Origin: Highlands (Scotland)
Type: Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Strength: 43%abv
Ageing casks: N/A
Chillfiltered: N/A
Added colouring: N/A
Owner: John E. Macpherson & Sons.
Average price: € 1,000.00
Official website: N/A
A victim of the 1983 whisky loch together with its sister Glen Mhor, it was demolished and now in place of both of them, there is a shopping center. It also works well as a metaphor for the transformation of whisky in terms of distribution and consumption.
Today I have the chance to taste a rather sought-after bottling of Glen Albyn, a 10-year-old official bottling from the 1960s. The information about it is sparse and vague, and the only seemingly certain data is the strength, 43%. The wording “Pure Highland Malt” ushers in a true journey back in time, for both humankind and whisky.
Let’s go.
Tasting Notes
The color is gold.
The nose opens with notes of fruit (apricot and peach, including in syrup) and wildflower honey. But the most striking impression is of wax: not Clynelish wax, to be clear, but a waxy patina that, in my vivid imagination, corresponds to a sort of old bottling effect. The spicy dimension with pepper and nutmeg further enlivens a profile I expected to be more restrained and that instead outshines many of its modern peers. The pleasantness of the aromatic ensemble is ensured by an intensity that does not fade as the minutes pass. Something more than a mere hint of dried fruit (walnuts and almonds) completes a picture of high hedonistic profile.
On the palate, the correspondence with the nose is absolute, from the notes of fruit to wildflower honey, from the waxy layer to a dusting of spices. There is a hint of an old woodshed in the background, while the oily texture spreads the overall sweetness across the whole mouth, leading to a long finish, fruity and waxy, with walnuts and almonds and an unexpected note of apricot cream.
Review: It is inevitable that the distant past of whisky exerts a certain fascination on the drinker regardless of the results, but I can safely admit that this Glen Albyn thrilled me. Not because its aromatic palette displays any particular complexity, but because, sixty years later, its character seems to have remained intact. And the journey through time thus took on a rare and moving vividness.
Vote: 89/100