Origin: Speyside (Scotland)
Type: Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Gradation: 46%ABV
Ageing casks: Ex-Sherry Oloroso, ex-PX and American Virgin Oak
Chillfiltered: No
Added coloring: No
Owner: The GlenAllachie Distillers Co Limited
Average price: € 49.00
Official website: theglenallachie.com
Vote: 80/100
Let’s introduce another distillery to the blog, one that I personally had my eye on for a while and was really curious to try.
GlenAllachie (“valley of the rocks”) is a young distillery with a rather troubled history: founded in 1967 in Aberlour by MacKinley McPherson, just 18 years later it was acquired by Invergordon, which closed its doors.
In 1989 it resumed production (uninterrupted to this day) in the hands of Campbell Distillers (later Pernod Ricard), which used the whisky to produce the well-known Clan Campbell blend, and under the aegis of Chivas Brothers a 15-year-old single malt was released in 2005, dating back to the reopening in 1989.
The current ownership of Billy Walker (GlenAllachie’s Master Distiller), Trisha Savage and Graham Stevenson took over the distillery in 2017, kick-starting the relaunch of the brand: 2018 saw the release of the new core range with 10, 12, 18 and 25 year old ageings, as well as a blend, MacNair’s Lum Reek, the result of a marriage of Islay and Speyside whiskies combined with more aged in-house malts.
In August 2019 another ageing was added to the core portfolio, the 15 year old.
Tasting notes
A pleasant caramel nature flows in the glass.
The aroma on the nose is distinctly sherried, sultanas infused in alcohol with cinnamon, ripe apple, caramel, candied orange, fruit gumdrops, marshmallow. It’s like walking into a candy shop. Malt undertones and some herbaceous flashes, with a very slight acidity.
At the mouth, a slightly unsettling bitter note arrives that remains throughout the drink. Unripe banana, cooked apple, sultanas, cinnamon and a hint of aniseed. Cereals. A touch of woodiness and lemon on the length. A more sourish sweetness than on the nose.
The finish is medium-long, still leaving an underlying sourness along with cinnamon and baked apple.
I’m not sure how to interpret this whisky, the flavours seem messy and inconstant but with a certain personality, almost as if it were a work in progress rather than a definite dram.
At this point I’d be curious to try more important ageings to better understand their path.
Reviews of GlenAllachie whisky
Other perspectives:
Whisky Gospel