More QRW Spring 2008 feature articles:

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Our Favorite 18-Year-Old Malts

Consistency prevails, as once again it’s “the usual suspects.”

QRW Staff

If you’re a single malt scotchophile, chances are good you drink 18-year-old malt, considered to be arguably the ideal age for great malt whisky. The adage that 10- and 12-year-old single malt whiskies are for drinking, 18 year old for tasting, works for us. Single malt 18-year-old whisky is an engagement, the way great wine can be: it invites intimacy and warmth. The golden and amber colors are more attractive; the aromas of spice, honey, and nuttiness are more forthcoming; the flavors of peat, heather, honey, and nuttiness reveal a body that is richer and fuller; the finish is engaging, complex, meditative. Consumers not drinking 18-year-old single malts and who are looking for a richer malt scotch experience would be wise to trade up to 18-year-old. It’s a higher orbit; it’s an indulgence with a difference.

The term “single malt whisky” is often misunderstood, even among veteran drinkers. It means that malt whisky comes from a “single” distillery. Malt whisky is barley steeped in water; the barley is allowed to partially sprout; when it does, it is dried and at a specified temperature is arrested and placed in a kiln. Water, barley, and peat — the soil, the environment, the terroir — are the essences of great malt, and for us many of the finest of these expressions come from Scotland’s Highlands. To that end, we tasted only Highland single malt whiskies, and, as with all QRW tastings, only those that are readily available nationally at retail.

We started with 24 18-year-old single malts, and at our “pre-taste” narrowed that number down to nine. Alphabetically, they were Cragganmore, Dalwhinnie, Dufftown, Glendronach, Glenfiddich, Glenmorangie, Glenrothes, Highland Park, and Macallan. From these, we selected the top five.

The results can be easily summarized: “round up the usual suspects.” You still can’t buy better, more consistent 18-year-old single malt whisky than Highland Park, Macallan, Glenmorangie, Glenfiddich, and Glenrothes. Put another way, the single malts that have dominated the market for years, continue to do so, and for good reason: they deliver.

The Tasting

The tasting was blind. Riedel malt glasses were used. Tasters either drank neat or added a splash of bottled spring water. Crusts of bread, dry crackers, and sparkling water were palate cleansers.

The Results

The results show that choices were anything but easy, and we were not hedging in the least. The fact is that the malts below are all so good that there was only a half point difference between the best and second place. One taster’s note concluded “it was like selecting a Rolls or a Bentley.” Malts were tasted on a ten-point scale: two for color; two for aroma; three for flavor; three for finish. Please note: prices may vary from region to region.

2nd Place (tie):

3rd Place (tie):