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Spirit of Toronto 2020: Glen Scotia Tasting Review

Writer's picture: S&PS&P

Simon here reporting from the S&P crew. I took part of the virtual tasting put on by Spirit of Toronto in November 2020, with star guest, Glen Scotia distillery manager Iain McAlister.


No experience with Glen Scotia before, but this was the only option with all cask strength samples. Aberfeldy and Aberlour had their original 12 year as part of the tasting, which although they are both fine scotches, are kind of a waste for bottles I already have in my cabinet and which are readily available for a fraction of the cost of the tasting.


Let me tell you right away this was a well done tasting, and I will certainly be seeking out Glen Scotia bottles going forward. I briefly review each of the 4 whiskies below and then sum it all up.


Sample 1: Glen Scotia Victoriana.


This is the only one of 4 samples that is widely available, and boy am I glad it is. All three other samples are from casks with so few bottles, you need special distillery privileges to buy one.


They jump through hoops to make this scotch. Part of it starts in first fill bourbon, part in second fill bourbon for most of its maturation time. Then it goes in a vat together, and 30% goes in PX butts, 70% goes in heavily charred oak for around 12 months. It gets blended together again and back into bourbon barrels until the master distiller is happy (hence the lack of age statement) and they bottle them unfiltered at cask strength. We're told this spends a total of 12-15 years in barrels.


The nose is all about the PX. Very sweet bright dried fruits. Nice but simple nose.


It shines on the pallet. My god, the vanilla/butterscotch/spice flavors from the bourbon, the oversweet dried fruits from the PX, the deep char smoke from the oak, and the salty oily Campbelltown distillate, all fighting each other to the death for primacy from the tip of the tongue to the medium-long finish. On the palate it's the PX and the Char that win, on the finish it's the vanilla/caramel and the brine, but I mean the flavors are really going at it.


The proof in the low 100s is perfect. I mean this may very well be the best scotch I've had in my (admittedly short) life. And it's mid-range affordable! It's a little hard to find in Ontario but I expect the LCBO stocks a handful of bottles every year. I'm rating this 92.


Sample 2: 15-year Tawny Port Hogshead 57.8% ABV


This is is a tawny port BOMB.


On the nose it's all about the tawny port.


On the pallet it complexifies. The tawny port is forefront and bold, but there's salty, malty, and woody notes that balance it. It's lively and rich, light mouthfeel which I like with the high ABV, reminds me of a tawny port version of A'bunadh. Salty and minerally finish. The tawny port on the finish too, not the overly sweet kind of tawny port, more the molasses kind of sweet that you get from Taylor Fladgates. Bold and beautiful. Velvet mouthfeel. This is great. The best port finish I've had by far. This is supposedly lightly peated but I don't get much of a peat influence. Very sad I'll likely never find a bottle. Rating this one 89.


Sample 3: 15-year first fill bourbon cask strength at 59.9% ABV.


The nose on this one is crazy. So many layers of caramel deserts, vanilla, and cinnamon.


On the palate it's nice. Salted caramel. Vanilla flavored nail polish (in a good way?). Follows through on the finish. A ton of bourbon influence here.


Rating this a 77. It rates barely above average on its own (my average rating is 74), but as part of this tasting it really shone and gave a neat nuance on the Glen Scotia distillate.


Sample 4: 18-year refill sherry hogshead. 48.8%


Iain tells us this comes from very old barrels, at least 40 years old.


The nose is sherry sweet but mute. A shy nose that doesn't offer much even when you try to dig into it.


It's a lot more interesting on the palate and finish. It's still tame, but now there's layers of complexity. There's tobacco, there's the dried fruits, and this is the first one where I can catch that dirty motor oil I was told to expect from Glen Scotia distillate. It does kind of taste like old wood too. A little salty and pasty on the finish. Very nice flavor profile. 85.


Overall, I'm impressed with this tasting and happy with my choice. We had a range of flavors here, all great scotches, all cask strength, non-chill, no coloring samples. I'm really looking forward to buying a bottle of Victoriana to share with the boys and trying out Glen Scotia's other core range bottles. The distillate at Glen Scotia has a slightly salty and oily character that shines through each of these samples. So nice. Iain McAlister also gave us a sense that Glen Scotia is really pushing for quality bottles, phasing out the coloring which their Double Cask still has and maybe the 12 and 15, really trying to cater to the crafted scotch rather than the mass market. Looking forward to discovering more smaller distilleries!


Cheers!

Simon

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