Review - Glen Scotia 1992 (G&M)

"Dusty Seaside Solvent Factory"


I have a considerable “backlog” of malts from the Single Malt Whisky Club (Australia) who essentially would send me (and bill me for!) a different bottle every month, usually something that you can’t just walk into a bottle shop and pick up. This is one of those, a Glen Scotia 1992 vintage by Gordon & MacPhail from 2009. Opened 2012-02-19, first tasted on day 2.


Nose: Acetone (paint thinner), sweet smoke, apricots, honey, brine and fragrant notes. The acetone appears quite harsh at first nosing, but soothes a little with time in the glass to release more subtle and pleasant aromas. Ignoring the acetone, somewhat reminiscent of Talisker 10 (minus some complexity). Not really as bad as it sounds though. I couldn't help but nose this for quite some time.
With water: Dulls the nose without adding to it.


Taste: A strong, bitter citrus delivery, accompanied by quite distinct "mustiness" in the middle. Like the whisky was aged in a dusty old barrel in a dark, dank warehouse. Oily, mouth-coating, white pepper and citrus-infused brine rounds it out. Strangely fascinating. But where is the malt? Oh well, no matter.. there's enough here to amply distract.
With water: Softens the delivery all round, but seems to emphasise bitterness at the finish


Finish: Initial bitter citrus burst followed by a build up of phenols and smoke. Maritime. Yep, this is a peated whisky. Phenols build and increase over a few seconds and peak with a satisfying crescendo, then falls slowly into a medium-long, dry finish. Subtly sweet malt note finally makes an appearance accompanied by a pinch of vinegar. Bitterness pervades throughout however and detracts slightly from this great finish.


Balance: Nose and taste both lacking in "roundness" - acetone dominates the nose; mustiness and bitterness the palette. Too heavily weighted to bitterness in taste and finish, the lack of malt sweetness to balance leaves one with a sense of one-dimensionality about this whisky.


Score: N19 T19 F22 B16  (76)






Round Two (@ 2 weeks, 2012-03-06)


Nose: ashes, gentle peat smoke, fruit, vanilla, barley sugar, just a whiff of glue stick. There is a real sweet, fruity edge to the nose that really satisfies.


Taste: oily citrus, dusty spices, pepper, solvent, peat and sweet malt, mouth-coating


Finish: citrus gives way to a peaty "punch" with a lingering, warm, dry earthy spice finish


Balance: Amazingly opened up now, the acetone / turps has downgraded to "glue stick" and the sweet development really rounds this dram out. I really like this. A lot. It's not perfect, but the "rough" edges have smoothed since opening which makes it more pleasant but without compromising on character.


Score: N21 T21 F22 B20  (84)






Round Three (@4 weeks, 2012-03-19)


Nose: gentle smoke, white grape, soft citrus fruits, malt, vanilla, hint of paint thinner, peanut brittle. Had to really work at it, nose seemed to have dulled a little in all departments.


Taste: juicy fruits, brine, intense citrus zest, solvent, pepper, wood shavings, peaty malt developing


Finish: initial zesty burst fades to pleasing bitterness, developing peat, chili, warming smoke, a hint of vinegar and ends with some short-lived spices and dry dust.


Balance: The nose is subtler now - the “in your face” paint thinner is mostly gone with only a hint remaining; the sweet fruits and nutty development brings another twist to this already bizarre dram. The palette takes on a more accessible profile exhibiting better balance at the expense of some character but still delivers. If the finish were a little longer this would be a really great dram.


I don’t think this will really develop any further with time in the bottle.


Score: N20 T21 F21 B21  (83)




Verdict


A confusing but ultimately rewarding dram. This really needs some time to fully appreciate. If tasted blind, I would have said the whisky can't be older than 10 or 12 years given the strength in delivery. Acetone and dust are the memorable themes. I personally don't mind the acetone nose; it is strangely addictive and has grown on me but will certainly not be everyone's cup of tea. Not sure about the mustiness though, jury's still out on that one. The phenolic maritime finish, developing soft fruits and sheer “oddity” makes this one a worthwhile and proud addition to my cabinet however. It's such an unusual whisky - island distiller meets solvent factory in the heart of Campbeltown.


Final (average) score: N20 T20 F22 B19  (81)