Review #206 - Deanston 15 Year Organic
This Deanston spent 15 years maturing in a 'selection of oak casks,' generally thought to be American oak casks, or ex-bourbon casks. Because this is a Deanston product, it's presented above 46% ABV, and we don't have to worry about any added color or chill filtration.
Organic whisky is actually quite a challenging product to make. For a whisky to be truly organic, the entire production process has to be changed and regulated:
The barley used must be organically grown, meaning no pesticides or other commercial chemicals
The malting process must be done in a clean area without residue from non-organic malted barley
The mash tun, fermenting vessels, and stills all must be thoroughly cleaned to avoid contact with previous contents that were not organic
The casks used for aging, including their previous contents, must all be certified as organic to avoid contamination
There's more complexity to it than that, but that's a basic outline of a few of the major differences.
Because of the additional time spent cleaning, the additional cost of materials, and the lost time when other spirit runs are not being done, it's generally quite an expensive and cumbersome process to create organic whiskies. Deanston has shown some commitment to it, though - they have a number of releases with an 'organic' certification, including a 14 year old, a couple of 15 year olds, and some vintage releases from 2000, 2001, and 2002.
Deanston 15 Year Organic
Scotland/Highlands - Single Malt
Price Paid: USD 80 (2023)
Current Locally Available Price: USD 80 (2024)
Age Statement: 15 Years
Strength: 46.3% ABV
Cask Makeup: American oak casks
Details: Organic; not chill filtered, no color added
Tasting Methodology: Reviewed 3 times over 4 months; bottles at 100% (blind tasting), 80% (blind tasting), and 70% fill levels at times of review. Tasted in a Glencairn glass each time, rested 10-15 minutes
Nose: A bit reserved and muted at first - takes time to open up. With that time, a mix of fruit and sweet malty flavors arrive: pear, dried apricot, caramel apples, and orange rind are balanced by mature, perfumed oak, clove, dry vanilla, and dusty malt. There are little hints of coffee and milk chocolate wafting around.
Palate: Balanced, if a bit mild: sweet stone fruit like poached apricot and peaches, pear and honey, but also perfumed wood and cardamom. Grows sweeter with time, adding orange juice, brown sugar, vanilla, and heather; the mouthfeel is medium.
Finish: Medium length, with malt, velvety honey, oats, and cinnamon. Dry vanilla and peppercorns add to the spice side, while orchard fruit and grainy sugar add sweetness. Again, there's some nicely mature oak in here, but all of the flavors are a bit soft, and they take time to appear.
Final Note: This definitely needed time to open up; it's pleasant, but the flavors are reserved and subtle. There's nice sweetness and malty character, and the perfumed oak shows more age than the 15 years would suggest at first glance. Value is okay - $80 isn't cheap, but in today's market, it's a relatively reasonable price for a 15 year old single malt with quality presentation.
Our Average Rating: 6.6 / 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: 6.11
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