Glenlivet Nàdurra Peated Whisky Cask Finish

Stop number 19 on the SDT is Glenlivet. This distillery is in the Speyside region and is the best selling single malt scotch brand in the world. This expression is from the Nadurra (Gaelic for Natural) line. This one is a NAS that was finished in casks that previously held "heavily peated whisky". Where these casks came from and how long they were used in the finishing process is anyone's guess. Being "natural", this is a cask strength whisky at 61.5% ABV and is non chill filtered and natural color of a Chardonnay or golden straw. The nose has a fairly strong alcoholic burn if you dive right into it, but it's not that bad when you consider the ABV. Big citrus notes. Lemons and oranges primarily. Baked apple with cinnamon, subtle peaches and apricots come in after the citrus. A very light earthy note showed up after a few minutes...possibly peat? Vanilla buttercream and something like brown sugar dusted raisins. Adding water creates a malty character and an ever so distant tequila aroma. Stronger lemon notes. Better without the water though. The palate arrives hot and peppery, but tolerable. Soft peat smoke upon swallowing. A bright pop of citrus. Light oaky character and buttercream. With a little water I get some light exotic fruits like kiwi or maybe mango and coconut. The high ABV makes it hard to discern too many flavors, but there isn't a ton going on. Nicely warming though. The mouthfeel is very oily with some heat. Mouthwatering, turning semi dry. The finish is medium long with some heat, light peat and some citrus. This has been a perplexing bottle so far. When first opened, it was very easy to nose and drink. Warm and inviting. After pouring out 8 oz worth of samples and letting it sit for a week I went back to it. Maybe it was just me that day, but it set my nose and mouth ablaze! Almost undrinkable without a hefty dose of water. Let it sit another 3 weeks and it settled back down. It's a good whisky, but I feel it really NEEDS to be at cask strength, or at a minimum of 55%. Anything less and I think it would fall apart. I like it though. Good citrus flavors and enough peat to make you say yes there is some peat and not just meaningless words on the label. I don't feel that it's worth the price tag though. $90 locally is a bit high for what's in the bottle, even at cask strength. 3.75 to 4.

This was a rare find. It wasn't even on my radar when it came out. Luckily I was able to find it in a small store in NYC. The Nadurra 16 was one of the best whiskies I've had. I felt it was the epitome of Glenlivet's potential as a distillery. Let's see if lightning strikes twice within the Nadurra line. From Batch PW1015. Nose: Apple, pear, banana, and toffee. Vegetal, earthy peat. Sulfur, rubber, and some smoke. Agave and cucumber. Chestnut. Croissant. Vanilla and custard. Lemon and grapefruit. Peppermint. Oak. Cinnamon and pepper provide some heat initially, though this dissipates rather quickly. Good start. Palate: Caramel and toffee. Chestnut, Apple, pear, apricot, plum, cranberry, and banana. White chocolate, vanilla frosting, and marshmallow. Rubbery, smoky peat. Lemon and grapefruit. Black pepper, baking spice, and oak. Solid palate. Finish: The chestnut and croissant hit out of the gate. Apple, plum, and raisin. Something akin to Irish soda bread. Cinnamon, black pepper, baking spices, and oak. Fantastic finish. Of the two, the 16 year beats this Peated edition. Does that mean lightning did not strike twice? You be the judge. Regardless, I really enjoyed this one on its own merits. It's not a traditonal Speyside-peated malt (as if that were traditional at all.) Balvenie has done that better. But I think those are top-notch, so it's no knock on this one, which closely trails those releases. At $66, this is a solid value. When you consider the rarity of the product, this is an unbelievable value. Throw in quality and you've got yourself a good deal. If you're a Glenlivet diehard, by this on sight. If you're a peathead looking to diversify your your range, I would recommend this to you as well. If you can find it. Glad I did. 4/5.

I saved this exciting distillery tour sample from Paul as one of my last ones for the second round. I've tried a couple of the Nadurra offerings and I found them to be the best of the entire Glenlivet line. I had really high hopes for the peated cask version. This malt is extremely light in color- it's as pale as an ice cold Coors Light. Due to the high ABV (61.5%) there are a ton of slick, long legs in the glass when you spin it. Even from a distance you pick up on the oak barrel and sweet citrus notes. One of the highlights of this sample, though, came when I was finally (after 25min) able to pick up on what I assume was agave nectar- very tequila-like. It was very strong and inviting. Sadly, no agave on the palate. Just an initial blast of serious heat and an incredible burn. This beast is very hot. If you can expel the heat from your mouth and not through the nose a nice, crispy bit of citrus fruit like oranges and lemons appears and finishes sizzling your taste buds. Hot, but refreshing. It dies pretty quickly and leaves a dry, oak spice residue in the recesses of your mouth. The finish is again short, but really hot. It felt like I completely burned the nerve endings in my mouth, but that faded and the dry, earthiness (peat?) completed the experience. If you've had any of the Nadurra whiskies you know what to expect and this one is no different. Good stuff. While I don't feel like there's enough peat flavor here to warrant experimenting with those ex-peated casks again, the overall quality of the Nadurra line is still present here and makes for a very fine whisky. Thanks again to Paul for finding this one in a duty free shop near him. I wouldn't have been able to try this one otherwise. 4.25-4.5 stars. Cheers.

My first single malt was The Glenlivet 12 and it just opened a another world of scotch to me. Glenlivet has a special place in my scotch heart. I have been somewhat pleasantly surprised by the Nadurra line. Of course, I enjoy a peated whisky and was curious to try this and was able to do so thanks to the sample provide by Paul in the SDT. The nose definitely reveals the peated roots of the whisky with a mild and sweet smoke. Granny Smith apples, honey and vanilla notes, almost the standard Glenlivet base, is mixed in with the smokiness. That first sip brings a high prickly heat due to the 61.5% ABV. Once you work your way past the blast, the peat/smoke comes to the surface, which is not intense nor weak but finds a nice middle of the road. A creamy brown sugar sweetness is nicely blended complimenting the smokiness. As it starts to fade, a cinnamon and ginger spice is revealed and becomes increasingly intense right into the finish. What remains only lasts for a short amount of time. The palate is left with toasted coconut and oak with a touch of bitterness with some hints of ginger and cinnamon. Adding a healty dose of water is definitely necessary to diminish the dragon breath from the ABV. The water intensifies the brown sugar and ginger-cinnamon combination along with the woody characteristics. This is a nice, sweet, spicy scotch that uses peat smoke as cameo player. It's there but, but plays a supporting role in whole experience. Use water liberally and it only improves. The $90 pricetag of this whisky makes it cost prohibitive, where one can enjoy the tried and true standards or Ardbeg, Laphroaig or Lagavulin for almost half the cost. [86/100][Tasted: 9/23/17]

Batch #PW1015 For some reason, I only thought Nadurra was one particular whiskey, and didn't consider it to be a line of cask strength items from Glenlivet. The previous one I had was aged in American oak, so I'm looking forward to the peat notes hopefully found one this one. The color is indeed a light gold, dark straw hue. The scent has plenty of burn to it, but also carries notes of honey, cereal, raw grain, and just a touch of smoke on the nose. The body is more approachable than I would have thought, although the proof picks up quickly on the tongue. A honey flavor is here, although is elevated to an almost spicy range by the proof. The peat flavors come through, but there's no feel of peat in the pores like a proper peated whiskey gives off. The finish is still approachable (as long as you get past the central mouth burn from the heat) with a bit of sweet grain and a light smoke. This may be the only whiskey I've ever had that has actually numbed my front tongue and upper gums. The flavors are still detectable in other parts of the mouth, but there's definitely something missing from the numbness of the aforementioned mouth parts. Overall, this is a highly enjoyable whiskey, but doesn't distinguish itself enough as being "heavily peated," and longs for a flavor enhancer of some kind (like age, a fresh barrel, a certain malt, etc) that just isn't showcased with what's in this glass.

I remember buying the Oloroso version of this some time ago. Still remember the conversation with the sales guy: Me: What's Nadurra? Sales: means "all natural" M: oh, so its organically made? S: No, just natural M: like locally sourced only ? S: no, just no color or chill filtration, and without water dilution M in other words, Cask strength, NCF, and no chill filtration? S: yes ..so all natural Not sure why that necessitated the creation of Nadurra as all natural, but whatever...still a good whisky. This one is the peated version. Personally, didn't think it was as good as the Oloroso, but still a mighty good dram. Given the high ABV, surprisingly smooth. Thanks to Paul for this round's sample!