label: Glendronach

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

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

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

Only 17 806 bottles have been marketed, at a solid 54.7% alcohol level!

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 Korrigane that I saw dragging this bottle over the bar. So I decided to have a drink and note it, my other tastings of GlenDronach being still quite fresh in memory.

This GlenDronach began aging in European oak barrels followed by a short time in ex-muscat wine casks. It's 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 during New Year's Eve Eve:

Lightning always spares soft wood ...

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

Nose:
Red berries, marked astringency of some sherry wines. No doubt, there is sherry cask in there. Looks spicy. Cranberry touch almost too ripe. I am looking for 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 caskit's just a pity that we have difficulty in understanding the influence of muscatel.

Note: ★★★★★