Glenmorangie 10 The Original Review and Tasting Notes

The Story

Glenmorangie 10 The Original is a well regarded entry level single malt scotch from one of the most highly regarded distilleries.  It also happens to be among the cheaper 10 years that you can find out there.

The distillery was founded in 1843 in the Highland Region and reports having the tallest still in Scotland.  This stills are just shy of 17 feet tall, and the distiller reports that because only the "lightest and purest vapors make it to the top," their whisky is gifted with a smoother elegance.

This distiller is well known for using extra finishing casks after basic maturation and produces well regarded whiskies that have received an additional year or two in port, sherry, and wine casks.  However, The Original does not receive this additional treatment.

This scotch is aged exclusively in first or second fill ex-bourbon casks for 10 years, including the "famous slow-grown and air-dried 'designer casks' from Missouri" (taken from their website).  It is well regarded as being among the better entry level single malts.  In fact, it is the top selling single malt in Scotland, and you'd have to think that those guys would know their scotch.

Let's put it to the test.


Tasting Notes

Nose: A bouquet of flowers shines immediately.  It is followed by gentle fruits like peaches orange peels.  Toasted almonds.  There are also harsh notes of rubbing alcohol that I find surprising - I work in a hospital, and this part reminds me of the hand sanitizer.  I found some leathery, resiny notes as well, the sort that I typically see in older sherried malts (this is not sherried, so it was interesting!).  Water calms the hand sanitizer and changes little otherwise.

Palate: Golden honey and butterscotch lead the charge with sweet toffee and vanilla along side.  Sugar cookies.  Pleasant creamy mouth feel.  Light fruity notes lead by orange peels.  All of the flavors are light and airy, which while pleasant enough, left me wanting more.  Water dulls the already light palate.  I found myself noticing the woody tannins more.

Finish: An oaky and nutty flavor comes in early.  The finish is of moderate length.


Review

This is a solid scotch, but it's not a great one.  It has its fine qualities.  The floral bouquet that begins the nose is lovely, and I mostly enjoyed the laid back and sweet palate.

However, I was bothered by the hand sanitizer alcohol on the nose, and I kept wishing the palate would offer me more depth.  There was enough breadth of flavor present, it was just faint, and it did not hold up well with dilution.

I was somewhat surprised by my lackluster response to this scotch after reading the adulation it receives in the media.  Whisky Advocate, after all, ran an article questioning whether or not Glenmorangie 10 was the best of its illustrious line.  Whether or not this was a marketing piece meant to drum up interest in their entry level dram, this liquid did not match up to the hype.

It was solid.  It had its good points which were unspectacular, and it had one or two significant drawbacks (hand sanitizer, anyone?).

That said, the price point of Glenmorangie 10 must be considered.  At $35 for a bottle, it is among the cheapest 10 year old single malts.  When you consider what you're getting, it's probably worth picking up a bottle from time to time.

Scotch Dreams Score: 84

*Scotch Dreams Value Adjustment: +2

*The Scotch Dreams Value Adjustment attempts to account for the price/quality balance in some of the world's cheaper or overpriced drams.  Cheap scotch that is good enough to earn a decent rating will typically see a positive adjustment, while overpriced scotch that is mediocre will see a negative adjustment.  Adjustments are on a scale of -5 to +5 and may be added directly to the Scotch Dreams Score - which addresses ONLY the dram's quality - to achieve a price weighted scoring.  Check the Scotch Dreams Scoring System page if you're interested in learning more.