It's Glenallachie Day on WF


November 13, 2024

It's Glenallachie Day on WF

It may be the most spectacular relaunch of the last decade. When you think of the poor official 12-year-olds from the 1980s-1990s (WF 50) or even the NAS 'Distillery Edition' from the very end of the Pernod-Ricard era (around 2017, WF 80 – okay, that was already much better), you can appreciate how far they've come.

(GlenAllachie Distillery)

Admittedly, we're not always huge fans of the systematic use of finishing/re-racking in very active casks, but we've already tasted some excellent new releases. There are some new ones, but let's first pick one at random for the fun of it…

Glenallachie 17 yo (50%, OB, Masters of Wood, Mizunara & Oloroso finish, 4,380 bottles, 2024)

Here comes the latest release, I believe. I must admit that the label 'Masters of Wood' rather conjures images of lumberjacks, carpenters, or cabinetmakers, but that’s marketing for you, isn’t it? No one really talks about the handling of the stills and their quirks these days. Remember those massive copper contraptions with odd piping found in ‘distilleries’? Colour: amber. Nose: reminiscent of a pristine cigar box (humidor). The now ubiquitous mizunara seems to bring touches of fresh rubber (new boots) and pinecones to the nutty, walnut liqueur profile of the oloroso. With water: notes of liquorice and a freshly tailored Harris tweed jacket. Mouth (neat): gentler, honeyed, with coffee liqueur and fir bud over sultanas. With water: beautifully balanced, showcasing undergrowth, raisins, and resinous nuances (bark, needles, sap, and so forth). A subtle hint of propolis and honey rounds it off. Finish: long, fairly rich but not overpowering at all. Comments: it feels a touch 'recipe-based', but isn’t that often the case with Michelin-starred dishes as well? A definite success, I’d say. Ah, mizunara…
SGP:561 - 88 points.

Glenallachie 10 yo ‘Cask Strength Batch 11’ (59.4%, OB, ex-PX, oloroso and red wine, 2023)

Batch 10, also a 2023 release but with the older label, was very much to my liking (WF 88). In theory, I’m not usually drawn to whiskies seasoned with PX and red wine, but theory is there to be challenged, isn’t it? Colour: amber. Nose: strikingly wine-forward, yet surprisingly appealing. Butterscotch, malmsey, sticky toffee pudding, peanut fudge, and pineau (woof!), accompanied by an assortment of raisins. With water: lightens up, leaning more towards dried fruits, dates, figs, and slices of pear, with a hint of mint that adds a thin mint biscuit quality. Mouth (neat): very vinous indeed. A blend reminiscent of VDN, pineau, ratafia, coffee liqueur, and Malaga PX. In the background, notes of black tea and dark chocolate emerge. With water: the drier side takes over, dominated by chocolate and tea. Finish: very long, with mint, chocolate, tea, and a touch of wood. Comments: a ‘big boy’ whisky, seemingly freshly repainted. It’s quite impressive, I must admit.
SGP:461 - 87 points.

Glenallachie 14 yo 2009/2024 (60.3%, OB, for The Whisky Exchange, sherry cask, cask #900609, 261 bottles)

A single cask, of course. It moves in the glass with the heft of a liqueur! Colour: amber. Nose: rosehip jam comes to mind first, alongside rosewood, a hint of Rhône white wine (marsanne and roussanne) and even muscat. Followed by white chocolate. With water: a veritable bundle of dried figs. Mouth (neat): very smooth and somewhat liqueur-like, leaning heavily into triple sec, Grand Marnier, with a splash of tonic water and a touch of lavender water. Quite the intriguing cocktail (really!). With water: becomes more balanced, bringing in pepper, chocolate, tobacco, malt (Ovaltine), and a dash of stout. Finish: long, dry, featuring tea, cinnamon, and chocolate. Comments: two whiskies in one—boisterous at the start but drier and more refined in the finish. Truly excellent in both aspects.
SGP:561 - 88 points.

Glenallachie 14 yo 2009/2024 (57.1%, OB, Germany exclusive, PX puncheon, cask #804302, 696 bottles)

One gets the feeling this will be similar… Colour: amber. Nose: goodness, it’s remarkably close! Notes of rose, perhaps viognier, white chocolate, pink pepper, and muscat. With water: the same impression holds. Mouth (neat): it’s virtually the same excellent whisky, or nearly so. One would need to taste a litre of each side by side to tease out the nuances—and no, that’s not happening. With water: same again. Finish: same, though a touch more peppery. Comments: the casks didn’t have similar capacities at all, so perhaps it’s just coincidence, but these two whiskies are strikingly similar.
SGP:561 - 88 points.

Glenallachie 18 yo (46%, OB, +/-2024)

The label proudly states it’s ‘overflowing with their signature heather honey charm’, which does sound a bit Highland Park-esque, doesn’t it? We weren’t particularly fond of the ‘previous new 18’ about six years ago, but as DJT would say, some stuff must have been fixed, very much so. Colour: dark amber with reddish hues. Nose: prune juice, plum wine, figs, milk chocolate, PX sherry, molasses, peonies, jasmine, and spearmint. That said, it’s far from heavy or overbearing. Mouth: absolutely nothing like that former 18-year-old. We do quickly arrive at notes of aged wood, deeply steeped black tea, rocket leaves, and dark tobacco. There is a drying quality, but it stays within pleasant bounds. Hints of cold espresso. Finish: sherry that behaves itself, alongside orange marmalade with pepper, cinnamon, and ginger. Comments: not my favourite of the range so far, but there’s no denying it’s very well-crafted. It has a touch of that old M style, just before FO arrived, if that rings a bell. About twenty-five years ago.
SGP:461 - 86 points.

Glenallachie 9 yo 2014/2023 (63.9%, Alambic Classique, first fill oloroso sherry butt, cask #23101, 637 bottles)

This looks like a real powerhouse and shouldn’t stray too far from the OBs, given its lineage. Colour: dark gold. Nose: shortbread, croissant, and butterscotch, with a touch of salty liquorice—what more could one want? I love this nose, which feels more compact and precise than some of the others. With water: chocolate and fudge bursting with raisins. Almost outrageous. Mouth (neat): perfect, like a whisky-infused piece of fudge generously drizzled with dark chocolate. With water: great vibrancy, showing notes of juniper, chocolate, clove, and pepper, plus five litres of Guinness. Or so I’d imagine; I doubt I’ve ever consumed five litres of Guinness in my whole life. Finish: long, just a tad tangier, leaning towards amontillado. Green walnuts and a gram of Dijon mustard. Any mustard would do, really. Comments: absolutely my kind of dram. Very well done, Bad Wörishofen, no wonder the place is, apparently, called ‘die Gesundheitsstadt’ (the healthy city).
SGP:561 - 89 points.

Glenallachie 13 yo 2006/2019 (56.9%, OB, selected by Whisky-E, bourbon barrel, cask #26855, 238 bottles)

Ah, a break from the barrage of sherry casks with a return to a bourbon-matured version. Colour: straw. Nose: a delightful bouquet with a charming array of garden herbs like chervil and tarragon, showcasing the distillate’s layered complexity. Hints of rye, a touch of white beer, subtle rooty notes, fresh bread, sesame seeds, watercress, and sprouted alfalfa. It’s wonderfully inviting! With water: it retreats into fresher distillate notes, presenting pear, apple, and gooseberry – thoroughly enjoyable. Mouth (neat): absolutely spot on, featuring absinthe, clay, asparagus, lemon, and cider apple. With water: a burst of ripe, juicy pears returns to the fore. Finish: medium length, maintaining a profile of fresh fruit and earthy roots, with a touch of marzipan. Comments: truly impressed by this distillate, proving it doesn’t always need hyperactive casks to shine.
SGP:551 - 89 points.

You’ve no doubt noticed how close these scores are, and I know it often leads well-meaning individuals to wonder, “Why use a 100-point scale if only 6 or 7 points are sometimes utilised in a single session?” Well, as I often say, think of a thermometer that ranges from 0 to 100 degrees. If you place it in a specific part of your anatomy, despite its broad range, it will only show between 35 and 42°C, because if you’re below or above that, you’d actually be dead. It’s the same idea. Quite, anyway, take that for what it’s worth—and let’s finish with a bit of something peaty…

Meikle Toir 5 yo ‘The Original’ (50%, OB, +/-2023)

Ah, Scotland these days—everyone's having a go at every style imaginable: peated, lightly peated, heavily peated, not peated at all, PX finishes, shiraz, pineau, ruby port, STR, virgin American oak, virgin European oak, Bordeaux… and let’s not forget the legendary mizunara. It’s like they’ve all rolled out the machine guns. Now, Meikle Toir is Glenallachie’s foray into the peated realm, and we’ve encountered some cracking ones before. Colour: pale straw. Nose: not quite Islay, but it holds its own with hints of pine smoke, farm stables, eucalyptus, and the rugged scent of an old farm tractor—Scottish, naturally. With water: turns into a young Laphroaig impersonator. Mouth (neat): lovely and clean, just a touch sweet, and packed with ashes, curry spice, caraway, juniper, and coriander seeds—almost veering into gin territory. Wouldn’t be surprised if it made a smashing martini, olive and all. With water: remains spot on. Finish: fairly long, featuring bitter almonds, orgeat syrup, and a whiff of clams. Comments: prime material for a cocktail, methinks, not that I’m any sort of expert… All in all, expertly crafted, though it doesn’t quite reach the turbocharged heights of its sibling ‘The Turbo’—Glenallachie’s own Octomore-esque dram.
SGP: 565 - 85 points.

Alright, we’ll stop here, adios.

Check the index of all Glenallachie we've tasted so far