LOWLANDS TASTING

Auchentoshan has dominated the region in recent years, partly due to so many of their Lowlands brethren being mothballed in the 1990s.  So, it was nice to dive into some of the new, as well as, returning distilleries.  Next time we could even have some new Rosebank!

* FLIGHT ONE *

Expression 1
 Highland Harvest Sauternes Finish 
 

Background: An independent bottler known for its organic scotch whiskies.  Where their single malt comes from is not disclosed on the bottle.  A lazy man could assume that it's from the Highlands.  That same man could also assume that Highland Park comes from the Highlands as well. 👀  Since this expression won the 2015 World Whisky Award for Best Lowland Single Malt, I'll go with Lowlands.

Stats: Organic.  Finished in Sauternes Casks.  ABV = 46%. Bottled 2017.

Tasting Notes: This was our "opener" - a basic single malt to get the palate acclimated. The nose was interesting in a sugary, spicy way.  Taste drifted towards soft honey with a nutty quick finish. 

Worth Drinking Again?	Worth Buying a Pour?	Worth Buying a Bottle?
YES	NO	NO

Expression 2
 Daftmill 2006 Summer Batch - 11 Year 

"Crafted by the honest,
simple, hard-working indigenous
peoples of... wherever." 

Background: Part-time craft distillery located on a family-owned farm that grows barley.  They've only released two expressions, both in 2018,  this being their second. Current retail per bottle is, well... daft.  And asking price for their inaugural offering is almost daft and a half.  Seems like the image they are going for is craft beer distiller or artisan winery. 

Stats: First Fill Bourbon, ex-Heaven Hill. Limited to 1665 bottles. ABV = 46%.  Bottled 2018.

Tasting Notes: Nose presents spicy cinnamon and powdered sugar.  Herbal, mineral taste plus grapefruit without the bitter.  Overall I'm missing the expected bourbon notes.  Quick finish. Definitely interested in future releases, but the conclusion on this offering is a new distillery still finding their way.

Worth Drinking Again?	Worth Buying a Dram?	Worth Buying a Bottle?
NO	NO	NO

Expression 3
 Bladnoch Samsara 

Background:  
Founded in 1817, Bladnoch is the southern most distillery in Scotland.  Since the 1950s, operations have ceased and continued just as often as ownership changes.  This No Age Statement expression was bottled by the current proprietor as part of their 200th Anniversary Series.

Stats: California Red Wine and Bourbon Casks.  NAS. ABV = 46.7%.  Bottled 2017.
 

Tasting Notes: Admittedly, I had low expectations for this one, so that may have contributed to being pleasantly surprised.  Nose is creamy and malty while the mouthfeel was rich, oily and buttery.   The master distiller did a fantastic job of blending and balancing the flavors from red wine casks and bourbon barrels.

Worth Drinking Again?	Worth Buying a Dram?	Worth Buying a Bottle?
YES	YES	YES

Expression 4
 Ailsa Bay (Batch #1) 

Background: Girvan, a successful grain distillery since 1963, is back in the single malt game with their Ailsa Bay expressions.  (Why they didn't call it Ladyburn like their prior single malt can only be answered by a team of crack marketing gurus.)   Construction began in 2007 and officially opened in 2009.

Stats: Bourbon Cask. NAS. ABV = 48.9%. Bottled 2015/16. 
 

Tasting Notes: Peated Lowland!! So looking forward to this one. Peat nose with honey sugar.  While their second offering is subtitled 'Sweet Smoke', this one should be called 'Sweet Peat'.  It's basic peated malt aged in bourbon casks just like a Laphroaig, but with a lighter finish, and no medicinal qualities to mention.  Smooth and drinkable all day long.

Worth Drinking Again?	Worth Buying a Dram?	Worth Buying a Bottle?
YES	YES	YES

Expression 5
 Glenkinchie 12 Year Limited Edition 


 

Background: Established in 1837, Glenkinchie, along with Auchentoshan, are the only two Lowlands distilleries that have been continuously operating since World War II.  This one-time release may have inspired the regular 10 Year to be discontinued in favor of a regular non-cask strength 12 Year.

Stats: Limited Edition #1904/5010. ABV = 58.7%. Bottled 2004. 
 

Tasting Notes: Spice and nutmeg on the nose.  Rich, dense toffee coffee on the taste.  The finish is long as expected with the higher ABV and even remains that way even after adding a few drops of water.   

Worth Drinking Again?	Worth Buying a Dram?	Worth Buying a Bottle?
YES	YES	YES

* FLIGHT TWO *

Expression 1
 Bladnoch 12 Year Sherry Matured 

Background: From the hideous label you can probably tell that we're jumping back to a previous regime.  After being closed in 1993, Bladnoch reopened in 2000.  Twelve years or so later, this expression was released,  only to find the company out of business again in 2014.  Luckily the distillery was rescued by an Australian entrepreneur in 2015.

Stats:  Sherry Cask. ABV = 46%. Bottled ~2013. 
 

Tasting Notes: A lovely sherry nose that smells hotter than 46%.  Typical sherry notes, oily and chocolatey.  Overall, just what you would want from a 12 Year Sherry.  Too bad this one went away when the previous owners had to liquidate.  All the blame most likely goes to the poor label design.

Worth Drinking Again?	Worth Buying a Dram?	Worth Buying a Bottle?
YES	YES	NO

Expression 2
 CWC Lowland - Ailsa Bay #AB004  

Background: This Lowland bottling from the Creative Whisky Company comes from the Ailsa Bay distillery.  CWC is best known for its Exclusive Malts, Exclusive Casks, and, Exclusive Range brands.

Stats: NAS.  Cask #AB004.  ABV = 50 %. Bottled 2017.
 

Tasting Notes: Unlike the prior distillery expression, this one is not peated.  It has an interesting meringue nose and that's about it.  Taste is very nice and pleasant, but one note, basic Lowlands. The finish has a bit of a glazed donut appeal.

Worth Drinking Again?	Worth Buying a Dram?	Worth Buying a Bottle?
NO	NO	NO

Expression 3
 1991 Glenkinchie 24 Year 

Background: One of the overpriced annual Diageo Special Releases.

Stats: Refill European Oak Butts.  Limited Edition #1904/5928.  ABV = 52.7%. Bottled 2016.
 

Tasting Notes: Confection sugar nose - the sugary smell of a bakery.  The refill sherry offers subtle syrupy notes along with salted butter.  Well balanced and complex.  Much more tasty than expected - it's just too bad the suggested retail on these is so high.

Worth Drinking Again?	Worth Buying a Dram?	Worth Buying a Bottle?
YES	YES	NO

Expression 4
 SMWS 5.61 - 2000 Auchentoshan 16 Year 

Background: One of the few triple distilled whiskies in Scotland, unlike Ireland where that's the norm. Our whisky group had already dedicated two full tastings to Auchentoshan, so that's why the distillery is mostly absent from this one. 

Stats: 1st Fill PX Hogshead. ABV =  57.7%. Bottled 2017.
 

Tasting Notes: Ending on a high note here with a cask strength PX!  Starts off with a surprising coconut shrimp barbecue nose which trends towards sweet honey BBQ on the taste.  Super complex with a big range and long finish.  Appears that we saved the best for last!  But it was close - didn't think the Glenkinchie 24 could be topped.  

Worth Drinking Again?	Worth Buying a Dram?	Worth Buying a Bottle?
YES	YES	YES

[Tasting conducted with the Sneaky Trips Tasting Group which consists of Whisk(e)y Enthusiasts ranging from Beginner to Advanced.  Tastings are held monthly and are usually 8 Expressions based on a particular theme.]

Bottling Dates for Yamazaki, Hibiki, Hakushu

Part 3

Previously in Part 1 and Part 2, bottle codes and packaging changes offered clues as to when a particular Yamazaki, Hibiki, or Hakushu was bottled.  Bottle codes were great, but they only went back to 2006.  For older bottles, packaging variances narrowed down the bottling date a bit, but there could still be a wide range in some cases.  So, how to pare it down further?

Glass Date

Old Forester
AB 217470
86 Proof

Bottom Glass of Old Forester
Top Row = L-1014
Bottom Row = S Φ 88

What about investigating the raised lettering on the bottom of the bottles?  That's a proven method for approximating the bottling dates for older bourbons.  I have a dusty Old Forester that has “88” among other information on the bottom of the glass.  Often, this translates into the bottle mold being made in 1988, but not necessarily the year it was filled with spirit.  However… it’s usually pretty close to that year.  Definitely not 1987 or prior, the OF could possibly be from 1988 or 1989.  You would then have to review the labels for corroborating evidence that would place it around that time.

Unfortunately, on Yamazaki/Hibiki/Hakushu bottles, there are no consistent two digit numbers  similar to the bourbon example above.  What can be found, and this goes back to the 1980s at least, are words, letters, and numbers.  So, let’s explore that.

The words will spell out SUNTORY (LTD) and JAPAN, and, depending on the expression, LIQUOR BOTTLE. (U.S. Hibiki bottles will most likely have 750ML on the bottom glass as well.)  Pretty straight forward – no insight here.

2018 Hakushu 12
First Time Released
With Box in U.S.

Two “rows” of alphanumeric code are present.  The top row format consists of a
one or two-digit number, followed by some blank space, followed by a single letter or a letter plus an additional letter/number. A few examples of top row strings are “4     YS”, “11     T3”, and “2     Y”.  The second set of characters must point to bottle type as YS can be found on the latest U.S. Hakushu 12s, while T3 shows up on various Hibiki bottles. The preceding number(s) can’t have anything to do with the bottling date, however, as they will vary on bottles that are definitely from the same year.  One of the recent Hakushu 12s has top row of  “4     YS” while another one has “14     YS”.

Bottom of 2018 Hakushu 12
Top Row = 4   YS
Bottom Row = 7 - III

So, what about the second row?  The format is always a single digit number, usually followed by a dash, then followed by one to four vertical lines.  Staying with the aforementioned 2018 Hakushu 12s, the bottom string on all of them is “7 – III”.  Now that's interesting!

Let’s investigate some other bottles and that bottom row, starting with expressions that have already established bottling dates via the label, regardless of the bottle code.  Yamazaki put out an annual Limited Edition release between 2014-2017. The bottom string on my 2017 bottling is “6 – IIII”.  The bottom row of Yamazaki Bourbon Barrel 2013 reads “3 – III”.

Transferring this and other available data to the table below, can you recognize a pattern emerging?

EXPRESSION	GLASS BOTTOM ROW	BOTTLING CODE	BOTTLING YEAR
Hakushu 12	7 - III	LK8ANN	2018
Hakushu 12	7 - III	LK8AMC	2018
Yamazaki LE 2017	6 - IIII	LX7DOK	2017
Yamazaki 18	3 - IIII	W4EJE	2014
Yamazaki 18	3 - IIII	S3LJW	2013
Yamazaki Bourbon 2013	3 - III	X3OJJ	2013
Hibiki 12	2 - II	U2LOT	2012
Hakushu 1994	6 - III	D6JOA	2006

In Part 1, the Bottling Code pattern revealed that the single digit before the 3 letters at the end (or the middle in some cases) represents the last digit in the bottling year.  On the bottom row of the glass, the single digit on the left either matches that "key number" on the bottling code or equals the key number minus one.  Every time.  I've looked at over a hundred bottles with bottling codes and this pattern is consistent.  If you've got one that doesn't conform, I'd like to see it!

Now let's apply the single digit theory to the glass.  It seems a reasonable conclusion that the "key number" on the left of the bottom row on the glass is the last digit of the year in which the bottle was manufactured.  And I believe it is fair to then assume that the bottle was either filled that same year or the following year.   And that's it, mystery solved!

The next step is to review some data from pre-2006 bottles, swapping out Bottling Code for significant markers from the label or bottle that support the bottling year estimation.

EXPRESSION	GLASS BOTTOM ROW	MARKER	BOTTLING YEAR
Hibiki 17	2 - IIII	Hibiki Crest	2002/2003
Yamazaki 12	1 - II	Pure Malt	2001/2002*
Hibiki (Original)	8 - IIII	Hibiki Crest	1998/1999
Hakushu 12	7 - IIII	Pure Malt	1997/1998
Hibiki (Original)	7 - I	Hibiki Crest	1997/1998
Yamazaki 10	6 - II	Pure Malt	1996/1997
Hibiki (Original)	5 - III	Gold Stopper	1995/1996
Yamazaki 18	5 - III	Pure Malt	1995/1996

1995 Yamazaki 18
Bottom Row 5 - II

The Hibiki 17 is from 2002/2003 and not 2012/2013 because it has a Hibiki Crest on the label. And we've established that Hibiki 17 did not appear until 2001, so it's not from 1992/93.  But it's not always so cut and dry.  Any Yamazaki 12 with a 1, 2, or 3 key number on the glass can be problematic.  Both 1991, 1992, 1993 and 2001, 2002, 2003 bottlings would have both the Hibiki Crest and Pure Malt designation.  Yamazaki 18s would have a similar challenge for those year ranges as well if not for the bottles being numbered in Japan during that span.  Lower numbered labels would be the early 1990s.  So, deeper diving into label variation is necessary for those cases, but for the most part, the code has been cracked!

Don't want to dive into too much minutiae - the important thing is that you should now be able to answer the question posed in Part 1 and approximate the bottling date of that original Hibiki NAS that you've been wondering about!  Does your bottle have a key number of "0" on the bottom glass and does it have the Lion Crest?  Then you've got a 1990/91 bottling.  If it has the same key number but a Hibiki Crest instead, then you're looking at a 2000/01 bottling.