Aberlour Casg Annamh Batch 5 (NAS)

One of the first signs that scotch prices were beginning to spiral upwards and out of the reach of mortal men was when the no-age-statement sherry bomb A'bunadh by Aberlour climbed steadily from $50 (batch 33) to its current price of ~$100-125 (batch 72) depending on the store, at least in DC. The price of A'bunadh, for years, was a bellwether for scotch prices in general. Another was the old Yamazaki 12 Year, which went from $65 (!) in 2014 to its current 2022 insane (and not worth it) price of ~$150-165. 

Well, Aberlour's sales must be dropping seriously with the increased price on A'bunadh, because they have released this "little sister" bottling - a smaller sherry bomb, at 48% instead of ~60% ABV, still no age statement but presumably even *younger* than A'bunadh, and half the price or so. Thanks to Rob Martin for the sample! Let's investigate Aberlour's latest attempt to fill the gaps in its lineup caused by its own raising of prices: 

Nose: Butter, nuts, dry sherry (fino or manzanilla), ethanol, wine gums, prunes. Hints of chocolate or cocoa. Merest, barest hint of tobacco or leather.

Mouthfeel: Viscous, but on the thinner side. 

Palate: Thin sherry, lots of booze, toasted nuts, bubble gum/tutti frutti, raisinettes.

Finish: Oak, red grapes, very brief.

Verdict: It's no A'bunadh, but at the price point, perhaps it's some kind of consolation prize. Not bad. If I saw this on sale somewhere, I would pick it up - it will scratch that "dry sherried scotch" itch, for sure. Aberlour doesn't really do anything badly, and this is certainly on the table as far as ~$65 bottles go. Always better to have more options, rather than less.