GlenDronach 1993 Cask #654 24yrs

Sherry Butt 58.9% - Specially bottled for The Green Welly Stop

A bolt out of the blue offer from The Green Welly Stop.

Not one, but two 1993 vintage sherry bombs appear.…and they were sister casks.

……and they were an unexpected follow-on from the 1993 cask #653 that was offered in late 2017.

No doubt the casks slumbered next to each other in the warehouse for nearly a quarter of a century. Which is nice.

Appearance: Deep, red Mahogany. Long, thick, and slow oily legs.

Nose: That typical and expected aroma of old and dignified GlenDronach sherry casks. Thick warm toffee, subtle and mellow cake spice all the while supported by rich and aromatic sherry. It smells old and every bit its 24 years.

However, this one needs air and time in the glass. Drink it straight after pouring and you’ll miss many of the personality traits that start to present themselves. Further swilling and rocking around the glass reveals lovely layers of old waxen polish, a wave of soft pine tree and faint mint. Over-ripe, verging on rotten banana (this is a fabulous smell by the way, and not at all unpleasant) And a final attack on the nose gives more sherry, dried figs and even more sweet-stickiness.

Palate: A big and unabashed rush of rich sherried-sweetness. Then the sweetness starts to have a bit of a tug-of-war with a dry and woody bitter element. It’s gone from a soft, oily and mellow honeyed sweetness to a more burnt sugar and dry bitter-bite with a gentle chilli-fizzing. They’re sort of getting on though and one isn’t over-powering the other. Sticky dates and rich, plump flame raisins appear to deliver a final coating of oily sweetness before the dryness comes back.

Finish: Very long with just the right balance of sweetness over the dryness. But only just. Any longer in the cask and I think this beast would become too bitter and dry.

Conclusion: A big, dark, and brooding 1993 that happily slaps you around the face. I wonder how much longer it could have lived in the cask before overstaying its welcome though. Any longer and the wood may have taken over completely and had a detrimental effect on it.

A Heavyweight boxer ready for hanging up his gloves whilst he’s at the top of his game.