Glen Scotia Campbeltown Malts Festival 2023 Lightly Peated White Port Cask Finish - 54.7%
From the distillery
Our annual limited edition Festival bottlings are intriguing, bold, and appeal to those looking to be wonderfully surprised. After a 12-month finish in white port casks, this 11-year-old lightly peated single malt is brimming with bright spiced orchard fruit flavours interwoven with a signature Campbeltown soft smoke and sea salt.
Nose: Warming spiced stone fruit, almost like stewed white peach & cloves, with a fresher lemongrass and a slight mineral element.
Taste: Molasses, caramel sweetness with more prune and fig notes with waxed wood and sandalwood spice
Finish: Fills the mouth with a long fragrant finish
Tasting notes:
Appearance: Forms a thin line which beads before falling as slow, thin legs.
Nose: Beeswax, dark stone fruit, red berries, Scrumpy cider, soft subtle smoke, foam bananas, pear drops, coastal breezes and a slight puff of struck match.
Palate: Oily, almost waxy mouthfeel. Medjool dates, figs, honey and cinnamon combine with maritime saline and gentle ashy smoke.
Finish: Nutty oak, leather, mild astringency, coastal salt and a hint of cinnamon spice.
Summary: This is such a well crafted whisky, providing plenty of character and great balance. White port is an unusual cask finish, pairing it with a lightly peated spirit is something I hadn’t come across before but in this case it works beautifully. The typical Glen Scotia character of that viscous, oily mouthfeel and saltiness to the finish are still there, just to give you a reminder of what’s in your glass.
If you can still get hold of a bottle these retail at £65 which, for me anyway, represents excellent value…and that brings me onto the thorny subject of festival bottle prices.
I was always of the impression that festivals are supposed to be a celebration, to be enjoyed by everyone. These days an increasing number of brands seem to be using them as an excuse to release distinctly average quality bottlings at inflated prices because of the ‘limited edition’ tag. Is it because they know many of these limited editions will end up in the hands of collectors and investors and will never be opened, or because they see their most loyal of followers as a cash cow, or perhaps a combination of the two?
Brand loyalty is a powerful thing, but it can easily be lost when your customers feel like it’s being exploited. In the current economic climate many people are having to look closely at their finances and cutting down on items perceived as a luxury. As a result, value for money has become a huge driver. Thankfully there are still bottlings like this that provide excellent bang for the buck.
If you would like more information on this whisky, or the Glen Scotia distillery, follow the link to the company website.
