Adelphi 2012 Casks

Right a few weeks back I got a few samples from some recent Adelphi casks. Single casks bottled at cask strength. It's taken a little while to give them my full attention - obviously you don't want to rush these things - so over the course of a couple of weeks I've tried each one twice and made these notes....

Balmenach
Cask 3265.
Distilled 1988, Bottled 2012. 23YO.
54.2%
170 bottles.

Nose: Playful, round, sweet and heady. Full bodied charmer. One to take home to meet the parents. Fruity, tropical citrus. Then a slight herby edge. Develops over time into aromas of Bakewell tart, fudge and cake. Occasional sterner hits of graphite, flint. Opens back up to softer cereal notes. A touch of key lime pie, orange Starburst sweets. Chocolate brownie big-style after some more time. Maybe some olbas oil. Back again with the green herb edge. Complex and inviting nose.

Taste: A slow builder. The spice is subtle, increases gradually with a slight rolling peak to it. There's an earthiness too. Perhaps mushrooms on toast - that earthy bit from the mushrooms, balanced against the malt edge of the toast. Savory.

Finish: Tangs it out with a slight bitter edge. The oak making a break for it. The lemon citrus fizz is short and a lick of salt makes itself known. The delivery is not as promising as the nose and perhaps a little bit shorter than expected.


Linkwood
Cask 5300
Distilled 1984, Bottled 2012. 27 YO
53.3%
261 Bottles.

Nose: Straight in with that Opal Fruit (showing my age there), lemon and lime and tropical nose. Great stuff and just what I love about Linkwood. Mouth-watering fruit, backed up and balanced by savoury notes. It took me a while to pin it down but that savoury part of the nose reminded me of that aroma of airplane seats and the dryness of wallpaper paste. Each to their own I suppose but that's what I got. Anyway this cask is a lot smoother, not as upfront and banging and a bit more finesse, refined, perhaps stately. There's a lot to consider as it zips about - there's more than a smack of crunchy green apples going on -  right big bag full. But also that lovely lemon sherbert fizz kicking around the margins. Definitely Linkwood all the way.

Taste: Big and full on. Crackles and crackling. Meaty. It's a typical Sheffield Hot Roast Pork. It's a Bacon sandwich. All the way. There's leather on the back and a subtle hit of smoke as it power slides it's way to it's conclusion.

Finish: Tangy with drying salt. Yeah salt. It's not exactly spice but it is subtle and it is strong. On the nose it's all fruit and sunshine and on the palate it's all power and strength. Hard motoring in a tropical paradise.


Bunnahabhain
Cask 948
Distilled 2000, Bottled 2011. 10YO
59.8%
636 bottles.

Nose: Sherry. Sweet and figgy. Slight tobacco. Big, bold and confident. Liquorice. Grilled meat. It takes a little while but then it opens up. Dusty wood, sherry, slightly perfumed. A touch of mint to keep it clean. Dark Cherry and fudge to warm it back up. After a second bash there's a soapy note I missed first time. The liquorice and cherry are still in place. Warming.

Taste: Like the nose, big and bold. Thick and chewy. Bitter Chocolate. Sweet sherry with a dose of chilli. Is it Bovril? More like Marmite - twiglets all the way.

Finish: Sharp and full. A slight bitter wobble at the end as the wood rumbles. For only 10 years it's a deep autumnal malt, both in colour and taste.


Bowmore
Cask 8
Distilled 1995, Bottled 2012. 16YO
54.4%
603 bottles

Nose: Sweet. Treacle cake. Stabby peat that jumps out and doesn't seem integrated. Very closed to kick off with. After a while begins to eek out some fruit and some balance. Light peat now. More shallow peat wrapped in honeycomb. Still a sharpness here and there. Bang - here we go - that's all Turkish Delight. And then snatched away back to engine oil and smashed orange. This reminds me a little of the Highland Park Signatory Unchillfiltered 19 YO current bottling. Tar. And boats. Tarpaulin.
Left overnight the glass takes on the most wonderful aroma. Old library. Books. Thames barge. Wet timber. Oil. Sails. Smoke. Wood burning stove. Salt. This is Maldon quayside in the winter. A thing of absolute beauty.

Taste: Big, dry and peat. Follows on from the nose with the sharpness. This is not a soft Islay. Light and then immediately hits in the middle of the tongue. Big peat, if slightly thin. Salt. Rope.

Finish: Salt and rope. Clanking boat lines in the wind. Alive and slightly electric. This dram is all about the sea. Not the brine, but the dry. Above the waves. Prevailing winds, sea spray. Deep winter. Wet timber. Endurance enjoyment.


Clynelish
Cask 4721
Distilled 1997, Bottled 2012. 14YO
57.2%
201 Bottles.

Nose: Orange and citrus and bacon fat. Full, thick and big. Complex goings on. Vibrant and woody. There's that bacon fat again. Scented candles???  Fragrantly fruity. There's some spice. Layers. Smoke, but charcoal embers not peat. Dying fire to a rising sun. Slight slight coastal salt. A touch of medicine cabinet but not much. Don't over play it. Soft leather. Gymkhana. Spent hay. Rain on tarmac. After the storm.

Taste: Ok this is.... Cmon Billy! That's a big delivery. Rears like a horse. Opens the traps.. wait for it.. then bang! Salt, sweet, spice. Layer and layer. Bitter, smoke. Bitter back to sweet. Back to salt. Wood. Mealy. Thoroughbred.

Finish: Smoke and salt to finish. A chilli kick but surging as opposed to Talisker's lightning bolt around the mouth zippiness approach. Robust and sharp.


Okay, some pretty great casks there from Adelphi. Quite hard to pick a favourite. The nose on the Balmenach is nothing short of absolute stunning, perhaps a big ask to maintain it on the palate but worth everything for that nose. Hmmm. Lovely. Deffo the best aroma of all the malts on show. Linkwood just reminds me of that old arcade game Outrun. It's a Ferrari Cabriolet with the foot down along the California coast road. It's such great fun to test drive. On the flip is the Bowmore which is it's exact opposite. Where there was sunshine there is now wind. Sea salt spray from waves. It's a sailors malt all the way. It has that homely feeling of being up against a wood fire as all the elements come closing in. Certainly not a beach holiday but hugely enjoyable in it's own way. Bunnahabhain does what it sets out to do in a very well constructed way. Well made and academically brilliant. But perhaps a bit too linear, a bit too in-the-box for me personally. Finally where Bowmore might be a boat, Linkwood a fast car, Clynelish is a race horse. Tight and muscular. Bold, striding, confident. Dense, complex and layered. A true thoroughbred.

This stuff is limited so if you do have the chance to pick up some of these bottles I recommend it, there's little to be disappointed by.