pudding

Glenlivet Nàdurra 16 Year Old

Reviewed by: Ted

Glenlivet Nadurra 2

We are quite fond of The Glenlivet. The 12yo is a dependable drop that hits straight down the middle, perfect for when you just want to sit back and have a dram (although the introduction of the Founders Reserve may change all that). So what happens if you knock things up a notch?

If you think that your glass of Glenlivet needs a bit more punch, then look no further than the Nàdurra. Gaelic for ‘natural’, the Nàdurra is a cask strength release from the Speyside distiller. Glenlivet claims that it is a traditional 19th century style dram, evoking the character of the whiskies originally created by founder George Smith.

Using first-fill American oak casks, the Nàdurra is aged for 16 years and then bottled between 54-55%. My particular example stands at 54.7% and was bottled 06/13 from batch 0613X. As you would expect from a bourbon-aged whisky, the colour is fairly light, although the strength keeps it at a weak amber rather than straw-like.

The nose is fat and rounded, with melted brown sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, cloves, cocoa, peach, malt biscuits and apricot jam. It’s fairly direct on the nostrils too thanks to the strength, but the sweet, gooey nature means that it oozes seductively, like the smell of pudding wafting from the kitchen on a cold night.

On the mouth the Nàdurra is hot and slightly dry, with a nice spiciness. When you take a sip it zooms straight to the roof of the mouth before plonking down onto the back of the tongue. A bitter caramel finish lingers around the mouth, although I suspect it would be rather shorter at a lower strength.

The Glenlivet Nàdurra is no everyday dram to knock back after work. Instead it’s perfect for snuggling down on the couch at the end of the evening, or, and I speak from personal experience, keeping warm while gazing up at the stars on a perfectly clear night. If you’re looking for a friendly companion cask-strength dram, then the Nàdurra is a natural choice.

★★★

Advertisement

Glendronach 12 Year Old

Reviewed by: Nick

Glendronach 12 Year Old

Now, be honest with me. Raise your right hand if you have bought, with your own money, in the last six months, a bottle of sherry? Anyone? I thought as much.

The once proud sherry industry is declining slowly, but surely. While on the surface this may not seem to really affect we drinkers of distilled barley, there is, in fact, much cause for concern. Because without sherry, specifically, without the barrels that once contained the stuff, many of the most wonderful whiskies in the world would not exist.

Case in point: the Glendronach 12 Year Old. And it is a great little drop. Vibrant, spicy, balanced and heavily sherried. The latter is not a subjective tasting note. The whisky does indeed possess a highly sherried character because it has been matured in a mixture of Pedro Ximinez and Oloroso sherry barrels.

The flavour this imparts is obvious on the nose in the form of sweet creamy raisin aromas. There is a golden syrup-like quality, too, alongside dried figs and orange peel.

On the palate the flavours are, surprisingly, not as sweet as the nose suggests. However it has a smooth mouth feel and the creaminess is still present. There is a nuttiness about it as well, and more dried fruit with perhaps a touch of glace cherries. Little wonder sherry-matured whiskies are regularly likened to fruitcake.

The finish is short, disappointingly, as up to this point I was immensely enjoying the ride. Wait – there it is, ever so subtly lingering at the back of the throat with the remnants of the grape flavours. I had to go searching for this one, but I found once discovered it glows faintly, like the last few embers of a campfire.

The sweetness of this whisky is nice, although it would probably discourage me from having too many drams of this in the one night. Instead, this is the perfect choice to directly follow a bourbon-aged malt at a tasting, to really show just how radically different sherry matured whisky is.

We may as well enjoy it for the time being. Because as time rolls on there will be fewer and fewer sherry barrels around to put whisky in.

★★★

Royal Lochnagar Distillers Edition

Reviewed by: Nick

Royal Lochnagar Distillers Edition

Every now and then what you really look for in a whisky is one that you can drink. I realise that this may sound a ludicrous statement for something which is, undoubtedly, a liquid, but bear with me and I shall explain.

I’m always on the lookout for interesting and unusual new drops to challenge me and set me off waffling about the subtle complexities that can be discovered from dram to dram. However, if every dram I consumed affected me in such a way then, apart from having no friends, I would risk straying too far from the very essence of whisky; that is: it is made to be drunk (with the possible exception of the Macallan Cire Perdue).

With this in mind I believe there is no better candidate for the position of ‘drinkable whisky’ than the Royal Lochangar Distillers Edition. A rather underrated distillery, Lochnagar got it’s ‘Royal’ tag by impressing Queen Victoria on a visit, although the scale of this achievement is questionable as it was reportedly very easy to please Queen Victoria with whisky. Nevertheless the title stuck and it is now the smallest of Diageo’s 28 distilleries.

The Distillers Edition is aged for a period in ex-Muscat casks, adding a layer of silk and sweetness without making it overly-sugary or syrupy. The extra maturation seems to round off some of the sharper edges, making the whisky smoother and easier to drink, though this does not take away from the overall flavour; there are still many appealing elements to discover.

This is immediately apparent on the nose, which is heavy with alluring caramel. Citrus notes follow as well as a dash of rose essence. It has a smooth and creamy mouth feel, retaining the caramel elements and adding flavours of almonds coated in layers of honey and chocolate. There are also the faintest hints of berries to be discovered, lingering in the background. The finish is light and short but the butterscotch theme continues until the end. The overall effect is that of the sauce to sticky date pudding. And those who know me understand what a large compliment I am paying it.

The Royal Lochnagar Distillers Edition is certainly not the most complex or intriguing whisky going around. Nor is it in any way dull. It is a very easy drinking whisky, and this is in no way bad thing. In fact, I believe that it is this dram’s biggest strength.

★★★