Milsean is the seventh, and therefore latest, annual release in the Private Edition series from Glenmorangie. Milsean is Scots Gaelic for “sweet things” and gives you already a pretty good idea what this expression is all about. But before we delve more into this, let me say how happy I am to see that Glenmorangie is taking the Private Edition series back to its roots because for me, this series is all about special and well selected casks. So yeah, I am really excited for that expression, especially after the pretty disappointing Tùsail from last year.

Anyways, Milesan was finished in re-toasted wine casks after a first maturation in ex-Bourbon barrels. Now, I find wine finishes always a bit tricky, because there is not much middling ground. They are either hit or miss, at least in my opinion. That said, Glenmorangie released with the Companta a truly superb wine finished expression a few years ago, so I have some high hopes when it comes to the Milsean.

As for the packaging, I don’t really mind it as much as some others do. To be honest, I somewhat like this retro candy shop look and I think it just fits the “sweet things” theme.

Facts

Nose

Definitely lives up to its name. Just imagine a big cup filled with coconut, citrus and mint ice cream. With raspberry sauce. And roasted almonds. And gummy bears. And vanilla marshmallows. And some cocktail cherries on top. And while I find all this sweetness rather pleasant, it feels also a bit artificial at times.

Taste

Fruity and very sweet as expected, but there is also an interesting spicy touch. Vanilla and coconut as well as William Pears, balanced by oak, but without the bitterness. Overripe mangoes alongside hints of plums, oranges and honey.

Finish

Medium to long. Sweet and slightly bitter with warming spices. Candied ginger together with some fruits, hard to tell which ones though. Altogether a little bit flat.

Overall

Not very complex, but almost dangerously tasty. Does the Milsean bring the Privat Edition back to its former glory? No, it doesn’t, at least in my opinion. But at least the series is back on the right track, so let’s see what next year brings!

Score: good but not exceptional (86 / 100)

Sample provided by spiritscorner.eu

Glenmorangie The Tayne (old spelling for Tain) is the latest addition to the Legends bottling series, a collection of single malts exclusive to Travel Retail. This expression was inspired by the legend of a Spanish Galleon which sunk in the Dornoch Firth (than known as the Firth of Tayne) after it got separated from the Spanish Armada during the England invasion in 1588. In connection with the theme, The Tayne was finished in ex-Amontillado casks.

As reported by the Whisky Gospel, The Tayne and The Duthac will become permanent additions at Travel Retail, replacing the trio of Nectar D’Or, Lasanta and Quinta Ruban. But no worries, all three expressions will be still available in normal shops.

Facts

Nose

Very, very light. Roasted nuts, maybe not the roasted chestnuts from the official tasting notes, but definitely some macadamia nuts and cashews, and maybe some walnuts as well. Espresso sweetened with brown sugar, honeyed raisins and chocolate-covered coffee beans. Sweet red grapes and figs. Candy floss. Floral hints in the back.

Taste

Oily, warming and spicy. Citrus peels, mangoes and papayas. Burnt popcorn with caramel sauce. Hints of walnuts and coffee.

Finish

Medium to long and slightly spicy. Dried fruits, milk chocolate, bitter citrus fruits and coffee.

Overall

A bit different, but definitely tasty and very enjoyable. That said, I think this expression would benefit from a higher strength (let’s say 46% ABV).

Score: good but not exceptional (84 / 100)

Sample provided by spiritscorner.eu

So another — what else would you expect —  limited edition (UK only), this time inspired by Glenmorangie’s tradition to treat The Sixteen Men of Tain with a special whisky for the holiday season. A Midwinter Night’s Dram was first matured in ex-Bourbon casks and was then finished in ex-Oloroso Sherry casks. Sounds familiar to me…

Facts

Nose

Creamy with a soft sweetness. Sweet oranges, lots of them. Canned pears, bottled cherries and dried fruits. Reminds me of warm wassail. Walnuts and macadamia nuts. Toffee. More oaky and minty after a while. Yes, very wintry indeed.

Taste

Warm and spicy. Walnuts and burnt caramel, alongside hints of oranges, ginger and honey. Dark chocolate creme with citrus peels. Some peppery oak in the back.

Finish

Short and warming with a dry creaminess of sweet malt and green walnuts.

Overall

Doesn’t disappoint, but doesn’t add anything new either. Don’t get me wrong, this is a very solid expression for sure, but in my opinion, they just repacked the old Lasanta and slapped a higher price tag on it. Why spend the extra bucks when I can get the “original” for a fraction of the price?

Score: good but not exceptional (84 / 100)

Alright, Dornoch is a limited travel retail edition inspired by the Dornoch Firth, the shore where Glenmorangie is located. In order to preserve this beautiful estuary, Glenmorangie makes a donation to the Marine Conservation Society for every bottle sold.

But enough of the backstory, let’s talk about the whisky itself. Dornoch combines whisky matured in first-fill ex-bourbon casks and lightly peated whisky finished in ex-Amontillado Sherry casks and comes without an age statement but with a pretty high price tag (around 75€).

By the way, a new travel retail bottling named Glenmorangie Talogan will replace the Dornoch in March or April.

Facts

Nose

Very light. Grass, hey and even some raw malt. Roasted almonds and peanuts, hard caramel and Granny Smiths. Maybe some vanilla, too. Undertones of floral perfume.

Taste

Lots of lemons. Nougat, apple juice and a few oranges. Oak. Hints of mint chocolate. Perhaps some minimal smoke with a lot of good will.

Finish

Medium. Lemon candies,caramel and a tiny bit vanilla.

Overall

Solid, but not a lot more. Could be a nice entry level expression with the right price tag.

Score: average but worth a try ( 80 / 100)

Sample provided by spiritscorner.eu

Alright, the first one for today is The Taghta, which is Scots Gaelic for ‘The Chosen’. A fitting name because Glenmorangie tried something new by letting fans in over 30 countries decide about things like the finishing cask, the name or the label design through online polls, making it the “world’s first crowdsourced whisky”.

Speaking of the finishing cask, Manzanilla is a dry, delicate and sometimes salty kind of fino sherry.  A unusual choice perhaps, but I’m all up for some variety.

Facts

Nose

At first maybe sweeter than expected, but the Manzanilla comes definitely through after a short while. Big sweet oranges, canned pears and dried lemons, followed by salted almonds and milk chocolate with caramel. Interesting notes of green olives. Hints of the typical Glenmorangie floweriness in the back. Altogether very elegant, but maybe a bit too light.

Taste

Quite acid, although there is a light sweetness, too. Frozen lemon custard, raisin liqueur and candied ginger. Whiffs of white pepper. Pickled olives.

Finish

Rather medium with a dry saltiness. Candied ginger, lemon bonbons, orange marmalade, walnuts. A bit of white pepper.

Overall

Interesting, but a bit all over the place. Maybe Ex-Manzanilla Casks weren’t the best choice, because they don’t match that well with the spirit.

Score: good but not exceptional (81 / 100)

Sample provided by spiritscorner.eu

Nowadays it seems like every other new release from Glenmorangie is the start of a new series. And sure enough, the Duthac is no exception as it marks the start of a new series called “Legends” while continuing the trend of LVMH-owned distilleries to release non age statement expressions. What really sets it apart from other more recent releases from the LVMH group is the complete lack of media hype before the release. It just hit the travel retail shelves without anyone taking too much notice of it, myself included.

Nevertheless, it comes with all that marketing mumbo-jumbo new releases (or at least some of them) have nowadays but nobody really needs.

Starts with an explanation about why they chose the name Duthac:

This expression honours the annual pilgrimage made by King James IV to the shrine of St Duthac in Tain.

And moves on with what the Legends Collection is all about:

Glenmorangie Legends is a unique collection of single malt whiskies exclusive for Travel Retail. Each expression has been carefully crafted by Dr Bill Lumsden to capture the spirit of its own unique tale, inspired by the legendary lands that have been home to the Glenmorangie Distillery since 1843.

Followed by a lengthy explanation about how they “captured the spirits own unique tale”:

To a selection of single malt aged in ex-bourbon casks, Dr Bill carefully married two parcels of spirit finished in casks representing the King’s often contrasting nature. The first, appropriately finished in casks from ‘the King of Sherries’ – Pedro Ximénez, to add a layer of rich sweetness exemplifying the King’s tempered, diplomatic side. The second, finished in charred virgin oak casks, providing an intense, spicy side embodying the King’s fiery, impulsive nature.

And to be fair here, this combination is pretty unique for sure, especially the part with the charred virgin casks. Anyways, their conclusion reads:

A whisky fit for a king.

Um, sure, why not I guess? So time to see what this “worthy for a king” whisky has in store for us!

Facts

Glenmorangie Duthac

Nose

Sweet vanilla ice cream paired with apple cookies with raisins. Then rather nutty with almonds, peanuts and nutmeg. Hints of cinnamon toffee.

Taste

Oily and very sweet. Peaches, sweet plums and a small bar of milk chocolate. Followed by distinctive sherry notes. A little bit more spicy towards the end with a whiff of white pepper.

Finish

Long. A bit sweet, a bit spicy, but a lot of vanilla.

Overall

Well-made and very enjoyable? Yes. A lot of complexity and variety? No. A whisky fit for a king? Maybe if the king is a sweet tooth. Overall easy to drink and agreeable but does not bring much new to the table.

Score: 81 / 100

Sample provided by Thorsten Jung (Spiritscorner.eu)

Glenmorangie Tùsail is the sixth, and therefore latest, annual release in the Private Edition series from Glenmorangie. Tùsail is Gaelic for “origination” or “original”. But wait, isn’t there already a Glenmorangie named “The Original”? Yeah right, the 10 Year Old standard bottling is named “The Original”. Well then, which of the two is now more original? So you see, maybe not the cleverest marketing strategy of all times. But all semi-serious kidding aside, let’s see what Tùsail is really about.

The name makes reference to the used barley which is Maris Otter. Most people (myself included) probably never heard of this type of barley before but a few decades ago it was widely used to meet the need for a high quality brewing malt. However it fell out of style to make place for higher-yielding varieties. In this sense Tùsail is a “old-fashioned” whisky made from a nowadays rarely used barley which got floor-malted by hand. Ah, the good old times.

So for this release the focus is on the raw material and not on the cask type. But for me the Private Edition is all about special and well selected casks. Therefore I am a bit on the fence to be honest. But let’s see if Tùsail can disperse my doubts.

Facts

Glenmorangie Tùsail

Nose

Dried apricots and peaches. Than vanilla infused honey comes around the corner. Developing aromas of malt, wholemeal flour and sour dough. Freshly chopped hazelnuts.

Taste

Full-bodied with a dry touch. Sweet malt, vanilla biscuits and toffee. A kick of spice – rose pepper, ginger and some bits of chili chocolate.

Finish

medium-length, a bit dry oak, a short intermezzo of cinnamon and ginger with a focus on the latter.

Overall

A truly beautiful and complex nose. Unfortunately this is pretty much the best part. The taste has definitely its merits but lacks the wow effects. The finish is just flat and a pretty huge let down. Kudos to Glenmorangie for trying something different but the result is not ground breaking for me.

Score: 81 / 100

Glenmorangie Companta is the fifth annual release in the Private Edition series from Glenmorangie. Companta is Scotch Gaelic for “friendship” and could be understood as referring to the different used cask types.

At first Companta was matured in ex-borubon barrels for nine years. The subsequent finish lasted another five years. 60% was finished in Grand Cru casks from Clos de Tart and the remaining 40% was finished in Rasteau casks from Côtes du Rhône. Dr. Bill Lumsden, Director of Distilling at Glenmorangie, personally selected the casks.

You have no clue what all those french terms mean? Do not worry because I had to look them up as well. So here comes a quick summary. “Grand Cru” are the best vineyards in Burgundy. “Clos de Tart” is a vineyard only cultivated with red wine. “Rasteau” is a sweet fortified wine from Côtes du Rhône (Hills of the Rhône), a wine-growing area located in the southern Rhône valley.

Facts

Glenmorangie Companta

Nose

Right away fruity red wine rises to the nose. Wild berries, sugared cherries. With a little good will I can also find the wood smoke from the official tasting notes but that impression does not last long. Hints of raisin and nut chocolate.

Taste

A mild palate entry with slightly dry red wine. Strong pipe tobacco, sweetish and spicy, almost gluey. After a while milk chocolate filled with cherry liqueur takes over.

Finish

A lingering sweet that coats the mouth.

Overall

Superb! Pleasant, harmonic yet complex. Often a red wine finish does more harms than good but here it is the complete opposite. The red wine is nicely integrated and provides additional depth. So far the best Single Malt with a red wine finish I was able to taste. The taste of friendship!

Score: 92 / 100

Glenmorangie Ealanta is the fourth annual release in the Private Edition series from Glenmorangie. Only heavily charred casks made of American white oak from the Mark Twain National Forest in Missouri were used for maturation. After a maturation of almost 20 years in virgin oak one could expect that the oak may be overpowering but let’s see if this is the case here.

Facts

Glenmorangie Ealanta

Nose

Right away cooling menthol rises to the nose but besides this it is really hard to differentiate the aromas because they are so tight-knit at first. Only with time they open up. Now marzipan and butterscotch come to light. Then vanilla pudding with cooked white fruits and a hint of cinnamon. In the nose much more like a Bourbon than a Single Malt. A very unique nose indeed.

Taste

Full-bodied and Vibrant. At first some bitter orange followed up by a vague nutty taste – maybe almonds? Afterwards fine spicy vanilla unfolds. The American white oak is even more evident now. This feels more and more like a Bourbon to me.

Finish

Very long, almost limitless. A touch of ginger followed up by a whiff of cooling anise. Very harmonic and balanced.

Overall

The marriage of Bourbon and Single Malt. A genuine wonderful combination of carefully selected casks and very fine Single Malt. Truly unique and special.

Score: 96 / 100