The whisky calendar is blessed these days to have annual events and annual releases that we all look forward to. For example, Islay-philes hang out each year for the Feis Ile bottlings, and Ardbeg fans are always keenly anticipating May for Ardbeg Day and the release of the special Ardbeg limited edition that accompanies it. For those who prefer a more typical “Highland” style of whisky, there is always huge interest in the annual release of Glenmorangie’s Private Edition bottling. This year’s release – Private Edition No. 9 – is called Spios. Glenmorangie Spios.
For the uninitiated, Glenmorangie’s Private Edition range is a special once-off and limited release that comes out each year to showcase a new variation or interpretation on the Glenmorangie flavour profile. Through the use of different casks or wood regimes during maturation, or by using different varieties of barley (or different peating levels), the usual Glenmorangie DNA is given a tweak and a nudge to explore new and – without fail – delicious flavour territories. Some within Glenmorangie, including Dr Bill Lumsden himself, (Glenmorangie’s Director of Distilling, Whisky Creation, and Whisky Stocks) have hinted or suggested that the Private Edition range showcases experimentation but, to my palate, the results are consistently too successful and too good to be mere experiments. No, this is a product line that knows what it’s doing. And for those who are curious, in terms of volume, the Private Edition range makes up less than 1% of Glenmorangie’s total annual production, so it is genuinely a very limited product.
Eight previous releases make up the Private Edition range, namely the PX Sonalta, Finealta, Artein, Ealanta, Companta, Tusail, Milsean, and Bacalta. Experimentation is a long-term exercise in the whisky world, with the results of any tweak in production or new cask filling not being fully realised until years after the fact and after maturation plays its role. Of course, if the results are good, then replicating the experience resets and starts the process with – again – a return period of 10-12 years. It would be nice to think that some of these Private Edition releases might one day form part of the core range but, as Dr Bill explained during the launch of Spios, some of them simply don’t have the quantities of materials or economies of scale to make this possible.
Spios is the Scots Gaelic word for “spice”, and the whisky itself showcases spirit that has been wholly matured in American oak (quercus alba) ex-rye casks. Many associate finishing or “extra maturation” with Glenmorangie, but it’s worth re-iterating that Spios is wholly matured in the ex-rye casks – in this case, the casks evidently held and matured the rye whisky for six years before Glenmorangie acquired them.
Rye whisky (or whiskey, as is more commonly and appropriately referenced) once held court as America’s most-loved grain spirit. However, tastes, palates, and traditions changed over the 13 years of prohibition, and when US distillers went back into production in 1933, rye had fallen from favour and the softer, sweeter tones of bourbon ruled the roost. Interest in rye has been building again in recent years, arguably driven by the bar scene and its trendy use in cocktails, although – it must be said – the likes of Jim Beam, Wild Turkey and others have been churning out rye in healthy quantities for a few years now. Anyone looking to “pigeonhole” rye or de-base it down to a singular descriptor invariably reaches for the word “spice” or “spicy” at some point (particularly when comparing it to corn-based bourbon), and so it is no surprise that Glenmorangie’s rye cask release is similarly named.
Repeating the successful format of last year’s Bacalta, Spios was launched simultaneously around the globe this year via a virtual tasting and audience with Glenmorangie’s Dr Bill Lumsden and Brendan McCarron. Courtesy of a live hook-up, TV screens, internet cameras and microphones, Brendan & Dr Bill sat in the Whisky Creation room at Glenmorangie’s headquarters in Edinburgh, and were beamed directly to a number of gathered audiences around the globe. The Australian launch shared a mutual session with Hong Kong, Seoul, Singapore, and Sydney. After a shared address and tasting by Bill and Brendan to everyone, each city was then given an allocated slot to speak directly with the two gents, and to ask questions, which they both happily and helpfully answered.
The initial tasting, led by both gents, commenced with Glenmorangie Original, which set an important context for the night, given that most of the Private Edition range whiskies “start out” as Original and are then manipulated beyond this. This was followed by Nectar d’Or, which again stamped its credentials as surely being amongst the most luxurious of readily-available whiskies on the planet.
And then came the star of the show: The Spios. So what of the whisky itself? Well, happily, the new release was being freely poured out on the night, and yours truly spent some serious time getting acquainted with it. The whisky is bottled at 46% and is non chill-filtered. Whilst it’s officially a No Age Statement, Dr Bill dropped enough hints on the night to indicate the whisky was around 10 years old, give or take. Whisky & Wisdom’s tasting notes as follows:
Glenmorangie Spios
Nose: There’s no mistaking this is Glenmorangie, but the rye casks add unmistakable…um…spice! Cinnamon, clove, mint, toffee are up front, followed by hay (straw?) and stale wood shavings.
Palate: The signature Glenmorangie fruit is here, but there’s a lush wood smoke note evident that reminded me of smoked and/or cured meats. The cereal notes never stray too far from centre, and there’s also spicy barley and weak black tea.
Finish: Long and intensely silky and smooth! Some wood tannins come through at the very tail.
Comments: As a Private Edition release, this has achieved exactly what it set out to do: It’s a twist and a variation on the standard Glenmorangie theme. There’s no denying that rye (as a category in itself) and rye-finished or rye-casked Scotch whisky is gathering traction (note Johnnie Walker’s recent foray into this field), and the results speak for themselves: It’s good, tasty whisky.
As an aside, it is a stunning and rewarding exercise to go back and forth between the Spios and the Glenmorangie Original. The Original is 100% matured in ex-bourbon casks, whilst the Spios spent its years in ex-rye. When tasted side by side, the vanilla in the Original becomes very pronounced, and – almost on cue – the spice and the cloves in the Spios becomes extremely evident in its own right.
Spios will be available in Australia with an RRP of $165.
Well done, Dr Bill and Brendan – we look forward to Private Edition No. 10 !
Cheers,
AD
Whisky and Wisdom has covered and reported on other releases in the Glenmorangie range. You can read these, including our tasting notes and thoughts by clicking directly on the links below…
Glenmorangie Companta
Glenmorangie The Taghta
Glenmorangie Tusail
Glenmorangie Milsean
Glenmorangie 1990 Grand Vintage Malt
Glenmorangie Bacalta
