Cadenhead’s An Orkney
Warehouse Tasting Bottle | 63.5% ABV
Score: 6/10
Good stuff.
TL;DR
An Orkney that needs a dose of water to put out the fire
Exploration.
Exploring the distilleries and brands we know and love can help us fall in love with them even more than we expected. It can also guide us to that sweet dram flavour profile we long for.
I've mentioned a few times before that I'll be looking to get as much value for money when purchasing any whisky this year and beyond. A lot of you are probably in the same boat with a slight hesitation before pulling the trigger on a new release or bottle we’ve been chasing. Before, it wouldn’t have been an afterthought: just add to basket, complete checkout and await a glorious whisky delivery.
Thanks to the whisky community and by meeting some fantastic individuals via Dramface, I’ve been able to sample some lovely drams and repress that fear of missing out I once had. I can now stay away from opening a new bottle or hunt down a release online. These days, I’ll dip into the ever-growing amount of samples sitting on my shelves - I suppose it’s better than adding to the bottle count.
However, if it weren’t for the legends that are Dougie and Archie, I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to buy a Springbank 15yo, Ardnamurchan Cask Strength or Madeira release at cost. Utter heroes, and I'd petition for a statue to be erected in their honour… in the name of whisky!
Some drams have surprised me with their flavour profile and cemented within myself exactly what I’m searching for in a new purchase. I’m very lucky and utterly delighted to try something completely new as there’s still a tonne of distilleries I’ve yet to try. It was funny looking at the recent Aqvavitae poll on the community’s top 10 distilleries and filling out the accompanying form. The distilleries I know and love aren't that big a list, so selecting my top 10 was easier than I thought.
When reflecting on what I consider a real tasty dram, I couldn’t help but think back to what Jackie Muir, our Dramface website mechanic, said to me recently. He summed it up perfectly, saying: “Ex-bourbon cask maturation with light peat is my wheelhouse right now.” Never a truer word spoken in my opinion.
It’s pretty awesome how our whisky palate changes and develops over time and it’s much quicker than you could even imagine too. In the beginning, the smell and taste of anything remotely smoked or peated didn’t sit well with me. Highland Park 12 will always be remembered to me in my early whisky journey as the liquid that tasted like a cold ashtray. I passed a nearly full bottle of that to a work colleague. Ever since, it’s a flavour I actively seek out and thoroughly enjoy. I don’t mind the old labelling Highland Park bottles too; the 12 was a solid dram while the 18 was excellent.
Anything I’ve purchased lately has mostly been from the likes of Ardmore (independent bottlings, although I’m still on the hunt for the now discontinued Ardmore Traditional. I’m also on the lookout for an Ardlair to check out a non-smokey liquid from the distillery). Aside from Ardmore, I’ve been buying Benromach, Caol Ila, Ledaig and of course the glorious and worst kept indie bottling secret in ‘An Orkney’.
Dougie did send me a sample of his Scapa 12 year old distillery exclusive and it was a lovely first try at the other, non-smokey liquid from Orkney.
A load of other samples sent my way have been from Cadenhead’s - more specifically their warehouse tasting range. Notable samples sent to me have been the Cadenhead’s Glen Garioch 9yo and a Caol Ila 10yo. The Glen Garioch is a special dram and seems to be the next quest and distillery on the Dougie Crystal radar. I’m looking forward to seeing what he discovers.
“Warehouse” is another searchable item on the list when perusing auction sites to see what bounties it would return - and it surprised me to see so many of the Cadenhead’s Warehouse Tasting range available. I picked up the Glen Garioch along with this Orkney for around £45 - 50 (excluding additional fees and postage).
Review
“An Orkney”, Cadenhead’s Warehouse Tasting, 63.5% ABV
£45 paid at auction
The bottle at hand was picked up from Scotch Whisky Auctions for £45 after I really enjoyed the sample sent to me from Dougie. I’ve since tried to send on as much as this liquid onto others to enjoy. I’ve no idea what the bottle price would have been through Cadenhead’s at the time of release, but I was happy with the winning price for this one given its origin, age and ABV.
Reaching out to the Dramface team for a bit more information, I've been told that the Warehouse Tasting bottles are picked by the staff at Cadenhead’s, and these picks are exclusive to the visitors tour. The availability of certain bottles is until the cask runs dry, then a new cask is wheeled out for the next run of bottle pours. So it seems individuals who’ve taken the trip to Cadenhead’s warehouse in Campbeltown for a tour have purchased a bottle, only to return home and placed it into auction.
It’s a sad reflection on the attitude of some visiting such a renowned Scottish whisky region to purchase something only to flip it later, rather than cherish the bottle that would remind them of such a fabulous whisky tour while in Campbeltown. Maybe I’m just a romantic at heart. Their loss though, because the price online was great, and I’ve ended up with good Orkney.
Nose
Straight away I’m met with a blast of lemon curd, dusty wood and a generous dose of white pepper. Pencil shavings and a wisp of sea air. The salinity is coupled nicely with light brine and it reminds me of very thin slices of cooked ham. It’s very bright and punchy, that peppery note really takes residence in the nose. It turns floral and citrusy with a hint of wet dog hair. With a few drops of water the nose mellows slightly, bringing out some sweetness in the form of toffee fudge and clove spice.
Palate
Fiery, loud and in your face. It’s initially sweet with the pepper from the nose introducing itself straight away. A little overpowering to begin with, which is to be expected given its high ABV. The back of my throat feels like it’s coated with a blast of zest from an orange rind, and a few more sips bring out wet cardboard, oat biscuits and tobacco. There’s a long, lingering spice on the tongue. A clean and crisp mouthfeel, not very oily or dense. It turns quite sour and astringent on the back end of each sip. After initial pepperiness it mellows to tease out gentle campfire smoke and stone fruits. Reminds me of apricots followed by cubed pineapple. More oats and a small element of chocolate eclairs. With water, it opens up quite nicely with more sugar sweetness. Demerara sugar followed by more pineapple and cinnamon pastry. This takes water very nicely and needs it without it drowning out any of those bold flavours and foundational elements we can find in ‘an Orkney’.
The Dregs
What gripped me about this dram was the initial sample sent to me by Dougie a while ago. I think I poured this on a random Friday night with no intention of delving into any tasting note taking. However, I was distracted for the rest of the night after the first smell and sip, as the high ABV demanded every bit of my attention.
The intense flavours and heat surprised me, hence the reason I sought a bottle out at auction. I had to try a little more to see if it was my lack of awareness that attacked my senses. I very much enjoy an indie version of ‘An Orkney’ and this bottle is taking those delicious flavours and amping them up to 11. Comparing this to what indie Orkneys I have at home, the ABV here is at another level.
While this was exciting at first, it’s a bit difficult to get past such a blast of white pepper and vibrancy that exudes from this liquid, with very little smoke sadly. It’s above and beyond what you can buy today from the official smokey bottlings released on the island of Orkney, which to me can fall flat and be thin on the palate.
I wouldn’t say it’s well above an average dram. So the score seems fair to me, given the price I paid, which of course can vary at auction. This whisky needs a lot of water. It mellows out, and brings forth a much needed sweetness with a rounder back end after sipping. But the smoke and charred element that I dearly love also wanes and never really comes to the forefront.
As always, I’ll continue to seek out some more of these desired Warehouse Tasting bottles as they appear online, and keep to this delicious wheelhouse of smoke, char and vanilla sweetness that Orkneys (among others) offer up so well. For now, I’ll continue to share the contents of this bottle so others can experience such a slap in the face where they’ll have to sit up and pay attention.
Score: 6/10 HF
Dougie’s Review
“An Orkney”, Cadenhead’s Warehouse Tasting, 63.5% ABV
£55 paid at auction
Score: 7/10
Very good indeed.
TL;DR
A bold entry into the world of Orkney drams
Nose
Big highland toffee, rain jacket factory. Sweet perfume, makes me think of blue, aqua, lush coastal perfume. Freshly coastal. Hint of menthol tobacco.
Palate
Toffee and vanilla but has an interesting edge - a sharper note that I can’t quite identify yet. It’s rocky, aye. It’s tart fruits, just. Overcooked creme brulee crust maybe? A bit of latent heat and warming plastic, but really addictive plastic. There’s a sweet orange or something creamy citrus going on too. Coca Cola - cinnamon, ginger and molasses?
The Dregs
I first sampled this standing inside the Cadenhead’s Warehouse of the Warehouse Tasting Tour stamped on the bottle. We had a quick chat about why Cadenhead’s had to call it “An Orkney” instead of what it is - Highland Park. A lot of heel kicking and shoulder shrugging. But it was to be my first try of Highland Park and it was immediately alluring - coastal, salty and rich sugary toffee. What’s not to like?
I didn’t buy a bottle at the shop. I regretted this decision and set about snaffling one at auction, which I did - £55 was under the RRP asked of it from the Cadenhead’s shop in Campbeltown I think. Having the full bottle to really dive into this spirit allowed me to appreciate just how good Highland Park is - in fact it spurred me on to bid on many more Cadenhead’s Warehouse bottlings because of how good this was, as well as the two I bought from our tour. There’s some absolute beauties under the Warehouse Tasting label.
I reckon this is well worthy of your time - it’s got loads of interesting flavour notes, and brings that beautiful coastal vibe alongside really potent toffee and creamy citrus fruits. If you can pick it up at auction for less than £60, you’ve got yourself a bargain.
Score: 7/10 DC
Tried this? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
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