You can never accuse Glenmorangie of standing still. In fact, they remain – consistently – one of the more innovative distilleries in Scotland, always putting out something new that presents their prized spirit in a new and interesting light. The new release, A Tale of Cake, is further evidence.
It’s one of the reasons why the distillery has such appeal. Their core range of The Original (a 10yo), the extra-matured releases (Lasanta, Quinta Ruban, and Nectar d’Or), and the 18yo are all hard-hitters and right up there in the quality stakes, contradicting anyone who believes the mass-production whiskies can’t be any good. But, never resting on their laurels, Glenmorangie entertains its fans by regularly putting out limited release or special project editions that tweak the character of the spirit and showcase the whisky’s DNA in a different light.
The Private Edition range was one such avenue for these special releases, although this came to an end with 2019’s Allta. Stepping into the void towards the end of 2020 is the aptly named, A tale of cake”.
A tale of cake’s story is along the same lines as several other of the special releases, in that it is “regular” Glenmorangie, matured initially for around 10 years in ex-bourbon barrels, before being transferred to a wine cask for a period of extra maturation or finishing. In this instance, the spirit was finished in Tokaji dessert wine casks.
Tokaji (also styled Tokay, although the term was given Protected Designation of Origin status in 2007) is a sweet wine from the Tokaj region of Hungary. (Readers in Australia might most closely associate the name with the tokays of Rutherglen although, in truth, that’s a bit of a misnomer, as both the grapes used and the production methods employed differ from Hungarian Tokaji). Nonetheless, the executive summary is that wine casks have imparted considerable sweetness to the spirit!
As a concept, this is not altogether new for Glenmorangie: The core-range Nectar d’Or is finished in Sauternes casks; Milsean was finished in re-toasted Portuguese red wine casks; and Companta was a combination of two different wine finishes – one being a Grand Cru from Clos de Tart, and the other being a sweet fortified from Côtes du Rhône. But, as always, the difficulty and skill in creating such a finished whisky is getting it right – plenty try and fail.
Dr Bill Lumsden, Glenmorangie’s Director of Whisky Creation – and the man behind A tale of cake – has discussed this at length with Whisky & Wisdom previously. To paraphrase, not every wine finish works. For every success that goes on to be bottled, there are many experiments that fail. The other trick is to catch and end the finishing maturation at just the right time before it overpowers the spirit. The Private Edition release, Bacalta, was a good example of this: When the already-matured whisky was transferred into the Malmsey Madeira casks for finishing, it was originally envisaged the spirit would spend three to four years in the casks. However, the casks were sampled and checked every three months, and after just two years, Lumsden felt the result had peaked – any further time in the cask would detract from the whisky.
My point is that blasé drinkers should not dismiss this as just another whisky thrown into a wine cask. It is, in contrast, a very carefully planned, curated, matured, and delivered spirit. And, with that in mind, let’s settle down and actually put the whisky through its paces:
Glenmorangie “A tale of cake”, 46% ABV, non-chillfiltered
Nose: The initial nose has a welcome introduction of familiarity – the house style DNA of Glenmorangie is the first aroma to awaken the olfactory senses. It’s the second and third nosings – with a bit of swirling and air – that bring out the sweetness. Ripe pineapple wafts out of the glass; vanilla sponge; a hint of marzipan; and perhaps a touch of lemon meringue pie. After time, there’s even a hint of banana cake.
Palate: The name of the whisky could not be more apt. This tastes of cake! What sort of cake, you ask? Well….I suspect each person’s brain and taste memory will insert their own answer from their flavour bank, but I found tea cake, Dundee cake, vanilla sponge, and banana cake on the first pass. On a second tasting, things got more dessert-like, with cream and liqueur starting to emerge – almost heading into tiramisu territory.
Finish: The finish is long and….soothing! It doesn’t turn sickly sweet, nor does it become oaky, drying, or bitter. It is just remarkably consistent; a smooth transition and continuation of the palate, and hangs in your mouth for an eternity before slowly trailing away.
Comments: Bottled at 46% and non-chillfiltered, the whisky is full-flavoured, full-bodied, and superbly balanced. Despite the notion of “cake” and the use of dessert-wine casks, this whisky is not overtly or sickly sweet. (For context, a dram of both Milsean and Bacalta were compared alongside, and both were sweeter than A tale of cake). In fact, it’s the balance of malt, oak, and sweetness here that make this whisky a winner, because it will appeal to most palates: There’s plenty to entertain those with a sweet tooth, but the traditionalists will find there’s still the cereal, and Glenmorangie’s signature citrus and complexity.
Congratulations, Dr Bill – you’ve done it again.
Cheers,
AD
PS…Incidentally, Glenmorangie appears in Whisky & Wisdom’s feature article, “The most beautiful distilleries in Scotland”, which you can read here.
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Glenmorangie’s A Tale of Cake is a limited-edition release. It is available from specialist whisky stockists, with an RRP of $170 Australian.
For those keen to try A tale of cake in other guises, Glenmorangie teamed up with acclaimed mixologist, Jeremy Le Blanche, to create a cocktail. Jeremy fashioned – appropriately – “The Cake Old Fashioned”. To try this at home:
Ingredients:
- 50 ml Glenmorangie A Tale of Cake
- 7.5 ml coconut water
- 7.5 ml pineapple syrup
- 1 dash Peychaud’s bitters
- 1 pinch black pepper
Method: Stir all ingredients with ice and strain into a rocks glass over a block of ice.
Garnish with a twist of orange zest and a walnut.
PS…you might also like our write-up on Glenmorangie’s Allta release here.
