Cardhu 18 Year

I won this bottle at auction a few months back and decided it was time to open it. The Cardhu 18 is a UK exclusive that goes for around $75-80. My winning bid was about $60 after the exchange rate. Add on 10% fees plus shipping and I’d say that I paid close to UK retail. Let’s see what’s under the hood of this Speyside single malt. Bottled at 40% ABV, is chill filtered and has colorant added making it an amber honey color. The nose has lots of honey, some citrus and is malty. Tangerine marmalade, peaches, grapes and some light apples. Predominantly sherry notes, but there also seems to be some bourbon maturation as well. Brown sugar, caramel, buttered toast. Coffee or mocha, toffee, maple. Nutty - Brazil nuts, hazelnut, nutmeg, ginger and anise. Floral, grassy and perfumed, green oak at times. For a moment there was a super sweet/fruity note like Skittles or Fruity Pebbles. The palate starts with oranges and tangerines and honey. Very malty, but more of a dark roasted malt akin to that used in a stout beer. Vanilla cream, anise, butterscotch. Oak tannins, dark chocolate, salted caramels. Faint mint, sherry, but more of a dark and juicy sherry rather than a sweet and fruity sherry. Green grapes and a gentle touch of wood smoke. Some wood spice, but it’s overall a mild and very drinkable whisky. A medium bodied mouthfeel that is creamy and lightly oily, dry. The finish is medium length with dark chocolate malt, honey and is dry. Looking back at my notes on the 12 year old, which is about $35 less in the UK market (I paid $60 here in Michigan), they seem to stack up fairly evenly. Honey, citrus and chocolate malt seem to be the Cardhu house profile. This 18 isn’t bad, but why pay more for what equates to a slightly darker and deeper version of the 12? Not a great scotch, but it’s got the complexity where it counts and is not overly expensive. For that I give it a 3.75. Cheers

The second expression we had at Cardhu Distillery, was the18yo. A fancier whisky than the amber rock and the 12yo, this one still feels like something is missing out to be a great single malt. It feels like the whole core range is not mind blowing, and we can talk only about "good" or "very good" whiskies. Bottled at 40%abv. On the nose; it is near perfection. Plums, new wood, blackberries and raisins. Scottish toffee. Very appealing. On the palate, it is weak. Raisins; alittle watery. Vanilla. Plums, actually very watery but nice. Slight pepper and honey. Light. Dim. Aftertaste barely passes the test. A ghostly raisin and blackberry note. New wood, Pepper and sawdust Overall, this is an 85 dollar 18yo whisky, and tells a lot about it. I am not saying that you should expend big money to have wonderful whiskies; that will actually be a lie. What i am saying is that for a product that has been resting 18 years for you to buy it, it is suspiciously cheap. The reason: it is not that good. It is not bad, nor hideous. It is just "normal". You can have a lot better, younger, whiskies for that price. My score for it is 85 over 100.

This is one of those 40% insults again. A very weak nose. What gets through is okay but nothing more. It has a light fruitiness and some shy florals as well as a bid of oak. The palate is watery, light, sweet and a bid dry. After a while it gets smoother where before it was a bid unsettled and all over the place. The only thing that would let you guess it 18y age are some sherry-like notes that are at least slightly interesting. The finish is good though - the best part of it. Nice oak wood even thought still slightly weak. Then it develops a more bitter and even slightly salty finish which makes it a nice / okay whisky in the end. So, a little disappointing at first but it improves later on. I’m pretty sure 46% ABV and up would make this an genuinely nice whisky. But like this I won’t drink it again. Potential wasted in my opinion. Probably for a different target audience.

Thanks to a blind tasting flight challenge sent to me by @Generously_Paul I was able to sample this 18yo malt from Cardhu. I don’t have the typical notes I like to take as I was more tuned in towards trying to identify the differences between 5 different whiskies and spirits. What I did notice about this one was how harsh it was for being aged for quite a long time. I remember some great sherry notes and not a lot of heat, but I’m inclined to think that the quality of the casks used here was a bit lacking. That said, I’d give this a middle of the road score of 3 stars and I’d be happy to revisit it later on and put it through its proper paces if I can land another pour somewhere down the road. Thanks again, Paul. The challenge was a blast. Cheers.

Nose: wonderful freshness of orange, plum and cherries. A fresh fruit salad. Palate: oily and full-bodied, velvety, dried plums and raisins, candied pears and oranges. Light caramel. Short fruit finish. Delicious and fresh product, ideal for summer days. Very good. 4.5 rating ____________________________________________________________ Naso: meravigliosa freschezza di arancia, prugna e ciliegie. Una macedonia di frutta fresca. Palato: oleoso e corposo, vellutato, prugne secche e uvetta, pere e arance candite. Leggero caramello. Finale breve alla frutta. Prodotto delizioso e fresco, ideale per le giornate estive. Molto buono. Voto 4,5

This was sent as a blind tasting challenge by my motor city buddy @Generously_Paul. He sent 5 samples. I guessed 3 right, and named one precisely as Yamazaki Distiller ( the sandalwood aroma gave it away). I’m not a huge fan of Cardhu, but maybe that’s just me, considering the entire county of Spain loves this as their favorite single malt. I forget the notes at this point...was good, but not good enough to buy a bottle. Good enough to have at a hotel bar. Thanks Paul !