Tag: Glendronach

54.7% alc./vol.
GlenDronach Distillery, Forgue, Speyside, Scotland

Back to barrel strength today with a sherry bomb tasted in SAQ Signature a long time ago, the Glendronach Cask Strength, fourth batch, nothing less!

Bottled without cold filtration, this malt of exquisite depth comes from a blend of Oloroso and Pedro Ximénez sherry casks.

Only 17 bottles were sold, at a solid alcohol level of 806%!

As the Quebec doctor and politician said so well, a member of the Conservative Party of Quebec, twice prime minister of Quebec Charles-Eugène Boucher of Boucherville (1822-1915) said so well:

The difficulty is to distinguish the restaurants from which one leaves by biting one's fingers and those of which one leaves while licking them.

Very neutral in its amber color.

Nose:
Grapes, Wild berries and black cherry. A little honey and spices come to cap it all. Really little aggressive.

Taste:
Very rich and refined. Creamy texture and sip of sherry. Spices, grapes, dates and thick caramel. Dry and vinous oak, pepper and chocolate.

Finish:
Long and tasty, with accents of oak, cherry, raisins and spices. A tiny stubby leather can be guessed.

Balance:
It remains a rather classic style, but at this rate of alcohol, Glendronach was able to stand out.

Note: ★ ★ ★ ★★

46% alc./vol.
GlenDronach Distillery, Forgue, Speyside, Scotland

It's the other night at Korrigane that I saw hanging that bottle over the bar. So I decided to take a drink and write it down, my other GlenDronach tastings still being pretty fresh in my memory.

This GlenDronach has started aging in European oak barrels followed by a little time in ex-muscat wine barrels. It is part of their range of Wood Finish, which includes another matured 15 aged in barrels of port, as well as finishes in barrels of virgin oak and saute, the latter two having 14 years.

As Nathan Horton keeps telling me on New Year's Eve:

Lightning always spares soft wood ...

Its shade is a neutral amber orange reminiscent of the GlenDronach 12 years Original.

Nose:
Red fruits, marked astringency of certain sherry wines. No doubt, there's sherry cask in there. Looks spicy. A touch of almost overripe cranberry. I am looking for the muscat wine but without success.

Taste:
Grapes, dates, prunes, dried fruits and smoked almonds. As Jean-Luc Brassard would say:

One can taste the sovereignty of its 15 years of maturation.

Finish:
Nutmeg and Grape Juice Concentrate Welch's.

Balance:
In absolute terms, an excellent sherry cask, it's just a shame that we have difficulty in determining the influence of moscatel.

Note: ★★★★★