Glenlivet Nadurra Peated Whisky Cask Finish

As I found instantly that this is too strong as cask strength, I've written the review with some (maybe 1 part water to 3 parts whiskey) water added.

Color is pale, but has a nice "platinum" shine, so the whiskey looks good. Aroma is quite mild and alcoholic (faint impression of vodka). Palate starts from a slight, but pleasant burn on the tongue that leaves dryness on the tongue. The back of my mouth on the other hand exhibits no dryness, but more like oiliness. After a while the refreshing menthol-like burn spreads to the mouth. It's a good palate. The whiskey feels quite elastic, it's more elastic than what I'm used to. Medium maltiness spreads to the mouth. Faint plum overnotes, faint licorice, some "eating chili"-like sensation caused by the burn, quite strong wood taste that's not "explicit" though, but rather it layers neatly with the other tastes. Some fresh cut grass in aftertaste. The tastes feel that they're very well connected, no part feels like it overwhelms the others or is "separate" from others. Rather, they all seem to "compress" on the middle and it's accompanied by the refreshing menthol-burn felt on the sides. It's not too sweet (which is a thing that I usually dislike in Speysides), still it has all those usual qualities of Speysides in very harmonious portions. The "peatiness" is quite unnoticeable, but compared to a "pure speyside" this does have faint Islay-characteristics to it. In essence, it strikes a sort of middle ground with "lightly peated" Islay and a fruity, honey-like Speyside. It's better than what I usually find in Speysides. It's not Islay enough though in order to really call it "heavily peated" (even when the bottle mentions "heavily peated whisky casks"). A very fine presentation in the styles that I mentioned. Particularly, this is top-tier when considered in the Speyside genre. On the other hand, it might be a bit "boring" to some. It has complexity and depth, but it's not very complex.

Find where to buy Glenlivet whisky