Apart from some Blended Malts (Speyside and Islay), Clan Denny also bottled a bunch of single cask Single Grain whiskies. Single Grains are getting a bit more marketable these days since you can buy really old stuff for acceptable prices. The production process is a lot easier and less time consuming, plus a lot more is being produced to fill up blends.

You won’t find a lot of Carsebridge however, since they stopped producing in 1983 and the plant was dismantled in 1992. Because of the massive operations necessary to be profitable most big blending companies have concentrated their grain whisky production on just a few sites who produce some 60 million litres each year.

Nose:
It starts off sweet with vanilla cream and a hint of coconut. It does get a bit sharper after a few seconds and releases some of the alcohol to prickle your nose. After a couple of minutes I also started to smell nutmeg.

Taste:
Slightly peppery, but mostly sweet again. It feels pretty clean on the palate. Quite light and slightly spicy with caramel and vanilla pods. Creamy as well.

Finish:
The finish quite unexpected. I taste a lot more spices than I expected, mostly focussed on ‘friendly’ spices you would find in pastries and cakes. A bit grainy, but very full flavoured. It lasts for quite a while.

This is a more or less quintessential grain whisky that has been properly aged. They usually are ripe with vanilla and almost too easy to drink. The depth of flavour is not as big as with Single Malts, but it’s very nice to try one of these every once in a while.

Carsebridge 29, 1981, Clan Denny, Bourbon Hogshead #6609, 53.1%, available at DH17 Slijterijen for € 90

Again, thanks Elise!