Pricy, but worth it (?)… Whiskies that are close to pushing my limits.

Whisky is, I’m sure you’ll agree, a costly hobby. Even if you have ‘moderation’ written in big letters all over your collection, and manage to apply the same ethos to your preferences and spending habits, things tend to mount up. For my own sanity, I tend to approach my whisky budget on a month-by-month-basis, rather than trying to calculate or overview what I’m spending on a yearly basis. And to even fathom what I would have spent over the years… well let’s just say I’m not even touching that one with a 10 ft pole!

And honestly, I consider myself to be a picky, budget conscious customer. Thoroughly a middle class person in terms of income, I’m not one to throw hundreds of my hard earned euros on a bottle of whisky. Over 90% of what’s in my cabinet will be sitting in the €50-€100 range, with the remaining 10% more or less equally  spread between budget friendly (€50 or less) bottles and those  whiskies cruising towards or into 3 digit-territory. More than that, while I’m happy to pay a decent amount of money for a quality whisky,  €75 - €80 (app. £70 or $87) or there about is usually where the limit of my ‘comfort zone’ lies. Any bottle retailed below that price point, I’m usually willing to take a punt on without doing a firm ‘background check’ (i.e. relying on my own previous experiences with the brand, checking trusted review sources, getting the proverbial steam punker out to check out the ABCD’s of the whisky, etc, etc…). When we’re cruising north of €80, I tend to get quite critical towards any given bottle regarding things like  ‘value for money’ and tasting experience.  Despite inflation, anything north of €100 I still  consider to be  something of a folly purchase, and some sort of mental threshold will need to be stepped over to even consider the purchase. So a splurge is very much the exception to the rule, and overall I don’t think I’ve ever paid more than €150 on one bottle of whisky. Because, if we factor in taste and quality and taste and quality only, I’m still convinced very few whiskies are worth (much)  more than that. It’s hard to put a number on how much intrinsic quality is actually worth of course, as prices aren’t decided upon by this factor. Of course there are the raw costs of it all:  the ingredients, production, ageing, bottling, personnel, wear and tear of equipment, labelling, transport, taxes and so on. Obviously these will be factored in, but the actual prices, particularly prices of the more expensive stuff,  are much more likely set by other things. Things like rarity, desirability, collectability, branding, reputation and client targeting.

Now, seeing how  talking (and complaining) about the price of whisky is flogging a (very) dead horse, I don’t particularly feel the need to throw just another of my two cents into that discussion. Not today, at least. What I am aiming for, however, is discussing a series of whiskies sitting in that €75 - €100 range. Whiskies  that are indeed a bit costly but still affordable (although perhaps only just), trying to find out if they merit their asking price. And because we need some sort of gold standard, a benchmark if you will, to measure everything by, I’m starting things by picking just that: my benchmark whisky for all things costly, but worthy.

Kilkerran 16 yo (2022 release. 70% ex-bourbon casks and 30% ex -sherry casks). 46% ABV, NC, UCF, paid €83 – retails for anywhere between €80 and €120

Kilkerran (technically Glengyle distillery) makes for an interesting case. A resurrected distillery long before such a thing became fashionable (or, probably closer to the truth: a potential cashcow/goldmine for those bringing it back from the dead) coming from the producers that gave us Springbank:  it’s fair to say that from the moment the word was out that there would be, once again,  a third Campbeltown distillery, there were immediately very high hopes.  Hopes and expectations  entirely built on  Springbank’s reputation of getting it right. So resurrecting Glengyle seemed like a double edged sword, as it got a lot of people excited, but at the same time  it was clear they  had some pretty big shoes to fill. That said, I feel it’s fair to say that they hit the ground running. Their ‘work in progress’ releases may have been a bit of a ‘if you know, you know’ sort of thing, but ever since the first official releases appeared -  the 12 year old, the Heavily Peated expressions and their 8 yo cask strength stuff, they were immediately celebrated and embraced by many enthusiasts. The resurrection of Campbeltown as a whisky region within the current whisky boom in general reads like a thing of its own, as it’s very much the story of a long lost distillery being brought back to life by one of the all-stars of Scotch whisky. This more or less coincided with the story of Glen Scotia, a distillery that was a bit all over the place  and going nowhere in particular until new owners took controll.Owener who in turn put people in charge who they knew would be able to steer the distillery into the right direction again. It’s no coincidence that all 3 current Campbeltown distilleries are firmly nested in the top 10 of Dramface’s top 40 list (a list, btw, you can totally have your say in, so go and put in your votes if you haven’t already!).

In any case, Kilkerran was a success from the word go – despite the limited outturn, despite there not being expensive marketing campaigns, despite the lack of loud and shouty labels. Firmly aimed at enthusiasts, and applauded for it. I’ve had my fair share of expressions, and have never been let down. Sure, everything they do is batch orientated, meaning some releases inevitably will be better than others (or rather: some releases will have appealed to me more than others) , but who of us can honestly say they ‘ve ever encountered a Kilkerran that wasn’t up to scratch in terms of quality? Just like Springbank, they’ve become a safe bet, up to the point that I’m willing to spend a good dose of my disposable whisky budget on anything with the word ‘Kilkerran’ on the label without giving it a second thought – going against my own rule of thumb in fact when pulling the trigger for more expensive releases.

However, when the 16 year old expression first saw the light of day in 2020 I was bitterly disappointed. Retailing around £65 in the UK, it was often well north of €100 (£85-£90) here in Belgium and the Netherlands. A lot of people here were fuming, and -just like me- seemed reluctant to cough up that amount of money, as it felt like a very artificial price hike. Thanks to the community I was able to try several samples, and I did try a few at festivals, which basically only added insult to injury as I knew just how good it was. Eventually,  I more or less made my peace with the idea of not having Kilkerran 16 in my cabinet, but it seems so much people here were pissed off by this price hike, that it became difficult to get them out the door. Consequently, a lot of bottles were left sitting on shelves, resulting – finally – in prices cooling down a bit as time progressed and future releases became available. Now it takes a bit of looking around as there are  still plenty stores around here that sell this with a 3 digit price tag, but when a local delicatessen store literally just around the corner from where I live stocked this at a much more reasonable €83 (£71), I really didn’t hesitate. Don’t get me wrong: €80-ish for a bottle of whisky is still a considerable amount of money, but as I said, the reputation of Kilkerran is such that I’m trusting enough to buy it without too much scrutiny or background research on my behalf. Hence why I picked this to be my benchmark against which others will be measured.

Nose

Initially a lot of fruity sweetness – mostly citrus. Leave it for 15 or so minutes and it opens up and develops substantially. Gentle farm and hay notes, with an umami-hard cheese like note. Again quite some citrus (oranges and lemons and lemon oil), sitting on a gentle grain note with a dry white wine sensation to it. A drop of water accentuates this grainy sweetness, and brings out an oily and at the same time dusty sensation. Little to no sherry cask influence here, but subtle, layered and complex.

Palate

Gently woody, again those umami notes from hay and dried, hard cheeses, sitting on an ever so gentle funk note. A full-on, drying mouthfeel which is very clinging and mouth coating. Just as on the nose, the whole tasting experience is subtle, almost restrained. Adding a drop of water didn’t really do much here.

Finish

Long and drying, with an oaky wood note lingering

Final Thoughts

A whisky demanding of your attention. Not because it’s bold or loud, quite the opposite in fact. This is so subtle, it’s  almost understated. Not delicate or fragile, but intriguing, as flavours and sensations are almost suggested, rather than outspoken. This is the kind of whisky that invites you to come back and unravel a new layer or element each time you put your nose in the glass or let the liquid touch your tongue. It’s a game of hide and seek almost, but a rewarding and pleasant one, as you can happily sit back with this one for a good hour if not longer, inviting you to take your time to discover all it has to offer.

I realise I may be setting the bar high by picking this one as my benchmark. And while I wouldn’t demand or expect from the other whiskies I’ve got planned for this line-up to give me the same sort of experience in terms of smell and flavour, I do expect them to deliver a comparable quality. i expect them to intrigue me, to tickle my fancy, to ‘satisfy’ me with what they have to offer with their overall experience. In other words: to live up to their asking prices. I’m not even sure all will pass the test, but if you’re expecting customers to pay a not unsubstantial amount of money for 70 cl worth of drink, they are in no small matter putting the pressure upon themselves.

Meanwhile, I’m more than happy with my bottle of rather expensive, but utterly satisfying Kilkerran 16.

 88/100