Orphan Barrel Castle’s Curse Single Malt Scotch Whisky Review

In a whiskey market that has become absolutely inundated with “special” and limited release whiskeys–although many are bourbon–in recent years, it can be hard to know exactly how the perception of a company like Orphan Barrel has evolved. They were instrumental in the mid-2010s establishment of the concept of high-priced limited releases, but with so many others on the market the Diageo series doesn’t really always attract headlines as it once did. Perhaps this is actually for the best in some respects, though–at the very least, it presumably keeps the MSRPs from climbing into the stratosphere as the Orphan Barrel series continues to hunt for rare and unusual releases across all dimensions of the whiskey world. Most recently? They’ve returned to Scotland once again for Orphan Barrel Castle’s Curse, a 14-year-old single malt scotch whisky expression from Teaninich Distillery.

Teaninich is not a particularly well known name, especially among the extensive Diageo library of distilling companies, though like so many scotch distilleries it has a rich history that stretches back to 1817. Shuttered and reopened on multiple occasions, it has primarily provided its malt whisky for blends over the decades, being considered an integral component in flagship Johnnie Walker blends in particular. Few of its malts have ever been released on their own, however, making Castle’s Curse a rare opportunity to taste Teaninich’s spirit in its most elemental form. The label of this release, meanwhile, centers the spirit animal of the Scottish Kelpie, a supernatural shape-shifting “water horse” that mythologically was associated with the Scottish coast near the distillery.

This release was matured for 14 years in European oak, and bottled at a respectable 47.4% ABV (94.8 proof), with an MSRP of $175. So with that said, let’s get to tasting this rarely encountered vintage from Teaninich.