Whiskey Glossary

Scotches

Clan MacDougall.net

Scotches

GLENKINCHIE

An Ideal Place for a Distillery
South-east Scotland is an ideal place to set up a distillery, as the fine Lowland agricultural soil produces some of the best barley in Scotland. Founded in 1837 by the Rate brothers near the pretty village of Pencaitland, its proximity to the hills provided easy access to the wonderfully soft water which has its source there.

Rarity and Tranquillity
Glenkinchie has not been widely available in the past as a Single Malt, and this rarity makes the discovery of its character even more enjoyable.

Peak of Development at 10 Years Old
Glenkinchie is the smokiest of all the Lowland Malts. A pre-dinner malt, it has a light delicate nose, clean aroma and pale colour. The taste is smooth and pleasing with a hint of dryness.

Tasting Notes
Colour::	deep gold, like autumn fields of Lothian barley
Nose:	delicate aroma, with grassy and slightly sweet, fruity notes
Body:	light, alate, smooth and malty
Finish:	dry and clean, with a soft and mellow afterglow

CRAGGANMORE

From Fertile Richness
This is famous malt whisky country — the lush surrounding countryside is covered with a dark green patchwork of forest and the flowing burns are fed by crystal clean springs.

Since 1869, the year in which John Smith founded the distillery at the foot of Craggan Mor Hill , only pure spring water flowing over hard greenstone rock has been used in this distinctive Speyside malt.

The distillery itself was built from greenstone quarried from the hill of Craggan Mor. It lies on Speyside near Ballindalloch Castle, and was the first distillery to make use of the steam locomotive to transport its whisky.

Comes the Classic Speyside Malt
The distinctive, rather austere style of Cragganmore Single Malt Whisky is pleasing, with the taste of excellence imparted through 12 years of maturing. The perfect after-dinner malt with a good firm body, malty smoky finish and a personality as individual and distinguished as the distillery founder.

Tasting Notes
Colour::	golden
Nose:	rich, dryish and complex, fragrant and flowery, with notes of grass and smoke
Body:	medium, smooth and firm
Palate:	clean, round, malty and well-balanced
Finish:	lingering malt and soft smoke — a grand Speyside afterglow

DALWHINNIE

The Highest Distillery
Dalwhinnie — Gaelic meaning 'the meeting place' — is a fitting name for this distillery located high on the wild, windswept moors of the Grampian mountains in the Northern Highlands. Here surrounded by ancient forests and granite rock, cattle drovers in times long ago would rest their herds. Since 1898 the distillery has stood on this ravaged moorland, isolated and buffeted by the weather, over 4,000 feet above sea level and higher than any other distillery.

From a Wild Environment
Yet it is the most hostile of environments that the gentlest and purest of Highland Malts is produced. Only the pure, cold water from the nearby abundant spring at Lochan an Doire-uaine is used, which flows underground before bubbling forth into the distillery burn, the Allt an t'sluic.

Comes the Gentle Spirit
Such pureness of water imparts a soft, whispery finish to Dalwhinnie Single Malt. It is an ideal alternative to liqueurs with its heathery delicate finish. The taste is light with a fruity sweet aroma. An aromatic malt, very easy to drink.

Tasting Notes
Colour::	yellow gold, fruity, aromatic
Body:	round and full
Palate:	begins with a light taste, clean and mellow, building to a smooth, Highland glow — a balanced medley of malty sweetness, fruit and oak, with distant whiffs of smoke
Finish:	smooth, silky and heather honey

OBAN

An Unusual Location
The unique character of this fine Highland Malt is inherited from its unusual location. Oban is a port on the West Highland coast, in the lee of the islands to the west of Scotland. The area has an ancient history of settlement, dating right back to the prehistoric times of Obanian stone-age culture.

Ancient Oban
Founded in 1794, Oban Distillery is one of the earliest and actually predates the town which grew up around it, with the result that one now sees the unusual sight of a distillery in a High Street. The distillery's output is bottled as a Single Malt, and its distinctive character is unique due to the mixed nature of its location: close to Islay yet without an Islay heaviness and peatiness; classified as a 'Highland Malt', yet with its own distinctive West Highland characteristics.

Aromatic and Smooth
At 14 years old, this is an excellent all round malt. A fresh, delicate hint of peat in the aroma,and a long smooth finish, position this malt between a Highland Speyside and an Islay.

Tasting Notes
Colour::	deep gold
Nose:	heady and pungent with peat smoke, with soft notes of salt
Body:	full and rich
Palate:	robust, dry flavor of peat dominates, with the tang of sea surfacing occasionally
Finish:	smooth, with a gentle bite to introduce the long, smoky aferglow of peat that lingers and warms the soul

TALISKER

The Only Distillery on the Isle of Skye
Situated on the shores of Loch Harport, within sight of the jagged Cuillin mountains, Talisker is the only distillery on Skye. An island famous for its unspoiled natural beauty, the Isle of Skye has such an indented shore line that no spot on the island is more than five or six miles from the sea. Bonnie Prince Charlie fled here in 1746, and Turner painted by the side of Loch Coruisk.

Distinctive 'Marine' Character
Using water from a burn whose source is in the Cnoc nan Speirag Hawk Hill, the whisky is bottled for the enjoyment of those who seek Talisker's unique 'marine' character. Full-flavoured with a distinctive peaty taste, it explodes on the palate and lingers on. It is well-balanced with slightly sweet aroma.

Tasting Notes
Colour::	deep gold
Nose:	slightly sweet, phenolic and sea loch — a big island aroma
Body:	full, well-balanced and round
Palate:	a robust, smooth balance of smoke, salt, spices, malt and wood
Finish:	long and deep — peppery, peaty and salty, with a profound Hebridean depth and afterglow

LAGAVULIN

West Coast Distinction
Lying off the west coast of Scotland, this green and fertile island in the Hebrides is rightly a select category of its own in the order of malt whiskies. Of all the distilleries on Islay, Lagavulin is the most distinctive — from its pear-shaped stills to its long, low warehouses by the sea where its malts are left to mature. Situated near Port Ellen, it was founded in 1816.

Dominating Character of Depth and Complexity
Islay whiskey is the most dramatic and complex of all. Whilst many different elements contribute to its distinctive, robust character, the effect of the peat on the water that flows over it is clearly evident in the whisky's taste. Lagavulin embodies all these attributes, but stands out from other Islay malts by its extra depth and silky dryness. Probably the most pungent Islay malt, Lagavulin is distinctive and robust with a heavy, powerful aroma. The smoky peaty taste is a delight to the discriminating drinker. Bottled with unusual maturity at 16 years, this is a malt to be sipped and savoured.

Tasting Notes
Colour::	deep gold
Nose:	heady and pungent with peat smoke, with a wee hint of salt
Body:	full and rich
Palate:	robust, dry flavour of peat dominates, with the tang of the sea surfacing occasional
Finish:	smooth, with a gentle bite to introduce the long, smoky afterglow of peat that lingers and warms the soul