Uncharted Whisky Company

 

The full line-up

We had a guest tasting for our March event, with Jack from indie bottler the Uncharted Whisky Company joining us at the Seven Oaks to take us through half of a dozen of their recent releases.

Blue Collection 8yo

Based near Glasgow, Jack set up the company with partner and fellow industry veteran Dana. They say they seek out drams which are weird, wonderful and extraordinary, bottling them as and when rather than sticking to a set schedule. They use a wine-style 'minimal intervention' approach, avoiding colouring, filtration and finishing casks to present the whisky as is.

For us, we started with an 8-year-old called Blue Collection, hailing from the Aultmore distillery. A small batch single malt, Jack said this was actually more like a 10-year-old given most of what was inside the bottle, a mixture of liquid from a handful of ex-bourbon barrels.

Aberlour 11yo

This had a lot of tropical fruit going on. Tasting notes included pineapple and melon, along with vanilla from the bourbon and sweet floral notes, including icing sugar and lemon drizzle cake. Another one that came to mind was a packed of dried tropical fruit mix. It was perhaps a little on the thin side and didn't particularly get better with water according to those who tried it, but a good start to the tasting all round. It was 46% and it costs £43.

Aberlour next for the second whisky, another Speyside. Matured in Pedro Ximinez sherry casks, this was called the Ace of Speys, as they have a general policy of titling their bottlings with song references. Coming in at 55%, this costs £79.

10yo blended malt

This was certainly sweet but not too cloying, we felt. Maple syrup on pancakes in there, also dark chocolate too, but maybe just a little bit sweeter than that. "More dates than raisins" as someone suggested. This went down very well all round.

There was more PX on show for the third whisky, a blended malt aged in a refill firkin. A real mixed up dram this with bits from all sorts, including a hint of peat, but it was mainly sherried and came in at a natural cask strength of 45.7%.

It really clung to the glass. Oily and juicy. A bit weird as befits the somewhat Frankenstein nature of the drink, but not at all bad, and one or two in particular were really keen on it. Lost a bit after the first sip. It was a 10-year-old, but was only available to buy at tastings such as this one rather than going on general sale.

Highland Park 22yo

Following an opportunity to refill our beer glasses downstairs, we were back for the second half.

We were going north to Orkney and Highland Park for dram four. A lightly peated 22-year-old, this one was called Park Life. Also 55%, this costs £99.

Some club members thought this was a little different and maltier to what they'd have expected from a Highland Park. It was sweet on the nose, with hints of herbs and popcorn. As we got into drinking it, tasting notes included Horlicks and Sugar Puffs, although someone suggested it was more like off-brand cereal than the real thing. Another shout was for a warm, flat lemony soft drink. Certainly another memorable drink.

Bunnahabhain 7yo

Things were only getting more peated from here on in as we moved to Islay and Bunnahabhain for the fifth whisky of the evening. Called A Whole Lotta Rose, this was fully matured in fresh red wine barriques. No wonder it looked distinctly pink.

There was a lot going on here, we felt. It certainly didn't pull its punches. Bubblegum, kiwi fruit, lychee and jam were all suggestions from around the room. Very drinkable, and one that got more interesting after a few sips. "Delicious, really nice" and "amazing" thought those near me, as the glasses were drained very quickly. Great value for £59, this was £55.

Ledaig 15yo

Which brought us to the final drink and a Ledaig, the peaty expressions produced by the Tobermory distillery on Mull. We had a 15-year-old vatting of three casks considered 'high loss' in the sense that much of the whisky had disappeared to the Angel's Share over the years.

Super peaty this, but "not way up there" at the same time. Great on the nose, one drinker felt this was a "classic Ledaig at just the right level". The real difficulty was trying to avoid a bottle slipping into your back pocket. It was 53.4%.

Which meant it was time for the dram of the night voting. Five of the six whiskies got at least one vote and there was barely anything to choose between them, as drams two to six all got either six, seven or eight votes from the membership. But just ahead was dram two, the Aberlour, one ahead of drams three and five.

Thanks to all club members and the team at the Seven Oaks for another great tasting, and especially to Jack for sharing such a great selection with us.