The Toshan Man

Bubblegum

Clan Denny is a subsidiary of Douglas Laing & Co. Until recently, they mostly bottled single grain, but since the look of the range changed in July 2017, more and more single malts have been bottled. Always single casks, mind you. This Auchentoshan from 2000 matured for 16 years on a refill hogshead. It is very pale.

The nose is light, accessible, fresh on citrus en bursting with grasses and flowers. Hint of gooseberries, green grapes and barley sugars. But you can also actually smell the yeast and the barley, which makes me frown. I double check the label. Yup, 16 years of maturation. That refill casks must really have been tired. After a few moments I get some bubblegum.

The body is almost watery. I get a lot of vanilla en lemon, some grain cookies, but also effervescent tablets and aspartame. I am not very fond of this chemical side. Fanta Lemon on steroids.

The finish is fairly short and innocent. A very middle-of-the-road Auchentoshan that has not been done any favors by the cask, which is a pity. Around 80 EUR. You can buy much better Toshan for that.