Funky Glencadam from a modest cask
The Glencadam Distillery is rising more and more to prominence, and justifiably so. If I am not mistaken, the core range will soon get a fresh overhaul. Only fitting for a distillery that celebrated its bicentennial in 2025. Have you gone and taken a look at that electricity making water wheel at the distillery? I don’t come across a lot of independently bottled Glencadam, but Archives managed to find a cask. Without further ado, let’s us get a taste of that one!
Glencadam 14 years old, 2011 – 2025, bottled at 57,3 % abv by Archives
First things first: Matured in a second fill bourbon barrel # 800060, this whisky distilled on 22 February 2011 and bottled on 25 February 2025 had a yield of 151 bottles. An edition in the Fishes of Samoa series.
Upon Sipping: I was fully prepared to experience yet another super clean bourbon matured malt from this or that distillery, but it seems this Glencadam is a curve ball! Smell of day old fish wrapped in a newspaper, the ink tangible from the baking fat. This is extraordinarily dirty stuff, with a lot of smouldering ashes. Something has been charred in any case. With a deeper dive into the aromas, we get some more fruity layers, but nothing to expressive. Barley husk in bright sunlight. The taste is more moderate, but still carries some medicinal punch. I am starting to wonder if my samples got switched by accident, or maybe the sample bottle carried something else before. This leans towards Ardmore almost, but I am guessing the wood had a thing to say here. Water does the trick, bringing out more gummi bear aroma and hints of lemon pastilles. The finish brings us back to the barley roots of this stuff. Single malt in a pure form.
Word to the Wise: What a rollercoaster of a single malt this is. It borrows from many traits, and provides a very complex profile, with even a smoky edge. One of the more singular releases by Archives.
Score: 86 points.