Glen Spey is another Diageo distillery that goes WAY under the radar most times. Used almost exclusively in J&B blended scotch, I have only ever seen a Glen Spey single malt available from independent bottlers. I had an 8 year from the Scotch Malt Whisky Society that was nice, bright, citric, and quite nice. So I'm curious what Blackadder does with it in its fabulous Raw Cask series - totally unfiltered.
Glen Spey is in the HEART of Speyside (as the name suggests), and is neighbors with Glen Grant and Glenrothes, and is just down the road from Speyburn and Dailuaine, among others.
This Blackadder Raw Cask bottle is completely unfiltered and bottled at 61.3% ABV, bottled 46 of 286 drawn from the presumably ex-bourbon cask. Another wonderful selection from the Dram Hunters group by Raj Sabharwal; I'd like to meet him someday, he's got exceptional taste. Let's investigate:
Nose: Very sweet and attractive nose here: pear, honey, raw green apple, sweet green grapes, dripping vanilla pods, fresh caramel, melon, white pepper, oak, grass, and soft malted barley. Quite rich, and quintessentially Speyside... but you have to give it time to uncoil.
After letting it sit for a while, an interesting note of "dust" emerges - like an old library, almost... and almost smoky, somehow. Perhaps the barrel char sitting in the barrel for so long. I don't recommend water on this one - it tends to push all the sweetness together.
Mouthfeel: Like every Blackadder, this is amazingly viscous. Thick as olive oil. Coats the mouth completely.
Palate: Pretty hot at 61.3%, there is a numbing sweep of alcohol right off, followed by some cracked white pepper and oak wood. Sweet vanilla and apple, honey and pear, more malted barley and grass and wood at the end. Follows the nose quite closely. A sweet and decadent single malt presented very well.
Finish: Longer than expected - sweet, almost cloyingly so, with pepper and wood and malt intermixed evenly. Caramel more than vanilla on the back end. A few hints of popcorn.
Verdict: This is surely the best possible presentation of middle-aged Glen Spey out in the wild (I felt the same about the Milton Duff and the Tomatin I had from them, as well). It's sweet, fruity, rich, decadent (decadent is really the perfect word here)... a perfect after dinner dram on an autumn or spring night.
I adore this bottle - and am now 2 for 2 with Glen Spey, so I have a real fondness for them, which is a shame because they are rare as hen's teeth even via independent bottlers. Oh well. Highly recommended.
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