Complex and interesting is probably the best description for this Glenugie. Very nice to have tried some whisky from this closed distillery, although if this sample is representative for Glenugie, than I don't see this growing into a favorite of mine.
Nose
This is very grainy to start. Not really like anything I've had before. It's musty, doughy, dark bread and it also smells like damp wood. Definitely interesting. There's some tobacco somewhere, next to some herbs, although it is difficult to pinpoint which ones exactly. Finally I get overripe apple, sauerkraut and grapefruit.
Taste
Cardboard? Weird and interesting. Wood spices,, thyme, dusty and leathery. After a while it gets a bit drier and there's a bitterness that I like. The pepper that surfaces next nicely complements the meaty barbecue flavours. Do I taste some peat? Maybe, I'm not sure.
Finish
Warm, long and bitter. Almost coastal.
BOW (88)
Official tasting note (87)
This was the most eastern distillery in Scotland, lying close to Peterhead, but unfortunately it closed in 1983. This is pale amber from a refill hogshead and the primary nose hit is blueberry muffin dough. Over-ripe melon, sappy twigs, dessert wine and Atholl Brose also contribute making it complex and intriguing. The taste, at full strength, has sharp fruit (mandarins) and luxurious, lasting warmth. With the benefit of water the nose has tangerines, liquorice, moist rolling tobacco and pecan nuts while the taste is a mellow balance of sweetness and citrus peel with some paper.
