuckle, fruity, juicy green apples, citrus, unripe lime, berries, very very ripe gooseberries

Finish: very long, dry, sweet, fruity, fermenting apples, spicy, nutmeg, a bitter touch like one bay leaf in a dish can make a difference
Mark: ++++/+

Conclusion: Oumpfh. That is a lot of body. She if full of nice scents and flavours, had a long (long!) finish, and carries a sweet punch after you think she has left you for good. That price though...

.sample was sent to us for participation in a long gone twitter tasting, but arrived late.

.craigellachie - 19yo

46% abv, €95*

single malt

Nose: sweet, fruity, red apple, sweet pear, fresh juicy peaches, pineapple, fresh hay

Palate: sweet, honey, floral, heather, honeysuckle, slightly dry mouth feel, fruity, pears, red apples, smurf, citrus, grapefruit peel

Finish: long, fruity, apples, peaches, a touch of pears
Mark: +++++ 

Conclusion: She isn't exactly cheap, but she has a firm body to let you know you are holding a fine mature Speysider. There is something I like about these ex-Bourbon matured, fruity drams. I wouldn't mind having another taste someday.

*for a 1000cl bottle, since originally she was designed for travel retail

.sample was sent to us for participation in a long gone twitter tasting, but arrived late.

.craigellachie - 17yo

46% abv, €75
single malt

Nose: sweet, vanilla, marshmallows, spicy, white pepper, fruit, sweet pears

Palate: sweet, honey, vanilla, marshmallows, floral, honeysuckle, fruit, juicy red apples, sweet pears, slight dry mouth feel, very ripe red berries

Finish: medium long, sweet, marshmallows, slight dry, very ripe gooseberries
Mark: +++/++ 

Conclusion: good one. Like her younger sister, quite a lot of body, with the same basic flavours (as expected) but with some added dryness and a much longer finish. Lost the slight nuttiness and added some more berries along the way. Good stuff, albeit a bit pricey.

.sample was sent to us for participation in a long gone twitter tasting, but arrived late. And I was slow reviewing the samples.

.craigellachie - 13yo

46% abv, €45
single malt

Nose: sweet, malt, sweet white wine, fruit, sweet red apples, pear, raspberries, a hint of nuts, almonds, an even smaller hint of marzipan

Palate: smooth, easy going, sweet, vanilla, marshmallows, hints of marzipan, later some spiciness comes through, white pepper

Finish: not very long, sweet, vanilla, fruit, apples, pears, fresh red fruit, raspberries
Mark: +++/++ 

Conclusion: fairly nice. She shows a lot of body for a 13yo, (Gods, that sounds awkward), but she has a lot to offer. Looking forward to see her in a more mature form, and luckily, the whole range was sent to us so I'll be doing some more of the family (awkwardness commences)...

.sample was sent to us for participation in a long gone twitter tasting, but arrived late.

.craigellachie - 1997-2014 - cc - g&m

There is something about refill ex-Bourbon barrels that tickles my senses. Let's see what this Craigellachie does to me...

46% abv, €65
single malt, non-chill filtered, natural colour

Nose: rough at first, gooseberries, later sweet berry notes come through with baking spices, cinnamon, allspice and chocolate

Palate: again that roughness, sour berries, gooseberries, spicy, allspice, laurel, a hint of marmite, dark chocolate, tobacco leaves

Finish: firm, medium long, sour red berries, dark chocolate
Mark: +++++ 

Conclusion: A rough start, but in the end, she is quite alright. 

More info: distilled in 1997, matured in a refill ex-Bourbon barrel, bottled on 01-07-2014