1770 Glasgow 2018/2022 Mac Y Selection Tokaji Finish Single Malt Scotch Whisky 70 cl 52%

Hungarian dessert wine and Scottish malt whisky are not an obvious match. Yet a Tokaji barrique sat waiting in a Glasgow warehouse, and for the final months before bottling the whisky was allowed to stretch out in it. You can smell that somebody took a chance.

The Expert's Description

1770 Glasgow 2018/2022 Mac Y Selection Tokaji Finish is a Lowland Single Malt Scotch Whisky matured in 1st fill ex-bourbon casks and finished in a Tokaji barrique, bottled at 52%. Cask 18/968 was distilled on 3 February 2018 and bottled on 25 October 2022, giving 303 bottles for the Danish importer Mac Y.

Tokaji is a Hungarian sweet wine made from botrytised grapes, and its casks are used only very rarely for Scotch. Where a sherry cask brings dark fruit and nuts, Tokaji pulls towards apricot, honey and a tart marmalade note that leaves the whisky brighter and fresher than a typical finish. The bourbon wood underneath keeps the vanilla and cereal sweetness in place.

The whisky was distilled at Glasgow Distillery, where the mash ferments for over 72 hours before slow distillation in copper pot stills. Neither chill filtration nor colouring came anywhere near the bottle.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Dried apricot and orange marmalade first, with honey and a little yellow plum behind. Then the bourbon cask brings vanilla and a light pastry note, close to a Danish. A fine acidity runs through it all and stops the sweetness turning sticky.

Palate

Sweet and juicy to begin: apricot, honeydew melon and candied lemon. Mid-palate the oak and white pepper tighten up and a faintly waxy texture appears. The 52% gives body without heat. After a few minutes in the glass a dried mango note steps forward.

Finish

Medium length. Honey and citrus peel first, then drier oak and a touch of ginger. The sweetness fades calmly.

Specifications

Name: 1770 Glasgow 2018/2022 Mac Y Selection Tokaji Finish Single Malt Scotch Whisky 52%
Distillery: Glasgow Distillery
Region/Country: Lowland, Scotland
Type: Lowland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Age: 4 years
ABV: 52%
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: 1st fill ex-bourbon and finished in a Tokaji barrique, cask no. 18/968
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Distilled: 3 February 2018
Bottled: 25 October 2022
Number of bottles: 303
Edition: Mac Y Selection
EAN no.: 5714772001978

Flavour Profile

Fruity · Honeyed · Fresh · Spiced · Cask Strength · Vinous

Did You Know?

Tokaji was for centuries the most sought-after wine in Europe. Louis XIV is said to have called it Vinum Regum, Rex Vinorum, the wine of kings and the king of wines. Casks like these almost never turn up in Scottish warehouses, and when they do it is usually because a small distillery fancied trying something the big ones cannot be bothered with.

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Frequently Asked Questions about 1770 Glasgow 2018/2022 Mac Y Selection Tokaji Finish Single Malt Scotch Whisky 52%

What is a Tokaji cask and what does it do to the whisky?

A Tokaji barrique has held Hungarian sweet wine made from grapes affected by noble rot. The cask leaves apricot, honey and a tart marmalade note that is brighter and fresher than the dark fruit you know from sherry casks. The effect is obvious but less heavy.

How long did the whisky spend in the Tokaji cask?

Only the last part of its four years. In a finish the whisky is moved from its main cask into a second cask for a shorter spell, typically months rather than years. The point is to add a layer, not to take over the flavour.

Is 52% high for a four year old whisky?

It is high, though not unusual for single cask releases. Cask strength simply means the whisky was not diluted with water before bottling. Young whisky has lost less alcohol to evaporation, so the strength sits higher than in an old bottle from the same warehouse.

What does whisky from a city Lowland distillery taste like?

Glasgow Distillery sits in an industrial park rather than out on a moor, and the style is bright and malty with clear fruit. To compare it with the rest of the region, browse our range of Lowland Whisky.

Will it suit someone who normally drinks sherry matured whisky?

Yes, but expect a different kind of fruit. Where sherry gives raisins and chocolate, Tokaji gives apricot and honey with more acidity. It is still a wine cask profile, just in a lighter key.

What makes a single cask bottling different?

There is no blending and no repeat. Everything in the bottle came from cask 18/968, and those 303 bottles are all there is. The next cask from the same distillery will taste different even if it gets identical treatment.