Review by: dustbunna
Distillery: Glengyle.
Bottler: Cadenhead’s.
Region: Campbeltown, Scotland.
ABV: 61.4%. Cask strength.
Age: 5 years. Distilled in 2018. Bottled in 2024.
Cask type: Refill Oloroso sherry hogshead.
Price: £22 GBP for 200mL.
Natural Color. Non-chill-filtered.
Bottle open across approx. 3 months, notes taken leisurely across that period. Bold notes taken beneath the shoulder (notes consistent throughout the entire bottle.)
Nose: salted almonds, cream, petroleum, cherry tomatoes, beef broth, orange zest.
Palate: big and bold ~ cured ham, Parmesan cheese, more almonds, white pepper, chocolate-covered roasted nuts.
Finish: medium-long ~ smoke, more cream, garlic scapes.
Thoughts: Wow, that was weird! And also, excellent. J&A Mitchell’s refill Oloroso casks seem often to impart a meatiness and funkiness whether applied to Springbank or Glengyle’s spirit, and this whisky absorbed a hell of a lot of flavor in five years from that hoggie. It doesn’t drink in any way like it’s above 60% ABV, remaining extremely quaffable at full strength. I bought this after doing the warehouse tasting at Glengyle when I visited Campbeltown in May of this year, my rationale being that I had gone all-in on bourbon cask Kilkerrans after the tasting and was missing some counterpoint (the sherry cask from the tasting, also refill Oloroso but twice as old, was IMHO a little too tobacco-forward for my tastes.) This young Kilkerran goes in a totally different direction from anything I had during the tasting, but it’s no less funky or engaging— it’s simply a lot of fun, and in retrospect I would have been happy to bring home more than 200mL of it.
Final Score: 87.
Scoring Legend:
- 95-100: As good as it gets. Jaw-dropping, eye-widening, unforgettable whisky.
- 90-94: Sublime, a personal favorite in its category.
- 85-89: Excellent, a standout dram.
- 80-84: Quite good. Quality stuff.
- 75-79: Decent whisky worth tasting.
- 70-74: Meh. It’s definitely drinkable, but it can do better.
- 60-69: Not so good. I might not turn down a glass if I needed a drink.
- 50-59: Save it for mixing.
- 0-49: Blech.
Malt Runners 