Glenlivet 1968 39 Year Old Lonach

The Lonach Gathering is a yearly gathering of Scottish Clans in Strathdon (Highlands). It dates back to 1822. The whisky with the same name is brought to the market as a cask strength whisky by Duncan Taylor. This well-known independent bottler came up with a unique concept for these Lonach bottlings. It's a vatting of different casks of which some are over-proof (above 40% ABV) and others under-proof (lower than 40% ABV and hence impossible to be bottled on their own). That explains the relatively low ABV for this whisky at cask strength.

The nose is nicely sweet with a whiff of sour. Aside for the ubiqitous vanilla I am reminded of the seminola porridge my granny used to put in front of me.

The taste is a combination of sweetness (vanilla, fruit), spices (nutmeg), sourness (as in citrus fruit) and... stale beer. That's a bit of a let down. It even reminds me a little of sweat, which is something you do not expect - nor appreciate - in a fruity Speysider. Pity.

The finish is not very impressive either. Short and devoid of new developments.

I had high expectations of this Glenlivet at respectable age. But I'm less than impressed. Pity as a bottle will set you back a little over £100 (if you can still find it). It goes to show - insofar as that was still needed - that age and quality are not synonyms by definition.

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