Auchroisk 1989 CA

Overall rating
86.58/100
votes
82
Whiskybase ID
WB53687
Category
Single Malt
Distillery
Bottler
Cadenhead's (CA)
Bottling serie
Small Batch
Vintage
1989
Bottled
03.2014
Stated Age
24 years old
Casktype
Butts
Number of bottles
1140
Strength
57.5 % Vol.
Size
700 ml
Added on
04 apr 2014 11:30 pm by Bishlouk
UncoloredNon-chillfilteredCask Strength

Average value

€ 123.93

6 × in wishlist

82 × member ratings

95 × in collection

Whisky reviews for Auchroisk 1989 CA

19 users have left 20 reviews for this whisky. Average rating is 86.58 points.

  1. CST1986 scored this whisky 86 points Expert Senior

    Without any water, this whisky can seem quite sulphury and gunpowder-y, which is why it doesn't score higher in my book.
    With water and especially on the palate, it's a whole league better and develops into a nice, satisfying and quite complex dram with the (still slightly meaty) sherry not overpowering the grassy and delicately nutty distillery character. Decent value for money, but probably not for the beginner.
    • Nose
      83 83
      It's on the nose where the gunpowder-y note really is a problem and causes you to get nervous on what to expect.
      Neat: Yeah, sulphur candles, gunpowder and some burnt caramel are masking an otherwise quite promising nose. It does lose quite a few points here, but if you overcome the first shock you will also detect a fruity, malty and nutty character behind the sulphur curtain. Maybe we can lift that curtain with a drop of water?

      With water: You won't fully erase that impression of a not-so-clean sherry cask, and if you hate sulphur like the devil hates holy water, please give this whisky a pass. BUT with water (you may be quite generous) the malt calms significantly down and becomes a typically malty and fruity Speysider with a meaty and salty twist. Salted caramelized nuts, raisins, a meat sauce on a coal stove, hay, dried figs and honey. This whisky has some potential. If only the cask had been of better quality...
    • Taste
      87 87
      Neat:
      Much more palatable and pleasant than feared. Yes, there is that gunpowder note, but thankfully there's nothing rotten or stale on the palate. Punchy attack, Spicy (hot curry powder), meaty and sweet (malt sugar and caramelized nuts). Good, but the development is quickly becoming quite hot.

      With water:
      Again, much much better. Now the sulphur has completely vanished in favour of a creamy and full-bodied malty Speyside character with apple sauce (plus cinnamon), figs, Swiss nut cake and only a delicate sherry note and a hint of coal smoke in the background. Suddenly it seems so well integrated, which is quite a miracle!
    • Finish
      89 89
      Long, on salted nuts, caramel, sherried plums and an ever so slight smoke note. The finish is definitely the best part.

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  3. rottendon scored this whisky 79 points Connoisseur

    Probably a very young candidate, active barrel, but still hasn't quite tamed the alcohol. However, this is well integrated / superimposed so that it is not even noticeable on the nose at room temperature. You can drink it, but it's not a special enrichment.

    Notes from a blind tasting.

    I'm honestly shocked and honestly can't remember ever having such a 24-year-old in my glass. I would have guessed a maximum of 5 years and well over 60% and I'm not squeamish about cask strength.
    • Nose
      81 81
      Strong citrus notes make the beginning, but more orange or kumquat, quite mild, bergamot. Behind it comes something floral and a distinctive acidity, as you know it from sweets, sour drops. Later, all of these notes give way to caramel and malt, only to promptly supplant them again. Seems quite restless, but not in a negative sense. One would say vibrant in English-speaking countries. Maybe a hint of smoke too. After a while, however, it collapses a bit, mineral and now somewhat penetrating citrus/bergamot notes leave little room for anything else. I'll give him a few more minutes. After this time, almost nothing has changed, only maltiness has been added. He looks a little musty now, but not unpleasant. Warmth briefly brings the floral to the fore again, then chewy sweets, clear acidity, the alcohol starts to bite the nose. After a short time back to the status quo, mineral and malty.
    • Taste
      82 82
      Wow, he has percentages! Even if he is very hesitant, the development is enormous. Dark sweetness and acidity in a pleasant interplay. Becomes darker towards the back and also slightly tart.
    • Finish
      75 75
      And as hard as it came, it's gone just as quickly. Only a slight but aggressive bitterness (wormwood tea) remains for a moment. Well, and it warms up significantly and leaves a somewhat numb tongue.

  4. Tomek scored this whisky 89 points Expert Senior

    Smell: pickled cucumbers, pineapple, peat, turbo gum (reminds me of great Springbanks),
    Taste: sweet, cucumber, vanilla, slightly tannic, slightly peaty
    Finish: bitter, pineapple accents
    Rating: 6

  5. Xaver did not rate this whisky Expert Senior

    Notes from an online blind tasting...
    • Nose
      Color:
      dark gold

      Nose:
      Slightly artificial and tart. Glue, musty. Behind red currants and a trace of tobacco. Dates and a bit greasy. Bit of lovage and pepper.
      With some time in the glass, more dry wood develops. Potting soil and floral. Slightly rusty and salty.
    • Taste
      Soft and at the same time spicy attack. Lychee and pineapple. And again that trace of tobacco. In the taste "dirtier". Still has something impetuous. Sour cherries and again a subtle saltiness. This moldy taste also remains.
    • Finish
      Rather long. It's definitely different. Different, but still cool.

  6. zzqfyl scored this whisky 88 points Connoisseur

    • Nose
      89 89
    • Taste
      88 88
    • Finish
      88 88

  7. EvilAFI scored this whisky 89 points Expert Senior

    Light peat, thicc honey malt, light sour Sherry, oily. I like this combination, it is bold and unique.

  8. wncvirus scored this whisky 85 points Expert Senior

    Nose: notes of heather, notes of sherry, fragrance of flowers
    Taste: Slightly folded, slightly flat, with hints of sherry. It opens slightly when you add water.
    Rating: 85 | 100. Medium medium bottle with a medium spciy finish

  9. maurisso scored this whisky 89 points Connoisseur

    Another farting whisky ... Full speed ahead !!!

  10. JNuyts scored this whisky 89 points Connoisseur

    • Nose
      90 90
    • Taste
      89 89
    • Finish
      89 89

  11. bvrsky scored this whisky 89 points Connoisseur

    • Nose
      89 89
    • Taste
      90 90
    • Finish
      89 89

  12. wurfhamster scored this whisky 90 points Expert Junior

    • Nose
      90 90
    • Taste
      91 91
    • Finish
      88 88

  13. ThinLizzy scored this whisky 90 points Connoisseur

    • Nose
      90 90
    • Taste
      91 91
    • Finish
      89 89

  14. markjedi1 scored this whisky 85 points Connoisseur

    Radar

    The lion’s share of what is produced at Auchroisk goes to the blenders. Justerini & Brooks is their biggest customer. If you want to try it as a single malt, you have to look for an independent release. Take Cadenhead’s for example, one of Scotland’s oldest bottlers. A few years ago they released this sherry butt matured Auchroisk in their Small Batch series.

    Aromatic nose on black coffee, hazelnuts, caramel and… a bit of sulfur. Luckily that last part evaporates quickly, but it is unmistakable and gave me a bit of a scare. Then baking butter, plums and sniffing tobacco kick in. Peanuts, raisins and gravy appear. Pleasant, at least after the sulfur has left the glass.

    Very piquant on the palate: curry, ginger, black pepper. Then some buttered fruit (dates, raisins and nuts) that give enough of a sweet note to keep things pleasant, although a salty note appears on the radar as well. Good strength. Apples, pears and barley sugar kick in. There is again an umami note that I cannot identify, but it does make this interesting.

    The finish offers some grassy and nutty notes like we are used to from Auchroisk, but the salty and umami notes never go away completely. Woodsmoke at the death. Good surprise.

    Not an easy Auchroisk, but definitely interesting. Not for everyone, I think, as it’s a difficult one. Around 120 EUR.

  15. mr.p9 scored this whisky 89 points Expert Senior

    • Nose
      90 90
    • Taste
      89 89
    • Finish
      89 89

  16. Finlaggan scored this whisky 81 points Expert Senior

    My review can be found here:
    http://themaltdesk.blogspot.dk/2015/11/auchroisk-1989-24yo-cadenhead-small.html

  17. Toffie76 scored this whisky 90 points Expert Senior

    extrapoint! It's really worth it,

  18. Toffie76 scored this whisky 90 points Expert Senior

    Beefy! and complex.
    • Nose
      rich, dense, complex, fruity. Leather, smoke, vegetable. Sap. Walnuts, walnut oil, smoke ++ over time. Metallic traces like an iron smell. A little sherry notes with lots of dried fruits, dates, figs, grapes. Pastry notes, greedy. Then woody. A little butter, almonds / marzipan
    • Taste
      Lively, rich, dense. We start with a quarter turn. Balance and balance: check! It's harmonious and complex. Boost of spices at the beginning of the mouth. Malted length with a return of smoke. In finish, we find the smoke of the nose.
    • Finish
      Smoked salted butter caramel. Pepper ++ with aeration

  19. Bishlouk scored this whisky 89 points Connoisseur

    This is a profile that will not please everyone, I think this Auchroisk is to put in the category of '' love it or hate it ''. Already, the perceptible sulfur side of the nose should remove a certain slice of amateurs. The sherry is obviously noticeable, but not invasive (we are very far from a dark Oloroso, for example). Not especially complex, but powerful and tasty. Personally I really like this kind of whisky.
    • Nose
      Black plum, hazelnut, swirls of coffee, caramel. There is clearly an influence of sherry casks, it is undeniable. Some traces of tobacco and black tea emerge afterwards. This whisky is also, nose, slightly sulfur, but just what it takes for it to be an advantage (according to my personal taste), without being too much (which discourages me, by cons). People who are very sensitive to sulfur should not be here at the party.
    • Taste
      Badaboum from the start! Peppery caramel, full of fruits (white, yellow, dates, figs, etc.) sweet and declined in all possible forms (compote, syrup, candied). It's creamy on the palate. Little by little, the presence of raisins is revealed and these are becoming more and more in the foreground.
    • Finish
      Average. A warmth develops and radiates in the mouth. A hint of wood appears. Spices and fruits die slowly.

  20. Titi94 did not rate this whisky Connoisseur

    Tasting Notes from Whiskysite.nl:

    Nose: Rhubarb, lime leaves, warm cola, cherries and creamy buttery pastry.Palate: Rich and chocolatey; lots of red fruits, toffee and hot cross buns.Finish: Lots of toffee, warm spices and raspberry jam.

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