Glenallachie-Glenlivet 2014 Cadenhead's Original Collection 10 yo

 

 

 

46°

Distillery : The GlenAllachie - Speyside

Bourbon Barrels

Independent Bottling 

By William Cadenhead Limited

Limited Edition 

Single Malt 

Bottled in 2025

Unchillfiltered, Uncoloured 

Totally Unpeated

 

 

 

This distillery is known for often using sherry casks, which is why this bottling immediately caught my attention. It's not often that you get the chance to taste GlenAllachie aged in bourbon casks. The number of bottles available for sale is unknown, but at least it's not chill-filtered, which is something. 

Let's Taste It : 

It is very fruity, but also floral. Generous vanilla, combined with orchard fruits, white peaches, crisp apples and juicy pears, grapefruit, pineapple and papaya, buttered toast. Shiny wax wood, pollen, pistil, crème brûlée. Melon, kiwi, a few herbaceous notes. On the palate, it is pastry-like, with white grapes, almonds, and vanilla éclairs. Measured spices, ginger, and cinnamon. Fairly long finish, hazelnuts and caramel, robust but not explosive. Shortbread cookies, egg yolk, english custard.

In Short, 

Finally, the distillery reveals its true nature, and it's very good. They should make more bottlings like this, generous and fruity, with lots of butter. The price is a little high, but still reasonable. I vote for buying it. 

Score : 87

                                           To Be Listened While Sipping : 

 

                                           Mei Semones - Kodoku

Glenallachie 2016 The Cooper's Choice 6 yo

 

 

 

53,5°

Distillery : The GlenAllachie - Speyside

American Oak Barrel and Port Wood Finish

Independent Bottling 

By The Vintage Malt Whisky Co. 

Limited Edition 

Single Cask 

Bottled in 2022

Unchillfiltered, Uncoloured, Cask Strength

Totally Unpeated

This 6-year-old GlenAllachie is apparently reserved for the French market. First aged in a Bourbon cask, it was then immersed in a Port cask. 372 bottles were released for sale. Not to be confused with The Cooper's Choice Summer Fruits, also finished in a Port cask, bottled the same year, but with no mention of age.

 

 

 

Let's Taste It : 

Raspberry, damson, strawberry, but not acid, it's really very fruity, jam-like, with bits in it, and sprinkled with cinnamon. Peaches and nectarines, very ripe grapes. Slight woodiness. Still very fruity on the palate, but more on blueberry pie and cranberry, blackberry, blackcurrant. Dark chocolate with sultana filling. The spices are very present, paprika and nutmeg. A touch of raspberry on the finish, cloves, earth, damp undergrowth, tree leaves, warm chestnuts. Fig jam.

 

In Short, 

It's enormously fruity, to the point where you don't know which fruit to mention. It's very well done in its genre, admittedly the fruit is overpowering, but it's not acidic, it's complex and you can still recognise a bit of the distillery. I couldn't find it available anywhere, but judging by the range's usual prices, it's very reasonable.

Score : 88

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                           To Be Listened While Sipping :

 

                                           Trevor Rabin - Push

Meikle Tòir 5 yo The Sherry One

 

 

 

48°

Distillery : The GlenAllachie - Speyside

1st Fill Ex-Bourbon Barrels, Oloroso and Pedro Ximénez Sherry Puncheon Casks

Original Bottling 

Core Range 

Single Malt 

Launched in 2023

Unchillfiltered, Uncoloured

Peated around 35 ppm

 

 

 

This is the third and final expression in the Core Range of this new brand, which introduces us to the peat of Speyside, and more specifically that of GlenAllachie, under the direction of Billy Walker. This time, the distillate has been partly immersed in Puncheon Sherry Casks, Oloroso and Pedro Ximénez, to produce a fruitier version. As with the other bottlings, the whisky took 160 hours to ferment, which is an extremely long time, and promises a fine quality of the juice.

Let's Taste It : 

It's very well-balanced, subtle, rich in fruits, deep, with figs, chocolate, red fruits, and fine, silky smoke. Raspberries and blueberries, dried fruits, a touch of charcoal, liquorice. Some walnuts in the background. It's slightly earthy. The palate is a bit light, but still pleasant, fruitier, dates, gooseberries, blackcurrants, intense spices, blackberries. The finish is long and beautiful, with a measured explosiveness, fruity, more dried fruits, raisins, prunes, ferns, undergrowth, tree leaves.

In Short, 

Like the rest of the range, it's a great success, with fine balance and elegant subtlety that doesn't mask the earthy and country peat. It has personality, but also nuance. What's more, the price is very attractive. However, I think there's a better combination of peat and Sherry, it's very well done, but there's nothing exceptional about it. For me, it's definitely the Original that's up for grabs, the others are nice but not entirely convincing.

Score : 88

                                           To Be Listened While Sipping :

 

                                           Beyond The Black - Is There Anybody Out There?

Meikle Tòir 5 yo The Chinquapin One

 

 

 

48°

Distillery : The GlenAllachie - Speyside

1st Fill Ex-Bourbon and Chinquapin Virgin Oak Barrels 

Original Bottling 

Core Range 

Single Malt 

Launched in 2023

Unchillfiltered, Uncoloured

Peated around 35 ppm

 

 

 

This is the second expression of this new brand designed by Billy Walker, which gives a fine taste of Speyside peat. This time, the whisky was matured partly in top-quality virgin Chinquapin oak casks from the Ozark region of Missouri in the United States, which promises a fine woodiness. The whisky was fermented for 160 hours during the production process, which is a very long time.

 

 

 

Let's Taste It : 

As you'd expect, it's very woody, with splinters, roasted nuts, sap and resin, bark, hazelnuts, in short, everything the virgin oak can bring. Fig jam in the background, dark chocolate, forest berries. The palate is a bit light, you can feel the youth, but still vanilla and lemon, white fruits, virtually no spice, which is astonishing. The finish is long but not too aggressive, with a certain woody and fruity sweetness. Earth, warm chestnuts, ferns, forest undergrowth.

 

In Short, 

It's what you'd expect, very well made, and there's none of this unpleasant bitterness you sometimes find in virgin cask ageing. On the other hand, it clearly lacks complexity and even character. The virgin wood has blunted all the other flavours a little. For this reason, I prefer The Original. If you want to buy the whole range, OK, but if you're only going to buy one, it won't be this one. However, the price is still very reasonable.

Score : 87

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                           To Be Listened While Sipping :

 

                                            Elegy of Madness - Portrait of a Ghost

Meikle Tòir 5 yo The Original

 

 

 

50° 

Distillery : The GlenAllachie - Speyside

1st Fill Bourbon, American Virgin Oak and Rye Whiskey Casks

Original Bottling 

Core Range 

Single Malt 

Launched in 2023

Unchillfiltered, Uncoloured

Peated around 35 ppm

 

 

 

Billy Walker is definitely a character. After restoring the glory of GlenDronach, Glenglaussaugh and BenRiach, three distilleries which he later sold, he is now working to sublimate the distillate from GlenAllachie. And not content with just succeeding, he also wants to give it a peated version, which will be called Meikle Tòir. The peat from Speyside is specific, it has little in common with that from Islay, it's not maritime, but rustic, earthy, vegetal. To bring out the best in it, Billy Walker chose to age his spirits in three different types of cask: first-fill Bourbon, American virgin oak and rye whiskey. The result is a 5-year-old whisky, it needs to stay young to preserve the power of the peat.

 

 

 

Let's Taste It : 

Cereals in a mess, quite rough, rye, barley, toasted wheat, muesli, but there's also the influence of Bourbon with lumpy vanilla and a zest of lemon. Heather honey, wood glue, caramel, liquorice. Unvarnished wood. A little soft on the palate, but you can still feel the character. Fruit and liquorice, plums, grapes, blueberries. There's a sense of coarse grain, unrefined and rather exuberant spices. Strong finish, earth and humus, flambéed chestnuts, nutmeg. Charcoal.

 

In Short, 

It's just as it should be, and even better than I expected. There's not much of the countryside here, but the peat is harmonious and intense, cereal-like, full of dried fruits and woody. Well done, Billy, once again. As for the price, it's just fine, and I'd recommend buying it before everyone realises what a bargain it is and that it's sold out.

Score : 88

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                           To Be Listened While Sipping :

                                           Texas Hippie Coalition - Moonshine

The GlenAllachie 2008 Abbey Whisky 10 yo

 

 

 

66,2°

Distillery : The GlenAllachie - Speyside

Sherry Butt

Independent Bottling 

By Abbey Whisky

Limited Edition 

Single Cask

Unchillfiltered, Uncoloured, Cask Strength 

Totally Unpeated

GlenAllachie's independent bottlings are not that common. So it's a pleasure to see this one, distilled in 2008 and aged in a single sherry cask, released in 150 bottles. Founded in 2008, Abbey Whisky is a British online shop. Building on their success, they have created a number of bottlings themselves, around twenty in ten years. This one is not the best known, but it has sold well.

Let's Taste It : 

Nougat cream, toffee, speculoos. Waffles with vergeoise filling. Hazelnuts. A touch of iodine in the background. A few golden cereals. Very sweet and a little earthy. It's alcoholic though, with a degree like this, it would be surprising if it weren't. And a hint of smoke. On the palate, the alcohol is well integrated, with vanilla, then spices, cumin, pepper and nutmeg. Then the alcohol kicks in, and it's very powerful, like a horse running away. Then it calms down and becomes warm. Malty, balanced. Of course, the finish makes you break out in a cold sweat. It's explosive, but quite long, with hints of wheat and barley. This is the countryside. Hay. Rye bread.

 

In Short, 

Gosh, what a finish! You can feel it go through. But the palate is also very tasty. The nose is a little below par, intense but lacking in complexity. Overall, this is a very good whisky, quite original and pastry-like. I recommend adding water to taste it, otherwise it will burn. The price is quite right, but it is out of stock everywhere.

Score : 88

                                           To Be Listened While Sipping : 

  

                                           Kevin Morby - Harlem  River

The GlenAllachie 12 yo

46°

Distillery : The GlenAllachie - Speyside

Pedro Ximénez, Oloroso and Virgin Oak Casks

Original Bottling 

Core Range

Single Malt

Launched in 2018

Unchillfiltered, Uncoloured

Totally Unpeated

Billy Walker bought the distillery in 2017 from Pernod Ricard, set up a consortium with the help of a few friends, and the following year this 12-year-old was launched. It was an immediate success. Today, people are surprised to learn that the distillery and this expression are so new, it feels like they are as renowned as a Glenfarclas.

Let's Taste It : 

Liquorice, dried banana, fig, which go well with raspberry and blackberry. In the background, it's a little earthy, black and damp, rich. Cherry, gooseberry and a hint of iodine. Old wood, a little soft. Varnish. A whiff of smoke. Blueberries, hazelnuts. Jam. Very fruity on the palate, almost acidic, all the red fruits you can imagine. Noble wood, cherry or chestnut. Minty freshness. Damsons. Some spices, but very light, paprika, saffron. It's velvety, almost hushed. Blackcurrant. The finish is a bit short, but good, first coaly, woody, then vinous, bittersweet. Tinder. More hazelnuts and blackcurrants. Strawberry gum.

In Short, 

A beautiful expression. It's not just another sherry-dominated bottling. It really has an identity. It's very velvety, rather soft and deep. The nose is balanced and complex, and the palate is a real success. On the other hand, I have a bit of a problem with the influence of the virgin casks. It gives a slightly bitter taste, especially on the finish. Overall, it's about the same level as a GlenDronach 12 year old, with a bit more punch and a better palate.

Score : 86

                                          To Be Listened While Sipping :

  

                                          US3 - Cantaloop