27/02/2024 Glenlivet

Glenlivet 15yo b.1997 (57%, Gordon & MacPhail): nose: a dusty one, ripe with encaustic, dusty cardboard, and caramel left out on the countertop and gathering dust. That caramel, instead of hardening, is turning softer, gooey and fudgy, close to modelling wax, in fact. Dusty, sugary wax, then. Later on, we have cold coffee (two sugars, no milk), and windthrow -- to be more accurate: lichen-covered fruit-tree, fallen during the latest storm, and left to rot on the forest floor. Verdigris appears shortly after that, supported by toasted grist and dark-grain pellets. At a push, the stubborn taster may find faded tyres covered in moss. For some reason, it is the rubber of those tyres that grows in intensity, not the moss. The second nose has a wicker basket sprayed with wood oil (not teak) and filled with Honeycrisp apples. Soon enough, that becomes a caramelised apple cake. Staggeringly, the apples grow more present, even though they are ultimately matched by the oiled basket. We have a fleeting whiff of black truffle that announces the late arrival of prunes. What a ride! A superb nose that, at times, feels Cognac-y. Middle-of-the-road Cognac; not a VT65, yeah? Mouth: acidic and bitter, it retains some sweetness too. Like a ripe orange, it offers all three: the chewy peel is bitter; the flesh is acidic; and the juice is sweet(ish). Though not thick, the palate is fairly chewy, and chewing reveals just how powerful this is: it starts off surreptitiously, yet soon shows how much those 57% roar. Dusty caramel makes a grand entrance, and reminds me of Mokatine that would be displayed in a wooden dish. The second sip seems more mellow, perhaps earthier too. Mokatine in full effect, and potting soil, to accompany a shot of espresso and a (red) lollipop. Because, despite the new-found earthy notes, it still has a sweet side to it. Finish: dusty Mokatine it is! No question about it. We also have drops of blush-orange juice, oily tobacco, old, Cognac-seasoned pipes, and walnut dashboards. It is a long and wide finish, assertive, not aggressive, and quite juicy, all things considered. It may not have much fruit (dried figs, maybe), but the dusty Mokatine transforms into a chocolate-and-orange spread that feels well satisfying. The second sip is very clearly sweeter, offering toffee, Scottish tablet, and caramel-coated mint crumbles. The earthy side here is limited to a sweet variety, merely flirting with liquorice allsorts. This is very pleasant. 8/10 (Thanks for the sample, Volanne)