Glendalough 13 Year Mizunara Oak
Whisky: Glendalough 13 Year Mizunara Oak
Country/Region: Ireland (Cooley Distillery)
ABV: 46%
Cask: Mizunara Puncheon Finish
Age: 13 Year
Nose: Vanilla, citrus rind, sandalwood, ginger candies, wood resin, black sugar, subtle linoleum and citrus-scented bleach, powdered donuts.
Palate: Medium-bodied, oily, tropical fruit salad, sandalwood, blood orange, vanilla cream soda, birch, wood oils and subtle earth, tangerine and hints of mint at the end.
Finish: Medium-length with tropical fruit and more subtle earth and wood.
Score: 7+
Mental Image: Retro Diner, Retro Fruit Salad
Narrative & Notes: The aroma was varied and inviting, with notes of a vintage kitchen replete with powdered donuts, vanilla whipped cream, citrus curd, gingersnap cookies, and a subtle linoleum that often paired with hints of a citrus-scented bleach. Black sugar, in rock form it seemed, developed with tinned pineapple, wood resins, and sandalwood antiques. Medium-bodied, the mouthfeel was oily and bursting with tropical fruit salad; longan, guava, lilikoi, kiwi, and white nectarines. The tropical fruits occasionally veered toward ambrosia, that old-school creamy fruit salad. A crisp acidity lent itself to the impression of effervescent soda: blood orange, vanilla cream, or birch bark. Sandalwood and wood oils arrived late with subtle earth, while tangerine and hints of mint waited to pop at the end. The finish was medium-length with tropical fruit and more subtle earth and sandalwood.
The mizunara was strong with this one, and while I was impressed by just how strongly that cask influence came through, I was not surprised by how well it paired with this malt from Cooley. The aroma was pleasant and inviting as it varied between fruits, sugars, and woods; it did nothing to prepare me for the tropical fruits that exploded on the palate. The flavor profile ran rampage across some of my favorite tropical fruit notes and did not stop there; it continued into some of my favorite sodas and then took a detour to almost savory wood and spice before a final fruity goodbye.
Overall, this was unexpectedly delicious. While Glendalough sourced the malt for this product from Cooley distillery, it began distilling its own whiskies in 2011. As their stocks have aged, they have increasingly used their malt as the backbone of their products. I look forward to revisiting their whiskies in the future and especially the opportunity to try some of the malt they now have maturing.
