Tasting Notes
Spectra #1
Nose: Fresh and floral – vanilla, grass and meadows. Nice biscuits and a hint of lemon. Apple and ripe pear notes develop along with caramel shortbread.
Palate: Light, delicate and creamy: apples, pears and green leaves. The floral notes from the nose build, along with more biscuits and a touch of lemon shortbread.
Finish: Damp oak and twiggy hints, with stewed pear and a touch of earthiness.
Comment: This is a zesty and rather traditional take on Glenlivet – light, floral and delicate.
Spectra #2
Nose: What’s happening here? Sweet barbecue sauce, burning wood and a handful of singed leaves? This not what I expect from Glenlivet… Damp peat smoke, menthol and fresh sea breeze follow. Floral notes and crisp apple develop.
Palate: Soft, rounded and focused on charred wood. Roasted bananas on a beach barbecue with salty air whipping around. Pears and creosote appear, accompanied by lemon, grapefruit and a good sprinkling of salt.
Finish: Maritime and smoky – burnt toffee and zingy toffee apples.
Comment: This is not what I expected. It’s still got the orchard fruit and flowers you’d expect from Glenlivet, but someone’s set them on fire.
Spectra #3
Nose: Vanilla toffee with a hint of mint to start. Soft spice builds with fudge and leafy hints. Creamy apple, orange, peach and spongecake follow.
Palate: Very creamy, with loads of spiced apple sauce and a touch of clove-studded orange. Wine-poached pears are drizzled with toffee sauce and crumbled spiced biscuits.
Finish: A burst of mint and menthol is washed away by cream and apple sauce. Hints of charcoal and char build, along with mint.
Comment: Rich, rounded and creamy, this hints at the first whisky while making its way straight to the after-dinner drinks trolley.