Glenesk (also known as Glen Esk, Hillside, Highland Esk, North Esk and Montrose) used to be a flax-spinning mill. However, at the end of the 19th century a huge whisky bubble was growing in Scotland. Entrepreneurs were building dozens of new whisky distilleries - or converting mills and other factories to distilleries. Hillside / Glenesk was one of those distilleries. In 1897 the mill was converted into a malt whisky distillery by wine merchants Septimus Parsonage & Co. After operating for a little over a decade, the malt whisky distillery was closed during the first world war. It remained silent until 1938, after which it was turned into a grain whisky distillery and reopened by the new owners Joseph W. Hobbs and Associated Scottish Distillers Ltd. The distillery was closed in December 1985 and the distilling license was cancelled in 1992. Except for the maltings, the buildings of Hillside / Glenesk were demolished in 1996. I don't have that much information nor samples or bottles from this distillery as they're very few and far between.
Glen Esk 30yo 1971-2001 49% Old Malt cask Douglas Laing
I got full bottle of this at a rather fair price a couple of years ago, 70€, thankfully I put a 5cl aside for times like these. But I remember it as a kind of lowland-style highlander, floral and grassy. But lets try it once again. The color is golden. It smells of peppery notes, flawless, but one-dimensional, some glue and peppery notes, even though some very mild rubbery notes. The taste is sweet, camphor, mint leaves, dried apricots, also some honey and nougat, great stuff! The finish is all on hops, camphor sweetness, ginger, watermelon, clementines, peaches, sweet, minty and zesty.
Just a great whisky that really open up with some time in the glass: 7
Glen Esk 29yo 1983-2012 54.6% Blackadder Raw Cask cask#4929
From the great IB series Raw Cask. This one comes from a refill sherry butt. The color is golden amber. They've not let any of the cask sediments into this sample bottle, unfortunately, I really like those. It smells of min, vanilla, hay, gin, burnt, cinnamon, light oily notes, chili oil, sulphur. The taste is sweet, heather, creamy, peppery, wheat, cloves, butter, stewed onions, wheat beer, kinda fruity but its hard to pin down exactly what it is. I'm amazed of the quality here. The finish is on cashews, pistachios, licorice, wheat crackers and chalk.
Great Glen Esk, could this be a hidden gem in the world of list distilleries?: 9
Glen Esk 13yo 1982-1995 66.5% Cadenhead's
Crazy high strength in this one. You'd ask why they bottled it so early. Perhaps its all a matter of quality, lets hope so. The color is white wine. It smells burnt, raw onions, spirity, leather, ginger, extremely spirity, seems the alcohol is doing most of the talking here. But lets taste before we add any water. The taste is buttery, sweet, honey, malt syrup, gingerbread. It's a fin palate, but I believe it could open up with some water. Water added. Now it turns more herbal, stewed onions, caramel, buttery, vanilla, honey, white grapes, malt syrup, a great concentrated sweetness on this youngster. But its far from a light whisky, this is heavy, rich and sweet whisky. The finish is peppery, rubber, raw garlic, chillies, curry, as spicy as it gets for a finish, and longlasting.
Amazing youngster, extremely concentrated, but beyond the nose, not spirity at all: 9
Glen Esk thriving and distilling.
Whats left of Glen Esk today
Next tasting: Littlemill Distillery
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