Category Archives: Longmorn

Longmorn 16 y.o. Review

4 Replies

Longmorn 16 y.o.002

48% abv

Score:  87.5/100

 

Longmorn.  Not a distillery from which we see a lot of original bottlings.  In fact, I’m not certain I’ve seen anything other than the 16 year old available here in Canada.  Being a part of the Pernod Ricard portfolio – and knowing that much of the distillery’s production winds up in blended whisky – has me immediately looking to Chivas as the logical explanation for this dearth of Longmorn releases.

Makes a sort of sense, I suppose.  A very solid single malt as a cornerstone for one of the world’s more recognizable blend names.  That’s just good math.  Shame though, as I always opine in these wee editorials (erm…diatribes?), that more of this whisky doesn’t hit the shelves furiously waving the banner for single malts.  Oh well.

The Longmorn distillery rests in Speyside, on the road between Rothes and Elgin.  Its rather unassuming profile boasts no real surprises, aside from exceptional quality, and this whisky sits very confortably in what I’d call a fairly ‘typical’ Speyside camp.

The distillery’s name, Longmorn, apparently comes from the Gaelic ‘Lhanmorgund’, and means ‘place of the holy man’, so named for St Marnan (or Marnoch), an early missionary canonized for carrying the gospel to this part of Scotland, and to whom a nearby chapel is dedicated.  The church was called Lann Marnoch, which, over time became Longmorn.  Linguistic morphology.  Gotta love it.  The distillery is said to be constructed at this historic site, with the warehouses in particular possibly situated in the very location of the former chapel and one-time pilgrimage site.

And this, my friends, is why I love Scotch whisky.  The history is palpable and beyond interesting.

Now how ’bout some tasting notes?

Nose:  A bit of jam.  Almond paste and a little caramel.  Meringue.  Cinnamon and pepper.  A little green grape.  Some very smooth notes of custard, tapioca or banana creme.  Faint florals.

Palate:  Some florals and jam again.  Peppery and spicy.  Like a slightly amped up Strathisla.  Gala apple and raisins.  Walnuts.  Touch of Fuzzy Peaches candy.  Barley only really shows up at the end. 

To be completely honest, at first I thought this to be a slightly forced and contrived malt.  The natural harmonies and sweet, unblemished profile not unlike an auto-tuned pop star’s infallibility.  On reflection however, I think this is simply a very well constructed dram.  48% and non chill filtered?  Speaks volumes to the triumph of execution over greed.  I’ve quite come ’round to this one. 

 

– Reviewed by:  Curt

– Photo:  Curt

The Subversive’s Guide To Sherry Bomb Defusing & Disposal

1 Reply

–  BOMB –

                            THE SUBVERSIVE’S GUIDE TO SHERRY BOMB DEFUSING & DISPOSAL

It occurred to me while on page 124,754 of my personal manifesto that the world would be a better place if more people were disposing of bombs.  It was Che Guevara that said “Deje el mundo cambiarle y usted puede cambiar mundo”, which has inspired me through my experiences to help change the world for the better.

There are two schools of thought on defusing a sherry bomb.  The old school approach is to cut the foil around the bottle between the neck and the cork, which would allow you to remove the foil around the cork and leave the foil on the bottle.  The down side to this is you can cut your finger slicing around the neck.

The approach I like is to take the knife and cut up the side of the bottle, away from your body and remove the foil from both the bottle and the cork.  This will allow you to see the cork and see if there are any problems occurring.  Also for the benefit of the rum drinkers out there you won’t cut your lip swilling from the bottle using this method.

As for bomb disposal, I think the phrase “many hands or mouths make light work” would apply here.  So gather your friends, pour a large dram, repeat your favorite toast  (“I drink to your health when I’m with you, I drink to your health when I’m alone, I drink to your health so often, I’m starting to worry about my own!”)  and do a world of good and start disposing.

–

Tullibardine 1966

August, 2008.  49.9% ABV.  Cask # 3509.  Bottle 29 of 246.  Bottled for WP – Calgary.

NOSE:  Toffee, raisins and chocolate.

TASTE:  Very silky, not the usually spice parade.  Stewed fruits, maybe a bit jammy and some sweet port.

FINISH:  Very smooth and long.

ASSESSMENT:  Not a hint of sulfur and quite mellow for an older sherry cask. Very different from the 1966 world edition which had way more spice

1966 Tullibardine

Longmorn 1973

April 30, 1973 – May 26, 2006.  Bottled by Gordon & MacPhail.  54 % ABV.  Cask # 3650.

NOSE:  Coffee, sweet notes and some subtle fruit.

TASTE:  Apples and oranges.  Fruit cake with a little cinnamon and some marzipan.

FINISH:  Long and heavy.  Warming at the end.

ASSESSMENT:  Bam, green eggs and ham…this is a great first fill sherry bomb.  Right in the middle between the silky Tullibarine and the spicy Glenrothes.

G&M Longmorn 1973

Glenrothes 1979

1979 – 2006  56.6 % ABV  Cask # 13459 bottle # 246 of 492

NOSE:  Sharp hot spice, and yes some sulphur notes in the mix.  Raisins and dark chocolate with some bananas at the back end.

TASTE:  Robust and chewy.  Liquorice, raspberry jam.

FINISH:  Intense to say the least.  Long and warming.

ASSESSMENT:  First things first,rant…get rid of the packaging (not the bottles, love the holy hand grenade thing): heavy, sharp wood edges; bottles fall out; hard to store; almost impossible to get out of the cardboard box.  I mean really…who designed this?  Some rum lover or a single malt sadist?

This is a single glass per night after dinner drink.  Maybe a little long in the cask but still good…but you need to love scary sherry to drink this.

Glenrothes 1979