All these Corona lockdowns have changed the whisky scene. The bad news is that festivals have been cancelled, the good news is that bottlers and distilleries are reinventing theirselves when it comes to communicating with consumers. Some time ago Asta Morris presented its latest batch of whisky and rum releases in Zoom tastings.
One of the featured bottlings was this Glenallachie 2008. Bert assumes this is a full-term Pedro Ximénez sherry butt maturation, but he’s not quite sure.
Glenallachie 11 yo 2008 (56%, Asta Morris 2020, sherry butt, AM147, 724 btl.)
Nose: very thick and dessert-y, with overripe, slightly fermented fruits and a clear lactic / butyric side. Think vanilla yoghurt and custard. Plenty of raisins. Shortbread and fudge. Dark honey. Leafy hints and some rubber as well, unfortunately.
Mouth: there’s caramel, coffee with milk, these fermenting fruits again. After that some bitter oranges, hints of chicory and burnt cookies. Hints of sweeteners. The rubber is back as well. A bit of a bizarre style, or at least not my style.
Finish: medium length, still caramel notes and some leafy bitterness.
I’m generally a big supporter of Bert’s work – we seem to have a similar taste for whisky. However in this case it doesn’t work for me, the sherry doesn’t find a good balance and delivers a few weird aromas. The general reception was much better though, so remember it’s just one person’s opinion. Around € 90.