Blair Athol is one of those distilleries where I hear the name and think "Sure! Blair Athol! I've had a million of those!" and then I check my archive and I've had two. Just two.
Maybe I've had a few drams at SMWS tastings or at the bar at Jack Rose here in DC and just forgot to blog them; maybe I just see the name on other blogs, I'm not really sure. But I picked this bottle from Blackadder because I trust Blackadder and I _thought_ I was familiar with Blair Athol.
It's a full maturation in a "refill barrique" which usually implies wine of some kind, but could also just be used for whisky. Since ex-wine finishes are rare, and ex-wine maturations even rarer, I think they would have mentioned if this had Chardonnay or Cabernet or Pinot Noir in its history, so the best guess is that it's just a regular old barrique - a 225-liter small oak cask - slightly less than a hogshead (250-300 L), slightly bigger than the American standard barrel (ASB), which is 200 liters. There are also cognac barriques, which are 300 liters, but again, I think they would have mentioned it prominently if it had some kind of ex-cognac influence.
So, from a mystery refill barrique, aged 12 years, bottled at 60.5% ABV. Let's check out our third Blair Athol:
Nose: The nose pour is really interesting: some muted saline, some petrichor, some cracked black pepper, dark fruit (plums, berries) mix with black tea, kitchen greens like spring onions, hints of toffee (burnt caramel), and an underlying tropical sourness, like unripe mango. A lot of things going on at once, but the overall impression is rather closed off and shy.
Deeper in the bottle: salt, chocolate, honey, malt, petrichor, tea, burnt sugar. The fruit mostly has vanished.
With some added water: the sour/unripe tropical fruit comes to the fore, followed by honey, pastries/croissants, petrichor, dark berries, and burnt sugar or molasses lurking in the background. Honestly water does this nose few favors.
Mouthfeel: Very heavy mouthfeel.
Palate: A WONDERFUL flavor explosion on the palate, it's almost the photo negative of the nose - all the shy savory notes are now huge and sweet - big honey drizzles, salted caramel, fresh-picked ripe apples, pear drop candies, a distinctly floral afterburn, and some savory notes of pepper and spice at the close. Tremendous development, one after the next after the next unfolds on the tongue.
Deeper in the bottle: There is still a very nice development here, but it's less intense than the neck pour was. Big honey and chocolate malt balls, salted caramel, baked apple, burnt sugar, and pepper and spices at the close. Very very rich.
With water: honey and clove, fresh-buttered pastries, black pepper, molasses, and rum (!), in the form of tropical fruit and burnt sugar together. Does better without much water, if any.
Finish: The finish is also lovely - burnt honey, vanilla extract, black pepper, salt taffy, and stewed fruit all intermix. Surprisingly long.
Verdict: A surprisingly complex bottle from Blair Athol and the cask selectors at Blackadder. A real testament to their 30 years in the business, I suppose. This has several layers or maybe even phases it goes through; the longer you let it sit in the glass, sans water, the better it gets. It has a sweet side, a savory side, an oaky side, and a malty side, and they intermix well. Good stuff.
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