Cragganmore 2000 Review

Country: Scotland 

Region: Speyside

Brand: Cragganmore 2000 OB (Friends of Classic Malts)

Type: Single Malt Whisky

Age:  14 Years

ABV: 47.5 %

Date: 15/01/2014

Sample Provided by Marcus from Germany. Many Thanks!

Colour: Amber

Nose: A Full, Creamy and Enchanting combination of Sherry, Malt, Honey, Vanilla, Fruit like Mango, Coconut, Banana and Plums, Buttered Toast and Orange Marmalade, Brown Sugar and traces of Mint, Cinnamon and Fresh Herbs. Cragganmore is close to Aberlour and I do find some similarities with the A' Bunadh expressions although the latter of course posses a much higher ABV. In any case I find the Nose of this Cragganmore 2000 to be thoroughly enjoyable!  

Palate: Thinner than I expected after the Nose. Mainly Citrus Fruit now. Oak and Spices like Pepper and Nutmeg make themselves known. The Sherry, Malt and Honey are still there accompanied by Caramel/Toffee and a hint of Leather. 

Finish: Middle-Long, slightly Sugary Sweet with Candied Bananas and Oranges, Honey, Malt, Caramel, Dried Herbs and Pepper.

With a little Water you enhance the Fruity Aromas on the Nose and gain some Floral Notes as well. Palate and Finish do not change a whole lot although you get extra Spices in the Finish. You can safely play with a couple of drops without the risk of drowning this Cragganmore.

Rating: 86.5

Nose: 23 - Taste: 21 - Finish: 21 - Overall: 21.5

The Origin of the Sample!

General Remarks: The Cragganmore Distillery is located in the Spey Valley close to the A 95. It was founded in 1869 by John Smith. Today it is owned by Diageo and lots of Cragganmore go into Blends like Old Parr and White Horse. The Single Malt I'm tasting today is a Special Edition of 4987 Bottles that was prepared by the Distillery for The Friends of the Classic Malts. It was distilled in 2000, matured for 14 years in, what I believe to be, a mix of mostly Ex-Bourbon but also  Ex-Sherry Casks, is most likely Un-Chillfiltered and was bottled in 2013. I received a sample out of Bottle # 0010 from my friend Marcus in Germany. It wont be easy to trace but on auctions you can find the occasional bottle, priced between 130 and 240 US Dollars.  

Drinking Experience Neat: Good.

Conclusion: When I was Nosing the Cragganmore 2000 I thought that this Single Malt would rocket into my Top 10. But, as so often, the Palate and Finish could not quite deliver at the same level. I nosed his Cragganmore for almost an hour without getting tired of it. Lovely combination of Sherry, Tropical Fruit, Juicy Barley and Fresh Herbs. But on the Palate the Tropical Fruit was gone and replaced by a more common Citrus Flavour accompanied by Spices and Caramel. And in the Finish Sugared Candy started to pop up to replace the Fresh Fruit Flavours. In conclusion, the Cragganmore 2000 is a nice all round Speysider with a great Nose.

Jan van den Ende                                                      January 2014