Bought: Whisky Barrel, 6th May 2015
Ratings:
86.5/100 – Whisky Bible 2016
82.5/100 – Whiskybase (average from 10 member votes)
Founded in 1871, this Speyside distillery is like the inchworm, quietly getting on with things in the background without many people noticing. The house style is “comparatively sweet, with spice, malt and oak notes, drying in a salty finish.” Inchgower’s claim to fame is that it’s the only Scottish distillery to have been owned by a town council. In 1936, Buckie Town Council acquired the distillery for £1,000 from the bankrupt owners, then sold it on for £4,000 to Arthur Bell & Sons two years later. To this day, Bells is the principle blend that uses Inchgower.
My only previous bottle of Inchgower was a miniature, so it was about time I upgraded to 70cl. Over the years several ‘Connoisseurs Choice’ versions of Inchgower have been mentioned in the Whisky Bible. Here are their ratings, distillation year, and Bible year of issue where they’re listed:
- 85/100 – 1993 – Whisky Bible 2009
- 84.5/100 – 1997 – Whisky Bible 2013
- 85.5/100 – 1998 – Whisky Bible 2015
As you can see, they are very consistent, with an average of 85/100 for all 3 releases. I’m delighted to say that my 2000 version scores 86.5/100 in the 2016 bible, which classifies it as “very good to excellent whiskies definitely worth buying”. The author says, “still one of the chewiest malts around and enough delicious rough edges for this to taste more like an old-fashioned blend than a single malt. And that’s a good thing, by the way.”
Whisky Den 