The first independently bottled scotch we review as a crew tonight on S&P and a fitting dram to celebrate our 1-year anniversary of weekly team reviews. We've learned a lot this last year and feel ready to take this plunge from a higher deck into a new world of nuances and experiences :)
Cadenhead Glenrothes 9, Speyside, 65.3% ABV, $135 CAD, small batch of 3 hogsheads.
We sniff around:
Scott starts us off with balsamic vinegar. We like that. After it sits he gets a purest butterscotch pudding right out of the snack pack. Simon likes that. He gets a dense musty butterscotch, almost toffee.
Medicinal butterscotch.
For 65% the nose isn't scary.
Trevor goes more for an apple cider vinegar. Gets a floral note too.
Kyle gets BO and gym socks. You know that smell of a wet towell at the bottom of the laundry basket after a week? Simon agrees, it's a little moldy, dirty socks.
Boston cream filling.
We cheers.
First sip is a little too potent and punchy but it mellows quickly.
This evaporates fast.
Simon gets a strong toffee, fruity butterscotch, and a spicy note. The toffee stays for a while on the finish. Apricoty type of thing too, or overripe peaches. Warmth is gone now, just loads of toffee. Not everyone agrees. Sean's tastebuds are shot. He gets the apricot not so much the toffee. There's a tootsie roll flavor there too.
Scott goes for sour citrus. Fruitiness for sure. Still searching for the butterscotch. Gets a little mediciny taste. Little chocolate flavor. Likes the tootsie roll note. That's a note that we got out of the Glenrothes 12 we reviewed last year. Simon agrees, this is Glenrothes 12 on roids.
Reviews: Trevor's pick so he starts us off. There's things going on here. This can be hard to handle. Likes the nose more than the taste. He's having a hard time enjoying it, at least right now. It's almost not enjoyable, but it has some interesting things going on, so he goes 73. This is Simon's favorite scotch for round 4. It's spicy but as soon as you get to sip 3 it really opens up and you get toffee tootsie roll and fruity notes, strong finish, good complexity, this is great. Rates it a 87. Scott agreed with Trevor at first but then he realized he's contradicting himself. This is definitely not for beginners, but it offers a lot. He just keeps finding himself pouring more. Not the kind of drink you can just have, or that you would reach for it very often. Tough to put a number on. He wouldn't share with anyone outside S&P, just too intense, even for someone who likes scotch. You can't really recommend it. But at the same time it's fun. He's perplexed. Lands at 84 for him. Sean likes it. It's a punch in the face initially but it settles down. Pairs nicely with a cigar. Pins it at 80. Kyle puts this in the category with Amrut Fusion in the sense that it has its own thing going on. He likes the smell, not something he'd want a cologne of but fun in an odd way. Lands on 85. Averages out to 81.8.
Overall: Disclaimer: pick this up at your discretion. It ends up doing pretty well for us but it's hot and potent. Very fun to try this after Glenrothes 12. You see the family ressemblence there. Will look forward to more Glenrothes but especially to more Cadenhead.
Cheers!
The S&P Crew.
Comments