Whisky Advocate's Summer 2023 Collectibles: Midleton Very Rare, Wild Turkey, and more

In every issue and for each season, Whisky Advocate recommends whiskies with the most potential to gain value in the long term. This round of top choices comes from Ireland, the U.S., and Scotland. Check out the Summer issue's Buying Guide for a complete list of whiskies reviewed.

97 Midleton Very Rare 48 year old Silent Distillery Chapter 4 Irish Single Pot Still, 53.9%, $50,000

Polished antique furniture, Brazil nut, cacao, Oreos, and leather, it’s clearly of significant age but blossoms with beeswax candles, baked orange, and peppy spices given time. Wonderfully oily and honeyed, with spices straining at the leash against a backdrop of indulgent chocolate, walnut, and citrus oils. It takes many expressive turns, gliding through coffee, praline, pecan pie, and treacle, with the spices blazing like the tail of a comet.

94 Midleton Very Rare Vintage 2023 Irish Blended, 40%, $250

Toffee up front, with vanilla, green apple, pot still spice, milk chocolate, peppercorn, ground ginger, and aromatic hints of coffee. To taste, a bounty of toffee, chocolate, espresso, tobacco, vanilla pod, and burnt sugar notes, with coriander seed and fennel spices, then burnt orange and more coffee before a delicious creaminess spills over. The integration of chocolate and coffee notes really elevates this vintage as a particularly fine whiskey.

92 Wild Turkey Master’s Keep Unforgotten Blend of Straight Bourbon and Rye Finished in Rye Casks (Batch 001), 52.5%, $200

Strap in for this one, as your palate will be getting a wild (but enjoyable) ride. A beautifully aromatic nose, loaded with cigar box and tobacco leaf, gives way to faint berry notes, peppermint, bananas Foster, and aged oak. Lots of age and mellowness on a smooth palate, with balanced hints of cherry-vanilla cream, coconut shavings, more tobacco leaf, black pepper, and leather. Fiery, racy, and stinging, all in a great way.

Beyond these Collectible selections, additional whiskies that are limited and/or show potential to gain value were reviewed in the Summer 2023 issue. Here's just a sampling.

94 Ardbeg Traigh Bhan 19 year old (Batch 4) Islay Single Malt, 46.2%, $300

Fresh sea breeze, brine, dried seaweed, peat embers, and drying sea shells on a beautifully integrated nose that positively sings of the sea. On the palate, it’s sweet and docile after that sea rush on the nose. Charcoal, golden apples, lemon, and peach tart meld with dark chocolate and espresso, dynamic and subtle all at once. It’s golden nectar with a peat smoke twist. Peat lovers, rise up: This one is not to be missed.

94 Bowmore Master’s Selection 22 year old Islay Single Malt, 51.5%, $450

Peat bonfire wafts above sea salt, brine, dried seaweed, salty dock, seashells, and all things maritime. But the smoke and peat are subtle—the seashore notes grab you most. They remain so on the palate, integrating beautifully with chocolate cake sweetness. You’re on the isle of Islay with this one, all right. Light and subtle once more on the finish, with fruit notes emerging and the peat fading long down the road.

94 Bushmills 25 year old Irish Single Malt, 46%, $900

Spending 21 years in a first-fill ruby port cask has imbued this superb whiskey with firm, plump, and intense fruit flavors with layers of raspberry, black currant fruit pastilles, blackberry jelly, and peppercorn. Bushmills and port casks are a heavenly match, and this has a warm, enveloping fruitiness on the tongue, with raspberry, plum, cranberry sauce, a surge of clove and pepper, milk chocolate, and a dry finish.

92 Compass Box Extinct Blends Quartet Part II Delos Blended Scotch, 49%, $325

This is a re-creation of Compass Box Asyla using select older whiskies, and the light, fresh, fruity nose showcases a remarkable range with oak shavings, tropical fruits, fresh pineapple, dried apple ring, vanilla cream, lavender, floral notes, fresh linen, peel oils, and oak spices. The satiny, glossy mouthfeel is burgeoning with honey and tangy citrus, candied pineapple, butterscotch, and featherlight spices, concluding with vanilla and gooseberry fool.

90 Whistlepig The Beholden 21 year old American Single Malt, 46%, $800

The aroma portends chewy sweetness with caramel, vanilla, coconut macaroons, and candied citrus, with secondary oak char, tobacco, leather, and chocolate mint. It’s nicely layered and finely balanced, with the palate delivering the same complexity, with ample sweetness. Quite drinkable, but water really amplifies the flavors, unleashing maple syrup and candied walnuts before the drying finish.