Scotland, Speyside: Single malt whisky through the producing distilleries: history, making, production and tasting notes

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Glen Moray

Description of the whisky

The distillery

Glen Moray
Glen Moray Distillery
Elgin
Morayshire
IV30 1YE
+44 1343 542 577
Owner: La Martiniquaise
Creation date 1897

In 1815 a new brewery was build near Elgin by Henry Arnott & Co. There were in those days already about 80 of them in the area.
The brewery has been transformed in a distillery in 1897, and most of the brewery buildings remained unchanged.
The distillery closed in 1910.
After a very short reopening in 1912, Glen Moray must wait until 1923 for its revival, when it was acquired by the owners of Glenmorangie.
Since then the only period where the distillery has been mothballed was during World War II, just like most of the other distilleries in Scotland.
Important alteration works happened in 1958 and the distillery acquired a "Saladin Box" which was in use up to 1977.
The exterior aspect of the distillery is characterized by two enormous grain silos. Distilleries use to burry their silos.
A part of the production is used in Highland Queen blend.
Glenmorangie Plc sold the Glen Moray distillery to the French company La Martiniquaise in September 2008

The whisky

A propos des notes de dégustation Your own tasting notes

List of the bottles

Description of the distillery

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 Glen Moray: official bottlings
 

Glen Moray
Mellowed in Chardonnay barrels
Age
 no age statement
Alcohol percentage
 40
Cask
 Chardonnay
Bottler
 Official
=25 euros< 25 euros
 
  The colour is pale gold, and the fresh nose is marked by exotic fruits.
The palate is light but smooth, with some herbal notes.

(la Maison du Whisky)

Little whisky without much character. This malt, belonging to the Glenmorangie group (who is also owner of Ardbeg) does not leave a great memory. The nose is "shy", and the first impression in the mouth in not easy to define. The impression is certainly not bad, but nothing announces a great whisky.

A second tasting denied partially the conclusions of the first one. Without making it a very great whisky, the sweet and balanced character of this whisky (which remains a little bit simple) got quite a better quoting the second time. Probably a matter of mood...
17/20
The very floral nose is very sweet, probably too sweet and without a great complexity, with however some remote hints of smoke and a slight peppery touch. In the palate, no surprise. The nose is confirmed, the evident lack at complexity too. Very sweet, maybe sickly sweet... The finish is rather long and a little more interesting than the taste itself....
15/20.
The nose thinks it is sniffing a bunch of flowers, but quite discrete flowers, not exuberant ones. In the mouth, same impression: sweetness without complexity. A finish continuing on sweetness, however discretely seasoned with a touch of spices. Certainly a rather good whisky, but personally I'm unable to really appreciate it.
15/20
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Glen Moray
Mountain oak malt

Age
 12 years
Alcohol percentage
 60,5%
Cask
 New american oak cask (first fill)
Bottler
 Official
=25 euros=25 euros=25 euros=25 euros
Glen Moray Mountain Oak malt
The nose is marked by both wood and vanilla. A great sweetness as well, where there is nothing to suggest the high percentage of alcohol of this spirit. In the palate, a persistent and sweet taste of wood, without great complexity on a background of pear alcohol... No aggressiveness at all neither. The finish is relatively short, and marked by the wood, and later on a kind of sugared after taste appears. This bottling is interesting because it is the only Scotch single malt I know to be matured in a first fill American oak cask (new cask)
17/20
During the second tasting, the nose was particulary marked by spices, pepper and some woody hints on a sweeter background, vanilla or malt. In the palate, the alcohol dominates quickly, and the taste is rather poor compared to the nose, although there is a kind of complexity here too. Spices and wood disappear soon, making room for something like a fruit alcohol with a less pleasant acid character. The finish recalls some woody notes, but remains dominated by the alcohol.
17/20
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Glen Moray
1984, limited edition
Alcohol percentage
 40%
Age
 no age statement, probably 20 years
Bottler
 Official
=25 euros=25 euros< 25 euros
Glen Moray 1984
Quite an expressive nose with clear floral hints developing slowly on red fruit notes and a touch of wood appears on the background behind a veil of smoke.
The mouth is a mix of honey and nuts. A sickly sweet taste with a very light touch of bitterness, the whole missing clearly any personality. A light higher percentage of alcohol could have been beneficial.
The finish is quite long and a bit sickly, keeping teh memory of discrete wood notes with honey.
Probably that sweet whisky lovers will appreciate, but it is not my case.
15/20
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Speyside

Speyside Map

The Speyside area is situated at the North of the Cairngorm mountain and goes to the Moray firth. It is delimited by two rivers: the Findhorn at the West side and the Deveron on the East side.
The area is named after the river Spey. Most of the distilleries take their water in one of its affluents; the Fiddich, the Livet or the Avon.
About sixty distilleries from Speyside are described on this site.

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