So how about that kick ass tasting!!! Nice going brother Bluff–over the top. I’m sure this will be the beginning of many postings about the evening, what we learned, what it inspired in each one of us. To begin, here are some photos of the night. (Chancellor, we may need a new categoty here for our tastings). The photos.
Know your Clynelish and it’s sister distillery Brora!!! There really are two…or is that one…or is that two? 😀
Let’s start with Brora which is the name of a fishing and resort town where there are located two distilleries…
1) The first of these two distilleries was established in 1819 by the Marquis of Stafford (later the Duke of Sutherland by marriage). It was named Clynelish and when viewed from the outside with its hump-backed hill rising behind, is a fine example of the classic, close-knit little Victorian distillery – steeply sloping warehouse roofs, an imperious pagoda head rising high above everything but the chimney-stack and a fort-like cluster of stone buildings round a courtyard. This distillery ceased production in 1983.
2) The second of these distilleries went into production in 1967. The original distillery ceded it’s name, Clynelish, to this distiller. It is attractive in the modern way, but anonymous. Land from Clynelish Farm was acquired and water supplies were augmented from the Clynemilton Burn. The new Clynelish is three times the size of the original and has three pairs of stills. It very much continues the tradition of the original Clynelish.
3) Between 1967 and 1983 (or so) both of these distilleries, in the town of Brora, were in production. The original, classic/Victorian-styled, distillery was re-named Brora, after the town, and used an especially highly peated malt.
4) Clynelish, the somewhat anonymous and modern distillery, is still in production today and uses a medium peated malt. Both, Brora and Clynelish, in fact, are a classic case of a coastal malt having a slightly “island” character.
When you see Brora think:
Originally called Clynelish, from 1819, with the classic pagodas and courtyards, re-named with the new Clynelish was built and closed in 1983…some independent bottlings do exist. Snatch them up if you like a heavily peated “island” type malt.
When you see Clynelish think:
Modern distillery, still in operation, with a nice medium peat with “island” characteristics from the Northern Highlands.
Quietly Littlemill has disappeared from retail shelves. Like an extinct species it’ll never return. It stopped production in 1994 and a fire in the fall of 2004 was the final nail in the coffin. Littlemill was one of the oldest distillery in Scotland–built in 1772. The Lowland region was at one time the biggest Scotch producing region now only Auchentoshan, Bladnoch and Glenkinchie remain open. Littlemill was characteristically light with lavender and lemony notes. A distinctively different whisky which, in part, made it so great IMHO.
The Scapa distillery was founded in 1885 by John Townsend and MacFarlane, distillers from Glasgow, and is settled on the banks of the famous “Scapa Flow”. The distillery had a century of production involving few changes of ownership. During World War I, the distillery barely avoided a fire thanks to the intervention of sailors of the Royal Navy. The distillery was used as an ammunition depot for the British army. It was silent for two years from 1934 and was owned for a time by the Bloch brothers, the owners of Glen Scotia distillery in Campbeltown. In 1954 Hiram Walker bought the distillery and he added amongst other things a Lomond still. Scapa was rebuilt in 1959 with further internal improvements made in 1978.
The water supply carries a considerable amount of peat from the Lingro Burn and local springs, as a result of which the barley it uses is left unpeated. The waterwheel that supplied power to the original distillery is still there but the maltings were taken out of use in the 1960s not long after the rebuilding of the distillery.
The distillery has a single pair of stills, one of them is of the Lomond type, a rare feature. It has a short, stubby top instead of the elongated goose-neck heads customary in Scottish distilleries. An appealing aspect for hard-line traditionalists is that the whisky is made without the usual hi-tech automation. The distillate intended for bottling as a single malt is aged exclusively in ex-Bourbon casks – which is oakwood charred on the inside of the staves. Over the years, most of the distillery output has gone into the Ballentine’s blend.
The distillery was mothballed in 1994. A year ago, in the spring of 2004, owners Allied Distillers committed to reopening the distillery investing £4 million in Scapa and Glendronach distilleries using traditional building skills and techniques in order to retain the unique style of malt produced. Scapa has been fully operational (purportedly) since January 2005 with intermittent production. Further work being phased over a two-year period. Scapa is currently managed by its Orkney neighbor, Highland Park the northern most distillery in Scotland.
The 2 Scapa stills (with the Lommond on the Left)
Views of the beautiful Scapa terroir:
I don’t know how many of you got this email from Sean Hartif of Sam’s Wine & Spirits but it seems that there are (only) 2,400 bottles of Springbank 21 out there to be had and Sam’s can get us some/one. I know that there are some serious fans of Springbank in the KOTQ – particularly the 21. So…I know the interest level is there but check out the price too! If you are interested please let me know as you can only order by replying to the email that I have in my in-box.
Subject: RARE Springbank 21
Date: Wed, 1 Jun 2005 14:50:57 -0500
From: “Sean Hartig”, seanhartig @samswine.com
To: “Bob McMurray”, robertmcmurray@yahoo.com
Gone for the past 4 years and will probably be gone for another 4 years….. but its here now and that’s what is important.
The Springbank 21 year old @ $499.99 each
Only 2,400 bottles were produced of this legendary dram.
The color is deep amber. Rich , mature and full bodied with hints of sugared almonds and sweet peaches. Both malty and sweet well balanced with milk chocolate , honey , raisins and marzipan notes all initially evident . The finish is both long and satisfying with sweetness coating the palate. The maturity of the 21 year old comes from the high percentage of older casks used.
Springbank 21 year old ABV – 46% , Outturn – 2400 bottles,
Cask types – Re-fill Sherry casks , Cask ages – Casks from 1969 and 1971
