Whisky : Glenburgie 12 Year, Hart Bros.

Country/Region : Scotland/Speyside

ABV : 55.3%

Cask : First Fill Sherry Butt

Age : 12 Year (Distilled March 2008, Bottled May 2020

Nose : Malty, fruity, and medicinal. Chinatown herbal shop within a pastry shop: fragrant medicinal spice: star anise, jujube, red ginger, and wolfberries (goji berry). Fresh baked herbal pastries; thyme and rosemary with preserved lemon and undercurrents of something almost salty and antiseptic.

Palate : Medium-bodied and sherry-forward with berries, malt, and medicinal notes. Wolfberry pastries came to mind right away with slightly medicinal spices of star anise, Szechuan peppercorns, and red ginger. Berries slowly gave way to dark chocolate and coffee with just a hint of raspberry and fruit around the edges. There was a tannic drying quality at the end with cinnamon, nutmeg, and stone fruit.

Finish : Lingering dryness with chocolate candies.

Score : 5

Mental Image : Wolfberry Pastry Roll

Notes : I adore an exceptional young Glenburgie, so I hopped at the chance to try one on the younger side that was not SMWS. I found this quite interesting, especially the nose, which did not match the palate much at all. The aroma had an intriguing medicinal edge, almost like walking into a Chinese herbal medicine shop inside a bakery next to a fishmonger stall. Yet, the palate was very sherry-driven with tons of chocolate, dried fruits, and spice.  

The very first impression was a wolfberry twist loaf the wife and I snacked on last time we were in Singapore. Buying a whole loaf was probably a mistake, but sometimes your stomach leads the way. However, the sherry just took over as those pastry notes faded off the initial hit. This did not have the tropical fruity and slightly earthy tones that I love about Glenburgie; it was a more straightforward sherry-driven dram. I was surprised this did not feel thicker as I usually find Glenburgie naturally has a waxy or chalky mouthfeel.

This seemed to become sweeter as I sipped it, and those spice and stone fruit notes became the dominant aspect of the dram. A few drops of water seemed to pull them to the surface, leaving some of the more subtle medicinal spices buried under cinnamon hot chocolate and fruit cobbler.

Image Credit: whiskybase