A few months ago, I had the chance to receive some Glen Scotia & Loch Lomond samples for a special Tweet Tasting night… Unfortunately I couldn’t attend the event that night BUT still sampled the drams on my own [don’t judge ;)] – Let’s then go all the way to Campbeltown and see what I thought of the recently-released 25-year-old expression from Glen Scotia!

Glen Scotia has always produced two styles of whisky – peated and non peated. Typically the peated whisky is produced over a period of 6 weeks per year. These two styles will be  maintained into the future as they are characteristics of the Campbeltown style which  Glen Scotia is known for.

Over the years the quality of the whisky has improved with longer fermentation and vatting  of the malted barley as well as a slower and more careful distillation. But overall the process remains the same as it always was. “Although we no longer malt our own barley we buy in Scottish malted barley to our exact specification in order tomaintain the true  Glen Scotia character through our distilling process.” (read more)

Glen Scotia 25 is a mid-2017 addition, drawn from some specially selected casks and married in first-fill bourbon barrels before being bottled at 48.8% ABV.

Nose: Earthy and fruity with sea air, ripe tangerines, drift wood, herbal honey and strong oaky notes. The coastal influence shows well in the nose, subtly balanced by some richer and leathery aromas – almost feels like an old Mortlach that would have gone on a boat trip off the Scottish west coast!

Palate: Nicely complex with a rather oily texture. The fruity notes are even more present with bitter orange, Canadian reinette apples and roasted pineapple slices. Drier woody/earthy and iodine aromas bring a new dimension to the sweeter notes of caramel, ginger biscuits and barbecued marshmallows. I quite enjoy the “old fishersman cabin” vibe of this dram, making it a perfect whisky for a chilly Summer night.

Finish: Lingering with roasted walnuts, wood spices and cloves.