Glenallachie 9 year old 2008 SMWS 107.13

I'm going to pause the Glenallachie OB reviews to try a pair of 2008 flame throwers from the indies. Both were aged in Oloroso butts, and were probably sibling casks at some point. The first one is a 9 year old single cask torch bottled by SMWS for the 2018 Spirit of Speyside Festival. Being that the distillery's filling strength is 63.5%abv, I'm guessing that a hot & humid warehouse corner resulted in the 9yo's 65%abv. Or the spirit went into the cask at a higher strength than usual. No matter what, I have water on hand.

Distillery: Glenallachie

Ownership: The GlenAllachie Distillers Company Ltd

Region: Speyside (Aberlour)

Bottler: Scotch Malt Whisky Society

Age: 9 years old (26 Aug 2008 - 2018)

Maturation: refill Oloroso butt

Cask #: 107.13, "Andalusian gazpacho"

Outturn: 624 bottles

Bottled for: Spirit of Speyside Festival 2018

Alcohol by Volume: 65.0%

(from a bottle split)

NEAT

The lively nose leads with a lot of chocolate up front, and cherry juice and dried currants right behind. It picks up hints of leather and pipe tobacco after 15 minutes. At ~30 minutes, new notes of amaretto and Twizzlers appear. The palate is indeed warm, but approachable and sweet, with crème de cassis, cherry macarons, Twizzlers, and cinnamon. Its finish matches the palate to a T, though it does numb the tongue a little.

DILUTED to ~50%abv, or 1¾ tsp of water per 30mL whisky

The nose stays vivid, while changing its colors: blueberries, dried currants, vanilla fudge, dark chocolate, shoe polish, and a hint of toasted oak spice. The palate stays sweet, but with new notes. It's slightly rummy and gingery, with cinnamon rolls, raspberries, and oak spices registering loudly. It finishes with dried blueberries, fresh ginger, and toffee.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

This may be the first ≥65%abv baby whisky that I've thoroughly enjoyed. The nose's vibrancy never lets slip any raw ethyl notes, while packing in piles of character. Sure it's a dessert whisky, but the palate appealed to this non-sweet-tooth. I'm not sure what SMWS could have done with this cask other than to shift it to nearly neutral hoggies, or just bottle it like they did. Any more time in this "refill" sherry butt would have driven the whisky over the edge. Now, onto an even hotter cask...

Availability - Sold out
Pricing - less than €100
Rating - 85

GlenAllachie 10 year old Cask Strength, batch 7

Of all the Walker-era Glenallachies that I've tried, the Cask Strength batches are the ones I've struggled with the most. For instance, I found batch 1 and batch 5 to be C or C+ whiskies at best. In both instances, the new/virgin American oak wrecked any coherence or balance that the malts might have otherwise possessed. But, due to an interest in being somewhat thorough, mixed with a barely hidden whisky masochism, I've decided to give another batch a try. Behold, Batch 7.

Distillery: Glenallachie

Ownership: The GlenAllachie Distillers Company Ltd

Region: Speyside (Aberlour)

Age: minimum 10 years old

Maturation: Pedro Ximenez, Oloroso, virgin oak, and Rioja casks

Outturn: 66,000 bottles

Bottled: February 2022

Alcohol by Volume: 56.8%

Chillfiltered: No

Colorant added: No

(from a bottle split)

NEAT

Chocolate-covered dried currants and almond butter arrive first in the nose, followed by anise and black raisins. With time, it gets slightly beefy, and the anise moves to the front. Lots of PX in the palate, as well as a decent balance of bitter and sweet. It's chocolatey with plenty of almonds. Tart cranberries, raw walnuts, and a mossy hint appear after 30 minutes or so. It finishes slightly earthy and quite tangy, never sweet, with some raw cranberries and raw almonds lingering in the back.

DILUTED to ~46%abv, or 1½ tsp of water per 30mL whisky

The nose shifts pleasantly to cherry coke, orange oil, kiwi candy, and almond extract. Tart berries and semi-sweet chocolate gradually shifts towards tart citrus and milk chocolate in the sweeter palate. It finishes tart, tangy, and sweet.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

Well, well. I have found a GlenAllachie I like. This CS batch hasn't had the time to become a deep, complex single malt, but it's very approachable and pleasurable. Macallan and Dalmore fans would probably like it too. The nose improves with water, but the palate may be best when neat. And if you have a bottle of the stuff, you'll have time to find your preferred drinking strength. Meanwhile, I'm sitting here a bit stunned that there's an official 'Allachie that I wouldn't mind drinking again.

Availability - (multiple batches) Whisky specialist retailers in the US and Europe
Pricing - (multiple batches) US: $95-$120; Europe: $50-$90
Rating - (this batch) 85

Revisiting GlenAllachie 12 year old (2020)

Five years ago, I tried a batch of 12 year old Glenallachie and found it to be a better whisky than the 18yo, but it wasn't more than a B- malt. I'm going to try the 12 again, since I know this sample's actual bottling year. This official expression is less of a cask hodgepodge than the 8yo, as wine casks have yet to be invited to this party. I hope that has resulted in a better constructed whisky.

Distillery: Glenallachie

Ownership: The GlenAllachie Distillers Company Ltd

Region: Speyside (Aberlour)

Age: minimum 12 years old

Maturation: PX, oloroso, and virgin oak casks

Bottling code: L 02 12 20
Bottling year: 2020

Alcohol by Volume: 46%

Chillfiltration? No

Colorant? No

(from a bottle split)

NOTES

The nose begins with Granny Smith apples dipped in almond butter. In fact, there are a lot of apples in here. Quieter notes of florals, lime, and split lumber spread around the edges. Vanilla and moss show up at the 30-minute mark, then the vanilla pushes directly to the front.

The palate arrives silkily (a word?) with fudge, toasted coconut, whipped cream, and pears. Cinnamon and vanilla fill out the mid- and background. Most of these characteristics never come together.

It finishes drier than the palate with some dry oloroso to go with milk chocolate, blueberry jam, and vanilla.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

Again, this whisky is less than the sum of its parts because the parts remain separate. American oak feels like the guilty party here as it leads the way throughout, never attempting to be a team player. But like the similarly-priced 8yo, the 12 has a pleasant nose and a comfortable ignorable palate that would suit casual drinking. This one gets the slight edge with its thick mouthfeel and occasional bright fruits. Alas, this gets the highest grade of any official GlenAllachie so far.

Availability - Whisky specialist retailers in the US and Europe
Pricing - US: $65-$85; Europe: $35-$70
Rating - 82

GlenAllachie 8 year old (2022)

Glenallachie is but a baby distillery, born in 1967, younger than some of you handsome readers. Despite its limited existence, it has already been closed and reopened, while seeing a quartet of owners. It was founded by Mackinlay, McPherson, and Co., a branch of Newcastle Breweries. Newcastle then sent the brand over to Invergordon Distillers in 1985, where it stayed all of four years. Pernod Ricard bought it in 1989 and kept it until 2017 when, for the facility's semicentennial, Glenallachie was purchased by a group including former Glendronach Magician, Billy Walker.

For its first 50 years (or 48, because it was closed for two), Glenallachie's malt was used primarily for its owners' blends, but since 2017 the market has seen shipping containers full of its official single malts. Because the company has also bottled many dark-colored single sherry casks, the single malt has gained quite a fanbase, a group of which I am not a member. Walker's persistence in using new oak in most(?) of Glenallachie's standard releases has resulted in products that aren't suited to my palate. But since I like to pretend that I have an open mind, I will try six Glenallachies (including one retry) over the next two weeks.

First appearing on the market in 2022, the Glenallachie 8-year-old was distilled by Pernod Ricard, but then blended by the new company. And by "blended", I mean it includes PX, Oloroso, new oak casks, and wine barriques. Sort of a Long Island Iced Tea approach to a single malt.

Distillery: Glenallachie

Ownership: The GlenAllachie Distillers Company Ltd

Region: Speyside (Aberlour)

Age: minimum 8 years old

Maturation: PX, oloroso, virgin oak casks, and wine barriques
Bottling year: 2022

Alcohol by Volume: 46%

Chillfiltration? No

Colorant? No

(from a bottle split)

NOTES

A whiff of comfy extracts, like almond, vanilla, and maple hit the nose first, followed by grape jam, toffee, dried cranberries, and almond butter.

The palate comes in sweet with a bit of wine separation. It settles into cherry syrup, black raisins, and root beer candies, with a slight peppery tannic bite in the background.

It finishes with the black raisins and cherry syrup up front, and peppery, tangy notes in the back.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

Though the whisky is a bit discombobulated, it's not a total mess. It has an enjoyable nose, and the palate works as a casual, background thing. Nothing sets it apart from other official sherried whiskies, since so many of them have also not been afforded the time to let their ingredients merge into a coordinated experience. This is just a whole lotta words that mean: this whisky is okay.

Availability - Whisky specialist retailers in the US and Europe
Pricing - US: $60-$80; Europe: $35-$60
Rating - 81

Glen Garioch 29 year old 1968, cask 617

Your eyes are not deceiving you. This is a 1968 official single cask Glen Garioch. I've never had any 1960s Glen Gariochs, though I have heard they possess considerable quality. At the time of this whisky's creation, the distillery was run by DCL. In true DCL fashion, the owners promptly mothballed the facility. In the late 1990s, the new owner, Suntory, approved the release of some of Garioch's old sherried hogsheads. Today's pour comes from one of those casks.

Distillery: Glen Garioch
Ownership at time of distillation: Distillers Company Limited
Ownership at time of bottling: Suntory Holdings Limited
Region: Eastern Highlands
Age: 29 years old (27 April 1968 - 1997)
Maturation: sherry hogshead
Cask:  617
Alcohol by Volume: 55.4%
(From a bottle split. Thank you, PT!)

NOTES

This has one of the earthiest noses I've ever experienced. Layers of plum, cocoa powder, dunnage, and dried mango form around the earth. Fresh cigars, dried cherries, dried currants, and a sherry drier than oloroso join all the other notes by the 45-minute mark.

Oh goodness, the palate. Smoked wormwood, soil, dunnage, and black coffee with a cinnamon roll arrives first. Then baking chocolate and menthol. And then plums, blueberries, and charred chiles. The smoke, bitterness, and sweetness keep each other from overwhelming the palate.

The long finish is earthy and bitter up front with sweet citrus and berries appearing next, followed by lime and cayenne.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

This is powerful, relentless, lovely whisky. I sat with it — or it sat with me — for over an hour, and it never mellowed, never faded. My notes only scratch the surface of this whisky's complexity, as I was so taken by its style. There are no contemporary single malts to which I can compare this, because the spirit and vessels were different then. It was the perfect pour for this season's first snowy night.

Availability - Maybe secondary?
Pricing - ???
Rating - 93

Glen Garioch 29 year old 1988 Thompson Brothers

Phil and Simon Thompson continue to live the dream up in Dornoch: running a distiller, picking quality single casks from around Scotland, and chillin' in one of the best whisky bars in the world. (I should probably just do a Thompson week in 2025. Hell, I also need to go to Dornoch whenever I return to Scotland.) I have here a sample from a Glen Garioch refill hoggie that may have been split into two releases, with two pretty labels, in 2018. Distilled before the distillery was closed (1995) and reopened (1997), back when a touch of peated malt was used, this whisky had almost three full decades in oak. The fact that the Bros pulled the cask nine days before its 30th birthday, when they could have probably doubled the price, is also much appreciated.

Distillery: Glen Garioch

Owner: Beam Suntory

Region: Eastern Highlands

Independent Bottler: Thompson Brothers

Age: 29 years (5 Dec 1988 - 26 Nov 2018)

Maturation: refill hogshead

Outturn: 161 bottles (across two releases)?

Alcohol by Volume: 46.2%

(from a bottle split)

NOTES

It starts off with a nice toasty note on the nose, toasted grains, toasted nuts, and toasted oak. The fruits follow: grapefruit, kiwi juice, and peach candy. Around the 45-minute mark, dried apricots, gentle florals, and a hint of rye bread arise.

The palate is very dry, so tannic that it's almost smoky. And I don't mind it because sweetness (toffee and mint candy), bitter citrus, a hint of kiln balance it out. Dried apricots also appear after a while, as do some savory herbs.

It finishes sweeter, with gentle peppery tannins. Oranges, mint leaves, coconut cream, and metal provide character.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

Yes, it's tannic and I don't hate it. Complexity (you know, the sort that comes from actual time) saves the day. Its ABV right on target as well and doesn't have me wondering why the angels were so damned thirsty. And its price wasn't that horrifying. Good on ya if you scored a bottle!

Availability - Sold out
Pricing - £235
Rating - 87

Glen Garioch 10 year old 2012 Cadenhead, Fino Sherry

Glen Garioch made its last appearance on Diving for Pearls as a septet of 2003 SMWS bottlings, 18 months ago. There were at least three gems in that series, which is a much better batting average than most of my clusters have offered. No, I don't have any other 2003 SMWS casks from this Eastern Highlands distillery. But a trio of Gariochs from three different decades are calling my name right now.

Though whisky retailers have hundreds (if not thousands) of single casks of Scottish single malt distilled in 2012 or later, I've tried less than a dozen of them, largely because most of those I've consumed have been mediocre. But I like Cadenhead, fino, and Glen Garioch, so I took part in a bottle split of today's cask. Now it's time to find out if those parts came together.

(pic source)

Distillery: Glen Garioch
Owner: Beam Suntory
Region: Eastern Highlands

Independent Bottler: Cadenhead
Age: 10 years (2012 - Autumn 2022)
Maturation: Fino sherry cask (maybe a hoggie)
Outturn: 318 bottles

Alcohol by Volume: 57.9%
(from a bottle split)

NEAT

Wow, the nose begins with notes of actual dry fino, like raw walnuts, raw pecans, and saline. It gets fruitier with time, offering plums, apricots, lemon blossoms, watermelon Jolly Ranchers, and cinnamon. The palate arrives MUCH sweeter than expected. I'm getting marshmallows, lemon hard candies, cinnamon red hots, and green grapes, with raw new make resting beneath. The finish is even more sugary, with lemon and cinnamon candies, and slightly tangy grapes.

DILUTED to ~46%abv, or 1½ tsp of water per 30mL whisky

New make and candy on the nose. Cinnamon red hots, rock candy, and yeast. The palate remains sweet, with more bitterness and peppercorns. Hints of roses and metal in the background. It finishes very sugary and floral.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

I can only write "sugary" so many times. This is one of the sweetest scotches I have ever tried, and I'm at loss as to why Cadenhead chose to release it as is. Perhaps it was briefly finished in the fino cask and the original hogshead was a 4th fill. My palate preferences reflect my soul, bitter and occasionally spicy. This whisky's flavor does not fit my palate, but the (neat) nose is lovely, which rescues this whisky from descending into the C+ zone. This confection may suit other drinkers' faces, but I think it wasn't done baking.

Availability - Probably sold out
Pricing - €75
Rating - 81