Whisky: Glenkinchie 10 Year (c. 1990s)

Country/Region: Scotland/Lowland

ABV: 43%

Cask: Oak

Age: 10 Years

Nose: Botanical with hay and dried grass, roasted barley and malt, subtle florals, honey and chamomile tea, old wood with a touch with rot.

Palate: Light-bodied, mild and approachable, wood, vanilla, dry palm fronds, coconut meat and husk, pineapple rind, grass and pepper toward the end.

Finish: Medium to long with dried grass, wood, and pepper.

Score: 6 (78)

Mental Image: Late-Summer Renaissance Fair

Narrative & Notes: The aroma was lively and botanical, almost gin-like initially, with a gradual transition toward hay and dry grass— like a slightly brown field in the late summer.  Roasted barley extract and malt offered some sweeter notions with hints of florals, honey, and chamomile tea.  Something akin to old slightly rotting wood and termite damage lingered in the background; a more pleasant contrasting note than it sounds.  Light-bodied on the palate, the flavors were mild and approachable with old wood, vanilla, woven palm fronds, and coconut meat with husk, like scooping the meat a bit too deeply into the flesh and picking up some of the woodiness.  Pineapple rind arrived with dried grass and a touch more pepper toward the end.  The finish was medium to long with dried grass, old wood, and pepper.

I enjoyed this as a warm up dram during a recent visit to Singapore’s Swan Song, a stunning whisky bar that sits as an island of tranquility among rows of outdoor dining and restaurants.  This whisky was much as I expected, pleasant, but not stunning— something suitable to awaken the senses without blowing them out.

It was less fresh than some of the other Glenkinchie I have had and leaned more toward a late summer vibe than some of the green and early summer of spring notions I associate with the Lowland distillery.  The rotted or termite-ridden wood note reminded me of the wet cardboard I found on a 1989 Distiller’s Edition— in each case the note was more pleasant than it surely sounded.

Overall, something mellow and enjoyable.