[Review] Còig Deicheadan - Blended Malt Scotch Whisky (Chorlton Whisky) 46.5%

For the last review, I tried a youngish (probably) sherried blended malt from Berry Bro's and Rudd. Today, a bit of the same but this time the sherried blended malt is a little old and it's from Chorlton Whisky. This is a bottle which was due to be released for Christmas but ended up being delayed and was finally out a couple of weeks ago.

So what is it?

First, where is it from? The bottle is produced by Chorlton Whisky a small independent bottler based in south Manchester. David, the owner is keen to present whisky he likes in the best way possible so his single casks bottles are offered at cask strength, in their original colour and without chill-filtration. A pretty good start.

Next, the name? Còig Deicheadan means Five Decades in Gaelic so you get where this is heading. 

The components? The information available for this bottle give us 4 names for this blended malt: Glenturret, Highland Park, Macallan and Bunnahabhain (looks like an Edrington mix!)

The age? The age stated on the bottle is 17 years old and I learnt that this is the age of the Glenturret. I do not know how old the Highland Park or Macallan are but the Bunnahabhain was distilled in 1968 so they will both be in-between (18-20 years old?) I guess you've done the maths on the Bunna' and now understand the name for the bottle!

The casks? Again as far as I understood, it all came from sherry wood originally before being married together in a sherry butt for six months. So a lot of sherry influence here.

So what does it taste like?

As you might expect, the colour is pretty dark, more like a Cognac or rum than a whisky, and it was bottle at 46.5%

Nose: Rich and fruity, oak, chocolate, dried fruits (prunes and raisins), sherry of course, nutty. There are some leather notes, brown sugar, fruit cake, vanilla and nutmeg, and a little underlying smokiness. Not a bad start at all!

Palate: Fruity again, some oak spice, dried fruit, muscovado sugar with a slight bitterness, candied peels, dark chocolate, a little Cognac-like.

Finish: Oak, chocolate, dark fruit, prunes, nutty sherry, brown sugar again, hints of black tea. A little drying but lingering for a while...

With water: The addition of a few drops bring a fresher, fruitier nose with some dark fruit jam. The palate does get more fruit and sugar notes losing some bitterness. The finish gets some extra cherry notes.

Overall I think it is a fantastic whisky which was well worth waiting for. It is just a shame there are only 211 bottles in existence, so if you see it in the wild, do not hesitate!

Slàinte!