Miltonduff 1987 (Private Cellar) Review

“The Heart of Ballantine’s”

Country: Scotland
Region: Speyside

Brand: Miltonduff 1987
Bottled By: Forbes Ross & Co Ltd, Rutherglen (Private Cellar Series)

Type: Single Malt Whisky
Age: 20 Years

ABV: 43% 
Chill-Filtration: No 
Whisky Review # 597
Buying Advice: 😒  Negative. Too expensive for what it offers.

Colour: Golden (Natural Colour)

Nose: Based on Colour and Aroma I assume that this Miltonduff matured most likely in Refill Ex-Bourbon Casks. Be sure to give this Malt enough time in the glass as the Aromas are liberated quite slowly. My first impression is Strawberry Yogurt and that's quite unusual. On the Nose this Miltonduff is quite Light and a bit Introvert. The casks have not been very active. I further find traces of Sweet Barley, Buttered Toast, Honey, Vanilla, Pancakes with Maple Syrup, Citrus Peel, Apple, Pear, Banana, Pineapple, Peach, Resin, Floral Perfume, Grass, Nutella, Oak, Wax and Cinnamon.  

Palate: The Delivery is on the Light side. This Malt would have been better when bottled at 46%. On the Palate this Miltonduff is Bitter-Sweet and presents some Toasted Cereals, Barley Sugar, Vanilla, Caramel, Salted Almonds, light Honey, Lemon, Grapefruit, Oak, light Licorice, light Aniseed, Pepper, Cinnamon, light Tobacco, Wax, light tropical Fruit (Pineapple or perhaps Banana) and Cocoa.   

Finish: Rather Short, Bitter-Sweet and slightly Herbal with some Acid - and Metallic tones as well. I find Toasted Cereals, Salted Almonds, Grapefruit Juice, Vanilla, Oak, light Tobacco, Dried Herbs, Pepper, light Menthol, light Aniseed, light Licorice, Lemon and, after a while,  Strawberry-Flavoured Milk Chocolate. 

I added a little Water and on the Nose you will get more Malty and Floral notes. Some Banana Ice Cream as well. Palate and Finish do not improve however.

Rating: 83.5 

Nose: 21.5 - Taste: 21 - Finish: 20 - Overall: 21

General Remarks:

This distillery was founded in 1824 and is located in Elgin. A huge reconstruction of the distillery took place in 1974. It changed hands various times over the years but since 2005 it is owned by Chivas Brothers (Pernod Ricard). Most of the production is destined for the Chivas blends. More specifically, Miltonduff and Glenburgie form the heart of Ballantine's. You don't encounter many official Distillery Single Malts so you need to look for Indies. Forbes Ross was founded in 1953. Their current status is dissolved however. You can still find this Malt on the Internet. I've seen prices in the US Dollar 100/150 range (February 2017).

Drinking Experience Neat: Good but without any Wow factor.

Conclusion: I'm not impressed by this Miltonduff, especially when you consider the current price level. It's not bad but it misses character and personality. I can see why most of the output of the distillery disappears in the Ballantine's Blend. Not at all my favourite Blend by the way. Some excellent casks could have given the Spirit a Face lift. I must conclude however that the casks weren't very active. This was only my first mature Miltonduff so unfortunately I can't make any comparisons. I will try to get some additional samples from more renowned Independent Bottlers like Gordon & MacPhail. Maybe that can change my mind about this Distillery. For the time being however I can't recommend this Single Malt as it is currently too expensive for what it offers.

Jan van den Ende                                                               February 24, 2017