My earlier brushes with Glenlossie were quite positive – both from That Boutique-y Whisky Co and then later in Berlin with a fabulous Sharing Angel. I was completely pre-disposed to enjoy, hoping to discover something interesting. It was fitting my tasting companion for the evening was the same Angel I shared the earlier Glenlossie in Berlin.
We opened this wee dram in February 2020… and what did we find??
Glenlossie 8 year (Oct 2010 / Apr 2009) Cask 8645 56.8% (Hannah Whisky Merchants – Lady of the Glen)
- Colour – A hint of rose in the gold
- Nose – Forest honey, sour fruit, a bit heavy, toast, incredibly sweet
- Palate – Warm, the honey carries through… it was also a bit woodsy, a kid of course texture, mace, garden lovage
- Finish – Nothing remarkable
We joked that it was a bit like a Winnie the Pooh honeypot – super sweet and not what we expected from Glenlossie. We speculated what could bring about this result? Clearly an ex-bourbon cask but there was something else going on…. certainly not sherry, a wine cask finish perhaps? We then tracked down the Mast of Malt notes – the Port cask finish was clearly the answer we sought!
Months later I decided to polish off the last few drops… what did I find? Surprisingly it was chock full of red berries and red cherries, candy sweet… on the palate it was a bit peculiar but better than I remembered. Interesting? Somewhat… but not one I would run out to try and repeat.
What more do we know? The folks at Master of Malt have this to say:
A wonderful amber-coloured indie bottling of Glenlossie. The single malt was distilled on 8 October 2000, and matured in a single bourbon hogshead. It was then treated to a finish in a first-fill ruby Port cask for around six months, sourced from a family-owned bodega near Porto in Portugal. The liquid was then bottled on 10 April 2019 by Hannah Whisky Merchants for the Lady of the Glen range, with the cask yielding 287 bottles at cask strength.
- Nose: Toasted oats, berry compote and honey, floral malt and baking spice.
- Palate: Caramelised nuts, vanilla fudge, lots of dried fruit, fresh red berries, liquorice and butterscotch.
- Finish: Toasted walnut and buttered brown bread with blackberry jam.
So the dates don’t jibe – the bottle says 2010 whereas you might have spotted the above says distilled in 2000.. suspect this was a typo.
And what would it set you back? Hannah Merchant have it listed for GBP 100. Before this sample, I hadn’t tried anything from Hannah Whisky Merchants with their “Lady of the Glen” line.
Here are a few others I tried from my advent calendar minis:
- Cambus 24 year (May 1993/Sep 2027) 52.7% (North Star – Series 003)
- Glenturret 14 year 54% (Bartels Whisky – Highland Laird)
- Dailuaine 10 year 46% (Douglas Laing – Provenance)
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