Bell's 12 yo Scottish Open 1990...

Bell's 12 yo Scottish Open 1990 (40.0%): Last summer I returned from Istanbul with quite an arsenal of sample bottles... Some of them found their way onto the blog since then but many got forgotten in sample boxes like they usually do. I do remember this Bell's mini pretty well though... It was gifted to me by the members of Istanbul Whisky Society during our tasting and I thought that it was a sweet gesture that time since they knew how much I liked Bell's and they also knew that I couldn't get it here in US. So, it never occurred to me that it could be a special bottling... But last week when I was organizing my sample boxes I took a closer look at the label and realized that it actually wasn't a regular  Bell's but a limited release bottled exclusively for Scottish Open golf championship back in 1990..! I did a quick research online and found out that it is a blended malt of four single malts only which are Dufftown, Bladnoch, Blair Athol and Inchgower... Now this is something incredibly intriguing and today I will be pouring this whisky hoping that it is still in good shape.

Color: Deep gold, light amber with thick but fast moving legs.

Nose: Just a hint of oxidation, otherwise it noses fine. I hope the palate held up as well. Wet cardboard boxes, old glossy (insert your favorite 80s band here..) posters you forgot in a box in the basement and dry malt. Chamomile tea, fresh sage leaves and dried banana chips.

Palate: Lucky me, pretty good in shape... Oatmeal raisin cookies, toasted wood and wool sweaters. Dried apricots, dried strawberries and cellar mold. Breakfast cereal and crunchy rich tea cookies. Vanilla, lemon cookies and batter. It is grainy, herbal and sweet.

Finish: Surprisingly long with lemon peel, black pepper and linden flowers.

Overall: If this was a blend Diageo would offer on a regular basis I would keep a bottle at home regularly... It's refreshing, citrusy, doughy and grainy. Well balanced and quite easy to drink. Thanks again to Istanbul Whisky Society for the sample.


Price: N/A

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