Convalmore 16 Year Old 1984 Dun Bheagan

Convalmore is a distillery that I have not yet tried before. Always a bit exciting. This lost glory (well, that remains to be seen) was demolished in the eighties of last century. Both official and independent releases are few and far between. This 16 Year Old was bottled in 2000 by Ian MacLeod under the Dun Bheagan label (named after a loch in Scotland). It was distilled in the year before Convalmore closed for ever.

Sturdy nose with loads of grains and grasses. A weird touch of peat, parsley, mint and a broth of herbs. What is this? Must have been a sherry cask, most likely refill. After a few moments I also get some bitter oranges and caramel. Mix of nuts. Opens beautifully, though!

On the palate, it is very sweet. A lot sweeter than the nose would have you anticipate. Orangettes, caramel, sugared almonds. Reminds me a bit of orange cake. Liquorice. Slowly but surely becomes bitter as tea, but never so that it becomes disturbing. Good balance.

The finish is medium long and spicy, but again very sweet.

Well, this is quite nice as a first encounter with this closed distillery. Rather strange nose, true, but on the palate, this is a great Scotch. Oops, I forgot to add water. Well, surely that means it did not need any.

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