GlenAllachie has become one of those distilleries I find myself returning to again and again, and this latest trio landed on my table at just the right moment. I sat down with three sherry-driven expressions: an 11 year old Palo Cortado cask finish at 48%, a Sinteis series bottling marrying French virgin oak with oloroso, and the brand new ex-Solera 19 year old at 50%.
Each one tells a slightly different story about what this distillery does best, and honestly, I came away impressed by all three.
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The Palo Cortado was the first surprise. Here is a quick lesson I picked up along the way: every Palo Cortado sherry cask starts life as a fino cask, and when that layer of flor at the top disappears over a couple of years, the sherry transforms into Palo Cortado. That distinct salty, grape vine character comes through in a big way here.
The nose is amazing, packed with plums, red and green grapes, and a salted honey note on the palate. I have never pulled that much salt out of a GlenAllachie before, and for an 11 year old, the richness is genuinely remarkable. That is a banger, and I will absolutely be buying a bottle when it reaches Canada.
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The Sinteis batch three heads in a completely different direction. There is none of that salt, which is exactly what you would expect from the core GlenAllachie profile. Instead, you get fresh red fruit, strawberries, raspberries, a touch of chocolate and brown sugar. The virgin oak brings a lovely spice, cinnamon and pepper, and despite sitting at 57.4% it does not drink hot at all. Rich, spicy and very well balanced, this one is easy to recommend for anyone chasing a higher ABV expression.
The star, though, is the ex-Solera 19 year old. These PX and oloroso casks spent 50 years as solera casks before being emptied and finally filled with this whisky, and it shows.
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READ THE STORYOn the nose, it smells considerably older than its age, all rich chocolate and diluted coffee softened with the richest cream, like a proper mocha. The palate is velvety, creamy, almost syrupy, with melted Lindor chocolate and baked fruit cake sweetness. I have a funny feeling there is some older whisky in this blend, because it drinks far too smooth otherwise. Leave it to Billy Walker to pull this off.
My scores land at 87 for the Sinteis, 88 for the Palo Cortado, and an 89 for the 19 year old, though I suspect that last one climbs higher as the bottle opens up. Which of these three would you reach for first?
To see the full side-by-side tasting and hear my thoughts on all three GlenAllachie whiskies, check out my YouTube video.
