Glenlivet Nadurra Oloroso Batch OLO614

I'm not the only one who claims the original Nadurra 16 Cask Strength as one of their favorite whiskies of all time. I mean come on! That near perfect crisp green apple served at a deliciously high strength has made many an evening.

There's a number of Nadurras in circulation. There is the first-fill bourbon aged for 16 years and then bottled at cask strength (which varies in the mid 50s ABV). Then there is the slightly watered down to 48% version of the same whisky. There is a 1991 vintage known as the Triumph.

And now this latest NAS offering matured in Oloroso casks found pretty much only in travel retail.

For those who read my reviews know that I am wary of Oloroso influencing good whisky and completely taking over it. I have seen it happen on many occasions. Perfectly reasonable whiskies get treated with Oloroso overkill and are reduced to muddy, sweet syrup which hide the true essence of the expression.

I've seen it happen too many times and I'm seeing it again!

This NAS Nadurra matured in Oloroso is bottled at 48% and my sample is from a brand new bottle (code 0L0614)

Nose: Manuka honey. Orange. Brown chocolate. Very earthy. Autumn leaves. Clove. Cherry. Licorice. Strawberry jam. Port or some other type of fortified wine. Soft dates. The nose is not too bad. Quite typical Oloroso influence.

Palate: Full mouthfeel. Mild cinnamon. Bitter chocolate. Dark honey. Plums. Coconut oil. Oak. Gets quite savory mid-palate. Gets more muddy. More confused. Starts off nice but loses grip towards the end.

Finish: Barely there. Maybe some oak. Maybe some cinnamon.

Why try and fix something which is not only not broken but quite gloriously in one brilliant piece? Maybe the new Nadurra spirit coming out of Glenlivet is not as pristine as it's predecessor and, hence, the Oloroso plays a masking game? Perhaps. I certainly hope not.

Regardless the result is slightly below average whisky which doesn't even come close to it's 16 year old namesake. Quite sad, indeed.

A few years ago Glenlivet released their 16 year old "Nadurra" (Gaelic for "natural"), a non-chill filtered cask strength whisky. This newer edition of the Nadurra range is NAS and matured exclusively in first-fill Oloroso sherry casks. This is batch OL0614, bottled in June 2014. Note that the water I use is the Uisge Source Speyside Water of Scotland (from the Cairngorms Well in Moray).

The colour is a deep gold. This has a deep rich dark fruitcake nose, very rum-raisin. Cloves, baked apples and dark brown sugar. Water nicely opens everything up and brings out some red liquorice. Unfortunately, a sulphurous off-note scorches what are otherwise long and rich scents; this could also use a little more age.

Spicier on the palate, with cinnamon and paprika, more dried fruits, dark honey and black liquorice. Cherry (well, Black Forest Cake if you factor in the sweetness and baking spices) is wrapped in musty leather armchair. But it's a little too sherried to my liking, and still a little sulphurous. Water lightens up the palate a little, but this malt doesn't really need water (surprising given the high ABV.)

The finish is too chalky and fuzzy, though it gives notes of tanned leather and warm spices. Despite some richness and depth, for me this is quite disappointing as I really enjoyed their first Nadurra edition (and I generally like Glenlivet, especially independent bottlings that are cask-strength), but this time around I find it lacking in subtlety and finesse - but maybe I shouldn't be looking for that in a cask-strength first-fill Oloroso! BUT then again - compare this to Aberlour a'Bunadh Batch 47, which is also an NAS Speysider, non-chill filtered, matured in first-fill Oloroso, and bottled cask-strength at 60.7% (exactly as this Glenlivet is); there you will find that subtlety and finesse missing here. Being so close in makeup, it's fascinating to taste these two side-by-side, comparing and contrasting their qualities. Aberlour wins, by the way, but you be the judge.