The Speyside 12 Years Review

"Leave This Kid Alone”

Country: Scotland 

Region: Highland - Speyside

Brand: The Speyside

Type: Single Malt Whisky

Age:  12 Years

ABV:  40 % 

Date: 27/04/2014

Colour: Amber

Nose: Not very enchanting! My first impressions are Tired Casks, Cooked Sour Vegetables, Sulphur, Dirty Earth and Sugar. This Malt smells like a cheap blend.
After a while I get some Metallic notes, Mint, Straw, Toast and Margarine, light Spices, Pencil Shavings, Sharp Grain, light Honey, Caramelised Apple and Cocoa Powder. This Spirit has a very Young, Rough and Vegetal Nose. I would never have thought this to be a 12 Year old Single Malt.

Palate: Watery and Thin. I find Sugar, slightly Bitter Wood, Mint, Cereals, Malt, Toffee, light Spices, Nut Shells and a faint hint of Vanilla.

Finish: Short with Sugar, Toffee, Nut Shells, Black Pepper, Dusty Wood, Menthol and hints of Metal and Bitter Citrus.

I added a bit of Water. The Nose becomes quite Thin but also slightly Floral.  Palate and Finish become unacceptably thin but also less Bitter and less Spicy. Strange as it may seem, you can actually play with a little Water here.

Rating: 68.5

Nose: 16.5 - Taste: 17 - Finish: 17.5 - Overall: 17.5

General Remarks: The Speyside Distillery Project started in 1962 when George Christie bought some land near Drumguish. Production however only started in 1990. Today it is owned by Harvey's of Edinburgh. Speyside is actually a very small distillery with an annual output of around 800.000 litres. Under the old private owners, the distillery also produced Drumguish. You can find this Single Malt at prices that vary between 30 and 50 US Dollars.

Drinking Experience Neat: Below Average.

Conclusion:  In a Blind Tasting Session I almost certainly would have qualified the Speyside 12 Years as a cheap Bottom Shelf Blend. I can't find interesting Aromas and Flavours. Both Spirit and used Casks are just not good enough to consider the Speyside 12 as a sipping Malt. And you can find lots of better and also cheaper options if you like to drink your whisky on the Rocks or use it in cocktails. The Speyside 12 is one of the worst Single Malts I have tasted so far. My advise is to leave this kid alone!

Jan van den Ende                                                                April 2014

Dailuaine 1997 Review

Country: Scotland 

Region: Highland - Speyside

Brand: Dailuaine 1997 (Van Wees - The Ultimate Series) 

Type: Single Malt Whisky

Age:  15 Years

ABV: 46 %

Date: 24/04/2014

Colour: Light Golden

Nose: Floral, Earthy, Fruity and Grassy. I find Grasses, Straw, Earth, Dirt, Dried Herbs, Oak, Toast, Citrus, Toffee, Brown Sugar, Vanilla, Cinnamon, Sweet Licorice, Peach, Apple, Banana and a hint of Salted Meat. Have no idea where that comes from! The Alcohol is still around and not fully integrated.  

Palate: Eau de Vie (Poire), Grass, Licorice, Earth, Dirt, Dried Herbs, Malt, light Pepper, light Ginger, Citrus, Vanilla and Nut Shells.

Finish: Middle-Long and Bitter-Sweet with Oak, White Grapes, Almonds, Bitter Orange, Grass, light Pepper, light Cloves and light Licorice.  

I added a bit of Water and Malt and light Honey appear on the Nose. A bit of Marzipan on the Palate. You can certainly play with a bit of Water.

Rating: 83.5

Nose: 21 - Taste: 20.5 - Finish: 21 - Overall: 21

General Remarks: The Dailuaine 1997 I'm tasting today was distilled on the 1st of May 1997 and was bottled by Independent Bottler Van Wees on the 11th of January 2013. It matured in Hogshead # 6017, is Uncoloured and Not Chill-Filtered. It is sold at around 55 US Dollars.

The Dailuaine Distillery (Green Valley in Gaelic) was built in 1852 and is part of the Diageo Group since 1998. It has an annual production capacity of around 3.4 million litres of Alcohol. Most of the production is used in the Johnnie Walker Blends. Occasionally, casks are sold to Indie Bottlers like van Wees, located in Amersfoort, the Netherlands.

Drinking Experience Neat: Good

Conclusion: Not the best Dailuaine I've tasted so far. But a fair Price/Quality ratio. I would have liked to see more Fruity tones in this 1997 expression. The way it is, the slightly dusty Bourbon Cask is a bit too dominant on the Palate and in the Finish. I wouldn't say "No" if a dram of this Dailuaine was offered to me but I wouldn't buy a full bottle either. If you like Dusty Eau de Vie (Pear), you might want to give this Dailuaine a try.

Jan van den Ende                                                                  April 2014