In 2013, Glenlivet asked their "Guardians" (which are a group of people worldwide who have suscribed to Glenlivet promotions) to choose a new, cask strength and non-chill filthered expression, out of three possible single malts, originally called "Classic", "Revival" and "Exotic". People spoke, and "Exotic", a whisky mostly matured in spanish red wine casks, was the winner with 39% of the votes, making this one the first crowd sourced Glenlivet ever. 24.000 decanters where ever released, and they where bottled at 48.7%abv. On the nose, it starts with some nice fruitiness. Cherries, peaches, tobacco and sawdust. Mint. The first bose felt like this is not a young dram. After havinga sip, the aroma gave me orange spongy cake, buiscuits. On the palate, it is very pleasant. Orange peel, super citric, Raw rice and chocolate. Oranges, a metallic note that is really delicious. Red apples. Super complex. Aftertaste offers a good ending to a wonderful whisky. Tobacco, hay, grass, earthiness and salt. It really feels mildly peaty. Dry. Overall, this was a very solid, pleasant, elegant dram. Complex, delicious and full of flavor, this is a winner in my books. I don't think this is super expensive, but it can be considered "rare"; nevertheless i strongly recommend anyone to try this one if you have the chance. My score for it is 92 over 100.
About this bottle
These Guardians are not a superhero team, but are the official worldwide group of enthusiasts for The Glenlivet. They were given the task at the end of 2013 to select, from three samples, a whisky they would like to see bottled and this was their selection. This limited release has no age statement, but is aged in American oak and former Oloroso sherry casks.
How it tastes
Measured across 14 flavor axes. Tap a note to find other bottles that lead with it.
Reviews
Showing the most detailed of 8 parsed reviews.
Tasted 10/15/2014 : Sweet, caramel nose right up in your face. Full, sweet, creamy on the palate with vanilla/toffee/caramel sweetness. A pleasant bite that creeps up. This finishes along the same sweetness, caramel theme. An enjoyable, easy dram.
After reading some reviews this whisky was better than I expected. A heavier whisky than most Glenlivets and a bit more oily. The higher ABV definitely does it some favours with some lingering spice and lemon.
Most sherry cask hints of all the glenlivet offerings. Let this sit in a glass prior to enjoyment - really loves water. Palate: dark chocolate and zesty orange spice. Finish: dry finish. Long
Probably the sweetest of the Glenlivets with fairly strong hints of sherry, but delicious overall. Hints of chocolate and is extremely smooth in the mouth.
Good flavour but not a fan of the cask strength.
2 more reviews were collected for this bottle. The longest ones are shown first.
Tastes like this
Closest flavor profiles across the whole catalog.
