The Sherry Project Part IV: Glengoyne CS #1
The fourth contender is probably the odd whisky out in The Sherry Project. The Glengoyne CS batch 001 is less of a classic than the other whiskies in this competition. But what it lacks in name-recognition, it makes up for in quality. The whiskies from Glengoyne as a whole fly under the radar, but they make some fine stuff. This cask strength-version is proof of that.
Glengoyne CS batch 001 (58,7%, OB)
Nose: Plenty of vanilla and wet grass. Almost like walking in a meadow. After those initial fresher notes the sherry influence becomes more apparent, but stays subtle. Fudge, chocolate, butter, very oily, but also a bit musty.
Taste: Lots of wood flavours, oaky and dry. And again a fresh quality, but this time in the form of citrus notes. Malty and grainy (cereal). Wood spices.
Finish: Very spicy and powerful, much more than you’d expect after the nose and the palate. Dry and bitter with a little bit of sweetness.
Rating: 86
A wonderful whisky with a nice balance between fresh flavours, sweet sherry influences and wood notes. I like it a lot, and it is priced properly at 50/60 euro. The Glengoyne takes second place in The Sherry Project so far, sitting right behind the Glendronach CS batch 2.
Standings after Part IV:
1. Glendronach CS batch #2 (87 points)
2. Glengoyne CS batch 001 (86 points)
3. Aberlour a’bunadh batch #46 (85 points)
4. Glenfarclas 105 (84 points)
There’s only one more round to go, but that round does bring us a strong contender with an appearance by The Macallan CS. Will it live up to its reputation?
Thijs is a spirits writer and accredited liquorist from The Netherlands. He runs the blog Words of Whisky and contributes to a number of Dutch and international publications.
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