Glenlossie-Glenlivet 24yo 1993/2018 (53.6%, Cadenhead Single Cask, 1 x Bourbon Hogshead, 240b): I won the draw to buy this when it was released, but I let someone else have it, who liked it more than I did. Let us find out if I did well. Nose: deep and powerful, it smells of dark furniture wax, apricot stones and flesh, until peach jelly shows up and smothers everything else, for a moment. Then, it recedes, as the sea from the shore, and lets herbaceous notes through (vine leaves, ivy leaves, laurel leaves). Soon after that, droplets of black coffee, sprinkled onto crystallised cherries, soaked cork and, much later on, sticky toffee pudding with a hazelnut coulis. Last, but not least, a belated cloak of wood veils the above, with wormwood, decaying bark chips and rotting logs. Hours later, faded mocassins appear timidly, soles covered in earth. With water, the nose turns more herbal, with dandelion stems, pot-pourri and linen clothes. Mouth: ooft! This is hot. Red chilli peppers, fierce ginger, stone-dry, splintered pine wood. Once the mouth is accustomed to the heat, warm marmalade comes in, followed by raspberry jam, rum-toft and orange zest. The mouth becomes fruity, while also clearly bitter. Also, if the heat cools off somewhat, the alcohol bite is still not to be underestimated! Water makes it perfect, in terms of balance and greener in taste, with dandelion stems and forsythia. Finish: yes, fruity and bitter, still. Similar orange-y notes as in the nose (zest and marmalade), this time augmented with milk chocolate. It remains spicy, with ginger, lemongrass and cardamom pods, as well as ground white pepper, sandal wood and cigar boxes. Decent, but the balance is messed up, in my opinion. It gets better with (a lot of) breathing. With water, the balance is restored, and the spices seem better integrated. Seville-orange marmalade with a bitterness close to rubber. I prefer it with water, I think. 7/10 (Thanks for the sample, SW)
Glenlossie-Glenlivet 42yo 1975/2017 (44.5, Cadenhead Single Cask 175 Anniversary, 1 x Bourbon Hogshead, 138b, 17/517): this, I did not get in the draw, much to my disappointment. Ah! well, at least, I managed to blag a sample. Funnily enough, WFun reviewed it yesterday. This tasting was planned for weeks, so it is a coincidence. Nose: how different these two whiskies are! This one is borderline smoky, with marmalade, sure, but simmering away in a cast-iron cauldron on the open flame. It has a depth that the young one can but dream to emulate one day. Pineapple drops, dried grapefruit peel and a drop of lime juice, all bathing in a voluptuous custard. Roasted apples, glycerine, pomelo and lemonade. The thin smoke has almost completely disappeared to let that glorious fruitiness shine in all its splendour. There is a hint of varnish too, before a lit cigar brings the nose back onto remotely-smoky territory. Much later on, it takes on a sweeter profile, yet it remains citrus-y. I call limoncello. Mouth: very fresh and citrus-y, it has pomelo, lime, a slice of carambola and... smoked cucumber (eh?) A salty, very salty tone shows up -- anchovies, perhaps? On paper, that salt should not work with the fruit, but... IT DOES! Pineapple yoghurt, anchovies, melted into a paste, peach slices, cigar leaves, curry leaves. The anchovies take a discreet back seat, in the long run, and turn into capers, letting the sweeter citrus do most of the talking. Finish: gently bitter, it has lots of fruit (pomelo, lime, tinned pineapple), that smoked cucumber again (I know!) and salt, if less than in the mouth. Really, it is a fruit salad, topped with anchovy paste, tapenade, or shrimp paste, come to think of it. A gently metallic note appears, followed by mint and dried banana leaves, crushed and sprinkled onto custard. Spicy, velvety and fruity, this is truly amazing. Winning! 9/10 (Thanks for the sample, SW)
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