Glensheil 5 Year Old 2011 McShelfie #1

McShelfie is a whisky club from Hamme (Belgium), founded in 2014 by three friends: Bram, Hendrik and Jan. And as clubs are wont to do, they also have a club bottling. Three in fact and I have the privilege of trying all three. Let’s start with their first: Glensheil 2011. This is a young and very pale Glenrothes in disguise.

The nose is soft and smells of malt. Very herbal, in fact. Not exactly what I expect from Glenrothes. Not sweet enough, so to speak. Ferns and nettles, the skin of coconut and some edible chestnut. Milk chocolate all the way in the back. Reminds me of autumn.

On the palate it does turn very sweet and feisty. Vanilla, pepper, ginger, liquorice and even a pinch of salt. The coconut struggles to shine through. Honey and vanilla and even a hint of soft beeswax emerge. A slight bitterness of the tannins appears as well, but under control.

The finish is short, spicy and again – just like the nose – unsweet and mildly drying.

Special, atypical, but quite pleasant. The young age is obvious, but does not detract from the experience. And to think that the members of the club could buy this for less than 45 EUR, what a deal. Thanks for the sample, Hendrik.