#cask strength

The Difference Between Cask Strength Whisky and Bottling Strength Whisky

Have you ever picked up a cask strength whisky and thought, what does that even mean?

Well you’re definitely not the only one. I’m sure a lot of you have long wondered at what exactly “cask strength whisky” means. But fear not, for Great Drams is here to clear all your cask strength whisky woes!

What is Cask Strength?

Cask strength whiskyis exactly what it says on the tin. It is Whisky that has…

Glendronach, Glendronach, Glendronach.. Say it 3 times and it will appear..

Glendronach cask strength batch 7 has just been released so I thought you might be interested in my thoughts on this latest release.. Drawn from both Pedro Ximenez and Oloroso Sherry butts this latest offering is bottled at 57.9% abv and I don’t need to tell you this is of course all natural colour and Non Chill Filtered..

Date: 3/3/2017

Bottles:

Springbank 19 yr Fresh Port Single Cask

Duncan Taylor “Octave” Glenallachie 2008

Blackadder “Raw Cask” Dailuaine 19 yr Single Cask

Swinging back to Scotland proper for this round. We also went with yet another Duncan Taylor. This round was a good example of diverse flavors of whisky as we ran the gamut from salty and peaty to sweet and light. All three were pretty high proof as well.

Springbank 19 Yr Fresh Port Single Cask

Campbeltown whiskies are harder to come by than other regions, but our second bottle of Springbank proved that there’s whisky worth seeking out from the peninsula. Campbeltown is geographically close to Islay, but not as heavy on the peat as their nearby cousins. This one was salty and peaty, but not too much peat. Nice muskiness in the middle. Opens up wonderfully with a bit of water. This was voted the second-favorite bottle for this round.

Feels like: A damp basement by the seaside. - @sreegs

Duncan Taylor “Octave” Glenallachie 2008

Once again, an excellent choice by Duncan Taylor. They describe the “Octave” method as a way of maturing whisky “faster”. Octaves are smaller barrels, and the theory is the increased wood-to-whisky contact means it imparts the wood’s essence much more effectively. Whether or not this can be proven, this 8-year whisky certainly tasted like something much older. Rich and caramely, buttery. Absolutely amazing pick. Great for anyone with a whisky sweet tooth. The round favorite.

Feels like: Watching a pancake commercial where they cover them in syrup. - @trav

Blackadder “Raw Cask” Dailuaine 19 yr Single Cask

Another independent bottler, this whisky is from the Dailuaine (dall-YEW-an) distillery. Blackadder’s selling point with this bottle is it was taken straight from the cask. No filtration. There’s still bits of charred barrel floating around in there. While easy on the palate once you dilute it with some water, it’s a pretty substandard Speyside. Kinda bourbon-y. Straight out of the bottle it’s too heavy up front. Only a few people considered this their round favorite, but overall it was considered the worst of the three.