Whisky Review: Signatory Glenlivet 1995/15 Year

This one comes from Signatory's Un-Chill Filtered collection, which, as the name suggests, isn't chill filtered and is thus bottled at a respectable 46%. It comes from a single sherry butt, which I'm guessing was a refill rather than a first-fill cask.

Thanks to MAO for the sample.

Signatory Glenlivet 1995/15 Year Cask #144357

Nose: mild sherry (grows with time) layered over a solid malt core, raisins, 'Livet apple notes, floral/vegetal edge, bubblegum, caramel, cinnamon brown sugar, sweet chocolate, mild oak. After adding a few drops of water, the sherry takes over and becomes more dank, some honey rides on top of the oak, and oily notes emerge,

Taste: overlay of sherry on top of sweet malt that fades into bittersweet oak with a vegetal edge, apple skins, hints of lemon/lime, some vanilla and baking chocolate from the middle to back. After dilution, the palate becomes sweeter and more integrated, with the oak bolstering the other flavors, which actually makes it more pleasant as the flavors clash less,

Finish: creamy malt, then deeper and darker oak tannins with sherry/raisin residue

The best I can say for this one is that it's not bad. There are no obvious flaws, but it's not particularly exciting either. There is improvement after adding some water, but it's not quite enough to rescue it from the doldrums. With that said, it's definitely better than the other OB Glenlivets I've had, so there's that. So it's pleasant, but not something I would go out of my way to find. If you see a bottle for under, say, $60, it's worth grabbing as an easy-drinking malt.