| Whisky | Glenlivet 12 Year Old Illicit Still |
|---|---|
| Type | Single Malt |
| Age | 12 years old |
| Abv | 48% |
| Rating | 81/100 |
A tasty, spicy dram but not too many flavours on the nose or the palate.
Apple cider, lots of apples, fizzy sherbet, boiled sweets, malted cereal
chilli pepper, viscous, Apple orchard fruits, slightly bittefruits, hint of tropical fruits
dry wood, heat
Neck pour is very impressive. Melon, honey, vanilla and light nutty notes, semi-sweet, velvety and rich on the palate, with subdued melon, peaches, vanilla and honey, the ABV feels spot on, medium length finish carries warm honey, stone fruit notes and a little heat.
Full bodied, elegant, rich and complex glenlivet.
Great texture and balance.
complex, sweet and woody, pear, melon, ripen bananas, honey, wood, barley, hay, creme brulee, vanilla, orange zest
creme brulee, custard, toffee, barley, oily, bananas, cream, oak, nuts, vanilla, very smooth and full bodied texture.
barley, woody, sweet, warming, dark chocolate
Now I love scotch. Glenlivet. 13 was a great choice
Carnal. Vanilla
Smooth
Sweet refined
48%, non-chillfiltered and a solid age statement for (initially) well under 40 € - did this bottling accidentally drop out of a time machine?
The Glenlivet pears are front and center, along with ripe honeydew melon and peach as well as some unexpectedly heavy and fragrant oak tones (sandalwood, coconut, cinnamon)... Then also a floral side: rosewater and lemongrass, perhaps? Though I doubt that there were sherry casks involved here, it does also convey a "dark" impression (charcoal, deep oak spices), leading me to suspect a combination of re-charred, first-fill and perhaps virgin oak. At any rate, an impressive, deeply wooded nose that seems older and more settled than the stated age suggests. Maybe they did actually throw some older stuff in the mix here to achieve this result, who knows.
What strikes me first is the texture: it's very oily and thick, with a huge "natural" barley flavor that reminds me of some Irish pot still whiskies. So as far as mouthfeel is concerned, this NCF experiment was a success. Banana puree, oatmeal, pear juice, crêpes sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar... The melon + peach combo from the nose makes an appearance as well. Not overly complex, but extremely on point, with very pronounced and clearly distinguishable flavor components. It's also insanely mild and (yes:) smooth for 48%: this goes down like sweet syrup, you don't feel the alcohol at all.
Lots of caramelized oak and some soft, sweet fruit notes.
Illicit stills are the small, portable destillation devices in Scotland in the early times.
Quite strong and clear, a lot of oak, the alcoholic note covers overripe bright-coloured fruits like pear and gooseberry, a hint of tobacco
Very pure and clear and a bit rough on the palate almost like an Irish whiskey, there is some rich and creamy mouth and tooth feel, a bit of oaky bitterness, you need to leave it in the glass for awhile - then it develops a nice vanilla flavour and richer mouthfeel, it is now quite sweet actually and very nice
warm and long down the throat
This is the first release in a new annual series called The Original Stories. No info about the maturation on the bottle, but judging by the flavors, it's (mostly) aged in ex bourbon casks.
Non-chillfiltered, bottled at 48% abv, priced at €35-40 and quite tasty. Well played, The Glenlivet, well played. I'll pick up an extra bottle and already look forward to next year's edition.
Fruity, with notes of malt and warm spices. Apple pie with cinnamon, ripe pear, raisins, orange, soft wood shavings and malt.
More apple, pear and cinnamon, this time accompanied by ginger and melon. A nice, oily texture.
Salty crackers with sweet, fruity tea.
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