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

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Macduff

Description of the whisky

The distillery

MacDuff distillerie
Macduff Distillery
Banff
Banffshire AB45 3JT
+44 1261 812 612
Owner: Bacardi Ltd
Creation date1962

Settled near the river Deveron, on the border of the Speyside area, the Macduff distillery has been created by the Glen Deveron Distillers Ltd in 1962. It has been sold 12 years later to the Bacardi group.
During its short history, the Macduff distillery has had several alterations, in order to test different distillation techniques.
Macduff was the first of all distilleries in Scotland to experiment metal mashtuns, and it was also the first one to use steam to heat the stills.
Further, Macduff is one of the only distilleries who isolate the lyne arm in order to save on energy before placing the condensers horizontally in order to optimise the cooling process.
Macduff doubled its production between 1966 and 1968. It installed a 5th still in 1990.
The single malt from the distillery is officially called "Glen Deveron", and some independent bottlers market whisky from the distillery under the name "Macduff". The malt is part of the composition of William Lawson blend.

The whisky

A propos des notes de dégustation Your own tasting notes

List of the bottles

Description of the distillery

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Glen Deveron
10 years
Age
 10 years
Alcohol
 40%
Bottler
 Official
=25 euros=25 euros
 Glen Deveron
 The colour is gold, the nose, simple, is marked by the malt sweetness.
The palate is light, but full, just like the nose.
The finish is dryer, and not too long.

(la Maison du Whisky)

The name on the label characterizes the whisky rather good (Pure Highland Single Malt). The nose just detects malt, and the short finish just reveals malt. This is a rather poor whisky in respect of complexity and added value. This is a pity, because its price is not really democratic neither. 

The second tasting came to the same conclusions regarding the malt, and the lack of fantasy of this whisky. However, the first quotation seemed to be too severe..
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Independent bottlings: Macduff

Madcuff
The Coopers Choice 1990
11 years
Age
 11 years
Alcohol
 43%
Bottler
 The Vintage Malt Whisky Company
=25 euros=25 euros
Macduff 1990
The nose is quite clear, marked by barley and a strong smell of polish and some fruity hints on the background. In the mouth, quite a pleasant impression, without complexity, monotone, malted with a hint of wax. Long finish, where the impression of polish mixed with slightly acid hints is still present.

A dominant smell of yeast covers some quite discrete malty hints. After a while some hay touches appear.
The mouth is clearly linear, flat and clearly dominated by cereal and some notes of coffee. A lack of depth.
The finish rediscovers the yeasty notes of the nose. It is rather long and sure not uninteresting but is not able to change the general impression about this quite deceiving whisky.
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Madcuff
Taste Still
1969

Age
 36 years
Alcohol
 54,4%
Bottler
 Taste Still
=25 euros=25 euros=25 euros=25 euros=25 euros=25 euros=25 euros=25 euros
Taste Still: embouteillages indépendants
An impressive nose, mixing sweet malty notes to a kind of light woody bitterness, and a touch of smoke. This announces a nice complexity. The nose is really promising. In the palate, a wonderful miw of nuts and green apples, a hint of mint and a touch of exotic fruits. Very nice structure in the mouth. The finish is relatively short and gets its very pleasant character from the nice mix of sweetness and bitterness. A very nice bottle.

A very pleasant even if rather discrete smell of wet wood behind a kind of smoke veil. Voluptuous with notes of vanilla and a touch of mushrooms.
In the palate, the first impression is very dry, but it develops  quickly on maltier notes before going on on citrus hints accompanying a general pleasant woody impression. The mouth gets more and more oily whit the time.
The finish is remarkable, not very long but very pleasant with its mix of woody and fruity hints
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Macduss: samples

Macduff
The Old Train Line
1967-2005
Age
 38 years
Alcohol
 50.8%
Bottler
 Jack Wieber
=25 euros=25 euros=25 euros=25 euros=25 euros=25 euros=25 euros=25 euros=25 euros
Macduff Jack Wieber
A very nice nose clearly marked by sherry and nice smoke notes. Exceptionally intense, the nose oscillates between classical hints of cereals, very ripe exotic fruits and outstanding, with the same very perfumed ingredients. Sherry and fruit, smoke and pleasure describe the nose the best. In the palate, chocolate notes with some hints of wood before developing on slightly acid fruity notes. This is great art. A nice finish, pleasant and persistent, where the chocolate hints mix with nutty notes in a perfect balance.

The nose is gently woody while marked by sherry smoothness, plum jam and some spices. A clear veil of smoke appears after a while.
In the palate, quite a firework of fragrances, with chocolate notes, a touch of liquorice (indeed violet), a kind of chocolate impression and a gentle nutty taste which has been present all the time.
The finish is pleasantly warm and quite long.
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Macduff
Golden Cask
1984
Cask 6481

Age
 23 years
Bottler
 John McDougall
Alcohol
 55%
Price/litre
 =25 euros=25 euros=25 euros< 25 euros
Flowers and malt to characterise the first nose. Nice spicy notes follow soon before making room to fresh hints of ripe fruit and cut grass. A pleasantly complex nose.
In the palate, an amazing mix of acid notes (citrus), slightly woody ones (nut) and a clear background of malt to harmonise the whole. Not very complex but a very good whisky.
A nice finish, very pleasantly warm and relatively long which prolongs the pleasure of the tasting.
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Speyside

Speyside Map

The Speyside area is situated at the North of the Cairngorm mountain and goes to the Moray firth. It is delimited by two rivers: the Findhorn at the West side and the Deveron on the East side.
The area is named after the river Spey. Most of the distilleries take their water in one of its affluents; the Fiddich, the Livet or the Avon.
About sixty distilleries from Speyside are described on this site.

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