...where distraction is the main attraction.

Saturday, December 1, 2012

Single Malt Report: Kilkerran Work in Progress 2 (2010)



Kintyre Peninsula, Scotland's bait and tackle,
twig and berries, meat and potatoes, rod and reel.
Get it?
It's a peninsula joke.




Done and done.

Distillery: Glengyle
Brand: Kilkerran
Age: 6 years (2004 - June 2010)
Maturation: ex-bourbon American Oak barrels
Region: Campbeltown
Alcohol by Volume: 46%
Limited release: 15000







Rating - 91


  1. I was able to get Work in Progress 4 (thanks to the two Davids of K&L) for $63. According to their write-up, Springbank is actually planning to release Kilkerran at 10 years (meaning 2014). This fits in with the rest of Springbank's line-up which starts at 10 years.

    Now I'd love to taste the other barrels they are experimenting with (Oloroso Sherry, Fino Sherry, Port, Rum and Madeira). Springbank in a Madeira cask was one of Ralfy's favorites.

    1. Though the Whisky Yearbook says they're waiting until the 12yr, you might be right about 10yr, as that would make sense as far as the Springbank brands go. It would be interesting to find out the (future) best age for Kilkerran.

      The Davids are still selling their Springbank Madeira cask from last year which sounds delicious, but I'm trying to find a way to sample it rather than going in for a $100 blind purchase.

    2. If you're up for paying $99.99, the Longmorn 20 year old at K&L looks real affordable compared to the $106 Longmorn 16 being offered by Beltramos (why is Pernod pricing Longmorn so high I wonder?). Oh, and that Longmorn 10 year old is an even better value if you want to taste some Longmorn.

    3. Apparently the old 15yr official botting was grand and in high demand. Maybe Pernod thought that by adding a year they could hoist the price without losing too many buyers. But most reviewers say that the 16yr isn't as good. In any case, that price is too high for me, thus I watch the indies for potential Longmorns

      I've actually been eyeing those K&L Signatory Longmorns quite a bit. Let me know if you get one. I may be leaning towards the 10yr.

    4. The Longmorn 20 was actually bottled by The Exclusive Casks (an indy exclusive to the UK until now) and judging by the dark color (no e150a coloring) spent those two decades in ex-sherry casks. I actually pre-ordered a bottle because it was a steal compared to the official Longmorn 16. Hilariously even the label mentions "this should be more expensive."

      I ended up also getting the Signatory Benrinnes because it's a whisky we rarely see here. The Signatory Longmorn 10 also looks good and it's next on my buying list. All I can say is the Davids picked some interesting casks this year.

    5. Ah yes, it was the Longmorn 10 and Benrinnes that I've been looking at. Yeah, the Davids really did pick some fascinating malts this time around. I intend to get one before they're all gone.

    6. If Benrinnes is what you're after, you can also just pick up a bottle of Stronachie 12yo (HT, Bevmo) or 18yo (TotalWine). I had the 12yo, it has a very interesting profile, they call it "beefy", in the same class with Mortlach, and I agree. Except Stronachie is not heavily sherried. I liked it but didn't love it. The K&L is cask strength though...

    7. I've never had Benrinnes/Stronachie, so thanks for the notes! I'd heard that Benrinnes can be beefy, though I'd wondered if that had something to do with the European oak casks they chose or if it is the malt's characteristic. I was going to check with K&L what wood was used on their Benrinnes before making any choices.

      What appeals to me about the Longmorn is that it's from a ex-bourbon hoggie with new oak heads. That sounds delicious even if it ain't cask strengthed.

    8. The K&L Benrinnes was matured in an ex-bourbon cask so it might not be noticeably "beefy." The Alchemist bottling of Mortlach I bought was also aged in an ex-bourbon cask and I couldn't identify a "beefy" note. It was a very nice vanilla bomb however.

    9. Wow, I gotta try a Mortlach from ex-bourbon some time. I've had some ideas of Macallan and Aberlour from ex-bourbons and they always highlight the great malt within.

      I'm going to have to flip a coin to choose between the Benrinnes and the Longmorn.

    10. *ideas* = drams

      I don't know how that happened. I must be too sober.

  2. "Florida?! But that's the nation's wang!"

    This Kilkerran sounds delicious! I see that HT has a bottle for sale, but they don't mention the release number.

    1. You can look at the color of the carton. The one reviewed by Michael is grey, the newer ones are beige.

    2. I'll second what Florin said.

      WIP1: White label
      WIP2: Gray label
      WIP3: Greenish label
      WIP4: Beige label

      HT used to have WIP2 for $48.99. As of last month they're selling the WIP4 for $59.99.

    3. Sadly I missed picking up a bottle when it was still relatively cheap in OR. Tops $80 now, which is just ridiculous. Springbank's new importer seems to be trying to milk what little volume they have as hard as possible.

    4. Jeepers creepers. No wonder you've been hitting up The Source. This is the same reason why I've been window shopping the UK retailers for Springbank bottles too.

  3. Kintyre is indeed one of the most pornographic geographical forms out there, bringing up the 6th grader in any whisky drinker...
    But then again, we also have the paps of Jura, and further afield, the Grand Teton, or pre-2007 euro coins showing Scandinavia without Norway, like this: http://www.flickr.com/photos/24712609@N00/2905061707

    1. I probably spent a few of those coins without ever appreciating the depiction on the back. Why did they leave Norway off the map?

    2. Norway should have never been on that map, since they don't use Euros (they are not even in the EU). My guess is that the EU got embarrassed of having phalli on their coins and found some ulterior reasons to embrace the whole Europe. In fact, I was not aware of the change until last night! :)

    3. That's a good point, I forgot that Norway still isn't in the Union. And, yeah, the new(er) coinback just shows the whole continent, even (gasp!) Russia. :)