Imperial 18 Year (1995), Signatory Vintage for Asta Morris
Whisky: Imperial 18 Year (1995), Signatory Vintage for Asta Morris
Country/Region: Scotland/Speyside
ABV: 52.4%
Cask: Bourbon Cask
Age: 18 Years (Distilled 21 Aug. 1995, Bottled 24 May 2014)
Nose: Cream, apples, pears, hints of cracked black pepper and whole nutmeg, malty sugars, honeysuckle, soft florals, preserved citrus.
Palate: Medium-bodied with preserved citrus, pepper, oak, hints of butter, cream, and salt, honeysuckle and dandelion greens toward the end, mellow green tobacco leaf.
Finish: Medium length with citrus and pepper.
Score: 6
Mental Image: Backyard Adventures
Narrative & Notes: The aroma was mild, with soft notes of cream and a bountiful orchard of apples and pears. Malty sugars led the way for mellow cracked black pepper and whole nutmegs. Honeysuckle and soft florals slowly developed with hints of preserved lemon. The palate was sweet and tangy with a lovely herbal undercurrent that carried from back to front. Preserved citrus waved hello first while pepper and wood arrived shortly behind. Old wood notes mellowed with hints of butter, cream, and salt on the mid-palate before green and herbal adventures of honeysuckle and peppery dandelion developed at the end. The finish was medium length with citrus, pepper, and cream.
A fascinating Imperial that nodded at creaminess for which the distillery was famous but which leaned toward wood and citrus. A tad spirited on the palate, the flavor profile matched the nose closely, though the flavor notes arrived in reverse order. The prickly spirit and pronounced wood notes were not always pleasant to my palate, but the dram faded with a delicious creaminess and herbal memories of backyard adventures. A few drops of water brought more order to the glass without compromising the flavor structure.
Overall, an enjoyable throwback to a lost distillery. This was no legendary bottle, but it was pleasant. Imperial remains one of the easier ghost distilleries to find, as it only closed for good in 1998. It has since been demolished, though the Dalmunach distillery began operation on the same site in 2015.
Image Credit: Whisky Auctioneer
