Glenmorangie A Tale of the Forest
Glenmorangie · Glenmorangie Distillery
Glenmorangie's experimental spirit finds perfect expression here — a whisky that channels the turning rhythms of a Highland forest through its remarkable botanical character. Matured using kiln-dried juniper and birch alongside traditional barley, it's unlike any conventional Scotch, yet unmistakably Glenmorangie in its elegance. In an issue celebrating rhythm in the glass, A Tale of the Forest delivers nature's own metronome: the endless cycle of growth, harvest, and renewal translated into liquid form. A singular, contemplative dram that rewards patience and attention.
Nose
An immediate wave of juniper and pine needle gives way to something almost herbal — fresh birch sap, wild mint, and a delicate sweetness reminiscent of honeyed botanicals. Underneath, there's toasted barley and a gentle waft of beeswax that grounds the woodland aromatics. It's a nose that breathes with the cadence of forest seasons: green growth yielding to amber warmth.
Palate
Silky and medium-bodied, the palate opens with a surprising burst of woodland botanicals — juniper berries, dried heather, and a whisper of pine resin. This transitions into a honeyed malt core, with notes of candied orange peel, vanilla custard, and toasted almonds arriving in rhythmic succession. A gentle spice — white pepper and clove — surfaces mid-palate, giving structure to the botanical sweetness. The mouthfeel has a remarkable cyclical quality, each sip revealing the same flavor arc in slightly different proportions.
Finish
Long and gently drying, with lingering juniper, sweet malt, and a final exhale of beeswax and dried herbs. The botanical character persists well after the sip, like the memory of a forest walk carried on your clothes.
- Region
- Highland
- Cask Type
- Ex-bourbon American white oak casks with botanically-kilned barley
Cocktail Suggestion
The Evergreen Pendulum — 2 oz Glenmorangie A Tale of the Forest · 0.75 oz fresh lemon juice · 0.5 oz honey syrup (2:1 honey to water) · 0.25 oz Green Chartreuse · 2 dashes celery bitters · Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake vigorously for 12 seconds. Double strain into a chilled coupe. Express the lemon twist over the surface and nestle the rosemary sprig alongside it. · Garnish: Fresh rosemary sprig and a lemon twist · Glass: Coupe
Food Pairing
The whisky's juniper and herbal complexity mirrors the rosemary-thyme crust on the lamb, while its honeyed malt sweetness harmonizes with the caramelized edges of roasted parsnips, carrots, and turnips. The gentle clove spice in the finish cuts through the lamb's richness, creating a rhythmic dialogue between plate and glass — each bite resetting the palate for the next sip, and vice versa.
Glenmorangie's Director of Whisky Creation, Dr. Bill Lumsden, has long been fascinated by the intersection of botany and distillation. For A Tale of the Forest, he turned to an ancient technique: incorporating botanicals — juniper berries, birch bark, and local heather — into the kilning process alongside the malted barley. The result is a whisky that captures the cyclical essence of the Scottish Highlands, where forests breathe through seasons in an ancient, unhurried rhythm. Released as part of Glenmorangie's 'Tales' series of limited but recurring experimental bottlings, it represents the distillery's belief that whisky can be a living chronicle of place. The forest that inspired it stands just miles from the distillery on the Dornoch Firth, where the same trees have witnessed centuries of seasonal change — a clockwork of nature encoded, at last, in spirit.
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