Review #2 - Oban 14 Year
A gift from family, this is one of the oldest bottles in our collection; it's just about time for a bottle kill, as this has been sitting at a low fill level for a number of months, but there's something that stops of from dealing the final blow.
Is it that we've moved on to other styles? Maybe there is a something sentimental about this bottle as a gift? In all likelihood, the reasoning rests in the fact that as a whisky collection grows, each lonely bottle gets visited less and less often, even if it's still as tasty as it was the day we first opened it.
Oban 14 Year
Scotland/Highlands - Single Malt
Current Locally Available Price: USD 80
Age Statement: 14 Years
Strength: 43%
Tasting Methodology: Reviewed 3 times over 11 months; bottles at 50%, 30%, and 20% fill level at times of review. Tasted neat in a Glencairn glass each time, rested 10-15 minutes; third review was blind
Nose: Somewhat soft and tame at first, but quite pleasant; a real coastal fruit bomb. Sometimes presents as red fruits like under-ripe strawberry and red apple, other times it can be a little sharper with lemon and some orange, or a white grape. A little bit of red wine as well, and later, the darker fruits creep in, plum and a little bit of raisin. Rounding it all off is that great coastal spray, and a little bit of floral perfume.
Palate: Getting white grape again on the palate here, the overall mouthfeel is slightly thin, but the rich flavor makes up for some of that. Soft sweetness from fruits once more, lots of plum and orange, and a bit of nectarine; just a hint of apple and pear, and maybe lemon citrus again. Bits of baking spice and brown sugar, almost a marshmallow sweetness at times. Later in the tasting, just a bit of an oak tannin tickle creeps in.
Finish: This finish is of medium length, nice warmth around the palate, but still delicate and somewhat light. Those oak tannins appearing in the palate linger, but they're soft, not astringent or tingling. Balanced overall, though we do get a little bit of a sweeter ending, with green apples, a touch of candy, and then the tiniest whiff of wood smoke.
Final Note: Classic and pleasant, this is always an enjoyable dram, even if we aren't reaching for it at every opportunity. Will we replace this with another bottle once it's finally gone? Perhaps not immediately, though we're sure it will find its way back into the collection sometime in the future.
Our Average Rating: 7.3 / 10
In the current whisky landscape of increasing prices and variable quality, we've added a value rating to our reviews that relates to the score and the available pricing of each whisky. This roughly equates to a 0-10 scale; no reviews so far have exceeded a score of 10, although it is technically possible for the formula to produce a value rating higher than 10 with a high enough score and low enough price.
Value Rating: 6.81
