3 Joint Bottlings by DeinWhisky.de and Mancarella Whisky – 18yo, 26yo and 35yo (Review Flight) | BarleyMania

This is a first for me. Before I sat down with these samples from DeinWhisky.de, I had never heard of Mancarella Whisky, a small indie bottler based in the town of Herrenberg near Stuttgart. A quick Whiskybase research showed that they started their business in 2017. So far, they released a total of 14 bottlings – so it seems as if they are going for quality rather than quantity. My degustation of their Secret Highland 35yo, Secret Speyside 26yo and Blended Malt 18yo further underlined this notion. The trio is exclusively available from DeinWhisky.de (which currently only ships to destinations in Germany, China, Singapur and Taiwan). Although the drams differ from one another in regard to their profile and character, they lean into a similar direction: They are well-aged, elegant, mellow and classy. On the one hand, they are rich with sweet and savory aromas. On the other hand, they are neither overloaded nor out-of-balance. Another detail worth mentioning: The three malts all come from undisclosed distilleries (Secret Highland 35yo, Secret Speyside 26yo) or from more than one distillery (Blended Malt 18yo). Personally, I do not mind this at all. Cause in each case, the bottled spirit can very well speak for itself. So pour yourself a glass and listen closely what these fine drams have to say. To me, their soft whispers sounded as follows …

by Tobi

Secret Highland 35yo 1985/2020
(Single Malt Scotch Whisky • Hogshead • 48.8% • 114 bottles)

Three and a half decades in the cask have given this top-shelf Highland malt a rich color. On the inner side of the glass it produces gooey, slow-going legs. The nose is mellow and balanced with yellow fruits, brown sugar, wild honey and subtle oak. It also has a pronounced spiciness (cinnamon, nutmeg) and a noticable mocca note. The palate offers oranges, hazelnuts, brittle and vanilla. Also unsugared coconut meat and baked banana with caramel sauce. The lean finish provides crumbly milk chocolate, soft toffee and bitter-sweet English marmalade. This is a beautiful, unobrusive single malt Scotch whisky with an impressive number on the label and lots of quality in the bottle. To unfold its potential, however, it requires a thorough examination – so when you get the chance to try it, take your time to sip it properly and attentively without any haste.

Secret Speyside 26yo 1993/2020

(Single Malt Scotch Whisky • Sherry hogshead • 51.1% • 349 bottles)

Oh, sweet Speyside! To be honest, I do not know which of your many distilleries gave birth to this super-sweet single malt. I have a faint idea, but that is all. Anyway. What really matters is this: I am enjoying this nicely aged and handsomely sherried Scotch a lot. It has honey, nougat and toffee as well as mandarines and peaches on the nose. The palate dripples with treacle! Other flavors include toffee, raisin, lemon and sponge cake. Plus sweet, liquid honey. The delicate finish is mid-long. It leaves behind rum truffles, marzipan cookies, apple puree and pistaccio pudding. Are you looking for a tasty dessert to round off your next three-course dinner? Just pour yourself a glass of this Secret Speyside 26 Years Old by DeinWhisky.de and Mancarella … it is sweetness galore!

Blended Malt 18yo 2001/2020
(Blended Malt Scotch Whisky • Sherry butt • 46.1% • 344 bottles)

The sherry butt, in which the components of this 18-year-old blended malt were married, surely was not shy. It gave the spirit a dark color and an opulent bouquet. Its strongest scents: dark berries, sweet grapes, burnt raisins and lemon sorbet with icing sugar. The mouthfeel is gracious and sophisticated. Taste-wise, I get a delish interplay of strawberries, blueberries and cherries as well as fluffy muffins with caramel chunks. Plus a soft touch of oak. While it runs down the throat, the whisky shows its greatness one last time. The impressive finish – probably the spirit’s best feature – provides juicy cherries, aromatized pears, sweet blackcurrants and creamy Belgian chocolate. Mouthwatering!

Secret Highland 35yo (Single Malt / Highl. / 35/ Hogshead / 48.8% / ~340 Euro)
Blended Malt 18yo (Blended Malt / Scotland / 18yo / Sherry butt / 46.1% / ~90 Euro)
Secret Speyside 26yo (Single Malt / Spey. / 26yo / Sherry hogshead / 51.1% / ~150 Euro)