Review #715 - Signatory Vintage Miltonduff 1995 18 Year Single Cask - K&L Wine Merchants Selection
Miltonduff is located in the heart of Speyside, near the whisky town of Elgin. This single malt isn't bottled on its own very often, at least from the distillery itself; instead, most of the production goes into blends, especially the Ballantine's blend from Pernod Ricard/Chivas. Generally, if we want to taste Miltonduff itself, we have to look to independent bottlers.
This example comes from Signatory Vintage, one of the stalwarts of the indie bottling scene. It's a single cask with a nice 18 year age statement, and it's bottled at a cask strength of 56.9% ABV after maturing in an ex-bourbon barrel. This specific cask was picked by K&L Wine Merchants in California, and prices are surprisingly reasonable on bottles like this - since it's under the radar, you can find some well-aged Miltonduff for $100 or less.
Signatory Vintage Miltonduff 1995 18 Year Single Cask - K&L Wine Merchants Selection
Scotland/Speyside - Single Malt
Price: USD 100 (2025)
Age Statement: 18 Years
Strength: 56.9% ABV
Cask Makeup: Ex-bourbon barrel
Details: Not chill filtered, no color added; cask 4115; distilled February 23, 1995; bottled July 9, 2013; 184 bottles
Tasting Methodology: Reviewed 3 times over 6 months; bottles at 90%, 70%, and 60% fill levels at times of review. Tasted in a nosing glass each time, rested 15+ minutes
Nose: Woody and malty, leaning a bit dry, but there's a nice creamy note - creme brulee, freshly-baked croissants, then wood polish and coconut. Malty notes build over time, and we get sweetness from honey and orchard fruit. Melon, clove, orange seeds, and bubblegum are accents; with lots of time, it shows more of that age.
Palate: A kick up front from some spirity heat and a drying oak tannin; later, flavors of malt, butter, and vanilla grow stronger. The malt has both sweet and grassy sides; yellow apple and melon bring a hint of fruit. Clove and sweet perfume are accents from the oak, and the mouthfeel is medium-thick.
Finish: Woody, toasty oak, a bit of bitter caramel, some tannic sharpness. It's a bit dominated by oak notes now; wood oil and vanilla come next. In the aftertaste, it's green apple, honeydew melon, and more sweet malt; the finish has a medium length.
Final Note: This is a pleasant Miltonduff with an interesting juxtaposition - it's both quite warm, but also restrained in flavor. There's more sweet fruit on the nose and the beginning of the palate, but the oak notes grow much stronger into the finish, adding a very dry side. There is some nice age that shows if you give this bottle time to breathe, but overall, it isn't the most complex single malt. Good whisky overall, though, and it was interesting to try another Miltonduff to get a better sense of the distillery character.
Value here is above average, both in terms of flavor, but also the age statement you're getting for this price. These won't always be readily available at $100 or less, but some searching on auctions can yield great deals - we only paid $80 for this example.
Our Rating: 7.5 / 10
In the current whisky landscape of increasing prices and variable quality, we've added a value rating to our reviews that relates to the score and the available pricing of each whisky. This roughly equates to a 0-10 scale; no reviews so far have exceeded a score of 10, although it is technically possible for the formula to produce a value rating higher than 10 with a high enough score and low enough price.
Value Rating: 6.55
About Us: We're a husband and wife review team living in the Midwest United States. Generally, our reviews and tasting notes will be a compilation of both of our experiences with a whisky over several tasting sessions.
Check out our other Miltonduff reviews:
Review #652 - Signatory Vintage Miltonduff 9 Year - US 100 Proof Edition #4
