Glenlivet 12 Year Illicit Still

Prior to 1824, all Scottish whisky distilleries operated illegally. The Glenlivet was the first to secure an official license for distilling and selling whisky. It also received the inaugural Intellectual Property certificate, granting exclusive rights to the "The Glenlivet" name. This expression, "Illicit Stills," reflects on the distillery's early 1800s history and aims to replicate the taste of the original Glenlivet before it was legalized. Bottled at 48% ABV with a golden hue. On the nose, it's highly complex and pleasing. Notes of green apples, detergent, toffee, and ginger are present. It's very clean and fruity, with a delightful apple spice aroma. While there's no alcohol scent, the nose feels potent and inviting. After three minutes, a freshly baked brownie aroma emerges. It's astonishing, evoking a sense of coolness, with hints of gooseberries and dry grass. Following the first taste, the aroma shifted to peaches and syrup. On the palate, I found it delicious. Flavors of raw rice, pears, honey, cardboard, and oak spices were detected. The second sip was sweeter, revealing a pleasant caramel note, peaches, gooseberries, and burnt hay. It's very enjoyable, reminiscent of licking envelope glue. A fantastic dram, with notes of paper and old books. Aftertaste... was it peaty? Paper, cardboard, hay, and earthy notes were prominent. Wonderful. An ashtray and cigarette-like, very peaty finish. Overall, I had heard positive things about this whisky, but I never anticipated it would be THIS GOOD. It's an immense, highly enjoyable, complex, and fairly potent dram, packed with fruity, spicy, and peaty flavors. This is how whisky ought to be. While I don't consider it the absolute best whisky ever, it's a wonderful expression that all whisky enthusiasts should experience. My rating is 96 out of 100.

Nose: Apple, pear, vanilla, barley sugar, cherries, a hint of honeysuckle. Palate: Arrives with a sweet and salty sensation, akin to salted caramel mixed with diluted honey. As it evolves, the basket of orchard fruits prominent in the nose also appears on the palate, alongside berries and rosewater. Later on, I detect a subtly bitter, grassy note, but it's not unpleasant. The texture is adequate, nothing remarkable, but it is smoother than the standard 12-year-old expression. Finish: Medium to long. Orchard fruits fade into black tea tannins, but the lingering aftertaste is mildly salty and sweet. This is unmistakably Glenlivet whisky, and specifically an enhanced version of the standard 12-year-old core expression. It was matured entirely in refill bourbon casks and was not chill-filtered, but for some reason, it was artificially colored. My immediate thought upon tasting this for the first time (besides questioning what fool decided to add coloring to a special anniversary release that was otherwise pure in concept) was, "Why isn't this part of the core range?" Doing so wouldn't hurt sales of the standard 12-year-old, as this would undoubtedly be more expensive, but it would restore some credibility to the distillery that was damaged by their recent release of disappointing age-statement-less spirits. Illicit Still was created as a limited edition for the distillery's 200th anniversary and was followed by another spirit called the "Licensed Dram,” but neither expression is currently available. “Good”: 83/100 (3.5 stars).

I've always found the standard Glenlivet 12 to be a pleasant and dependable dram, but not particularly exceptional or "mind-blowing." Learning about this higher proof and non chill filtered version definitely piqued my interest. Although not available locally, I found a California vendor selling it for less per bottle than the standard 12 yo available to me. Naturally, I ordered a few bottles. I was eager to do my first pour, then quite disappointed. The fruity vanilla spice of the very smooth-drinking Glenlivet was present; however, it was accompanied by an unpleasant bitterness. Ugh!! Tried another pour, same outcome. I wondered if this is a dram that truly benefits from chill filtering removing fatty acids. I put the bottle aside. Two weeks later, I tried it again. Wow, what a transformation! The classic Glenlivet flavors were all there, but more potent, as if amplified. The bitterness was gone. What a lovely dram! This is one of those drinks that needs time to open up. Be patient and enjoy.

This is reminiscent of a higher proof version of that other distillery's Founder's Reserve. It's not my top choice, but it's not bad either. While I can't speak for other regions, it's a decent bargain here in CA for under $40. It comes in just under 100 proof but drinks like it's at its stated proof. There's an underlying alcohol heat throughout the taste, with a hint of chocolatey sweetness. I detected a slightly medicinal bitterness in the aftertaste. This tastes rough around the edges, but perhaps that was intentional, considering the illicit nature of the original whiskey it's named after? I'm unsure about this one. If that other specific bottling wasn't so hard to find around here, I'd gladly pay the $30-$40 price increase for a bottle of that instead of this.

Nose: Honey, malt, and grapefruit/lemon zest. Reminiscent of acidic white wine. Features dense burnt fruitcake, caramel, and golden raisins. Taste: Rich honeyed fruitcake with golden raisins, apple, light caramel, and vanilla. A bitter, dusty oak note emerges midway, similar to the aftertaste of very bitter dark chocolate. Grapefruit zest appears on the finish. Adding water softens everything, mellowing the bitter and barley notes. It enhances the fruit and sweet flavors, introduces a creamy texture, and transforms the sour notes into a sweeter orange profile. It's good, but not particularly worth seeking out.

It's similar to the standard 12-year, but more intense. I preferred it with a 1 ½ oz pour and ½ oz of cold spring water. Overripe Pineapple Bright honey Light marzipan Malty beer A bit more salt Chlorine (in a pleasant way) More intense in nearly every aspect Dear Glenlivet: please remove the artificial coloring, disclose it on the label, and market this as the primary 12-year bottling. Doing so will finally give meaning to the sanitized, mass-appeal ‘Founder’s Reserve’ product. Dry glass: Banana bread and plain bar soap.