Last week has been a week of Bunnahabhain for me, starting with a quartet of Bunnahabhain indies we tasted at the March MMI – Malt Mongers Israel meeting, went through the 28 year old Single Malts of Scotland (reviewed earlier this week), and ended with a tasting of a 25 year old Douglas Laing XOP.\
This was the opening dram of the flight. If you want to read about the last two, the two 26 years olds, Yoav Gelbfish reviewed them yesterday on his excellent Whisky Gospel blog.
Photo Credit: abbeywhisky.com
Cooper’s Choice 2001 Bunnahabhain 14 Years Old, Sherry Cask 1428, Yield 420 Bottles (46% ABV, NCF, NC)
Appearance: Bronze, thin legs.
Nose: Very malty, sherry with a lot of dried fruit, with sultanas and prunes. It’s developing a hint of leather, but isn’t quite there yet…
Palate: Thick and viscous, milk chocolate, white pepper, espresso coffee, some black pepper and dried fruit.
Linger: Lightly spicy and dry, some sweetness, lingering spiciness in the gullet and a touch of bitterness.
Conclusion
The nose is better than the palate. Overall very pleasant. Nice dram. This is exactly half the age and half the price of the Single Malts of Scotland reviewed yesterday, although that was bottled at cask strength whereas the Cooper’s Choice expressions are offered at 46% ABV, in practice there wasn’t a real difference in the ABV as yesterday’s Bunnahabhain evaporated down to 46.8%.