We announced some reviews of Italian independent bottlings, but we changed our mind and we would like to taste two official GlenDronachs still missing on this website. One of them is the 15 years old “Revival”, so named in honour of the core range renaissance after the purchase by BenRiach in 2008. The experienced Billy Walker is a guarantee. The colour is copper, as you could expect from a malt matured in ex Oloroso sherry first fill casks.
N: the sherry provides whiffs of meat extract, fresh porcini mushrooms, leather, wet oak. Of course with a big bomb of red fruits (blackberries, cherries under alcohol). Intense dessert wine notes, the Oloroso impact is evident. Orange peels (maybe drageé in dark chocolate). Dried plums. It’s delicious and a little bit cranky, because those particular and less rounded notes persist: they only lose intensity with time. Sniffing it again after drinking it, you’ll see as the flavours take the thundering and smooth form of the taste (we did it! We used all the five senses in one sentence! Synaesthesia our love…).
P: compared to the nose, the “dirty” and moist notes are significantly reduced. Meanwhile, the classic sherry-bomb notes of GlenDronach increase: powerful orange chocolate. We agree with the official tasting notes on the label that stress the coffee note. It’s creamy and winey (dessert wine), with a wide bouquet of flavors: creme brulee, caramel, red fruits (loads of cherries), apples, prunes… Delicious!
F: my goodness, what an intense pipe tobacco! Nutmeg and red fruits jam. And very long.
Reading Serge’s and Ruben’s reviews (and the comments on their websites), it’s easy to understand that every batch is rather different. The batches with more pronounced “sulphury” notes like this one (meat and mushroom suggestions) are always a matter of personal taste: you can love or hate them. We simply love this kind of whisky: 89/100. Those who know whisky more than us say this is a perfect example of old style sherried malt. We trust them and we recommend it.
Recommended soundtrack: The Dad Horse Experience – Through the Hole.
