Glen Moray 10 Year Old – Chardonnay Cask Matured

I think it’s a safe assumption to say that anyone reading this blog can’t help but wander down the spirits aisle in the supermarket as part of the trip. I always do, in the full knowledge that I will be presented with the standard “entry-level” offerings from only the larger distilleries. I’ve tried most of them, and those that I enjoy I’ve added to the shelf. But I still go back, for fear of missing out.

I have twice struck gold in my absent minded wanderings. Last year, Tesco decided they were cutting ties with Ardbeg and dropped the price of all remaining stock. This was well publicised and I picked up one bottle for about £25 before they all disappeared. However, several weeks later, some more bottles turned up for the ludicrous price of £17 and I cleared the shelf.

The second instance happened more recently in Sainsbury’s. Next to the readily available Glen Moray Elgin Classic and Sherry Cask was a ghost, of sorts. The Chardonnay matured 10 year old has slowly been leaving shelves with no new bottles coming as replacements, I hadn’t seen one for sale outside of large specialists for years. But there it was, for £26, alive and breathing.

The chardonnay 10 was one of the first bottles I bought and quickly finished. For a newcomer to whisky as I was at the time, it was an ideal introduction. All the hallmarks that seasoned drinkers might look for (higher abv, non-chill filtration and natural colour) are missing, but hey, if you’ve not experienced much whisky, 40% alcohol is enough to be getting on with. Given the circumstances, the Glen Moray 10 year old has special place in my whisky journey and I was more than happy to add a third bottle to my stockpile, though this is now sadly close to becoming two once again.

Glen Moray 10 Year Old – 40% – bought for £26, discontinued but still available at the usual places.

Nose – a fresh fruit salad, with melon, pear, kiwi and strawberries all in the mix. A generous dollop of vanilla ice cream is added and honey drizzled over. A slightly sour hit of lemon, as well as toasted cereal notes and almond. With time (both in the glass and through the course of a bottle) the oak influence grows, overtaking the fruitiness. 7.5

Palate – almost decadent, with sweetness hitting first, more fruit salad mirroring the nose, but with an added richness. Double cream and plenty of melon, pear and perhaps some peach as well. Time brings a gentle spiciness, all spice, nutmeg and almost aniseed. 7.5

Finish – sweetness from the end of the palate becomes spicy and bitter from a firm cask grip. 6.5

Total Score: 21.5 / 30

As I’ve mentioned, this bottle being one of the first I truly enjoyed means that I will always be biased in my appreciation for it. Its straightforward flavours remind me of childhood and fruit salad from cans with ice cream in the summer. It does lose some of the fruity flavours as the bottle level drops, so drink up!

The ability of whisky to evoke memories like this does is surely one of the greatest pleasures we as drinkers, can draw from it. I’ll be sad when there is no more to be found of this bottling, but whilst it’s still available, maybe a fourth bottle isn’t such a bad idea….