The Gauldrons

A few weeks ago Douglas Laing has added ‘The Gauldrons’ to its Remarkable Regional Malts series. If you’re wondering about the name – it literally means ‘bay of storms’. As you well know the R.Regional malts already contains malts from Islay (big Peat) , Lowlands (The Epicurean) , Islands (Rock Oyster), Speyside (Scallyawag) and Highlands (Timorous Beastie), so a Campbeltown malts expressions was only a matter of time.

The Gauldrons is inspired by the eponymous dark sandy coves on Campbeltown’s west shores and literally means “bay of storms”. It was here King Robert the Bruce, having been defeated by his enemies, was encouraged, whilst watching a spider building his web with great patience but great difficulty, to try, try and try again. It is this ancient legend which is reflected in The Gauldrons packaging which features an intricate spider illustration.

As for contents: as we well know, there are only 3 operating distilleries in CT these days, One of which ‘Glengyle’ operates only a few weeks per year, so It’s most likely this blended malt should have some Springbank and Glen Scotia, and by the looks of it, More Glen Scotia (notes to follow). At any rate, this is an interesting addition to the range bottled at 46.2%. There were only so many bottles, at around £50 , I believe most are sold out, but some shops (TWE) still have some.

Nose: Quite cereal-y and sweet on the get-go, with some dough and baking spices, lemon and a wee tiny hint of peat. a faint brine-y touch, and more vanilla, a distant medicinal note (iodine, maybe) all in all light and sweeter than expected. Palate: Black pepper and brine on the first wave of sensations, which then give way to more lemon peel, vanilla and fresh sweet dough, and more peat and smoke than detected on the nose. sweet barley, with a smoky edge to it, coastal if you may. quite nice. Finish: Earthy peat (but not too much) pepper, smoke and cereal. Bottom Line: I was expecting a fiercer, dirtier liquid, and although this is not a fruity, Speyside whisky it is also quite sweet, and the peat and brine are not very powerful. I would guess that the share of Springbank casks is not very big here (but again, I could be mistaken). At any rate it’s nice, with the sweet dough, and the bursts of peat here and there, and brine. A very enjoyable dram at 46.2^% it actually felt stronger. Solid stuff. Enjoyable and the bottle design (as always – kudos to pocket rocket studio) is lovely.