Finish: A soft, medium strength, creamy finish, with further notes of malt biscuit and plump raisins. Nose: Light and pleasant, on orange peel, toffee, caramel and cinnamon. You can sense the influence of some sherry casks, but there is youthfulness there too. Extra: Eagle eyed whisk(e)y folk may have noted a slight clash of title with High West Distillery’s version of the same named whisky. Bit of an oops? Maybe, but as the Glenmorangie version is UK only, and the High West version is basically US only, then it’s not really a problem. This year, Glenmorangie has made this unique whisky available to whisky connoisseurs in the UK to be enjoyed in the Winter season celebrations. A very interesting whisky from Glenmorangie, its first made with barley kilned with botanicals. Inspired by the woodlands near Glenmorangie’s director of whisky creation Dr Bill Lumsden’s home, he decided to make a dram that would evoke the scents, sounds, and sights of the forest.

Glenmorangie: A Midwinter Night’s Dram – The Whisky Ninja Glenmorangie: A Midwinter Night’s Dram – The Whisky Ninja

Palate: Much the same as the nose, but with some added almonds and citrus peel – and perhaps just a slight touch of cinnamon and vanilla. This superb Glenmorangie was created with a marriage of whiskies produced from two unique types of malted barley: a single estate Cadboll variety and malted chocolate barley, which is better known as a basis for craft beers.

Winters in Scotland are nothing to laugh at, there’s no doubt about that. One way to navigate the rougher weather months there is with a good bottle of Scotch and a roaring fire, which is precisely what Glenmorangie had in mind with the unveiling recently of its new limited edition A Midwinter Night’s Dram whisky.

Glenmorangie Midwinter Nights Dram 43% 70cl - RMW

But the ‘80s and ‘90s saw a gradual move away from blends to concentrate on single malts. For many years, the 10 Year Old expression was the only one bottled by the distillery but in 1987 Glenmorangie released a 1963 vintage single malt which was finished in oloroso sherry casks. This was followed in the early ‘90s by a Port cask-finished whisky and then a plethora of other cask finishes like Madeira, sherry and Sauternes. The switch to single malts was completed in 2014 when the Bailie Nicol Jarvie was discontinued. The classic Glenmorangie style as epitomised by Glenmorangie 10 majors on fresh fruit like oranges and peaches burnished with sweet American oak. Whisky creator Dr. Bill Lumsden is fond of saying that “that the orangey is morangey in Glenmorangie”, as a way of communicating the core flavour profile and how to pronounce the distillery name. Glenmorangie Midwinter Nights Dram has been matured in select Bourbon casks made from American white oak, delivering Glenmorangie’s classic house-style which is smooth and soft with notes of citrus, vanilla and almonds. Glenmorangie Midwinter Nights Dram Tasting Notes :-Created by the Master Distiller as a thank you for a job exceptionally well done. Celebrating the tradition of The Sixteen Men of Tain who received a special whisky in the festive season. For friends to share through the darker months. Comments: A nice ‘smooth’ (for want of a better word) whisky that doesn’t really offer anything over the standard 10 year-old. The nose is very pleasant, but it loses points in both the palate and finish. A bit generic, and the sherry influence isn’t entirely integrated. Reflecting the infamous Scottish winter, a ‘Midwinter Night’s Dram’ unites whisky matured in the finest quality Bourbon casks made from American white oak, delivering Glenmorangie’s classic house-style which is smooth and soft with notes of citrus, vanilla and almonds. Complementing this elegant spirit is a fuller-bodied liquid, extra-matured in the very best Oloroso Sherry casks of the type most famously used in our award winning expression, Glenmorangie Lasanta. The marriage of these two parcels creates a single malt whisky which displays the balance between an underlying sweetness and a rich, spicy, nutty top-layer. The Cadboll is a Glenmorangie single malt originally released for the Travel Retail market which was initially aged in bourbon casks before enjoying a finishing period in casks that once held Muscat and Sémillion wines. Bottled at 43%, the Midwinter Night’s Dram was a limited release by Glenmorangie in 2015. It is a no-age statement whisky that was aged in ex-Bourbon casks before being finished in ex-Oloroso Sherry Spanish oak casks. It won gold at the 2016 IWSC awards. Unfortunately for those of us not in the British Isles, A Midwinter Night’s Dram was a UK-only exclusive.