Glenlossie 10 Year Flora & Fauna

Bright and waxy. White fruit and a hint of green grapes. Almost refreshing in a great way

2022.10.25

Nose: Butter, cream, vanilla, heather honey, marshmallows, orchard fruits, a touch of sherry and fragrant wood. Palate: A creamy sweet arrival full of barley sugar and vanilla bean. The development is fast and rather small - little extra is added apart from some fruity and light spice tones. The texture, however, is very appealing. Finish: Medium/short. Cereal and honeyed with a slight spicy, briny note to the aftertaste. Not a particularly complex malt, but very pretty. The nose is seductive and together with the texture these are the two standout features of the dram. The palate is a little disappointing, not because it shows any great fault, it's just rather simplistic and one dimensional. I allowed this to sit for some time but there was not much development to the nose and virtually zero to the palate. I'd wager good money that Diagio uses this in their blends as a "carrier" malt to bloom the texture of a top-dressing malt that has more character, like Clynelish (they use Cardhu for this purpose as well). Water does the nose no favours, simply diluting its aromas and bringing out a slightly funky grassy note. The palate, however, broadens quite a bit and gains more spice - again, this exactly what you want to have happen in a blend that will most likely be used for mixing. It probably sounds as though I'm dismissing this whisky as a lightweight blend component and nothing more, but I actually quite enjoyed it and would consider buying a bottle. It would be a delightfully comforting and soft nightcap for those times when you feel like something soft and easy. In that regard it reminds me of Strathisla - not in profile (the two are quite different) but that's also a very safe, soft and comforting dram. However while I'd happily pay the reasonable asking price for Strathisla, this whisky costs about 50% more and the expense is not really justified. The official Distiller review is on the money - in fact all the user reviews here are on target. A perfectly nice whisky, just not very memorable and not really worth a recommendation. On the other hand I wouldn't say no to a free pour. Tasted from a 30ml sample. "Average" : 78/100 (2.75 stars)