Welcome back to another fine pairing of two single malts, where I explore the tiny variations of different casks, the maturation process, and, of course, the final product as delivered by an independent bottler, even if the whisky is from the same producer. In this case, both of these drams are from Craigellachie distillery, both are 13 years old, and both are bottled at the very same 46% ABV [completely by coincidence]. But the similarities end there. The first dram, courtesy of Cask Explorer‘s 2022 Advent Calendar (8th in Ruby Edition), is bottled by Mossburn and comes from an Oloroso hogshead [I think it’s a finish], while the second dram, from my own collection of virtual tasting samples, is bottled by James Eadie from a refill hogshead, which most likely means it’s an ex-bourbon and not ex-sherry barrel. Both are uncoloured and non-chill filtered and thus are integrity bottlings, but the colour alone already tells a big difference. So let’s get to it, but first, we need music! Now playing: Arovane – Icol Diston [2023 Remaster].

Let’s cover a bit of the background of the distillery. Craigellachie is located in the Speyside region, operated by Bacardi via its subsidiary of Dewar’s. The distillery was founded in 1891 by a group of blenders and merchants, including Alexander Edward and Peter Mackie, who later became famous for creating the blended whisky brand White Horse, where, as you can already guess, Craigellachie became one of the major components. It’s still heavily used in blends owned by Dewar’s, and its own releases include expressions aged 13, 17, and 23 years. But today, I’m tasting the Craigellachie from two independent bottlers! Mossburn Distillers owns the exciting new distillery on the Isle of Skye called Torabhaig. It also produces various blends, which it ages in its own custom hybrid casks. For its own bottlings of single malts, under the Vintage Casks series, Mossburn produces a small batch of whiskies from selected casks that are rested in its own warehouse. I’ve never had a bottling by Mossburn, and so I’m excited to check out the quality. I’ve had a few James Eadies before. James Eadie is an independent bottler founded in 1854 by the Scottish businessman of the same name, who was also known for operating a chain of pubs throughout Scotland and England. Their bottlings often feature single cask releases or small batch editions, which allow whisky enthusiasts to taste the variations in flavour profiles that result from different cask types, warehouse conditions, and maturation periods. So, once again, we’ve got the same distillery from two completely different barrels of the same age but a different vintage [only by a year]. With that said, a lot could change. No two single barrels are the same. That’s why most distilleries still “blend” their whiskies in the core range. And here, we’ve even got a sherried finish!

I suppose my biggest dilemma at the present moment is whether or not I should start with the Mossburn or with the James Eadie bottling. Let’s see now. Since the sherried dram will be a bit sweeter, and since most whisky begins its life in ex-bourbon barrels, I feel like maybe I should start with a bit of a “naked” Craigellachie from James Eadie before the additional imparted flavours of the ex-oloroso cask. The nose is indeed different between them, and as you can imagine, the James Eadie feels like straight-up “to the point” whisky, while the Mossburn is a wonderful dessert. Oh, well, I guess I’ve said the word right there. So let’s start with bourbon hogshead first, then. Ooh, this is thick and sweet and feels much stronger than the 46%. There’s something unique about the honeyed and candied profile here. I had it there for a second, but then it disappeared from my mind. I’ll add a drop of water to this dram and will come back to see if I can find it. Let’s try the sherried Mossburn now. And that is also quite nice. Deep juicy prunes and rich Christmas cake are clearly present, but that uniqueness that I’ve tasted in the JE bottling is gone. A drop goes in this dram as well, and now I will reverse the tasting. The Mossburn took to water really well and mellowed out with its sweetness. Now let’s go back to that James Eadie. Ooh, the nose changed – it’s like green apples, but almost vinegary and not sweet. There’s that something – sweet and woodsy as if the apples swam in oak. It’s definitely still clawing at my throat with harshness, even with more water. The finish’s now a little bitter, and that I think I can attribute to the cask. I’ve noticed in the past that if I dilute the oakey whiskies, they tend to get oakier with time. I’ll still add water once again and see how these come out in the final round.

Distillery / Region	Craigellachie / Speyside	Craigellachie / Speyside
Producer	John Dewar & Sonds (Bacardi)	John Dewar & Sonds (Bacardi)
Bottler / Series	Mossburn / Vintage Casks	James Eadie / Small Batch
Stated Age / Vintage	13 years old / 2007	13 years old / 2008
Cask type	(Ex-bourbon?) + Oloroso Hogshead (finish?)	Ex-bourbon Refill Hogshead
ABV / Cask Strength	46% / No	46% / No
Non-chill filtered/ Uncoloured	Yes / Yes 🌟	Yes / Yes 🌟
Price	£65	£55
Did it win? / Did I like it?	Yes / Yes, nice, but I’ve had better	No / No, a bit harsh and woodsy
Would I buy it? / Recommend it?	No / No, plenty of others to try	No / No

So there you have it, folks, another lovely tasting. That “unique” something in James Eadie is definitely the flavour of wood, which was initially masked by a higher ABV. With water, it’s more prominent and, as already said, a little acrid. The sweetness of the casks is gone, and now all I taste is oak – it tastes like stirring with a pencil in your glass and/or slurping the spilt whisky off a wooden table. The Mossburn, on the other hand, is good but still a little sharp for a 12-year-old. It’s peppery and slightly woodsy [or is that aftertaste from the ex-bourbon dram?]. I definitely like it more, and with that said, I will proclaim Mossburn bottling as the winner of this round.