October 2023 Digest — Whiskery Turnip

Nov 4

Nov 4 October 2023 Digest

Welcome to a wrap-up of reviews from October 2023!

…And the first week of November. Yes, I am a few days late, but I figured with Halloween falling in the middle of the bridge week between two months, why not include all the ghastly reviews of closed distilleries in October? Fair enough, I say.

The end of October has been an absolute whirlwind, though when is life not that way: midterm exams, draft papers, emails, inquiries, and conference preparations have all came in fast and furious at the end of the month. Every semester, I try my best to stay on top of grading because I know at some point, I am going to fall behind. I was ahead of the game until that brief spell of sickness in September when I was out of commission for a good four days. I am yet to catch up after losing that time, though I am getting close… and just in time for the final push!

November promises a bit of respite once I get through a conference presentation and grading. The wife will be away for a few days on business travel of her own, which surely promises more time for whisky-related shenanigans and tastings, though, of course, no Ledaig or any of her favorites will be poured.

It is the best time of the year as we slowly pull into the holiday season. I know my students will be thrilled when I bring out the Pumpkin Spice Latte and explain how it is the perfect representation of the Silk Roads! I try not to get too tongue-in-cheek when I teach because there is always someone who misses the joke, but sometimes the fun is worth the risk.

So how about whisky in October?

The month kicked off with Glenburgie, one of my favorite distilleries, and several bottles that I actually own. Frequently, I review whiskies from friends, colleagues, bottle splits, or bars; I am far slower to review the bottles I own as I tend to pour them when relaxing rather than intentionally picking through notes and being present with each sip. However, a pair of 7-year-olds from SMWS (71.66 and 71.70) are two absolute favorites that have begun to get slightly low, and it was time to collect my thoughts. Joining them from my closet was a 10-year cask monster from SMWS (71.87) that I mostly shared with friends and then a 26-year from Signatory Vintage distilled back in 1983. That bottle was a remarkable discovery near my birthday earlier this year, and it did not disappoint.

The following week, I moved on to another one of my favorites: Arran’s Lochranza Distillery— or so I will call it so as not to confuse it with Lagg, whose malt has begun to appear here and there. Arran is one of my most reviewed distilleries, currently six on the list with 32 reviews. Yet, I have not had nearly as many opportunities to taste it in the last few years. I owe my buddy at Scotch&Sheen a good deal for hand-delivering a plethora of Arran samples to me just over a month ago. The standout from this batch was a 25-year bottled for Heng Jiou in Taiwan (you can also check out our collective group review over on maltrunners.)

From Arran, my whisky journey moved to Islay and the redoubtable Caol Ila, the dependable scion of Islay. I finally reviewed a 17-Year from Gordon & MacPhail I picked up a few years back, which remains one of my favorite Caol Ila. A brief foray to Longrow, Springbank’s heavily peated malt, followed next. I will draw attention to the 20-Year bottled for Springbank Society Members, which showed off the delightfully soft and mellow coastal side of the mature spirit. If I could afford to drink more Longrow like that, I definitely would.

The final week was ghastly and ghostly, with four closed distilleries. Three of those, Glen Mhor, North of Scotland, and Banff, were new to me, and the reviews that week were my very first… and considering the availability of those whiskies, possibly my last. Rosebank I had had once before, and I found this one a bit of a downer, though I was not quite as negative as my compatriot at Scotch&Sheen. The highland of the week was the Banff, whose profile offered a superb tribute to Surf Rock and the 1960s.

So what is to come in November? Well, I have tasting notes to clear out from back in September, especially the SMWS 40th anniversary bottles from earlier in 2023, which our local whisky club poured at a special tasting, but otherwise, little is set in stone with potential for excursions to Glen Moray, Springbank, Blended Scotch, or perhaps World Whiskies.

While there is a lot of flux, I found my dram to close out the year and ring in the new— a brilliant (I hope) 45-Year Glenburgie— courtesy of a good buddy who didn’t mind splitting his auction prize!

A few numbers from October: