Strathmill 2006 (Signatory Vintage)

“Dark Side of the Malt”

Whisky Review # 1037

Country: Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

Region: Speyside

Brand: Strathmill 2006 - Distilled on 24-10-2006

Bottled By: Signatory Vintage Scotch Whisky Company on 12-11-2020

Type: Single Malt Single Cask Scotch Whisky - Cask # 7 - 689 Bottles

Age: 14 Years

Alcohol By Volume (ABV): 61% (Cask Strength)
Maturation: Refill Sherry Butts with 11 Months Fresh Sherry Butt Finish

Chill Filtration: No

Price Range: US$ 100-115 (October 2024)
Price/Quality Ratio: 😐 Okay
Buying Advice: 😐 Oloroso fans will love it but it's a bit one-sided for me

Colour: Mahogany/Brown (Natural Colour)

Nose:

The ABV is very high so I would advise you to refrain from Nosing in the middle of your glass. The Sherry influence is strong as was to be expected. This Strathmill is loaded with Dark and Earthy notes. It's quite Sweet with a few Sour notes in the background. I detect a bit of Sulphur as well. I'm also not too fond of the Varnish and New Oak notes. There are lots of notes and hints to be found but I would not rate the Nose as complex as practically all Aromas are linked to Sherry.

Main Aromas:

Malted Barley, Buttered Toast, Caramel, Demerara Sugar, Resin, Dried Fruit like Plums, Raisins, Figs and Prunes, Dark Berries & Cherries, Dark Chocolate, Nuts, Orange, Grass and Straw, Musty (New) Oak, Varnish, Pepper, Cloves, Nutmeg and Mint.

    
Supportive Aroma Accents:

Honey, Toffee, Vanilla, Nougat, Floral Perfume, Red Apple, Lemon, Cassis Liqueur, Dusty Earth, Sour Grapefruit, Dried Herbs, Tobacco, Rubber, Gas Station, Leather, Ginger, Cardamon and Cinnamon.

Palate:

On the Palate this Strathmill feels Younger than its Stated Age. The Alcohol is very strong and makes the Tasting a bit of a Rough ride. The Palate is a mix of Sweet, Bitter and Sour notes and is quite Dry.

Main Flavours:

Malted Barley, Salted Caramel, Treacle, Demerara Sugar, Dried Fruit like Apricots, Raisins, Figs and Plums, Dark Red Fruit, Dark Chocolate, Nuts, Grass and Straw, Resin, Dusty Earth, Dark Espresso, Wood Polish, Oak, Cardamom, Nutmeg, Cloves and Pepper.

Supportive Flavour Accents:

Honey, Vanilla, Toffee, Nougat, Red Apple, Sour Cherries, Cassis Liqueur, Tobacco, Leather, Floral Perfume, Wet Pebbles, Grapefruit, Orange, Rum, Licorice, Aniseed, Ginger, Cinnamon and Menthol.

Finish:

Middle-Long and mainly Sweet. Developing Bitter and Sour notes towards the very Dry end. The Alcohol is quite strong. I find Malted Barley, Caramel, Vanilla, Grass and Straw, Treacle, Dried Fruit like Raisins, Figs and Plums, Sour Dark Cherries, Cassis Liqueur, Orange, Dark Chocolate, Nuts, Strong Black Tea/Espresso, Resin, Dusty Earth, Oak, Tobacco, Leather, Pepper, Ginger, Nutmeg, Cloves & Cinnamon. After a while your mouth feels like you've been licking an Ashtray. And the Varnish is back as well.

Drinking Advice:

Adding Water is a must in this case. The Alcohol is simply too strong. The Water not only controls the Alcohol but also enhances the Fruit on the Nose. Some nice Nectarine and Apricot notes are revealed this way. On the Palate the Spirit gets more approachable. The Finish gets more Oak, Spices and additional Bitterness. In this case however I strongly advise you to add Water. Thanks to the added Water I have increased the final Rating with 0.5 points.

Rating: 7.5 (*******1/2)

Nose: 7 - Taste: 7.5 - Finish: 7

*** Important Note with respect to Rating.

If the Final score is above 8 you can safely buy the whisky in question if and when it fits your Aroma/Flavor profile. If the score is between 6 and 8 you might want to try it out in the form of a sample or if offered at a good price. Anything below 6 should be left alone when you are looking for a nice sipping whisky. You might still like it of course and I realize pricing is an important item for many whisky fans especially when you are used to enjoy whisky in a cocktail or a mixed drink.

Drinking Experience Neat: A challenge due to the very high ABV. 

Conclusion:

The Strathmill distillery was founded in 1891 in Keith and is a part of the Diageo group since 1997. Almost all of the production of around 2 million litres is used for the J&B and Spey Royal Blends. Unfortunately for Diageo the demand for the J&B Blend has declined over the years and it can be expected that the distillery will focus a bit more on Single Malts as well in the future. For the time being the only official bottling is the 12 Year old Flora & Fauna. In 2014 a 25 Year old Special limited release was launched.

The 14 Years I am reviewing today is part of the Signatory Vintage Cask Strength Collection. It's not a bad Single Malt but it's super heavy on the (Oloroso) Sherry. That's great if you like that of course but to me it's a bit one-sided. And then there's the very high ABV. I can take a bit of heat but in this case it's really just too strong. It needs added water to enjoy. To sum it up, some people will love this Strathmill and others won't. Have a good look at the Aroma and Flavour profile to make sure you would go for a full bottle of this Dark Side of the Malt.👹

Cheers! 🥃

Jan van den Ende                                                                    October 17, 2024