Glenmorangie 18 Year Single Malt Scotch Whisky

Once again a reason to celebrate recently arose for me, and, as I so often do, I settled on a higher end bottle of Scotch that I normally wouldn't purchase absent good cause. In this instance, I went with the Glenmorangie 18 Year. I've loved past Glenmorangie bottlings, and I figured I couldn't really go wrong here.

In fact, I went very right! And I knew it was going to be good as soon as I opened the bottle.  I was hit with a great nose that reminded me of pipe tobacco and cloves. This was one of those bottles where I had to force myself to stop enjoying the smell so that I could pour my first glass.

At 86 proof, there is little to no alcohol burn to this Highland Scotch. The flavor reminded me of one of my favorite sandwiches growing up -- peanut butter and honey. It was complemented by a distinct orange flavor that blended very well with the others, giving this whisky both an earthy and fruity profile, and yet neither was too much in the extreme.

This whisky is very smooth and soft, coating the mouth and lingering long after each swallow. It had a prominent butterscotch flavor on the back end that allowed me to enjoy each sip long after I swallowed.

As I sipped more and more, and as I let the bottle rest a bit (though not for long and I couldn't help but go right back to it), additional wonderful flavors of brown sugar and pear came through, with the orange notes ever increasing in strength.

This is a phenomenal whiskey, one which truly made me sad as I watched that last drop hang on for dear life before finally relenting and falling into my glass to met its fate. Truly a bittersweet ending to a great bottle of whiskey. Glenmorangie is doing a lot of things right these days, and their 18 year old is no exception!

Grade: A

Glenmorangie Tusail Private Edition Single Malt Scotch Whisky

Once again my wonderful wife surprised me with a nice bottle of Scotch when I got home today--a bit of a minor celebration.  Her motivation in selecting whiskeys for me is ever-changing, but this particular one came on recommendation from someone working at the liquor store as a new item that they just got in and which they were limiting to one per customer.  Little did she know I had read the backstory on this particular Scotch earlier that morning, and was certainly intrigued.

Each year Glenmorangie releases a Private Edition bottling, usually something particularly special or different.  In this case, it was more of the latter.  The Tusail was distilled using a different barley from the norm.  In reading up on it, I learned that it used what is called Maris Otter barley, a unique winter barley that used to be used quite frequently in fermentation and brewing, particularly among British brewers.  Apparently, though, it is a slower fermentation process as compared to other barley, and it fell out of favor, replaced in large part by barley that provided greater yield. 

Glenmorangie decided to give this unique strain of barley a try for its sixth Private Edition release, and Tusail is the result. It is 46% ABV, and does not carry an age statement (as seems to be the case with so many new releases).  

On the nose it was one of the best scents I've ever enjoyed, reminding me of dried apricot and brown sugar -- sweet but not overly sweet.  I seriously want to bottle this scent as a cologne.  I could tell it was going to be something very tasty.

On the palate it is equally as sweet, again reminding me of dried apricot, but with a walnut flavored undertone.  It was actually less fruity than I expected.  It actually had a certain flavor that makes this Scotch unique, kind of in the same way that wheat gives bourbons a certain quality that distinguishes wheaters from other bourbons.

This Scotch was "meatier" than most, if that makes sense.  It was a bit oily, full bodied, and very flavorful, but not strong in any way. On the back end it had a light smokiness that carried through to a sweet aftertaste.

Interestingly, after a few pours, it felt like the fruit flavors increased, coming across more as a sherry-finished Scotch.  This actually made me like it even more.

All in all, this was a winner of an experiment for Glenmorangie, and I was sad to see that last pour go (but very happy to enjoy it).

Grade: B+