Glenmorangie Nectar d'Or Sauternes Cask Finish

This was a solid favorite for me years ago. As I've moved away from wine cask selections, my favoritism for Nectar D'or has faded much like its age statement. But as I continue my trip down memory lane, its time to revisit this old classic. The nose smells delicate and sweet, like a bowl of grapes drizzled lightly with honey. You can also pick up just the slightest hint of orange. The taste is surprising because the front tastes a tad salty to me. It was sudden and fleeting enough that I went back for another, just to ensure I hadn't imagined it and indeed, its there. Vanilla and honey sweetness coats your tongue and the finish taste ever so slightly bitter, citrusy and spicy. Think orange peel with some baking spice. The finish leaves a malty feeling in your mouth and leaves you wanting more. Yeah, this one is solid. Although part of me thinks that when this had an age statement, it was tastier. But then again, I had only tasted a handful of whiskies the first time I had Nectar D'Or and very likely my memory was skewed by my inexperienced tongue.

A rich, Single Malt Scotch Whisky by Glenmorangie Distillery in Highland, Scotland aged for a minimum of 10 year in American white oak ex-Bourbon cask & then finished in Sauternes wine casks. It has an aromatic birth with notes of barley, lemon curd, vanilla shortbread, oak spice, gingerbread, nougat, maple syrup, dried fruit & honey; while a rich & silky life adds notes of orange, berries, toffee, vanilla custard, buttery baklava & toasted brown sugar; that leads to a dry death of medium length with notes of oak, lemon shortbread, apricot, milk chocolate & gingersnaps. January / August 2022

A phrase keeps jumping distinctly to mind: "pineapple whisky." (Note that that word is whisky, not Scotch.) Mild, perhaps, but getting on to 'thin' (which isn't a tasting note in Distiller). So, I like a 'pineapple' designation - quite a lot, actually - but here it's more of a consolation prize. Disappointed. This is still good, don't get me wrong, very drinkable - but not "Nectar D'Or."

An excellent dessert sipper! More elegant than the 12 but not as creamy as the 18 year. The nose is sweet with the typical but muted orange peel. There is a sense of standing in a vineyard with very light hues of fresh cut hay. The palate starts sweet with hints of honey, over ripe pear and sweat wine. The finish is slightly salty with light cream. Not a super long finish but great!

Nose: warm honey, orange peel twist, lemon zest, vanilla icing, molasses ginger snap cookie, oak around the edges Palate: moderately oily - almost silky, warm honey, oak most notable here Finish: vanilla shortbread topped with honey drizzle. Ginger bites. More oak than on the nose, buttery brown sugar, salted caramel. Light citrus is faintly in the background

Most expensive of the four iterations in the “Tasting Set”, but IMHO the worst of the lot. Very glad I was able to try this one from a 100 ml “taster”. As expected, it is sweet, but it’s almost an artificial sweetener sweetness. The sweetness is the first thing you taste, dut is quickly replaced with alcohol heat and a dry finish.