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Not as fruity as some 70s Convalmore but good mouthfeel, very drinkable - pretty good

Wax, coconut, apple, herbs, cereals, orange, hint of leather, peach, cinnamon, pepper, fruity, funky and very complex

Once drank in Summer 2017 at a very generous friends home, rated 91 then. From memory, I had always described Convalmore as a fruit bomb or fruit nuke. The setting for this distillery is always as a dessert dram.

[August, 2005]  Together with friends I emptied bottle no. 2384 that I bought for 69,50 Euro in June, 2005. [July, 2016]  Together with friends I emptied another bottle that I bought for 71 Euro in November, 2004. In my old rating system (ten scales that translate into WB points: 50 - 66 - 75 - 80 - 82,5 - 85 - 87,5 - 90 - 92,5 - 95) I scored it 90 both times.  My notes state this is a very rich, oily and complex dram.

https://wordpress.com/post/whiskylovingpianist.wordpress.com/11656 N: This leads on nicely from the Coleburn, given their regional & stylistic similarities. This is however far more chatty first off and sweeter, with honeyed tart-ish fruits and a handful of sultanas alongside a sweet-smokey farmy note, apple pie, oaky chocolate and dried nettle [tea] leaves. It shares with the Coleburn the same oily abv pow, both bottled at a whooping 59.4%. Whereas the Coleburn opens up [like most malts] over time, unprecedentedly this Convalmore appears to become more astringent & stubborn. That aside, theres a really interesting industrial vs rural complexity going on. Adding water brings more astringent firmness [a fruity-ish Mannochmore if you will], with a little malty/beer leather developing and occasional flashes of [synthetic] fruity essential oil vibrancy, alongside used plasters [Serge took me down that path], aromatic spices & camphor - good just got goober. T: Partially stubborn on the palate too but most desirable, a style I like. Savoury>oily, thick, full bodied yet squidgy on the surface - in English: firm on the inside, softer on the outside. Taste-wise we have a straight-ahead/no fuss oily-barley/malty style with a fascinating combo of waxiness, herbal[tea]-fruitiness and coal. Theres also the mouthfeel to be savoured, one that becomes slicker & slicker with a shy ode to Brora. F: Waxy-fresh finish longer than the Coleburn, and though somewhat floury=metallic, its cleaner and a touch closer to satiable. C: What a good pair, this & the Coleburn. Both are excellent and I liked both just as much, though the Convalmore pips a few more points for that mouthfeel, finish and a little more complexity.Scores a B+

1434) Convalmore, 1978/2003, 24YO, Rare Malts Selection, Natural Cask Strength, Limited Edition Day 43 of Lockdown - 29th April - 1st day of extended MCO 4.0, I am itching to trim my hair again. N- Not a day to day brand name that can easily found on the bar shelves, let alone this is a long lost distillery that closed since 1985. With its production life dedicated for the blends, fruitiness are at heart as it shows on this, one of the only three official releases under its rightful name after almost 90 years working at the back scene. Penetrating sweet phenol with rounded fruit at high pitch. Citrus come along with nectarines of milky honey, peculiar sweet grassy and floralness. OME are apparent and building up generously, baby talc, teasing sour wood and spices. (92/23) P- A skillful good kisser, love the passionate grips and touches that stimulate the palate instantly. Firm and mouth watering with playful creamy fruits, warm toasted sandalwood and oily walnut. (94/23) F- Long, succulent, powerful yet so tender. Elegant spiciness build up at the back, leaving the mesmerizing coat of oily fruits to shine upfront. Funky green grass ogio jello. Warming with plenty of weight, satisfying. (94/23) B/B- 97/24 Fluent and memorable, one to make love with. Weighted Rate- 94pt, +1 for and rare old malt.

Lovely, complex Convalmore, but next to unaffordable if you can still find it. This is only my third Convalmore, but what treat. Thanks, Chris!

Notes from a blind tasting

Now this is something else. Waxy and fruity, but also that interesting whiff of gasoline, as well as a the spices and smoke on the palate. All of that nicely balanced. Can't ask for much more.

Drinking Date： 14/9/2024

I expected a lot from the station wagon RMS and Conval, but he surpassed them again, great, somewhat freaky part.

Great material, it's a shame that something like this is no longer affordable... Wonderfully complex and interesting bottling, the light, very well integrated smoke is what makes it here for me.

3432'92 ~ Church candles (paraffin full of mouth), linseed oil, empty honeycomb, sandy salty cookies, dusty attic stuffed with coal and agricultural utensils in solid oil, white pepper, spices and herbs (refreshing mint-eucalyptus gum). Wow, how bold and powerful it is! If the aroma has coffee-floral-honey notes, then on the palate there is a fat camphor oil from a metal lamp, and in the aftertaste there is a pleasant orange peel. Maybe because of these jumps, the balance is understated, but everything is very tasty separately, say, a complex malt. Absolutely divine drummer!

Whiskyfun: Colour: straw. Nose: very special, it smells like an un-smoky Laphroaig. Very medicinal, with some bandages, cod oil, lamp petrol, tar… Some funny smells of a brand new tyre. Very special indeed. Gets slightly metallic (oxidised copper). Mouth: rich and bold, very coating. Lots of wax, eucalyptus and tar. Quite some smoke, smoked tea (Lapsang Souchong), over-infused tea. Very, very interesting – I feel Convalmore was perhaps an overlooked distillery. Anyway, this one is a love-it-or-hate-it malt, and I love it. 90 points.

N24 P22 F23 B23

Klassemalt der Oberliga. Alkohol kaum spürbar. (How on earth can some freak give this only 77 points? That is beyond me.)

A gentle  soft dram.

A suberb whisky, I can't say anything else. It's perfectly balanced and very complex. It has this creamy texture, luscious fruit, waxy barley, nuts and smoke.

As usual, lots of watts. As usual, an exciting, complex, lively, very spicy dram. Remember one evening when I heard "he doesn't have a bad Convalmore". Maybe that's true.

A very good Convalmore. Nothing jumps out at you, but there is enough complexity here that I would like to have another dram, on a different day, to see if there is any flavor development. There are many subtle flavors in this one. A contemplative dram. Sample from a friend. Thanks Bill!

The colour is gold/yellow. The whisky leaves thick tears that linger on the glass for a long time. Owen, thank you very much for this gem! The first time I tasted this whisky was in a blind tasting. I thought I was pretty sure it would be a Benromach. Not so! Although they certainly have several similarities in terms of presentation. With water it gets even better!

90/92/91/91

Under-frickin-rated. I’ve had this enough to declare I love it. I love this style. A waxy, honey bomb. Such a rare style, if not extinct then endangered for sure. Waxy, buttery, honeycomb, honeysuckle, fresh honey, mountain honey, clover honey, creamed honey... Feel me? Biscuits or shortbread, soft herbal tones, mint, licorice. Astounding mouthfeel and depth. A classic style for me. The rare malts puts it into high powered form, as they seem to do. I’ve been slugging my way through my friends bottle (thanks!), but bought a back up. I need this like my kids need milk.

Fruit cereal, rich in tropical fruits such as papaya and guava, xylitol, and oils are very prominent.

sample available on: whiskysample.nl tasting notes to follow soon

Balance (23) Bomb (93)

Very dignified, bright and tight.

Very good whisky and a rare malt indeed!

Tasting Whiskynotes.be : Convalmore 24 yo 1978 (59,4%, Rare Malts 2003) Nose: interesting, with hints of unripe banana, dried fruits and soft vanilla but also more austere notes. Tarry ropes, wet limestone, a few metallic notes. Lamp oil. Plenty of medicinal touches as well. Hints of almond cream and mint. This style is now extinct. Mouth: again fruity notes and hints of cake, mixed with sharper austere notes. Bitter oranges as well as candied ones. Candied ginger. Oily notes again, waxed oak. White pepper and herbs. Becomes slightly soapy with water. Finish: long, although it’s mainly on spices and herbal notes, with a malty sweetness in the back. This is far away from modern Speyside whisky, it’s more demanding and has some rough edges. Not quite 90’s material but definitely one to try if you have a chance. Auction value around € 300. Score: 89/100

A big-big-big fruit bomb!

Smoky and spicy aroma, pepper, malt, cloves, tea leaves, wet hay, heather honey and ripe melon. Marzipan sweet taste, pepper, ginger, vanilla, cashew nuts, peat, floral honey, butterscotch and malt. Long, sweet, malty and spicy end.

It’s really good and quite complex, it needs some time to develop and also water helps here to bring out new flavours. Rich and nice mouthfeel. I love it.

Bottle # 4649 sold empty at ebay.

I think this one is also very good, and the fragrance is delicious. Individual Sorting: 1, 1977 CA 40yo; 2, 1977 OB36; 3, RMS 24; 4, 1977 CA 30yo (green label)

Waxy, oily, fruity, outrageously farmy... I'm surprised that early 70s Clynelish is not mentioned more often when it comes to write tasting notes for this malt.

phe no me nal loved every drop of it

Tasting: August 2022

Tasted at the Golden Promise, Paris, 11/19. This whisky is amazing! What a pleasure!

Nose: salty and herbaceous, somewhat musty, grass/hay, taliskeresque Palate: Pepper in vanilla, sweet, bubble gum, charcoal Finish: medium length

The whole is amazing, in any case very different from modern whiskys while vanilla roundness. This one is rather of the kind not to make prisoners, austere but delicious.

Excellent old staff!

Intense, spicy malt. Small sips already act like malt concentrate (even diluted to about 46% with water). 91/100