Tag Archives: Scotch

The Glenlivet 18 year old

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18 years old, 43% ABV, American & European Oak, Speyside, Scotland 

One of the first single malts I ever owned was The Glenlivet 18 year old. A few years back I had family travelling through London and they knew I had a thing for whisky. They kindly picked up a bottle for me, opting for something they’d heard of, so I was pretty chuffed when this arrived.

Glenlivet 18

One thing you note when you pick up this bottle is how solid it is. The box is made of sturdy matte-finished card and the bottle of heavy glass – complete with a thick base reminiscent of a quality whisky tumbler.

Glenlivet 18 box

The rear of the box has a few paragraphs on the founding history of The Glenlivet (not shown), along with these tasting notes. I’m not sure I agree with all of the notes, but they’re a nice touch and it’s fun to have something to compare against.

Glenlivet thistle

The Glenlivet thistle motif (I’m pretty sure it’s a thistle) can be found in numerous places on the bottle and packaging. I’ve contacted The Glenlivet to try and find out its significance, but nothing to report just yet.

Did you know… 

To protect their stocks from the risk of fire, The Glenlivet store their maturing casks – they currently have over 65,000 – in a number of different locations all over Scotland.

Nose 

Quite a soft nose with hints of apples, pears and really muted sherry notes. There are some floral notes hidden in there and traces of spice. I also get an intriguing sourness, almost like a sour apple candy or maybe apple cider vinegar.

After a good 15 to 20 minutes in the glass the nose shows some mildly sweet notes to go along with the sourness (reminds me of a Fino sherry).

Palate

Starts with an oily, tongue coating mouth feel of soft fruit sweetness which gives way to some spice. I got some bitter nutty notes in the background, almost like citrus peel and almonds. Quite a nice balance between sweet, sour and spice.

Finish

A mid length finish with some throat warmth, lingering creamy mouth feel (from the American Oak I suspect) and a drying oak bitterness with hints of spice.

Comments

After I received this bottle I went on to buy other things and so it remained unopened for quite a while. Looking back on it, that was probably a good thing as I don’t know I would have fully appreciated it straight away.

Despite the liquid amber-ish colour which suggests a noticeable sherry influence, I found The Glenlivet 18 year old to be a rather light and delicate whisky, with a surprisingly complex nose.

Whiskyleaks: The Balvenie 15 year old

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Are you a fan of this little number?

Whiskyleaks

I am, which is why I’m putting this news out there – sort of like a public service announcement for The Balvenie fans.

After hearing a few different rumours about the future of The Balvenie 15 year old single barrel, I recently had the chance to set the record straight. The chance presented itself when Dr Sam Simmons (The Balvenie’s Global Brand Ambassador) was in town holding a series of tasting events and it went a little something like this:

Sam: ‘C’mon guys, I was told you would have some really good questions for me!?’

The Whisky Ledger: ‘Alright then, here’s one for you. I’ve heard that the 15 year old is being discontinued and replaced with a sherry version. Is that true?’ 

*sideways glances and crickets chirping*

Okay, so it was a bit unceremonious of me to put him on the spot like that, but I had to know! All credit to Sam for handing the question like a true ambassador and not giving too much away.

Let’s just say, if you’re particularly fond of the Balvenie 15 year old single barrel – with its American Oak vanilla creaminess, hints of spice and classic honeyed Balvenie notes – then you might want to add a bottle or two to your Christmas list. I can confidently say that it’s being discontinued.

Don’t let those tears dilute your whisky too much though, because it’s not all sad news. The American Oak (bourbon cask) version is being replaced by a single barrel sherry version. Given the quality of The Balvenie’s sherried whisky in expressions like their doublewood and Tun1401, I can only imagine how luscious it’ll be – especially if it stays around the 47.8% ABV mark. I can’t wait to try it.

The new 15 year old expression will also be joined by a 25 year old version and another unspecified expression. No further info on release dates or price points just yet.