Glenrothes 1996 Editor’s Cask #9973

The second of the duo — destined for the U.S. and Taiwan — is a relative youngster and has been extracted from a fresh Spanish oak sherry hogshead. The combination of first-fill and smaller cask size is immediately apparent. The color is mocha dark and the nose has a distinctly sulfurous twist, behind which are black cherries dipped in chocolate, tonka bean, and leather. For me, there’s too much cask and not sufficient Rothes complexities, especially on the palate.