Released in early 2017 as part of the Glenmorangie Private Edition range, Bacalta was the first expression from the distillery to be finished in sun-baked Malmsey Madeira casks. Dr. Bill Lumsden had bespoke American oak casks made and heavily toasted, then seasoned with Malmsey wine and left to bake in the heat of Madeira's sun. The casks were emptied and shipped to Scotland to finish the Glenmorangie whisky, which had previously been maturing in bourbon barrels.
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Succulent apricots ripened in Madeira’s island sun emerge from fragrant, honeyed aromas. A curiously flinty note gives way to beguiling hints of white chocolate.
Complex layers of honeycomb follow an initial burst of mint toffee. Almonds come forth to mingle with dates, caramelised oranges and more apricots.
Creamy fudge emerges in the long, syrupy aftertaste, alongside caramelised citrus and pears. All are played out against an intriguing mentholic backdrop...
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Oh dear. I don't want to like no age statement whiskies. I am suspicious that the distillers are fobbing us off with young spirit because they ran out of the good stuff. Some distilleries dress up really mediocre stuff in nice boxes. give it posh names and charge silly prices. Happily though. Dr Lumsden has ploughed a different furrow than The Macallan. He has found (numerous) ways to address the shortage of older spirit whilst still offering the customer a truly uplifting quality dram. Normally. I don'y buy anything under 12 years old from Scotland. A chance encounter with the Glenmorangie Signet though piqued my interest and convinced me to try more of Dr Lumsden's creations. Putting prejudice aside this is an absolute triumph of the master blender's art. It is smooth as one would expect from Glenmorangie. How do they always do that anyway? It is complex both on the nose and the palate. Drinking Bacalta on different occasions, at various times of day, with differing food accompaniments produces quite different but always delightful results. Apricot/Peach and honey/caramel are the dominant flavours for sure. Listen carefully to your nose though and there is a strong tang of chocolate, rich barley/vanilla and then some surprising berry fruit notes. Those who have roamed in the woods of Sweden will recognise a hint of lingonberry. This will be a staple in my collection as long as it is available. What's next Dr Lumsden?
Must say the tasting notes are really spot on. Especially the apricots with honey, spice, mint some chocolate and loads more fruit on the finish. I also get an amazing salty nuttiness with incredible subtle underlying smoke coming from, I guess, heavily toasted casks. Reminds me a lot of the excellent new Glen Scotia series.
Superb whisky from start to finish. Great value for money punches above it's price. Overtakes the Signet as my favourite Glenmorange.
Quintessentialy and simply the best Glenmorangie I've had. I think this even tops the infamous Ealanta and I also think you might see this as the next winner of Jim Murray's whisky bible it's just that good !. I can taste mango, almonds, marzipan amongst other things but I do think those are the dominant flavours but there are suttle flavours, white chocolate being one of those and it's thick, syrupy and sweet. You can defiantly tell the whisky is rubbing shoulders with Madeira but I don't know where they got menthol or mint from it's just not there at all. This whisky is going to make many fans and it's still very early but this is a whisky to watch closely!
Very similar experience to the tasting note above - didn't got the menthol though.
