Amrut Intermediate Sherry

Rating: 19/23 N: There's a lot of malt on the nose and syrupy sweetness. With them comes some surprising vegetal notes that then merge into some strong sherry cask character. I definitely get some nutty, lemony oloroso. There's something more on the juicy, floral red fruit side as well, but it's hard to place and it could be some of the full malt coming through. I smell a bit of wood too, but not a tremendous amount. As it sits in my glass, that malty sweetness turns into caramel and a bit of dried fruit in the range of raisin or currant comes through. I also start getting a little bit of orange peel as this opens up and balances. The vegetal funkiness comes under control better. P: Immediately malty and vegetal with a bit of a youthful sweetness - though not a rough or brash profile. There's some heat, but it isn't harsh. That Amrut sort of waxiness hits pretty quickly and it sticks around, enhanced by the oloroso nuttiness and lemon. There's a bit of prickly spiciness throughout with some faint cloves, ginger, and cinnamon at points. I get moments of salt and brine as well. The sweetness starts turning more fruity and some wood starts coming out along with it before morphing the malty aspect of the sweetness into caramel a bit. This is not nearly as sweet, full of fruit, mellow, and floral as GlenDronach 15. This is more funky like it has a bit of Glenfarclas life to it. It has a much bigger oloroso bite to it than the likes of Lismore 21 and there's also a greater syrupy sweetness to it. Those casks really show through here, kind of on the borderline of what I would consider to be hedonistic and what seems like just too much sherry. Glenfarclas 105 is way funkier, grassier, and more herbal with some rougher youthful spirit characteristics. F: This might actually be the high point. The palate has some elements that haven't fully cohered, but the finish mellows them so they come together nicely. The wood really comes out more, without tasting overly assertive. There's still a nice amount of sweetness from the fruit, blending into the malt, blending into the caramel. That all is tied into the wood by the nuttiness. The wood then fades into that tart waxiness. It really tastes like a mature, well-executed product. - Conclusion - This is challenging at first, but it balances out over the course of a half pour or so. Don't just take a sip of it. There is no question that this beats Glenfarclas 105 by a solid margin. This is more in the GlenDronach 15 and Lismore 21 range. This is a tough call to make from a sample, but I don't see how I could go below a 17 for this. On the high end, I can see a 20, or just maybe a 21. I'm torn between an 18 and a 19 right now. I gave Lismore 21 a 19 and I'm more confident in that score than I am in the 18 I gave GlenDronach 15, so I'll give this a 19 as well. I have one more sample that I'm looking forward to trying side by side with my bottle of Amrut Kadhambam (yet another 19), once I open that bottle. Thank you @PBMichiganWolverine for unearthing this bottle and opening it to share a sample!

NOSE: Printer's ink, dark fruit leather, cocoa, nuts, graham, citrus peel, olde candy, leather, candied blueberries and spice. It's not your typical sherry cask. This is a brooding aroma, a heavy sulking thing that lumbers through the senses. PALATE: Ink, iodine, sticky dried dark fruit, malt, cocoa, candied citrus, baking spice, blueberries, ashy char and some nutty notes. Compared to the heavy aroma the palate of this Amrut Intermediate Sherry is almost light. It's balanced, bright, delicious, and far too easy to drink. FINISH: Long -> Dried dark fruit, spice, ash and nuts that fade out bright and elegant.

Open now for 5 months ...delicious

Perfect sherry maturing.

Ticks all the boxes for me! Great whisky. Rich and full of flavours. Sherry, fruity, tropical. Wow!

That’s nice. Strong, sweet, but not overpowering. Got a high alcohol content and had punch but not just vapours. Christmas cake, oak. It’s a strong cast strength whisky. Not especially memorable, but very solid.

Sophisticated and fun...This is another stunner from Amrut. Smells like a sherry bomb, and finishes with an impressive bouquet of spices. It as if every sip starts out red-vine licorice and travels into old-fashioned black licorice. This bottle will be hard too reach past, and I’m glad there seems to be adequate supply out there in my area. If looking at the experience profile of this on a chart, I would expect to see a "bow-tie." This is a thrilling whisky with dramatic swings. 5.0 - go out and buy all of the stock you can find. 4.0 - must buy at least one bottle before you die. 3.0 - solid, must try at a bar, or mooch from a friend. 2.0 - didn't like it, you may. 1.0 - you may have the palate of my dog, and he licks his own ass.