There’s nothing like opening up a mystery box
Certainly not in our opinion. And when it’s a rather smart rich blue box, pleasingly weighty, with an elegant illustration of grapes on the vine and the intriguing description ‘Twisted Vine’, we couldn’t wait to see what was inside…
The box that keeps on giving
Inside, were not one but two more boxes, along with some helpful notes that revealed the meaning of ‘Twisted Vine’. Glen Moray may have a long and noteworthy tradition, but it’s anything but stuffy. Known for its clever and surprising experiments with cask maturation, this was its latest expression – Glen Moray’s Speyside single malt matured in cognac casks.
The name ‘Twisted Vine’ certainly suggests those familiar vines of the Cognac region, but the name also hints at a twist on the typical and somewhat serious expectations normally associated with single malt whisky.
And inside those other two boxes?
One small, white and mysterious. The other blue and clearly containing something very special…
The former contained five small bottles looking rather like essential oils. With aromas that suggested coffee and dried fruits, they appeared to be a hint of what was to come. So why wait any longer?
The larger, rich blue box contained Glen Moray Twisted Vine itself. Instantly recognisable as part of the distillery’s family, thanks to the iconic bottle shape, its design picked up the vine motif in elegant gold.
Yes, those little teaser bottles may have suggested a few familiar notes, but the whisky itself went way further for us; prunes, coffee, warm toast and bags of dried fruit.
Who says an elegant single malt always has to be super serious?
We don’t. And neither, we think, do the folks at Glen Moray. Those fruity notes were giving us ideas and we wanted to get mixing with it.
Feeling fruity?
We certainly were. An exotic Whisky Sour perhaps? And we found that pineapple in particular played rather nicely with the Glen Moray in the form of a syrup. After a few more highly enjoyable experiments we were nearly there.
Shaken up and served over plenty of ice in a wine glass, it was practically good to go. Just to lengthen it a little and add an additional hint of luxe, we figured some bubbles would do the trick. And to finish things off, a little nod to the vine with a grape garnish.
And, if we do say so ourselves, it’s pretty damned tasty. DiVine in fact…
Pineapple DiVine
50ml Glen Moray Twisted Vine
25ml homemade pineapple syrup*
20m fresh lemon juice
40ml Prosecco
Grapes, to garnish
Method: Shake the first three ingredients over ice for about 20 seconds. Strain into a large wine glass filled with fresh ice cubes. Top with the Prosecco and give it a gentle stir. Garnish with grapes.
*Pineapple syrup
¼ fresh pineapple, trimmed and skin cut away
120ml brown sugar
120ml water
¼tsp mixed spice
Method: Cut the pineapple into small chunks and add them, along with the sugar, water and mixed spice, to a saucepan. Bring to the boil and simmer gently for around 30 minutes, occasionally mashing down the pineapple to make a puree. Leave to cool and strain off the lovely pineapple syrup. (Don’t throw away the remaining puree, it’s great mixed with ice cream for dessert.)
Instagram: @glen_moray_whisky #caskexplorersforever #twistedvine #glenmoray
