Earlier this year we flew up to Glengoyne to help select a very special cask for bottling. The cask would be chosen by the great and the good from England’s whisky retailers, and we’ve been very excited to announce it is now in stock!
Sample after sample were tried until the very best cask was found – it’s a hard life, that of the whisky merchant ;-). Pleasingly, it’s a very, very dark little scotch whisky, thanks mainly to the sherry hoggie it was matured in. The beautiful bottles arrived yesterday, and the packaging is rather handsome – wooden and very smart.
The whisky was distilled on the 17th June 1997, and, of course, it’s bottled at cask strength (bottled on the 20th May 2010 at 13 years of age). We uncorked a bottle to recount just how wonderful it is…
Glengoyne English Merchant’s Choice
Nose: Deep dark sherry as expected, with a ripe selection of prune juice, varnished oak and molasses. Develops on tangy hints of gooseberry and a little orange liqueur. Actually reminds us very much of Pyrat XO! Some vanilla and Peychaud’s bitters appear after a few minutes in the glass.
Palate: Huge, syrupy and rich. There’s an umami-like note which adds a fantastic dimension of Porcini mushrooms alongside the sterling barrage of rum spice, freshly cracked black pepper, Tiramisu and banana cake.
Finish: Long and increasingly tangy with puckering fruit, hints of dried chili and various barks.
Overall: We love this style of whisky – it’s not over-aged, but juicy and full of character.
You can buy a bottle of this stunning whisky for £99.95 here.
You could also buy a dram here, for just £5.95.
– The Chaps at Master of Malt –
