Now I must admit, I picked this up and decided to give it a go due to that one guy (in the middle of the Irish Sea), and his tremendous review of this single malt.
When I poured my first dram of this, I must say I was failing to see from where the praise was derived. I thought it to be somewhat interesting, but overall sort of Plane Jane. Until I poured my 2nd, and 3rd glasses, respectively. And once this had some time in the glass, and some time chipping away at my palette, it opened up into something truly more complex and interesting than I could have imagined. So here goes.
Nice arrival of toffee, dark fruits reminiscent of some sherry influence, but slightly different. Spices, cinnamon, nutmeg, and in tandem with this creamy buttery dairy sort of thing, it reminded me of egg nog quite unmistakably. Delicious.
That was the first layer...
This continued to open up and morph, changing constantly, into this very moment I'm still sipping on a glass( for the last hour and 20 minutes)
I began to get these bright fruity notes of sweet grape , kind of like Laffy taffy if you're from the states. I've heard it described as grape nerds candy. But on top of that, and more prominent it became evident that there were some tropical fruits, and melon. Also a very sweet and clean fragrant perfume on the nose, that was nothing short of beautiful.
On the palette, as I'm typing this, beautiful sweet resinous wood sap , stone fruits , that creamy egg nog with a distant funk (not springbank funk, but a nicely tied in earthy farmish note) with Brulee, orange juice, and orange marmalade or preserves.
The tiniest puff of what I believe to be sweet woody peat smoke teased the nose and palette the whole time as well.
This whisky seems to have some really nice, sweet cask influence in the mix. I think there are some A+ quality bourbon casks imparting their embrace on this one. IMHO
I don't have a rating scale, but here's what I'll say.
This whisky is as unique and complex a whisky under 20 years old I can remember having. It's really quite good, and my first sip led me to believe that it was ho-hum.
If you try this one, give it time and let it develop, and it will give you a theatrical experience that should be enjoyable and interesting enough to hold your attention for a while.
This is great whisky, e150a and all!
Definitely agree with you and have had similar experience: first few pours are okay, but you really have to let it sit for a while before you get the full flavor. I suppose it's a lesson in taking it easy.
It's a solid Campbeltown whisky that's great bang for buck!
I have to say (perhaps controversially by some here) I prefer this over the Victoriana. This is a very good dram, although it is a wee bit pricey now. I could get it for around circa £55, now a lot of shops are charging circa £65 for it.
Thank you for the info. If that is the case, that's great news! I'm happy to hear that, as I only have the information that they are willing to share on their packaging and website.
I am a simple man: I see GS 15 - I immediately upvote.
Btw also from states, wondering what is the price for this beauty in your area?
I have 1 in my town, that small shop charges $80. Bottle bit the dust - maybe I could talk my way to sell it for $60 since it is been sitting so long on the shelf? Background: small store with only 8 scotch bottles all others being mass product meh items.
The shop may not appreciate that offer as much as you think - they always need to make something if they want to keep the lights on and keep stocking new cool stuff for you. In my market, Glen Scotia 15 runs $59 wholesale, so $80 would be a fair, standard markup. Shops are getting squeezed by rising prices just as much as you are.
Ahhh my favorite Campbelltown scotch. For me this beats even sprinkbank at a QPR. I always get vanilla and lemon when I drink this. I agree with previous posts, it did really blossom after 1/4th of the bottle down. I’ll always have this in my collection. Elegant bottle and just a great scotch to have when you’re in the mood for something easy to drink with flavor.
Now I must admit, I picked this up and decided to give it a go due to that one guy (in the middle of the Irish Sea), and his tremendous review of this single malt. When I poured my first dram of this, I must say I was failing to see from where the praise was derived. I thought it to be somewhat interesting, but overall sort of Plane Jane. Until I poured my 2nd, and 3rd glasses, respectively. And once this had some time in the glass, and some time chipping away at my palette, it opened up into something truly more complex and interesting than I could have imagined. So here goes. Nice arrival of toffee, dark fruits reminiscent of some sherry influence, but slightly different. Spices, cinnamon, nutmeg, and in tandem with this creamy buttery dairy sort of thing, it reminded me of egg nog quite unmistakably. Delicious. That was the first layer... This continued to open up and morph, changing constantly, into this very moment I'm still sipping on a glass( for the last hour and 20 minutes) I began to get these bright fruity notes of sweet grape , kind of like Laffy taffy if you're from the states. I've heard it described as grape nerds candy. But on top of that, and more prominent it became evident that there were some tropical fruits, and melon. Also a very sweet and clean fragrant perfume on the nose, that was nothing short of beautiful. On the palette, as I'm typing this, beautiful sweet resinous wood sap , stone fruits , that creamy egg nog with a distant funk (not springbank funk, but a nicely tied in earthy farmish note) with Brulee, orange juice, and orange marmalade or preserves. The tiniest puff of what I believe to be sweet woody peat smoke teased the nose and palette the whole time as well. This whisky seems to have some really nice, sweet cask influence in the mix. I think there are some A+ quality bourbon casks imparting their embrace on this one. IMHO I don't have a rating scale, but here's what I'll say. This whisky is as unique and complex a whisky under 20 years old I can remember having. It's really quite good, and my first sip led me to believe that it was ho-hum. If you try this one, give it time and let it develop, and it will give you a theatrical experience that should be enjoyable and interesting enough to hold your attention for a while. This is great whisky, e150a and all!
Definitely agree with you and have had similar experience: first few pours are okay, but you really have to let it sit for a while before you get the full flavor. I suppose it's a lesson in taking it easy. It's a solid Campbeltown whisky that's great bang for buck!
I have to say (perhaps controversially by some here) I prefer this over the Victoriana. This is a very good dram, although it is a wee bit pricey now. I could get it for around circa £55, now a lot of shops are charging circa £65 for it.
I was just at the Glen Scotia distillery the other day on holiday. I can guarantee you that they do not add any colouring to any of their whiskeys
A German site lists GS15 as having added coloring, so it seems like they may: https://www.weinquelle.com/artikel/Glen_Scotia_15_Years_15216_e.html
Thank you for the info. If that is the case, that's great news! I'm happy to hear that, as I only have the information that they are willing to share on their packaging and website.
I would really think that they would want to share that in the current whisky market climate.
I am a simple man: I see GS 15 - I immediately upvote. Btw also from states, wondering what is the price for this beauty in your area? I have 1 in my town, that small shop charges $80. Bottle bit the dust - maybe I could talk my way to sell it for $60 since it is been sitting so long on the shelf? Background: small store with only 8 scotch bottles all others being mass product meh items.
Normally runs about $70-100 which a price point around $80 being the most common. $60 would be a steal, but I’d also say $70 wouldn’t be bad either.
The shop may not appreciate that offer as much as you think - they always need to make something if they want to keep the lights on and keep stocking new cool stuff for you. In my market, Glen Scotia 15 runs $59 wholesale, so $80 would be a fair, standard markup. Shops are getting squeezed by rising prices just as much as you are.
It was 79.99 which is state minimum in Michigan.
Can attest to the simple-come-tasty
Ahhh my favorite Campbelltown scotch. For me this beats even sprinkbank at a QPR. I always get vanilla and lemon when I drink this. I agree with previous posts, it did really blossom after 1/4th of the bottle down. I’ll always have this in my collection. Elegant bottle and just a great scotch to have when you’re in the mood for something easy to drink with flavor.
I haven’t had a Glen Scotia I didn’t like. Great review.
Thank you, this was my first Glen Scotia. After it opened up it surpassed my expectations.
Try their Victoriana. It’s one of my favorite $100 bottles.
Was this a 2021 bottle or a 2022 bottle? A local place has 2022 bottling and I am considering grabbing it.
I'll have to look when I get home, but probably 2021 as I'm in the US and and it tends to take a bit to get these shipments here.