Another birth year bottle I’ve acquired, I took the advice I got from the other one and bottled some in Boston rounds to compare 5, 10, etc. years down the road. This is the second of five birth year bottles in the cycle to have a dram annually and compare every 5 years with a tiny bottle poured fresh. A really interesting situation of a cask strength bottling being at 40%. Makes a bit of sense given the 29 years in a cask, and I wonder if they only bottled it because it was about to become useless (well, require blending with something higher proof).
Minutia: Distilled on October 23, 1989, matured 29 years in a hogshead until being bottled by Morrisson and MacKay with an outturn of 170 bottles on April 29, 2019.
Color: Deep gold, 0.8.
Nose: Fruit of the apple/kiwi/tropical family. Elderflower water.
Taste: Same type of fruit/flower but less potent, tiny bit of spice. Malty/hoppy.
Finish: Bit of spice, picks up, hoppy/bittery. Hoppy/malty becomes an intense, rich chocolate. Lasts ages.
Finish had way more staying power than I expected. I’d guess it’s a testament to the spirit naturally evaporating to 40% rather than having water added do that and dilute any of the character. I’ve never had a dram as chocolatey as the finish of this one.
Score: 90
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