Distillery: Craigellachie

Region: Speyside

Price: N/A (dram at a bar)

Cask Type: Ex-bourbon hogshead

ABV: 51.7

Color: 0.8, deep gold

Nose: Beeswax, TONS of leather in freshly-unfurled hide form (think a lot more-than-Springbank 12 CS, but not overpowering), hint of talcum powder, stewing raspberry, fresh forest breeze with a slight freshwater spray like a babbling brook passing through the forest. Glorious. A rich and evocative nose. Best I ever had to date.

Palate: I almost held off on this review because what I got on the palate was so un-Craigellachie, until I found out afterwards I matched the tasting notes perfectly. Delicious browning butter. Savoury pastry - I would even say quiche. Toasted barley and straw. OB 17yo has richer mouthfeel at 46%, surprisingly, but this is above-average.

Finish: Moderate length. Honey, dates, moist carrot cake, orange zest, mango lassi?, iced tea, vanilla, whipped cream.

Conclusion: The nose is amazing, adding a lot of the "environmental" notes that I felt the OB 17yo lacked. There is no smokiness or roast here, only toast (which is different imho). Both the palate and finish are great for what they are, but there is way too little bright fruitiness, sweetness or even tannin to cut through the savoury richness. The characteristic herbal note in Craigellachie is also totally absent here, so you can't count on that to cut through the richness either. It felt like I'd get gout if I'd drunk anymore. But my goodness, that first hit of quiche and butter on the palate after nosing was intoxicating and shocking in a good way. It lacks a lot of the Craigellachie hallmarks - slight herbal notes, velvety weighty texture, bright fruits like grapes, syrupy maltiness, comforting smoky wood with a slight sulfuric funk (think cardboard packing box). It stands by itself as a good single-cask whiskey, nonetheless. But there is room for improvement. And don't expect it to be emblematic of Craigellachie's distillery character. I have been pining for a cask strength Craigellachie ever since I tried the 46% OB, and it has been relatively hard to find. Finding this IB gave me so much excitement and I can't help but be underwhelmed despite this being a good whiskey (not excellent) in its own right.

If it were named by the SMWS: Getting Gout on a Forest Hike

Score: 83

Scotch Review #4, Whisky Network Review #5