Brig o' Perth 11 Year Old Blair Athol 'Vino De Color' Sherry Cask Finish - 54.7%
Brig o’ Perth was originally produced in 1896 by Perth wine merchant Matthew Gloag & Sons in the basement of their family shop as their ‘house blend’. In recent years the whisky had only seen sporadic outings and, when the founder of The Whisky Cellar, Keith Bonnington left Edrington Distillers, he decided to buy the brand. This limited edition bottling was produced to celebrate the history and legacy of the Brig o’ Perth blend.
From the bottler
Vino de Color, a mix of unfermented Pedro Ximinez grape juice and dark sherry is one of the oldest styles of Spanish Sherry wine, intensely sweet and syrupy. Casks of this type hardly ever come up for sale and, when this 150 years old cask did, we snapped it up. A mere 3 months in the cask has taken this weighty Blair Athol spirit into extreme ‘Sherry Bomb’ territory.
Notes of treacle syrup, bleach Tartarian cherries, charred edges of Christmas cake and espresso coffee sit on top of a medium-long finish that brings back Sunmaid California raisins nostalgia.
Vino de Color Finish #3078, a limited release of 467 bottles.
Tasting Notes:
Appearance: Mahogany colour, forms a thin line which beads before falling as slow, thin legs.
Nose: Dundee fruit cake with a slightly crispy top, dried fruit and rich roast coffee.
Palate: Dried fruit by the bucketful, juicy raisins, cherries and sultanas, date syrup, toasted almonds. It’s like drinking a booze-soaked Dundee fruit cake alongside an espresso. With water, loses a little of the fruit and gains astringency.
Finish: Slightly drying, nutty oak, musty library books, marzipan while black liquorice, ginger and cinnamon bring spicy warmth. A few drops of water bring out milk chocolate to compliment the nuts and raisins, but adds more drying oak.
Summary: The Whisky Cellar are rapidly becoming one of my favourite independent bottlers and they’ve really knocked it out of the park with this one. When I first read the description I felt it could be a little too sweet, but this is deep, rich and elegant with a great balance between the spirit and the influence of the cask.
I remember being impressed by the Brig o’ Perth 14, but this one takes it up several notches. At £75, for me this gives great value for money and is well worth seeking out.
If you would like to know more about The Whisky Cellar and their range of whiskies, please follow the link to the company website.
The Whisky Cellar whiskies are available at retailers such as Top Whiskies and Master of Malt, click the images below to be taken to their websites.
Transparency: this sample pack was received free of charge for independent review. The author has no affiliation with the bottler, all opinions are my own and remain completely impartial.
