WhiskyNotes » Glenugie

Glenugie 1977 31yo (Signatory)

Ruben — Sat, 22 May 2010 11:00:00 +0000

When you have a look at Whiskyfun’s distillery ranking, most of the 5-star ‘grand crus classés’ are well-known brands: Ardbeg, Brora, Lagavulin and Talisker. The fifth one is a name you don’t see very often: Glenugie. Instead of giving you more information, let me guide you to this website.

I’ve had one Glenugie 1982/2009 OMC before and it was pretty wonderful. Today I’m trying a single cask Glenugie 1977 31 years old.
What should you know about this one?
- bottled by Signatory,
- 24 years in bourbon oak + 7 years in oloroso sherry oak,
- picked up a silver medal at the 2009 Malt Maniacs Awards.

I don’t think I’ve reviewed a Signatory Vintage Cask Strength release before, but they’re usually very interesting, and not only for their nicely shaped bottle.

Glenugie 31 yo 1977
(58,1%, Signatory Vintage 2009, cask #7, 577 btl.)

Nose: starts on milk chocolate and lovely fruits (gooseberry, kiwi) with spicy oak. Honey. The sherry adds meaty / rubber notes which I find a bit of a bummer because it mutes the freshness of the fruits. Water helps to hide the rubber and bring out leather and more fruit though. Complex. Mouth: spicy, quite herbal and slightly resinous. Underneath there are fruity notes: strawberries, oranges, cassis this time. Not the classic old Speyside profile but not heavy sherry either. Water adds meaty notes and chocolate. Some nutmeg. Quite savoury and a bit half-hearted maybe but very powerful and confident. Finish: dry and slightly bitter. Slightly tannic with hints of tea.

I was less impressed than last time because the fruit basket is less exhuberant, and the powerful spicy oak keeps it out of the 90’s for me. But it’s certainly rewarding and anything but mediocre. Around € 160. A sister cask (cask #1 – same oloroso treatment) was released a few weeks ago.

Score: 87/100

Glenugie 1977 Deoch an Doras

Ruben — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 08:22:00 +0000

Although Glenugie (also known as Invernettie) is not a popular brand,
I seemed to like every expression I was able to try. Twenty years had gone by since the last official bottling, but a couple of months ago this new Glenugie 1977 Deoch an Doras was released.

‘Deaoch an Doras’ translates as ‘Dram at the door’ because the distillery was closed in 1983 and its spirit is on the verge of going away forever. It was matured for 32 years and is obviously from a sherry cask (maybe two).

Please note that it states 55,48% of alcohol. Did Chivas invest in a new Alcometer® UltraFine™ Professional?

Glenugie 32 yo 1977 ‘Deoch an Doras’ (55,48%, OB 2010, 500 btl.)

Nose: rich and fragrant with beautifully elegant sherry. It shows classic notes (raisins, chocolate) but they’re overtaken by fresh and bursting fruits: raspberry and other red fruits, oranges, gooseberries, guava… A little eucalyptus. All spiced up by precious wood, llibrary aromas and a floral element (whiffs of old roses and peonies). Remarkable for a 32yo. Rich and what a balance! Mouth: intense with different layers. There’s plenty of wood, but enough fruit to compensate (lots of orange cake, some apricot, raspberries again, prunes). Cinnamon, a little nutmeg. Almonds. Hints of cough syrup, but never crossing the line of becoming too oaky. Finish: fading very slowly on big chocolate notes and liquorice. Hints of tea.

In terms of luscious fruitiness, this Glenugie reminds us of the famous Longmorn 1972 by Whisky Agency or some of the best GlenDronach. A great nose with pretty well-controlled oak on the palate. Very expensive (€ 300) but part of a disappearing whisky tradition. Only available from the official Chivas shop (UK residents only) or TWE.

Score: 92/100

Glenugie 1982 (Douglais Laing)

Ruben — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 22:00:29 +0000

It’s always nice to have a dram from a distillery you haven’t tasted before. This will be my first Glenugie. It used to be the easternmost distillery in Scotland, founded in 1831 but closed and dismantled during the whisky crisis of 1983. There are no official bottlings and independent ones are scarce.

Glenugie 27yo 1982
(50%, Douglas Laing Old Malt Cask 2009, DL ref. 5040, 216 btl.)

Nose: starts on vanilla and flowers. Quite a sweet but fresh nose, reminds me of a good (flowery) moscatel wine. Hints of bergamot and pollen. Developing on fruit candy. Pineapple, orange marmalade, peach. Caramelized apples. Pears on syrup. Slightly waxy as well. What can I say: wow! Mouth: here we go again… all sorts of fruits or fruit liqueurs, candy sugar, hints of cake and marmalade. Vanilla. Marzipan. The oakiness is well controlled for the age. More herbal notes towards the end. Finish: very creamy, soft vanilla. Medium length.

Glenugie is often ignored and getting difficult to find, but I think this one is a hidden gem. The previous cask of Glenugie in the Douglas Laing Old Malt Cask series was quite popular, and I can see why. TWE has an interesting price (£ 100) whereas the rest of Europe seems to charge around € 140. Don’t say I didn’t warn you about this one!