Origin: Highlands (Scotland)
Type: Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Strength: 40%ABV
Ageing barrels: Ex-Bourbon
Chillfiltered: Yes
Additional coloring: Yes
Owner: Moet Hennessy
Average price: € 43.00
Official website: www.glenmorangie.com
Vote: 83/100
After a few important whiskies, both in terms of cost and age, we return to an easily available and affordable basic malt: Glenmorangie The Original.
Some news about the distillery which whiskies are the best-selling in Scotland, we have already provided in the review of the Quinta Ruban, a 12-year-old aged in ex-Port barrels. Here we can remember, in addition, the great attention paid by the company to the wood of the barrels themselves: obtained from the trees from the Ozark Mountains, Missouri, it’s seasoned with dry air rather than oven, and is entrusted for four years to Jack Daniel’s of Lynchbugh, Tennessee, before welcoming the single malt, twice at most.
Not going beyond the Second Fill is a choice in favor of the quality of the distillate, which thus always has the ability to absorb from the wood of the barrels the most vivid moods.
The Original, which is the basis for all other Glenmorangie’s expressions, has been replacing the 10yo for some years now, but still bears on the label, clearly visible, the indication of the same ageing.
As always in these cases, we cannot say with certainty that there are no differences in taste between the previous version and the current one.
We, in any case, refer to the last one (as in the picture).
Tasting notes
Bottled at the canonical 40% ABV, the whisky comes to the eye with a beautiful light gold.
You don’t need to approach your nose too close to be greeted by a really pleasant citrus fragrance. In the context of a floral profile, citrus fruits and a hint of vanilla that, over time, grow in thickness, are elegantly combined. A hazelnut kiss seals everything.
On the palate, the note of citrus fruits, a handful of dried fruits and, after a few minutes, a hint of spices define and substantiate a soft, sinuous body. We don’t see any particular aromatic complexity, but it’s not necessarily a defect.
The finish, of medium length, leaves in the mouth a sweet taste of vanilla and dried fruit, while in the empty glass breathes a caress of flowers.
A victim of the widespread prejudice that the mass product is always deterring, Glenmorangie The Original turns out to be a widely enjoyable and, in its own way, even refined malt.
Surely ideal to get close to the whiskies of this unjustly underrated distillery.
Reviews of Glenmorangie whisky
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The Scotch Noob