Coleburn 1972 - 2000 Connoisseurs Choice

Distilled in 1972, this Coleburn was bottled by Gordon & MacPhail in 2000 in the Connoisseurs Choice series. This series has been around since the late 1970s and has changed etket regularly. Colloquially, this version is called 'old map label'.

Tasting note

Nose

Honey is the first thing mentioned. Not that sweet commercial honey, but a honeycomb with the bees still buzzing around it. Also fresh notes befitting white wine and especially older white Burgundy. Vanilla, caramel and some copper notes.

Taste

Apple pie with vanilla cream and sea salt butter that is lightly burnt. Hints of tar and dark tea (lapsang souchong), but also a touch of acidity as we know from fino sherry. The tasters are clear, this is hard to compare with other distilleries. Full, round and a hint of smoky. 

Finish

The finish is medium-long. The 40% alcohol is a shame, because with a little more alcohol this would have been a real masterpiece. Now it is a very good performance from Coleburn distillery.

Overall impression

How many more chances are there to taste whisky from Coleburn? Indeed almost never again. Impressive and unique are perhaps the best words for this Single Malt Whisky then.

More about Coleburn

Coleburn is a relatively unknown distillery founded in 1897. The malt from this distillery was a key ingredient for Usher's and Johnnie Walker Red Label blends in the last century. The distillery was owned by DCL (now Diageo) for most of the 20th century. Coleburn closed for good in 1985. There are no official bottlings from the distillery outside the Rare Malts Selection series, but a number of sought-after independent releases like this one have appeared over the years. The Coleburn site is now owned by Aceo, Murray McDavid's parent company.