Arran 25-year-old

The oak will burn your tongue.

Good, varied and tasty malt. In terms of points, it is and remains an end of the 80s malt for me, but it is grossly overpriced.

Tasted at 1920's Blender's The nose is really beautiful. Unfortunately, the taste disappointed me. Missing grades and lack of balance. In the finish then again a class better. Unfortunately, the price is not justified for me. PLV rated, I would have landed under 80 points for sure. I would then rather advise Arran to reach for the consistently strong Explorers series. A beautiful fruity symbiosis of bourbon and sherry cask influences on the nose. Fresh berries (raspberries, red and black currants, mulberries) and haribo. High intensity with an acidity typical of Arran. A little freshly cut wood, shavings. Successful, albeit wwnig complex A little tingling on the tongue at the beginning, surprising for 46%. Then a hint of sulfur flares up in the form of rotting vegetables. Only briefly, then red fruits take over. Strong oak has a somewhat astringent effect. A little out of round. Fruity and dry aromas alternate in directing the finish. Quite long. With the Kinder Em-Eukal aroma, it reminds me of one or the other Glenfarclas bottling.

Sweet & full of vanilla and caramel. A bit of melon like a cantaloupe. This is an absolutely lovely dram. Biggest regret of my trip to Scotland was that I didn't bring a bottle of this home with me.

Addendum: Tried in Beinwil 09/23. Unfortunately, I don't seem to be getting along so well with the Arrans. Even the 25-year-old one only scores slightly above average for me.

This first 25 year old release ever from Arran (est. 1995) is a beautiful full ,aromatic ,warm dram. Just wonderfull. First casked in bourbon/sherry casks. Recasked in first fill sherry casks. Sample bought with a bottle in Single Malt Whisky Shop Zammel-Belgium.

It's good, by all means, except for a sharp alcoholic bite that should not be present in a 25 year old whisky. Why you would pay this much for a bottle of Arran 25, when there are plenty better alternatives, eludes me.

This is dumb but this is one of the coolest box designs, really nice and simple, which is why I bought it in the distillery, apart from the age. At 46% and it is a dark yellow, hue. Unfortunately the taste isn't astounding for the price/age. The scent is nice, like standing outside a distillery mash while it's filling, and from there it's decidedly underwhelming. It starts hot, lots of cereal, only warms from there coating the mouth and throat, a bit oily, white pepper, fruity, oaky, maybe a hint of sherry but not much after that, no real lingering flavors or changes. I wish I liked it more but the older Arran was definitely the prime

Quick hit review. Whisky calendar - Day 24. I'm delighted that we are concluding the calendar with a Christmas theme. On the nose, spiced oranges, baked apple and tart make an appearance, followed by pastries, balsamic vinegar and citrus fruits. Water accentuates red berries. The palate unfolds with sour cherries, rich tannins and nutmeg, the age is more than noticeable. Dry oak, fruit tea and menthol carry over into the cask-dominated finish. Older is not necessarily better, as seems to be the case with this Arran. I enjoy this dram, but is it really better than the 10-year-old? RATING: 3.9/5.0 stars ≙ 86 pts → FIRST-CLASS [-]

This whisky is brimming with citrus notes. The honey and caramel are exceptionally smooth, leading to hints of toasted bread and white pepper on the finish. It is complex, well-structured, and truly splendid.

Nice whisky but very usual und heavily overpriced for what it offers. You get much more outstandig whiskies for half of the price.

scbp-6620, a well-regarded citrus juice, like spumoni, but there is one thing to say, the flavor balance is high, but the richness is slightly worse, and the taste and aroma have unnatural blank spaces.

tried this at the distillery, a real treat! but not sure if it's worth the price

I am not sure if its a buy or a no buy. This one is more expensive than the single casks and its not a cask strength. A 21 years old is available for bout 100€ this one costs me 330€ and is just four years older.... I think i would just pay for the wooden box. Or is this one such an outstanding whisky?

Had a small dram of this beauty, not really enough for a full revieuw but I tried my best.

I like it. Unfortunately, it is priced very ambitiously for what is on offer at over € 330. Half of this price would be more appropriate.

Unfortunately, it's not worth the money, I'm glad I only had one sample.

A very nice aroma. Soft and subtle. The sherry shyly in the background. The oak barrel in the foreground. You can hear a light bourbon sweetness. In terms of taste, he withdraws a little, looks tart and spicy. A slight hint of vanilla. The wood looks noble and fine. Now even some pear, Absolutely round and harmonious. No missing notes. Very good! If only it wasn't for the price...

Green grape candy, peach sparkling, spices, canned cherry, some berries, and natural floral notes. Pretty good, but I'm not sure if it's worth the price tag...

Straightforward sherry with a hint of citrus on the nose. Good, but nothing special. The finish is slightly bitter.

Blind Tasting: February 2021

Balanced bourbon and sherry cask influence. A prominent, rich nutty oiliness dominates the profile. However, this robust nuttiness feels slightly disjointed and disrupts the overall harmony, while a touch of heat on the palate detracts from the score.

Although we are really big fans of Arran and thus we tried the whole CR and lots of editions, we must say this one isn't worth of our attention. Not layered, very oaky sherry.

I had higher hopes for this one, it was oak forward and somewhat simple. The fruits were nice, but not a balanced dram or like the younger expressions.

Just released: character unique to arran distillery, fruity, less unravelling but fine, not clunky but rich fruit character, If it's older, it will be higher than 87

Frantastic nose, especially fruity - finish fine but pales in comparison to the nose…

This is a very nice expression from the Arran distillery. However it is in no way worth the 300+ €, you have to pay to get a bottle.

quite a fruity and fragrant sherry nose. Ripe figs, baked apples, also lighter hints of cherries and raspberries. A little vanilla and cinnamon, as well as a leafy/leathery

Pear, tobacco, honey, malt, grapefruit, furniture polish, window putty, citric. Balanced, good complexity, creamy, dense, salty, full-bodied, pronounced intensity, slightly astringent.

It's better than 18yo, but it's not as good as some of my own OB Shirley single barrels.

Nose: Sour barley mash, berries and roasted barley up front with fruits like apples in the background. Very different from the fruit-driven nose when it is corked. Softer, oakier with water. Taste: Tart, sherry prominent, leather, malt and some good wood notes. Nice. More or less the same with water. Finish: Long. Sherry, roasted almond, oak. Adds a bit of ash with water. Very good.

An extremely harmonious and well-composed bottling. In my opinion, the (great) age is particularly noticeable in the aroma and the complexity of the oak spice, although it is relatively subtle overall. In a blind tasting, I would probably have guessed a younger age. Overall, very tasty, even without the WOW effect.