Edradour 1971 MI

Overall rating
51.47/100
votes
45
Whiskybase ID
WB3974
Category
Single Malt
Distillery
Bottler
Moon-Import (MI)
Bottling serie
The Animals
Vintage
1971
Bottled
1990
Casknumber
3571-2
Number of bottles
600
Strength
46.0 % Vol.
Size
750 ml
Added on
08 oct 2008 3:57 pm
Single Cask Whisky

Average value

€ 1839.50

10 × in wishlist

45 × member ratings

18 × in collection

Whisky reviews for Edradour 1971 MI

12 users have left 14 reviews for this whisky. Average rating is 51.47 points.

  1. lincolnimp scored this whisky 38 points Connoisseur

    Can it get any worse with a little water?

    4 drops of water and the nose is neutral now, I detect nothing?

    A touch of fruit but even more soapy bubbles are evident.

    Finish possibly slightly longer but who cares?

    This is certainly on my worst whisky list, I agree with all the other members comments.
    • Nose
      The nose is not expressive in fact there is little of anything but a few white wine notes and a little marzipan.

      After some time in the glass there are notes of wood shavings and possibly some vanilla???/
    • Taste
      This is strange, really strange, like you have swallowed a mouthful of bubble bath.

      There is something sweet in the aftertaste like apple trying to get through but the bubble taste dominates.

      If you keep going there is some lemon and a little cream.
    • Finish
      Not particularly long and there is a battle between the soapy bubble taste and the few sweet notes that can get through the soap.

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  3. Cubey666 scored this whisky 35 points Connoisseur

    well, it is whisky, and it is old... but it is an abomination.
    Thank you hs305 for providing me with a sample to experience it myself.

    about the worst whisky I ever had... wow.
    • Nose
      53 53
      citrus, malty, shampoo, lavender, perfume, citrus, quite stingy on the nose... definitely quite some off tones, but doable...
    • Taste
      24 24
      soapy, just soapy except it does not foam. really astringent and bitter, like licking a soap bar (do not try this at home...), also some strange sweetness, copper coins, metallic, and rather perfume driven
    • Finish
      29 29
      flowers, soap once more, little bit of quirky sweetness, chocolate, and all in all, rather rancid.

  4. WindshearAhead scored this whisky 20 points Expert Junior

    By far the worst Whisky I have ever had.

  5. Horror_Vacui scored this whisky 25 points Expert Senior

    Thanks to hs305 for the sample!

    Nose:
    Lavender soap, rose soap, a little hay, dish soap, bath cleaner with mountain fresh scent.
    Do not really want to put it in your mouth ...

    For science!
    Mouth:
    So I imagine to suck on a piece of soap. Incredible artificial and chemical floral aromas. Light cereal notes, a hint of alcohol.

    Finish: there is an aftertaste on the tongue, I did not get it swallowed.

    Scary stuff! Not drinkable, even more terrible than the Longrow 14.

  6. gooos scored this whisky 30 points Expert Senior

    • Nose
      50 50
    • Taste
      20 20
    • Finish
      20 20

  7. stefsel111 scored this whisky 50 points Connoisseur

  8. VaryingViewpoint scored this whisky 21 points Photo Moderator

    Sample supplied by hs305.

    After reading the notes on this nightmare in a glass, I was about to pour this down the drain (without trying it), but I was convinced to give it a go. Amazing what friends will talk you into.

    Nose; Not as bad as I thought, petrol with some rancid-honey, beeswax and sour citrus. It smells combustable, like if you're not careful it might blowup in your face.

    Palate; Again not as bad as I thought it would be, sharp petrol soapy-sweetness. Not in a good way, (I could not bring myself to swallow it). I did hold it for 30 seconds or so to see if I was going to experience spontaneous-combustion. But no, I will drink again.

    Finish; I give it a 10 (9 for length and 1 for pleasantness), sour soapiness that reminds me of a time when I was four when I had my mouth washout with soap. Lovely memories that this gives.

    I gave Price a 50 because it came with a bounty of other samples. So I feel like I was paid to do the deed.

    I gave Presentation a 10 because it came in a sample mini excluding the frogs. So I feel robbed. 

    Edit: I had my wife read my review on this. Not only did she help me correct some of my spelling, she did the deed, and swallowed it. What a woman!

    Edit II; Siting here an hour later after some cheese & crackers and salted chocolate caramels I'm still tasting that soapiness in my gums and on my teeth. I will need to go brush my teeth, gums and tongue. Thank goodness it's not in me coating my intestines.
    • Nose
      15 15
    • Taste
      20 20
    • Finish
      10 10

  9. yannick scored this whisky 18 points Member Senior

    The guys were not joking, this is by far the worst whisky i‘ve ever tasted , the nose wasn‘t so bad , but that soapy flavor really killed it :D.

    Thanks for the opportunity to make this unusual experience hs305
    • Nose
      52 52
    • Taste
      1 1
    • Finish
      1 1

  10. Oldpultnie scored this whisky 28 points Connoisseur

    • Nose
      30 30
    • Taste
      20 20
    • Finish
      20 20

  11. Oldpultnie scored this whisky 28 points Connoisseur

    Always thought Loch Dhu was the winner but this is a good second one.
    • Nose
      Can't smell a lot in this. Very flat.
    • Taste
      Bwaah, I was prepared for the soap but this is over the top and the very last thing you expect in your whisky. Had a very little sip and there it stops for me. Don't even want to try again to find something positive in this.
    • Finish
      A bad taste for the rest of the day.

  12. lincolnimp scored this whisky 38 points Connoisseur

    Some of the higher scores here ( up to 89) cannot have been drinking the same whisky as I just have.
    • Nose
      44 44
    • Taste
      30 30
    • Finish
      31 31

  13. Schmausel scored this whisky 35 points Administrator

    unbelievable, they did not overact in their review. The nose was tolerable for me , but the taste was something like soap, no way, I managed to swallow the one and only sip i did but this is and will be nothing for me.

    Way worst Whisky i had so far....

    Thank you ( if you can say so in this case) to hs305 to give me the opportunity to taste this one

      

  14. hs305 scored this whisky 20 points Connoisseur

    [September, 2015]  DO NOT OPEN THIS BOTTLE - this is a collector's item only!!!  I bought bottle no. 484 for 171 Euro in September, 2005. I have opened all bottles of the Moon - Animals series a while ago (see reviews of the Bunnahabhain 1964, Glen Grant 1964 or Tobermory 1972) and since than every guest to my whisky cellar MUST try a little sip (at his/her first visit only, it won't work a second time...).  So far none (!) was able to swallow this stuff, every single person used the spittoon  (see comment of Ardberg below).

    Yes, this smells and tastes like liquid soap and what the hell did the Moon people think when they bottled this back in 1990?  Most probably they were ROFLing when they imagined the face of someone who takes the first sip.  Totally weird...

    But what happened during production back in 1971?  How came these extremely soapy flavours in a whisky?  I remember other Edradours from that period (60ies/70ies) have a comparable soapiness (Glenturret 1966 OB (WB id 14469) and Glen Garioch 1970 OB (WB id 90580) plus Tobermory from the same Moon-Animals series (WB id 8790) are also known for their soapy notes, but not as extreme as this one).

    I had a long chat about this issue with Charlie Smith during the Speyside Whisky Festival this year.  He is the most experienced and longest serving stillman in the industry today and was active in the late sixties already.  Actually, he said "I have no clue where such extreme soapiness comes from.  Yes, it was a common practice throughout the whole whisky industry to use soap to reduce the foam in both the washbacks and the wash stills.  We cut little chunks from a big soap cube and simply threw these in the washbacks or through a special opening of the wash still.  It worked very well.  But this soap was a neutral one and had no influence on any taste at all."

    So, was the mashman or stillman at Edradour too drunken back in 1971 so they mistook the soap with that from the gent's room?  Did they clean the washbacks with the wrong soap?  Nobody will know for sure anymore, maybe it was all different...
    • Nose
      30 30
    • Taste
      10 10
    • Finish
      6 6

  15. ARDBERG scored this whisky 24 points Connoisseur

    This one gets a very high 24 points for originality. I had a taste out of an original bottle that was opened by a friend, so chance of contamination/or it being something else is zero, unless something happened when it was bottled. If you like to drink your shampoo in the morning and lick your soap, this one is for you. It is by far the soapiest whisky I have ever tasted and it takes mouthwash to take the soap away. It is abslutely undrinkable and might serve best as an additive for your bathwater.

    Did anyone - who has tasted this one - have the same experience?

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