"The Black Whisky" distilled at Mannochmore and first released in 1996. It was not well-received, and was discontinued a year or so later. It still remains the butt of single-malt jokes today (not that there are a lot of single malt jokes to begin with, but, whatever). The malt was not without its followers, however -- and that combined with the whisky's relative infamy gives it its current status as a sort of novelty collectible.

The deep color is due to caramel coloring, and not the "double-charred barrels" the marketing campaigns claimed.

Nose of chardonnay, caramel, honey, hint of strawberry yogurt and solvent. Palate -- hmm. It passes the sip test, but not the have-a-glass test. Initially a little sweet, then subsequent sips become all about a bitter wateryness, and that's most of what's going on here… just a flat, moderate bitterness that coats your mouth and sticks through the lengthy and oddly drying finish. Reminds me of chewing on leather gloves -- like when you bite them in your mouth to pull them off.

Strange and difficult to drink at length. D/D+ because I "like" it slightly better than other stuff I've given straight D's to.

Given that it's the "black whisky," it's hard not to comment on the color, which resembles a strong cup of French Roast.  The nose has malt with a strong balsamic vinegar element, very unpleasant.  As it first hits your tongue, the stuff seems okay with a malty flavor, but there there is a rush of prune juice.  It ends with a really strong bitterness which settles into a long bitter finish.  It tastes like Scotch mixed with prune juice and a dash of balsamic vinegar.

Yeah, this stuff pretty much deserves its reputation.  It's wretched but also sort of fascinatingly bad (like an old B movie), which is the only thing that saves it from "F" territory.

N: Strong spirit, hint of raisins, salty kind of soy-sauce smell, stale, vaguely leathery, a low-grade hint of sherry. A little brown sugar as well. 

P: Spirit and not much else. Murky, flabby, kind of sherried, kind of sweet, don't really have the notes as much as it just sits there. Light mouthfeel, semi-warm.

F: Flat, wet cardboard, raisins, earthy. Kind of sweet too, lacking vitality. Mildly astringent, kind of woody bitterness but not strong - just perceptible.

It's not good, but it's Plan 9 bad, not Manos bad. There are far worse whiskies out there (looking at you, Usuikyou), but this is not worth the time, aside from a mandatory stop on the bad whiskey curiosity trail. It looks awful, smells funky and is just muddy and indistinct.