Blair Athol Whiskey

[mtmcndrw]

Yesterday my father gave me a bottle of malt that he had been given on his retirement from a specific job.

The malt was specially commisioned by the dunfermline building society for the millenium and comes with a small booklet detailing the tasting notes taken on every anniversary until when the malt was finally ready for bottling on 17 jan 2000.

The label states that the malt was "Distilled in Blair Athol Distillery, Pitlochry, Scotland especially for Dunfermline Building Society, to celebrate the new millenium. This limited edition has a unique character, tasted annually on its birthday, it has matures for 10 years to perfection."

The bottle number is 000283

Would be grateful if any person has any more information on this malt as a search on the internet has proved fruitless.

Thanks

[mtmcndrw]

Apologise for the misspelling of Whisky in the post title.

[Scotty Mc]

mmmmmm Blair Athol....one of my favourites!

I take it that this is a distillery bottling?

[mtmcndrw]

Not too sure as my knowldge of this malt is limited to the booklet tied to the kneck of the bottle, which is mainly tasting notes spread over ten years.

All i can say is that the malt is of cask strength 59.7%

[Admiral]

I've been to the Blair Athol Distillery, and it's a very pretty little operation.

Blair Athol was a major component of the Bells blends. Its whisky is rarely bottled as a single malt - the owning company (Diageo) commit nearly all of the casks to blending.

However, its malt is fairly typically of the Perthshire style - soft, gentle, a little honeyed, and well rounded.

Cheers,
Admiral

[Lord_Pfaffin]

I can rarely afford some of the bottlings from this distillery and i'm awestruck by their smooth and light nature, when i can. Their sherried bottlings in particular have been simply the best that i've ever had.
mtmcndrw, sounds like you've got yourself a young but very fine bottle of whisky there.
Scotty Mc, i'm sure would agree: This one's better in the glass than the bottle.

[adogranonthepitch]

Depends if it is the 43% version or 59.7% version.

For the 43%, one sold at Auction in Glasgow in 2001 for £50. The higher cask strength one sold for nearer £90.

I dont think it would risen that much in value since then.

[kallaskander]

Hi there,

Blair Athol produces malt of varying quality or they did. It was once considered to be one of the bests malts. Cadenhead has done several bottlings of Blair Athol and the tasting notes they published on their own home page for that bottlings are rather curt.
That is not saying that all Blair Atholl is questionable, though.

Greetings
kallaskander

[Admiral]

It was once considered to be one of the bests malts.

When was that? I can't recall reading anywhere that Blair Athol was considered a great single malt in its own right, or even that it was considered as top dressing for blenders.

What's your source?

Cheers,
Admiral

[kallaskander]

Hi there,

good question. I read somewhere that up to the 1970ies Blair Athol was considered to be one of the best malts. After Guinness UDV took over silence fell over the distillery even though production went on. The tasting notes on some Cadenhead bottlings are not too much favourable.

Blair Athol Distillery 1989 - Feb 2005 15Y 55,6% 198 btls. Bourbon Hogshead Nose: Citrus; light & fruity. Palate: Pleasant sweet maltiness. Well balanced.

Blair Athol Distillery 1989 - Feb 2005 15Y 55,6% Bourbon Hogshead Nose: Citrus; light & fruity. Palate: Pleasant sweet maltiness. Well balanced.

Blair Athol Distillery 1989 - May 2005 16Y 56,2% 312btls. Bourbon Hogshead Nose: Bramble, black current and autumn fruits. Palate: Fruity; oaky and earthy; smooth, round and easy drinking.

That is very short, considering what they write usually.

Blair Athol is one of the malts on my to do list. I never tried one before and after the notes from Cadenhead it slipped a few positions down on priority.
Sorry, but I will inform you Admiral when I find my source again.

Greetings
kallaskander

[kiltrock68]

I got some bottles of Blair Athol at my collection:

12y Flora + Fauna
19y Cadenhead cask strength
30y MacKillops Choice
26y First cask scottish single malt circle
21y Moon Import Car Series 57% sherry cask

Still looking for the Flora + Fauna cask strength ltd. edition and the 18y bicentennary bottling.

[Scotty Mc]

Scotty Mc, i'm sure would agree: This one's better in the glass than the bottle.

Agreed!!! Although my F&F bottling is unopened!



kiltrock68, there is another bottling that may interest you, its a Signatory bottling of a 14yo from oak!