Signatory Vintage Ballechin 2004 Aged 16 Years Bottled for La Maison du Whisky

Style: Sweet and Smoky

Rating: ☆ [Recommended]

Nose:

Rustic aroma of rice husk lifts lid on rather sumptuous dark plums laced firmly with cod oil and cold coal beads. Incredibly fragrant pineapples conjugate and bind with the malt at the core. Ruby grapes, smoked plums, scattered with a few peppermint stalks around them. Kelp; Aged balsamic vinegar drizzling on roasted almonds. Nutmeg, toffees and a pinch of cinnamon dust lifting the tail.

Palate:

More smoky plum goodness at the front, the peat smoke beefs the perfumed sweetness up and gives it plenty of depth. Sour plum drink, more cod oil and then the pineapple-malt beaming positively in the middle. In comes black pepper, chilli and cherry sauce giving a nice bite behind the core. Ginger shreds melding with peppermints, chocolate-dipped candied orange cutting through the cinnamon smokescreen. Going slightly chalky at the back, but the malt remains nice and clean till the end.

Finish:

Plums, red grapes, glazed oranges and cranberries released from the dirty, smoky grip, while malt is on the verge of converting to hay as the peat precipitates. A light pu-er tea tail.

Thoughts:

Sometimes red wine casks might go a bit too chalky which feels almost a fault to me. When I opened this a year ago I was worried as the chalky notes were there, but reviewing it today it feels the chalkiness has mostly evaporated, while the core sweetness and smokiness come through and shine beautifully. Delicious, funky, intense but delicate at the same time, this Ballechin is certainly an interesting dram.

[52.7% | Independent Bottling | 2004 Distilled | 2020 Bottled | Single Cask | 275 Bottles | Cask Number: 8 | Cask Strength | Natural Colour | Ex-Burgundy Wine Cask]

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