Three independently bottled Linkwood single malt
Linkwood was always a readily available single malt whisky, and I have the impression it has become less so, but still considerably. The distillery is one of the bigger suppliers of a key malt ingredient to famous blends, so lots and lots of casks can fall off the wagon and land in the hands of independent bottlers. For today’s Long Pour Session, we put a few of them on the table and let Linkwood take a solo spot in the light on this blog for the first time. Interestingly, all three bottlings are reasonably young, and two of them untainted by exotic wood. We will keep the sherried expression as a dessert then!
Linkwood 10 years old, bottled at 53,6 % abv by Michiel Wigman
First things first: This is a joint bottling by Michiel Wigman and Bar Cask and Still Tokyo, with a beautiful label of the island Dejima (出島) with warship Kaiyō Maru (開陽丸) by artist Hans Dillesse. Distilled in June 2012 and bottled in June 2023, so borderline 11 year old actually.
Upon Sipping: I did not find confirmation on if this is a bourbon cask or not, but guessing by the colour we are confident. Opens incredibly lively but more on freshly washed green apples than an overdose of vanilla. That follows just a tad later, in the form of a banana-vanilla smoothie, including milky notes, so better to compare to a milkshake. There is something more robust lurking in the background though. Something I associate with Linkwood in general. Some hints of iron and rust, like walking on a scrapyard in the dodgy part of town. When clean as this, it should be easy for anyone to set Linkwood aside from more regular Speyside whiskies. This one has an edge that is undeniable. Perhaps Benrinnes is a soulmate of the Linkwood spirit.
Let’s take a sip. Yes, this iron note continues on the palate, leaning towards a clean sort of sulphur, if that makes sense. In this case, it comes across as sour apples, copper coins, tea with the bag left in too long, and all this rather complex. The finish is a tad too hot to my liking, so let’s dilute and see what happens in general. The smells take a more candylike character now, yellow gummi bears, stronger vanilla, less apples. The copper coins are much more present on the palate now. Sour fruit in the layers underneath that, with a sulphury finish to round this off.
Word to the Wise: I love that we can try this Linkwood very much in a naked form. Sampling the spirit, it is also clear why Linkwood works so well with heavy (sherry) wood influence, but you will only like it when you are a fan of the dark side of the force, so to say. This is tremendous spirit, matured to showcase the might of Linkwood.
Score: 87 points.
Linkwood 10 years old, bottled at 56,8 % abv by Dràm Mòr
First things first: A bottling from a few years ago, a first fill bourbon barrel finish. That barrel carried the number # 303762 and yielded 243 bottles.
Upon Sipping: Matured in bourbon, finished in bourbon? Let’s see. A lot more vanilla compared to the Wigman expression, but also sawdust and wood chips. After a while, apples again, but now the soft yellow ones. The fresh bourbon influence gives this Linkwood a sour mash character indeed. Taking a sip, I had to double check my sample. It came from a guy who likes bourbon more than I do, so it could have been, but yeah … this Linkwood comes closes to being a single malt bourbon whiskey! Amazing eh? Water brings out more of these strong wood smells, like resin sap, sticky fingers all over. The taste and finish now resemble more of liquid sawdust, and this is really not my style, but there is a lot of fun to be had here.
Word to the Wise: Schizophrenic whisky, this Linkwood bottling. It starts off in Scotland but firmly finishes in Kentucky. I am curious to which barrel was used for this, and what was previously in it.
Score: 83 points.
Linkwood 11years old, bottled at 52 % abv by The Whisky Fellas
First things first: Distilled in 2010 and bottled in 2022 after maturing in an ex-sherry cask # 1018. Just 70 bottles were released with this label in The Handsome Serie.
Upon Sipping: That second Linkwood threw us a curveball. Let’s see if we can close the session more traditionally, with a sherry matured expression. Nope, does not seem like it at all. Rather candylike in nature, but all on red fruits, like Skittles. I was actually bracing myself for a sulphur attack, but this Linkwood is soft and gentle to nose. In the distance those copper coins might be floating around, but it gives more of a (commercial) fruit tea vibe. Quite likeable. The taste is a tad more difficult to process. Copper indeed, and terribly so when swallowing the liquid. Yeah, this is truly like licking the one and two cent pieces that will forever cover the bottom of my daughter’s piggy back, because the use of those coins was abandoned long ago in my country. In other words, however, quintessential Linkwood! In fact, this really displays the same DNA that forms the backbone of the Wigman bottling. But infused with red, sour notes, the copper tones are not my thing at all. With water it all calms down a little, but it is a rollercoaster of a dram. Also, a soapy note appears, and you know what I think of that.
Word to the Wise: Linkwood truly delivers on standing out in a crowd. If you want to make sure you do not turn up to a whisky party with a whisky similar to anyone else’s, bring a Linkwood. And this expression might be a safe bet to turn some heads!
Score: 80 points.