On the table today: a Girvan 1964 from Scott’s Selection and an Invergordon 1975 bottled in 2022 by Alambic Classique. I indulge in two 47‑year‑old single grains to mark a personal milestone. After another year quietly added itself to the tally – reaching a number that still feels implausibly large – what better way to acknowledge the passage of time than with a pair of whiskies that share the same depth and maturity (I’ll concede, in my case, nothing’s won yet)?
Girvan 1964 Scott’s Selection (2011) Review
Well, that might be a 46-year-old and not 47 as I don’t have the details on the exact dates of cask filling and bottling, but let’s not split hairs… which is especially difficult with mine. Ahem. Anyway, we start with a 1964 Girvan that spent about 47 years in an ex-bourbon cask, before Scott’s Selection bottled it in 2011. That single cask was filled into an unknown number of bottles, without chill filtration nor colouring. Released around €150 at the time, it seems you’ll need close to three times that now to get a bottle.
Colour:
Burnished.
Nose:
Neat: The nose opens very sweet and creamy, with nougat, butterscotch and soft vanilla fudge over a bed of honeyed grain. Fruity notes follow quickly: green apples, banana foam sweets and a touch of pineapple cubes, lifted by a light varnish/polished wood note that hints at the long oak influence without turning solventy. Pecan and other mixed nuts, toffee and a little cereal biscuit round things out, giving an impression somewhere between bourbon‑like sweetness and old grain elegance.
Palate:
/Neat: The palate remains soft and almost silky for the age, carrying over the vanilla, honey and toffee with an easy sweetness that never quite tips into cloying. Gentle bourbon tones bring caramel, corn sweetness and orange oils, while raisins and other dried fruits add a darker, rum‑and‑raisin edge. A light grassy / wheaty note and a touch of marshmallow keep it from feeling too heavy, and cinnamon and warm baking spice build towards the back of the palate, giving the whisky more life than its very old age might suggest.
Finish:
The finish runs long for a grain, driven by toffee‑caramel, vanilla and lingering nutty notes, before the spice gradually takes over. Honeyed sweetness and soft oak stay on the tongue for a long time, with a final echo of brown sugar and gentle bitterness from the tired but dignified old cask.
Comments:
This Girvan is a delicious and very old single grain. Of course, the ex-bourbon barrel really marked the grain spirit, but the sweetness never gets cloying. The coconut is kept in check, and for the rest, it is, sure, a classic bourbon-matured grain, but an elegant and dignified one.
Rating: 7.5/10
Invergordon 1975 Alambic Classique (2022) Review
Next, we have another single grain, this time from Invergordon. Distilled in 1975 and bottled in 2022 by Alambic Classique in their Rare & Old series, it matured for 47 years, but I’m not sure if the whole 47 years were in an ex-Laphroaig cask, numbered 22,023, or for just a finish. The cask yielded 128 bottles at cask strength (50.3% ABV), filled without chill filtration nor added colour. The secondary market asks for about €400 a bottle, whilst a few retailers will ask for €600 or more.
Colour:
Chestnut.
Nose:
Neat: The nose is gently luxurious, opening on freshly ground grain, vanilla fudge and fine, spicy wild honey, wrapped in fresh oak shavings and light coconut shavings. Bergamot and Earl Grey tea notes add a refined, slightly tart citrus lift, joined by white nougat, almond milk and soft white chocolate that underline its age and composure. A whisper of coastal smoke from the ex‑Laphroaig wood hovers at the back rather than taking over, reading more as distant bonfires and mineral warmth than overt peat.
With water: Water rounds the edges, enhancing creaminess and bringing forward more vanilla fudge, nougat and coconut on the nose while clarifying the honeyed grain core.
Palate:
Neat: The whisky arrives oily and mouth‑coating, with lots of spice, malt and concentrated honey supported by dark, polished wood. The ex-Laphroaig cask adds more coastal smoke than on the nose, as well as soot and hints of olive brine. Caramel toffees, vanilla cream and sweet‑spicy herbs intertwine with coconut water, almond paste and soft oak tannin, giving both richness and structure. There is a faintly salty, almost effervescent edge that recalls salted nuts and mineral water, adding contrast to the deep sweetness and keeping the palate lively despite the venerable age.
With water: The palate gains lush density with ripe fruit – pineapple, red apples, and bananas – exploding alongside softer spice and caramel toffee.
Finish:
The finish is long and warming, slowly fading on honey, caramel, toasted oak and gentle baking spices, with a persistent nougat and coconut echo. Hints of bergamot tea, dry herbs and a distant wisp of Laphroaig‑tinged smoke linger, leaving a graceful, mature impression rather than a heavy cask statement.
Comments:
I was not expecting this combination to work this well. An old Invergordon matured for almost half a century, with an ex-Laphroaig cask involved (probably just for a finish). Well, congratulations to whoever decided to fill that cask with Invergordon spirit. And, of course, to Alambic Classique to have found and bottled this good ol’ grain.