Review #88 - Craigellachie 13 Year
'Meaty' Whisky Mini-Series: Part 1 of 3
This little series has more of a subjective determining factor, although a lot of the community will probably agree that these three whiskies meet the criteria: 'meaty' flavors in the whisky. Each will differ a little bit, but we're looking for some sort of unusual umami note, something more rich and characterful.
There are a couple of production factors that tend to add this meaty characteristic: the use of worm tub condensers during the distillation process, as well as the use of sherry casks for aging. Neither of these is a requirement for a savory whisky, but they can definitely amplify that effect, or at least make it more likely. All three of the whiskies we'll look at employ worm tub condensation on at least some of the spirit, as well as sherry cask aging to some degree.
For those who aren't familiar, worm tub condensers are a piece of equipment used to cool the spirit vapors after they are heated to separate them in the pot stills. These used to be a more common, or standard, way of condensing spirit in the Scotch industry, but now the majority of distilleries use shell-and-tube condensers, which are much more efficient. Here's a picture of one of the condensers, in use at Edradour distillery (a whisky we'll look at later in this series):
https://scotchwhisky.com/magazine/ask-the-professor/6549/how-do-worm-tubs-create-sulphur-notes/
Craigellachie even goes into some of these details on the back label of this 13 year old whisky. According to the brand, "A worm tub is a long copper tube, sitting in a large tank of cold water, which snakes back and forth and gradually gets narrower. In 1891 many distilleries condensed their spirit this way, giving their whiskies a distinctive, meaty character."
Craigellachie 13 Year
Scotland/Speyside - Single Malt
Price Paid: USD 48 (2022)
Current Locally Available Price: USD 52 (2023)
Age Statement: 13 Years
Strength: 46% ABV
Cask Makeup: First fill and refill ex-bourbon, first fill and refill ex-sherry casks
Details: Not chill filtered
Tasting Methodology: Reviewed 3 times over 1 month; bottles at 90%, 70%, and 70% fill levels at times of review. Tasted in a Glencairn glass each time, rested 10-15 minutes
Nose: Nice nose, dirty and lightly funky, a little bit musty. There is that sort of umami note we're looking for: it's a bit light, almost metallic, sort of an exotic meat scent. There's a lot of grape and purple fruit in here, like juicy prunes, bitter prune, and some other mild stewed sherry fruit, along with the occasional whiff of orange. There's a lot of character to this spirit - it's retained the spirit notes with a moderate cask influence, and comes across as a very old-school style whisky. With more time, we're finding light malty notes, some buttered pastry, dusty chocolate, and a hint of grain; even later, we have dry wood and some leather. The whole nose is a bit reserved, but packs good, interesting flavors.
Palate: Dirty, seriously a bit filthy in some tastings. A medium mouthfeel with some mild bitter spirit, grain, and that meaty metallic umami note again, though it's a little more mild now, sort of like a dry roasted white meat. The area that has picked up a lot is baking spice: cardamom, clove, cinnamon, brown sugar, and some other brown spice are packed in, along with a distinct fatty nuttiness, an almond or hazelnut. In terms of fruit, it's more reserved, but there is some charred orange, dry fig, and maybe a bit of lemon pith; we end with a hint of wood smoke and maybe a mild sulphur.
Finish: The finish is medium length, quite a bit of orange, nuttiness, and some dirtier tones like sulphur, umami, and European oak spice. A little more subtle than the palate, you have to dig a bit, but you can find lots more: mildly sour malt, some lemon zest, brown sugar, cocktail bitters, and some vanilla; some mild soft prune, and bit of oak, too. The whole thing is now rounded and a bit buttery.
Final Note: Very solid whisky, this is good stuff. It's definitely a bit more unusual compared to some of the other malts that have 'entry level' pricing - that unique umami flavor is definitely there, and it's interesting to explore. The value here is excellent - for a solidly complex tasting experience, $50 is a great price these days. Definitely a recommendation to buy if you're interested in the sherried/meaty flavor profile.
Our Average Rating: 7.5 / 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: 8.18
