Abbey Whisky Caperdonich 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 57.80% 8 My first ‘summer' whisky and it is only March. Here comes the sun.

Adelphi Highland Park 17 Years Old, Cask 2903
Single Malt - Scotland - 55.30% 9 That dance might have been led by Fred Astaire. The great all-rounder in lean and energetic mood. Makes it look easy. Try it with a late-night movie.

Adelphi Linkwood 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 64.20% 8 Linkwood always evokes thoughts of sweetmeats, sometimes delicate, on other occasions more robust. This is in the latter mood: down-to-earth sweetness.

Ardbeg 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 40.00% 8 Not the most muscular Ardbeg, but still robust.

Auchentoshan 17 Years Old, Bordeaux Wine
Single Malt - Scotland - 51.00% 8 The wine finish brings in sweetness and fruitiness but without masking the delicate grassiness and lightness of the Lowland style. A real cracker, perfect for a wake up call.

Ballantine's 17 Years Old
Blended - Scotland - 43.00% 8 The blending skills at Ballantine have long been renowned. The 17 has always seemed to me the most eloquent demonstration of that. Beautifully composed and mature.

Ballantine's 17 Years Old
Blended - Scotland - 43.00% 7 Quite a rustic profile, warmed up when aerated. Seems to have retained the waterfalls from all Scotland!

Ballantine's 17 Years Old
Blended - Scotland - 43.00% Ripe, elegant and complex and always that Ballantine's precision.

Bennachie 17 Years Old
Blended Malt - Scotland - 40.00% 6 Light but pleasant, with some delicacy and complexity.

BenRiach Septemdicem 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 46.00% 7 Another fine smoked Benriach.

BenRiach Solstice 17 Years Old Batch 2
Single Malt - Scotland - 50.00% 7 A balance struck between spirit and oak(s). It shouldn't work, but it does.

Bowmore 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 43.00% 8 A touch of astringency that seems to be more than Islay iodine.

Bowmore 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 43.00% 3 More integration but a real earthy presence. Water does not make a drastic change.

Bruichladdich XVII, 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 46.00% 8 I shall try this in a Caipirinha, with a CD of Annie Ross at her peak.

Cadenhead's Bladnoch 1980, 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 0.00% 7 Slightly lean. Where is the fruity softness of Bladnoch?

Cragganmore 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 55.50% 8 Give this lots of time. Do so and you will be richly rewarded.

Deanston 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 40.00% 7 Gentle, but quite succulent.

Dewar Rattray Bowmore 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 49.60% 7 The nose is more interesting than the palate. A full bodied character which has flirted a bit too long with wood. Might suit cigar palates.

Dewar Rattray Glen Scotia 17 Years Old 1992
Single Malt - Scotland - 54.90% 7 I had a suspicion at first nose. Then it seemed to open on rich aromas. But the palate unfortunately confirmed my apprehension. Can't see the point in drinking wood!

Dewar Rattray The Macallan 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 58.40% 8 A beautifully combined aromatic display with a caressing texture. Delicious.

Douglas Laing Laphroaig 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 50.00% 3 An unusual Laphroaig. No trace of the medicinal character. Water brings out sweet malty notes and more smoke. Why such a difference? Cask influence? Different peating level in the malt? Puzzling.

Dun Bheagan Bladnoch 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 43.00% 7 Drier and thinner than Bladnoch at it's best.

Eagle Rare 17 Years Old
Bourbon - U.S.A. - 45.00% 7 Some interesting flavours, with lots of dimensions, but no balance or structure. I'm not wild about Angel Delight.

Eagle Rare 17 Years Old
Bourbon - U.S.A. - 45.00% 7 The nose suggested an astringent palate, but there is some balancing sweetness.

Eagle Rare 17 Years Old
Bourbon - U.S.A. - 45.00% 8 A deeply classy bourbon. Recommended

Eagle Rare 17 Years Old
Single Malt - U.S.A. - 45.00% 8 A bourbon for non sweet teeth. Rich, very well structured.

Eagle Rare 17 Years Old
Bourbon - U.S.A. - 45.00% 8 A bourbon close to a rye whiskey,well structured and quite complex.

Eagle Rare 17 Years Old
Bourbon - U.S.A. - 45.00% 8 A supple, pleasing Bourbon.

Eagle Rare 17 Years Old 2010
Bourbon - U.S.A. - 45.00% 7 A powerful distillate which is best neat.

Eagle Rare 17 Years Old, Single Barrel
Bourbon - U.S.A. - 45.00% 8 A clean, easily drinkable, well-made Bourbon. Straight-ahead, rather than quirky. A certain mature restraint, but is that sufficient pay-off?

Finlaggan 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 46.00% 8 Sweeter than some Finlaggans I have tasted, but quite delicious.

George T. Stagg 17 Years Old 2010
Bourbon - U.S.A. - 71.50% 8 When neat it's so strong it feels like your mouth is bleeding. Cut down, as ever it's hugely impressive - but would anyone ever have more than one?

Glen Garioch 1994 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 53.90% 7 With water is fine boned and delicate.

Glen Moray Dimensions Batch 1
Single Malt - Scotland - 46.00% 7 Pleasing but not sensational.

Glenfarclas 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 43.00% 8 A bunch of interesting flavours displayed in an elegant oak frame.

Glenfarclas The Family Casks 1994 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 57.90% 7 Powerful, but fairly one-dimensional.

Hibiki 17 Years Old
Blended - Japan - 43.00% 8 An elegant and satisfying dram. Well educated, in good quality casks for sure.

Hibiki 17 Years Old
Blended - Japan - 43.00% 4 Relaxed and laid back. This is excellent blending.

Hibiki 17 Years Old
Blended - Japan - 43.00% Seamless flow allowing flavours to slowly change - no edges, no joins.

Hibiki 505 17 Years Old, Non chill filtered
Blended - Japan - 50.50% 8 Virile. Rich display of flavours. If I was to climb up the Fujiyama, I'd take a flask with me.

Inverleven 17 Years Old
- Scotland - 40.00% 8 My summer drink already and it's barely spring.

Islay Mist 17 Years Old
Blended - Scotland - 40.00% 8 Cutting this to 40% means it's lost some of its energy. Let's have a cask strength version!

Islay Mist 17 Years Old, Premium
Blended - Scotland - 40.00% 7 The Islay aromas and flavours seemed to have almost vanished among the heathery mainland notes in the blending. They were just hiding. I came back to the glass three or four hours later and they had e...

Karuizawa 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Japan - 40.00% 7 Pleasant as a ‘dessert whisky', but lacks complexity.

Karuizawa 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Japan - 40.00% 7 A superb balance and richness. Luscious bouquet, satisfying and flavoursome.

Karuizawa 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Japan - 40.00% 6 A marine character but more whispering than speaking up.

Laphroaig 17 Years Old, Feis Ile 2004, Cask Strength
Single Malt - Scotland - 55.20% 8 A touch sophisticated for the likes of me. Where are those stinging iodine notes? They are in there somewhere, but beautifully balanced and rounded.

Laphroaig Vintage, 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 50.30% 8 An excellent mix of the rich, the sweet and the smoky. Mouthfilling and complex.

Longmorn 17 Years Old, Cask Strength
Single Malt - Scotland - 58.20% 8 Maybe not as balanced as the classic 15 year-old. But who would turn one's nose up to a Longmorn? So rare, so satisfying. Yummy.

Master of Malt Aberlour 1995 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 56.00% 8 Balanced, fresh and fruity – a fine opening dram for the evening.

Master of Malt Tobermory 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 57.00% 7 A vibrant character, especially on the palate. Refreshing but with a bite.

Mortlach 1980, 17 Years Old, Cask Strength
Single Malt - Scotland - 63.10% 7 A big, rich interpretation; an outstanding digestif.

Old Malt Cask Laphroaig 17 Years Old, Rum Finish
Single Malt - Scotland - 50.00% 7 Confident. Slightly austere.

Old Malt Cask Laphroaig 1985 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 50.00% 8 This seems far less lively and rounded than the 1987 whisky bottled in 1992.

Old Pulteney 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 46.00% 8 A great combination of complexity and simplicity. A liquid fruit basket. Yummy.

Old Pulteney 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 46.00% 8 An absolute cracker. Delicate, elegant. More than a golden promise. A gem delivery !

Taketsuru 17 Years Old
Blended - Japan - 43.00% 8 The creamy notes on the nose suggest more sweetness on the palate. Oak speaks up.

Taketsuru 17 Years Old
Blended - Japan - 43.00% 6 A savoury whisky to accompany smoked cheese of pickled fish?

The Balvenie 17 Years Old Peated
Single Malt - Scotland - 41.90% 8 A well balanced and rich whisky. Perfect after dinner dram with a piece of dark chocolate.

The Balvenie 17 Years Old Rum Cask
Single Malt - Scotland - 46.00% 7 Poised and balanced.

The Balvenie 17 Years Old Sherry Oak
Single Malt - Scotland - 43.00% 7 Good but the oak has leaned a little too heavily on the expressiveness of the whisky.

The Balvenie 17 Years Old, New Wood
Single Malt - Scotland - 40.00% 7 Attractive in the glass, with a pleasant nose, rich in dessert notes, but is let down by a slight astringency in the palate.

The Balvenie Doublewood 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 43.00% 8 Some intriguing spice and fruit here, with a backbone of oak.

The Balvenie Islay Cask, 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 43.00% 8 Reminiscent of the days when Speysiders were peatier.

The Balvenie Madeira Cask 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 43.00% 8 Rich and complex. Superbly balanced and elegant. To enjoy with Beethoven's 7th Symphony.

Tsuru 17 Years Old
Blended - Japan - 43.00% 8 The finish pulls it down. Other than that, very approachable and highly drinkable.

Wild Turkey 17 Years Old
Bourbon - U.S.A. - 50.50% 8 I like this very much, for its complexity and originality. As a bourbon? The useful phrase ‘something else' comes to mind.