A Signature Journey

If you've been reading this blog for a while you may have gone back and read my first post about how I got into whisky - my first distillery visit to Edradour near Pitlochry in the Highlands. Now when I visited back in the last century it was owned by Pernod Ricard but shortly after my visit in 2002 it was bought by a local independent bottler by the name Signatory Vintage Scotch Whisky Company.

As well as distilling Edradour and peated whisky under the name Ballechin, they buy casks from other distilleries and bottle them under the name Signatory Vintage. Over the years I've tried a few of these and always been very impressed.


Over the last few months, without realising, I managed to put together a small collection of drample swaps from SV so decided to review them all together.

Mortlach 15yo 43% Sample from @Bearded_Whisky

In the glass: pale gold, almost Islay like! Swirls lead to then fast legs.

Nose: Not an awful lot going on here - some damp grass, honey, lemon juice.

Palate: Surprisingly thick, full of honey and lemon notes, very smooth but with typical spicy oak kick from 15 years in  hogshead. Citrus notes intensity after a few sips - lovely.

Finish: Slightly drying, spicy more of the citrus and honey notes.

Notes: This is the first Mortlach I've actually enjoyed, I've tried a few but never been impressed - this is a lovely spicy honey dram!

WB

Edradour 13yo Barolo Finish 57.4% Sample from @The_Cask_Blog

In the glass: Dark brown with a red hue, gravity defying swirls lead to slow thick legs.

Nose: Loads of red fruit here - strawberries, raspberries and black cherries. There's some vanilla hiding in there somewhere but the fruit really shines through.

Palate: Very smooth, slightly sour/bitter - dark chocolate full of berries and cherries, drying. The ABV doesn't really show through on this one.

Finish: Very drying, sour cherries.

Notes: For those who don't know Barolo is a well thought of red wine from Northern Italy. The wine may be good but I'm not sure about the whisky finished in it's barrels....

WB

Glen Elgin 21yo 46% Sample from @Bearded_Whisky

In the glass: Very pale gold, gravity defying swirls lead to slow thin legs.

Nose: Slightly perfumed, honey, cookie dough, a little oak.

Palate: Very smooth but bland syrup, a hint of poached pear and a big kick of ginger spice. Very drying.

Finish: Unbelievable drying note on this one follows down the throat, there's more of the spicy ginger and a hint of smoke.

Notes: This is the first Glen Elgin I've tried, it's not a dram you come across very often - it's normally destined for the White Horse blend. The nose is lovely bu the palate is a little plain, the finish is very surprising and a lovely ginger spice is left in your mouth! Worth hunting out!

WB

Deanston 11yo 64.6% Cask Strength. Sample from @Bearded_Whisky

In the glass: Rich orangey gold colour, swirls stick to the glass then evaporate without any legs forming.

Nose: nasal hair burning typical sherry bomb dunnage warehouse, dark chocolate, orange oil - yummy! This one deserves to be left in the glass for a while and rewards you with another layer of complexity - there's some raw steak ready for the bbq and hints of honey and strawberries. With a drop of water the steak notes are more pronounced.

Palate: Initially very sweet with oily treacle which coats the tongue, some strawberries but develops into sour cherries and dark chocolate. Mouth sappingly dry with a gentle spice. With a drop of water the bitter dark chocolate comes to the fore with notes of oak, the strawberries come back too.

Finish: Warming with a gentle spice but very dry.

Notes: An amazingly complex dram, one to try with and without water but either easy to sip slowly after a time nosing it's depths. Yummy!

WB


Summary:
As I said at the beginning I've tried a few Signatory drams in my time and always been very impressed. I'd have to revise that slightly with the Edradour - it just was just ordinary. The Deanston on the other hand was excellent - well worth finding if it's still available - if not try another of Signatory's excellent range!