| |
Home
Thousands of tastings,
all the music,
all the rambligs
and all the fun
(hopefully!)
Whiskyfun.com
Guaranteed ad-free
copyright 2002-2024
|
 |
|
| Hi, this is one of our (almost) daily tastings. Santé! |
| |
|
| |
| |
March 11, 2024 |
|
  |
Bunch of five Glenlivet
First, an apéritif…
"THE" PURE. Perhaps one of the most minimalist magazine adverts ever done by a Scotch brand. France, circa 1980.
|
 |
|
Glenlivet 18 yo 'Batch Reserve' (40%, OB, +/-2023) 
What does 'batch reserve' mean? And why a 18 at only 40%? Last time we tried the 18, that was in 2014 (WF 83). So ten years after, with thoughts to Alvin Lee… Colour: gold. Nose: as expected, leafy and cakey. Then bay leaves, apple peel, ginger, cinnamon, roasted nuts, bitter oranges, rather strong ale and a wee glass of ginger tonic. My older notes seem to suggest that earlier batches of this 18 were less oak-driven and rather fruitier and rounder. Mouth: very malty, pretty sherried, very leafy, a tad bitter(ish), as if there was some European oak involved. I'll say it again, minimal strengths do not cope too well with heavier oak extractions, in my humbler experience, even 43% works much better. Some roasted chestnuts, some green tea, zests, more bay leaf, a little maraschino, allspice, ginger and cinnamon, then more nutmeg… Finish: medium, rather nicer, with more honey and maple syrup, even if the aftertaste is pretty oak-spicy and drying again. Cocoa powder. Comments: I find it curiously dry, but it's a fine drop, naturally. They should add some Longmorn, neither seen nor known.
SGP:351 - 82 points. |
|
Glenlivet 14 yo 1996/2011 (55.4%, Signatory Vintage, Sherry Butt, cask #105516, 526 bottles) 
From the old stocks. SigV have always had some awesome sherried Glenlivets. Seriously, together with G&M, they've done the largest part of the job towards us enthusiasts. Colour: dark amber. Nose: twenty Mars bars macerated in fresh malt whisky (per glass), plus Corinth raisins and drops of Maggi, some lovage, umami, hoisin… With water: more toffee. Mouth (neat): terrific chocolaty sherry, plus tonnes of raisins, hectolitres of maple sirup and one dried fig. With water: caramel, toffee and chocolate all over the place. Finish: same for a long time. An earthier and spicier touch in the aftertaste. Comments: call this a sherry monster if you want.
SGP:661 - 88 points. |
|
Glenlivet 17 yo 2006/2023 (60.8%, Signatory Vintage for LMDW, New Vibrations, first fill oloroso sherry butt, cask # 900811, 593 bottles) 
Colour: dark gold. Nose: much more chocolate and, yes, Mars bars than you would expect given its colour. We're extremely close to its older brother, but it is true that it's a tried and tested recipe that they're quite right to perpetuate decade after decade. Christmas cake, dried figs, a deluge of currants, a few rose petals, pipe tobacco, toffee, red fruit ganaches, dates, aged Armagnac... It's a well-oiled machine. With water: roasted nuts, mild tobacco, it's absolutely perfect. A bit of parsley. Mouth (neat): ultra-classic, absolutely excellent, with a wee bit of old Glenfarclas (excuse me), orange marmalade, toffee, butterscotch, abundant chocolate but never cloying... What I mean to say is that some sherry monsters can be a bit overwhelming, which is not at all the case here. With water: the citrus rises to the surface, it's always a welcome phenomenon. Finish: indeed the finale is a bit fruitier, almost lighter. Although one cannot really speak of lightness. Comments: just a perfect harmony with the sherry, perfect mastery. Personally, I would cellar it for a few more years to nudge it towards 91 or 92 points.
SGP:661 - 90 points. |
|
Secret Speyside Distillery 30 yo 1991/2022 (51.8%, Sansibar, bourbon hogshead, 291 bottles)
Everything is kept under wraps here, but there's a splendid, colourful illustration of the Glenlivet Distillery on the front label. I don't think that's a coincidence. Colour: straw. Nose: you can smell the old wood, but in a charming way, with a hint of aged chardonnay that's just ever so slightly tired, a bit of coconut, vanilla, humus, moss, a very faintly acetic aspect... With water: there's even toasted bread, then mirabelle jam and chamomile softened with dandelion honey. That's very good (I've just tried it, you see). Mouth (neat): very beautiful, quite rustic nonetheless for Glenlivet, with that renewed sense of coconut, vanilla and old chardonnay. All of this is really charming, I insist. With water: the same. Honeys, herbal teas, yellow fruits, and always a bit of old wood. White pepper too. Finish: medium length, smooth, now more on mead's side. Oh, and dandelion honey. Comments: it's very, very beautiful, wonderfully well-worn, while it was a tough act to follow after the sherry monsters. And then there's that charming side…
SGP:551 – 88 points. |
|
Secret Speyside Distillery 1987/2021 (47.2%, Berry Bros. & Rudd, for Charles Hoffer Switzerland, hogshead, cask #9983, 227 bottles)
We're absolutely not saying that this is some 33/34 years old Glenlivet. Right. Colour: light gold. Nose: it's very honeyed, indeed we're all in on very ripe apple and honey (acacia as well as wildflower), pollen, soft wax, an old pack of Camels a tiny bit of polish, then the apples come back. A small slice of tarte tatin and a bit of quince jelly. Mouth: that old-cask side that we'd already found in the Sansibar, those herbal teas, those overripe fruits (apples, plums), flower syrup (mullein, woodruff), white wine... And lemon that's getting everyone's approval in all circumstances. Finish: quite long, more citric, lemony, surprisingly tight for its age. Always a bit of old wood in the aftertaste, but that's absolutely not a problem. Comments: we're really close to the 1991. It's not often you find such tension in an old Glen***** (oh that's clever, S.)
SGP:551 - 88 points. |
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
