I started Road to Dram at the end of 2023 as a way to structure my rediscovery of whisky. So personal that for the first 3 weeks I kept it private and only shared the link with friends and family. I had doubts at first. Would I have the energy to keep it up? Would I be able to keep up the passion? After all, I had dabbled in whisky for over 20 years, but always as an on-and-off relationship. I decided to take the plunge. And it was the right thing to do. It’s been 18 months, 113 posts and 99 whisky reviews. And to celebrate this 100th review milestone, today I will review something I had been keeping for a special occasion, WM Cadenhead’s February 2025 Releases. But before I get to that, It is time to look back for a moment.
TL:DR: From Fruity Bomb to Peated Maritime Gem, this set has it all.
Some deserved thanks
First of all, I need to thank a few people. As I mentioned earlier, I was not sure I was going to keep this up, as in the past my passions have come and gone… I tend to get interested in something, learn enough to satisfy my curiosity and move on. If that didn’t happen, this time, is in good part thanks to meeting, both IRL and virtually, fellow Whisky Lovers full of passion. People willing to share their love for the water of life and willing to welcome newcomers with acceptance and respect. There are too many of you to mention, but most of you I have met thanks to the communities built by two of my favourite WhiskyTubers, Aqvavitae and First Phil Whisky.
But most of all, I need to thank my wife for letting me indulge in this passion project, giving me the time to dedicate to it and encouraging me to keep going when everyday life or moments of doubt stepped in.
Looking back…
Reaching 100 reviews in 18 months is peanuts for other sites (Whiskyfun probably does that in a good week), but I feel proud nonetheless. I think it’s not bad for someone doing this over the weekend, when there’s a little free time. Looking at the stats for this webpage, I am encouraged and excited that three of the top 5 performing posts have been for so-called beginner’s whiskies, Aberlour 12, Tamdhu 12 and Glenfididch 12.
Optimistically, I take it as a sign that there are new potential whisky lovers out there just starting to explore and who can find use in this blog as it was intended. The other two top 5 posts, Craigellachie 13 and GlenAllachie 12, are more into what you could call whisky botherer camp. If you are a more experienced drinker landing here, I hope you stop and share your thoughts. But to all of you visitng, thank you and to a 100 more reviews.
…and a peek forward
So what’s next for Road to Dram? In the next few months, I will continue my journey of whisky exploration. I still have three topics I have planned. World Whiskies, Rye Whisky and “Teen” Single Malts are already planned. Italian Whisky may get a dedicated series of reviews. I haven’t thought much beyond that. Maybe I will take the chance and re-engage with YouTube, or maybe I’ll continue with the reviews here, but with more of a focus on distilleries. I might also create a dedicated section in Italian to spread the whisky love here in my country and share my passion like others have shared theirs with me, helping me to discover so many fantastic bottles. Be as it may, I’ll stick to whisky from now on… at least for the next 100 reviews. But now my throat feels a bit parched, let’s review those Cadenhead’s February 2025 releases.
WM Cadenhead’s February 2025 Releases Review
Cadenhead’s Original Collection Macduff 13 years old
Specs
ABV: 46%
Natural colour: Yes
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Casks Used: Matured in Bourbon casks
Tasting Notes
Colour: very pale gold
Nose: Fruity and sweet. I smell pear, apple, melon, maybe even a little quince, all dusted with a heavy helping of dark sugar. There’s some vanilla, some lemon peel, barley chaff, and a light floral gorse note.
Taste: Velvety, quite smooth. The flavour is a little watered down compared to the nose. The notes are very similar to what I got on the nose. Pear, vanilla, syrup, some biscuity notes (plain digestives).
The medium finish veers a bit from the fruity & sweet character. It is fresher, with a noticeable hit of lemon syrup, vanilla, some grain notes and a little ginger spice at the end.
Score: 6, Good stuff
I have to admit I never heard of Macduff as a distillery. Things clicked once I found out that their output is actually sold as Glen Devron or Devron. These are 40% ABV bottlings, and the latter branded bottles are heavily pushed and discounted by online retailers here in Italy. I am not curious to try them to be fair, but I am glad I had a chance to review this Cadenhead February 2025 Release and see what the distillery can deliver when bottled with integrity.
This is what I would call a summer whisky: light, fruity and sweet. No edges or corners here, but no evident faults either, just a fun drinking experience.
* Scores are based on the scoring scale used by Dramface, slightly modified to allow half-points
Cadenhead’s Original Collection GlenAllachie-Glenlivet 10 years old
Specs
ABV: 46%
Natural colour: Yes
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Casks Used: Matured in Bourbon casks
Tasting Notes
Colour: Very pale gold
Nose: It is immediately tropical and nutty. I smell mango and melon, vanilla sugar, and toasted hazelnuts. In the background, there is a decent level of spice, cinnamon and ginger, even a touch of white pepper, some floral notes and some cream.
Taste: Nice mouth-coating texture. The character is quite complex: spicy, sour, creamy and sweet. I taste ginger, vanilla custard, golden syrup, tangerine peel and lemon oil.
The long finish goes back to fruit, peaches and pears now, vanilla, a little ginger and petrichor.
Score*: 6.5, Good stuff… and a little more
If you are familiar with Billy Walker’s output at GlenAllachie, you will know how unusual it is to see the spirit from this distillery without the influence of active casks. And it is an interesting experience indeed. I often heard that many think the choice to use active casks is needed to improve a relatively uninteresting spirit inherited by Walker and his team. Maybe it is down to Cadenhead’s selecting some good casks for this February 2025 release in this review, but this is absolutely not a bland spirit. Maybe it is not super complex or bright, but the mix of spice, fruitiness and nutty notes works great.
* Scores are based on the scoring scale used by Dramface, slightly modified to allow half-points
Cadenhead’s Enigma Single Malt Irish Whiskey 10 years old
Specs
ABV: 44.3%
Natural colour: Yes
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Casks Used: Matured in Bourbon casks
Tasting Notes
Colour: pale lemon
Nose: I have to admit that I found this a bit odd. At the start, I get a lot of sweet corn, something I associate more with US Bourbon. There is some papaya, a bit of cinnamon, and some soil-like notes. Once it opens up some more, it gets better, more tropical (mango on top of the papaya), some bready notes and a little coconut oil.
Taste: The mouthfeel is smooth, slightly thin. It tastes quite tangy, like a lime, mango drink with some coconut cream, some ginger, and Demerara sugar. The medium finish is tropical, drying and slightly bready.
Score*: 5, average, in a good way
Out of the whole set, this is the one I didn’t get along with. I love some aspects: the tropical fruit and bready notes, especially. At the same time, those sweet corns put me off, and the tangy taste is a little odd. And the ABV, below 46% for a 10-year-old, is odd. Is this older stock with a small amount of younger whisky, maybe? It could make sense. I am sure some drinkers will love it, but for me, it is just OK.
* Scores are based on the scoring scale used by Dramface, slightly modified to allow half-points.
Cadenhead’s Original Collection Kilkerran 13 years old
Specs
ABV: 46%
Natural colour: Yes
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Casks Used: Matured in Bourbon & Ruby Port (since 2020) casks
Tasting Notes
Colour: light coppery amber, almost pink.
Nose: The aromas are punchy and rich. At first I get more of the Kilkerran spirit: campfire smoke, some tobacco, a little machine funk and maritime sea spray. Then the Port cask finish takes over. There are some cooked and fresh berries: fresh blackberry & cherry and strawberry compote, vanilla, toffee sauce, and a touch of black pepper.
Taste: The taste is rich and mouth-coating. I taste BBQ pulled pork, smoky and sweet, pomegranate syrup, blackberry jam and woodsmoke. The finish is very long and intense, with notes of strawberry candy, tobacco, black fruits, and some saltiness on the end.
Score*: 8, something special
Out of all the samples in this Cadenhead’s February 2025 Releases in this review, this is the one closest to my taste: funky, rich, complex and balancing spirit character and cask influence. So much so, that I went and bought a full bottle. It would be great to try it side by side against Kilkerran’s 2022 Cask Strength 8 year old aged fully in Port, to notice how the different ageing strategies compare.
* Scores are based on the scoring scale used by Dramface, slightly modified to allow half-points
Cadenhead’s Enigma Speyside Single Malt 16 years old
Specs
ABV: 51.9%
Natural colour: Yes
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Casks Used: In Pineau de Charentes casks since 2020
Tasting Notes
Colour: light amber
Nose: Elegant, sweet and nutty. The first thing I smell is brown butter, toffee and nutty notes, almost like a Swiss Nusstorte. Then, grape juice, spearmint, a little rancio, and a touch of baking spice. I am impressed by how bright and clean the notes are.
Taste: The palate is rich and oily. The flavour turns more jammy, dark cherries and brambles, a little dark chocolate, some cinnamon and a little honey.
The finish is medium long, with nuts,chocolate and brandied cherries, some ginger, and a little dark chocolate.
Score*: 8, something special
Very different from the Kilkerran but equally impressive. It is unmistakably a Speysider, but the Pineau des Charentes finish adds some extra complexity. The extra age and proof add a level of richness that lifts this to something special. I would love to know what the original cask used before the Pineau was. Bourbon or maybe second-fill Sherry would be my guess.
* Scores are based on the scoring scale used by Dramface, slightly modified to allow half-points
Cadenhead’s Original Collection Ledaig 14 years old
Specs
ABV: 46%
Natural colour: Yes
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Casks Used: Matured in Bourbon casks
Tasting Notes
Colour: very pale gold
Nose: On the nose, this is probably the most recognisable as coming from the distillery on the label. The peat is quite toned down, gently smoky and medicinal. It’s maritime, slightly cheesy, and slightly nutty, reminding me of salted smoked almonds.
Taste: The mouthfeel is medium. The taste has a lot more peat than the nose, quite smoky and noticeable maritime iodine. I taste vanilla custard biscuits, some salt and a little apple. The finish is long, salty sea spray, seaweed, cloves, and a little musty.
Score*: 7.5, Very good stuff, verging on something special.
This, for me, is a bit of a mood whisky. At times, I really enjoyed the contrast between gentle nose and punchy palate. And at times, I wished the palate were closer to the nose. It is a good one, and if you like Ledaig it might be your favourite among the Cadenhead’s February 2025 Releases in this review. For me it is just a touch below the Kilkerran and the Speyside Enigma but still a very enjoyable dram.
* Scores are based on the scoring scale used by Dramface, slightly modified to allow half-points
Interested in my take on a specific whisky style? Check the full Journey here and jump to the relevant Chapter.
If you have enjoyed this content, please share a comment below and consider supporting the cost of this blog via the button below