Until we got together for the Malt Nuts Glen Moray tasting, I wasn’t overly familiar with this distillery. Sure I’ve had some here and there at tastings and friend’s houses, what novel concepts that all seems now, but I’ve never taken the time to buy a couple bottles, sit down and get to know Glen Moray.
Though that’s the way it’s been with many of the distilleries we’ve dug into at Malt Nuts; Glen Elgin being a great example of that. Which we’ve ended up hitting twice so far. That’s one of my favorite things about Malt Nuts, it’s always presenting something new.
As usual the bottles were blinded and broken down into rounds which ended up looking like this.
- Round 1: ex-Bourbon or “oak aged” Glen Moray
- Round 2: ex-Sherry, wine or other non-bourbon cask Glen Moray
In these days of isolation and quarantine I’m excited to re-live this, so let’s get to it!
Round 1: ex-Bourbon or “oak aged” Glen Moray
1A: Alexander Murray Glen Moray 13 years: 53.4%
Nose: Honey, malt, rum-style sweetness and spice, minerality, orchard fruit and lemon.
Palate: Ditto with a touch of honey and and green apples.
Finish: Med -> Apples and vanilla taffy.
Overall: (3 / 5) Sweet and malty with a standard ‘single malt” profile.
1B: Archives Glen Moray 11 years: 59.5%
Nose: Vanilla, honeycomb, orchard fruit, spice.
Palate: Spirity, vanilla, honeycomb, hay, apples.
Finish: Med -> Apples, toffee, honey.
Overall: (2 / 5) Turns harsh and cloying, tad sour, as it opens.
1C: Battlehill Glen Moray 10 years: 53%
Nose: Honeycomb Cereal, vanilla, hay, spice and malt.
Palate: Touch cooca, char, hay, spice and vanilla.
Finish: Med -> Cocoa, apples and hay.
Overall: (2.5 / 5) Sweet and spicy a bit of a raw sawdust thing going on.
1D: A.D. Rattray Glen Moray 10 years (07-18): 58.3% – 1st Fill Bourbon Hogshead
Nose: Honeycomb Cereal, vanilla, hay, spice and malt with a buttery aspect.
Palate: Coppery, buttery, fruity and a touch floral.
Finish: Med -> Malty copper
Overall: (2.5 / 5) Sweet and hot and partially candy sweet.
1E: Exclusive Malts Glen Moray 9 years (08-07): 55.7% – 1st Fill ex-Bourbon
Nose: Alcohol, honey, toffee, vanilla, malt, spice.
Palate: Super fruity, toffee, vanilla, malt and spice
Finish: Med -> Orchard fruit, alcohol, toffee.
Overall: (1.5 / 5) Starts crisp, turns minerally and waxy with a stale dried fruit profile creeping in
1F: Single Cask Nation Glen Moray 11 years (03-15): 61.2% – 1st Fill ex-Bourbon
Nose: Lightly sweet, chat, honey, spice and apples.
Palate: Sweet, touch fruity, toffee, vanilla, malt and spice.
Finish: Med -> Orchard fruit, alcohol, toffee.
Overall: (2.5 / 5)
1G: Old Malt Cask Glen Moray 23 years (95-18): 49.8% – Refill Barrel
Nose: Buttery pastry, apples, caramel, oily, dried fruit.
Palate: Popcorn, pastry, apples, caramel, metallic notes.
Finish: Long -> Medicinal, apples, metallic.
Overall: (2.5 / 5) Sweet and copppery / tinny with a touch of sweetness that turns charred as it opens.
1H: Dram Collection Glen Moray 12 years (02-15): 56.2% – Hogshead
Nose: Fruit, cherries, sherbet, orchard fruit, honey, acetone.
Palate: Malt, fruit, clay, sherbet, orchard fruit, honey.
Finish: Long -> Malt, clay, orchard fruit and honey.
Overall: (2.5 / 5) Sweet and fruity but a bit light.
Round 2: ex-Sherry, wine or other non-bourbon cask Glen Moray
2A: The Octave Glen Moray 8 years (09-18): 52%
Nose: Sherry, vanilla, blackberry, honey and fruit.
Palate: Hay, brittle, vanilla, blackberry, honey.
Finish: Long -> Dark sweets, char and honey.
Overall: (3.5 / 5) Sweetness and depth with malty and darkly sweet notes playing well together.
2B: SMWS 35.247 Glen Moray 11 years (08-19): 65% – 2nd Fill Butt/ex-Oloroso
Nose: Sulfur, char, dark fruit, vanilla, blackberry, cream, spice.
Palate: Sulfur, hazelnuts, dark fruit leather, blackberry yogurt.
Finish: Long -> Dark sweets, sulfur, hazelnuts.
Overall: (3.5 / 5)
2C: Single Cask Nation Glen Moray 12 years (04-16): 54.7% – 1st Fill ex-Bourbon, 1st Fill ex-Madeira
Nose: Sulfur, dark fruit, sherry, melon, char, cherries and plums.
Palate: Sulfur, char, sherry, melon and plums.
Finish: Long -> sulfur, Cheerios, melon and orchard fruit.
Overall: (3 / 5) Sweet and a touch winey, picks up some metallic notes as it opens.
2D: SMWS 35.111 Glen Moray 12 years (01-13): 59.3% – Refill Hogshead/Chardonnay
Nose: Apples, lemon, malty vanilla, honey, butterscotch and char.
Palate: Apples, lemon, malty grape, smoke, vanilla, honey, butterscotch and char.
Finish: Long -> Smoke, char and sweetness.
Overall: (3 / 5) Sweet and charred and peated with cocoa notes.
2E: Liquid Treasures Glen Moray 10 years (08-19): 59.2% – Sherry Hogshead
Nose: Butterscotch, honey, fruit, char, dark fruit and brittle.
Palate: Butter, graham, honey, fruit and char.
Finish: Long -> Fruit, buttered bread.
Overall: (2.5 / 5) Touch herbally, piney and opens to turmeric/curry notes.
2F: Single Cask Nation Glen Moray 7 years (06-14): 58.8% – 1st Fill Fino Sherry Butt
Nose: Sherry, honey, brown sugar, dark fruit, brittle, fruit
Palate: Sour herbal, sherry, spice, dark fruit and metal.
Finish: Long -> Fruit, dark fruit, herbal and metallic.
Overall: (3.5 / 5) Gets a tad perfumy as it opens but stay balanced.
Well, there ya have it. Nothing that night truly blew me away, but by far the most interesting was the SCN aged in the Fino Butt. It was the most unique and at the end of the night was the one I wanted to take home the most. It was delightful.
If you have any expressions of Glen Moray you’ve particularly enjoyed let me know in the comments. Cheers!
