Cadenhead’s Authentic Collection Dailuaine-Glenlivet 17yo 2009 & Cadenhead’s Authentic Collection Annandale 11yo 2015

Cadenhead’s Authentic Collection Dailuaine-Glenlivet 17yo 2009

Region: Speyside

ABV: 51.6%

Price: £80.00 

Distilled at Dailuaine in 2009 and bottled by Cadenhead’s in September 2026 after 17 years of maturation, this single-cask release was transferred into a Ruby Port hogshead in 2020 for an extended finish. The cask produced 234 bottles.

Nose

The nose opens with lots of dark cherry, red currants, floral fabric softener, spent coffee ground and a tiny hint of something a little flinty, sulphury, but it's quite far in the background. There's also a meaty element to this dram, sweet roasted pork without the salt. The alcohol has a little bit of spice there, but it's fairly soft, and there's a ginger-led warmth as we go back to the dram. There's a lot of port influence here, but it feels relatively well integrated.

Palate

The palate opens with more cherries, plums, damson jam, menthol and kirsch. It's very berry-forward, lots of red and black fruit flavours with the addition of cracked black pepper and some candied ginger. It's not overly sweet, there's a syrupy sweetness but it's juxtaposed with a sharp acidity that works to balance it. The texture is a tad thinner than we'd like, although there's some viscosity here, and you're left chewing the dram as it moves into the finish. 

Nose (with water)

The reduced nose is a little sharper, more acidic, lemon mostly, as well as some orange peel and a little dark honey. The fruits are very much still there, but less punchy than before. 

Palate (with water)

The reduced palate is a little more acrid, and has lost even more of that mouthfeel. It's also a little more acidic, and hasn't really gained much for the trouble. There's a nice lingering Port sweetness but we'd avoid water here.

Conclusion

That's a lot of Port. Saying that, the additional 6 years have resulted in more of an integrated experience, and the tannins have softened resulting in a burst of sweet and acidic red and black fruits. It's good whisky, just a bit too cask forward for us.

Score: 6.5/10

Value

This is a solid price for a 17yo malt.

Cadenhead’s Authentic Collection Annandale 11yo 2015

Region: Lowlands

ABV: 54.7%

Price: £70.00

Distilled at Annandale in 2015 and bottled by Cadenhead’s in September 2026 after 11 years of maturation, this single-cask release was transferred into an Oloroso sherry hogshead in 2023 for its final period of maturation. The cask produced 228 bottles.

Nose

The nose opens with toffee pennies, apple slices drizzled in caramel, green pepper, aniseed, fresh linen and orange peel. There's also a light brown sugar sweetness, and we're not getting too much of that additional oloroso maturation. The alcohol isn't too punchy, but the nose is a little tight overall, and takes some time to get those aromas coming out.  

Palate

The palate opens with orange oil, vanilla custard, butterscotch, ginger juice, menthol and sour sweeties. There's a dryness here, not nutty but more like the pith of citrus, light baking spices and a little oak tannin. There's a good amount of sweet caramel syrup and a little sponge cake too. It's a tad one dimensional for us.

Nose (with water)

The reduced nose brings out more vanilla sweetness, caramel, toffee, with a background note of Red Kola and a bit of cherry. It feels like it's opened up a bit, although mostly bourbon cask notes and not too much of that sherry influence. 

Palate (with water)

The reduced palate loses some texture, but has more orange, vanilla, sponge cake, toffee and some menthol and ginger on the finish. It's a bit of an improvement compared with the unreduced palate, but not much.

Conclusion

A perfectly fine whisky - it's a bit closed off, and when you get past that, it's just a bit simple and lacking some character. Drinkable but not one we'd go back to. 

Score: 6/10

Value

A good price for Annandale.

• 10 - Perfection. One in a million
• 9 - Outstanding. Exceptional whisky.
• 8 - Great. Would seek this out.
• 7 - Good. Quality whisky.
• 6 - Above average. Happy to have a dram.
• 5 - Average. Drinkable whisky.
• 4 - Below average. Passable.
• 3 - Flawed. Noticeable negatives.
• 2 - Defective. Significant faults.
• 1 - Offensive. Pour it out.

If you like what you’ve read then check out our social media (Facebook, Twitter and Instagram) to get notifications of when we post a new review or just to chat about whisky with us.