Gordon and MacPhail Linkwood 15 YO

I don’t have a lot of experience with Linkwood. A few years ago I bought a Cadenhead’s CS release on the recommendation of @bluenote. It is delicious (I even bought a spare), but I haven’t gotten around to reviewing it yet.

Recently @fiddich1980 send a few of us some samples of components he used to create a blend resembling JW Green. We sampled the blend and some of the parts just over a week ago. This was one of them. I don’t know much about the bottling except that it is 15 years old and bottled at 46%.

This expression is reviewed in my usual manner, in a Highland whisky glass, allowing it to settle after which I take my nosing and tasting notes, followed by the addition of a few drops of water, waiting, then nosing and tasting.

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Nose: 22/25

Fruity on the nose. Fruit punch. Fresh. Sweet but not cloyingly so. I get a touch of graininess, a touch of baking spice. Very pleasant nose. No significant change with water.

Taste: 21/25

Sweet on the arrival. Slightly spirity. Spicy. Bright fruits. A little effervescent in the development. Slightly thinner with water and I almost feel like I get a hint of peat, but it could be my imagination.

Finish: 21/25

Bitter on the finish, fairly long. Some pepper.

Balance: 21/25

Fairly balanced. Not as complex as I might expect from a middle-aged whisky.

Score: 85/100

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This is a solid malt, presented in a solid manner. It’s probably not something I would want in my (currently overflowing) cabinet but certainly something I would accept if offered a dram.

Thank you @fiddich1980 for giving me the chance to get to know this whisky.

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