Category: Glentauchers

Style: Sweet and Spicy

Nose:
Begins with a powerful whiff of spirit spice, which is quite surprising as it is a mere 52.6%. When I get used to the hotness we have sweet grapefruit candies, vanilla custard and apple pies. In comes another wave of fresh orchard fruits, within hides an unusually (but in a good way) fragrant, herbal overtone. Pineapple notes towards the back, which is buried by massive amount of black pepper.

Palate:
A hot fruity, but peppery bite on the palate. Orchard apples ensnared by the herbal, spirit-y core. The tight grip loosens a bit after a while then we have apricots, more tropical fruits deeply coated with molten chocolate. Sweetness gradually accentuates and reveals a deeper layer of stone fruits. Still hot and spicy all the way towards the end.

Finish:
Green apples milkshake, stone fruits reflux, finish with a dry herbal tone.

Thoughts:
I bought this bottle after reading a glowing review on it, and I was so confident that this is going to be hit after my success on another bottle of Glentauchers with a similar spec. Alas, I was quite wrong. To be honest, I am quite disappointed with how this has worked out. It is not THAT bad, but I feel it is way too hot especially for its abv, the spirit/ herbal spices have heavily restrained this expression. That said, it is still a Glentauchers which offers plenty of chewy sweetness. If you don’t mind hot drams, this might work for you. For me, this barely gets a tick.

✓ [Recommended if you like the style/ distillery]

[52.6% / Independent Bottling / Cask Strength / 1990 Distilled / 2017 Bottled / Vatting of 3 Bourbon Barrels / t-]

-Esmond

Style: Fruity and Creamy

Nose:
Slightly sharp and shy at the beginning, peppermint mist clears up to reveal crystallized pineapple and quickly followed by a good chunk of fairy floss. Stewed tropical fruits, another dose of peppermint injected into milk custard, cinnamon bark and vanilla pods dressed on the side.

Palate:
Grand tropical fruits showing on the palate, delicious. Syrupy pineapple and passion fruit bringing in a hint of citrus orange drop. Quickly flipping to the next page, we have a rich, creamy layer of Nutella, frothy vanilla milk and marshmallows dipping into chocolate fondue. Beautiful oily texture. Peppermint and chilli spices cutting through the nutty branches. Cinnamon sticks and honey cornflakes coming in late, flavours slowly dry up towards the end.

Finish:
Fading fluffy cream and raisin chocolate. A small bite of malt syrup drizzled red dates.

Thoughts:
After trying a few of Glentauchers and now this, personally I feel it is quite an underrated distillery in my book. I like how the creamy and nutty dimension slips under and firmly knitted into the massive wave of tropical fruits. All the elements synchronize and resonate pleasantly to make an immensely approachable fruity and creamy profile, while offering a nice form of complexity in the same time. Impressive dram. This distillery is a workhorse malt for the Ballantine’s blend, but I would love to see more Glentauchers at this calibre in action.

☆ [Recommended]

[53.5% • Independent Bottling • Cask Strength • Non Chill Filtered • Non Coloured • Limited Release • 1 of 152 Bottles • *]

-Esmond