Cameronbridge 1990 23 Year The Sovereign (Hunter Laing)

Rating: 9/23 Word has it Cameronbridge makes a massive amount of grain whisky. Seriously, a ton. Clearly, their product is mainly destined for blends, but you'd think a single grain of this age, 23 years, could be quite good. Nose: Not much going on here. It's buttery, like a flaky pie crust with some lemon curd and lime. After letting it sit, the aroma is pretty similar, with lemon and lime upfront, leaning towards pastry and lemon curd. There's a faint trace of that tart yeast note found in Balcones Single Malt. However, there's also a significant amount of alcohol present, making this aroma really quite poor. Palate: The taste is disappointingly fiery. Given the high proof, it's understandable. It has a strong, lingering burn. There's a pleasant buttery quality, but it's not as smooth as I'd hoped. The lemon is there too, but it doesn't quite taste like lemon curd. I detect a hint of wax and a slight suggestion of grain, with a touch of faint toastiness and perhaps a vague impression of wood and artificial caramel, but that's essentially it. Some mineral sweetness is present. After some time, it remains very fiery, but it becomes more buttery with a nice viscosity. I definitely get that lemon curd and pastry flavor more now, and the alcohol is less dominant. It's still hot, with alcohol and a strange combination of lime and artificial sweetener. Adding water opens it up somewhat, revealing some wood and emphasizing the toasty notes, but it doesn't eliminate the artificial sweetener and it significantly diminishes the butteriness without really reducing the harshness. I'm not convinced water improves it. Finish: The lemon and a mineral sweetness are prominent in the finish. The other flavors are barely there, most noticeably a faint butteriness, but not much. It's a rather weak conclusion to a disappointing dram. As it fades, a nice buttery breadiness emerges. That's really all I needed from this whisky; I didn't have high expectations. If that flavor were the only element, I could appreciate its distinctiveness and light enjoyment despite its lack of complexity and give it a good rating. Letting it rest for about half an hour, the finish is richer, reminiscent of a pastry crust. It's a bit toasty, but not sweet. With water added, the butter definitely returns much more strongly in the finish. I actually quite enjoy this finish, and the glass smells quite pleasant afterward once the alcohol has dissipated, leaving just that nice light, buttery tart au citron. I'm not a fan of this. The nose is harsh and quite flat, and the palate has a single buttery note and a few flaws without much complexity. The finish offers a nice pastry-like butteriness, but that doesn't save it. So, we have a dull nose, a subpar palate, and a good finish. This is definitely an improvement over Pure Scot, but it's a step down from Carn Mor's Cambus 27 (1990). I'd place it in the 8-11 range. Any of those scores would be terribly disappointing for a 23-year-old Scotch. I think I'm hovering between a 9 and a 10, and I'll settle on 9. It's less harsh than Pure Scot and has a pleasant butteriness, but it's also less complex. The Cambus, conversely, makes a significant impression.