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Recently I was sent some samples from Dràm Mòr’s newest release by Viktorija Macdonald for reviewing. Of course, I am willing to make a sacrifice for the greater good, so here’s the first one!
Some years ago I met Viktorija’s husband Kenny at Maltstock. We had an awesome semi-drunk chat in which the man tried to teach my and my friend JP some Gaelic. But, at that point I was barely able to speak coherent Dutch, so it’s a miracle in itself that I remember this…
This isn’t an undisclosed Speyside whisky, it is actually from Speyside Distillery in, you guessed it, Speyside. This one specifically was finished in Moscatel casks which tends to make things a bit sweeter. I am curious to find out how this turns out with a youngster like this!
Sniff:
Quite some sweetness with hints of barley, charcoal and some honey. Brazil nuts, with their dryness. Almonds as well.
Sip:
The palate follows the nuttiness of the nose. Quite a dry one, but there’s fruit salad too, the tinned kind. Barley and a bit of porridge with honey.
Finish:
The finish has a youthful sweetness that shows the alcohol. It’s not hot, but it is young. Some nuts, pastry notes, a bit of fruit salad.
The rather amped up nuttiness of the whisky keeps the sweetness in check. I don’t mind that the youthful alcohol is noticeable. When a whisky is on the younger side, it’s not necessarily a bad thing to actually taste that. I prefer that to massive woody notes that haven’t integrated well.
The combination of the sweeter honey notes (but not too sweet) with fruit salad and nuts works really well. I’m very positively surprised by this one!
It’s available in Scotland for about £ 61, at The Green Welly Stop / Tyndrum Whisky, for example.
85/100