“If Hitler invaded hell I would make at least a favorable reference of the devil in the House of Commons.”

These are Churchill’s words, not mine. Mine would be softer. More like, “I’ve had worse.”

Though I can say that I’ve had worse, the Glenkinchie 10 year old, unfortunately, still left me in a desperately wanton state of affairs. The nose promised a curious scent of lemon, however with the first sip, I received what I would say is dangerously close to a fanatical celebrity chef’s idea of “original.” An important note: “Terrible” is not original. “Terrible” has been around for a long time. But I guess that “terrible” still seems harsh. How about an original word. Let’s call this “ungood” — as in dried fruit rolled in a mound of cinnamon, and then set on fire and soaked in the whisky barrel, peel and all. Such a concoction will always be “ungood.”

The finish was very dry and spicy. I don’t usually feel like I need a drink of water after a dram. This time I did.

Apparently, the Glenkinchie has decided to end production of the 10 year old and the new 12 year old is its replacement edition. Perhaps the Master Distiller of this Edinburgh malt contemplated another bit of Churchill’s wisdom when he said, “Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm.” Glenkinchie is a vibrant distillery with a lot of rich history. Keep the enthusiasm, gentleman! But I would suspect that if the Master Distiller is a fan of Churchill, perhaps this is what he considered: “If you are going to go through hell, keep going.” In other words, fight through and find the exit.

The 12 year old edition, for Glenkinchie, may just be hell’s exit. I do own a bottle of the 12 year old and I will say that it is a much worthier dram. But I’ll unpack those details for you in a different review. Until then, if you are stranded at home with no one but your cat to share in your sorrows, if the cat enjoys Scotch and you are completely out of Scoresby, this bottle will do just fine. However, if you are stranded on a deserted island with no cat, first only use this whisky to start a significant signal fire, saving at least a third of the bottle. The remnant portion would be consumable only if your fire, food, and water have run out. Hope is gone, my friend. All of hell’s exits are chained shut. The only suitable exit now is death. Drink your whisky.