I just learned this week that Fettercairn was infamous for being one of the worst single malt whiskies for a very long time. Michael Jackson, the renowned whisky critic, hated their distillate, calling it rubbery and unappealing; Jim Murray the same - when he was told "there's no such thing as a bad single malt," he replied "Have you tried Fettercairn?" Ouch.
Fettercairn is owned by Whyte and Mackay, who also own Dalmore and Jura (both have official bottlings that are routinely disparaged by whisky critics). I think 96% of Fettercairn goes into various blends. This is only the second bottling I've had of it - both bottles from the Scotch Malt Whisky Society ("SMWS"). This one is supposedly *really* off-profile - nicknamed "A Replicant Tries Whisky-Making" (a right cracker of a name, that). Here are the official notes:
A typically left-field nose initially, we noted acrylic, vinyl, colouring crayons, clay, play dough and wet fabrics. Then lanolin, aniseed, and earthy notes with a hint of wintergreen. Old school charming weirdness. With water we got waxed paper, white flowers, chalk, oatmeal and bread dough. An evolution more towards the raw, natural ingredients that is very charming. The neat palate was oily, mechanical, full of brake fluid, tool box rags, hessian, mineral oils and lots of drying peppery spices. Reduction brought out cooking oils, sharper citric notes, more soft medicinal and herbal notes, and soft notes of metal polish and dried tarragon.
Interesting - I bought the bottle almost entirely on the crazy flavors listed here. Acrylic! Vinyl! Wax! Playdough! Wow, intense. Matured 10 years in a second fill ex-bourbon barrel, bottled at 62.7%, let's just dive right into this swimming pool of insanity:
Nose: This is indeed quite weird, but the neck pour has some hints of apples and spice as well. That said, it's mostly weird: wax, boiled linseed oil, vinyl, wet burlap, lots of earth and basement smells here. Very unusual.
With water: *Significantly* stranger with the addition of water: chlorine, chalk dust, clay, wax, drying paint. There are still hints of malt and apples, though.
Mouthfeel: Surprisingly good mouthfeel - medium, a bit chewy.
Palate: A surprisingly nice, dry set of flavors on the palate: industrial wax (lanolin?), machine oil/grease, minerals, sweet malt (nice!), pepper, garlic.
With water: Honey (!), lemon cough syrup, malt, apple, lots of garden herbs, and something heavily metallic (the official notes are very close here - and this must have been a really tough one to describe).
Finish: Crayons, pepper, licorice, malt, again hints of apples.
Verdict: I am surprised by how much I like this. It's VERY strange - nothing like the other Fettercairn I have from SMWS - and I can only imagine they sold this cask because it was "unblendable" with so many industrial and potentially off-putting flavors, but I enjoyed it. A truly weird one, but in an integrated and pleasant way. Oddly enough, recommended.
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