GlenDronach Original 12 Year

Smooth start and finish sweet

Nose: kind of numb, gotta work for that simple but familiar sherry smell. Taste: Warm and simple sherry bomb. Not quite 1 dimensional but just a crowd pleaser Highlands, very easy to drink, and have several.

Nose- sweet and jammy with a strawberry preserve tanginess. Fruits abound here along with cereal notes almost like a granola or cereal bar. Palate- soft and buttery mouthfeel. Plump, gold raisins leap from the glass with some plum and fig flavors. There is a bit of sulphur note, but not enough to wreck the sip. This is sweet but not overdone as strawberry jam is evened out by oak and maltiness. I really enjoy the sweet-sour playfulness this has. There is also a nuttiness that goes along with it-- almost like a holiday fruitcake. The Sherry really plays well with the malt. Finish- medium to long finish. There is a nice warming with a slight alcohol bite. The raisin note is the dominant one along with a bit of barnyard hay. The flaw here is just a slight wave of bitterness and some drying wood right at the very end. Overall- This is really good. I had this at cask strength prior to trying this. The cask selection was a real treat. I was reluctant that this would pale in comparison. I am pleasantly surprised! The profile is so similar, albeit the cask strength was amped up. I will say that this bottle does not appear to taste watered down or have become tannic with a bit of downproofing although that small bit of bitter woodiness at the very end makes the slight difference. For 69.99 though......this bottle is a winner!