Scotch Review #90: The Arran Malt Private Cask 11 Year for Spec’s

Distillery: Arran

Region: Island

Cask Info: First fill Sherry hogshead

Bottle Number: #41/292

ABV: 55.4%, Cask Strength

Age: 11 (Distilled 07/26/2006, Bottled 02/07/2018)

Price: Sample courtesy of /u/bradbobaggins

Color: 1.3, Russet/Muscat. Natural color and Non Chill-Filtered

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Nose (according to the wife) : Sweet, the sherry really comes through nicely. It’s velvety and luxurious. There’s a bit of overripe pear and overripe grape, which is really nice, along with a bit of crème brulee. (Note: normally she gives these right back to me after a few sniffs, this one she didn’t want to let go of saying it smelled too good)

Palate: An absolute sherry bomb. You get a lot of that lovely, rich sherry right from the get go. It’s got a very velvety mouthfeel as well. There are some notes of rich crème brulee, some nuts, and warm spiced citrus that reminds me of yuja tea (유자차). With a bit of water, there’s a bit of very juicy grape which is fantastic. Finish: nice and incredibly long. The warm spiced citrus from the palate continue on here. They’re joined by a hint of nuts and a trace bit of oak. With a bit of water, a hint of cocoa also comes out.

Conclusion: What an amazing dram. The nose starts of amazingly decadent with a lot of that sherry and overripe fruit. The palate continues on it with adding in a bit of spice and nuts. The finish is fantastic, it’s nice and long and lingers for seemingly ever. I can’t thank /u/bradbobaggins enough for sending this sample as it is absolutely fantastic. Would I buy a bottle? Absolutely. Probably would get a few extras too.

Final Score: 91.

Scotch Whisky review #90, Speyside Whisky Review #38, Whisky Network Review #116

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Scoring Legend:

• 96-100: The perfect dram, nectar of the gods.
• 90-95: Near perfect, there is something truly special about this whisky.
• 85-89: Amazing, will always try to keep a bottle of this in my collection (if feasible).
• 80-84: Very Good, maybe only one minor nitpick about the whisky keeping it here.
• 75-79: Good, quite enjoyable to drink.
• 70-74: Solid, wouldn’t go out of my way to get it.
• 60-69: Meh, still drinkable.
• Below 59: If you have a bottle of this, start cooking with it instead.