… and with that last review, the exploration of entry-level, original bottling Single Malt Whisky aged only in ex-bourbon casks closes with a quick round up. A little like a game of “Kiss-Marry-Kill”, my conclusions follow this frame:
- Permashelf: a bottle I always want to have around and will buy again as soon as I get below 1/3 of the current bottle. Although the concept is not new, the permashelf term comes from Roy at Aqvavitae. You might want to check out his 2024 Permashelf video, which has a lot of great suggestions.
- Keep: A bottle I am happy to have, but I won’t necessarily replace once it runs out
- Donate: Not for me. If you are around at mine and like it, you are free to take the whole bottle with you.
Note: for the full reviews follow the links in the whisky names.
The review round-up
Glencadam 10-year-old
Straight on my permashelf, without even a doubt. The Glencadam 10 is uniquely light (yet not watery) and fresh single malt. It is almost a category by itself. And while I will be buying the 10-year-old again, I am very tempted to add the 15 and 18-year-old versions to my collection very soon.
Aultmore 12-year-old
Considering the limited availability, this is at best a permashelf candidate. It may be discontinued, but no official information is available from Bacardi (who own Aultmore). But even if that was not the case, the availability seems very limited. It is a shame because this is an elegant clean and rich ex-bourbon malt, showing all those notes you would expect from the cask and some creamy malt character from the distillate. I can only hope that Bacardi might decide to invest more in Aultmore in the future. I will be careful to slowly consume what is left of my bottle.
Old Pulteney 12-year-old
I was pleasantly surprised by this one. Inver House seems to manage to bring out 40% ABV whiskies that do not suffer from the weak palate and aftertaste of other similarly diluted drams. It is a bottle that I am happy to keep, and for under 30€, it is well worth the price. Will I buy it again? If I decide to go for another Old Pulteney, I would probably opt for the 15-year-old. This is bottled s at 46%, and I am curious how the spirit performs with less dilution.
Deanston 12-year-old
This is a tough one. I recognise this is a well-made malt-forward whisky. Still, I would happily donate my bottle of batch 22244, which simply didn’t gel with my taste. Having tried a second batch, which I liked a lot more and would be happy to keep, I am less categorical. While I am not going to go out of my way to buy this again, I will give it another try when I get a chance.
And although this was reviewed a while back, I shouldn’t forget the Glenmorangie 10-year-old which is also exclusively aged in ex-bourbon casks— I don’t know why, but I have a soft spot for Glenmorangie 10. It is not a bottle I will replace, especially at the excessive prices I see for it here in Italy. I am glad to have had one though. It is a weak and diluted whisky yet the fruity, citrusy and creamy character just has something. It’s a little like the runt of the litter: while other whiskies are clearly superior, it pulls a little at my heartstrings.
I hope you enjoyed this round up of the ex-bourbon cask single malt whiskies I tested and took a moment to check the reviews. Are there other 100% ex-bourbon cask original bottling entry-level single malts I missed? Let m e know in the comments below.
Next up, not surprisingly, ex-sherry cask single malt!
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