Aberlour 15 Years Old, Double Cask
Single Malt - Scotland - 40.00% 8

Aberlour 15 Years Old, Double Cask
Single Malt - Scotland - 40.00% 7 A well balanced dram. Would have got more nerve with a bit of extra strength.

Aberlour 15 Years Old, Sherry Wood
Single Malt - Scotland - 40.00% 8 Complex and sophisticated.

Angus Dundee Glencadam 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 40.00% 7 A very unusual whisky. I liked it, but it would benefit from a firmer malty middle to support the interesting component flavours.

Bowmore Darkest
Single Malt - Scotland - 43.00% 8 Let the flavours unfold. Enjoy the complexity.

Bruichladdich 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 46.00% 8 More rounded and restrained than I remember, but lots of flavour development in that long middle. Bring on the Islay oysters.

Bruichladdich 15 Years Old Limited Edition
Single Malt - Scotland - 54.00% 7 The nose puts you off, the palate tries to make it up but the result is not exciting.

Bruichladdich 15 Years Old, (JBB Bottling)
Single Malt - Scotland - 46.00% 7 An easily drinkable yet satisfying malt. Has definitely benefited from the extra five years.

Bruichladdich Second Edition 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 46.00% 8 I seem to have fallen into a breakfast reverie. This would be best with a Japanese breakfast.

Cadenhead's Canadian Indian Corn 15 Years Old
Single Grain - Canada - 54.90% 7 Quite young and green, with a nice fresh tang, especially when diluted. But this cardboardy flavour hangs on.

Cadenhead's Dalmore 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 57.50% 7 Quite a light character for a Highland malt. Water helps but still a bit rough. Even on a frosty morning!

Cadenhead's Glenturret 1986, 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 54.00% 7 A charming whisky, and a reminder that Glenturret is a place, not an experience.

Cadenhead's Heaven Hill 15 Years Old
Bourbon - U.S.A. - 62.40% 7 Fifteen years is quite old for a bourbon, but this is complex, rounded and a good example of Heaven Hill's style. Keeps the sweet notes dominant.

Cadenhead's Royal Brackla 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 58.20% 7 Hardly elegant but a muscular malt of a style that is sadly vanishing from the Highlands. I greatly enjoyed it.

Caol Ila 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 43.00% 8 A wonderful aperitif. Smoked fish to follow?

Cask Collection Cooley 1992 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Republic of Ireland - 58.90% 7 A rich nose and a somewhat restrained palate with an assertive oak print,which the high strength amplifies. But an elegant dryness.

Century Reserve 15 Years Old
Blended - Canada - 40.00% 7 Very light-tasting. Some delicacy.

Century Reserve 15 Years Old
Blended - Canada - 40.00% 7 A very pale whisky, tastes young but has got a fresh citrussy elegance which would make it a nice dram to be enjoyed on a summer evening. Why not on the rocks?

Chivas Brothers Glenallachie 15 Years Old, Cask Strength Edition
Single Malt - Scotland - 58.00% 8 Perhaps too sweet for some malt lovers but packed with flavour. Bland it ain't.

Connemara 1992
- Republic of Ireland - 50.50% 7 Robust and strong-willed. Worth a look.

Cooley 1992
- Republic of Ireland - 56.40% 7 A lovely summery afternoon dram.

Cooper's Choice Caol Ila 1991, 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 46.00% 7 A perfectly decent dram, but just lacks the required interaction between wood and spirit.

Cooper's Choice Glen Grant 1988, 15 Years Old, Portwood
Single Malt - Scotland - 46.00% 7 The delicacy of the Glen Grant survives here.

Cutty Sark 15 Years Old
Blended - Scotland - 40.00% Elegant, smooth and graceful.

Dalwhinnie 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 43.00% Underrated and charming with surprising mid-palate weight.

Danny Boy 15 Years Old
Blended - Republic of Ireland - 40.00% 7 An enjoyable dram. Well balanced with a good structure and a straightforward malty profile. Far better when neat. Water makes it soft and heavier.

Dewar Rattray Auchentoshan 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 59.00% 7 A well-balanced dram, as malty as fruity with a luscious toffee tempting character.

Dewar Rattray Balblair 1990 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 62.90% 7 The nose is more attractive than the palate, rather restrained.

Dewar Rattray Benriach 15 Years Old, Cask Collection
Single Malt - Scotland - 59.90% 7 Quite an energetic guy which needs water to be tamed. A classic light Speysider, lacking elegance though.

Dewar Rattray Bowmore 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 52.90% 7 Some of the classic Islay elements are there, but discordant. Not well rounded.

Dewar Rattray Bowmore 1990, 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 55.70% 8 Straightforward and uncompromising. Very good balance. The classic Islay outdoor dram for simple enjoyment.

Dewar Rattray Caol Ila 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 56.00% 8 An enticing young beauty. Matches subtlety with character.

Dewar Rattray Caol Ila 1991, 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 56.70% 8 Fishy yet sweet. Kipper crumble in a hospital anyone?

Dewar Rattray Cask Collection Strathmill 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 63.50% 7 Whatever its age, this whisky is full of youthful vigour.

Dewar Rattray Craigellachie 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 54.90% 8 A model of balance and elegance. A first class Speysider.

Dewar Rattray Craigellachie 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 59.90% 7 On top of a maturation in poor wood, seems to have undergone problems at distillation. Disappointing.

Dewar Rattray Mortlach 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 55.44% 7 The lack of interaction between oak and spirit makes this hard to get excited about.

Dewar's 15 Years Old
Blended - Scotland - 43.00% 7 Wood bosses around. Lacks subtlety and complexity. Leaves a burning sensation.

Douglas Laing Bladnoch 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 50.00% 7 Not a very exciting whisky. Too edgy. Not delivering much on the palate. And lacking finesse. A bland cask?

Douglas Laing Laphroaig 15 Years Old, 1987
Single Malt - Scotland - 50.00% 8 A lean and lively Laphroaig, more smoky than seaweedy. The flavours are long and persistent. Enjoyable, more-ish and appetising.

Douglas Laing Rosebank 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 50.00% 7 A straightforward refreshing dram. To be sipped on a summer afternoon. I would easily drop one or two ice cubes in my glass.

Drambuie 15 Years Old
Whisky Liqueur - Scotland - 43.00% 7 There is a trick here ! Can't be a whisky. A whiskey liqueur for sure. So hard to score. Would be pleasant on ice. So, this is it, Drambuie!

Drambuie Black Ribbon, 15 Years Old
- Scotland - 40.00% 5 Substantially darker, bigger, fruitier, drier, firmer, more structured and less syrupy than the Drambuie without the ribbon.

Dufftown 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 43.00% 6 An excellent aperitif malt.

Dufftown 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 43.00% 7 To be served with an apple and hazelnut crumble. Classic, nothing really exciting, but a good Speyside character.

Finlaggan 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 43.00% 8 As a single, it must come from one of the Islay distilleries. Reminds me of Port Ellen, but there is surely not enough stock of that?

Four Roses Barrel Strength Limited Edition Single Barrel Bourbon, 15 Years Old
Bourbon - U.S.A. - 52.10% 7 Sugar and spice and all things nice.

Fujigotenba 15 Years Old, Single Grain
Single Malt - Japan - 43.00% 7 Characterful but I would have easily mistaken it for Cognac.

Glen Garioch (A Rare Find) 1997 15 Years Old Cask 828
Single Malt - Scotland - 53.80% 7 A soft drink with alcohol? Pleasant and refreshing. A dash of water is necessary to cut the edges though. But it enhances astringency.

Glen Garioch 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 43.00% 7 Less robust, more rounded. It is one of those choices that depends on the mood.

Glendronach 15 Years Old 1995 Moscatel
Single Malt - Scotland - 46.00% 8 Soft and easy –and sweet –but all in all a little bland.

Glendronach 15 Years Old, Tawny Port
Single Malt - Scotland - 46.00% 7 We all know ‘Dronach is capable of better. This is a relic of an old regime. Better things will come in the future.

Glendronach 1995 Cask 4681
Single Malt - Scotland - 56.20% 8 A style of whisky which has its fans. But that oak infusion masks the distillery character and the essence of whisky for me. Sad, as the nose is interesting.

Glenfarclas 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 46.00% 7 Judging from the colour, as well as aroma and flavour, this is Glenfarclas without its dressing of sherry. Having removed its jacket and necktie, it appears more muscular and aggressive.

Glenfarclas 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 46.00% 8 Classic sherry, well balanced. A perfect companion for a creamy pud.

Glenfarclas The Family Casks 1997 Release X
Single Malt - Scotland - 58.80% 8 A difficult but enticing nose. Give time to this whisky to let it reveal its intricacy.

Glenfiddich 15 Years Old, Solera Reserve
Single Malt - Scotland - 40.00% 8 Elegant. Well-balanced to the point of suavity.

Glenfiddich 15 Years Old, Solera Reserve
Single Malt - Scotland - 40.00% 8 Light but very smooth. Scores points for its suave smoothness and sweetness.

Glenmorangie 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 43.00% 8 If you like the classic flavours of the 10 Years Old but find it a bit light, this range-filler is for you.

Glenmorangie 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 40.00% 8 If you like the classic flavours of the 10 Years Old but find it a bit light, this range-filler is for you.

Glenturret 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 40.00% 8 More luscious, but beautifully balanced. Aperitif?

Glenturret 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 55.30% 7 The balance is just tipping in favour of the cask. Glad this was bottled now.

Gordon & MacPhail Linkwood 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 43.00% 7 That malt could easily be thrown in a calvados blind tasting, with aged oaky individuals.

Greenore 15 Years Old
Grain - Republic of Ireland - 43.00% 6 Not hugely complex,but good.

Greenore 15 Years Old
Single Grain - Republic of Ireland - 43.00% Fresh, light and young. Light to medium bodied.

Highland Park 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 40.00% 7 Oak is present all the way. A bit dull. Lacks vividness.

Highland Park Earl Magnus Edition 1
Single Malt - Scotland - 52.60% 8 A refreshing and enticing dram. Charming. an easy-going complexity. Water gives it a lovely silky feel.

Jameson 15 Years Old Limited Edition
Pot Still - Ireland - 40.00% 8 Those oily aromatics are quite a shock at first. Shows just how different a true 'Irish' character was 15 years ago, or does Jameson benefit greatly from age?

Jameson Limited Edition, 15 Years Old
Blended - Ireland - 40.00% 8 Distinctive. A very full pot-still Irish.

Jefferson's Reserve 15 Years Old
Bourbon - U.S.A. - 45.10% 8 Stylish and disarming, but not to be taken lightly. Reminds me of Kentucky's greatest boxer.

John McDougall's Bladnoch 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 55.80% 7 Distinctive and fascinating sourness: a complex, tangy old tart.

Johnnie Walker 15 Years Old, Pure Malt
Blended Malt - Scotland - 43.00% 8 Neat, characterful and witty. Keeps the woody tones in the back.

Johnnie Walker Green Label
Blended - Scotland - 43.00% Multi-faceted,elegant and intriguing.

Karuizawa 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Japan - 40.00% 7 I would have enjoyed the whisky more if I had stuck to nosing.

Kilbeggan 15 Years Old
Blended - Ireland - 40.00% 7 Proof (if it were needed) that Cooley is a serious player.

Laphroaig 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 43.00% 8 Lively. Full of flavours. Multi-faceted.

Lauder's 15 Years Old
Blended - Scotland - 40.00% 7 The nose is sweeter than the palate but this is a well structured dram. Water kills it though.

Longmorn 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 45.00% 8 I had never noticed the rose water note before, I also find it in Linkwood – from the same valley.

Longmorn 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 45.00% 8 A rewarding marriage of weight and elegancy.

Longmorn 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 45.00% 8 That frisky Speysider judiciously bottled at 45% has a lot to deliver. Will certainly light up a zen moment.

Lord Elcho 15 Years Old
Blended - Scotland - 40.00% 8 Balanced and well put together, with enough bite to punch through.

Master of Malt Clynelish Single Cask Series 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 56.10% 8 A lovely, fresh and conversational dram. A dash of water brings out more sweetness. A spring celebration in itself.

Milford 15 Years Old
Single Malt - New Zealand - 43.00% 7 Like a sweet chariot. Puddings on display...Keeps fresh and lively.

MWBH Glen Garioch 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 52.30% 7 A refreshing young whisky that would make a great aperitif when neat, or mixed in a classic Manhattan.

Old Malt Cask Ardbeg 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 50.00% 8 Too chimney-like for me. Lacks the balance between sweetness and dryness you need in such a peaty dram.

Old Masters Girvan 15 Years Old, Cask 110636
Single Grain - Scotland - 60.40% 7 Astonishingly full in both body and flavour for a grain whisky.

Old Pulteney 15 Years Old Millennium Edition
Single Malt - Scotland - 0.00% 7 More distillery character than a 15 Years Old identified as “sherry-aged” that I tasted some months ago.

Old Pulteney 15 Years Old, Cask Strength
Single Malt - Scotland - 57.80% 8 A slightly odd melange of flavours and textures...but it works.

Old Pulteney 15 Years Old, Sherry Cask
Single Malt - Scotland - 40.00% 8 If you like whisky on your therapeutic porridge (and who doesn't?) this is the salty one.

Old Rip Van Winkle's 15 Years Old, Family Reserve
Bourbon - U.S.A. - 53.50% 8 Big . Rich. Hearty. Robust.

Pappy Van Winkle 15 Years Old, Family Reserve
Bourbon - U.S.A. - 53.50% 8 A big guy. On a frosty Christmas Eve maybe, waiting for Santa Claus by the fireplace. No risk of falling asleep with this fellow!

Scottish Leader 15 Years Old
Blended - Scotland - 40.00% 7 More subtlety sophistication and elegance than the Platinum.

Strathisla 15 Years Old, Cask Strength
Single Malt - Scotland - 55.10% 8 Make the effort to sample a cracking dram and to visit the bonniest distillery in Scotland.

Tamnavulin 1991 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 40.00% 7 Why bottle a 15 Years Old single cask at 40%?

The Balvenie 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 50.40% 8 A very interesting whisky, but the distillery character is better served with a dash of sherry.

The Balvenie 15 Years Old Single Barrel
Single Malt - Scotland - 50.40% 8 Certainly robust. Perhaps a little harsh?

The Dalmore 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 40.00% 7 I'm normally a fan of Dalmore, this doesn't do it for me.

The Glenlivet 15 Years Old French Oak Reserve
Single Malt - Scotland - 40.00% 8 Complex. Entrancing.

The Glenlivet 15 Years Old French Oak Reserve
Single Malt - Scotland - 40.00% 7 A very pleasant summery dram. Quite fragile though. Water tends to wipe out flavours.

The Macallan 15 Years Old, Fine Oak
Single Malt - Scotland - 0.00% 8 This is getting difficult, but the 12 Years Old still just edges it for me.

The Speyside 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 40.00% 6 An easy going dram. To be enjoyed with toasted chestnuts on a rainy day.

The Wee Dram Craigellachie 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 43.00% 7 Metallic flavour seems dominant, and the rest doesn't hold together.

The Wee Dram Rosebank 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 40.00% 7 Once a vamp. Now a trouper. She is a little astringent, but I am blind to her faults. I could fall for her all over again.

Tobermory 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 46.30% 7 Honest and well made.

Tomatin 15 Years OId
Single Malt - Scotland - 43.00% 3 Nothing wrong but surprisingly, nothing exciting. Because it is unidimensional maybe. You are expecting another aromatic layer and it does not come.

Tomatin Tempranillo & Bourbon Matured 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 52.00% 7 The nose is slightly austere but the palate delivers rich fruity flavours elegantly framed by oak.

Usquebach 15 Years Old
Blended - Scotland - 43.00% 7 Well assembled and while you see the joins when it is neat, water makes it more coherent.

Wemyss Vintage Malts Billowing Embers 1997
Single Malt - Scotland - 46.00% 7 The cask was obviously not active. Not unpleasant but a bit basic. Might be refreshing with ice on a hot (Islay?) day.

Wemyss Vintage Malts Dried Fruit Basket
Blended Malt - Scotland - 46.00% 7 That raw sulphury edge suggests an immature whisky or one where there's been little communication between cask and whisky.

Wemyss Vintage Malts Ginger Compote, 1996 15 Years Old
Blended - Scotland - 43.00% 7 Great balance - true to its distillery character but a slightly softer edge than usual.

Whisky Liqueur 15 Years Old
Liqueur - Scotland - 42.00% 8 Interesting aromatic profile and good balance. To be enjoyed on crushed ice with chocolate or vanilla ice cream (or both !!).

Whyte & Mackay 15 Years Old
Blended - Scotland - 40.00% 8 Still on the sweet side but dexterously balanced. Beautifully rounded flavours.

Whyte & Mackay 15 Years Old, Premium Reserve
Blended - Scotland - 40.00% 7 Oak is better expressed on the palate than on the nose. Will please sweet tooth. Very drinkable but lacks the distinction of the older expressions.

Wild Scotsman 15 Years Old
Blended - Scotland - 46.00% 7 A comforting dram, cheery, brings in visions of a warm summer day in the country.

William Grant's 15 Years Old
Blended - Scotland - 43.00% 7 A dessert malt? Remarkably sweet and chocolatey until water is added.

William Grant's 15 Years Old
Blended - Scotland - 40.00% 8 Quite an assertive blend. The nose delivers to the palate but it tastes older than 15 years.

Yamazaki 1993 Heavily Peated Malt
Single Malt - Japan - 62.00% 7 Great balanceand intrigue in here. Well worth a look.

Yoichi 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Japan - 45.00% 8 Creamier than the 10 Years Old, but that softens the peatiness. Between these two, I preferred the peatier ten.