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Imperial
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Imperial
distillery
is
located in Carron, near to Aberlour in Speyside and was founded
in 1897 by Thomas Mackenzie. In 1898 it was taken over by
Dailuaine-Talisker distilleries, only to be closed a year later
in 1899. In 1916, whilst still closed, it was bought by DCL
Group and eventually opened again in 1919.
1925
saw a further closure and it remained closed until 1955 when
it once again reopened and was even
expanded in 1965, only to close yet
again in 1985. |
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Allied
Distillers took over Imperial in 1989
and began production again, but this only lasted until 1998 when
they mothballed the distillery. 2005 almost saw the end of
Imperial but the latest owners; Pernod Ricard saved it from
demolition, at least temporarily.
General whisky characteristics: Explosive bouquets of herbs
and flora. Butterscotch & liquorice if older. |
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A.D. Rattray, Imperial,
17y,
53.1% ABV
Original
cost of this bottle; Unknown
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Glass: Classic Malt
Colour:
Pale yellow gold
Nose:
Fresh tropical fruitiness, perhaps pineapple? This also
reminds me of those little fruit salad chewy sweets from my
childhood.
Palate: Dry, fresh and definitely fruit salad sweets.
Finish: Long with that tropical fruitiness.
Overall Impression: Another lovely reminder of my childhood.
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BBR for
Whisky.com.TW, Imperial,
17y,
55% ABV
Taiwan Mountain
Series - Yushan Mountain
Hogshead Cask
No.50347, istilled 6.10.1995
Original
cost of this bottle;
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Glass: Classic Malt
Colour:
Pale yellow gold
Nose:
An aromatic and mildly floral maltiness is my first thought.
After a couple of minutes in the glass it's now warming and
perhaps gently toasted΄wholemeal bread.
Palate: I initially detect an oily mouth-feel but it's light
with a faintly peppery maltiness. There's also a much stronger
flavour here reminding me of liquorice, but not quite.
Finish: Very long and rich.
Overall Impression: Gentle nose with a surprisingly rich
palate, very nice.
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G&M, Imperial,
1991,
43% ABV
Typical cost of
this bottle;
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Nose: Leather, fresh air,
countryside, wet leaves, Mmmmmm a good weekend hike!
Palate: A large floral
explosion with dashes of honey and faint aniseed which all
envelope the palate before gently fading into berries and nuts.
Finish: Long and fresh.
Overall impression: A
big whisky hitting the palate almost unexpectedly. A jolly
good whisky.
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Glass: Classic Malt
Colour:
Golden honey
Nose:
Very floral with the addition of an olde worlde sweet shoppe
filled with aromatic sweet goodies. Also separate hints of
butterscotch and (pink) candy floss. Mmmm I could nose this one
all day or even until it evaporates!
Palate: Malt and toffee with a hint of liquorice but the
alcohol is very intrusive, let's add some water....
With
4 drops of water: A slightly more delicate nose gives way to
a palate with a little more toffee and the appearance of some
wood too.
With
4 more drops of water: The nose is now dominated by sweet,
fragrant butterscotch and slightly floral wood.
With
a further 4 drops of water: A most enjoyable nose of light
butterscotch, whilst the palate is much smoother with only light
toffee and wood.
Finish: Extremely long.
Overall Impression: Another excellent Imperial filled with
bouquets of sweets, flora and fragrant wood, but it does need
some water.
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G&M Imperial,
1991-2010,
43% ABV
Typical cost of
this bottle;
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Glass: Classic Malt
Colour:
Yellow gold
Nose:
Malty vanilla with a suggestion of popcorn whilst retaining
a herbal freshness. There's also a fruitiness in the background.
Palate: The background fruitiness from the nose now combines
with the herbal freshness to create a very interesting palate,
but the fruit then fades to leave honey and herbs which carry
into the finish.
Finish: Long with malt and honey.
Overall Impression: A very decent light dram, perfect for a
summer's evening aperitif on the patio.
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Glass: Classic Malt
Colour: Extremely pale,
lightly coloured water, quite unusual for an 18y whisky?
Nose:
Unlike the colour, this has quite a strong nose and immediate
too. It has vanilla overlaid with aromatic grasses, some hay and
the very faintest hint of light rubber.
Palate: Distinctive with
perfumed grasses and a suggestion of liquorice.
Finish: Long, gentle pepper dominates light liquorice,
fading very slowly.
Overall impression: Lots
of flavour but not so complex. I just feel it lacks a little
'something'.
I
have decided to revisit this a few days later:
Glass: Classic Malt / Colour as above / Nose:
As above
Palate: Still perfumed grasses, just a hint of liquorice,
but today I detect a little citrus (lemon) in there too.
With
3 drops of water: A little more rubber on the nose. The
palate is slightly smoother, with vanilla, lemon and fresh, but
less perfumed grasses.
Finish: Much longer with more pepper when water added.
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Glass: Classic Malt
Colour:
Gold (18ct) / oak
Nose: Immediate aromatic wood, lightly perfumed, an olde worlde
sweet shoppe! I really could nose this for the next couple of
hours.
Palate: Rich,
smooth and very warming. It even grows or expands across the
palate as the seconds gently tick away. There's aromatic wood,
light butterscotch, peach and melon flavoured ice cream with an
extremely faint hint of raspberry coconut!
Finish: Very long. The fruit on the palate actually
leads perfectly into the finish and just lingers, almost forever.
Overall impression: A very intriguing nose makes promises which the excellent
palate delivers well and then passes the baton to a very good
finish. Delightful, I love this whisky!
I
have decided to revisit this a few days later:
Glass: Classic Malt / Colour as above
Nose:
Similar to above, with the addition of some well-polished
aged oak.
Palate: Pretty well the same as above.
With
3 drops of water: The nose loses the sweet shop aspects, but
gains in richness with extra wood, wax polish for that aged oak
and still a hint of butterscotch. The palate has more peppery
tingle, lots of wood, still some sweetness, but not quite so
much and the fruit has diminished to almost zero.
With
4 more drops of water: Aged oak, marzipan, more nuts and a
slight bitterness as it leads into the finish.
Finish: Long, very long.
Overall Impression: Still excellent, possibly even better
with a few drops of water.
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Duncan Taylor |
Four sister casks |
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Duncan
Taylor, Imperial,
19y
1990-2009,
53.1% ABV
Cask 445, drawn
from cask on 4.4.2009
Typical cost of
this bottle;
to
Live Dram-atics review
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Glass: Classic Malt
Colour:
Dark gold - light oak
Nose:
Initially offers some semi sweet notes of floral malt and
candy floss. After some minutes in the glass this develops a
mustiness in the background which is reminiscent of an old musty
or dusty library shelf.
Palate: Ths sees that mustiness turn more into a leafiness
which is accompanied by a suggestion of slightly bitter fruit,
perhaps star fruit or apple in character.
Finish: Quite long and also quite dry.
Overall Impression: A most enjoyable nose but a slightly
bitter palate lets this down a little. In some ways I'm reminded
of a mix between a grappa and obstler style.
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Duncan
Taylor, Imperial,
19y
1990-2009,
53.7% ABV
Cask
446, drawn from cask on 6.4.2009
Typical cost of
this bottle;
to
Live Dram-atics review
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Glass: Classic Malt
Colour:
Pale bronze
Nose:
Surprisingly fruity with a big burst of apple and passion
fruit and a faint leafiness in the background.
Palate: Wonderfully smooth mouth-feel and again very fruity,
but this time with mainly peach and cantaloupe melon. This
really is smooth, gentle and very approachable!
Finish: Long with a delightful fruity tingle.
Overall Impression: I love that peach and melon. A very good
whisky.
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Duncan
Taylor, Imperial,
19y
1990-2009,
55.7% ABV
Cask
448,
drawn from cask on
12.2.2009
Typical cost of
this bottle;
to
Live Dram-atics review
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Glass: Classic Malt
Colour:
Light oak
Nose:
Immediately suggests fruit but with a gentle hint of
furniture polish. Then comes musty oak and after some minutes
further fruity notes, this time cherries or cherry wood and
vanilla.
Palate: This has a mild pepperiness alongside a suggestion
of coconut and again cherries. Overall this one is really quite
fruity.
Finish: Long and mildly peppery concentrated mainly on the
front of the palate.
Overall Impression: Nice fruity tingle with an emphasis on
cherries.
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Duncan
Taylor, Imperial,
19y
1990-2009,
53.4% ABV
Cask
449,
drawn from cask on
5.5.2009
Typical cost of
this bottle;
to
Live Dram-atics review
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Glass: Classic Malt
Colour:
Vivid oak or perhaps even light amber
Nose:
Lots of furniture polish and even a faint hint of
rubberiness with oak and vanilla in the background.
Palate: Very light and mild and has an equally mild
suggestion of oaky aniseed. It also has a faint fruitiness but
one which is difficult to identify.
Finish: Long with a further suggestion of aniseed.
Overall Impression: Furniture polish and aniseed?
Interesting, very interesting.
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