Bottle Details:
Distillery: Secret Speyside
Bottler: The Whisky Jury (TWJ)
Vintage: 1990
Bottled: 2022
Stated Age: 31 years old
Casktype: Refill Hogshead
Casknumber: Twj-Gl-1990-3
Number of bottles: 204
Strength: 51.7 % Vol.
Secret Speyside 1990, The Whisky Jury
Nose: a slightly leaner profile, I’d say, with some added minty freshness. The oranges seem to be brighter as well, mixed with tangerines and apricot. The downside is that you get less waxy notes and less furniture. After some airing darker notes of mocha, light tobacco and walnuts appear in the background, as well as raisins.
Mouth: Again this has flashes of brighter fruits (pink grapefruit, crystallized fruits, lemon peels) which come with a firm oaky side. Then fruit tea and a few drops of herbal cocktail bitters. Hints of plum eau-de-vie. Mint again. Warm with above average complexity.
Finish: long, fresh, with ginger, fruit tea and oaky spice in the back.
Very hard to choose in this case, both are almost perfect. On the nose I really liked the waxed oaky note of the Macau edition, but overall the polished elegance and complexity give this one an edge. Head over to the TWJ website for retailers. Score: 91/100