Rosebank 20

Several years back, before the origin of this blog, and before any of us knew much about malt whisky, we took the guys on a Carribean cruise. On one of the decks, there was an area with a series of bars, one right up next to the other. (It’s always useful to have a lot of bars on a cruise ship.) And one of the bars, called Maltings, was a whisky bar.

Despite our general ignorance, we knew enough to know that we liked good whisky, and we had already staked out our respective preferences. John and I were primarily Scotch drinkers; we were beginning to enjoy the pleasures of single malt Scotch whisky. Michael was more a Bourbon man. But that was fine, as Maltings had a fairly impressive listing of all whiskies. And so every evening, right after dinner, we would adjourn to the bar, and order a round -- a flight of whiskies for everyone to taste. And it was on that cruise ship that we first drank Rosebank. It was a Rare Malts bottling; I think it was eighteen years old. We took to it so quickly that every night, late at night, long after Susan and I had retired, John would return to Maltings and treat himself to one more Rosebank. I think they charged all of $8 for each pour.

Now it’s 2011, and it’s no longer possible to find any Rosebank; at least not from any of the usual sources. It’s gone from Keen’s menu; Joe rarely has any in stock at Federal. So imagine how excited I was when G-Man told me that a family friend had brought him a bottle when returning from Scotland. Not only that, but he was bringing that very bottle to Rochester, to share a dram or two.

It was another Rare Malts bottling -- this one twenty years old. Cask strength; 62.3%; distilled in 1981. As soon as the bottle was opened, we knew it was Rosebank -- that big floral nose. We tasted it first at full strength, and despite the high alcohol content, it was still light and fruity, a wonderful lowland malt. But with a little water to open it up, and then a little more water to put out the fire, I found it reminiscent of that first great Rosebank we had drunk while floating through the Carribean. The interesting characteristic of Rosebank is a spicy, almost peppery aftertaste. It’s subtle; one could almost miss it. But underneath the herbal, flowery flavor is this hint of spice, a little kick at the end of each taste. This twenty was also noteworthy for its rich, buttery texture, kind of a soft velvet mouth-feel. Very nice. And a long finish, as you would expect from a twenty year old malt.

We drank a lot of great whisky all weekend; there are many more postings to come. But this one malt was really something special. Thanks G-Man; what could be better than sharing a pour of this favorite malt with an old, old friend?