The Glen Scotia Range
The Glen Scotia Tweet Tasting held last Monday was a great chance to sample some drams that has not got the credit in recent years that it deserves.
Founded in 1832, Glen Scotia is one of only three distilleries producing in the Campbeltown whisky region. Currently undergoing a re-brand, it was a great opportunity to sample some drams in their new packaging that will be hitting the shops very soon.
The event was hosted by Steve from The Whisky Wire and the malts sampled were:-
- Glen Scotia Double Cask
- Glen Scotia 15 Year Old
- Glen Scotia Victoriana
- Glen Scotia Single Cask Distillery Edition
If you want to catch up on what all the tasters had to say you can view the tweets by searching for the hash tag #GlenScotia on Twitter.
So, what did I think?
Here are my tasting notes … and the one which was my favourite on the night!
Tasting Notes – Glen Scotia Double Cask (46%)
A NAS, NCF dram – Coming Soon to Specialist Retailers – RRP £37.00
Finished in first fill American Bourbon barrels & Pedro Ximenez Sherry casks.
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Nose: Vanilla, caramel & fudge straight off! There’s also apples teamed up with a pleasant oakyness and a hint of smoke. Palate: Sweet, rich mouth feel. Lovely rum and chocolate flavours, baked fruits and treacle pud. Finish: Very warming and spicy. A long finish beating a fiery path down to the tummy! Overall: Quite a heavy dram, meaty & full of spicy attitude! |
Tasting Notes – Glen Scotia 15 Year Old (46%)
NCF – Coming Soon to Specialist Retailers – RRP £55.00
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Nose: Fresher, less heavy than the Double Cask. Polish & a hint of peat are there and I’m getting all sorts of charred wood & smoke! A little vanilla n’ caramel is also present but not much … Palate: Thinner mouth feel, sweet and very citrusy. Lemons, fruit cake with a little caramel. Pretty salty too! Finish: Spicy, peppery, long, warming finish again – a little tobacco in there as well. Overall: Pretty kick-ass actually! Quite, quite different to the Double Cask. |
Tasting Notes – Glen Scotia Victoriana (51.5%)
NAS, NCF dram – Coming Soon to Specialist Retailers – RRP £75.00
Matured in Bourbon barrels then finished in Pedro Ximenez Sherry casks & deep charred oak casks. All chosen casks are hand selected from Glen Scotia’s reserve Cellar. Each bottle carries the signature of Master Blender John Peterson as a personal guarantee of quality.
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Nose: Strawbs and cream hit the nose! Vanilla ice cream and pears coming up a close second. Palate: Rich fruit cake, coffee & a luscious mouth feel! Generous treacle with a little salt. Finish: Glorious finish – refined, spicy. Nice! Overall: Shouts quality from every taste bud! |
Tasting Notes – Glen Scotia Single Cask Distillery Edition (56.1%)
NAS, NCF dram – Available Exclusively from the Distillery for £90.00
Matured in an American Bourbon refill cask. Approx distillation date Dec 2002.
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Nose: Smoky, peaty, charred woody abounds! The syrupy vanilla sweetness is still there though. Palate: Rich mouth feel. A very sweet, peaty smokey hit. Thick caramel, chocolate & grapefruit. Finish: Long finish with well tempered spice and dryness. Overall: A powerhouse dram – a visit to the distillery shop maybe? |
My Favourite On The Night
I think it’s got to be the Double Cask followed by Victoriana. The Double Cask has it all and for a very reasonable price.
These whiskies all seem to have very distinctive characteristics – meaty, savoury, salty producing some very satisfying drams indeed. I would certainly class these expressions as warming, beside the fire on a cold night kind of drams.
Many thanks to Steve at The Whisky Wire (@TheWhiskyWire) for a great dram evening!
And of course, Glen Scotia, for sending the samples and without whom!
My fellow Tweeters were:-
@WhiskyDiscovery @MashtunandMeow @whiskytube @mynameisgone @EdinburghWhisky @mattveira @bobsta1975 @WhiskyCorner @RumDiariesBlog @dvdbloke @TheWhiskyBoys @msykesjones @whiskyrepublic @WhiskyWriter @JoeFHolmes @brawspirit @annawizauk @rodbodtoo @angelshareglass @emilymayfox @whisky_facile @WhiskySpeller @LaCaveDeCobalt @Girl_Whisky
Glen Scotia is available to buy from these Whisky Merchants:-
