Glenmorangie is one of the first distilleries that jumped on the wine-finishing trains, or ‘second maturations’ in different casks, usually quite active; many times we’ve said these are operations that tend to correct a not-so-fascinating liquid… But since we’re liberal people and we don’t want to feed prejudices, we won’t act as those boring whisky geeks that refuse the attempt of ‘building up’ a whisky, and we’ll admit that this passage usually brings to good (great, sometimes) quality. So
let’s get closer to this Lasanta, a 12 years old whisky that spent the last two years of maturation in ex-Oloroso sherry casks.
N: quite mellow and warming; there’s an elegant meadow of Glenmorangie spirit, malty and croissanty, with seductive notes of tinned peaches and dried apricots. On this meadow ride fiercely sherry’s horses, with their winey and citrusy burden: orange, even orange peel, that seem to be leaking in the sea of delicate sulphur. Little strawberries and chinotto? A rich nose, full of simple, sincere and yet overflowing aromas.
P: light bodied, not so chewy; more fleeing than expected. Don’t think of a poor whisky though: there’s a victory of red fruit, mixed with malty notes, biscuits and nuts. A uniform palate, with no peaks, made of a substantial flatness: a rich citrusy bouquet completes the profile. Cane sugar? Maybe a slight sulphuty note again, as of too ripe oranges. A little vanilla hand-bomb towards the finish.
F: nice, surprising for its richness and length; rhubarb, nuts, red berries.
A rich and well-conceived whisky, even if these linear and easy sherried drams don’t make us crazy from joy. You must recognize quality when you meet it, but you must acknowledge your own taste too: 84/100 seems the right score.
Recommended soundtrack: Danger Mouse & Daniele Luppi feat Norah Jones – Black.
