Side by side : Oban

Oban doesn't seem to get mentioned very much in Social Media or blogs - maybe because Diageo haven't created social media accounts or even the distillery's own website - it's just a small part of the drink's giants mega malts.com website. There is a US website though.

Let's find out a little more...

Oban brewery was built in 1793 by brothers John, James and Hugh Stevenson with distilling taking place on the site shortly afterwards, the town and port sprang up around it. 

Oban distillery has changed hands a number of times in its history and is now owned by Diageo with the whisky forming part of the Bells blend. The 14yo single malt represents the West Highlands in Diageo's Classic Malts of Scotland range.

Oban is a small distillery having only a single pair of stills, it works at well below its maximum capacity (producing less than 0.7 million litres per year) in order to produce a light spirit, the wooden worm tubs, fed by unusually short lyne arms, are ran hot to extend the amount of copper available, and the still doors are opened after distillation to allow oxygen to rejuvenate the copper.

Lets see what the whisky is like...

Dram	Oban 14yo	Bay Reserve The Night’s Watch (Game Of Thrones)	2009 10yo Single Cask #700312 (BYO)
Characteristics	43% ABV Coloured, Chill-filtered Refill bourbon	43% ABV Coloured, Chill-filtered Refill bourbon	55.6% ABV Natural Colour, NCF Refill bourbon
Distillery notes	A combination of rich sweetness with a smoky dryness and appetising spice distinguishes this lovingly-matured Highland malt. Nose: Oily, waxy and nutty, balanced by ripe orchard fruits. Notes of almond fruit cake on denser Christmas pudding, with cereal and orange behind. Palate: The comforting chewiness of rich fruit-bread, hints of orange zest and clove, growing drier, still minty, with crisp green apple. Finish: In a word, long. Quite syrupy at first, then drying, with elegant coating tannins rich in dark chocolate character.	The liquid's richness is balanced with a woody, spicy dryness that The Night's Watch could enjoy even on the coldest of nights. Appearance: Golden amber and slightly viscous as it forms and slowly tears down the side of the glass; this alludes to the mouth coating richness of the liquid. Palate: The initial sip confirms the richness with a wave of heavy, luxurious notes of Morello cherry pie and candied orange peel that burst open on the palate. Finish: Flavours continue to open up on the palate before drifting into a wonderful crème caramel and a wisp of charred Oak.	I filled this myself during a recent visit to the distillery.  Apart from saying refill bourbon there were no other notes.
My thoughts:
Appearance
	Mid gold (coloured), swirls cling and fall as slow thin legs.	Mid gold (coloured), swirls cling and fall as slow thin legs.	Mid gold, swirls cling as a thin line, form beads in an inverted crown and fall as slow thick legs.
Nose	Orchard fruit - pears, apricots and peaches with a hint of orange citrus. There's a little seaside saltiness and a hint of smoke.	A little fresher - some fresh cut grass notes alongside the orchard fruit and citrus. A little maritime breeze but no smoke to speak of.	Smoke comes first here - it's gentle but upfront. Not much in the way of maritime notes - pear drops, vanilla custard and a little butterscotch.
Palate	Thin smooth spicy arrival, orange zest, poached pears in honey and a dry icing sugar note. A few more sips offer a little salted caramel and almond.   There's a citrus fizz left on the tongue as the liquid disappears.	Again thin and spicy, the citrus is a little toned down, the orchard fruit more to the fore, again a little honey note. A few more sips offer some dried fruit and chocolate. A hint of hedgerow berries and oaky woody notes - again very drying.	Thick waxy arrival, oaky spice bites first then there is a honey toffee sweetness. Hints of orchard fruits and heather gently blanketed in peat smoke. A few more sips offer a little in the way of maritime notes.
Finish	Long lingering oaky spice with a honey and dry icing sugar note.	Long lingering oaky spice with a chocolate note - very drying.	Medium length sweet salted caramel and dry icing sugar.
Overall	To be honest I was expecting something like a Campbeltown dram - a slap in the face with smoky seaweed  but these drams were nothing like that - these aren't Ardmore or Highland Park - a little more Speyside than Highland. The 14yo and Night Watch were a little thin - chillfiltered to take out a lot of the flavour. The single cask was a little different thick, waxy and full of typical ex-bourbon toffee and vanilla notes - nice! All three offered some smoky orchard fruit notes, the 14Yo & Night Watch with a little bite of spice that was missing from the single cask. On the other hand the 14yo lacked the maritime notes of the Night Watch and Single Cask - so all a little different! There's always been a little confusion on the 14yo bottle as there is the number 14 but no associated letters to indicate years of age - I'm assuming it's 14yo, an unusual age statement, there aren't many 14yos old there!