Glendronach 2003 Single cask – batch 14

Glendronach 2003 Single cask

The 2nd review in this series is the Glendronach 2003 Single cask from the batch 14 release..  Like the 2004 this is single malt whisky is from a Sherry puncheon and is cask #4034,  this was distilled on the 7th February 2003 and Bottled September 2016 making this a 13 year old single malt.. As with all these casks this is NCF and natural colour with an abv of 52.5%.

Nose.. This starts off musky with oak notes and earthy aromas like the scents you pick up in a dunnage warehouse.. Then the dark fruits kick in with rich exotic dates, figs, plums and prunes.. candied orange and luscious vanilla.. This is just like the wet mixture of a Christmas pudding.. Cinnamon and ginger are abundant with dark chocolate and coffee aromas..

 

Palate.. This coats the mouth with all those eastern delights.. Dark fruits and soft sweet flavours dominate, chocolate and coffee notes mingle with oak and burnt toffee.. Apple strudel and Eccles cakes along with citrus notes pave the way for liquorice and marzipan flavours.

 

Finish.. Deliciously sherried to the very end.

 

Thoughts.. This is so very different to the 2004 in that this is a lot more subtle.. The flavours and aromas are all there but so much softer which really gives it so much more complexity and balance.. The 04 is fantastic and is a real sherry bomb but this is more interesting to me, this kind of makes you work harder in order to crack it.. There is a mysterious aura to this bottle, while you Nose it you can close your eyes and imagine your in the warehouse sampling straight from the cask and it does not get much more magical than that !!

Thanks go out to Benriach/Glendronach for the generous samples..