The Underappreciated – Spread the Word!

I’ll get things started.

Peat/Sherry marriage – Benriach 12 yr Heredotus Fumosus PX – We all know the Uigeadails and Darkests as well as several others, but this one is delicious and quite overlooked. I don’t know why it’s not more popular. Great quality and great price.

Islay - Port Askaig 17 – I only tried the 17 twice but I loved it both times. A unique yet available bottling from that Whisky Exchange guy. People seem to think it’s Caol Ila. They may be right; I’d need to try it again. Either way it was interesting and really tasty. I’d love to try their CS as well.

Bourbon – Jack Daniels Single Barrel – I know, but Tennessee Whiskey doesn’t make for much of a category. Anyway this may not be ‘under the radar,’ but I do think it’s quickly dismissed because the Old No. 7 is so unpopular and because it’s uncool to like anything sporting the JD label. Regardless, this is among my favorite entry level premium bourbons. Very well-crafted stuff.

Price and scarcity, along with being "different" have a lot to do with being "off the radar". Whiskies which I think many people would love if they tried them, but they haven't tried them so far:

1) Isle of Skye 12 yo Blended Scotch, perhaps my favourite blended Scotch, and a whisky I prefer to most malts and other whiskeys 2) True Blue 61% abv 100% Blue Corn Whiskey, by Balcones, just gets better with air time. I haven't tried the new 50% abv version. I don't consider the Baby Blue to be in the same league 3) Corsair Quinoa Whiskey: a mind-blowingly good first product using 20% of this "grain" and 80% malted barley; I call Quinoa "The New Rye". Quinoa is extremely spicy, but its flavours are unique 4) Reservoir Rye Whiskey, from Richmond, Virginia; a really great rye which is both scarce and expensive. With tax this one costs around $ 90 even in the region in which it is made 5) Benjamin Pritchard's Double-Barreled Bourbon 9 yo; like Reservoir Rye, Pritchard's bourbon is expensive, and not too widely available. Excellent quality, though 6) Isle of Arran Sauternes Cask; you don't hear a lot of talk about it, but what I've had has been outstanding; I like Glenmorangie Nectar d'Or well enough, but Arran Sauternes is much better: brighter, crisper, livelier, more engaging

I would have to say BLADNOCH. It's a small independent distillery, and not marketed outside of Europe. It's available mostly online through the distillery or online shops. As a Canadian, I haven't ventured into UK stores to see if it's sold there.

The new ownership has been producing spirit for about 12-13 years. The oldest expression I've come across from them is 12 years. I've seen three ABVs. Some of it is sold at 46%. I tried a 9 YO peated bourbon cask expression and was quite impressed. They also have a 10, 11 and 12 YO at 55%. Sherry matured. I've tried the first two. Both excellent, the 10 was my favourite. My next open Bladnoch will be a 12, though that's well into the future.

I also have a cask strength (about 57%) 10 YO that I haven't opened yet.

Of the 20 Bladnoch reviews, only one or two (other than my 3) are of the new ownership's products. So even on this website it's below the radar most of the time.

I welcome the opportunity to share my appreciation for this dram. If you have a way of ordering online from uk stores I would recommend going for it. Definitely value for the money compared to the likes of the Macallan and others.

@Victor Shhhh about the Isle of Skye 12yr, that is hard enough to come by as it is don't let the world know about it, and the same goes for Old Pulteney. LOL. :)

The new Millstone batches from the Netherlands:) It took a while for them to come of age, but the new 10yr bourbon cask and the 12 year old Sherry cask are awesome and there's even a 14 year old PX sherrycask as well now that I didn't taste yet. There is also a 100% Rye whisky that is very nice, very spicy and the old Peated single malt is worth sampling. Only the new lightly peated one is not so good, beware of that one!

My perennial pick to answer this question is Strathisla 12 year old. It's one of those low abv, low cost single malts that's always good. anCnoc and Old Pulteney 12 year olds are others. I used to include Bunnahabhain 12 year old in this discussion, but its recent price hike has sort of taken it out of this park for me.

Two come to mind:

-Just about anything from Balblair. It's not an obscure distillery, but it doesn't seem to get recognition on par with its quality. One of the few whiskies that can call itself "light but complex" without sounding like an apology.

-FEW Spirits Rye.The product of a new-ish (est. 2008) craft distillery in Evanston, IL. I thought it was tasty, but very sweet and harsh when I first tried it. Several months on, and it's really opened up into something very balanced and full-bodied. The quality wood really shines through.

@hunggar you sold me on the Benriach 12 yr Heredotus Fumosus PX. I love the 15yr Dark Rum finish they do, so this is on the "to buy".

@PeatyZealot the Millstone 12y Sherry is absolutely brilliant. Heard good things about the rye also, but haven't tasted it yet.

I'm curious about the new 10y olds.

Problem for non Dutch people is the availability outside of holland.

@Victor, unfortunately pretty much your entire list is out of reach here, even the Isle of Skye blend. One of the few scotch brands that’s not available here. Quinoa huh? Sounds interesting. The only thing I’d have a shot at from your list is the Arran. Like you, I like the Nectar d’Or, but I get more out of it from an analytical standpoint, it’s not something I find myself wanting very often. Still, I’d love to try something else with a Sauternes finish. I tried their 100 proof release a while back and haven’t been very motivated to explore more Arrans since then.

@WhiskyBee, you’re right. Balblair does seem to be pretty overlooked. I’m guilty of having never given it a chance myself. It must be a subconscious thing. Perhaps because there’s no chatter out there about it people tend to ignore it when they’re shopping. I’ll have to remedy that. Right now I’m eying an older-style bottling of the 16 yo for $60.

@Frost, the Benriach HF12 PX is lovely. It’s closest in style to Bowmore Darkest, in that the sherry has a candied sweet quality. Apart from that, it’s really unique. The oak notes aren’t as pronounced as in the Darkest, and the maritime flavours are nowhere to be found. Still, the HF12PX boasts more peat and intensity than the Darkest, and a matching complexity. I haven’t tried the rum finish yet, but I’ve heard some pretty mixed reviews on that one. Benriach finishes are all over the map. I love their ‘colourful’ portfolio and adventurous attitude, but they really can be hit or miss. I highly recommend their 12 yo Sherry Wood and the peated 17 yo Septendecim, too. Great value for money.

@Victor Yes, the Isle of Skye blends are fantastic, particularly the 12 year!

Another endorsement for FEW Spirits Rye ("Craft Spirit of the Year" award from Whisky Advocate Magazine); tinyurl.com/lnjrrzd

Worth seeking out (or ordering from Binny's), as it's available only in Illinois, Nashville, and Japan (?!?) at this time.

Aberfeldy. Benrinnes. Balcones. Clynelish.

Glen Elgin, Glen Garioch, Pendryn

Ardmore NAS Traditional Cask 46% abv. non-chill filtered, and finished in Quarter Casks. As Ardmore is a Sister Distillery to Laphroaig, it is reasonable to assume their Quarter Casks are 'hand-me downs' a big plus, in my opinion! It doesn't appear (to my old eyes), to be colored, at all; and, to me, is a lovely old fashioned Whisky!

Slainte!

I'm very bias toward anything Mull/Tobermory. Having tried the three newer releases, I have to say I find all of them excellent in their own way and each shows the effect of different production techniques. The standard 10 is to quote WhiskyBee "light but complex", enough flavour to know it's an island dram but it's not in your face. Ledaig on the other hand is a completely different drink, it reminds me of being at a race track. Plus the dark chocolate finish is excellent, I've never had another non-sherried whisky create that. The 15 I've only had one dram of, but it is also a good example of an older sherried whisky. I just wish it didn't cost so much here. It's important to remember though that none of the three are meant to blow your socks off, they're just good everyday drinks.

Another distillery that seems to get no respect is Bowmore. I figure this is because most of it's OBs are in between everything else Islay. However they're good when you only want a slight peat fix, and probably a very good start for beginner peat heads. That said the cask strength/unchillfiltered bottlings like the Tempest batch 3 and Ledaig 15 are two of the best whiskys I've ever had. It's too bad unchillfiltered releases are considered special, otherwise the standard OBs would probably be much better.

A'bunadhman is right about Ardmore. Too bad it's a limited release here in Ontario. Still the last time it was around it was a great value.

Bourbon wise the ratings for Four Roses Small Batch and especially the Single Barrel are far too low on this site.

I agree with @Mammon on the Glen Garioch. Some very underrated whisky indeed...

I think perhaps specific bottlings might help us narrow things down. Otherwise this could just turn into a discussion about what distilleries people like.

Two more for the list. Glenlivet 18 and Glenfiddich 18. Hardly unknown, but I would argue that they’re underappreciated. Not only are they two of the most affordable 18 year olds out there, they’re also delicious. I get the “I don’t like branded” whiskies argument. But if that’s the case you’re not allowed to like Glenmorangie (and by extension Ardbeg) either. These are big name brand whiskies, but guess what? They’re pretty good!

If I had to be specific about bottlings I would say my favourite Bladnoch was the sherry cask 88 10 year old. According to my correspondence with them, most of their bottlings (standard expressions like 10 year) have been single cask because of their low volume.

I have grown to like their 11 YO expression as it's been open for a while. But for now, definitely the 10 year old.

Alright, I'll pipe in here. "Underappreciated"... 3 come to mind:

One has already been mentioned by @Victor, so I won't repeat it. The 2nd-- if you'd asked me 2 months ago-- would have been the Ealanta, because it had been getting mixed reception at the time. But we all know what happened there..., and now it's perhaps "overappreciated." (Meaning, I suspect many fad-sters would actually be almost as happy with Glenfiddich's Rich Oak-- which is decent, BTW.)

Then? I don't know if anyone will listen, as I've said it before (including in the recent Ealanta thread, which is relevant to this topic...), but: my favorite "find" of this year was Sullivan Cove's French Oak Port Cask. It just makes a great balance between interesting, elegant, and playful. My one disclaimer is that the bottle needs a tiny bit of oxidation (1 month) to open up, as it seemed weaker in flavor when brand new. Of the 66 whiskies I reviewed in 2013, this is the one that has surprised me most by not receiving any other review, comment, or mention on this Connosr website. And YET it was obviously not "underappreciated" by Jim Murray last year, nor by by the World Whiskies Awards....

@vanPelt thanks for your comments on the Sullivans Cove.

I live in Australia and I'm almost embarrassed to admit that I've never tried any of their offerings, but I'm now going to place a bottle on my Christmas list!

@vanPelt I agree with your take on Sullivan Cove's French Oak Port Cask. I polished a bottle off not long ago and will be certainly restocking this one.

Seeing as I just reviewed it under the title "Overlooked," I might as well throw Johnnie Walker swing into the mix here. It's one of the better Walkers that doesn't get a lot of love or reviews online.

@wtrstrnghlt Haha wow, finally someone who knows about them :) Maybe a good reason to do a visit someday, although the distillery doesnt really do tours...

@PeatyZealot I believe they don't even produce Whisky all year round. Whisky is fairly new to them. They're know for their Jenevers. All pretty high end of the market I suppose. Now they also make Rum.

They do tours for groups >20. For only €12,50 and you're able to taste everything. Hope to visit them one day.

Monkey shoulder which is a fairly new, if I'm not mistaken, speyside blend and the reviews and ratings on the sit do not do it justice IMO.

@hunggar I'll be interested to try J W swing if I get a chance I had at heard much about it until u gave it ur under appreciated stamp of approval.

@Nolinske: The Swing is definitely one of the brand's best releases. Really likable, and quite 'Speysidey' for a Walker.

My new obsession is Glencadam. I tend to skip the sherry or port finishes and go for the standard bottlings. I'm sort of reminded of Clynlish because it has its own unique personality, along with some crisp, clean, floral notes. If you haven't yet; the 10 or the 15. Both are outstanding.

@Nozinan Bladnoch.Never had the chance to savour this dram. And may never, This from another site. whiskywhiskywhisky.com/forum/viewtopic.php/…

@Jonesz

This is truly a Scotch tragedy of epic proportions! One of my all time favourite distillers, and independent at that.

Who knows what will happen to the stocks that are maturing? Will this become another Rosebank? Will there be new owners, and if so, will they put out the same quality product?

I just rushed to The Whisky Exchange to order some more of the 11 and 12 (sadly they and MOM had no 10s) year olds at 55%. My poor friend in Florida will be bringing me bottles for the next 10 years! He'll just need to come more often.

@Jonesz, thank you for bringing this to my attention. I'm not stocking up to invest. Even if the bottles triple in value in the next 10 years, what good is that to me if I can't enjoy one of my favourite malts?

If you're ever planning a trip to Toronto, let me know. I'd be happy to show my gratitude by sharing a dram or two of this malt, and maybe a sample bottle to go if you like it.