The latest Whisky in Leiden festival had two (official) festival bottlings, both selected from the Creative Whisky Co. stocks: an undisclosed Islay 2011 and this Glentauchers 2008. A whole list of these #9001xx casks have been bottled in the past few months.
Glentauchers 8 yo 2008 (53,5%, The Exclusive Malts for Whisky in Leiden 2017, sherry butt #900179, 250 btl.)
Glentauchers 8 yo 2008 (53,5%, The Exclusive Malts for Whisky in Leiden 2017, sherry butt #900179, 250 btl.)Nose: hints of mulled wine up front, raspberries, blood oranges, then tobacco and ginger cake. Caramel. Dark bread. Juniper berries. Also hints of polished brass. Not a classic sherry nose, and slightly winey for my taste.
Mouth: same feeling. Red berries, walnuts and a good dose of toffee and caramel. Quite a lot of oak spices too: ginger, cinnamon, pepper. Tobacco notes again. Cocoa and fig bread.
Finish: medium, on lingering spices and raisins. A grassy touch in the end.
A young and rather pressure-cooked Glentauchers. Big sherry and big spices already. Not entirely my style but certainly worth its money. Around € 55 from Whiskysite.nl.
Score: 82/100