Happy Eight-er: The Balvenie Tun 1401 Batch Eight (8) SIngle Malt Scotch Whisky

This might look like Neil (top) and Joel (bottom), but really it's the movie poster. Honest.

There are elements to writing where, sometimes, inspiration just doesn’t hit. Reporting fact, you can’t go too wrong: you already have a narrative of facts set out in front of you, the skill is ordering it for the reader, to make it make sense, even if there is no conclusion. With creative writing, you’re faced with a blank page and off you go. If there is nothing there, then there is little else you can do than wait. And wait. And wait some more.

How does one get around this blank slate, this empty void, this deserted page? Well, if  you’re the brilliant Coen brothers, the movie writers/makers/producers (and a second nod in as many weeks for one of the Coen brothers, Joel, who is also a writer on The Simpsons) then, when faced with this situation, you write a movie about it. Which is exactly what happened when, mid-way through writing their film Miller’s Crossing, the pair were hit with writers block. To clear the creative dam, they wrote Barton Fink, a story about a holywood scriptwriter inflicted with the same problem.

"We're only interested in one thing, Bart. Can you tell a story? Can you make us laugh? Can you make us cry? Can you make us want to break out in joyous song? Is that more than one thing? Okay!" – Jack Lipnick, Barton Fink

Often, it can feel a little like this, when sitting down to write this blog. We’re lucky- we have facts we can report. But who wants a repetition of what’s written on the label of a bottle? If you want that, go and read the label on the bottle. We have tasting notes- that’s always a help. But writing the rest... that can be a real challenge at times.

However, let’s face it, the best stories told are by the whiskies from the casks. Be they three years and a day old, or somewhere approaching four decades of age, these are the true story-tellers of the business; they’re the raconteurs who will leave you wanting more, posing questions and generally leaving you thinking that you’ve had a wonderful time. They are the true marketers, the true brand ambassadors, the stars of any tasting. Simple, yet complex at the same time, it is their richness of experience which you have paid for, their headline slot the turn for which you wait.

The release of the new Balvenie Tun 1401 seems to have become an annual staple in the whisky calendar, and what a good thing that is. Not a duffer yet  in the already eight strong line of releases, it started with just 300 bottles of the Batch 1 (now an true ‘investment grade’ whisky, whatever that means) which we reviewed here (even looking at each of the invidivual casks which went in to it) and this week saw the release of the latest batch.

The Tun holds around 2000 litres and each batch is created my their Malt Master, David Stewart. As this is made up of 12 casks, the most yet (ranging from the 1970’s up to 1991), with three of the casks being European oak and the rest coming from America, it’s outturn is around 2500 bottles worldwide.

The Balvenie – Tune 1401 – Batch 8 – 50.2% abv  - £220 available here

Nose: A big nose crammed with rich apricot jam, honey, freshly cut ginger, toffee, cinnamon and liquorice. It is a heavy nose; big and rich and befitting of a well aged whisky.

Palate: Ginger cake, very rich and oily honey. Hints of Four Roses single barrel bourbon coming through (big red cherries and hot strawberry jam) with fresh vanilla pods. Some cinnamon.

Finish: Toffee apples, spices and that honey note again.

Overall: This is not a slugger of a dram. The Balvenie makes some very quaffable whiskies (their doublewood is a whisky you can pretty much throw the cork away on, and their new 15yo single barrel release, reviewed here, isn’t far behind) but this is a totally different beast: still very much The Balvenie, but it is big and rich and demands you take time over it. The sort of dram you want to take a lot of time over. It also develops well with water, so if you do get hold of a bottle and decide to open it (go on, it’ll be worth it!), then please, please, please.... find some time to enjoy this dram.

Tun 1401 batch 8 is whisky which has a simple story; it lets the liquid do the talking. Throughout this range there is continued excellent consistency from The Balvenie. There is a reason why these are popular at auction: they’ve managed to get the balance between collectability and drinkability absolutely spot on.

Get in the queue now for batch 9...

The Balvenie Unveil new Tun 1401 Batch 5

In a busy week for new whisky releases (and some gins!) we find ourselves at the newly refurbished Savoy Hotel on The Strand, where a veritable gem of a whisky is about to be unveiled.  We've been fans of the Tun 1401 series and batch 2 stood out for its superb complexity, the exquisite balance  of both elderly sherry and bourbon casks, which David Stewart has married together making this one to definitely savour.

After a brace of other batches destined for the US and travel retail, the legendary tun has been back in action with Batch 5 arriving on these shores shortly. The bigger batch size represents the popularity of this whisky (2862 bottles) and this time around the marriage has been bought together from nine casks: four sherry butts and five American oak hoggies. The youngest whisky in this batch is apparently 21 years old and the oldest from 1966, with the majority of the sherried whisky coming from the 1970s. 

Later this year, David Stewart celebrates his 50th year in the business and will become, by far and away, the longest serving whisky maker in Scotland. It is to his credit that this whisky has seen the light of day and one wonders just how many more batches we will see with the Stewart stamp of approval on them -  with any luck, he's not about to pass the marrying tun on to anyone else!  

The Balvenie - Tun 1401 - Batch 5 - 50.1% - 2862 bottles - RRP £161

Nose: Cocoa powder, dried ginger, musty mossy notes, combined with woody spice and some rich dark honey all nestle against some sweeter vanilla notes, coconut, some lighter citrus (blood orange) and dried apricot.  A dash of water really opens this up and gives it more vibrancy with the rich sherry notes melting into the background and the vanilla, chocolate and citrus occupying the pound seats. 

Palate: Waxy Manuka honey, some rich dark chocolate, black cherries and some heavier sherried notes all hit first, with devastating effect. There is so much going on here, it virtually bludgeons the palate - but being vaguely masochistic, your tongue is left wanting more, which it delivers with a deft left hook of vanilla sweetness, some of the lighter citrus and more woody spices. Bang Bang. 

Finish: Lingering notes of cocoa, wax and rich honey.  All the signature character you could hope for.  

Overall: This is unquestionably a superb piece of whisky making and sits right alongside Batch 2 for its solid display of marrying together both dominant sherried whiskies and lighter bourbon-influenced whiskies.  If you're looking for something extra special which will act as the 'dah dah' moment in your whisky cabinet then Tun 1401 Batch 5 is an excellent choice. For those who can't stump up the £161,  grab yourself a bottle of The Balvenie's Doublewood, which shares the classic formula of bourbon and sherry, for a fraction of the cost. 

Adventureland: The Balvenie Tun 1401 Batch 3

"I wish this was my record collection"

Aside from football, the first real hobby I remember getting in to was record collecting. The first ever 7” I bought, an early version of Supergrass’ Mansize Rooster on Backbeat Records, mesmerised me. Green vinyl in a psychedelic disco bag, the record appeared so beautiful, like a piece of artwork, that it kick-started a hobby which has lasted through to the present day.

The temptation when collecting records is to become a ‘completist’, seeking out every single release by a certain artist, from their first single on a local indie label through to their latest major label affair, all the while trying to find that allusive Japanese 7” with the spelling mistake in the label copy.

I remember one occasion when the debut album from Supergrass, I Should Coco, was released. A certain number of the 12” editions came with a very limited edition 7”. Having fallen in love with my local heroes from the debut release mentioned above and being well on the road to owning their entire output (even the scarce singles on Nude Records, under the name The Jennifers), I wanted one, nay, MUST HAVE one of these limited editions.

Being only young and without gainful part-time employment, I took to washing cars in the local area to raise the funds needed to buy the album. When the Monday of release came around, I was to be found in the queue outside Oxford’s Virgin Megastore (RIP) beaming with pride at the record I was about to purchase.

My attitude towards rarities such as this has changed little over the years, yet now my focus is on a different product, whisky. As I search avidly for interesting and unusual bottles, I have ended up in early-morning queues outside many different distilleries and shops (from what now seems like an annual queue at a rain soaked Lagavulin during Feis Ile, to a cold December morning outside Aldi) all in search of 'that' elusive bottle to crack open and try.

Of course, writing this site as well as penning articles for various publications, we are often sent samples of whisky or invited on distillery trips and to launch events, some of which we review on this site (Serge at whiskyfun.com has written a great piece on receiving and reviewing samples, which you can read here, a view to which we wholeheartedly subscribe) and in the greater scheme of what is approaching our fifth year of writing caskstrength.net, this is a relatively new development. Despite this however, the excitement of seeking out that rare bottle of whisky, being able to taste it and share the liquid inside with friends is still a real joy (see ‘Best Man’s Lagavulin’). No different really to sitting down with your buddies and enjoying the previously unheard b-sides on your favourite bands 300- only debut 7” over a couple of beers.

However, buying whisky is not a cheap pastime and like a good holiday, each spend is carefully considered. The latest whisky adventure I have taken my wallet on, is a hunt for The Balvenie Tun 1401 Batch 3. The first releases, Batch 1, was only available for those doing the distillery tour in Speyside and when I found myself in Dufftown at the start of 2011 I was eager to participate in their show-around. Firstly, I’d never had a complete tour of The Balvenie before and secondly it enabled me to purchase a bottle of Tun 1401 Batch 1 from their shop at the end, having tried a sample at the 2010 Whisky Show in London. Not a cheap exercise, made even more expensive by the purchase of a bottle of Balvenie Rose Batch 2 at the same time (my sincere apologies goes out to HSBC Bank), notes of which were quickly written up.

Batch 2 was a slightly different affair. Widely distributed in the UK, finding a bottle at a retailer which wasn’t sold out on pre-order was tricky. I was lucky enough to secure a bottle from Milroy’s Of Soho after a tip off from a friend that they had some in stock. I was keen to get a bottle as I already knew about the quality of the liquid having tasted some at the distillery on a previous visit as well as at a ‘twitter tasting’ with other whisky writers, bloggers and retailers late last year.

It was during this tasting that I heard whispers of a Batch 3 release. With my appetite whetted from Batch 1 and Batch 2, this was not a bottle I was going to let slip off my radar, and so the hunt began...

In my research, I found out that Batch 3 was to be a US-only release. “This must be a simple job”, I thought. “Loads of retailers in the US will stock this. One must be able to ship a bottle to the UK.”

Wrong.

Only 1800 bottles of this edition was spread thinly across the 50 states. I found a couple of retailers selling bottles, with prices ranging wildly from $350 (Park Av Liquor) to $209 (Merwins), but none, not one of these retailers would ship to the UK.

Booo.

It was at this stage I resorted to ‘plan b’: emailing a list of friends in the US who might be able to make the purchase for me, receive the package and then forward on to the UK. My first attempt, a friend visiting NYC over Christmas, failed when they were unable to visit any retailer open during the holiday period.

Negative.

But the second avenue yielded success! A good friend living on the Eastern side of the States was able to receive a bottle and subsequently forward it on to me. International trade, it seems, is alive and well... if you know someone who lives in the country of release, that is!

Whoop!

The Balvenie – Tun 1401 – Batch 3 – 50.3% abv

A vatting of 7 bourbon casks and 3 sherry casks ranging from 1967 to 1989

Nose: Strong character of digestive biscuits dipped in sherry, some freshly cut red apples, a hint of cherry juice and watermelon and the classic Balvenie runny honey.

Palate: Perfectly drinkable at its bottled strength, this is certainly a Balvenie given away by a mouthwatering honey tone. This edition carried blackberry leaf and lots of great wood spices which, over time in the mouth, develop from a sweet, nutty note to woodier, drying tones with a hint of liquorice.

Finish: Dry with a big spicy hit, yet this mellows over time in the glass but is certainly warming. More of a winter dram, than a summer dram.

Overall: This expression seems to carry more dry oak tones and comes across woodier and spicier than batch 2 and batch 1. Given a choice of recent releases, I’d aim for the Craftsman’s Reserve Number 1: The Cooper over this, but certainly these editions are an exercise in how one distillery can produce differing characteristics in their finished products using a variety of casks from various years.

It’s been a pretty arduous adventure securing this bottle and it has been interesting to round off the list of Tun 1401s so far. Let’s hope the series doesn't go on too long, as it could lead me on a wild goose chase. Especially when batch 7 comes out, exclusively available in Hogwarts. For time being however, we’ll try and keep the search going, the tasting notes logged and the whisky shared...

I’m off to dig out my old Supergrass 7”’s for an extended listening session, while sipping on a large dram of the Tun 1401 batch 2. For research purposes, you understand? I Should Coco!

A Tun Of Fun

When you sit on the tarmac at any given airport, you see small vehicles scurrying around the runway the size and shape which never enter real life. Never seen on the motorway or A roads, these tugs are akin to the deep sea blob-fish that are projected in green limelight on TV nature shows; odd shapes and sizes, they scurry around demanding attention, like 1970’s punks.

Flying is a funny old game, especially when you’re going from one part of an island to another. That’s why I’ve chosen to make a trip up to Scotland via train. Nothing new there, we’ve done that plenty of times before. This time however, I’m going further than ever before (Aberdeen, from London) and I’m taking the sleeper train...

As you can see from the video, the trip was pretty good, despite the small cabin, with the added bonus of waking up in the Highlands of Scotland just a stone’s throw from Speyside, my ultimate destination.

The first stop on today’s journey is a quick nip in to the town of Huntly where independent bottlers Duncan Taylor are based. A whistle –stop tour of their small (but well formed) bottling plant just off the main street was a real education. Plenty of interesting stock, including some maturing cask of very old, very rare Speyside malts shows the company in rude health and if their recent Black Bull 40 Year Old is anything to go by, they’ll be churning out quality offerings for a while to come yet.

One nice innovation they are developing is to additionally mature some casks in smaller quarter casks and octaves. This way, bottles can be released in smaller batches with enhanced finishes over a number of different days.

I was treated to some small samples of a Single Cask Cameron Bridge from 1979 (tinned pineapple and huge, gluey grain notes, sweet and syrupy) and a 1972 Caperdonich which left me wanting to discover more about this lost distillery. Look out for them in the near future.

Onward from Huntly to Dufftown, the heartland of whisky making and the real reason for taking the sleeper up from London: a visit to The Balvenie Distillery.

Last year The Balvenie released a very limited edition bottling developed by Malt Master David Stewart Tun 1401, especially for visitors taking the tour of their facilities, one of the only places in Scotland where you can experience whisky making from cooperage, through to malting and the whisky making process itself. A tour well worth taking, if you can get on one (8 people, twice a day, 4 times a week is a pretty limited offer). This bottling was preceded by two other successful distillery only bottlings, Rose Batch 1 and Rose Batch 2, but more on them later...

For the original Tun 1401, Stewart took 6 casks (4 American Oak and 2 Sherry Butts) and married the contents together in a large tun. Just 336 bottles were released at 48.1% ABV and such was the reception for this bottling that Stewart and his team have decided to create a second batch. Using a new selection of barrels, the new Tun 1401 Batch 2 will yield an increased number of bottles with a worldwide release in late May 2011.

The newer batch is made up of 10 barrels ranging from 1969 to 1989, with the majority of the spirit made in the early 1970’s. Let’s have a look at 9 of these constituent parts:

1967, Hogshead:

N. Pineapple chunks

P. More tinned pineapple with Vanilla Ice Cream and Soda Water

F. Lime Cordial

1970, Sherry Butt:

N. Garibaldi Biscuits, Wheat.

P. Copper, Raisin, Digestive Biscuits

F. Sweet Tea

1971, Sherry Butt:

N. Dusty Furniture Polish.

P. Boiled sweets, wood polish.

F. Oaky and dry

1971, ex-Bourbon:

N. Fresh pineapple, cream, white grape juice.

P. Fresh lemon, cloudy apple juice.

F. Oak and dry sherry

1972, Hogshead:

N. Pear soap.

P. Lime juice.

F. Lime peel

1973, sherry butt:

N. rich red fruits

P. Wonderful depth, freshly sliced red apple.

F. Deep and rounded summer fruits

1974, Hogshead:

N. Cream Soda.

P. Cream soda again but mixed with fresh pineapple and green apple slices

F. Short and sweet.

1975, Hogshead:

N. Black Currant juice

P. Dark Chocolate

F. Very short with a hint of bitterness and oak

1978, Bourbon:

N. Vanilla cream cakes

P. Hints of mint, éclairs

F. Toasted Marshmallow.

There was one final cask, a bourbon barrel from 1989 but I didn’t get a chance to have a nose / taste of that sample, sadly.

My biggest impression from each of these casks (sampled with water) was that they would all make a good single cask bottlings, with a couple being exceptional single casks (1967 and 1978 as my personal picks). So how will these individual whiskies come together to create one Single Malt? Well, let’s hear from David Stewart about the process in this short video:

The Balvenie – Tun 1401 – Batch 2 - ~3000 bottles – Sample strength at 52.2% ABV

Nose: Wow, this is a whisky with a big personality and the nose jumps out the glass at you; citrus fruit juices come through first, followed by a dumbing down of the energy thanks to some runny honey tones and finally oak and wood spices add some last min left turns to the aroma.

Palate: A huge hit of spiced pineapple, as if used in a mild curry with some lime chutney and Seville orange marmalade.

Finish: Very rich with toffee and coffee giving way to soft brown sugar and spices.

Overall: Dave Broom taught me not to confuse power with complexity when judging a whisky, but this is both powerful and complex but equally well balanced. For me, The Balvenie produces very drinkable whisky (the Double Wood was the whisky that got me in to whisky) but occasionally can lack bite and personality. The Tun 1401 makes up for that in bucket loads, with a huge personality that still plays to all the key strengths of what makes The Balvenie such an easy whisky to drink. Fingers crossed this gets bottled as near to this sample strength as possible...

The Tun 1401 Batch 1 which we reviewed here, replaces The Balvenie Rose (two batches, both around 400 bottles per batch, finished in Port Pipes) as the Distillery Only bottling. As well as picking up my very own bottle of the Tun 1401 Batch 1 to sink at home, there were a few bottles of the Rose Batch 2 left on the shelf at the distillery shop. What to do? Ignore the last credit card bill, dive in to purchase a bottle and have a taste. Let's see how it compares to the Tun 1401...

The Balvenie- 16 Years Old - Rose – Batch 2 – Distillery Only Bottling - 50.3% ABV

Nose: Copper notes, rich summer fruits, rose petals, runny honey and sweet cure bacon.

Palate: malty and sweet, poached pears in syrup, tinned apricots. Soft.

Finish: Very sweet, crème brulee topping, sugared tea and some wood spices to round it off.

Overall: A solid Balvenie with the Port Wood giving loads of character to the classic tones of honey and sweet sugar. A good dram, but the Tun 1401 Batch 1 wins this battle for me. A note for the presentation of this, which is stunning, with the bottling coming in a velvet-lined box. Very fancy indeed!

All-in-all, a cracking day at The Balvenie. A huge ‘thank you’ must go out to Malt Master David Stewart for his time, as well as to David Mair, The Balvenie Distillery Ambassador, for making the day possible, for so much information and drams.

We will get back to you with a firm date for the release of Tun 1401 and any further details should they be available.

I’m off back to the train station but this time not for the sleeper train to London, but a much shorter hop to Glasgow. Who knows what we might find down in the Lowlands...

Glen London Part Two: Down At The Whisky Show At Midday

There are few occasions when I can leave my house and end up in whisky heaven within 15 mins. I’m lucky enough (although I’m sure my bank manager would disagree) to live within walking distance of the Whisky Exchange shop at Vinopolis, with Milroys Of Soho and Vintage House on Old Compton Street a mere stone’s throw away too.

But today I get to visit somewhere new. An adventure which starts with a short walk to the bus stop and 15 mins on the number 133 bus. Trundling past Elephant and Castle, over London Bridge and into The City, my destination is The Whisky Show which this year is being held at The Brewery near The Barbican.

An ominously early start of midday, especially after the exploits of last night (Diageo Special Releases followed by far too long at the Scotch Malt Whisky Society) which concluded with a late, late blog writing mission... but seven hours kip later, I was up and ready to tackle the marathon that is The Whisky Show.

Arriving for the Press and Trade period, it was a welcome sight to see litre bottles of still water being handed out before a dram had even been poured. This was clearly an event run by people with experience. And an understatement that indeed is, for the Master behind the scenes is Whisky Exchange owner Sukhinder Singh.

Wandering through the door on the dot of midday, Sukhinder was to be found hurriedly putting the finishing touches to their shop with the rest of his team and it was perfect timing as his own independent bottles were being hauled from the shelves and opened, for tastings. A d(r)am fine line up it is too, so where better to start than with the organisers very own bottles.

Karuizawa – 1981 / 2010 – The Whisky Show 2010 bottling – 60.5%

Nose: Apricots, Bovril, old books, polished wood and leather shoes. Everything you would expect from a well sherried medium-old Karuizawa. The quality of wood that this closed distillery must have been using seems phenomenal and it gives so much colour and character to the whisky.

Palate: The deep and rich dark chocolate notes fight for space on the tongue from sherry, spice and drying oak. Old cigar notes up the ante and this feels like a very old whisky, despite being only a 1981.

Finish: The apricots re-appear along with heavy cigar notes and some vanilla.

Overall: A great example of a karuizawa and a cracking way to start the show.

Now set up and ready to explore, a short wander through the stalls revealed some gems. But we’ve got two days here and I want to ease myself in. Finishing a my fact finding mission, I settle for a chat with Doctor Andrew Forrester of The Balvenie. After a short discussion a bottle caught my eye. A bottle that I’ve heard a lot about: Tun 1401.

A marriage of 4 Bourbon casks and 2 Sherry butts and containing whisky from the 1960’s, this bottle is limited to 336 and is only available to visitors on the distillery tour at Balvenie.

The Balvenie – Tun 1401 – 48.1% NAS

Nose: rich coffee, fruit cake, plums, a hint of mint and loads of strawberry jam.

Palate: Very light, with oak, vanillas and a touch of rounded, spicy sherry.

Finish: Sweet tea, digestive biscuits, smooth and long.

Overall: An absolute cracker of a whisky. Not too bad at £150, but you have to be in Dufftown and you have to take the tour to qualify. That, or buy a bottle for silly money from eBay...

Don’t take my word for it, hear it from the horses mouth.

Onward we roam, conscience of the time restrains. Conversations are cruelly cut short as valuable drinking time was being eaten away catching up with friends and gather and sharing tips on the bottles in the room.

After much cogitation, I took a visit to Adelphi, an independent bottler who I’ve heard a lot about but never really tasted. And my! What a discovery I made! Along with a host of bottles, one shone out: Bunnahabhain 41 Year Old. A mix of two sherry butts coming in at 41.2% ABV and, for today at least, has been counted as my “Whisky of the Show 2010”.

Luckily, the good chaps from Connosr were on hand to record show-gowers describing their fav dram. So, no written notes for this one I’m afraid but a video of me giving my tasting notes*

Click here for the video

Finally, it was time to try two last drams before heading home for the day (to do some real work!) and what better way to end the session that with two independent bottles of Port Ellen.

Port Ellen – 1983 – The Whisky Show 2010 bottling – 60 bottles only (yes, 60!) – 51.3% ABV

Nose: Smoke hits you with a big engine of toffee and raisins. Some salt carries the fruity elements of this single cask right to the back of the nose.

Palate: Very, very rich with dried fruit, jams and chutney. Spices from the wood give extra body to this tasty palate.

Finish: Warm and spicey with cardamom and cinnamon.

Overall: Better than the 31 YO official bottling from yesterday, this is really, really tasty!

Port Ellen – PE 3 – Elements Of Islay – NAS – 54.8% ABV

Nose: Wow, a totally different whisky to the PE above. Very little smoke, lemon sherbet and green grass.

Palate: Light vanilla spices with some oak dryness and a hint of green apple.

Finish: Clean and fresh, this doesn’t coat your mouth with earthy notes, in the way other Port Ellens do.

Overall: Okay, but not as good as the show bottling, nor the Diageo Special Release 31 Year Old. And it’s only a 50cl bottle too.

Day Two of the Great London Whisky Weekend is over, but rest assured! We shall be back tomorrow with more notes from Whisky Heaven 2010.

*wide screen monitor advised