Scotland, Campbeltown: Single malt whisky through the producing distilleries: history, making, production and tasting notes
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Glen Scotia

Distillery description Tasting notes

The distillery

For information about the distillery, please click on the photo.

Glen Scotia: Official bottlings
 

Glen-Scotia

14 years
Age
 14 years
Alcohol percentage
 40,0 %
Bottler
 Official
=25 euros=25 euros=25 euros
links & average quote
 80/100

The colour is old gold with amber glints. The nose is light, fresh and pleasant with some hints of citrus, cereals, spices and iodine.
The palate does not entirely confirm the nose and has a light and sweet texture.
The finis is short, salty and herbal.

(la Maison du Whisky)

About 30 distilleries were operating in the Campbeltown area not so long ago, and fortunately the area could preserve a limited production for the Glen Scotia distillery. The 14 y.o. version is really an amazing whisky, combining sweetness and spices to a pleasant medicinal aftertaste. Iodine is also a characteristic of the smell of this remarkable single malt. A lovely finish, although a bit too short.
79/100
The nose reveals a strange freshness, with some very discrete orange hints on a malted background. The expectations created by the first nosing are not really followed in the palate, however, the taste is very pleasant, very fresh with some slightly spiced notes. The finis is too short, but the whole results in a very nice bottle.
79/100
A rather expressive nose, with clear and pleasant fruity notes on a barley an sea breeze background with some discrete hints of coffee. The expectations issued by the nose are not confirmed in the palate; Despite the diversity of tastes and aromas, the announce complexity the nose announced is not really present, and an impression of (good) pear alcohol dominates. The finish is quite short.
79/100
The nose is marked by cereals with clear toffee hints. Not very expressive and on a rather limited flavour palette. Some vanilla on the background.
The mouth is very similar to the nose. Not more complex. Toffee, vanilla and cereals, in a pleasant but not spectacular whole.
The finish prolongs exactly the nose and the mouth. No flaw but no surprise neither.
79/100

Comment by
Johannes Sauer

Colour: Bright amber Nose: Strong maltiness, the alcohol bites the nose a little. Later some smoke and also a strange but very interesting kind of salty sour fruitiness show up. Pickeled onions or cucumbers with dill and mustard seeds. Taste: On the palate there is still the salt and dill pickles combined with firmly grabbing malt in the beginning, later some very discreet sweeter caramel-like notes and dark chocolate. Finish: More short than long but with interesting smoky accents the pickles now having changed more to something fruity like forest berries. Conc.: I am very glad to have obtained one bottle of this old bottling maybe two years ago, which is stranger but maybe even more expressive than the newer 12 years old. Tasting date: 09/28/09

 86/100
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Glen Scotia
12 years
Age
12 years
Alcohol percentage
 40%
Bottler
 Official
=25 euros< 25 euros
Glen scotia 12
A very nice nose, clear and straight away, very spicy (pepper) where some sherry hints and hay smell on the background. A very nice complexity. The mouth confirms the nose, with nice spicy hints, clear chocolate notes, plum hints and a warm finihs, pleasant with nice "pruneaux d'agen" aftertaste. The whole is exceptionaly complex, pleasat and without any aggressivity. A very nice whisky anyway.
What a surprise, after the blind tasting, to discover it is a Glen Scotia 12 yo...
84/100

Comment by
Johannes Sauer

Colour: Darker gold, amber. (Coloured? I don’t know and I don’t want to know, and the label keeps its secret) Nose: The most beautiful balance between such seemingly contrary impressions like smoke, seaweed, sour cream, citrus notes and sweet dried fruits (bananas, apricots) I ever experienced so far. Also hints of a musty cellar, properly salted porridge and mowed grass. Taste: A similar beautifully arranged bouquet of impressions but here sweet condensed milk and dates are added and the smoke marks itself with a small step forward. The sour cream steps back but stays there and is not at all disturbing (tempting like potatoe crisps with sour cream ‘n onion taste). Finish: The sweet milk, the smoke and the seaweed are wrestling on the tongue into a surprisingly good peppered finale. Pity, but I think it is a little too short and long for a little more.... Conc.: I think a few more %-points or even some years would have done pretty good to that bottling, but nevertheless a very pleasant and fulfilling Glen Scotia. It is easy to imagine the great potential of this destillery. I look forward a bottling in cask strength and keep on searching at the Indies... Tasting date: 2009-07-17

 84/100
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Glen-Scotia

Heavily peated single malt
Age
 6 years
Alcohol percentage
 45,0 %
Bottler
 Official
Cask
 American Oak
Cask number
single cask 525
Dates
 Distil: 23-7-1999 Bottling: 15-6-2006
Bottle
 173 of 330 btls
=25 euros=25 euros
links & average quote
 Forum 81/100
Glen Scotia heavily peated single malt
The nose is clearly marked by sea spray and peat and detects hints which are both medicinal and fruity. A very nice balance between both rather different types of smells seem to reign. After a while, some cut grass whiffs come in addition of this already pleasant nose and gives it all its complexity.
In the mouth, peat merges with fruits (green apple) and give a nice and contrasted impression of a discrete acidity mixed with a light bitterness, a refined woody hint.
The finish is long and keeps the memory of the discrete bitterness and the peat.
84/100

Comment by
Johannes Sauer

Cask #518 Colour: bright, clear apple juice A very fresh nose, not dominated by peat, sea salt combined with a surprisingly clear fruity approach. Ripe pears, bitter almonds and a fresh breeze from the sea in a very well balanced relation. On the palate the full peat shows up, mixed with a sublime sweetness. Long and warm finish, the fruits disappear, the peat lingers on and on. Another great contribution to the revival of this a bit underrated brand.

 79/100
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Glen Scotia: Independent bottlings
 

Glen-Scotia

Signatory Vintage 1991
Collection
 Signatory Vintage
Age
 9 years
Alcohol percentage
 43,0 %
Bottler
 Signatory
Cask
 Sherry
Cask number
single cask 208-210
Dates
 Distil: 11/02/1991 Bottling: 18/10/2000
Bottle
 760 of 932 btls
=25 euros=25 euros
links & average quote
 79/100
 

Glen Scotia is an amazing distillery, dying and helped by its only local concurrent, Springbank who does not want to see this historical monument disappear for ever.... It would be a pity. This Signatory version is pleasant but I prefer the 14 y.o. official distillery version. It remains a good bottle with the typical character of Campbeltown, somewhere between the continent and the Isle of Islay.
74/100
A second tasting partially denies the first one. This malt gives pleasure from the very first nosing and the taste, between sweet and smoke is rather pleasant. A nice finish does not temper the general impression, and the rating this time is higher.
84/100

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Glen-Scotia

Rare Auld Cask Strength 18 years
Collection
 Rare Auld Cask Strength
Age
 18 years
Alcohol percentage
 57,6 %
Bottler
 Duncan Taylor
Cask number
single cask 71375
Dates
 Distil: 05/1991 Bottling: 04/2010
Bottle
 173 of 252 btls
Particularity
 Non chillfiltered cask strength
=25 euros=25 euros=25 euros=25 euros
links & average quote
 78/100
Glen Scotia 18 DT
Colour: Gold
The nose is very fresh and quite complex. A slight tingling due to alcohol is undoubtedly present without being annoying. Notes of mint and a slight bitter gentian reminiscence complete the picture.
The palate is quite strongly influenced by alcohol and the gentian bitterness that marked the nose discreetly dominates the palate at first. The palate is less complex than the nose was. Too bad, because the nose was very promising
The finish is long and also marked by bitterness and alcohol.
78/100
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Glen Scotia: not in collection

Glen-Scotia

Cask 1992
Age
 No age statement
Alcohol percentage
 62,1 %
Bottler
 Gordon & MacPhail
Cask
 refill sherry cask
Dates
 Distil: 1992 Bottling: 2003
links & average quote
 BT2005 0/100
see: BT2005
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