The first booth at Whiskies of the World this year was hosted by local retailer The Whisky Shop. They had four whiskies available to taste, two of which were exclusive bottlings. We started with the more readily available offerings, then moved on to their special barrels.
Glendronach 12 Year Original
Glendronach's core offering is a 12-year-old scotch aged in Pedro Ximenez and Oloroso sherry casks. The nose was interesting, evoking thoughts of a prairie field under light ethanol vapors. The palate was smooth with a medium mouthfeel, though slightly watery in nature. Some oakiness came through with a decent amount spice that continues into the medium-length finish, where it's the dominant note.
Glendronach 15 Year Revival
The 15-year-old Revival is matured in Oloroso sherry casks at the historic Glendronach Distillery. The nose is a pleasant, but very typical scotch offering with only light ethanol mixed in. My companion Bob detected a light peated note on the palate, with a layer of spice that blends into the heat nicely. The finish is fairly short, with only the peat coming through. There isn't much complexity in this dram, but it's a nice, solid scotch.
Edradour 9 Year 2011 Marsala Cask
This 9-year-old scotch from Edradour Distillery was aged in a first fill marsala hogshead before The Whisky Shop acquired this cask bottled by Signatory Vintage in April 2020. While Bob got caramel and floral notes from the nose, for me there was a mild essence of dark, red berries lingering as well. The palate had a medium mouthfeel, almost reminiscent of milk chocolate without being too sweet. That note was accompanied by caramel undertones which gave way to spice on the medium-length finish. Overall, a very nice scotch!
Linkwood 11 Year 2008 Bourbon Cask
Distilled by Linkwood, this second exclusive bottling from Signatory Vintage was matured in a first fill bourbon barrel for 11 years until last spring. For Bob, this one had a lot more ethanol on the nose; underneath that I detected notes of candied orange. The palate itself had a sweetness that reminded me of corn-based whiskies, yielding to a little spice on the fairly short finish.
Overall, The Whisky Shop gave us four very interesting whiskies to taste. Out of that selection, my personal favorite was one of their exclusive bottlings, the Edradour 9 Year 2011 Marsala Cask. Check out The Whisky Shop to see what other great bottles they have in stock, including many of the others we tasted at this event!