Cadenhead’s Blending Lab Experience
Dougie’s Campbeltown Whisky Dash 2024: Part I
The Whisky Dash has become one of my most treasured annual events. Since 2019 I’ve been sailing with my uncle every year in June, initially just to explore the seas around the Western Isles, but since 2022 have been setting sail solely in search of great whisky.
2022 saw us voyage to Ireland in search of a surprising Irish whisky, with an almost token gesture of a stopover in Campbeltown before we swung back around Arran to Largs, where my uncle’s sailboat slumbers. Yet it was the day spent in the Wee Toon that captured our hearts; despite Belfast’s sun soaked endearment. A tour around Springbank and a Cadenhead’s Warehouse Tasting had us swooning.
For 2023 we decided to cut out the Irish leg and volley straight for Campbeltown, with a Kilkerran Tour in the morning followed by a new concept for Cadenhead’s; a lab where you could blend your very own whisky. Springbank had been offering this type of experience already, called the Barley to Bottle experience, offering you the chance to see how your bottle of Springbank was made and then make one yourself.
Cadenhead’s offered a slightly different (and much less expensive) experience, where you take eight whiskies that Cadenhead’s stock in their warehouses and blend those together to make your own unique blend. The kicker being that you don’t find out what each of the 8 casks of whisky are, until after you’ve blended them together and bottled it. A fun way to test your abilities to both smell and taste, but also put all those skills together to create what you think is an award winning whisky.
We absolutely loved it last year and took the results with the good grace demanded of amateurs slowly slumping into stupors, whilst trying not to spill any of that quality whisky on the floor. Last year we had the lab to ourselves and put it down to the newness of the experience, which was launched mere weeks before we arrived. This year we decided to have another go, and for extra giggles, tack on a Warehouse Tasting Tour in the afternoon.
The plan was to sail from Largs to Campbeltown on Friday, which would be a 9-12 hour sail/motor depending on tides, wind and mood. With a good run from the Misty Isle on Thursday getting me to Largs sooner than planned, we decided to set off straight away, stopping overnight upon a mooring at Lamlash; a sheltered bay off the east coast of Arran, behind Holy Island with its monastery at one end, and nunnery at the other.
A bumpy night gave me little rest, and a loosely tethered tiller made a nuisance of itself throughout the night, squeaking in rhythm with the slopping tide. My attenuated earholes were mere inches from it all night long, and earplugs couldn’t block it out. A fresh start around the south coast of Arran blew away the sleepy dust.
Magnificent Arran in the evening light
The sea was choppy around Pladda making the process of putting sails out a treacherous endeavour, but soon we had the autohelm on and were cowering under the cockpit as the rain stoated off the deck. Passing Lagg with its grass covered angular roof, the prospect of whisky kept us going. We struggled on for 3 hours until, through the dim mist and low cloud, Davaar Island appeared like a big signpost.
Before long we were into Campbeltown Loch and making a mess of bringing the sails down. We were appointed the very last berth on the main pontoon. Once tied up and secure, I headed for the showers and shop, to get bread for lunch. Afterwards Uncle decided to tidy up the boat, so I took a wee wander up to see what nonsense was occurring on Longrow. The weather wasn’t what you’d call nice, but it wasn’t raining and was a perfectly pleasant temperature, as my bright red face from a morning spent at sea wobbled its way up the toon.
I noticed immediately the development of Bolgam Street into a miniature Cadenhead’s World - where last year there was but the Tasting Room, this year a newly clad black facade with bright Cadenhead’s logos painted on was mid-construction - the new bottling hall. The bank beside the Tasting Rooms is now a headquarters / office for Cadenhead’s, and the Tasting Room has remained where it is. I wondered where the Warehouse Tasting would be this year, given it used to be up in Springbank’s warehouses.
As I made my way up Longrow I was astonished to see a dearth of anyone around. An orange jacketed staff member appeared for a brief moment but other than that,a ghost town. There was no queue at the shop, and the door was closed. It had just turned 4pm so I wondered for a moment if the shop was shut, but it was just empty of customers and cold outside.
Three ladies were chatting as I called out my hello and a request to wander about. The shelves were groaning under the weight of the Kilkerran and Longrow on show, but as expected not a Springbank bottle to be seen, with exception of course to the value-tastic demi-john infinity jugs. You’d be forgiven for thinking the Springbank shop was somewhere else entirely.
Knowing I was blending my own bottle and then sampling six more potential purchases at the Warehouse Tasting, I was really keen to keep my powder dry; with regret I operate on a stricter budget these days, and I was all set to wander out empty handed until I passed the cage. Inside sat a number of really tempting bottles - a Longrow matured in a Ruby Port cask caught my eye before they alighted on two Kilkerran bottles. One was a heavily peated bourbon affair, and not really up my street. The other however was a darker, more luscious lookin’ thing, revealed to be a fresh sherry 13yo.
I couldn’t not. £80 lighter, I asked for it to be wrapped up securely enough should I need to bat someone away with it on my way back to the boat which, owing to the ghost town situation of what looked like the entirety of Campbeltown, wasn’t a problem. Back at the boat I unravelled the nice tissue paper and took some photos, deciding that there was no time like the present and opened it.
To be discussed later, but it’s right up there with the best Kilkerran I’ve tried so far. We watched the lacklustre football and turned in for an early night, settling down with a book and an unbroken slumber ready to tackle the wave of whisky unleashed upon us from 11am.
Morning arrived and we had time aplenty to enjoy a stodgy bowl of muesli or salty porridge. I chose the former because salty porridge is the devil's work. A leisurely shower followed by a second breakfast of toast with French homemade marmalade, lined the belly ready for the onslaught. Expectations for the morning’s blending was simply to have fun, but also to try and avoid creating a sherry bomb like last year. I really like that whisky but I felt a more expressive whisky was needed this time.
The streets were quiet again as we plodded up to the Cadenhead’s shoppe, Uncle sporting his new carbon fibre speed-stick that alleviates some of the searing pain from his disintegrating knee. The shop was empty too, but looking marvellously stocked with the Cadenhead’s range, and some side racks with various treats - Raasay, Ardna and even some Longrow 21, if you were that way inclined. It appeared like we were on our own again for the blending session, and sure enough Holly, our guide for the morning, confirmed it.
A couple of minutes spare gave us time enough to see that Cadenhead’s have introduced 20cl bottles to their shelves in, what we could deduce, most of their green and white labelled Authentic Collection, the Enigma range and their rum selection. Absolutely magic move there, allowing you to pick up one, many or all of their whiskies at a fraction of the cost. I’ve been eyeballing a Glen Garioch in White Port since oor man Jackie mentioned it to the Englishman, Irishman, Scotsman (EIS) tasting group, and it was available in the shop in both 70cl and these new 20cl bottles. That was a decision for later though, for we were being called to begin.
The same setup as last year, with just the two places set out for us. Eight test tubes, eight Glencairns named A through H, a stemmed Perfect Measure copita, a beaker and a syringe, a water glass, pen, notebook and below it all, a big sheet of paper for taking notes of each cask.
As we sat down Holly asked our names for the label, and if we’re ok having our picture taken. Being under the Dramface pseudonym, I wanted to have Auld Doog’s name and picture on the bottle again. Last year Niamh had the same confusion as I presented the avatar and pen name, but everything was settled quickly and the reasons for why were accepted.
An announcement is made in a clear resonant voice: grain whisky is out, said Uncle, and so began the quest to identify this nefarious component, that he rests full blame upon for his bottle being akin to paint stripper last year.
I decant each half of the test tube’s liquid into the Glencairns as we’re fiddling with avatars and emails, and when I come to smell them the same sequence seems to be present here this year.
The first three are sherry bombs, A and C more than B. The whisky in Glencairn D is big nail polish and vanilla, so jot down “grain?” as a marker. Whisky E is weird, Uncle shouts “DRAINS!” and I’m with him; eggs and savoury flatness is no dingo for me. Glass F is farmy for Uncle and fishy for me. G is a big buttery chip butty and I’m into it, also marking this as a potential grain whisky; H is Islay ashy smoke pot all the way. I immediately discard H to the side because of the temptation to play master blender and stick a wee teaspoon of peat in the bottle. It might add some alchemy but usually turns the other way and makes a big smoky disappointment.
Quickly I find that D and G are singing loudest for me. I really like the vibrant bourbon nature of D and the sweet popcorny chip butty of G. If I can somehow mingle those two together, maybe add in a bit of redness from one of the three sherry bangers, and perhaps a tickle of something else, I reckon that might be the way to go. Uncle is still hunting the grain and reckons it’s D as well.
The time comes for final blends to be put into practice, and once we’re set Holly takes our recipes. We were given very clear instructions at the start of the session, that the maximum of any one cask is 250ml; each cask has been decanted into loads of wee 250ml bottles for ease of measuring and breaking open another 250ml to take 50ml out is a bit awkward. As I say out my recipe to Holly I realise that I’ve used 3ml of F in my blended glass, and this means 300ml is required. A few moments of panic, when I realise that the past 30 minutes of tinkering have been for nought, are settled when Holly rolls her eyes at my incompetence and permits the offence. 250ml of A are stuck in, 100ml of D and, for a wee cheeky kicker, 50ml of G.
Despite his confident statement at the beginning of the blending, Uncle uses a big hefty measure of D in his final blend, eschewing his early apprehensions that grain is the devil - we do not know yet what cask is the grain. These casks we are using will all have been renewed since last year, so maybe this year it’s different. Or maybe his palate has changed. Or maybe he’s pished and can’t recall saying he’d rather thrust his speed-stick up his arse than use grain again.
Nevertheless, we blend our bulk and arrive at a fully formed 70cl bottle of our very own whisky. The ABV is recorded using a fancy machine before it’s sealed and dipped in wax; a lovely fancy brass seal is pressed into the hardening surface in a professional flare (last year the wax machine was broken). The labels will have to be printed and affixed, so we are guided through the hidden bookcase door into the Tasting Room bar, where we’re told a nice dram is awaiting us from Cameron.
The results arrive:
A - PX 10yo Highland
B - Port 10yo Speyside
C - Oloroso 16yo Highland
D - Grain 28yo Lowland
E - Sauternes 10yo Speyside
F - Rum 12yo Highland
G - Bourbon 12yo Speyside
H - Peat NAS Islay
That means I used a lot of Rum - 300ml, which is astonishing given my previous indifference when it was used by Ardnamurchan. I remember Graeme MacKay saying that Rum can be leafy, as it was in Ardna’s case, or sugary, as I suspect it was here.
I then used 250ml of PX Highland, 100ml of Grainy Lowland and the kicker, a 50ml bourbon Speysider for some extra sweetness. I reckon that’s going to be quite interesting!
In the lead up to the Whisky Dash I had a wee message from Cameron, Director of Sales for Cadenhead’s, to wish us a safe voyage and mention that he’d leave us a dram to enjoy after the session. A very generous gesture and I accepted with gratitude. The drams are being poured for us when we settle down at the shoogly square table, and not one but two Glencairns are plonked before us both. One is a 25 year old Ben Nevis. The other is a 12 year old Springbank matured in Oloroso, the very same one that sold out in a fleeting moment before it touched any shelf during the Campbeltown Malts Festival a few weeks prior. Lucky sods, so we are.
I am blown away by the Springbank, and Uncle is fair taken with the Ben Nevis (detests any inkling of peat), so we decide to swap our drams and enjoy a longer experience of them both, ordering a sandwich platter each and more litres of water to hydrate our souls; the key to long lasting whisky happiness is to keep chugging water down at every opportunity. The sandwich platters arrive in a glorious stack of gluttony and we are both in whisky nirvana. Holly appears with our finished bottles and thanks us for an entertaining morning, where two auld dudders talked absolute mince for an hour and half.
As the sandwiches went in and the Springbank chased it down, I sat in a hazy calm, feeling extremely grateful for this time that we have been given in Campbeltown. Uncle was posting his pictures on a Facebook whisky group, with purpose only to enrage the silly sausage that replied to an earlier post before our blending session, stating how disappointed we would be with the whole experience, because he had been, and that means everyone will.
Coming through the secret bookcase door, the whisky had started to take grip of my body and I was feeling furry, despite the double breakfast. The ship was listing slightly and the two sensational drams from Cameron were compounding the tilt. But soon the sandwiches set to work soaking up all that cask strength joy; the waterworks started pumping fresh hydration around my pruning body, and the Crystal ship began to right itself. We took ourselves off to the soft seats (under duress - a retirement party was inbound and required the seats), and spent the next hour tickling those delicious drams to death.
There’s no possible chance for disappointment to appear in our morning for the whisky is, as it should be, incidental. Our experience and fun is what matters, and yet again we had another thrilling morning at the Blending Lab. But our day was only getting started. After lunch we had the Warehouse Tasting Tour experience to look forward to, and 6 more drams to dissect with intent - you can only buy bottles of these whiskies if you’ve taken the Warehouse Tour, here in Campbeltown, and for today only. Important work was about to commence.
Thanks to Holly for suffering through our nonsense, and thanks to Cameron for the delicious drams. A thoroughly enjoyable morning surrounded by some fantastic people, blending a unique whisky filled with memories for the more than reasonable sum of £100. If you’re in Campbeltown, it’s a must do. What better way to test your olfactory and palate progress than a blind, 8-way supersesh. You will be wrongfooted, I guarantee it.
In a few weeks I’ll open my unique blend and see what it means to me. It’ll not be anything like I remember. It’ll probably not blow my socks off, but it will serve to remind me of our morning spent laughing our whiskied heads off, and that is just fine with me.
Cadenhead’s Blending Lab
Blend your own unique whisky
£100 p/p - book online in advance
Book online here: https://www.cadenhead.scot/connect-with-cadenheads/cadenheads-creations-blending-lab/
Score: 9/10
Exceptional.
TL;DR
A must do experience in the Wee Toon. Will surprise you. Will delight you.
The Dregs
A fantastic experience that will surprise you in many ways, but most importantly in your appreciation for whisky, it’s infinite permutations, and the skill of those Master Blenders to repeatedly, consistently blend whisky to a profile. Wonderful!
Score: 9/10 DC
Part II of Dougie’s Campbeltown Dash 2024 follows next weekend. Sign up for a reminder
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