Whisky : Longmorn 15 Year SMWS 7.228 “Say it with nettles”

Country/Region : Scotland/Speyside

ABV : 59.4%

Cask : Refill Ex-bourbon Barrel

Age : 15 Years (Distilled 11 Feb. 2004)

Nose :  Waxy, herbal, and full of musty wet rainforest.  Sweet aroma of palm sugar, coconut sticky rice, unripened pineapple, Korean pear, and muddled mint leaves.

Palate :  Fruity and creamy profile with a medium body.  Waxy, almost paraffin-like, notes encase sweet fruits. Citrusy finger limes, cream filled pastries, and condensed milk give way to tart notes of black cherry and white wine poached pears. Menthol and resin come through on the backend along with a mild dry nuttiness.

Finish :  Lingering sweet fruit sugars with a mildly tannic astringency.

Score : 5

Mental Image : Pho Bowl Fixings

Something Better : Caol Ila 10Y SMWS 53.305 (similar Korean pear, fruits, and herbal bite)

Something Worse : Glen Scotia Victoriana (similar unripened tropical fruits, more pastries)

Notes :  A tasty Longmorn that showcased a really herbaceous malty profile balanced against a lovely creamy-waxiness.  It had an interesting dryness and good transition between different layers on the palate.  This Longmorn was an interesting contrast with the juicy tropical fruits that I usually look for in single malts from the distillery.  I am not sure I really enjoy the herbal-dryness as much as I do the juice-fruit, even with some of the lovely malty-pastry character present.  So while this was a fine bottle and I would happily drink it, this was not the kind of Longmorn I seek out.  That is of course the gamble with single cask bottles, you never quite know where they will end up— though the SMWS name and notes are a pretty big clue what to expect.