May 12, 2014

Grouped fire reloaded, three Glen Keith

Glen Keith 1995/2013 (56%, The Pearls of Scotland, cask #171224, 276 bottles) Colour: white wine. Nose: starts with a fruity grassiness that involves apples, pears, melons as well as whiffs of newly mown lawn and a few fresh walnuts. Gets then relatively mineral, with wet rocks and a little chalk. No big fruitbomb so far. With water: a fruitbomb once water’s been added. Jellies and pies, fruit salad, fresh mint… Mouth (neat): burst with apples and cherries, eaux-de-vies, plum spirit, as well as a rather bitter grassiness this time. Liquorice wood. A little raw when unreduced. So, with water: still rather ‘nervous’, but gentler indeed. Pink grapefruits, apples… Finish: long, clean, zesty, rather more citrusy than the average Glen Keith. Touches of honeydew. Comments: all very good, as expected. Great malt whisky au naturel. SGP:551 - 86 points.

Glen Keith 22 yo 1992/2014 (49.3%, Sansibar, 136 bottles) Colour: straw. Nose: styles are very similar but this one’s has got louder fruits, so to speak. Melons, apples, gooseberries, apricots, plums… all that on grass and just touches of aniseed and maybe fennel. Menthol. Also same hints of wet chalk as in the 1995. Mouth: very fruity, very orchardy, with a layer of vanilla and grated coconut. Ripe gooseberries and apples, some grass again and again, skins and peelings (grapefruits are coming through) and then more and more liquorice. Good body, with a very pleasant tartness. Finish: long, grassier, greener. Green tea, touches of new oak. Comments: another big, ample yet ‘nervous’ Glen Keith. SGP:551 - 87 points.

Glen Keith 21 yo 1992/2013 (51.4%, The Whisky Agency, bourbon barrel, 177 bottles) Colour: straw. Nose: this time it’s a very fruity one that rather starts with some bubblegum and jellybeans, then we have more or less the same fruits as in the others, only both fresh and tinned. Pears, melons, peaches… There’s rather less grass this time, although there are notes of tree bark and broken branches. With water: there are more fruits than in Glen MacFruit! Also dill, liquorice, caraway, verbena… Mouth (neat): more or less the same as the Sansibar now, maybe just a notch fruitier again and less zesty. A little more tropical, perhaps. With water: perfect! Pina colada and margarita, 50/50, plus vanilla of course. Really perfect in its own fruity style. Finish: long, with again hints of grass and oak spices that keep it all straight and balanced. Perfect ‘nervousness’. Comments: terrific fruity malt whisky, clean, fresh, both sippable and quaffable. SGP:651 - 88 points.

Check the index of all Glen Keith I've tasted so far