glen grant – grey whisky

Whisky 2021 – 14-18

14 – Glen Grant 1995 24yr by The Whiskyfind “The Drunken Cat” Bourbon Hogshead #119469

Nose is super floral, rose hip syrup, milk chocolate and vanilla pods. It’s quite densely packed on the nose. Pink bubblegum.

Palate is pink flowers, pink jelly, grassy, citrus fruit, grapes and nutty.

Finish continues with the pink flowers, it has a lovely toasty note, melted butter and some vanilla.

4/5 Stars

15 – Tormore 1992 27yrs by The Whiskyfind for The Mash Tun, Bourbon Hogshead #101154

Nose is really waxy and fake banana flavouring, burnt banana bread with a lick of old butter.

Palate is reminiscent of 1970s whisky with an initial hit of tobacco. Elegant and pretty with bright fruit, green figs and fig leaf.

Finish has slight saltiness and more green figs, and hint of milk chocolate.

4/5 Stars

16 – Glenrothes 1987 32yr by The Whiskyfind for The Mash Tun, Hogshead #9980

Nose is mainly ginger ale but has good apricot notes with salty caramel, salted lemons and black tea.

Palate is hot and spicy. The flavour of cloves, cola and sarsaparilla. Feels like it is too old.

Finish is grassy and salty with cream and woody tannins.

3/5 Stars

17 – Arran 2012 7yr for The Mash Tun’s 16th anniversary, 1st fill sherry #12/2768

Nose is smoked paprika, dates, medicinal honey, honey ham chips. Flambéd Xmas pudding. Cola.

Palate is initially dark fruits followed by some refreshing flinty/minerality. Honey dipped orange pith.

Finish is steely, sweet and stony. There is some good orange zest notes in there.

4/5 stars

18 – Clynelish 1999 21yr for The Whisky Exchange & The Mash Tun sherry butt #305054

Nose is honey, cream and wax. With some slight rubberiness. Maraschino cherries and rich dark dried fruit.

Palate is big and powerful. More dark fruit! Honey and loads of citrus and stone fruit. Some really balanced and integrated cask influence. It’s good.

Finish is musky and sweet almost like fresh cut strawberries. The sherry shines with bruised apples, salty and woody notes.

4.5/5 Stars

Whisky 2020 – 19-24

19 – Glen Elgin 1995 by The Whisky Agency 23 years 48.2%

Nose is beautifully waxy and full of tropical fruits, river stones, marshmallow and green apricots. It is beautifully elegant.

Palate is initially sweet and pure and cheeky like raspberry lollies. Green grass, green mangos, cream which leads to riper mango flavours.

Finish is creamy and loooooong. Slight hints of salt, minerals and fruit.

****^

20 – Highland Park 2003, 14 years bottled for Duty Zero cask 6138

Nose is richly peated and sherried; like a beautiful smoked ham dipped in toffee. Walking through an orchard in autumn.

Loads of minerality on the palate, honey, toffee pecans and green sticks.

The finish is a lovely mix of charcoal and marshmallow

****

21 – Balblair 1990 by Kingsbury 23 years refill sherry cask 10116 52.9%

Nose honey, mandarin, leather, cloves, peanut shells. Very restrained.

Palate is powerful and eye opening. Honey and reserved citrus – like a citrus gel. Toffee and burnt caramel and apricots.

Finish waxy and gentle citrus.

****^

22 – Springbank 1991 by the whisky agency 27 years 46.4%

Nose is beautifully waxy and shows loads of fruit including apples, bananas and apricots. There is caramel and slight spice – some Springbank funk and old whisky smell.

The palate is rich and deep. Old apples, fruity, old and funky, waxy and pristine. Honey and super nutty. Wow there is some interplay between the elements.

But wow this finish is just nuts. It lasts for ever with mango and wax. Old whisky, candles and apples, dusty draws. It is elegant and pristine – the warmth of a smile from a girl in a summer dress.

*****

23 – SMWS 80.10 “Champagne and Roses” Glen Spey 11 years 55.8%

Nose is honey and floral, slightly nutty and toasted, pine resin

Palate is quite dry and hot … super biscuity, loads of shortbread. I understand why “roses” is in the title as it is slightly floral and rose hips.

Finish is green sticks, salt and slight cream

**^

24 – SMWS 9.167 “Part of the furniture” Glen Grant 23 years

I’m digging the nose apricots, hand cream and sticky date pud, maple walnuts

Palate is straightforward coffee, green grass, cream, green mango

Finish of chalk and tropical fruit

***

Whisky 2018 – 120-125, Archives Tasting

120 – Archives “Saddleback Clownfish” Glen Grant 1990/2015 25yo, Bourbon Hogshead #15230, 56.6%
Nose – plastic, grain, wax, bananas, clove, pineapple, milk chocolate
Palate – wax, cream, salted butter, passion fruit vine, chocolate milk, citrus pith, orange zest
Finish – cream, tobacco, salt

121 – Archives “Swallowtail Seaperch” Aultmore 2007/2015 8yo, Sherry Butt #900016, 67.4%
Nose – chocolate, carob, salted butter, dried apricots, orange zest
Palate – cream, old chocolate, shaving cream, dry Xmas spices, woody, dried rose petals, hand cream
Finish – formic acid, cream, salt, old pennies

122 – Archives “Three-Spot Cardinalfish” Blended Malt from 3 Speyside Distilleries 2001 13yo, Sherry Butt #117, 44.7%
Nose – raspberries, sulfur, old apples, orange zest, glacé lemon, wax, brown sugar, chlorine
Palate – pencil shavings, cream, dried pineapple, old coffee, old leather
Finish – white pepper, salt, cream

123 – Archives “Cheeklined Wrasse” Heaven Hill 2009/2017 8yo, Barrel #152716, 63.5%
Nose – Reef Oil, toasted coconut, banana, lemon curd, freshly cut kiwi fruit
Palate – formic acid, pencil shavings, cherry jam, hot jam donuts
Finish – super melted butter, old lipstick, cream

124 – Archives “Spotfin Butterflyfish” Ledaig 2008//2015 7yo, Sherry Butt #700701, 50.6%
Nose – honey, salt, paprika, ham, corn chips, kelp, dark plums, rosemary
Palate – rocks, pencil shavings, coals, paper ash, Vaseline, cheese and bacon Cheetos
Finish – salt, minerals

125 – Archives “Common Sunfish” Kildalton (Lagavulin) 2007/2014 7yo, Hogshead #9396, 54.4%
Nose – leaves and lollies, prune juice, mangos, lemon, caramel lollies, ham, milk powder
Palate – rocks, soap, salt, butter, olive brine, glue
Finish – salty kelpy rocks.

Whisky 2017 – 111-113 – The Gresham, Brisbane

So in Brisbane for work. Always trying to find whisky bars and discover The Gresham an SMWS bar. Had a great time and the staff were quite knowledge. Not really a quiet bar but still a good selection with some 2015 SMWS bottlings that are long gone.

111 – SMWS 9.83 Tiger balm, limoncello and scented candles (Glen Grant)
Raw peanuts, spring onions, lemon zest, tinned pineapple, nail polish remover, vanilla and apricot crumble. Zingy totally understand the limoncello and tiger balm, over fried garlic, green onions (in a good way – first time I’ve thought that), with time cocoa, old butter and dusty.

112 – Glendronach 1992 24 years olorosso butt cask 226 %58.4%
Match heads, old apples, caramel, pepper, rhubarb compote, dust, roasted shallots, balsamic reduction. Wow so deep and heavy, soy sauce caramel, dusty, old apples, mushroom funk, gravox, cocoa, melted butter, red apple skin, caramel.

113 – Glendronach 1989 26 years olorosso butt cask 2662 54.5%
Apricot jam, caramel, Granny Smith apples, pound cake, really good tomatoes, pound cake. Tobacco, chocolate, weeds, plastics, dust, savory, old apples, slightly funky, old leather, shaving cream, flint, burnt onions, tarte tatin.

Whisky 2015 – 33-36

33 – Benrinnes 23

Rubber, chocolate, woody, heavy on the Sherry, musk and perfumed. Salty, woody, rubber, thyme and praline. Rock candy finish.

34 – BenRiach PX 1996

Banana, fake banana, milk duds, marshmallows, cola, something floral and I think orange zest. Salt, pepper, butter, melted butter, flapjacks, maple syrup, vanilla cream.

35 – Glenglassaugh Revival

Wood and dry herbs, salt, stale butter (not in a bad way). Tobacco and a tequila like smoke, pepper and cream.

36 – Glen Grant Five Decades

Stewed apricots, stewed apple, dried apple and cinnamon buns. Butter, cream, salt … Slight cherries and plump raisins.