SMWS Cask 96.22 9yo (59.1%): Actually this cask has an interesting story to start with... At a recent SMWSA blind tasting in Los Angeles hosted by Southern California Whiskey Club and Jenna Ellie a.k.a Whisky A Go Girl where we had the chance to taste the current outturn including some non-Scotch releases half of the tasting panel thought that this particular bottle was a bourbon which I was a part of while the other half was very convinced that it was an armagnac. At the end when it was revealed that it was actually a 9yo Glendronach I put my order right away... It is distilled on October 30th 2008, matured in an ex-bourbon hogshead for seven years and then transferred to a 1st fill ex Pedro Ximenez hogshead for an additional two years. The cask yielded 278 bottles.
Color: Orange blossom honey, medium amber with sharp, clean and slow legs all around the glass.
Nose: Wet cardboards, old rubber diving masks and roasted pine nuts. Honey sesame seed brittles, birch beer, oozing burnt caramel and burnt plastic. Wormwood, allspice and Amaro Ramazzotti... Adding water makes the nose drier: Chalk, powdered latex gloves and dry hay.
Palate: Dr. Pepper, ginseng roots and licorice... Dry tobacco, over-brewed black tea and old newspapers. Bone-dry, dusty and earthy. Water brings up even more black tea. Black soil, dry mushrooms and dried strawberries. Cooked Zante currants, sour cherry juice and cumin and tarragon leaves.
Finish: Medium long with cumin, dry old wood and Coca-Cola.
Overall: It is a very intriguing cask indeed... My mind kept suggesting different kind of spirits and liquors other than Scotch throughout the whole tasting process... The nose and the palate carry all kind of far eastern references like black tea leaves, fresh and dry spices and dried fruits. It is herbal and bitter like an Italian Amaro... Nevertheless it is a very entertaining and enjoyable bottling for sure.
Price: $105
Comments