Woodrow’s of Edinburgh A Lowland Distillery (near Pencaitland) 11yo 2014 & Woodrow’s of Edinburgh Glen Elgin 14yo 2012 Cask #19607

Woodrow’s of Edinburgh A Lowland Distillery (near Pencaitland) 11yo 2014

Region: Lowlands

ABV: 58.6%

Price: £81.95

Distilled on the 10th October 2014 and bottled by Woodrow’s of Edinburgh on the 20th July 2026 after 11 years of maturation, this Lowland single malt was initially matured in a refill hogshead before being re-racked into a series of Oloroso and PX bloodtubs. The release produced 273 bottles.

Nose

The nose opens with a mixture of cinnamon, clove and star anise, there's a lot of wood spice upfront, moving into sweeter dark red fruits, black cherries, and some menthol beginning to appear. That menthol note gets stronger as more air gets into it - it's quite herbaceous, sharp and fresh. Getting deeper into the glass, we're finding more caramels and toffees, alongside some yellow apple flesh. 

Palate

The palate opens with fresh berries, red apples, strawberry jam, currants, moving into caramel slices, some dark chocolate and buttery biscuit crumbs. There's a nice mouthfeel, it's oily, textured and viscous, and the finish leaves a real chewy mix of sweetness and soft tannins that has us puckering our cheeks. Going back, we're finding treacle, sultanas, and candied ginger. The alcohol does have a bit of a kick, moreso on the latter palate, but the bold flavours work to balance this out.

Nose (with water)

The reduced nose has a little soft tobacco, medjool dates, a little more vanilla and some brown sugar coming through. There's more of that initial bourbon cask sweetness, but there's still a whole bunch of sherried aromas layered on top. 

Palate (with water)

The reduced palate feels sweeter in a simple sugar type of way, more vanilla, some sponge cake, a little burnt toffee - the heavier sherried flavours, the dried fruits, have faded somewhat into the background/finish. Water has tamed some of the spice, but at the same time lost some of the sherry bomb flavours that a lot of people enjoy.

Conclusion

A big bold sherry bomb of a dram - we're not quite sure if there's too much Glenkinchie spirit coming through but the mix of sherry bloodtubs have created a balance of sweet, spicy, fruity and dry flavours which work nicely together.

Score: 7/10

Value

It’s not often you see what is understood to be Glenkinchie making the price see fair.

Woodrow’s of Edinburgh Glen Elgin 14yo 2012 Cask #19607

Region: Speyside

ABV: 59.2%

Price: £84.95

Distilled at Glen Elgin on the 8th of February 2012 and bottled by Woodrow’s of Edinburgh on the 20th July 2026 after 14 years of maturation, this release was initially matured in a refill hogshead before being re-racked into a first-fill Ruby Port barrique for 3 years. Release of 307 bottles.

Nose

The nose opens with raspberry jam, almond paste, cinnamon sticks, currants and soft vanilla sponge. Going back, we're also finding plums, brown sugar, mixed berry squash and a dunnagey, wet oak aroma. It's a fairly vibrant nose, and more time and air reveals richer notes of dark chocolate and caramel wafers. There's a prickle of alcohol on the nose, not overpowering but it has some crushed black pepper appearing.  

Palate

The palate opens with marzipan, milk chocolate coins, black cherries, ripe strawberries and some liquorice sitting towards the latter palate. It's quite a juicy, thick and mouthcoating dram, the flavour engulfs the palate, with some caramel and a little rose petal on the finish. The alcohol is in good balance towards the beginning of the dram, but does get a little more warm towards the finish. There's more of mulled wine flavour profile as air gets into it - clove, cinnamon and orange peel all begin to appear, and the finish gets a little drier. 

Nose (with water)

The reduced nose feels nuttier, toasted almonds and cashews, even a little sprinkling of salt too. The red fruits are more stewed in style now, cooked down and even jammier. There's also a little menthol appearing towards the end of the nose, and that dunnagey note feels more pronounced.

Palate (with water)

The reduced palate has lots of brown sugar sweetness, some more nuttiness, the berries are much darker and there's a lot more of those dried spices - cinnamon and cloves, appearing. The alcohol hasn't really reduced much, there's still a bit of a kick on the finish.

Conclusion

A bold, ruby port-forward dram. Lots of cask influence but the Glen Elgin spirit manages to hold up to it. A little warm and dry towards the end of the palate, but it avoids becoming overpowered by the wine cask. A tasty dram. 

Score: 7/10

Value

You could probably pick up a similar bottling a touch cheaper, but it’s not an awful price.

• 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.

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