Both the oldest whisky and the smallest edition to ever appear in Diageo’s Special Releases. This 52-year-old single-grain Scotch whisky comes from Port Dundas distillery, which closed in 2009. An excellent example of old grain whisky, this dram layers honey and cream on top of a stunningly fruity backbone.
Port Dundas, in Glasgow, was founded in 1811 and became known both as a prominent grain distillery and for its 138-metre-high chimney – once the highest in the world.
Port Dundas 1964 Reviews
Tasting Notes
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Tasting notes by Billy Abbott (The Whisky Exchange)
Nose: Classic old grain to start, with flashes of nail varnish overtaken by fresh ripe blackcurrants and a hint of Ribena sweetness. Concentrated coconut leads to a centre of dark-chocolate-covered Bounty bars, clove and freshly mown grass. Golden rum and candied lemon slowly develop, providing extra sweetness. Water adds vanilla and a hint of bittersweet black treacle.
Palate: Soft and sweet to start, with golden-sugar-dusted dark fruit cake. Berry fruit builds, both the blackcurrants from the nose and sharp redcurrants. The vanilla rolls in, with cream and egg-custard tarts backed up by a milk-heavy caffè latte. Water adds in further layers of fruit, from sweet Ribena down to dark blackberry compote.
Finish: Blueberries, toffee and egg custard start, dying away to leave Portuguese custard tarts.
Comment: A classic old grain with a combination of elegant and well-developed flavour from the long ageing, and fresh and zesty fruit that keeps it singing despite its old age.
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Tasting notes from the producer
Appearance: Rose gold - simply gorgeous!
Nose: Rich butterscotch leads quickly into pastry and masses of sweet, sugar dusted fruit, with a top note of fruit chews on a base of fruit salad in syrup (including sharp fresh apple and pear, tinned peaches & pineapple, fresh nectarine and banana). This folds into classic vanilla toffee and planed oak as a more savoury and meaty note develops, adding an umami richness, while everything remains fresh and vibrant. A drop of water increases the oak-related scents, and introduces traces of almond oil.
Body: Light to medium with some oiliness.
Palate: Creamy in texture and lightly sweet, with honey and golden syrup, then buttery, spiced pastry. Some dried fruit is succeeded by a decadent fruit salad of wine gums and boiled sweets balanced by fresh, sweet-sour apples, limes, apricots and unripe mangoes. Spice builds as the fruit fades, with freshly sawn oak and cinnamon. Water isn't needed, but with it the texture is smooth, the taste sweet, with creamy-sweet vanilla around the fruity core.
Finish: Long, warming and oaky; the fruit returns, as apple skin and sweet pear, now tempered by nutmeg-spiced butter and herbal hints, with a lingering last note of peach.
