Cabinet Collection

Glenlossie 2000, 13 years old, bottled at 54 % abv by Gordon & MacPhail

First things first: This Glenlossie was distilled on the 4^th of July 2000 and bottled in October 2013 by G&M for The Maltclan Whiskyclub Belgium. The whisky matured in a refill sherry hogshead. Cask #7514 produced 286 bottles for the thirsty Belgians. (Tasted in the summer of 2025.)

Upon Sipping: A beautiful introduction all of sherry nuttiness and rich flowerbed. Some candylike sweetness also, before the alcohol prevents us from nosing any more nuances. Some wet wood and earthen dunnage warehouse floor enter the fold too. Lovely nose! The taste is rather hot and difficult to dissect while undiluted. Quite a load of hazelnuts hitting the palate, which mingle nicely with the more oily experience on the tongue. With water, this Glenlossie turns very cloudy, but we don’t mind such a pure whisky at all. The nose reveals some lemons and deteriorating wood notes, but other than that stays much the same. The taste however is more sugary sweet now, with a lot of barley coming through as well. The finish is fuelled with hot spices, peppers and soja sauce. Very entertaining.  

Word to the Wise: A somewhat edgy but very fun bottling of Glenlossie, which I appreciate more when very pure and fruity, so from bourbon casks, but this sherry cask offers good variation. 

Score: 84 points.

Mannochmore 2012, 12 years old, bottled at 56,5 % abv by SMWS

First things first: Bottled by the Scotch Malt Whisky Society under number 64.159 and finished in a second fill level 4 charring hogshead (guessing the original maturation was plain bourbon wood). The outturn was 282 bottles. Distilled on 9 April 2012, named “The perfumery’s orchard”. (Tasted in the summer of 2025.)

Upon Sipping: Sadly, I have some difficulty nosing this undiluted, as it is rather “hot”. Not to worry, we are used to this from whisky coming from the SMWS vaults. It subsides with breathing and then a candied vanilla smell rises from the glass, with dusty gummi bears in its wake. With a drop of water, this turns much fresher and the orchard is indeed open for business. The gummi bears can swim, however, and make a new appearance after a minute. The taste suffers a little from the alcohol, but there is a lot of vanilla and soft fruit to be found here. The Mannochmore spirit has a nice oily mouthfeel, I must add, but in this expression this also creates a soft soapy finish.  

Word to the Wise: Not the cleanest ever expression of Mannochmore I ever tasted, but there is a wild charm to it. This is what happens when you do not tend to your garden for a while. It goes rogue. This is a single malt gone rogue. Lovely! 

Score: 82 points.

Ardnoch 5 years old, bottled at 52,7 % abv by the Thompson Brothers

First things first: Ardnoch is a vatting of 2016 Ardnamurchan matured in a first fill bourbon and a 2019 Dornoch that matured in a quarter cask. This yielded 450 bottles. 

Upon Sipping: A bright and playful mixture of oranges, mint, mango, limestone and some creamy yoghurt. Quite a unique nose to nose on a whisky. It has youth and maturity down in one glass. After some breathing, the predictable vanilla does emerge to the forefront, but it smells delicious. It is also the first taste sensation you get when taking a sip. In fact, it might be a tad too vanilla forward if you ask me. The wood is very pronounced too, the obvious weak spot of quarter cask maturation. The Ardnamurchan part of this whisky lifts it to a more mature appearance, but it cannot really hide the fact that this Dornoch brings a lot of creamy vanilla to the table.

Word to the Wise: A decent effort, but I expected more fireworks. We got a rather boring product that manages to hide the weakness of the young age, but not an overly vanilla’d character. The creaminess of the Dornoch distillate remains a pleasure. 

Score: 83 points.

The Campbeltown Connections, 10 years old, bottled at 50,7 % by North Star Spirits

First things first: A bottling that mixes together the strongholds of Campbeltown distilling: Glen Scotia and Springbank. The youngest whisky in this is from 2015, but some vintages go back way longer: a Springbank 1994 and a Glen Scotia 1992 are also in the band. First and refill hogsheads. 

Upon Sipping: Brave to still put the age statement on the label, considering there are well over 30 year old malts in the vatting. The nose offers a lot of vanilla from both sides of the aisle, with the typical fruity Glen Scotia and the limestones from Springbank playing well together. Some candylike notes create a hint of walking into the drugstore to pick a biologically produced soap bar for the guest bedroom wash table. The whole room smells like freshly turned sheets. It is all rather flowery and honeyed. The taste offers a candylike sweetness and hints of grapefruit and light cacao. Something does not entirely sit right, a little tiredness of something. Difficult to pinpoint, but these old casks were not mixed for nothing of course. 

Word to the Wise: A decent Campbeltown whisky, for a good price, so a nice chance to update your knowledge of older malts that will not rock your world but teach you a lesson. The lesson being that whisky can go past its prime. 

Score: 83 points.

Jura Cask Edition – Red Wine Cask Finish, bottled at 40 % abv

First things first: Jura has been revamping its range, but this is a little before that. A 2023 edition of Jura matured in bourbon barrels, with a finish in red wine 

Upon Sipping: Red wine in whisky never fails to create a good fruity nose, this time all on berries, and even tastier: berries that have been dipped in molten chocolate. Also some hints of fruit in various stages of decay. The taste is rather bitter, with vanilla squashed under the tannins. In a way, this bottle feels a bit lazily created. Dump some Jura in some red wine casks and it will be just fine. The nose had it perks, but the rest is really regrettable.  

Word to the Wise: Avoid. 

Score: 68 points.

Single Malt Irish Whiskey 17 years old, bottled at 41,4 % abv by Whiskybroker

First things first: I try to avoid undisclosed whisky when I can, but when my friend Robbert gifts me a sample, I am always curious. This was bottled on 10 September 2024 under the Creetown label. Only 338 bottles, rather low abv. Judging by the label, this is 3 casks combined. 

Upon Sipping: Did something go wrong? The abv seems suspiciously low. Anyway, the nose is nice and fresh as it is, and we double check the label to conclude it is indeed a single malt. It brings the fruit, even though it is quite vanilla forward, but it has whiffs of tropical elements in it. Some sour pastilles to suck on, honey glaze, and light sawdust. The palate is fragile, but the sugary sweet taste is very satisfying. The finish is what makes me very happy, because here the fruit just burst open like a candy with an unsuspected core inside it. Oh yeah, this is very reminiscent of the old lost distillery of Lochside. Note to self: try to find some samples of that distillery again! 

Word to the Wise: Worth hunting down. I was a bit cautious in the beginning but ultimately this Irish expression really delivers. With a bit more oomph this would go to 90. 

Score: 88 points.