Overall rating
89.44/100
ratings
11
Whiskybase ID
WB7199
Category
Single Malt
Distillery
Bottler
Cadenhead's (CA)
Bottling series
Dumpy Bottle
Vintage
11.1961
Bottled
02.1986
Stated Age
24 years
Strength
46.0 %
Size
750 ml
Added on
27 mar 2009 7:33 am
UncoloredNon-chill Filtered
Photo by Bachess
Overall rating
89.44/100
ratings
11

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Whisky reviews for Balmenach 1961 CA

One user has left a review for this whisky. Average rating is 89.44 points.

Read the reviews
  1. hs305 scored this whisky 90 points Connoisseur

    [November, 2003]  I had this dram during a "pre-wars" tasting at Papenburg.  In my old rating system (ten scales that translate into WB points: 50 - 66 - 75 - 80 - 82,5 - 85 - 87,5 - 90 - 92,5 - 95) I scored it 90.  Unfortunately no notes were taken.

    This bottle served as aromas/flavours point of reference for a very old Balmenach with a handwritten label stating "BALMENACH WHISKY - 1910  12 under proof - bottled Feb 1920 - P.L".  Unfortunately this bottle did not contain any whisky anymore but just sweet sugary water instead.  Either it lost all alcohol due to evaporation (the filling level was shoulder/body line) or someone else drank the content and refilled it with sugared water (as sometimes Teenies do in Daddy's wine cellar).  Bad luck...

    But the line-up of this tasting was spectacular nevertheless (most bottles are not on WB and I think it makes no sense to add them):

    - Dalaruan 1895 (Dalaruan was a distillery in Campbeltown founded by Charles Colvill in 1824 and closed in 1922.  It had a production capacity of 112.000 gallons using three stills back in 1885 according to Alfred Barnard).  The label stated "Special Reserve 1895 Dalaruan - Pure Campbeltown Malt Scotch Whisky - 20 up - David Colvill & Co. - Dalaruan Distillery Campbeltown".  It was a square dumpy bottle of dark brown glass.
    - Irish Tasalar bottled in the 19th century (not more known).  The brown-green-red label stated "Finest Old Irish Whisky Tasalar - Proprietors S. W. Berisford".  It was an oval bottle of dark brown glass.  And yes, the word "whisky" was written without an "e"...
    - Irish pot still whisky, Berry Bros. 1904.  The label was almost completely damaged but "Very fine Irish whisky 1904 pot still" in the middle of the classic old Berry Bros. label was identifyable by good eyes.
    - Macallan 1939 30 years (WB id 81219)
    - Glen Flagler 100% Malt Pot Still Scotch Whisky N.A.S. (WB id 44562)

    The pre-world war 1 stuff (Dalaruan, Tasalar, Berry Bros. 1904) was all of a rather poor quality (harsh, unbalanced, uninspiring - I would not call this whisky in our times and who knows, maybe these were fake bottles anyhow?).  So this was an interesting experience to try but nothing more.  Same with the Glen Flager.  But the 1939 Macallan was a real stunner...

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