Glenmorangie "Year of the Tiger" 23 Year Old [Tasted #561]

In my tasting notes for the Glenmorangie Truffle Oak 26 Year Old last year, I mentioned how certain Glenmorangie releases tend to fly under the radar - marketed to existing private clients on a more personalised level, rather than having them plastered all over social media and the blogs. When you're talking about releases of <1000 bottles (often for not-insignificant sums of money) it's a perfectly sensible approach.

...but it does mean that those of us in the whisky blogosphere often don't get to experience them...except when we do! I was fortunate enough to try the Truffle Oak last year (it was incredible), and recently was equally lucky to try Glenmorangie's next limited release - "Year of the Tiger" 23yo. 

Distilled in 1998 (also Year of the Tiger), and aged in a “marriage of Bourbon and Pedro Ximénez sherry casks”, only 888 bottles were released at 46%. The (natural) colour looked pretty inviting, and with its PX credentials I was expecting a fairly sweet dram...but was I right? Let's find out...

Glenmorangie "Year of the Tiger" 23 Year Old (46% ABV, 23yo, Highlands, Scotland)
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Colour: Burnished copper.

Nose: Rich demerara sugar and oranges - specifically flamed orange peel. Vietnamese coffee, toffee and hints of sweet spice.

Palate: Big PX hit initially - sweet and zesty, and hugely rich. There's maple, an earthy sweetness (think rich toffee fudge with streaks of dark chocolate throughout), super viscous, gooey caramel, nutty but still with that orange zest throughout.

Finish: Long, gooey caramel and residual sweet spices.

Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 91/100. A delicious Glenmo, but for my palate, not up there with Truffle Oak.

Cheers,

Martin.