Glenmorangie Allta

A little background

Glenmorangie is a distillery based in the Highland region of Scotland. It was founded in 1843 and has been producing single malt scotch whisky ever since. This release marks the tenth anniversary of Glenmorangie’s acclaimed Private Edition series and is the first Glenmorangie created from the yeast which grows wild on their own Cadboll barley. Glenmorangie Alta is not chill filtered, has no age statement, and is bottled at 102.4 proof . It can be found at an MSRP of $99.

(Tasted neat from a Halo Glass)

Color

Wet Hay

Nose

The nose is heavy of corn bread and raisins. Notes of mandarin orange, vanilla, and lemon are slightly present at the backend of the nose. There are youthful qualities on the nose as well with a slight alcohol burn.

Palate

The body is light. The palate is very forward with a note of buttery toffee banana, and citrus, mainly orange. Some vanilla creeps in, but is not overly present. It is very yeasty as well. The palate overall is not very complex nor deep, even for the proof.

Finish

The finish is short and filled with yeast, banana, and slight citrus notes. It fades quickly and leaves you wanting more.

In closing

I was not overly impressed with this whisky, as at fell short in many areas. I expected more out of a Glenmorangie private collection, as I typically love their more “special” whiskies. I thought the finish was lackluster and the palate should have stood out a little more given the proof. I will say that I give them props for their innovation to try something new by utilizing yeast harvested from their own Cadboll barley. In the end, I found the big yeasty notes to be slightly off-putting. That being said, it is not a bad whiskey at all. I still enjoyed it for what it was, I just wouldn’t buy it for my personal collection.