The oldest bottled Society Glen Ord to date and drawn from a 2nd fill ex-bourbon barrel that was laid down in 1992.
Nose: Immediately textural with machine and lamp oils alongside melted church tapers. Lemon curd and yellow jelly babies sit with canvas sacking, gauze bandaging and cotton buds whilst leafy undergrown from ferns and bracken is joined by heathery honey and an assortment of metallurgy – wire wool, atomised steel and iron filings. Reduction presents coastal notes with beach shingles and chalky cliffs alongside toasted buns and honey spread over French crepes.
Taste: Still weighty and oily. Still palpable old and austere. Lemon-tinged polish applied to teak flooring, hardwood panelling and tree resin. Fruit pastilles, clementines and heavily reduced nectarines alongside wild honey and chopped walnuts. In the background there’s still an industrial element – Brasso metal polish and sewing machine lubricant alongside herbalness from a bouquet of potpourri. The addition of water reveal soft honey and damp earthiness together with axle grease and wet wool.
Finish: Long with dry, well-aged oakiness sitting with fading, but still bright fruitiness.
The quality of Glen Ord’s distillate is rarely given much limelight by owners Diageo – but when combined with a sympathetic cask, good things invariable happen. And that’s certainly the case with this Society bottling. An assortment of thought-provoking textural and industrially tinged elements harmonise admirably with the underlying leafiness of the Ord spirit to produce a whisky that has been substantially elevated by high quality refill oak. Joint pick of the month.