I have to tell you, I miss the Glenlivet expressions from before!

I have to tell you, I miss the Glenlivet expressions from before!

At one point in my whisky journey, my collection consisted of mostly Glenlivet expressions. Now you’re asking yourself - really Mike, Glenlivet?

I was drawn to the Glenlivet Single Casks Range and at one point I had seventeen of them! The highlight was the original single cask ever released from the distillery, the 40 Year Atlantic which was released in 2005!

There was something special about these releases as the team focused on selecting great quality casks based on flavor profile and of which country they will be released in. Now when it comes to blends, a master blender can create something based on the profile a typical consumer expects. However, choosing a single cask can be a touch more difficult.

Of the releases I still have a good amount of them however some were enjoyed at some Glenlivet events in which the attendees were blown away at the chance of tasting these rare expressions.

The bottle in the photo is of the Glenlivet Helios 20 Year bottled on November 14th, 2011 from cask number 60521. This is a rare Glenlivet bottled at cask-strength without chill-filtration. This whisky was matured in a second fill hogshead cask which only yielded 307 bottles.

What I love about this expression is you see the distilleries style with it being matured in the second fill hothead cask. Lots of tropical fruit in this one, nutmeg and toffee and a touch of raspberry jam!

This was definitely a time where Glenlivet became a staple to whisky geeks searching for unique expressions - they were one of the first to release single casks that really set them apart then.

My worry is that we have seen the best of Glenlivet already or is there something up their sleeves that will get us excited again. For now we wait.
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