Review 200: Glen Moray 10 Chardonnay Cask Matured

To this point I've totally neglected the Glen Moray distillery. Glen Moray tends to occupy the lower price tiers in the single malt market, but from what I've heard their malts are clean and refreshing. I spotted this noteworthy offering in the store recently and couldn't pass it up because if it's novelty and affordable price. So, I present to you Glen Moray 10 year old Chardonnay Cask Matured. That is matured, not finished. It's popular now with scotch malts to "finish" a whisky (which is perhaps not up to snuff) in very active casks of different varieties. Port, sherry, madiera, unfortified wine, and rum casks are common finishing vessels. Finishing usually only is undergone for a few months to a few years at the most. However, this Glen Moray was matured for a full ten years in wine casks! I'm not sure if I've ever tired a fully wine cask matured whisky before, so this ought to be interesting!

Glen Moray 10 Chardonnay Cask Matured

Color: Amber +0 (Coloring? It's slightly orange, but I have not experience with what color a chardonnay cask will impart)

ABV: 43%

Aroma Neat:
Sweet Red Apples, Kiwi, Creamy Banana, Crisp White Wine (go figure...), Honey, Caramel, Wax, Orange Juice (slightly), Mineral Water, White Peaches, Apple Juice, Sappy Oak, Sweet Char (mild), Golden Raisins, Pineapple Juice.

Certainly a sweetie on the nose, which is not usually my preferred style. However, the sweetness is very acceptable here because the delivery is so unctuously juicy and fruity.

Aroma with Water:
White Wine, Honey, Beeswax, Buttery Caramel, Lemon Juice, Fresh Bananas, Green Apples, Mineral Water (plenty), White Peaches, Tinned Pears and Pineapple, Light Syrup, Sourdough Bread/Yeasty, Apple/Orange/Pineapple Juice.

With water this whisky is very reminiscent of chardonnay, with plenty of buttery and mineral character. Still quite fruity, but overall less sweet than neat. 

Taste Neat:
Creamy Bananas, Steel Cut Oats, Tangy Barrel Char, Ice Wine, Green Grapes, Butter (slightly), Butterscotch, Fresh Spirit, Lemon Juice. 


More tang on the palate than I expected. I'm guessing it's from confluence of the wine/char influences, but it's almost peat-like. No, now I'm thinking it's untamed spirit... Crazy! As much as I hate to use a note from the label, there is undeniably a butterscotch note in here. Some nice fruit as well.

Taste with Water:
Bitter Barley, Smoky Char, Golden Raisins, Light Brown Sugar, Cantaloupe (slightly), Butterscotch, Lemon (slightly), Apple Brandy.

Much more bitter and dry with water than neat. A surprisingly large change, in fact. However, there is still an underlying sweetness which remains.


Finish:
Grapey Tannins,  Grape Juice (slightly), Smoky Char, Sour Oak, Golden Lager, Yeast, Salted Lime (slightly).


Char and some bitter notes, like crisp beer, linger for a while. The fruit bit of the finish is sadly much more short.



Conclusions:
I prefer this neat because the fruit dominates. At the end of the day, this whisky is all about fruit, so, don't dilute!

A good example of whisky and wine working well together. Takes many good elements from the chardonnay casks, which compliment the still fresh and mineral Glen Moray spirit.


Rating: 82/100

A generally tasty and singular whisky, which was rushed to market a tad too quickly. That said, I think that the Chardonnay maturation concept works really well. Glen Moray should instead release this a 12-15 year old. At only 35 USD for this 10, the producers could still make this juice affordable at a more advanced age. 

Good fun!

Josh