Taste Test: Macallan Fans Should Try Oban’s Solid New 15-Year-Old Single Malt

Welcome to Taste Test, where every week our critic Jonah Flicker explores the most buzzworthy and interesting whiskeys in the world. Check back each Sunday for his latest whiskey review.

I was at a whisky tasting recently where a novice writer made the not very astute comment that sherry cask maturation seems to have become a popular trend in the scotch category. I don’t say this to shame anyone (I would be way out of my league trying to discuss current wine varietal trends), just to point out that this type of maturation has been very popular for decades, or even longer, with distilleries like the Macallan or Glendronach almost entirely focused on aging whisky in sherry-seasoned wood. One that is not so honed in on aging in one type of barrel, but makes superb whisky nonetheless, is Oban. This small distillery owned by Diageo is nestled on the west coast of Scotland, and its latest release is a verifiable sherry bomb exclusive to the U.S. that is worth seeking out.

Oban, which has been around since the late 18th century, is located next to the harbor in the town of the same name in Scotland’s Highlands region. You know how the story goes: Like so many others, this distillery has had several different owners over last few hundred years, it was shut down for a period of time, and it has been owned by Diageo since the late ’90s when that company absorbed United Distillers. Oban’s core 14-year-old expression is now part of Diageo’s Classic Malts series, which also includes whiskies from Glenkinchie, Dalwhinnie, Cragganmore, Talisker, and Lagavulin.

Most Oban whisky is aged in a combination of bourbon barrels and sherry casks, but is nothing like the new 15-year-old Cask Strength Sherry Cask Finish. According to the distillery, the whisky was initially matured in a combination of European oak butts and American oak hogsheads, and then finished for more than four years in Oloroso and Palo Cortado sherry casks that were sourced from Andalusia, where the Spanish city of Jerez is located. And, as you have already guessed from the name, it’s bottled at cask strength of 55.3 percent ABV, or 110.6 proof. That’s pretty strong and it adds a bit of heat to the palate, but nothing fans of barrel-proof bourbon like Booker’s or Elijah Craig can’t handle, and a few drops of water works wonders.

About that palate—this is a lovely whisky that goes deep into sherry territory while still keeping the very soft smoky tendrils that define Oban’s flavor profile intact (the whisky is actually made with a very small amount of peated barley so you might not even pick it up here, and it’s possible I’m projecting a bit). There are big notes of sweet fruit, caramelized brown sugar, black pepper, rum raisin, and cinnamon leading things off over a faint wisp of smoldering campfire which lies just underneath. This is more along the lines of something you might find from Bowmore or Highland Park, although much less smoky and still firmly in the Oban camp with a bit of salinity in the mix as well (the majority of the whisky is not matured at the distillery, but at Diageo’s warehouses around Scotland instead so this can’t really be attributed to maritime influence… but I still pick it up).

By the numbers, this new single malt is not exactly a remarkable innovation: 15 years old, cask strength, sherry cask finish, all things that you’ve seen before. But the sum is much greater than the parts here, and American scotch whisky fans should pick this bottle up and give it a try, whether they are already fans of one of Diageo’s smallest distilleries or newcomers to this scrappy operation.

Score: 88