Caperdonich 36 Year Old 1972 Gordon & Macphail Reserve

Did you know that Caperdonich was originally named Glen Grant No 2? Anyway, this Gordon & Macphail bottling, at cask strength as is custom under the Reserve label, was released to the Dutch market at 57% ABV.

Caper usually means a fruitbomb on the nose, but it is not the case here. Sure, there is quite a lot of fruit there, mostly oranges, dades and raisins, but it is overshadowed by a dusty layer of wood shavings, varnish and oak. Cloves and cinnamon. Reminds me a bit of a rum. But very nice, mind you! With water I get bitter orange marmalade and some garden herbs. Chervil, by god!

Wow, the attack is very powerful and spicy. Hot, even. Unfortunately the fruit is now completely overwhelmed by the wood. Loads of tannins. Black tea. This needs water! While it becomes sweeter, creamier and more fruity (organes and strawberry), the wood does keep cropping up. The spices remains the same.

The finish is very, very long, but a bit too bitter to make this a grand Caper.

A bit of an extreme Caperdonich, if you ask me.

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