Glengyle Distillery Kilkerran Work in Progress 5 Sherry Wood 9 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky (700ml)

The arresting bouquet is fresh and vibrant, redolent of spicy plum pudding with additions of dried coconut and vanilla. Aeration shifts the focus towards dried fruits (apricot / fig) while the palate exhibits an amalgam of fruit, wood and judiciously integrated peat that comes across as seamless, perfectly balanced and with better staying power than its Bourbon matured siblings. A squeaky clean sherry cask. If you’ve enjoyed Springbank’s 10 Year old bottling you should love this. It bears more than a passing resemblance to the mother distillery’s house style. 46% Alc./Vol. Non-chill filtered.

Other reviews... Having released four previous “work in progress” expressions of Kilkerran, 2013 sees the launch of two editions, one matured in sherry casks and the other in bourbon barrels. The sherry-aged variant yields overripe green grapes and figs on the nose, followed by honey and plain chocolate, while the palate is quite full, softly fruity, with soft toffee and a hint of brine. The finish dries significantly, with cocoa powder, licorice, and lots of spice. 87 points - whiskyadvocate.com (Vol. 22, #3) Reviewed by: Gavin Smith