These are review notes from my archive because I got pretty lazy about publishing for a while. I reviewed this for the Maltrunners.com group tasting notes during the week before that post was published on July 23, 2023.
See the Maltrunners collective review for the entire group’s tasting notes and conclusions.
It’s so interesting to see how we hit some of the same themes but also seemed to find wildly different things as well! I was the only one to detect any smoke, albeit not peaty smoke, which is good because Linkwood is unpeated!
From the bottle owner:
This is a store exclusive selected by Hongniang Wine and Spirits (HNWS), a fantastic shop in Taiwan. Bottled by Meadowside Blending under The Maltman label. Didn’t get to try this particular one, but sampled a couple of other store picks on a visit there (thanks, Tony!). That inspired some trust in the owner’s palate, and as I hadn’t tried a Linkwood this old, I decided to go for it. Shared most of it out, and a few of us Maltrunners decided to make it our first group review. This will feature a summary of what we found, a group score, and our individual notes and scores for those who want all the details.
Distillery: Linkwood
Bottler: Meadowside Blending / The Maltman (Bottled for HNWS Taiwan)
Region/Style: Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky
ABV: 54.8% | CS Cask Strength
Age: 24 years. Distilled in 1996. Bottled in 2021.
Cask type: ex-Bourbon #8712, probably a barrel at 195 bottles.
Price: $221 (with tax) for 700mL. $9.60 per oz.
Color: 0.2 pale straw
Nose: Fruity: apple peels, kiwi. Marzipan. A bit of fancy chewing gum candy fruit flavor medley, with a light background of wintergreen mint. Just a whiff of distant incense smoke, mild chalkiness. Water reveals waxy, sooty candle smoke.
Palate: The texture is phenomenal: effervescent and like incense evaporating off the tongue. Well integrated ethanol with almost no burn for the high proof. A bit fleeting with a quick evolution which makes it hard to analyze. Smoke, which comes as a surprise because the nose almost didn’t reveal the presence of any smoke at all: not an earthy smoke, but a pleasant neutral candle smoke. Fruit-flavored candy, but a little non-descript: watermelon and green apple Jolly Rancher, with some other fruit candy flavors, strung together on that gentle smoky backbone. Marzipan, sweet almond pastry filling. Water reveals a waxy body to the whisky.
Finish: Long. Smoke comes across as candlewax and gentle soot. Develops a bit of bitterness, which reads at first as char but develops into fennel, and bright fruity flavors from the nose float on top and assert themselves from time to time — an overall impression of mukhwas. Green cardamom develops. Herbal bitterness lingers, but eventually gives way to a long finale of fruit flavors. Water cuts the bitterness, but also the smoke — the fruit from the nose dominates the finish, with gentle spices in the background.
Conclusion: This Linkwood has a lovely, sweet, fruity bouquet which is amazing to sit with and nose for a long time — which is almost unfortunate because the true balance of this dram is revealed on the palate, which surprises with an awesome texture and unexpected but beautiful smoke which lends a nice body to the whisky and integrates the fruity flavors nicely on the palate, leading you to drain the glass far too quickly. At first I felt the finish was a little too bitter and disjointed, but it resolves nicely and integrates the greatest hits of the nose and palate for a long and pleasant finish. This is excellent, and happens to be a pretty solid fit for my preferences on texture, but I wish the nose were a bit more complex, the palate less fleeting, and the finish less bitter. It’s so close to being an absolutely phenomenal whisky. The addition of a few drops of water helped balance the drink, cutting the bitterness but also the complexity, so I’m happy to enjoy this at cask strength, only adding water later when the time is right.
Buy a bottle? 3/5 value: Sure, but $220 is a bit of a tough call.
Final Score: 89/100 – Excellent, a standout dram.
(DemiTastes Review #76, Scotch #12)
Scoring Legend:
- 95-100: As good as it gets. Jaw-dropping, eye-widening, unforgettable whisky.
- 90-94: Sublime, a personal favorite in its category.
- 85-89: Excellent, a standout dram.
- 80-84: Quite good. Quality stuff.
- 75-79: Decent whisky worth tasting.
- 70-74: Meh. It’s definitely drinkable, but it can do better.
- 60-69: Not so good. I might not turn down a glass if I needed a drink.
- 50-59: Save it for mixing.
- 0-49: Blech.
Demi Tastes Whiskey 
