Inchgower 1993 (Single Cask #7917) The Manager's Choice 70cl

Inchgower 1993 (Single Cask #7917) The Manager's Choice 70cl

A single cask Inchgower which is like rocking horse s.................

Diageo Managers' Choice. Distilled 7-10-1993, bottled 14-05-2009. Bodega Sherry European Oak cask 7917, bottle no. 107 of 564 bottles.

Inchgower was built in 1871 to replace the old Tochineal Distillery, owned by Alexander Wilson & Co. It hummed along until 1936 when Alexander Wilson & Co went bankrupt and it was bought by the Buckie Town Council before being sold on to Arthur Bell & Sons. These days it’s owned by Diageo. Most of the output from Inchgower still goes into Bell’s blends but there are a few single malt bottlings knocking around out there like this Inchgower 15 Years Old The Managers’ Choice 1993 Cask #7917. Bottled as part of Diageo’s Managers’ Choice series, this single cask bottling was aged for 15 years in cask no. 7917 before being bottled at a big and bold cask strength of 61.9 %. It has a nose of coffee, leather, earth and cooked fruits. The palate is waxy and a little oily with pepper, sherry and ginger. The finish is long with a spicy edge.

TASTING NOTES

Colour

Deep, polished mahogany with crimson flashes in sunlight.

Nose

Initially, very reserved. Notes of liquorice, bubblegum and clove top the faintest hints of sawn oak, burnt oak and bitumen. Suggestions, too, of the sea; brine, ozone and salt air. Fresher with water; traces of pear, red apple, eucalyptus, linseed oil and sandalwood.

Palate

Astonishingly cool at first. Dense, with a near-impenetrable herbal bitterness. Italian bitters [Fernet Branca]. Rapidly becomes fierce and intensely drying. Pure liquorice and strong Assam black teas. Water transforms some tannin character into a perfumed, slightly oily, sweetness with hints of quinine and citrus pith.

Finish

Beyond bitterness comes enormous complexity: Myrrh-like in its resinous astringency it hints at molasses sweetness; peat and tar, brine and ozone; burnt fruit cake, and late bitter chocolate.

The essence of this exceptional malt, of truly hard core complexity when taken at cask strength, lies almost wholly in the finish. Though a challenge to decode, it will eventually yield its secrets with a little water and a patience.

61.9% ABV

70cl