
September 16, 2016

Little duets, today Glen Spey by Cadenhead

Can you believe that? Who will launch two separate Glen Speys within just a few months? I haven’t even tasted 40 different Glen Spey within 14 long years (as Douglas Laing would say), for crying out loud! Okay, one of these new ones was kept in a ‘claret cask’ (ha those English - apologies) but still…

Glen Spey-Glenlivet 14 yo (46%, Cadenhead, Small Batch, 2016)

Colour: very pale white wine. Nose: but yes! Barley and apples, muesli, jelly babies, rhubarb pie, lager, hop… Totally malt whisky au naturel that won’t make you scratch your head. Love the fact that they didn’t try to ‘enhance’ it using any dirty methods. Mouth: totally malt whisky in its most simple, and purest form. Cornflakes, more muesli, Weetabix, dried apples (those slices), various cakes, cookies, biscuits, pies, tartes (that’ll be it, S.) Finish: medium, and extremely barleyish. Comments: refreshing elementary malt whisky. This baby reminds us that malt whisky is meant to be malted barley eau-de-vie polished by time. SGP:441 - 84 points.

Glen Spey-Glenlivet 21 yo 1995/2016 (54.2%, Cadenhead, Wine Cask, claret)

This baby was kept in regular casks (barrels or hogsheads) until 2008 and re-racked into a claret (aka Bordeaux) cask until disgorging. Colour: gold. What claret cask? Nose: forget about the claret, this baby hasn’t got any winey notes, as the colour already suggested. All for the better if you ask me. Malty vanilla and nuts and overripe western fruits, plus a Mars bar and a bowl of Weetabix again. What’s really lovely is that some fresher whiffs of crushed herbs arise, with some ramson and some basil. With water: perhaps a little oak. Gets a little ‘sawdusty’. Mouth (neat): but where’s the claret? We won’t complain, this is very nice, malty, slightly peppery, and pretty orangey. With water: perhaps a touch of pineapple? But the oak comes out again. Finish: medium, good. White pepper in the aftertaste. Comments: hadn’t they put it into the ‘wine cask’ collection, I wouldn’t have noticed the Bordeaux side. Probably a château cask that was imported even before WWI ;-). Very good, I just liked the younger bro’s brightness and straightforwardness even better. SGP:451 - 82 points.

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