Indie vs Official | 46.3% & 53.2% ABV
Score: 7/10
Very Good Indeed.
TL;DR
Good enough to be an official release?
Why is there no official cask strength Ledaig?
It’s funny how these were my exact thoughts when I got up close and personal with this indie release, only to see the same sentiment being expressed on a vPub a week or two later.
When Roy was discussing cask strength whiskies, he also put forward his wish list of distilleries he felt could and should consider adding a cask strength expression to their core range. On the list was Tobermory, the distillery behind Ledaig, alongside the likes of Loch Lomond, Craigellachie, Glen Moray and Glencadam. A pretty spot-on list in my opinion, and indeed it’s remarkable to see how these distilleries are celebrated and revered by many enthusiasts, and yet we’re not yet treated to an official cask strength expression from either of them. Food for thought, quoi?
But while we can always hope for and dream of official cask strength releases, it’s probably best not to be holding our breath when it comes to Tobermory. Being a relatively small scale distillery (some 1.2m LPA), they already need to split things up between Tobermory and its peated sibling Ledaig. Until recently this tended to be a 50/50 operation, but given the rising success of Ledaig, the balance has shifted more towards a 30/70 split, and according to the Malt Whisky Yearbook, we might see it shift even further in favour of their peated whisky.
Seeing how they are already investing to keep up with demand, adjusting their production along the way, it may well be that at this moment there simply isn’t enough depth of stock to launch a core range cask strength expression alongside what’s already available (the Rioja, the 10, the 18 and the occasional limited releases). Obviously, this is just me guessing.
In any case, once again we can rely on indie bottlers to provide us with a few cask strength options, while distilleries have yet to deliver the goods. In this particular case it’s German indie bottler ‘Malts of Scotland’ to the rescue.
Certainly in Germany and some of its neighbouring markets, this company has built quite the reputation over the years. Founded in 2005, it’s fair to say they got into the whisky game at exactly the right moment, and now, nearly 20 years on, they have become an established player, catering mainly to the needs of many enthusiasts based in continental Europe. Not unlike Signatory, Gordon & MacPhail or Douglas Laing, Malts of Scotland has several bottling ‘series’, varying from warehouse bottlings to a series dedicated to Islay whisky and their ‘Images’ series. They also have a warehouse based in Germany where you can bottle something after trying it there. I reckon this is quite cool, as that tends to be a privilege reserved for those actually visiting Scottish distilleries.
The latter is used for whiskies that can’t be bottled and sold using the distillery name on the label, but rather than opting for the ‘unnamed Orkney’ approach, they literally use an image of the surroundings or region of the distillery. Now, when it comes to ‘Mull’ obviously it’s a bit of a giveaway, but when the label says something like ‘Images of Stirling Wallace Monument’, you’d already need to know that Deanston is just some eight miles away. So, much like the code system used by the SMWS, the Images releases from MOS can add an extra element, asking us to figure out the distillery name based on a picture or a region. Who doesn’t like a bit of puzzling, after all?
An interesting little extra is that, should the casks permit, all whiskies in the ‘Images’ series are bottled at 53.2% ABV. Because, well… reasons!
Review
Images of Mull Tobermory Parish Church (Malts of Scotland), Rioja cask. 2022 release, Cask no. 22020, 340 bottles, , 53.2% ABV
£60 very limited but still around
Early 2023, there was an extensive take on the Sinclair Rioja cask here on Dramface where Doogie, Drumond and Gilbert teamed up, but for the sake of comparison with the cask strength indie, I will throw in my two cents as well. Because, in case you might have missed it, we’re a bit of an opinionated bunch here.
Nose
Lovely balance, with a sweet peat almost jumping out of the glass, and a pink bubble gum / candy like sweet note. Gentle smoke, wet wood and soil and a soft medicinal note to it as well. More sweetness from fruit this time as berries and blackcurrant present themselves.
Palate
Smoky and peaty arrival sitting on a dry and full mouthfeel. Wet wood notes and the sweetness is less outspoken, while the fruit becomes clearer. Overall more straightforward than the nose, but morish and pleasant, before it ends on a peppery -peaty finish that‘s not overly long.
The Dregs
The notes and accents may vary a little when putting these two head to head, but the profiles are definitely similar, as they obviously share a lot of DNA. The indie cask strength easily wins this round however, not only because it has the benefit of coming in at a higher ABV, carrying more flavour and character, but also because it’s more consistent in its delivery.
That said, both of these whiskies are utterly enjoyable and at their price point both are absolutely spot on. So, coming back to the header, I feel a cask strength, core range Ledaig would be welcomed with open arms.
It’s almost Christmas, so I might as well wish for it to happen.
Score: 3/10
