Scandimania: Glenmorangie 10 Year Old Original Single Malt Whisky

I do love modern technology. When you really sit back and think about some of the technological advances we have at our finger tips, it really does amaze. In fact, as I write this I am a living embodiment of how incredible technology is: I have a battery powered bluetooth keyboard which is connected to an iPad mini. The keyboard itself is sensitive to light and will only provide backlit keys when the light is low. I'm told by the manual that if the backlight isn't used, at two hours a day usage, the battery will last an entire year. Longer than most of my whiskies last me.

Add to this my current location: I'm sitting in an airline seat, on a giant hunk of metal currently hurtling through the sky at… let me check on the screen imbedded into the seat in front of me where I have a GPS readout of exactly where my plane is in the sky... yes, at 504 mph (ground speed).

The whole thing, this amazing mix of technology, is pretty mind blowing, really.

We live in an incredible time when we have technology like this at our fingertips and we eat and drink better than the most successful kings in history. We are very blessed people.

But as technology develops, some (which were hyper-exciting at the time) become obsolete. Take the entertainment centre in the seat in front of me: I remember my first ever long haul flight when I was about 12, flying to Canada for an extended family holiday. The sheer excitement of films, TV shows, games... all hidden behind a small screen to play with for hours was amazing. Nowadays, not so.

In fact, such is my distrust of the quality of the entertainment I'm likely to find in-flight, that I've taken to loading up my iPad with all the goodies that I might need. I'm hardly likely to find Alpha Papa: Alan Partridge The Movie, on a US carrier's servers, I feel.

In loading up my iPad with titbits of entertainment, I took to downloading the final episode of Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall's Scandimania, a show which has aired in the UK on Channel 4. Known for his very British approach to cooking, HFW (as we shall refer to him) went on a mission to discover what it is that makes the people of Sweden, Denmark and Norway so darn happy. Over three shows he left his comfort zone and went in search of the stories about industry, history, culture and food.

I had previously managed to see his shows on Sweden and Denmark when they were broadcast, but missed the final show, all about Norway and so used C4's on demand service, 4OD, to download it onto my iPad for this flight across the Atlantic.

The show was of particular interest to me, as regular readers to caskstrength.net will know that I am a Norwegian passport holder. Now, I would be the first to admit that I'm not the best when it comes to upholding simple national traditions, such as speaking the language. 

Shame on me. 

Nor do I own the national dress and I rarely celebrate 17th May (Norwegian Independence Day).

However, there is an undeniable affinity that I feel with Norway and in particular the city of Bergen. Seeing it feature on the show made my heart beat a little faster and a smile creep across my face for a place I spent most summers as a child but precious few days as an adult.

In his final episode of Scandimania, HFW singles out Norway for its understated success; now the fourth richest country in the world, you may well find Norwegians in the best shops in London, but you sure-as-$hit wont find them having their matt black Lamborghini clamped outside Harrods or buying Premiership football clubs. They leave that type of 'class' to other wealthy nations.

Watching the show led me to wonder: if Norway was a whisky, which would it be? The answer was pretty simple: Glenmorangie.

Always around and one of the biggest selling single malt Scotch whiskies in the world, Glenmorangie is, despite being owned by uber fashion house LVMH, I think pretty understated. Yes, they advertise and yes, they speak of their quality but they don't seem to shout about it; they just get on with it.

I was recently re-introduced to their entry level offering at the launch of their new annual limited edition Companta (which we review here), the 10 Years Old 'Original' and fabulous it was too. I probably hadn't had a dram of it in about two years and was pleased to find that it was as delicious as I'd hoped it would be. A rare find indeed.

Glenmorangie - Original - 10 Years Old - 40% abv - £29 here or £26 here

Nose: A sweet yet malty nose gives hints of real vanilla pods, banana bread and both green and red apple skins. It is a developed nose that is delicate yet full of flavour. A lot going on without being unbalanced.

Palate: Drinkable neat, it gives some peach, more malt and banana initially on the palate, which develops nicely into lemon meringue pie, mango and a touch of vanilla at the death.

Finish: Soft and smooth with some spice and the vanillas again.

Overall: One retailer above currently has this for £26 for a 75cl which comes with a mini of another of the Glenmorangie stable. A steal? I would think so. This whisky is one to not be forgotten about if you're looking for some change from £30 (here in the UK) for a classic Highland single malt whisky.

The rediscovery of this dram threw me a puzzle: why did I 'forget' about it in the first place? Especially when I have been happily ordering Glenfiddich and The Glenlivet's lower priced bottles rather freely at bars recently. The only answer that I can come up with, is that the Original is rather softly spoken. Rather understated. Rather, erm... Norwegian.  

18 Under 30 Part 6 & 7: Bitter Truth Travellers Set /Glenfarclas 10 Year Old

Christmas shopping in Central London is probably one of the most unfulfilling experiences one can ever live through.  Granted, only an idiot would decide to leave it until the eleventh hour, but we've all been there- (if not in London, then A.N.Other major city) sharing the desperation of similarly frantic shoppers, as they flail about looking for gifts that look thoughtful, but don't smack of 'last minute'.

This year, I decided to buck my rather lackadaisical approach to present buying and popped down to Oxford Street at 10.30am today-  and imagine my surprise!  The high street was practically empty, with the likes of Debenhams, Selfridges and John Lewis (all gleaming meccas for the terrified Christmas shopper) perfectly accessible and dare I say it - enjoyable...  Once inside, I managed to get pretty much everything that was troubling me before 11.15, just in time to celebrate with a 'Six Item' breakfast and a pot of tea -  extraordinary.

Of course, there are many other things on my Christmas list that require a little more effort than simply heading to a department store and seeing what takes one's fancy.  On the liquid front, I've already placed my order for a few exciting christmas wines, some wonderful tawny port (which will be one of our forthcoming 18 Under 30 editions)  and this year's edition of Ballantine's Christmas Reserve (the last two editions have come to symbolise the flavours of Christmas in the Caskstrength office, alongside the classic Snowball cocktail and box of 'Eat Me' dates.) It seems that Christmas Reserve is a little tricky to track down in the UK this year (and also a smudge over £30) but for all you festive fans who live across Continental Europe, China, Taiwan Thailand and Mexico, your luck's in and from the sample we recently tasted, this year's batch is rather superb.

For this post however, we're focusing on things that are much easier to obtain, yet equally exciting.

The Bitter Truth are two very talented chaps based in Germany, who back in 2006 decided to revolutionise the fairly stagnant cocktail bitters market by drawing on a wealth of research into the history of these essential high strength elixirs.  After creating a big buzz amongst bartenders across the globe with their our personal favourite,  Professor Gerry Thomas' Own Decanter Bitters (based on a recipe used in the 1860s by the seminal US bartender of the same name), the guys went on to produce probably the ultimate collection of bitters for the aspiring home bartender -  the Traveller's Set. 

Here, five 10cl bottles of their most exciting flavours are tastefully packaged up, giving you the opportunity to experience just how different varieties of bitters can have a profound effect on the type of drink you're making.  From celery and chocolate to creole-influenced flavours, this set works with just about any spirit you can think of (the chocolate bitters will transform anything using tequila and add a wonderful aromatic note to rum cocktails) and the beauty is that it will probably last you till next Christmas - we're still using one from 18 months ago and we drink A LOT of cocktails in our office!

Our recommendation is to try spicing up your Whisky Sour or Manhattan with a dew dashes of the creole and the orange bitters -  also using a sherried Scotch whisky in place of a bourbon or rye- (yes, purists out there will say that this is called a 'Rob Roy', but purists seldom pay for a round of drinks... and when we're buying, it's called a Manhattan.)  The results are simply superb.
This is where Glenfarclas 10 year old fits in nicely.  For an extra sherried hit, the 15 year old nails the festive flavours perfectly, but you'll be paying around £37 for the privilege.

Caskstrength Festive Manhattan (ok, Rob Roy!) using Glenfarclas 10 year old and Bitter Truth Bitters

In a mixing glass, add:  50ml Glenfarclas 15 yo, 25ml sweet vermouth (Martini Rosso is an excellent choice, but for a spicier, more aromatic note seek out Punt e Mes) 3 dashes of creole bitters and 2 dashes of orange bitters)  

Add fresh ice and stir for around 20-25 seconds, until the drink is chilled and nicely diluted (but not too watery) and strain into a chilled Martini or Coupe glass.  Express a little orange zest over the glass and garnish with a sumptuous Luxardo Marischino cherry.  

The Bitter Truth Cocktail Bitters Traveller's Set is available for £16.29 at The DrinkShop. Click here for more details.

Glenfarclas 10 year old is available for under £30 here and here.