Lady of the Glen Aultmore 23 year old
Yes, that's right I don't have any photographs of Aultmore distillery. It may come as a surprise to you that there are still distilleries out there that I've yet to visit. Thankfully its a fact and very much a work in progress.
In the meantime you'll have to settle for this shot of excellent (and enjoyed) Lady of the Glen release on the banks of the River Spey, with the distinctive Telford bridge at Craigellachie in the background. If you look closely you may also notice members of #thetormore4 somewhere. It's a worthy replacement and much better than providing a sample bottle photograph.
Alas much like the Spey I've rapidly run off course. The bottle on display is the Secret Speyside Distillery which represents my favourite release from this local independent bottler. Since then I've embarked on a unplanned voyage covering subsequent releases all of which you find under the search here. Gregor who is responsible for the range and selecting each bottling kindly provided a sample of his latest effort i.e. this Aultmore.
Following in the footsteps of other bottlings, this 23 year old Aultmore has sold out, but you may find a bottle online if you hunt around. Distilled on 14th May 1992, it was a terrible year for number one singles in the chart. Looking online we had Erasure, Right Said Fred, the Shamen, Whitney Houston and Jimmy Nail. Just 130 bottles were produced from the ex-bourbon barrel and bottled at 51.1% strength. Lets hope the whisky is better than the music of the period!
Colour: oak shavings
Nose: creamy is my initial thought with some vanilla and freshly baked plain scone. A little beeswax adds body and a light caramel provides sweetness. Crisp apples, hazelnuts, pralines and a delicate glance of cinnamon all whisk by. Water delivers more refreshing lightness and a herbal note that continues into the finish.
Taste: a typical Speysider on the palate with just a handful of core characteristics but graceful nevertheless. A big dollop of creamy vanilla followed by toffee, white bread, cream crackers and crushed almonds.
Overall: perfectly pleasant dramming this bottling and one everyone can enjoy with very little effort. Restrained in some aspects much like the shy distillery itself. If you've missed out on this then watch out as Lady of the Glen will be releasing a bold 1994 sherry cask from the Speyside distillery very shortly and its a monster.
