Reviews of affordable whiskies with some entertaining tales along the way…
In part two of my Watt Whisky single cask series, I’m turning my attention to a well-aged single grain whisky from Cameronbridge Distillery in Fife. These reviews are in a shorter format than usual but if you would like some further information on the distillery or bottler, please see the links that follow the main review. This Watt Whisky Cameronbridge was matured for 30 years in a single hogshead before being bottled at 45.6%.
*Full disclosure: the sample featured in this review was sent to me free of charge. As always I will strive to give an honest and impartial opinion on the quality of the dram and the value for money it represents.
Watt Whisky Cameronbridge
Smell: Vanilla buttercream and butterscotch. Straw. Oatcakes. Some fresh lemon scent. Maybe a touch of lime, too. Something that reminds me of the pickle juice in a jar of pickled jalapenos. Orange zest. There’s also a slight solvent note, like someone using nail polish remover in the next room.
Taste: The first sip brought toffee, honey and a decent amount of oak developing into vanilla and a pleasant cereal grassiness. It’s light-bodied but has retained a natural oiliness. Mouthfeel seemed to thicken and became creamier after water was added.
Thoughts: This dram offered an interesting experience. I loathe the smell of nail polish remover so finding a reminder of it on the nose was rather off-putting. Fortunately, it was fairly mild and there was some appealing fruity zing to counter it. Sadly I couldn’t pick up much of the fruits on the palate but it’s not unusual for a dram to appear more complex on the nose and it still offered much of what you’d expect to find in such an old grain. The relatively low cask strength of 45.6% also made for a very pleasant sipping strength.
Price: £89. Whilst not exactly cheap it’s pretty standard fare for an old grain and when you consider the whisky was three decades in the making, it’s probably pretty reasonable by today’s standards. Not sure it floated my boat enough to warrant buying a bottle but the quality is there for those who want it.
Further reading:
Check out my review of the original Cameron Brig Single Grain: https://ascotonscotch.com/2016/11/02/cameron-bridge-single-grain/
For more on Watt Whisky visit: https://wattwhisky.com/