Glenalmond 2002

Glenalmond is a blended malt which means it consists only of single malts (I was told all of them from the Highlands). No grain whisky went into this. The blend is named after the river Almond, about 45 kilometers long between Hirst Hill in Lanarshire and the Firth of Forth in Cramond, near Edinburgh. Almond has nothing to do with the type of nut in this case, as the word Almond (or Amon) is Gaelic for ‘river’. Anyway, time to taste.

The nose is rather interesting. Very sweet with a good dose of peat. Roasted malt, toffee, freshly cut grass, caramel. Not a lot of fruit, though. Almond paste, roasted nuts, honey. There is clearly some sherry matured whisky in the mix. If you leave it for a few minutes it develops a mildly sour and meaty side. Nettles?

The arrival is rather weak. Little to no body. Pity. It is terribly sweet on the palate. Too sweet for me. Loads of caramel and honey, but little else. The peat can hardly be found on the palate. Spices in abundance, though. Nutmeg, pepper, cloves and stewed ginger. Oatmeal porridge!

The finish is medium long and allows the smoke to return and offers a bit of bitter orange peel.

A somewhat strange mix that does not really work for me. Way to sweet anyhow. Thanks for the sample, Pat.