Over to Speyside for a 9 year old Glenallachie that’s been matured in a 1st fill ex-bourbon barrel. View on SMWS
Nose: Garden-fresh with under ripe berries and overripe apple sitting with pear juice and lychee. After a period of resting, tinned fruit salad aromas emerge – strawberries (it’s all in the name), cranberries and apricots alongside Chantilly cream and toasted crackers. The addition of water brings out the ex-bourbon cask which a spicier display of ginger, anise and pepper alongside vanilla and mentholated oak.
Taste: Soft, silky and clean. Whipped cream is served with pear, melon and lychee whilst vanilla custard sits with soft-peaked meringues. In the background, pepperiness alongside oven-baked buns and rolled pastry. Reduction is ill-advised, it reduces the definition across the board making for a vague fruitiness along with cardboard and wallpaper. Stick to it at 57.1%.
Finish: Medium, pastry-forward with tingly white pepper.
A fresh and easy-going Glenallachie that initially shows plenty of vibrancy (especially in the nose), but that doesn’t respond positively to any amount of dilution. Fair but not fine.