I preferred the standard 12 year old, the nose has some extra fruit and florality but the PX flavours don’t really shine through here just add a little extra to an already sweet and fruity malt. Score 73/100 Don’t take my word for it: For this review, I'm going to look my gifted unicorn in the mouth, and by doing so, will talk about chill filtering, ABV percentages, and supply/ demand. For the majority of whisky drinkers it is the 12 year old that is most likely to draw attention. I find myself a little concerned with its price point, however, and fear the dreaded ‘p’ word may have been sprinkled liberally over the marketing meetings that led to its release. The premiumisation of whisky is getting rather out of hand of late, with largely unheard of brands suddenly declaring themselves luxury items and hiking their prices accordingly. This is particularly galling with a distillery like Fettercairn, that hasn’t been without image problems in the past. Nevertheless it seems we are expected to forget this and accept the new single malt is worthy of a higher price point.

12 Year Old | Fettercairn Single Malt Scotch Whisky | Fettercairn

The texture is of a water-like viscosity, which means this whisky goes down quite well, and it's a bit more difficult to keep it swirling around in your mouth. I'm a licensed Q-grader - different liquid sure - but sensory evaluation of valuable drinks is my job... It is not overly complex, but allows you to taste a couple of flavours and experience a couple of aromas. Single malt whiskies are also more expensive than other whiskies. A single malt whisky is defined as "whisky made from malted barley, at a single distillery, aged for at least three years in either American oak or European (Spanish) oak casks, and bottled at a minimum ABV of 40%" (Glenfiddich.com).The reason I'm starting my review in such a manner is because, while I was preparing for my tasting session, I was getting conflicting information: people that I consider ' those in the know' concerning whisky, told me that the Fettercairn 12 was, I paraphrase, ' not worth it', 'too expensive', and 'a stinker'. Some consider chill filtering to be a process during which the flavour of the whisky changes. The residue, especially the esters (little molecules providing for flavours and aromas), is removed. Whiskybase B.V. (“Whiskybase”, “we” or “us”, company details below) offers a whisky enthusiasts online platform that provides its members access to the most comprehensive, transparent and trusted resource of whisky bottles and allows and stimulates its members to contribute information about whisky bottles to the platform (“Service”). Well, as always, Wikipedia is your friend: " Chill filteringis a method in whisky making for removing residue.In chill filtering, whisky is cooled to between −10° and 4° Celsius(often roughly 0°) and passed through a fine adsorption filter.

Review // Fettercairn 12y Single Malt - A unicorn worth Review // Fettercairn 12y Single Malt - A unicorn worth

Fettercairn Bottler Distillery Bottling Bottling serie 2nd Release 2021 Bottled 01.12.2021 Stated Age 16 years old Casktype Oloroso & Palo Cortado Sherry Butts Strength 46.4 % Vol. Size 700 ml 1000 ml Bottle code L1335 xx:xx P7017858 Barcode 5013967018709 Added on 11 dec 2021 10:07 pm by Mr.Edradour Taste: The natural weight of the spirit isn’t allowed to shine at 40%. There’s some viscosity, but once it gets beyond the front of the mouth it feels underpowered and rather anaemic. The flavour delivery is better – orange sherbet, stone fruit preserves, dried mangos and a side bowl of stewed currants. Running throughout – characterful distillery notes of maltiness, porridge and yeasty bread - livened by white pepper and allspice. Resting is beneficial, offering an easier equilibrium between the spirit and the cask. It adds orange liqueurs and stem ginger whilst assimilating some of the sourer notes into the sweeter ones. Patience Padawan. People who do not think that chill filtering is a bad thing often mention that it allows whisky makers to keep producing an expression which, on the level of flavours and aromas, is more consistent. So the flavours and aromas change. Using chill filtering, therefore, makes your whisky taste less 'natural'. But is that a bad thing?Because of chill filtering, and a couple of other things, brands are able to keep producing whisky that tastes and smells the same. This is especially helpful for mass-market products. It has nothing to do with quality, however.

Fettercairn 12-year-old - Ratings and reviews - Whiskybase

This is not a problem to me, as I am only tasting this version of the expression. As Whisky For Everyone correctly states: " it is difficult to compare as no one releases the same whisky in a chill filtered and non chill filtered form" (whiskyforeveryone.com). As a finish, more vanilla, with barely any dry element to round the dram out. Very down-to-earth, easy to process. Okay in my book, nothing bad about it at all. We may, but are not under any obligation, to release new functionalities and tools or other features for the Service every now and then. Any new functionalities, tools and features shall be part of and governed by the Terms from the moment they are launched and/or available. Further, we reserve the right to modify, change, discontinue the Service, add or remove features, update the Service, change its appearance, temporarily and permanently, at any time, in whole or any part thereof.Because it is only 40% ABV, it is also easier to drink than most other whiskies in the same age category. This cookie is set by Rubicon Project to control synchronization of user identification and exchange of user data between various ad services. Nose: Fettercairn yeastiness meets sweet sherry. Orange peels, juice and marmalade (there’s a lot of orange here) sit with golden syrup and dehydrated mango slices. Malty loaves and oven-baked buns are joined by dusty spices – cinnamon and allspice - whilst ripe berries (cranberry and strawberry), Eton Mess, stem ginger and crushed hazelnuts emphasise the influence of the PX finish. It’s sweet. Super sweet. I wouldn’t consider myself a whisky connoisseur but I have tried a number of single malts over the last few years and this is my favourite. It has lovely smooth texture and the main flavours are at the sweeter end of the whisky spectrum, honey, vanilla, a touch of ginger and chocolate. I add a single cube of ice to it and it goes down really well! Highly recommended. I’m not a fan of the smokey and peaty flavours you find in some single malts so if that’s to your taste, do not but this whisky! If that is a bit much, here's the gist: chill filtration makes sure your whisky does not 'fog up'. It removes the fatty acids, proteins, and esters from the whisky, and these are responsible for your whisky turning less translucent.