Authentic Collection | Various ABVs

cadenhead's winter 2022 outturn authentic collection five bottles — Score: 9/10

**Exceptional.**
***TL;DR***
*Everyone's a winner, baby, that’s the truth.*

Let’s have more fun

For a few days we battened down the hatches as an arctic draft blasted across Scotland. Winter had finally arrived, along with the realisation that there was no better place to be each evening than in front of a warming fire with a dram in hand. People of GYM-24 and other fitness-focused outlets: I salute you with my dram!

How has 2022 been for you? An exceedingly difficult year, I’m sure. No one I’ve spoken to seems to have had a great year, and there is a sense of the need to move on and embrace a new start. The prospect this fills me with hope, much like the series of events and concerts I have lined up in 2023. These are trying times, with many struggling with things as simple and basic as affording heating or food for the table. I grew up in such an environment; it is something that you don’t forget and makes you appreciate the good moments and acts of kindness. In my fortunate situation, it is somewhat disenchanting at times to be critiquing whiskies against such a difficult backdrop across the country and further beyond.

What’s clear as 2022 draws to a close is that in the realm of whisky, we’ve had more new independent bottlers spring up than ministerial excuses. I really have lost track now. These are boom times, in which it is even more important that we see David Stirk’s crowdfunded book on “The History of Independent Bottlers” reach fruition. It is surprising that in our information-rich era, we still don’t have a reliable text on this vital sphere of the whisky industry. The last great offering was the Schweppes Guide to Scotch by Philip Morrice, whom I was privileged to interview in 2021.

One could argue that a new breed of indie bottler – once fondly dubbed the “armchair bottler” by Gordon & MacPhail – has pulled the rug out from underneath many of the established names in the field. Competition is good for the consumer; you even have new distilleries bottling their own indie ranges to fill the coffers. But as great as it is to have choice, too much choice brings a degree of risk, forcing you to trust your instincts or become lost in the maze. For all their recent difficulties, I remain a strong customer of Cadenhead’s. Yes, prices have gone up, but the ability to buy a 25-year-old whisky for under £100 was never going to last. Those days are gone. Sorry to break it to you like that. That said, I’ll admit to a tear in the eye when I see a single-digit age statement costing £85 — and it just isn’t sustainable in our economic plight.

Perhaps this explains the last time I was in the Edinburgh Cadenhead’s branch, when the Ardnamurchan bottling had made it to the blackboard. I wouldn’t have expected to see this earlier in 2022, as the distillery was selling like hot cakes and the Dramface team generally seem to love it. I’m less enamoured with Ardnamurchan, and I found the cask strength a little disappointing — a little meh and, dare I say it, slightly boring? Maybe that’s a mix of economics and a slight malaise around these newer distilleries feeding into the market, or I’m just a fussy bastard? A little of everything is the likely answer.

The good thing about trusting an indie is you’re able to put your faith in their hands. You’ll buy that Jura or Waterford if it is adorned by the labeller of your choice. Those I trust to come through with their picks include North Star, Watt Whiskies and Cadenhead’s. I wish I had a longer list, but these are expensive times. I find it hard to become excited about yet another cask from a Diageo distillery when they refuse to do independent business with some of the gems in their arsenal. Greedy buggers.

Fortunately, Cadenhead’s sent me a handful of their releases unexpectedly after I enquired about how the recent Glen Keith bottling was shaping up. Because of their generosity, in 5cls no less, I’m able to bring you the analysis of that release, along with three others I wasn’t expecting. I’ve personally purchased the Tullibardine from this outturn, and it’ll form part of another article that’ll be appearing soon, all going well.

Photographs of samples are the hardest of all whisky images to crack. Dramface does like a bottle shot, but I’m on a quest with these things. While I don’t think a visit to my local farm shop has delivered some divine intervention, I feel the handwriting on these samples is lovely and deserves to be seen. Great handwriting is a dying art, and I appreciate the effort on each of these samples — thank you. The actual bottle images come from the Cadenhead’s official account and feature my kind of backdrop.

To bring a little sense of fun — or whisky-fun, for that matter — I’m going to team up each of these whiskies with a song from 2022 that best replicates their mood, in homage to the old days. Apologies in advance to the influencers out there for my obscure choices and lack of Harry Styles. That said, one artist does have a link to Mr Styles — and no prizes for deciphering my feeble attempt to be musically inclusive.

Review 1/4

Cadenhead’s Authentic Collection Ardnamurchan 6yo
Sherry hogshead, 56% ABV
Expect to pay £88

Score: 6/10

**Good stuff.**
**TL;DR**
*Good, but…*

Nose

Toffee apples, tinned peaches and jammy dodgers. Plums and a touch of red vinegar sharpness. This dram benefited from revisiting over a couple of days: it lost its edginess and became fruitier and more approachable. An old leather book binding, touch of plastic, rust, gunpowder, raisins and raspberries.

Palate

More of the peat now. It coils around your pallet, refusing to let go. While it has presence, I also feel it hasn’t developed, and nor will it do so much more. Cigar smoke, earthy, black pepper and wholemeal. Bruised fruits, dark spices, plums, charcoal and hot chocolate.

Recommended Listening: powerful and foreboding, I could only pick Blacklab, a Japanese Dark Witch Doom duo, and their ‘Crows, Sparrows and Cats’ track: not quite fully formed but brooding with power and menace. Plenty of promise and sorcery — exciting times!

Score: 6/10 DM

Review 2/4

Cadenhead’s Authentic Collection: Aultmore 12yo
Oloroso sherry hogshead since November 2020, 55.2% ABV
Expect to pay £55

Score: 7/10

**Very good indeed.**
**TL;DR**
*Confident and assured*

Nose

Blackcurrants, old leather, vanilla and ginger biscuits. Fruit tea, chocolate, tobacco, and figs. Old school times with Cola Cube sweeties and a touch of aniseed and orange jelly. There is a nice balance present; it’s confident and assured, and the sherry finish doesn’t overstep the mar. Flashes of stout.

Palate

Malt with more ginger biscuits and a flat ale. A dark chocolate mousse, blackcurrant jam and brambles. It’s not as expansive as I had hoped for, so we’ll try a splash of water. More of a nuttiness now, some brown sugar, fresh tar and peppercorns. Vanilla, figs once again, percolated black coffee and liquorice.

Recommended Listening: Personal Trainer, ‘Rug Busters.’ The Netherland’s finest offering to whisky might just be Whiskybase, but this Dutch band blew many of us away with their modern fusion in a fabulous album. There’s a great deal going on in this Aultmore; just like in Personal Trainer. A crowd pleaser.

Score: 7/10 DM

Review 3/4

Cadenhead’s Authentic Collection: Balblair 11yo
Sherry butt, 56.6% ABV
Expect to pay £55

Score: 6/10

**Good stuff.**
**TL;DR**
*A balanced, modern sherry cask*

Nose

What I enjoy about this presentation is the lack of force and emphasis. Almonds, honey roasted ham and Tetley tea. Musty in places; there’s also hazelnuts, chestnuts and uncut red chillies.

Palate

Sweeter than the Aultmore, more redberries, red peppers and a familiarity. It’s blooming with strawberry jam and cranberry. More of that slight meatiness and a joint of ham glazed in honey and studded with cloves. A touch drying on the finish with red apples. If you like a fruity sherry cask, this is for you.

Recommended Listening: Technology + Teamwork ‘We Used To Be Friends.’, A classic summing up of how many feel about Balblair after an ill-fated official revamp and price hike a couple of years ago. A very futuristic song, this marries well with this modern Balblair and its a very modern sherry cask.

Score: 6/10 DM

Review 4/4

Cadenhead’s Authentic Collection: Glen Keith 24yo
Bourbon barrel, 53% ABV
Expect to pay £165

Score: 9/10

**Exceptional.**
**TL;DR**
*Great value for today — a great example of a future classic*

Nose

Soft apples, peach melba and strawberry. It feels alive and fresh. Oat biscuits, yellow raisins, grapefruit and tangerines. Apricots, freshly squeezed orange juice and icing sugar. Lovely balance and presentation.

Palate

The meadow fruits come through subtly. It’s very oily and buttery, popcorn and vanilla pod. Creamy potato, white chocolate, cinnamon, banana peelings and lemon cheesecake. The top notes are those citrusy tropical fruits and these linger into the finish.

Recommended Listening: Richard Dawson, ‘Horse and Rider.’ There’s something uplifting about this song that comes at the end of an epic voyage. Bursting into life and a sense you cannot go back, only forward. Something old world-like, but thoroughly pleasing, satisfying and memorable.

Score: 9/10 DM

The Dregs

There’s not a dud amongst these: that’s why I mainly shop at Cadenhead’s. For years now, their releases have been reliable. No bottler is infallible, and the occasional release doesn’t quite meet expectations, but this quartet ushers in 2023 with aplomb. Any of these whiskies will give you an enjoyable experience, and an affordable one at that. Yes, even the Glen Keith at £165 is good value compared to similarly aged releases, including several Signatory casks coming in at more.

The Ardnamurchan doesn’t live up to the price tag or expectations that some might harbour. It has a big sound and presence for sure, but the little nuances are yet to materialise. Given its age, this isn’t a huge surprise, and if you’re looking for a strong and robust companion during these winter months that won’t demand too much focus, I can see a place for it. It’ll settle nicely in the bottle, too. Still, I’d go for the Aultmore and save myself £30 in the process, as it has the edge overall.

The Balblair is an example of a modern sherry cask that is big on the palate with red fruits. These dominate proceedings and marry well with the distillate. This no-nonsense dram does just enough and offers an affordability aspect as well. It’s a very well placed, easy-drinking sherried whisky from a distillery that I hope we have more opportunities to revisit soon.

The timeline of Glen Keith can be divided by the millennium, as it was mothballed in 1999 and didn’t re-emerge until 2013, when it had been majorly upgraded and brought into the modern age. Several enthusiasts rate its pre-1999 whiskies very highly, including myself; even the modest 10 year old in the square bottle is lovely. Classic drinkable Speyside — as Michiel Wigman likes to say, a future classic.

These releases are all still available, if you find yourself online or wondering the streets over the festive period, fortunate to have a little spare cash or a generous Christmas envelope with some notes in it, in search of that Hogmanay dram. As for Harry Styles? If you spotted it, then well done: Sarah of Technology + Teamwork is Harry’s drummer.

Tried this? Share your thoughts in the comments below. DM

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