Teaninich 17 year old – Special Release 2017

Teaninich

Founded back in 1817 by Captain Hugh Monro who was the owner of the estate where the distillery is built which lies just north of Inverness.

In 1831 the distillery is then sold to John Munro who is the younger brother to Captain Hugh Monro.

John Munro then leases the distillery to Robert Patterson in 1850, ( Patterson is certainly a name you need to know when understanding the history of whisky in Scotland.. Reference to the “Patterson crash”). The Crash started in the latter part of the 1800’s and the effects were noticeable for many years afterwards, distillery closures, investment and actual production were dramatically affected.

The distillery changes hands a few more times over the years but in 1984 part of the distillery know as the “B side” is mothballed ( the “ B side “ is the original  distillation part of the distillery with the “A side “  being a newer still house containing 6 stills built in 1970 )

1985 has the “A side “ mothballed until 1991 when the newer site is once again brought back into production.

1999 unfortunately see’s the end of the “ B side “ when it is decommissioned.

The production is doubled in 2015 when 6 more stills are added to the original 6 and this brings the capacity up to 10.2 million litres of alcohol.

Special Releases

Diageo started a series of releases in order to fulfil a demand for older or unusual expressions from the impressive portfolio of distilleries under its umbrella, this in theory all started back in the early years when the “Rare Malts” series started (1995) this series in was probably the fore-runner to the special releases which is now a very collectible set of bottles and creates a buzz within the whisky world when the time approaches for the announcement of just what expressions will be involved in the release.. There are in theory a few expressions that we expect to be involved but each year there are a few surprises and this Teaninich was one of those unexpected bottles in the 2017 release as there really isn’t too many official bottlings released.

Teaninich 17 year old – 1999

Distillery.. Teaninich

Region.. Highlands

Age.. 17 years

Abv.. 55.9%

Casks.. Re fill Bourbon and Sherry Butts

Nose.. A sweetness descends over the senses with caramel and vanilla leading into a fresh citrus notes, apple peels, peach, fresh apple blossom and heather honey..

Palate.. Straight into a peppery note that quickly leads into a lemon peel bitterness, lemon tart, exotic fruits and a hint of custard cream biscuits. There is a creaminess that Coats the mouth and allows you to enjoy this beauty for some time..

Finish.. Long and mouthwatering

Thoughts.. The tingling in your mouth just keeps on going and just makes you want to pour another dram which in my mind makes this a superb whisky that hits the spot..

There are too many distilleries out there that produce some superb whiskies that are unfortunately destined for the blend market instead of being allowed to shine, this is just another one of those examples and it is a real shame..