Day Twenty Four in the Whisky Advent Calendar
*In this series, I’m working my way through the 2015 Master of Malt Whisky Advent.
It has been quite the ride this year with the Master of Malt Whisky Advent Calendar. There is no question that I will be doing this every year.
Today’s whisky is worth the purchase price of the entire thing.
North British 53 yr old 1961 (cask 10708) Xtra Old Particular by Douglas Laing.
Holy Cow. At $442/ bottle, this glass of whisky would run you an easy $100. That’s half the cost of the whole advent calendar.
Well played, gentlemen. As I’m typing this, I’ve already poured the glass. I keep getting strong whiffs of cinnamon bread and licorice. Tasted buds are watering.
History
This is a Douglas Laing product. Independent Scotch whisky experts established in 1948 by Fred Douglas Laing, they hand select from the rarest and finest whisky stocks in Scotland. I’ve had a few bottles from Douglas Laing, and they are all lovely whiskies.
The company is the third generation of the Laing family at this point, and their whole goal is to get you as close as possible to trying a whisky straight out of a barrel.
Tasting
This whisky went into the barrel in 1961. That’s before my dad started elementary school. Hot damn. It’s one of 186 bottles.
As I already said, the nose is all licorice, cinnamon bread, butter, and oak.
I think because it is cask strength, but the oak and smoke show up strong in spite of the age. Which makes me love it more. The aftertaste is all molasses and almond pound cake.
There are so many amazing things happening in this whisky, it’s hard to just pick one great thing.
I’m going to stop typing and enjoy the rest in peace. Just know that, if you own a bottle of this, it’s $500 well spent.