All reviews below are from nice scotch samples I’ve accumulated over last 8 months or so.
Glenlivet 21 (Archive), 43%
A batched Glenlivet with youngest in the mix being 21 years old. The combination of casks types and age of the components is hush-hush, and likely changes slightly batch to batch to have some consistency. Nose is just… amazing. Malt and sherry, caramel, apples and vanilla oak, a fruit compote. Smooth as silk on the nose. The mouth is velvety, with sherry quite prominent, dark fruits, oak/wood, slightly tannic or leathery and perfectly balanced. Aftertaste is gorgeous and fades real slow from the palate high notes lasting for quite a while. Certainly a whiskey meant for sipping, this is an excellent representation what a masterful blending can do with good supply of distillery stocks. This is glorious, great, fantastic, etc. The only real downside here is the price and just a few abv lower than ideal. I’ve been a fan of Glenlivet for quite a while and continue to be one. While not everything that comes off their stills is amazing, their 21 year old expression is a good reminder of an excellence they can produce.
Score: A-
Deanston 20, Oloroso, 55.5%
I’ve covered Deanston Virgin Oak in my @work series before, noting that it’s a workable daily drinker, if somewhat boring (here: https://www.aerin.or … y:entry191203-083204). I have a 20 year old Oloroso wood monster at much higher proof than the humble Virgin Oak. A small and amusing side-note: this happens to be one of my first samples that I’ve got via meeting folks in SFWBSS in early summer of 2020. Nose is all funky sweet sherry with a solidly spicy backbone. Over time, nose becomes extremely perfume-forward in a good way. Since this is Oloroso, it leans slightly towards varnish and leather spices, but this time in a pleasant way that doesn’t overwhelm. The palate is full of creamy textures sweetness and nutiness. Caramel pine nuts perhaps, that border on being almost too sweet. Vanilla wood notes galore this has a good chunk of wood influence that integrate well with the rest of the palate. Aftertaste lasts a while, quite spicy once initial sweetness balances itself out with spicy ginger tingle in the very back. With time in a glass, this becomes spicier with pepper and opens up into a somewhat different and complex experience. This is certainly up there in the dessert whiskey land initially, but becomes more complex over time and repeated sips, making it a fantastic experience that isn’t a one trick pony. That being said, I feel like it does become too peppery over time to be truly an experience, but if you enjoy caramel, vanilla, nuts and pepper mix this one is definitely up your alley. I really enjoyed it initially but once it went too spicy it became a bit of a struggle to get through the sips.
Score: A- to B
Glenmorangie Signet, 46%
Top of the line regular Glenmorangie bottling is here. I’m generally a big fan of their products, so I’ve got my hopes pretty high for this nearly $250/bottle. Nose is oily rich oloroso sherry with wood undertones, floral and honey notes in the secondary tones are all over in there. Quite amazing, I stuck my nose into the glass and just breathed for a solid minute without getting tired or overwhelmed by it. Palate, woody, sherried, delicious with honey-roasted walnuts coming in at the back. Strongly reminds me of my early impression of (Old bottling) of Glenmorangie 18 but… more pronounced. Aftertaste is more toasted nuts, bitter cocoa and tobacco, wood and maltiness. Not too sweet, the balance is quite perfect on this one. There’s also a fairly solidly pronounced spice thread through the tasting experience which integrates perfectly with each stage. There’s a bit of a roasted coffee note to this too, so perhaps something like vanilla mocca coffee? This is one of the rare bottlings that I’d be happy to be stuck on a desert island with. Layers and layers of different flavors without any of them overwhelming the other yet allowing for a slightly different, yet always great, experience in every sip.
Score: A
Glentauchers 2008, Exclusive Malts. 57.9%
A 8 year old sherry bomb? I like the sound of that! Nearly 60% abv young bottle? This one may also be rough at full proof. Nose is dark honey and fruits, some burnt sugar and all that highly concentrated. Definite sherry bomb on the palate that overwhelms with primary sherry flavors and some malt but not quite offering too much wood or high age flavors as is expected out of young malt. Intensely sweet with a bit of earthy tannins. The aftertaste is intense honeycomb, more sherry and finally bits of wood. As with many sherry bombs I like it as it fits into my style of drink… But it should be noted that while this is intensely sherried, there’s not much substance to it underneath. Really sweet, dessert-like and a little drying, this is a winter holiday in a glass. Reminds me of a sherry Kavalan, but perhaps not as concentrated on the secondary palate as full proof Kavalan is.
Later update: This is great. Yes it’s fortified cherry but when Kavalan is situational this is great anytime.
Score: A-
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Scoring Breakdown: https://www.aerin.or … age=scores_breakdown