Glenturret Ruadh Maor 9 Year (2009), SMWS 16.43 “Oddly satisfying”
Whisky: Glenturret Ruadh Maor 9 Year (2009), SMWS 16.43 “Oddly satisfying”
Country/Region: Scotland/Highland
ABV: 62.4%
Cask: Recharred Hogshead
Age: 9 Years (Distilled 16 Dec. 2009)
Nose: Earthy and funky with cream and hot springs, barbecue, earth, meaty, dried grass, autumn leaves and chimney smoke.
Palate: Medium-bodied, youthful and peppery, meaty and herbal, butter and earth, more subtle anise and lemon, sootier at the end with dark chocolate and tallow.
Finish: Long and mellow with a gentle pepper leading autumn leaves, chimney smoke, and drippings from the roast.
Score: 7 (84)
Mental Image: Pork Butts in the Autumn
Narrative & Notes: Wonderfully earthy and funky; I imagined eating blue cheese and crackers while relaxing in a mud bath at a natural hot spring. Barbecue grills and charred meats lingered further in with matted dried grass and a bit of plum sauce. Autumn piles of leaves and chimney smoke played at nostalgia with burning pine and sage. Medium-bodied, occasionally youthful and spirited with a cracking black pepper, the flavor profile was loaded with roasted meats, butter, and earth. The charred edges of a roast flavored with thyme, sage, butter, and herbs rolled across the palate with a tease of lemon and fennel root. Sootier and earthier flavors developed with time as dark chocolate and mud masks extended toward butter and fat drippings. The finish was long and mellow with a gentle pepper leading autumn leaves, chimney smoke, and drippings from the roast.
This was a classic with tons of the earthy and meaty notes I have come to expect from peated Glenturret, especially the class of 2009. I have bought several sibling casks to this over the years and enjoyed them all— I have no idea how many SMWS must still have, but I hope its enough that we still seem them appear in the upcoming years, especially in light of Lalique’s decision to move Glenturret away from peated production for the foreseeable future.
Overall, a bit of a bruiser with some funky elements, but plenty of the savory and earthy qualities I love about this whisky.
