Two Glenglassaugh Octave casks (peated and non peated)

A few months back GG has announced these to NAS whiskies, aged in Octave casks , s, which are made from staves of a used cask and are approximately 1/8th the size of a butt. Like The BenRiach’s “Quarter” casks,  which I reviewed some time ago –  a smaller cask allows for more interaction between the wood and the spirit, giving the whisky greater depth and aroma in a shorter period of time. In short : younger whisky, that is supposed to age faster and taste “older”. Let’s give this a try.

Glenglassaugh Octaves Classic , 44% abv , £46 

Nose: Quite creamy on the nose, with an earthy edge to it, which adds a nice quality to it : cereal, vanilla custard, apple and pear (Yes, it’s quite young – but not in a bad way) , spicy oak, and maybe a little bit of acetone / nail polish remover,  butterscotch. Not a bad start.

Palate: Starts spicy with a peppery edge, then gets creamy, with the vanilla, and oak, and the fruit, with a bit of citrus fruit, grassy notes as well, more of the cereals and creme catalan.

Finish: spiced up orange marmalade / lemon curd, vanilla and oak.

Score: 81/100

Glenglassaugh Octaves Peated , 44% abv, £46

Nose: Rather strong with medicinal / Antiseptic notes, turmeric, and maybe even some bandages and hospital wards.. It’s really medicianal for a non Islay, isn’t it? Weird, and nice in a way.

Palate: Not as fierce as the nose suggested, but still there’s a nice interplay between medicinal / peppery , spicy gingery notes taking place here, with the cereals mixing in nicely, pears too, and that earthy / turmeric note as well. Young it is, but the oak and peat work well together, and the wood does not over-dominate.

Finish: Pepper, earth, ginger and grass, with an indian sort of spice that goes a long way. And I love Indian.

Score:  83/100

It is not by chance that  young peated whiskies often tend to score a bit better than their ‘unpeated’ brethren , and this is no exception. I find the peated whisky better composed, offering more layers of aroma and taste, and altough young, quite enjoyable. I am not a peat head, and this is not big Islay peat (although there’s some medicinal notes here, which is nice…). at 46 quid it is not very expensive, but VFM is not high, considering it’s a young whisky after all.

Official sample provided by GG