Time for the tasting of a second single malt.
I've chosen a big bad 21 year old bottled at 48% alcohol.
The Glendronach 21 Year Old Parliament Single Malt.
As the bottling notes below record, "parliament" has nothing to do with politics and refers to a parliament of rooks.
Bottling Notes:
Matured in a combination of Oloroso and Pedro Ximenez sherry casks for a minimum of 21 years. Bottled at 48%, the 'Parliament' is named after the colony, or ‘parliament’, of rooks that have been nesting in the trees that overlook the GlenDronach distillery for almost 200 years. Non chill filtered and of natural colour.
Tasting Notes from Master of Malt:
Nose: Soft smoke and lemon juice, cedar wood, apple peel, toasty oak, soft earth, date and walnut cake and a hint of freshly made espresso.
Palate: Golden syrup, soft, juicy raisins, tangy oak notes, peach, cherry blossom, cocoa and honeydew melon.
Finish: Sherry tones lead the finish, with a hint of sulphur, chocolate, luscious fruit and pepper.
My bottle:
Tasting Notes from The Whiskey Wash:
Appearance: African mahogany. I could gaze upon this “splendor in the glass” for hours.
Nose: Dark rum-soaked stone fruits like plums, peaches, and apricots. In time, the sherry presence dominates. Even though this whisky has been aged in both oloroso and Pedro Ximenez casks, I get more of a sweet profile that’s native to the PX. The wood lends itself to a bit of white pepper, and cashews, along with Brazil nuts.
There’s a dollop of flan, graham cracker pie crust…honey-glazed ham, as well. An odd-sounding combination of impressions, I know, but the flavors are in there. Wow, this nose is complex. I’m also detecting cloves, with a gun-powdery tang. This said, the sulfur is not offensive; it’s lower in the mix than with some other Glendronachs I’ve tasted in the past, including Parliaments.
Palate: Mexican chocolate; hot pepper; watercress; oloroso sherry gains the upper hand; a fatty red meat note hangs back, as of beef brisket; wet ash; furniture polish; ginger snaps; black strap rum; menthol (at an acceptable level); vanilla bean; dry oaky tanins that turn bitter, along with anise. As Yoda says, “Complex, this one is!”
Finish: Quite long with peppery oak, Abuelita chocolate powder, and a drying sherry note that ends with a drawn-out ashy death, which is not at all morbid or depressing. No, this kind of “ash” is a good thing. It mingles with tannins to help round out the almost sickly-sweet palate.
Call it the cycle of life – from a cherubic candy-coated nose, to a middle-aged palate, to a delightfully denture-puckering finish. One thing is certain: time in the glass does help to brighten the corners of this whisky. Don’t pour any if you are in a hurry! As time marches on, Glendronach 21-Year-Old Parliament will gain more of a following, just as the single cask Glendronachs did late last year.
Tasting notes from Shirley:
OK Shirley did the right thing and left it in the glass for 10 minutes before even thinking about drinking it.
Brilliant first flavours punched me in the mouth straight away. I agree with Master of Malt when they refer to date and walnut cake. Very nice oak throughout and a sherry finish. A hint of vanilla. I detected no smoke at all. Wonderful. Almost up to the Balvenie Caribbean cask, which is a bit ahead because I loved its sweeter and amazing smoothness. I'll give the GlenDronach 85.
Time for my second glass. But I have to wait 10 minutes again!
Rankings:
1. The Balvenie Caribbean Cask. 14 years. 90/100.
2. The GlenDronach Parliament. 21 years. 85/100.
and I thought this was going to be about his Sigma lens. (making Barnaby's look like a baby).
Posted by: Thygocanberra | Sunday, 18 February 2018 at 05:33 PM