Posts Tagged ‘ 4/5 ’
A Berry Bros single cask from Dailuaine – 1973-2010 37yo. At a guess, a refill butt.
Orange peel, dark fruit and surprisingly youthful malt on the nose.
Palate: toffee, cherries, pastry, light spices, a slight rubberiness (PX?). At 37yo it’s nowhere near as oaky as it might be.
Nicely balanced but I’m ever so slightly disappointed at the lack of drama.
4/5
Three-and-a-bit year old Bona-fide Scotch Whisky from Glenglassaugh is a reasonably new thing.
First Cask and Revival are still available and there are some new Revival expressions on their way.
In the meantime, if you show up at Portsoy they will sell you a bottle straight from a 1st fill bourbon barrel for the pretty keen price of £35.
The nose is buttery sweet with masses of light sweet honey, fudge, over-ripe bananas and vanilla cream. Still some esters from the spirit but they are far from off-putting, instead offering a pleasing citric edge.
On the palate it’s exactly what you would expect – and it’s stunning. Banana, pineapple, vanilla fudge, shortbread, soooo much vanilla.
The finish is long but again, a little spirity.
I loved Fledgling and this is much, much, much better. In a couple of years this 2009 bourbon whisky is going to be really special. Already, this is my favourite revived Glenglassaugh. I’ve bought two but it may not be enough.
4/5.
A 17yo blend tonight. Intensely sweet tropical fruit, leather, oak smoke, toffee, five-spice, honey, vanilla, apple crumble. The finish has a surprising saltiness.
Hugely complex, multi-layered and very classy.
4/5
Douglas Laing Old Malt Cask
Glenglassaugh cask 5362
84-09 25yo butt
50% ABV
Nose:
Juicy sherry – surprisingly vibrant with summer fruits, pineapple and a little super-sweet toffee.
Palate
Honey, cinnamon, vanilla, red apples, slightly salty oak.
All good so far and a drop or two of water is fine but I’ve taken it too far with a bit more and it’s revealed a vaguely unpleasant sawdusty side to the dram.
3.5/5
Ok, I’ve already reviewed a pre-production sample of this but bear with me – this is a bottle straight from a whisky shop!
Nice packaging eh? No age statement but it’s a 3yo, obviously.
Last time round I said:
Very fruity, floury sweetness. Pears, acidic pineapple. Some vanilla, maybe a spot of nutmeg?
I can’t argue with that really. The tropical-sweet spirit is strong, the sherry gives balancing spices and a chocolatey warmth that goes all the way down.
A wee splash of water brings it along beautifully.
Still a little spirity (spiritual? Haha) but I actually like that.
Probably still a 4/5. I’ve tasted plenty of <5yo drams before but this stands out because of the care, the thought, the intelligence that's gone into the maturation. Instead of just rushing a 3yo out the door to generate much needed turnover for a new distillery, the chaps (and ladies) at Glenglassaugh have worked hard to make a young dram which is rich, complex and far more mature than it has any right to be.
One to watch, great things are ahead.
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